Unwanted flying changes

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fairhill

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My CBxWelsh mare has had lots of issues with seeing the need to go forward, and delights in finding new ways to avoid working properly.

Her latest trick is to do a flying change whenever we're in canter, and I use the schooling whip to keep her going forward. I've been doing a quick change of rein to keep her in canter once she's changed, but it isn't a long term solution!

Any ideas how I can thwart her?

I start her off without much contact, and work on sending her forward into medium canter, and gradually collect her up, but as soon as we get a decent canter where she is using herself properly, she tries to break into trot. I'm using pony club kicks to keep her going at the moment, but it doesn't look very elegant
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Saddle, back, teeth etc are all fine
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If she's not used to doing collected canter then she's proably finding it difficult. I'd imagine that's why she breaks, as she's physically struggling. I'd make sure you only ask for a few strides at a time, so you can praise her when she's done well. That way she will be able to build up the strength to do it for longer
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Has her collected walk/trot been established?
 
I found doing lots of canter poles helped with my boy, stopped him going long (which he used as an excuse to trot), kept a rythm and his confidence grew.
 
Sorry, I wasn't very clear in my OP, but I meant that I collect her up into a working canter - we're nowhere near being able to do a collected canter yet.

We're just about managing walk and trot
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I actually wouldnt use canter poles for a horse that changes, they give an excuse to change.

Make sure you're not asking for a change- you need to keep a very clear outside leg back, inside leg firm on the girth, keep the outside contact and maintain an even seat. The horse will often throw you onto the outside seatbone, particularly on the right rein and this can provide an escape route.
Keep the canter forward as the changing is essentially a mechanism for her to try to maintain her balance when you take the speed out of the equation- the horse will basically pitch forward onto the forehand to keep upright until it learns to take more weight onto the hindlegs. Exercises like walk-canter, canter for a few strides then walk again will help to improve the hindleg step, as will very gentle leg yields in canter, preferably on a spiral in/out of a circle.
 
Thanks Boss, that's very useful.
It is the right rein that she does it on most often, and I guess by moving my seat slightly to use the whip I could be inadvertently asking her to change.

I'll try those exercises with her this week; we've got a large arena, so I can do some large circles with the leg yielding, which I guess will also help straighten her (and me!). I might even mark myself out a circle with cones to keep us even straighter
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I built up the line of poles to 5-6 over a session (starting with 2 to stop him changing). However I had already taught him to do walk-canter transition first so that we didn't run into the transition and start with a realy long stride as once he went long I couldn't keep him going. The other thing I did with my other mare who didn't change but I couldn't get decent transitions or canter from her to begin with was (don't laugh) put her on the lunge and ask for canter and then run down the long side with her (she was 17hds so I got quite warm!!) She just needed proving to that it was possible to canter in the school, after a couple of sessions she was much more receptive to the idea when being ridden. Not sure if it would work with other horses.
 
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