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Tieing Around: Lesson learned: Response from pressure

David — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 14:10:56 +0000

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Last issue, we learned how rein position can make a difference. Now we’ll look at tieing around to let him figure out what works best in response to pressure from the bit.

The goal of tieing a horse around is to get him used to giving his neck and to teach him that resistance against the bit is not going to accomplish much for him. It’s a good way to let him figure out the best response to pressure from the bit without him being able to blame you for his discomfort. If the horse is particularly stiff to one direction, there’s nothing wrong with tieing him off to that side every day until he loosens up.

Make sure the rein goes under the crease of this shoulder.

A general comment whenever you are doing this is that you always want to start with the reins really loose. You can always tighten it up as you go, but if you start too tight the horse can get really scared, and you’ll end up with a wreck. When you first tie a horse around to the side you’ll want to tie the off rein first, that is, the rein he will be turning away from. Make sure it will have enough slack to accommodate the turn to the other direction and then wrap the rein around the cinch and tie it off. It should lie right below the crease of the horse’s shoulder. Then you’ll want to take the direct rein back to the back cinch ring (on the saddle) and tie it up snug enough that the horse’s head is turned to the side a little, but not so tight that he’s going to lose his balance or panic. If you were to think of a clock, and straight ahead was noon, you’d want him tied at about 10 o’clock or 2 o’clock, depending on the direction. However to start, you might aim more for 11 o’clock and 1. Also, make sure you pick a place with soft ground so he won’t scrape himself up too bad if he does go down. As he gets used to the concept you can bring him around a little tighter, but you don’t want to overdo it and risk an panic attack or injury by trying to do too much at once.

Once I have the reins tied I’ll step away from the horse and start clucking to him. Unlike some folks, I want to keep my horses moving when I have them tied around. I want them to start respecting the limits that the bit is putting on their movement and what they have to do to accommodate it. When you leave one just standing there, oftentimes you’ll come back and he’ll just be leaning on the bridle – and that’s sure not a lesson I want him to learn – just the opposite. So I’ll keep him moving so he bumps that bridle and learns how to stay away from it.

In the video material we’ve included a really good segment with a young horse getting tied around for the first time. I encourage you to watch it a few times before you try it on your own.

Lateral Flexion: Experimenting with Rein Position

David — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 14:20:43 +0000

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Last issue, we looked in detail at starting lateral flexion from a standstill. Now let’s look at rein position.

Once your horse is giving his head readily to the side from fairly light pressure, it might be a good time to experiment a little with how the position of your direct rein hand affects your horse. Although different horses will respond a little differently depending on conformation, you will find some general consistencies.

As you’ve probably experienced, if you take your direct rein way out to the side, the horse will oftentimes respond by sticking his nose out. Keeping your hand closer to your body and lifting up will encourage him to turn with more curl to his neck, keeping his chin closer to his body.

When you are working him laterally, go ahead and start with your hand out a little and, as you work your rein to maintain the flexion, bring your hand in closer to his neck and see how his posture changes. As you get your hand closer to his centerline, you’ll also find that while his head is bent to the side, he will tend to start moving straight ahead rather than following the bend of his nose. You can also make a big difference by how much inside leg you use during your flexions.

You can even experiment by moving your hand forward and back. His posture will be different when you’re lifting your hand up by his ears vs. back by your hip, like I am doing in this picture. At this stage in the game don’t take your hand across his withers as you bend him, but do spend time understanding how the different rein positions can influence your horse’s head, neck and shoulders. It will improve your riding and make your horse really “flexy.” Don’t restrict yourself to just the walk with this. Once you have it down, try it at the jog and the lope as well.

Although we talk a lot about the reins in this exercise, don’t forget to use your leg as well and make the horse bend his whole body, not just his neck. When I’m riding, I like to use 50 percent hand and 50 percent leg on virtually everything I do. We’re not just training the neck – although, it’s really important – we are training the whole body.

