Training aids- friend or foe?

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matthew

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Was reading an artical in your horse about training aids - draw reins etc.
I have never used these on any of my horses in the past- just wondered what you all thought?
Would you use them as a matter of course- or only if problems arise?
I personally find them a bit 'artifitial' and would prefer to work a horse naturally first to achieve results-balance and flex etc.
Who uses them - and what are the pro's and cons?
 
I can't give a widely experienced view but we have wanted to put muscle on to our horse's neck and back and have been using a chambon with great success. Trying to do the same thing ridden caused major arguments but lunging and longlining with the chambon has had him going nicely long and low to the extent that he now has sufficient muscle built up to be able to work that way properly when ridden.

I am very pleased with it and our instructors are amazed at how quickly it has worked - they both advocated lots of ridden work but with the short days my daughter wasn't available to do that so the chambon started the job for us instead.
 
I have never used them because I don't feel I have enough knowledge to apply them properly and I would afraid of doing more harm than good. If my instructors ever recommended anything then I would try them but only under supervision till I knew what I was doing!

I personally hate draw reins the most as the only pictures I've seen with them have a horrible forced outline, I am getting slow but sure results in working mine into a natural outline and I think it'll look better in the long run (I hope!).
 
I will use anything that I feel necessary to help / improve my horse......IF i feel it is necessary and to the benefit of the horse
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Obviously I try to do things 'au naturel' first, but it doesn't always work that way
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To me there can only be Pro's of doing things this way, as without i would not achieve what i am aiming for from my horses !

Bottom line is i want my horses to jump....and they have a finite useful jumping life. If i can get them to the standard required to jump quicker then i can get more from them...simple
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Arwen - thats how i feel- it always looks a bit forced to me!
However - i dont know much about them so i am interested to hear stories.
The testers in your horse seemed pleased with the results -
but i cnat help thinking they make the horse work to low? i could be wrong though!
 
I use them on my mare as she can be very difficult. They benifit and suit some horses more than others. My horse had a tendency to hollow when she first came so we put them loosly on her to encourage her to go long and low. I occasionally still use them now on days when the weather is bad so she cant get away from me. When she spooks she has a tendency to rear and spin then dart across the arena, by having the draw reins on them she cant do this, they also give me extra brakes as she hollows and throws her head up.
I never have them on tight, for example, she had them on yesterday but still managed to throw her head up and whack me in the face. They are there just incase I need them.
 
I much prefer to see a horse learning these things by itself. Nothing can look better than a natural carriage and outline.

The only things I have ever used have been a pair of side reins, and a pessoa ONCE, on a horse who needed working like that, and someone experienced put it on and supervised.

I'd be too scared of making a hash up of it too.

I think for alot of people *NOT ALL* the sight of their horse going the way they want it to with little or no effort of their part is strangely alluring.

These aids should only be used by people who really know what they are doing and who know that after alot of work it is the only was to achieve the results they need.
 
I've used a harbridge training aid (which is kind of like running side reins up between the horses legs but designed so you can ride in it as well) to help develop top line muscle in my horse because when she arrived she had very thick muscle under her neck and no top line. She 'hated' working through/round and had all the right muscles to fight and all the wrong muscles to help her. The harbridge was really good for helping both of us to start her on the road to developing the right muscles so we weren't fighting all the time. I don't use it anymore though.

I've used draw reins but the more I learn about riding the more I feel that they are almost always a way for riders to achieve an outline without teaching their horse to work inside leg to outside rein - usually because the riders lacks a truly independant seat. In my (I'm sure limited) experience, horse that are ridden leg to hand will usually come round naturally unless there is an underlying problem like a back/saddle/teeth problem that needs to be addressed.

I'm sure there are some top competition horses with the strung out 'win win win' mentality that require specialist training that would require training aids but I can't really see the point of them for the everyday rider unless they are being used to cover up shortcomings in the rider.

This is just my opinion and has actually changed a lot over the last year since I have learnt to truly ride leg to hand.
 
I've used all sorts in the past and used correctly, in the right hands can be useful although I do think they are generally a short cut for either lack of time or the rider's own ability to correct the problem just by riding/schooling correctly.

