How To Improve A Horses Walk?

[acorn92x]

I have a 15hh cob who I have recently brought (Had her for around 6 weeks now) who is proving to be a real star and is really starting to enjoy schooling. She hadn't done much of it before I got her so is consequently still green but has the most wonderful, willing attitude which always makes life easier! I'm looking to do some dressage and ridden showing with her and would like some advice on how to improve her walk. Her trot is good, very active and rhythmical and she is relaxed and soft after some time of working in and doing a few transitions, changes of rein etc. However, while she is relaxed in her walk, it's not her best pace - it's incredibly slow and just really not forward. She doesn't come through from behind and just sort of trundles along like it's all a bit of an effort really! She doesn't do anything offensive at all, it just doesn't feel purposeful or like it's really taking me forward. I carry a schooling whip and try not to nag her to go forward more but I find myself having to get after her a lot more than I would really like. She's very straight and has absolutely no problem with being ridden in a straight line and I've managed to teach her turn on the forehand and rein back so the lateral side of stuff is a work in progress too but she does understand it. Her canter is weak in the school but that's not surprising considering she hasn't done much! She's brilliant out hacking (It's her favourite thing - and mine for that matter!), lovely active trot and canter but her walk is still weak and not forward enough. I've got lessons booked for this Friday and next so will obviously ask for advise then but does anyone have any ideas of exercises as to how I could improve it as it feels like it's letting her down a bit? I'm doing an Intro B dressage test in a couple of weeks and ran through it the other night and her free walk was so slow it felt like she was verging on stopping!

 

[Pigeon]

The easiest way is to work on it out hacking! Work first in long and low at walk to encourage stretch and swing, and don't try and pick it up till you have that. In the school, I would try and make sure you are always doing something in walk, ie shapes or preparing for a transition. Walk to canter transitions can perk them up a lot!

I expect it feels worse than it looks, so don't panic about your test! If you have a relaxed walk the forward will come naturally, even if it takes a bit of time

 

[humblepie]

Agree with working it on the hack and also try using trotting poles in walk. Also try slowing the walk right down which sounds wrong when it is already slow or short and then asking the horse to walk longer for a few strides then back slower again etc so you are playing with it and then building up to more of the better walk. The walk is a difficult pace to improve but hopefully as she builds up generally it will get stronger.

 

[acorn92x]

Thanks very much guys I'm lucky to have some great hacking with lots of hills so have been doing lots of walking up and down with some short bursts of trot too so will keep going with that and will also try slowing her right down and then asking for a bit more at walk. It's funny you mention walk to canter Pigeon as she will do that perfectly on a hack but acts like I'm asking her to do something totally unheard of in the school! She's 7 (Was 7 in May) so is obviously not going to be established anyway but it's very useful to know that there are things I can do to improve her walk. She's a very relaxed girl and takes it all in her stride so I have no doubt that with time we'll get there (I'm not in a rush!). She's ridden in a french link loose ring snaffle which she does accepts nicely so have no reason to change it and is not strong at all so I think it's a case of time, patience and doing lots of exercises to help her gain strength. I've been doing about one session a week in the school (Normal routine is schooling 2 days and hacking 3 or 4 days, she always gets 1-2 days off a week) that is solely in walk with 5-10 mins trotting at intervals to break it up for her where we do circles (15-20m), 3 loop serpentines, half circles, centre lines, changes of rein and transitions all in walk which has definitely helped her balance and suppleness so will incorporate your suggestions into that too. Thank you both for your help though

 

[Goldenstar]

Hacking is the way forward .

 

[JillA]

I was always taught the walk will be what the walk will be - work on balance at trot and the walk will improve due to the engagement and use of the back that results. Cobs generally have fairly stuffy paces unless you get them really working through from behind, and that is best done at trot.

 

[Goldenstar]

I was always taught the walk will be what the walk will be - work on balance at trot and the walk will improve due to the engagement and use of the back that results. Cobs generally have fairly stuffy paces unless you get them really working through from behind, and that is best done at trot.

It's not true .
I have turned three horses with poor lateral walks into good walkers .
Of course you can never exceed the physical limitations of the conformation but you can defiantly improve walks .

 

[chestnut cob]

I disagree about being unable to improve the walk. I've recently been for a couple of lessons with someone riding at GP for a different perspective. We've worked on the walk an awful lot and I've been really careful to do my homework - my horse's walk, which isn't great, has improved enormously in a very short space of time.