Editor’s Note: More with Les is a regular California Horsetrader column. Les Vogt has won more than 15 World Championships, including two wins at the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity. Although Les still rides and occasionally shows, his focus is giving clinics around the world and developing products for the performance horseman. To learn more about Les and to see his clinic schedule, visit the Web site: www.lesvogt.com

Lateral Flexion – Start at a standstill

David — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 14:30:39 +0000

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Last issue, we looked in detail at the first exercise for lateral flexion. Now we reinforce it at the standstill.

This exercise is designed to limber and stretch the horse’s neck and shoulders. It may be uncomfortable at first for older or thick-necked horses, but that’s all the more reason you should spend time on it. In the long run, it will really help your horse’s balance and agility.

Start at a standstill. Then with a direct rein ask your horse to bring his head around to the right. Remember to bring your hand up as you ask for the turn.

The further you can get the stretch the better, but build up slowly. Also, at first you’ll want to reward him right away for the correct movement, but as time goes on you’ll want to continue asking him to come a little further and hold the bend for longer times.

Introduce these things slowly, however, so that the horse is able to build confidence in you and in himself as he tackles new things. Eventually you want your horse so limber that you can bring his head all the way to your boot and have him hold it there with feather-light contact on the rein.

This can be a great exercise to do when you’re on your horse and stop to talk to someone – instead of just sitting there, try doing lateral flexions to both sides to keep your time productive.

Trainer Tip
Release

No matter what you do with your hands when you’re riding, I’m convinced it’s the point where you release the pressure that the horse really learns. That is your horse’s reward for having done what you asked correctly. And that reward is what he’ll be looking for in the future as the training process continues. I’ve seen many riders get so intense in trying to accomplish things, that they forget to reward the horse with that release when he makes a small step in the right direction, and then they get frustrated that the horse doesn’t “get” the lesson! Don’t try to do too much in one day, and make it clear to your horse when he’s done what you asked him for – even if it’s just the right thought.

Lateral Flexion — Here’s the first exercise

David — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 13:50:49 +0000

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After reviewing our foundation last issue, we look at an important exercise for flexion.

Basic Steering
Even if you have a trained horse that you’ve ridden for years, it’s important that you don’t skip this section. If you’re tempted, ask yourself these questions:

(1) When I start to pick up one rein, does my horse start to give his nose BEFORE I’ve taken all the slack out of that rein?

(2) When my horse turns his head in response to rein pressure, does he bend his whole neck and keep his head more or less perpendicular to the ground and level with his withers, or does he twist his neck and just stick his nose toward the direction I’m pulling him?

If he doesn’t respond to your lateral, or side-to-side, rein pressure from a light cue and with proper form, you’ll never get the soft vertical flexion you need for the high-performance events. So stick with us – this “retraining” alone might have a profound effect on your horse’s performance.

The Procedure
Here’s the procedure: As you are walking along in a straight line, pick up one rein and make soft contact with the bit. If your horse doesn’t immediately start to yield, initiate the bend by pressing with your inside leg (the same side as the rein you are picking up) while you softly work the corner of the horse’s mouth by just squeezing your fingers like you would squeeze a sponge.

Release and Reward
At first, you’ll want to release the rein pressure as soon as the horse gives to your hand – so he understands that’s all that you wanted, and that it was really easy. If he starts to give when he feels you pick up the rein, you may even stop and just praise him. As always they will learn the quickest when you are consistent with your cues, and you make it very clear when they’ve done right by releasing the pressure
and rewarding their effort.

Twisted Head = Twisted Spine
If your horse responds to your rein pressure by twisting his head rather than bending his neck, you’re going to need to use your indirect rein to keep his nose in and down as he turns. To help you understand the difference, think of it this way: If the form is correct the horse’s ears should stay close to level as he bends his neck around. If he’s twisting his head you will see the outside ear dropping as his head moves sideways. This may seem minor now but this form will become really critical when you start to do turnarounds.

