Tips for building hindquarters and topline

[Lucyad]

I had the physio out for my horse yesterday. My horse is built on his forehand anyway, but is tight and overmuscled on his forehand (neck and shoulder in particular), and undermuscled in his hindquarters and over his back.

A change in saddle fit (or saddle) should help the back, but I am looking for suggestions to help to even out his musculature and get him working more evenly from behind.

Physio suggested in hand work over raised poles.

He has bone spavin, which may emphasis his tendency to carry his weight on his forehand, though has been sound for 3 years now and has been doing all riding club activities. He is just regaining fitness after a less active winter.

I have no arena, and can't lunge (vet's recommendations for spavins). I can set up a few raised poles in my garden (this is going to really mess up my lawn!).

He does tend to lean on this bit but I can get him working properly on hacks and build up periods of working in an outline (rather than on the buckle as we mostly do). I have places I can work on lateral work under saddle out hacking.

Any tips?

 

[LaurenBay]

Carrot stretches and lots and lots of hill work. Also the raised poles that you mentioned.

 

[ellie_e]

Mine is under a physio at the moment as he needs to develop a backside too, she suggested carrot streches, picking his feet up and holding them for say 20seconds and repeating, raised poles and alos lunging in a pessoa

 

[YasandCrystal]

I would suggest long reining him in a pessoa and using the raised poles too.

 

[MrStinky]

Where are you based? My horse has been working on a water treadmill to develop back and quarters. He has responded really well to the work. PM if you want more info

 

[Lucyad]

Based in Scotland, MrStinky. But good idea - I can take him to the beach every few weeks and paddling should be good! I hadn't thought of carrot stretches so will work on that.

Re. the picking feet up - is that front and hind? Just like picking feet out?

I had thought that shoulder in and leg yield might be good, and even just lateral flexion of the neck to loosen it off?

 

[Sameru]

Mine is exactly the same, one exercise I was given was the pick up a fore leg and rock him back onto his hind quarters (like you were pushing him back only not so far that he takes a step) I repeat this 5 times on each side twice, so 5 with the near, 5 with the off and repeat. Then he does the carrot stretches... 7 reaching to the pelvis, 7 between the forelegs, 7 to the opposite side pelvis. Then 7 to the front fetlocks (the outside), and 7 toward the hind fetlocks. try to do them as slowly as possible and I do this routine morning and evening every day. He works for 20 mins on the lowest setting of the pessoa 3 times a week and once over poles followed by 15 mins of long reining up some steep hills each time. I will add in a ridden hillwork session and ridden schooling session next week. So works 4-5 days a week to increase to 5-6 with added ridden work.

 

[Achinghips]

Be very very patient. It might be with spavins your horse is doing the best s/he possibley can.

Is your horse on any medication to ease the discomfort?

My advice, having gone through your dilemma myself,and worrying myself to death is to reduce your expectations and stop fretting about it.

Top tip: Building topline and strengthening hind quarters with spavins is all about lightening your seat so your horse can properly get their legs under themselves and get your horse on the bit, push on and stop that energy coming out of the front so that the back rises. THAT is better than anything you can do for building topline and hindquarters - no more riding on the buckle - ever, unless it's a built in reward and designed for a stretching exercise following work.

Invest in a lesson to actually show you how to do the above and do some exercise yourself to strengthen your core so you can. Best money I ever spent after years of getting sloppy and not knowing. Even if you've been riding for years, it'll be a fantastic investment, as we all pick up bad habits that we incorporate into our sense of normality in our riding.

Keep sessions to no more than three quarters of an hour. IMO that's better exercise than any lunging, which is so bloody difficult for horses with spavins.

 

[ellie_e]

Re. the picking feet up - is that front and hind? Just like picking feet out?

Yup exactly like picking feet out except your holding the feet for about 10-20seconds, work in sets twice daily if you can.

 

[lyndsayberesford]

interested to keep an eye on this post as mine is very on the forehand too and idle behind!

 

[Jingleballs]

I feel your pain - Casper is also very much build down hill and on the forehand.

