Lunging - does anyone do it properly anymore?

I to lunge normally with just a head collar. They start as babies learning to walk trot and stand to voice aids on both reins at this stage never canter, lunging on an oval or very circle. I tend just to use a long schooling whip. They are never rushed or pushed and I only start canter transitions when they are obedient and know how to go away from the whip. The most I would ever use further along is a bridle and loose side reins so they get used to some contact before backing. I want obedience to the voice and rhythm not speed. Every command is started with 'and', its amazing how quick they pick up 'and stand', so when you finally back them you already have some brakes.
I hate to see horses strung up, pushed round so fast they are falling in on the corners.
Its not only the kit( or lack of it) you use but how you use it. If a horse is that fresh it should be out or left to explode in safety without kit loose in a school.
Ponies that I have bought in are usually really bad to start off with as they think being put on the lunge means they have to go fast and are going to be wacked with a whip and the ones that have been beaten on the lunge are noticable by their fear on a second person near by.
 
Lunging off the bit can create problems as the action of the bit is incorrect. Horses tend to develop evasions when lunged in this way.
I don't encourage novice lungers to use this - I rarely if ever lunge from the bit.

Lunging in a head collar is basically dangerous as you have minimal control, the horse can easily turn it's head away from you and depart! The horse will tend to go with the head to the outside and the shoulder to the inside - not a correct way of travelling a circle.

In a cavesson you have control of the nose so are able to bring the head towards you shouold the horse get strong and then reduce the size of the circle - though this is not 100% guaranteed! With correctly fitted side reins you can teach the horse to accept the contact and to also teach half halts. A tweak on the lunge line increases the pressure on the outside rein and along with the verbal command to steady or for downward transition generates the same feel as when you are riding.

Lunging correctly also supples the horse and builds the back muscles prior to being ridden.

I love lunging and rarely find it boring - I work my horse like I do under saddle
 
Well McLean and friends are quite rightly starting to question the logic of "going forward into a contact," but why one can't achieve that with a bitless bridle I don't know?

My aims for lunging are to exercise a horse, engage his brain and promote athleticism including self carriage. I tend to either use nothing bar a round pen, or a rope halter and 22ft line. I find it easier with less tack and gadgets to get a good bend and them working through from behind nicely. Have done side reins etc, its not for me. I do long rein though.
 
It really is a case of each to their own, I don't think there is a right or wrong way as long as its done correctly.
However lunging a young horse should be carried out in a different way to a horse that is being lunged for fitness/competition. I would hate to see a youngster strapped up and not allowed free movement. It is all about communication and he/she should be free to communicate back.
A horse that is long reined well, responding to a light touch and voice commands will respond that much better on the lunge.
 
I suppose my post should have been "ban gadgets in numpty hands".... my main point aimed to be that many off the shelf gadgets in the wrong hands are insturments of evil to the poor animals. I really wish that more eduction was provided on what the incorrect use of these "aids" really does and information on the right use and the wrong use provided by the manufacture.

I am sure there is a number of ways to get what you want from lunging - my main point is asking an unfit horse to work in a deep school for over 40 mins is bad enough, but add canter into this and pessoa and and inexperianced person is just brutally cruel to the poor animal.

Last night I overheard the girl saying she had been teaching her a lesson and she would learn to work properly else she would be lunged everyday..... my heart literally bled for the poor animal - but its not my yard and what can I say without coming across as a trouble maker - and I for one have learnt my lesson both on here and in the real world.

We have moved on in so many ways in horse care.... but we seam to be going backwards... too much money, too many gadgets and not enough time and education - Black Beauty 2 will have to be published soon !
 
Naturally said:
Well McLean and friends are quite rightly starting to question the logic of "going forward into a contact," but why one can't achieve that with a bitless bridle I don't know?

My aims for lunging are to exercise a horse, engage his brain and promote athleticism including self carriage. I tend to either use nothing bar a round pen, or a rope halter and 22ft line. I find it easier with less tack and gadgets to get a good bend and them working through from behind nicely. Have done side reins etc, its not for me. I do long rein though.
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Lunging for exercise is totally different from lunging to work. I've now found that the round pen encourages the horse to look out, the horse doesn't take the contact of the lunge line and in turn prevents the handler being able to work the horse into a contact. If there is no contact with the lunge line and horses nose then there can be no 'Half Halt' on the outside rein.

How you lunge depends very much on what you want to achieve. I do a lot of basic schooling on the lunge - an example - my Clydesdale went to HOY in the ridden class, I last rode her in January and the show was in March. All her pre work was done on the lunge and the rider who competed on her rode her the week of the show. The horse thinks forward because that is what has been expected of her on the lunge - she works on the bit because this has been expected of her on the lunge, she is obedient to the voice and very supple from her work on the lunge.
 
