Dressage Q - Getting horse to stretch down in trot

chickeninabun

chickeninabun

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I am doing a dressage comp on saturday and one part of my test is to do a 20m circle in trot letting the horse stretch down, before taking back up the reins.
Now, my horse stretches lovely in free walk but in trot is more like a giraffe!:rolleyes: Is there anything I can do to get her to stretch down before saturday?
Oh, and just to add, she doesn't lunge and I don't have time to teach her before the weekend, so anything lunge related is out of the question!:o
 
Leave a trail of polo mints that you have sneakly spat out of your mouth while riding the same 20 circle prior to this movement :D
 
DressageFjordNorman said:
You have got to add some pressure on the reins, asking your horse to stretch her head down and your hands abit wider than normal.
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My monkey horse thinks that more pressure on the reins means go faster!:rolleyes:
She's a pain on the road as we plod down the lanes on a long rein, until I hear a car coming so gather my reins up and she thinks thats the instruction to go faster! Will try keeping the contact but lowering my hands.
Thanks
 
I don't think there is much you can do in a couple of days, but the idea is for the horse to be secure in the contact and then you can push the reins forward - she should continue to seek the contact and stretch downwards into it.

In the first instance, try just pushing the reins forward a little way and encouraging her with your legs to keep stepping forward into the contact with a slightly longer/lower outline. In time you can build that up until she will stretch right down in a relaxed/stretched frame.

I think the main thing is to remember you still want her to take the contact - so don't just chuck the reins at her and hope she will stretch into it ;) A bit like free walk on a long rein, you should still have a connection (i.e. it's not free walk on loose rein).

Does that help at all?
 
Now for a serious reply, I can do serious at times :D....just not very often.

Practice this at home.
When walking, open your hands wide (as in silly side) lean forwards slightly and give your reins, push slightly forwards and down with the end (buckle end) over the withers, let him stretch down, (also do this when you cool off) if you can do this in walk, he'll learn to pick it up in trot, but obviously when you do this in trot during your dressage test, you don't make it quite so obvious (as in not stretching as far, nor doing any of the above with your reins) this is just the way to train them at home, but keeping a good active forward movement, otherwise you'll loose marks.
 
What about trying a bungee? I hasten to add that I am certainly no expert, but just a suggestion based on my limited knowledge! It may not work in time for a competition so soon, but I've previously ridden my neddy with a bungee over his poll, through the bit rings and then attached to his girth between his legs and have it only just tight enough so that he can't put his head in the air, but tight enough for him to realise that when he poked his nose in the air there was pressure on his poll and that when he stretched long and low there was no pressure. (When stood still the bungee is just loose when stood in an outline. Too short and it would encourage him to work behind the bit.)

The only thing I would say, and I note you mention that your horse doesn't lunge, is that I was always advised that when first doing this on a horse to do it on the lunge (and have it fairly loose at first), just in case they over react to the pressure on the poll. I lunged my horse in it a few times for short periods over a couple of days before hopping on board with the bungee then in place. My aim was to get neddy working long and low as he's only a youngster. He did over react slightly at first and bounced around a bit, but soon got used to it. Glad I wasn't on board to start with though!

Obviously you cant use it for the comp!
 
milliepops said:
I don't think there is much you can do in a couple of days, but the idea is for the horse to be secure in the contact and then you can push the reins forward - she should continue to seek the contact and stretch downwards into it.

In the first instance, try just pushing the reins forward a little way and encouraging her with your legs to keep stepping forward into the contact with a slightly longer/lower outline. In time you can build that up until she will stretch right down in a relaxed/stretched frame.

I think the main thing is to remember you still want her to take the contact - so don't just chuck the reins at her and hope she will stretch into it ;) A bit like free walk on a long rein, you should still have a connection (i.e. it's not free walk on loose rein).

Does that help at all?
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This is sound advice. Set your horse up well for it, as in a nice forward going working trot where she is actively going forwards into the bridle, and try pushing your hands slowly forward for a few strides before gently taking them back. praise if she does anything like stretch forward and down to it, and repeat. Be conscious to keep your rhythm of your rise the same so she doesn't speed up.

If she really isn't getting it but she does extension and collection of strides, I would try practising it with an extension, so she is more likely to reach. For this I would say you need to keep the rhythm the same but rise higher, so that she needs to take bigger steps to keep in tune with you. It won't be perfect as you're supposed to do it all without a change in rhythm or tempo but it'll be a reasonable attempt for having had 2 days to practice :D

Good luck x
 
Not got much advice for the trot (you saw my giraffe last time!) but thought i'd wish you good luck!

We're a bit gutted we can't go but my trailer is finally in for a service but we might come up to see what were missing and we should definitely be at the next one.

Good luck x
 
Thanks everyone. I'll keep practising all I can!:D

Thanks for the good luck wishes Dirty_D! You did great last time. We have hardly any entries this time (yes it is possible to have even less than last time:o) so I've got to ring the judge today to check she's ok to come to judge just 5 tests!!:eek: We were going to cancel but we may as well give it the go ahead just so that those that have entered are getting what they want out of the club.
We hardly had any takers for the showjumping last weekend, so we're debating whether to carry on putting them on each month:(. It just seems like a lot of organisation and setting up for hardly anyone to turn up! Don't worry you have good reason to not be able to come this time:p! I'll let you know if we have any more dressage planned.
 
I had this issue with free walk on a long rein, mine just thought it was a chance to look at the surroundings. My instructor suggested doing figures of 8s where I had to pick him up on the corners/circular parts but completely drop the contact on the straight/cross over. The constant change of flexion/rein and being picked up and let go seemed to work on him. I used to do it as a warm up and a cool down exercise.
 
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