If the horse’s neck is twisted it will not only be harder for him to step around the turn with the outside front leg, but it will send his weight to the outside hind leg rather than to the inside pivot foot. So as you can see, achieving the correct form now will pay off in spades as your training progresses.

Start With the Inside Rein
Another thing you want to be conscious of is that you try to keep your horse’s head about level with his withers, or even lower, as he turns it from side to side. You don’t want him to lift; you just want him to turn. If he does start to lift or twist his head, try bumping him just enough with the outside rein to get his nose down as he turns. Since our goal is for the horse to initiate the correct form on his own, always start your flexions with just the inside rein, and then add the outside one only if he gets out of form.

When you are starting a colt, you show him how to respond to a rein by pulling it out to the side and directing him. As soon as he starts to get it you’ll want to start keeping your hands closer to your body and to literally pick up the rein to initiate the bend. This will encourage him to keep his chin closer to his body like we want, rather than sticking his nose out to the side. Lifting up the hand also encourages your horse to keep his shoulders up rather than leaning into the turn, another concept that will become critical further down the line.

Once you feel confident with lateral flexion at the walk go ahead and try it at the jog and lope so that every time you turn your horse you’re asking for this form: neck curled toward the direction of the turn, head fairly level and shoulders straight up and down.

A quick review of our foundation

David — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 14:40:51 +0000

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Before continuing on new steps in next issue, we’ll revisit these reference points
USING YOUR HANDS
Ideal rein position

Hold your reins as wide or wider than your shoulders for maneuverability
Keep your reins near or in front of the saddle horn
If your reins are too long, you are sacrificing reaction time and ability
Remember to keep slack in the rein
To shorten your reins, you should learn how to shuffle them down as shown

Quick release

Rewarding your horse quickly is critical
A technique is shown for a “spring-loaded” release

Direct vs. indirect rein
Direct rein

Also known as the inside rein
Controls direction of travel
Controls the bend

Indirect rein

Also known as the neck, brace, or outside rein
Controls forward and backward motion
Slacken for forward
Tighten for backward
Moves shoulders laterally
Can be used to create more vertical flexion
Useful for small circles and spins
Causes the pivot step

FEET & SEAT
Stirrup Length

Shorter stirrups, especially down fence or in front of the herd

Weight Distribution

Keep your weight in your seat, not in your feet
Just enough weight in the feet to keep the stirrups in place
This will help to stay back in the saddle, behind the motion, and slow your horse

Types of boots

Crepe soles can be dangerous; if you want to wear them take off excess sole
Looser boots are safer
Lace-ups can be dangerous because they won’t come off if your foot hangs in the stirrup after a fall

Position of feet in the stirrup

Les rides with feet all the way in the stirrup. This lets him use the stirrup as a fulcrum so he can choose when he does
and does not want his spur to make contact with the horse

DENTAL CARE
Teeth are second only to soundness

Abnormal or strange responses to pressure may indicate dental problems
If your horse flings his head in the opposite direction of an aid, then follows your hand, he may be reacting to pain in his mouth

Molars are the most problematic

Teeth wear often wear unevenly and the outside edges of the molars may flare or develop sharp hooks that can cut the inside of the mouth and/or affect your ride

To examine your horse’s teeth

Insert your finger into the corner of your horse’s mouth, pointing up Move it back and down to get a quick feel of the molar edges Don’t linger. If hooks are present you could cut yourself on them or your horse might bite your hand
Do this very carefully. Your horse can bite pretty hard!

Have your horse’s teeth checked at least once a year

Editor’s Note: More with Les is a regular California Horsetrader column. Les Vogt has won more than 15 World Championships, including two wins at the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity. Although Les still rides and occasionally shows, his focus is giving clinics around the world and developing products for the performance horseman. To learn more about Les and to see his clinic schedule, visit the Web site: www.lesvogt.com

Are You Ready to Move On?

David — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 14:25:02 +0000

When your hands start to feel resistance does an alarm go off in your head telling you to get them moving? You don’t want to move to the next level until you have trained your hands to work the snaffle, not pull on it, and you’re doing it at the walk, the jog and the lope.
If you lay a leg on your horse and he doesn’t respond, do you instinctively start bumping him with your boot top rather than just squeezing harder? If you’re still squeezing with your legs and not using them in a rhythmic fashion, you need to stay here until the movement is second nature at all three gaits.

When you’re riding, are you staying totally relaxed, with no stiffness or tension in any part of your body? If you are holding tension in your shoulders, legs or anywhere else when you ride, you need to let it go. Your body needs to stay loose so you can effectively use your cues.

Can you stay balanced in the saddle without ever having to rely on your reins or stirrups to help you? You’re hands and legs will have their own jobs as we move along, You need to be secure in the saddle to use your legs effectively for cueing your horse.

Can you shorten and lengthen your reins without even thinking about it? Once you’ve mastered them, you’ll find these long reins are great to ride with. If you’re still getting tangled up in them you need more practice. Maybe in front of the TV at night?
Can you use the tail of your reins effectively? If you’re still hitting yourself or missing your horse, you need more practice. Carry a rein as you walk around the barn area and practice until you have the move mastered.
It’s really critical that you master these skills before you try to train your horse. The skills will make your cues far more effective, and really propel your success with the rest of the program. If these concepts are brand new to you, we suggest that you spend the next couple of weeks working on yourself and your own habits before you start to work on your horse. In the long run, you’ll really be glad you did.

Editor’s Note: More with Les is a regular California Horsetrader column. Les Vogt has won more than 15 World Championships, including two wins at the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity. Although Les still rides and occasionally shows, his focus is giving clinics around the world and developing products for the performance horseman. To learn more about Les and to see his clinic schedule, visit the Web site: www.lesvogt.com

Training Your Hands

David — Thu, 20 May 2010 13:40:10 +0000

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After getting relaxed in the saddle last issue, we focus on the reins

Every time you ride, be conscious of whether you’re letting your horse pull on your hands or not. There are two situations where you will feel resistance and you need to train yourself so that alarms go off in your head when they happen. First is when you pick up on a rein and feel resistance; that is, your horse doesn’t give right away to the pressure; and second is when the horse takes the slack out of the rein and starts leaning on you. Any time you feel resistance, you need to instinctively start working the snaffle in his mouth, until the resistance goes away and he gives his head with a soft poll. You don’t have to tug or pull, just move the snaffle back and forth with enough pressure to remind your horse it’s in his best interest to give to you and soften his poll.

Since this may be a new concept to you, it’s important that you stay at it until your response is instinctive. Compare it too the way you first learned to shift your car. At first you had to think about putting in the clutch, then shifting the gear, then releasing the clutch, all without giving yourself whiplash! But after a while you were just shifting gears without really thinking about it. Until your hands respond like this to pressure from your horse, you don’t want to move ahead into any of the next levels. Keeping your horse’s neck soft and supple at all times is a cornerstone of this program, and if your horse is leaning on your hands when you ask him to do something, you need to work the bridle until he yields to the pressure, and then make sure to reward him with slack.

Good Habits: Don’t Quit at the Gate
As you get more serious about your riding you’ll find there are all sorts of magnets that will draw or repel your horse. You’ll find that he’ll easily turn towards the barn, but act like he’s only half broke when it comes to turning away from it. This presents enough of a challenge on its own, but don’t make it worse by riding him to, or even worse, out of the gate when you’re done with your session. Instead, dismount in the middle of the arena, loosen your cinch, and walk your horse out.

Editor’s Note: More with Les is a regular California Horsetrader column. Les Vogt has won more than 15 World Championships, including two wins at the NRCHA Snaffle Bit Futurity. Although Les still rides and occasionally shows, his focus is giving clinics around the world and developing products for the performance horseman. To learn more about Les and to see his clinic schedule, visit the Web site: www.lesvogt.com