Gingerwitch said:
Jess

Trust me I know exactly what was going on...

Monkey bum - correct lunging is an art form, the lunge line is basically the riders hands, the whip is the riders leg, the lunger should not be in front of the horse or behind the horse. The horse should be working forward into a contact that is correct for the horses fitness and education.

and it takes practice practice practice but for gods sake if you dont know how to do it, dont slap on instruments of pain to the poor animal until you know what affect they actually have.

I too hate lunge lines on bits.... I really do

Side reins, should be used that again are adjusted to a level comfortable to the horses fitness and education.

Slowly slowly - build up in walk, progress to trot, make sure said horse is in balance before you ask for canter - keep work even on each rein.

Lunging should be a calm affair, minimum of instructions, and yep the best of horses can go off on one... but a good rider is prepared for this and will minimise the risk to horse and themselves.
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Gingerwitch said:
GW
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Hey Gingerwitch. Interested to read your comments on lunging.

Have only tried lunging my mare twice, as she does not seem to know the rudiments. Will not walk on lunge. Does not really respond to voice commands. Default gait is a very fast trot and canter is a worrying, out of control tearing around with no flexibility and terrible falling in on corners. So I avoid canter, bringing her back to trot when she ocassionally tears off of her own volition!!!!

I've been advised to lunge her in a pesoa because back lady says she needs to work in an outline to get back muscles stretched as she has been ridden inverted for so long prior to us buying her.
However, not keen on this, as even when I ride her it is hard for her to go in an outline and I just don't feel that forcing her to do so will actually help the muscles in question.....? Esp as she is already so unbalanced on a circle and it's clearly a struggle for her in that respect.

Also, not so confident in my own lunging prowess. Am experienced, riding / owning horses from childhood, but lunging is just not something I've done a lot of and I'm sure I could improve at it a lot.

Am standing level with her shoulder (as opposed to getting behind or in front of her) and trying to send her out so she is on the largest possible circle, but she is so unbalanced she often comes in, if that makes sense.

Also, and I know this probably sounds daft, I end up getting really dizzy.

I have my stage 2 BHS coming up soon and the lunging is the one element I do not feel happy with. I am booking in with the EQ where I am studying for stage 3 but any tips about good lunging technique? Is surprisingly hard to find this anywhere, and like you say, I also think lunging is a real skill, and art form almost and I'm not sure I have the art!!! :) Any tips / help appreciated!!
 
Totally agree! & nice to see there are others out there that really enjoy lunging


Tnavas said:
Lunging off the bit can create problems as the action of the bit is incorrect. Horses tend to develop evasions when lunged in this way.
I don't encourage novice lungers to use this - I rarely if ever lunge from the bit.

Lunging in a head collar is basically dangerous as you have minimal control, the horse can easily turn it's head away from you and depart! The horse will tend to go with the head to the outside and the shoulder to the inside - not a correct way of travelling a circle.

In a cavesson you have control of the nose so are able to bring the head towards you shouold the horse get strong and then reduce the size of the circle - though this is not 100% guaranteed! With correctly fitted side reins you can teach the horse to accept the contact and to also teach half halts. A tweak on the lunge line increases the pressure on the outside rein and along with the verbal command to steady or for downward transition generates the same feel as when you are riding.

Lunging correctly also supples the horse and builds the back muscles prior to being ridden.

I love lunging and rarely find it boring - I work my horse like I do under saddle
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Oh dear. GW, were you watching me last week? [insert paranoia icon: ;):rolleyes:;)) I was lunging in the top corner of the school, with extremely deep sand and he was going around like an utter lunatic with his bucks clearing the top of the wings with ease.

Actually, he wasn't in the Pessoa. Nor the Equiami, he was just in his bridle and boots. I was going to put the Equiami on him but he had other ideas. He needed to let off a bit of steam, so I let him. I only stopped when he did and to change rein.

I promise I have been using the Equiami sensibly, with warm ups and warm downs, increasing and decreasing circles, multiple rein changes and multiple transitions. I have been working on the canter this week, but it hasn't been out of control. I don't think he can run away in it, actually, and he is bucking far less in canter. Maybe, just maybe, it's starting to have an effect. We are in our second week of use, with three sessions last week and three thus far this week (please note, he hasn't been ridden for the last two months and we did ask advice before exceeding the recommended weekly dose of training).

I do agree with you wholeheartedly about incessant cantering on the lunge. Without the gadget being used properly, it achieves very little.
 
