Is it all worth it ?

[Belle90]

Hey all . I've been thinking recently and basically I love my horse to death . Ever since I was a little girl I've dreamed of a horse I could trail ride , have fun with and pop a few jumps . I finally got that horse in 2012 . I did have a few problems with him but I worked through them . I love nothing more than tacking up and going for a ride . But recently my instructor has made me and my horse really try to bend and work down on the bit . He finds this hard and so do I lol . He's not lazy and I don't need much leg but im quite happy riding him on hacks with not much contact on the rein and him stretching down . Now I'm being asked to get him to collect and go on the vertical . Now on hacks hes sore and swinging his head all over the place . I love having a mess about in the school . Jumping , poles . Ect but is all this bending and getting a horse in an outline worth it ??

 

[9tails]

Not the way you're being taught to do it, no! Your horse doesn't yet have the muscle tone to work consistently in an outline and he's getting sore. Teaching him to use and build up those muscles must be done like interval training, so ask for 10 seconds, then relax. Build it up gradually, the carriage should come from him working correctly, not from cranking in and holding his head on the vertical.

 

[Shay]

It really depends on what you want to do. If you are happy at the level you are at and don't really want or need to progress then change your instructor and make clear that you want to remain where you are. There is no harm in that - many people are just happy riding and being with their horses.
If you want to progress your riding you need to talk to your instructor and explain your concerns. Ask why she wants to teach this element at the moment, and if there is anything you can do to help your horse build the muscles he needs. Any new work is going to be hard at first and working new muscles to build them does make the sore for a while -for both of you.
Either way - talk to your instructor so that you understand what their goal is and they understand yours.

 

[L&M]

As above, decide what you want to achieve and then speak to your instructor.

I have a 5 yr old I am having flatwork lessons with - not because I want to do dressage or show him, but because I feel I owe it to him as a youngster to get the basics established.

We mainly hack, attend fun rides, go to the occasional HT, and hunt, so my instructor is helping me work on excercises that will help him in those fields ie obedience, transitions, balance etc. If he offers an outline then great, but our work is more based about getting him to go forwards and stop/turn etc when asked!

Hope you get things worked out x

 

[Meowy Catkin]

I do wonder if a change of instructor is needed?

 

[VP2009]

Have you tried a pessoa. They are really good and you can have them as loose or as tight as you like so they're never forced.

 

[Sukistokes2]

It is meant to be fun, I think it is good for the horse to use themselves appropriately and good for a rider to learn but you sound a bit down about it. This means it is not fun. You need to speak to your teacher, she must listen to her student, if you can not work out things between you then you have the wrong teacher. When I have a lesson I work with my instructor to improve myself and my horse, she is waiting for my feedback to help her direct the lesson. It is like team work, it has taken a while to develop but I was lucky in my choice of instructors as she recognised that I was competent and willing to listen to me as well as instruct. It is student led learning, demogogic teaching and how as an adult you should be taught.

 

[_GG_]

When people ask how young, recently backed horses can go around on the bit all of the time with little effort, it is easy because they have been started with the emphasis on learning to carry themselves properly. When a horse hasn't had this start and they've gone through life, thus far just going as they go, not being asked to carry themselves properly, it makes it much more difficult for them to learn. It also means, as another poster mentioned, that their muscles are very established for their current way of going and you just can't expect them to cope with more than short bursts of "correct" carriage at a time. It's great that he is still responsive to your leg aids and I would honestly be thinking of getting a new instructor before the work being asked sends him backwards, which it probably will if the emphasis is placed on where his head is in the manner you describe she is asking. Next, she'll be telling you to try draw reins. There is a place for them on very rare occasion, but not as a tool to make a horse bring the head down in the example you give.

It sounds like your joy has been taken away from you. I would either find an instructor that you can work with that keeps it fun for you, or I would just carry on as you were before.

There is a real benefit to teaching a horse how to carry itself properly and that is that it is good for the horses physical wellbeing to be more rounded and disperse the weight of us riders better...there are more benefits obviously, but the main one for me being the benefit to the horse.

If you're a good fit for your horse and you don't care about going and winning dressage/showing ribbons, I wouldn't worry too much about it.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

No, I bet your horse doesn't think it's worth it.

Find a different instructor, would be my advice.