I do plenty of lunging where I really push his hind quarters forward so that all the power is coming behind.

My physio also recommends pole work - particularly in walk and canter to build up his top line and strengthen his back.

We do plenty of hacking with lots of hill work and really making him march up and down the hills while keeping straight and balanced.

Finally just lots of schooling - we've been working on getting the canter more uphill which has helped loads with his jumping.

We also do stretches to help release the tension he sometimes carries in his neck and to stretch is back.

 

[Lucyad]

He is not lame or sore with his spavins that we can find - flexions sound, physio was impressed with his hocks and hindquarters in terms of flexibility, soundness and lack of any sore bits - just lacking muscle.

He walks out on hacks very actively - including up and down hills. We also have hills we can trot and canter up. He tracks up (overtracks actually) well. I wonder if I could post a dressage vid so you can see how he moves (we are not very good!).

I too have been working on improving his canter and making it more uphill, Babybear. We were making quite good progress (though for some reason this caused the trot to get worse!). Unfortunately riding club lessons have been cancelled due to strangles in the area. Achinghips -otherwise we would be having at least 1 flatowrk lesson per month - working specifically on this issue - over the summer we would usually be either jumping or doing dressage or xc once most weeks, with hacking in between, and at least one schooling session as well.

Will certainly be introducing the streching.

Babybear what did you use to get the canter more uphill? I have been wokring on walk / canter / walk transitions, and spiraling in and out on a circle at canter - also extending into medium canter down long side and bringing it back onto a 20m circle at the corners. Also giving an retaking the reins, and making sure I do a defined 'release' whenever he softens and lightens in front. Any other tips?

 

[Sults]

Lots of walking (walking with a purpose that is, not ambling) up and down hills is brilliant for this.

 

[Switchthehorse]

Simple idea which made a HUGE difference with mine was transitions, 100's of them!! My instructor told me I should be aiming for over 100 per schooling session, its helped heaps getting her to take her weight behind and being more uphill and that has then lead to an increase in topline and a bigger bottom. I started with very progressive and now do more 'dramatic ones' ie trot/halt/trot or canter/halt/canter. You can do this hacking too! People think I am bonkers warming up for a stressage test doing endless transitions but it has worked a treat (only at prelim so nowt fancy) and we have gone from endless 'needs to take weight behind more and be more through' comments to shock horror our first ever test sheet last week where that wasn't mentioned once!!

 

[Lucyad]

Now more transitions I think is a good idea. I don't think I do enough. Even in lessons I think that they are neglected somewhat. 100's should be acheivable on hacks.

Sults, we do do hundreds of walking, really striding out, up and down some very steep hills too. I will keep doing this, and also hills in other paces, as well, but really looking for other exercises that might help that we don't already do. Once the clocks change this weekend we will be out 5 times a week, and because we school on hacks, or hack to schooling areas, he will be going a good hour in a forward walk over varying gradients as a minimum session (as well as hever we do when we get to the schooling area). It's not that he is unduly unfit. He has been hunting and jumping 90cm competitions in the last month or so, most weekends. it's more getting himself to carry himself differently that is going to make the difference (incrementally - I suppose it is chicken and egg).

 

[Jango]

My Welsh D was very under-developed in his back end from years on the fore-hand when I got him August 2010, the physio recommended the carrot stretches, in-hand work over poles and also lifting up a back leg and firmly pushing on his hip bone until I felt he was pushing back, hold for 5 secs then release, x3 on each side.

Then when she came back for his yearly check up she was really pleased with how he was progressing and now we have to do ridden work over raised poles, for example leg yielding in walk over a straight line of poles. Also lunging over raised poles is helpful, raise the outside of the poles on a circle and start on the inside and gradually push him out so he has to pick himself up more.

Also any kind of lateral work and transitions will help loads! But have faith, with correct schooling and exercises to help my gelding has gone from heavy in the hand in a pelham, very on the forehand and unable to canter on the right lead to scoring 70+ unaffiliated novice tests.

 

[Lulabelle7]

Hi Jango just wondered what bit he is in now?