I would love to lunge by the book and by the lessons i was given but sadly my spanish has other ideas rears and lunges at me. so im nearly longreining instead of lunging with only one rein as will not have another round his bum It look unsightly but works for both of us.
 
I also hate it when people don't warm their horses up or down properly. There are people at our yard who lunge in the evening, having their horses trotting and cantering round, with their heartbeats raised. Then just stop, bring the horse in, put it in its stable and go home for the night!

Then they wonder why their horses look stiff so often :eek:
 
I have been taught to lunge. My preffered method is with two lines going through a roller, as I can then work the horse as if I were riding him. If I lunge with one line, then he wears a roller, fairly loose side reins and a cavesson under his snaffle bridle. I do use a whip, so I can encourage the hind leg to come through if I need to, but most of it's done on voice commands. If he wants a play then he can have 5 minutes loose to let off steam, once he's on the lunge he's working.

I have a ten minute walk to the school to lunge and the same after so this is the warm up and cool down time.

The worst lunging I ever saw was when I went to see a friend ride at the yard she was stabled at; a girl bought a horse in with the lunge line attached to a headcollar. Put it on a tight circle and sent it off at a mad unbalanaced canter with outside bend after ten minutes she turned it round and repeated the exercise. Then took it out heaving and repeated the vile affair with two more horses. I think is closely followed by the lunging of a horse in a pessoa that was wizzed round in circles with it's quarters doing a 5m bigger circle than the forelegs, that went on for about 45 minutes...
 
I'm crap at lunging and I know it. Very nearly failed me my PTT, can't remember if I had to lunge on the Stage III SM or whether it was just Ride and lead (many, many moons). It terrifies me.

So I don't do it or rather I didn't. Fast forward to a newbie horse though and my usual 'rather ride than lunge' seems to have deserted me. What I wouldn't do though is try to do it with gadgets on. I don't lunge for improvement in the horse (not good enough) so for me I try to lunge in a bridle with very loose side reins and even then I can only do this on one rein or horse comes in and boxes me. So I walk trot and canter, let the horse have a hooly and then get on. The example in the OP sounds hideous though, yet another example of a classic lack of self awareness in horsemen.
 
I don't see any benifits to lunging for more than 10 mins each side.

40 mins is a joke

i lunge with a cavassen and lunge line connected to that, then a bridle as i use a equiami, a roller and make sure my horse has boots on

i lunge for 2 mins each side in walk, then do a little trot work and some canter, mostly transitions etc, then a wee walk at end to cool down, grand totaly of about 20mins TOPS.

Its more than enough, my horse has worked correctly, used his body, his heart rate has gone up then he has been cooled down,

What more could i hope to acheive than that..?
 
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I do. I use a Wels cavesson and whip, nothing else - heads will come down and in when you've done the right amount of the right work not because they're strapped down. I warm them up and cool them down, do a balanced amount on each side and largely control them with my body. I was taught by a pupil of Pat Manning who was rated as one of the best (lunge) instructors in her day.
 
To me the secret of good lunging comes from the handlers feet. Set yourself in the middle of the circle and move the foot the direction the horse is going in - in a deliberate fashion - keeping the other foot in the same place - as a pivot.

Unless your moving up and down the school, the circle for both you and the horse should be establised. If the horse falls in - point the whip at his shoulder or give a little flick - not to touch him but to send him out. Never ever let the horse turn into you - this can be pretty dangerous.

Sometimes its best to get a helper - most of the poor animals i see - just have not had the ground work done and dont know what to do, so they look for comfort i.e turn toward the handler. A horse that has been started well, will feel confident on the lunge as he knows what he or she should be doing.

I also prefer to lunge with two lines BUT not if your getting used to them - its too much of an accident waiting to happen.
Its a very good skill to practice, but its like anything it needs practice - but you will get there
 
Thanks for that reply GW. Given me more to think about. I agree, using two lines at this stage with my mare would be asking for trouble for us both!!

Regarding using the whip to send her out, if I move it near her shoulder, she turns in. She is then hard to get moving forward again.

I have not lunged her for very long at all during the couple of sessions we've had; barely 3/4 minutes on each rein, mostly because she is so unbalanced and I don't want to stress her legs / back. Also, as at this point I don't feel it is actually benefitting her, as she's not working through or with head in a low carriage.

What do you think about pesoas to get horses working through / in outline? Bearing in mind this horse had v. poor / no topline when she came to us and back muscles were chronically stiff / tight, most likely from being ridden inverted for a long period. 11 months on there is good improvement but some tightness remains in back, though pelvis is now fine :)

I know some people are really keen on pesoas and it has been recommended but am wary about pushing her into a 'false' outline. Maybe I am misunderstanding how pesoa works. She is older - 18 years - (though she doesn't act it!!!), so feel I also have to make some allowances for veteran type stiffness / poss arthritic changes. Do you think pesoa would be too much?
 
