"soft and round back"

[AG18]

Please help with my dressage comments which are always the same! My horse is a small TB with a kind of upside down neck, that has improved a lot. She does work on the bridle, but not exactly perfectly as she naturally has a high head carriage.

The comments I get are always about needing her to have a "softer and rounder back and neck" "be soft over back" "be more supple" "back hollow" "not over back" etc.

Any ideas on schooling exercises I can do to work on this? At the moment she is schooled 4 times a week, is hacked and jumped as well (ridden more than once a day sometimes). Thanks!

 

[lizzie_liz]

I would be wanting to work long and low which will encourage her to work over the back and make it more round. It will also help with building up her topline which she probably lacks.

There will probably people on here or will explain this better and probably give better advice

 

[kick_On]

my suggestion would be is make sure you warm up gg back before ridding, and when you start warming her up you what you want is for her to work long and low, and looking to take bridle even lower - if you can do it in all paces all the better. Then once warmed up take up normal schooling position. By get her use to these muscles across her back, she will built up her back/hock muscle and then have softer outline. If you may need help to start try lunging. I promose you it works these where very similar comment when i first took my boy out. Have a look in photo section, were not consitent but we're getting there.
My trainers keep nagging me all the time 'long and low'

 

[vic07]

almost every horse i see eventing needs to work softer and rounder over the back - it is the biggest fault imo with event dressage.

I would want to work her in a very soft deep outline. I would aim for a feel through my hands of talking to her to come deeper so she isn't forced. - if that makes any sense. This should help her soften through the back and become stronger allowing her work to improve.

I would also do hill work in a round outline to help her strengthen the necessary muscles.

You could try some poles to encourage her too look down - never found it very helpful but some people do.

I would also 2 line lunge - well get my mum to do it!

 

[SpruceRI]

My new mare has the same problems as yours with added long back and the high head carriage and not done any proper schooling for a good few years.

Had a lesson tonight in fact where instructor tried to explain to me that lower leg contact is not there just for kicking on but also to encourage the the horse to lift its belly and therefore through it's back. Not sure I understand the concept but strangely it worked at times during the lesson.
I use to much hand and get too much bend through the neck and body so been working on straightness and not allowing mare to run through my hand and hollow.

She also made me stand up in my stirrups a bit in trot which highlighted that the mare softens through her back when I'm not sitting on it! So to sit up taller, keep the centre of my body over the centre of hers and be soft with the hand.

She seemed to improve the outline doing leg yielding and a bit of (dodgy) shoulder in!

 

[eohippus]

Yes, using the leg to push the horse into a contact is needed. The contact determines the pace to a certain extent but does not make the horse round, so by using your leg to ask the horse to work from behind but using a yeilding hand to encourage the correct rhythm and pace will help the horse to engage the hindquarters and so rise through the back and round.
the aim is that the rein contact is even with the leg, for example, if too much leg is used and the horse runs forward in a long and/or tense stride the horse will hollow and stiffen and lift the neck muscles to aid balance, or can just fall on the forehand and be heavy infront with hindquarter trailing, no lift through the shoulders and nose pointing to the ground.
if too much rein is used to try and get the head on the vertical the horse will be short gaited, choppy, stiff and not tracking up, possibly hollowing but more lickely trailing the hindquarters behind, broken at the third vertebrae and overbent.
If too much leg, ie spurs, is used to a too heavy hand ie, severe bit, the horse can not go forward and shortens the stride, develops choppy strides, no elasticity or regualar rhythm, bounces and becomes strong.
these are but a few examples.
You really need to Ask your instructor to show you how to develop a good leg to hand contact that encourages freedom and regularity of pace suited to your horse.
It maybe that she is just not strong enough behind.
hope this helps
Dawn