quick question!

[GoodysMummy]

goooooood evening fellow neddy owners

quick question for you all following my VERY sucessful schooling session on my big ginge how can i get my 15 year old ex racer working more from the back i.e more impulsion because thats the one thing the judges always pick up on when i take him to shows and do any dressage and because hes an ex racehorse he enjoys working from his front end as thats all hes ever done

tips and advice pretty pretty please! hot chocolate with cream and marshmellows for whos ever tip works

 

[Littlelegs]

Walking & trotting up hills gets their hind leg under them. Transitions, leg yielding in & out of a circle as well as to the track. Hard to give precise exercises without knowing what he's doing though. It could be he needs to be more forward thinking & moving overall.

 

[Pale Rider]

Asking the horse to work more from his hind quarters, is what gives the impulsion, when they are actually doing this the change in the movement is unmistakable. I often wonder why some insist on dragging themselves along on the forehand which doesn't seem logical.

Once they do find their stride working from the hind quarters they seem to understand that it is easier and it becomes their prefered action.

I trot for 10 minutes on the left rein and then 10 minutes on the right around the arena. I allow them to trot on the fore hand until they find it tireing and naturally bring their hind quarters into play. Usually by the 7th or 8th minute they are using the hind quarters effectively. Allowing them to find the easier gait themselves has a more positive effect. Stopping the exercise shortly after the desired action has been achieved, positively reinforces that this gait is rewarded.

Once they are trotting using their hind quarters at virtually the start of the exercise, after a few days of the 10 minute trot, I change the exercise to 5 minutes trot followed by 5 minutes canter both directions. They then seem to use their hind quarters readily when asked for canter.

 

[Old Bat]

Walking long and low up hills when hacking out will help strengthen the back muscles and make it easier for the horse to engage the hindquarters.

 

[Slightlyconfused]

Also dont resrict with the hands.....my lami has to work on a loose rein to get his hind quarters going then i can start yo bring his head in......ditto what the others say about hill work.

Xx

 

[Pale Rider]

Also dont resrict with the hands.....my lami has to work on a loose rein to get his hind quarters going then i can start yo bring his head in......ditto what the others say about hill work.

Xx

I agree, you have to use a loose rein to get the horse onto the bit as it cannot be done properly unless the horse's hind quarters are properly engaged and creating the impulsion.

 

[jofwigby]

My old boy TB/Ex Racer was exactly the same - definitely as much hill work out hacking as poss but I found old fashioned strapping excellent.

He was a typical skinny no neck no bum TB and an extra 10 mins strapping (particularly before work) warmed up his muscles so that he engaged them more and gradually built them up. Honestly in a few weeks you could really notice the difference in his muscle tone. I used whatever was to hand (brush or made a wisp) and worked on each side of his neck, each side of his hindquarters then round his tail. I used to just count the number of strokes so I did each bit evenly - say from about 50-100 strokes over each area depending on the time available ! (You do end up with arms like a russian shotputter though!)

 

[jofwigby]

Sorry I'm new - didnt actually make my point re engaging hindquarters

Anyway . . . just to say that the strapping really "warmed him up" so he engaged without realising & slowly and surely got a lovely shape.