LillySparrow - to me if she is not established in walk and trot on the lunge i would not be looking at using anything on her at the moment.

Can you get someone to help you for the next 3 or 4 days - thats about as much as it will take- get them to walk around her head - on the outside, only for a few mins in each direction, then move to having them walk by her but not leading her.

Make sure when you halt - she stays where she is - this can be tricky - but if you have someone to help then she will soon get the idea.

Worry about the rest when you have walk and halt established - and it should be fun for both of you.

Also do not keep saying things to her, it gets too confusing - a walk on,TROT, Woooooo, STAND - whatever you decide to use, but dont keep blathering at her .... ohh good girl, that;s it, ohhh well done" - it will just confuse the issue
 
I was on a big yard and it horrified me to see the self proclaimed "experts" tack up for lunging and fix tight side reins before leaving the stable. The horse would then be brought back to the stable after the session with the side reins still in place. It was heartbreaking to see how distressed the horse would be. Of course the novices would see the "expert" doing this and copy it. It certainly kept the local back experts in work!
 
LillySparrow said:
Thanks GW. Will def do as suggested. I'm sure I can find someone on the yard to assist. Very encouraging. thnks :)
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When you halt her - drop your whip to the ground, until you get used to putting it under your armpit with it pointing down behind you - and walk to your horse, whilst winding your lunge line. If she goes to move - be frim, and then when you get to her, make a fuss of her.

Also send the horse away from you when you first set off, i do this by offering the way,and pushing the end of the lunge whip against her shoulder to encourage her out.

Put boots on, especially if she is a wee bit older - and as she is 18, dont do too much.

When she gets the hang of staying out you can start to practice transitions, and then transitions within the pace - but thats a few weeks away,
 
I hate hate hate them being lunged off the bit.

This is not me, and I attribute most of her mouth problems to this sort of lunging prior to me buying her . It makes me feel ill watching it now frankly. The mare is ridden bitless presently as I cannot get her happy in her mouth :(

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I lunge with two lines on the bit (long reining on a circle) and she goes nicely now on a dually.
 
I work with Stallions and wouldn't dream of lunging them off just a headcollar! :eek: I always lunge off a bridle and attach the lunge line to the outside bit ring by threading it through the inside one. Brushing boots all-round and over reach boots too for anything which is likely to be a bit fresh/is prone to over reaching. I always, always wear a hat and gloves after experiencing terrible rope burn once and I have still managed to break a finger when lungeing a fresh horse WITH gloves on which shows how dangerous lungeing can potentially be. If I am lungeing just for exercise, I don't attach any gadgets - just give them a 10/15 min trot and canter on each rein but when lungeing to school them I attach side reins to a roller/saddle.
 
I have been lunging my horse this week in just his headcollar but this is purely because until today he has had to stay in due to the fields being flooded and I have lunged him on the days I haven't ridden as he gets stiff if not had a chance to move around. I mainly walked and trotted him with a couple of canters once he was properly warmed up. I am not a big lunger as like Liz66 I prefer to ride but I do try and do one lunge session a fortnight with him and I usually lunge him tacked up and sometimes use side reins.
 
I can lunge the BHS way - had to to get the PTT.

I don't lunge that way though. I did mostly BHS way when I re-backed Poneh, but as he freaks out with a conventional lunge cavesson on, I resorted afterwards back to my normal way of using a coupling attached to the bit rings, no boots, no whip and either a roller or the saddle.

If I am doing it purely for exercise then I will do it off the headcollar and he will only walk and trot. I also do it this way if I want to see him move (as we're not allowed to free school in the arena). If I am doing it for additional work that is different to being ridden then he has the bridle on and with either double lines or the lungie bungie.

I lunge in the AM so he can walk it all off in the field afterwards.

My old mare I didn't need a lunge line for, set her on the circle off she went :D
 
Since when is using mechanical gadgets better than getting the horse to do what you want without? Side reins are fine sometimes but other times I dislike them a lot. I lunge in a close fitting headcollar sometimes with a bridle underneath which I may clip to over the head depending on how horse is behaving (certainly wouldn't do it for a horse that wants to canter around and yank itself in the mouth) and a whip only if I need it. If a flick of the end of the line occasionally when the horse mostly goes off voice does the job then why bother with a whip.

I don't mind people lunging just to let off steam, depends on your reason for lunging. Not on tight circles but sometimes the horse is being put on a tighter circle to slow it down when it wants to gallop around. Whether that works or not, depends.
 
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