Draw reins in particular can cause horrific physical problems to the horses necks and backs and do long term damage. Draw reins also change the action of the bit in the horses mouth... bringing the bit back in the mouth so it bears more pressure on the bars of the mouth - which some horses cannot tolerate but in other just causes pain that they endure. For any horse that is already thinking 'backwards' draw reins are only going to make them worse IMO.
 
so how about the use of a training aid or draw reins on my boy? He's 20 years old, mainly used for jumping in the past although had a good few years off. He is very highly strung, very strong (he's welsh C and massively built) and very sensitive. He is in good health, not stiff, fit and all tack fits properly. He came to me with the biggest undermuscle on his neck you've ever seen and in a dutch gag and we have got rid of the under muscle and got some topline and gradually progressed to a loose ring snaffle for schooling over the past 2 years. However ...

He will engage and work in an outline some of the time but if you change direction or attempt to go down the long side the head goes up and he gets excited and tries to canter which results in a sort of prancing. It's then a struggle to re-gain control and relax him which I do by circling him and he relaxes into the contact again lovely and when I try to change direction or go down the long side again, he usually throws the head up again.

We do this for a good 40 minutes as he never seems to tire of it and inbetween we get around 10 minutes of lovely work.

Now I feel that draw reins would help, either that or a tight standing martingale
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He knows exactly what I want to do and he knows how to do it, he also knows it's far more comfortable for him to work correctly however, he cannot seem to help himself blowing his lid when he sees a bit of space in front of him ...
 
At home I shool on the flat with just a fleximouth snaffle and cavesson, nothing else (bar saddle!).

On a hack though, I tend to put on a harbridge or draw reins, only because my horse's eyes are on sticks and her head is up high enough that I keep getting her ears in me gob! It would also be harder to stop without some kind of aid.
 
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At home I shool on the flat with just a fleximouth snaffle and cavesson, nothing else (bar saddle!).

On a hack though, I tend to put on a harbridge or draw reins, only because my horse's eyes are on sticks and her head is up high enough that I keep getting her ears in me gob! It would also be harder to stop without some kind of aid.

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this makes me think that perhaps draw reins would help me with my boy and eventually enable me to get 30 mins of good work without the hissy fits... on a hack he tends to do little rears and generally leaps about when he sees an open space so maybe I should try them hacking too!!
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[ QUOTE ]
so how about the use of a training aid or draw reins on my boy? He's 20 years old, mainly used for jumping in the past although had a good few years off. He is very highly strung, very strong (he's welsh C and massively built) and very sensitive. He is in good health, not stiff, fit and all tack fits properly. He came to me with the biggest undermuscle on his neck you've ever seen and in a dutch gag and we have got rid of the under muscle and got some topline and gradually progressed to a loose ring snaffle for schooling over the past 2 years. However ...

He will engage and work in an outline some of the time but if you change direction or attempt to go down the long side the head goes up and he gets excited and tries to canter which results in a sort of prancing. It's then a struggle to re-gain control and relax him which I do by circling him and he relaxes into the contact again lovely and when I try to change direction or go down the long side again, he usually throws the head up again.

We do this for a good 40 minutes as he never seems to tire of it and inbetween we get around 10 minutes of lovely work.

Now I feel that draw reins would help, either that or a tight standing martingale
smile.gif


He knows exactly what I want to do and he knows how to do it, he also knows it's far more comfortable for him to work correctly however, he cannot seem to help himself blowing his lid when he sees a bit of space in front of him ...

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PMSL - Have we got matching welshies? That is EXACTLY like one of mine - little beast! Is yours chestnut with a big white blaze and three white stockings? I wouldn't put draw reins on mine - but I have tried him in a Market Harborough, which cured his "chuck the head up in excitement and bash the rider's nose" but meant that he decided he could go everywhere with his head between his feet. Scary. So we took it off and at least he's not so manic with the head and has a better carriage but going off the circle - just too exciting, or in his case, scary.
 
Yes he is in my sig, chestnut, flaxen mane and tail, white stripe, 2 white stockings at the back … if yours is younger than mine, I can only say they don’t appear to calm down with age, if anything he is worse as if he’s trying to prove he’s still got “it”. What is a harbridge? I have tried a market Harborough and it made no difference. I just wondered about trying them every other schooling session to teach him that life is better when he concentrates and calms down.
 
Used correctly they can be very useful. You have to give consideration to what suits each horse as well though; PF goes well in a de gogue but Antifaz plops onto his forehand.
So basically sometimes good, sometimes baaad but should never be used to the exclusion of proper riding and schooling.
 
