Schooling problem - canter transitions

madhector

madhector

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I really need some ideas about what to do about J's canter transitions. He is being downright stubborn about them. He insists of throwing his head up in every transition, no matter what you do or how much you prepare him first. Once he is in canter he is soft and round but it is just that horrible transition first. Once you put a jump up and start working over that he forgets to be an a**e and isn't so bad.

Trainer has tried and had no luck, she suggested lunging him with side reins between his legs so that he fights against himself for a while, but she said I would need to do this every day for a week to let it sink in as he is so stubborn. I don't have access to a school every day, so this is impossible. We really need to sort this out soonish as it is becoming a very annoying habit.

Any ideas/advice guys? It is so annoying as his canter is 100 times better, yet the tranistion is just the same if not worse

Thanks!
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Not sure whether you'd want to do this or not but you could try draw reins. Just pick them up when you need through the transition so he learns not to hollow, you should only need to use them a few times for him to get the message. Just a suggestion as it can work, don't jump on me anyone!!
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Not sure whether you'd want to do this or not but you could try draw reins. Just pick them up when you need through the transition so he learns not to hollow, you should only need to use them a few times for him to get the message. Just a suggestion as it can work, don't jump on me anyone!!
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Trainer did try them but he was too strong for them, hence she suggested the side riens so he was fighting against himself rather than the rider
 
Does he hollow in a walk to canter transition? I find it easier to do walk to canter with W for a bit and then the trot to canter transition stays round, but you may have tried this.
 
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Does he hollow in a walk to canter transition? I find it easier to do walk to canter with W for a bit and then the trot to canter transition stays round, but you may have tried this.

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Yep, but its more than just hollowing, it is a proper head in the air moment, just for 2 seconds and then he softens.
 
I have a similar problem with Whisk although he kind of hops into the canter as well as lifting his head. If he is in a bad mood he also bucks when you ask for the transition! His canter itself is fine. I tried allsorts but found that if I did two strides of canter then two strides of walk then back to two strides of canter and so on he soon got bored of messing about and concentrated. It is however an ongoing problem for us!! Oh well I never wanted a boring ride!!
 
Flex inside so they are curved around your leg and then ask for canter. Do the same for downwards. Really gets them stepping under and they have to be a lot softer in the mouth. My horse used to do the same but has been revolutionised by working on his flexibility.

Every time he will not listen or is horrid in the rein he goes on a circle and is flexed and bent around my leg until he gives in. I test the rein all the time to make sure he is working properly and light. Once he is good he can be straight in the neck. His dressage has gone from 44 last year in N tests eventing to 33 and 35 for not very good tests.
 
It is really hard work for them but it really does work. It is great if they are slightly hot headed and tense as gives them a routine that they understand especially when warming up at an event.
 
I agree with the flexing to the inside and making sure he is really soft and round your leg, on the first stride of canter make sure you are soft with your inside hand. Does he do this on the lunge at all. I don't like strapping down or draw reins and I never use the pessoa between the legs but I do use it to a ring on a roller about half way down the side.
You could also try a leg yield from 3/4 line to track and then ask but try to keep him soft ,stretching over his back and a little deep.
 
Extending on the being curved round your inside leg theme; try, in sitting trot, shoulder in down the long side for a few strides , straight into a 10 metre circle, and just before you get back to the track ask for the canter transition, using the inside leg and at the same time thinking inside leg to outside rein. Canter for 3 strides, back to trot shoulder in, back onto a 10 metre circle, then ask for canter just before the track and repeat this whole exercise again and again until they are listening , and are really between the inside leg and outside hand. Its a nightmare to do this at first, but perservere with it and then suddenly they will be really listening and engaged, and the canter trans will hopefully be spot-on.
 
MH, I too had terrible problems with Boo stuffing his head up in the canter transition for ages, he still does it sometimes but I've managed to get him out of the worst of it.
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This is what my trainer had me working on.

First of all you need to make sure that he is taking you forward, try sitting trot and then rising trot, flexing his neck left bend, straight, right bend etc, keep doing this so that he doesn't tense or anticipate the transition, then sit and keep his neck flexing, take the bend to the inside, take your inside shoulder back and ask for canter, the important part is to keep him soft though his neck, forward from the leg. You body must not be too far forward as this weighs the shoulders down and makes it harder to give a nice transition.

Also, try pushing him more forward in the trot so that he feels he needs to canter, this can take the emphasis off the actual transition. Work on a 20m circle working trot, medium trot, ask for more if he gives you canter go with it, if he stuffs his head up you must stop straight away, he is not allowed to get away with it any more.

Make it a rule that from now on in the school whenever you ask for a canter transition if his head goes up, you stop the transition IMMEDIATELY go back to the trot, soften his neck/jaw then do as the above again.

Try this and see how you get on, it worked for me
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I haven't read the other posts so I apologise if I am repeating what others have said.

Han has a bad habit of doing this, or at least she did
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My trainer has made me ride her really forwards, which has changed her whole way of going and she is now pushing from behind into her transitions and no longer chucking her head up
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We tried everything with my boy, who is extremely strong. Got him going forward, flexing, stopping when when he threw his head up and asking again etc.

Eventually I was pursuaded to give draw reins a go as a last resort, had them short enough that if he threw his head up the came into action, but if he stayed soft and round they were loose (basically how the bloody things are meant to be used, not strapping his chin to his chest which is how most people use them
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Took a few sessions before he realised he didn't need to throw his head and weight about as all he was doing was fightling himself, but now he does lovely transitions.
 
Just to add - if you do go down the 'flexing' his neck route (which i think is a good idea) make sure you have him established and flexed in one direction before straightening for 5-6 strides and then flexing in the other direction for no less that 6 strides. I hate seeing people riding around ''flexing'' their horses heads from one side to the other thinking they are loosening the poor horse up when in fact they are just creating a bigger problem in the long run.

At the National Convention Hubertus Schmidt talked about this saying that flexing has its placed when done correctly and not just from side to side without giving the horse a chance to establish itself in the other 'flex'.
 
Try working over trotting poles and asking for the transition immediately after the last pole. This was recommended to me to help keep my horse 'through' in the transition.
 
I have a similar problem with my boy (although I know I am accountable for a % of the problem as I collapse for a second when asking him to canter). All brilliant advise and I will def be trying the flexing/canter off a small circle methods. Thanks.
 
After doing all the usual checks to rule out other possibilies, ie. teeth, back, saddle, soundness etc.

I agree with all the comments regarding flexion as the key to resolving your problem. As stated flexion is not a swing from left to right, but more of a subtle bend which is held for a short period of time, until you feel the give, then straight for a while and a counter flex until you get the give. It is not a flex of the neck, more a flex of the jaw. However, to get to the final refined flex you might have to ask for a little more to begin with, but never a swing.

I would also suggest that you teach your horse to go long and low with a very soft contact (great for strong horses), use lots of changes of pace, direction and flex, open up your circles by gently leg yielding him in and out to supple him up laterally, then pick him up for a while and then ask him to go long and low again. Repeat this in both walk, trot and canter. This should supple up his back so that when you ask for the canter transition he will not be tense through the back, which will allow his hind leg to come under him more and your transition will be rounder and more balanced.

Hope this helps.
 
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