Welcome to Trainer Tuesday! Each week we ask trainers a question and gather their answers for you. These trainers have a range of experience, backgrounds, and focus points of their programs, so the answers have as much variation as you would expect and also probably much more similarity.
This week’s question posed is: For a colder, less responsive horse, how would you get them to be more reactive?
Here are their responses:
“Assuming the horse is healthy and fit, I would incorporate transition work and voice commands into its training program. Transitions between gaits–like walk to canter, trot to canter, or canter to walk–and then transitions within gaits–like extension and collection–will help the horse pay attention and inspire responsiveness.
In addition to this transition work, you can train voice commands by associating the word with the desired action to help encourage them without continually nagging with leg. Having variation in your daily exercises will also help keep them engaged and thinking without getting bored. I am big on reward and praise, so when they do something well and correctly, let them know.
Most importantly, remember patience. We tend to look for instant gratification in this day and age and need to remember it takes time to build habits. Progress can be just one small step forward, not necessarily crossing the finish line.” –Quinn Partridge
Read more from Quinn here.
“On a cold horse that is a bit numb to the leg, I always make sure that I come prepared to ride with a whip and a spur so that I can effectively teach the horse to respond correctly to my leg pressure. I find that a dressage whip while working my horse on the flat is a very helpful tool to reinforce my leg and avoid nagging them with my spur.
Starting at the walk, I will ask my horse to step into a trot by adding pressure from my leg. If they don’t respond by moving forward when I add more leg pressure, I will raise my heel slightly, touching their side with my spur until they move forward into a trot. Once the horse responds by stepping forward into the trot, I lower my heel and give them a pat on the neck. If the horse does not react by moving forward into the trot, I will once again add pressure from my leg, touch them with my spur, give a cluck, and give the horse a soft tap with the dressage whip behind my leg so that the horse learns to associate my leg pressure and cluck with going forward. Once the horse responds by moving forward to the desired pace, I promptly remove the pressure from my spur and give them a pat on the neck.
Before going into the show ring or starting to jump a cold horse, I find that putting my leg and spur on their side firmly and getting an exaggerated forward response from the horse and allowing them to gallop up in front of my leg in the schooling area helps me and the horse to maintain that forward canter rhythm while on course.” –Alex Arute-Kacheris
Read more Trainer Tuesday Responses from Alex here.
“For a less responsive horse, I would start the ride by making the horse lengthen the walk and get off of the rider’s leg. Then move onto the trot doing the same thing. Make the horse lengthen the trot so that it’s responding to the leg. Once you’ve done about 5-10 minutes of this, you can start to think about riding with more connection.
Lateral work is another great way to get the horse to be more responsive. Make the flatwork interesting so that your horse isn’t bored of the typical walk, trot, and canter. Along with lateral work, I think lots of transitions and lengthening and collecting its stride can make a dull horse a little bit more responsive.
Make sure you are stretching deep into your heel to wrap your calf around the horse rather than digging into its side with your heel. This is more effective and limits the amount of nagging with your leg. Something you can practice with a very unresponsive horse if those methods don’t work is carrying a crop. When you go to put your leg on, if you get no response, give a little tickle with the crop at the same time as you use your leg to create some forward motion. When you get a positive reaction, make sure to praise the horse so they know they did what you were asking.” -Madelyn Van Tiem
“Without spurs, but carrying a dressage whip, I would do lots of upward transitions. Starting with a halt to walk. Expecting the horse to move off my leg briskly by the second squeeze. If they do not respond quickly, the third que is a flick of my whip behind my leg. Then I’d advance to walk to trot, and trot to canter. Always use the same pressure with your leg squeeze.
Once I’ve mastered transitions, I then move on to encouraging the horse to carry pace with a light leg aid. If they slow down or break, I back up with a squeeze then if no response a whip flick. The next step would be lengthening the stride off light leg aid with the same system, backing up a lack of response with a whip flick, if necessary.” -Lauren Hill Haberkorn
“Two techniques I’ve used are 1. Using a crop (for the hind end, not on the shoulders). 2. Carrying two dressage whips and alternating use of them. Once the horse starts moving forward, reward them! (Sometimes a horse can get sluggish with an unbalanced rider too).” -John Abott
Read more Trainer Tuesday responses from John here.