Harbridge is what I used to help my horse get the correct muscles developed (she came to me much as yours did, massive under neck muscle, no top line and ridden in a dutch gag). It works kinda like when people use side reins between the horses legs. It runs from the girth to the bit and is elasticated so it encourages the horse to lower his head but unlike draw reins it doesn't have the 'tuck the nose in' aspect. The horse could just go along with his nose on the floor if that was more comfortable. I really like mine and I think it is useful for lunging/developing muscle although I don't use it anymore.

I can't answer your question (don't know if it was aimed at me but you replied to my post) about your horse and draw reins because I haven't seen him, ridden him or seen you ride or anything so I don't have an opinion.

I guess I can only speak for the experiences I have had with draw reins and seeing them used. I'm by no means going to stand here and say they are evil - just that the more I ride and the more I see them used the less I see the point in them for MOST horses. They have their place I am sure, but whereas a year ago I would be quite comfortable saying 'yes, draw reins are a useful addition to any tack box' now I don't feel that way so much. They are more for 'exceptional' horses I think, much like some of the stronger bits. JMO
 
I had a nasty experience with a Chambon which I only blame myself for. Day before big competition tacked my mare up and put her chambon on, she was dozing woke up to find her head was trapped by a monster and went berserk, she managed to knock her front teeth out and cut her knees and hocks, stupid stupid owner! I never forgave myself for that and needless to say competition went by the by. She was usually so laid back and I took this for granted. I'm now faced with a quandry that baby horse (son of mare) must be lunged with noggin low to work his muscles in his back following surgery, something that will be done extremely carefully.
 
SNAP (apart from mine has an extra stocking) and they're probably about the same age - mine is now estimated to be between 18 and 21. We love him dearly - he's the most characterful of ours.
 
mine is by the famous late Synod William, I have yet to find out if he is like his Dad with his fizziness, he is like his Mum with his aloof attitude towards people ... I am lucky in that I know exactly where he was born etc and where he's been through the years. He is truly exceptional but such a silly bum!
 
We have little idea about ours - freeze marked but they won't tell us anything.

He's obviously been an exceptional pony at some time in his life but has been very badly abused. It took us nearly two years to even consider taking him to a show because he gets so panicky - but when we did he behaved like an absolute dream and obviously knew ALL about it. On his day he is a perfect jumping machine - loves to watch the others and learns the course and is incredibly quick and nimble in a jump off. But sometimes he's just too scared to even go in the ring. He's a star cross country as well - until he has a panicky day. He's actually just under 13.3 and his last showjumping round was 1.15m with a 14 stone rider. It was only clear round jumping and he put in one brilliant round and then decided as he was back in the ring that he was going at jumpoff speed - and he just jumped me off going for a fast line between jumps 5 and 6! He'd already been round the cross country twice (clear) that day.

He was labelled dangerous when we got him but he has been fantastic for us. He's 110% on the road and has never reared or even bucked. He did bolt when we got him but now he has learnt that he's not going to be beaten when he stops you can feel him flatten and tense but he settles as soon as you tell him he's a good boy. He only ever thinks about bolting if he feels that he's made a mistake - so if he ever has a pole down (and it's very very rare) we all shout out "Good Boy". We'd love to know more about him because someone at some time cared enough to have a most enormous operation done on him - according to the vet there was a hole in his side "big enough to stick your head in", so sad that he should have ended up the sad and troubled fellow we saved from the meat man.

He will be with us and much loved for the rest of his life!


*sorry for thread hijack - I'm a bit soft about the boy you may have gathered!*
 
Training aids are a vital part of training any horse. But in order that they work properly, you have to know how to use them and WHY you are using them.

I use:
1. Side reins for lunging the baby (4 yrs). Elasticated side reins mimick the action of the riders hand and are a huge help in beginning to teach the horse to go in a proper outline. NEVER ride in side reins, they are too rigid.
2. Draw reins for lunging an older horse, again for the same reasons but draw reins will give instantly when the horse relaxes down.
3. Draw reins for riding a young horse means that as with my baby, you would not have to be too severe with your rein and it only comes into contact when the horse resists in some manner.
4. Draw reins on a slightly older horse when schooling helps them to balance into the correct outline and helps you when you are teaching some movements. I use them to aid with the flying change when beginning to teach it and also the half pass and more lateral movements.

But my main thing is that unless you understand fully how, when and why to use a training aid, you may do more harm than good.

Tizzy - that is probably why the horse you saw with draw reins on looked hollow and forced. This happens either cos the horse is resisting going down onto the bit (which would happen au naturel!) or the rider ahd the draw reins much too tight.
 
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