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Dressage is the result of careful, thoughtful application of
classical principles. These principles have been developed over hundreds of years by very experienced masters.
Each new rider starts with no experience and must find his way within a single lifetime. Each new generation thinks that there are shortcuts or technological improvements to make faster and better progress.
Through better selective breeding, better management and nutrition, it is rare to meet a horse with a serious conformation fault or an inborn bad temperament. But when we as a rider/trainer do come across such a horse it is necessary to train it with extreme patience.
Training a horse does not always proceed according
to the plan. So many diverse problems can arise that it is impossible to mention all of them. Sometimes it happens that horses which are basically good to ride, willing and reliable suddenly develop temperament problems.
The first the rider/trainer should ask themself is whether the horse has had sufficient and regular work, regular exercise and whether it has perhaps been given too much too early.
Temperament problems are much more difficult to correct than problems which result from conformational defects. They are often the result of incorrect training or handling in the preliminary stages or may be caused by the horse being pushed too hard at the beginning of his competitive career. It’s excitable, erratic behaviour is then due to fear and insecurity resulting from bad experiences and lost of confidence.
The better the rider is at empathising and thinking with the horse, and the more skilful his riding and training, the less likely he is to get himself and his horse into problematical situations.
The rider/trainer must determine the underlying causes of such an unhappy horse and analyse it’s behaviour.
In my opinion most horses with faults in temperament are man-made.
If a horse is born with a bad temperament he should only be ridden - if at all - by an experienced, tactful and extreme patient rider.
The purpose of this article is not to go over possible training problems and ways to fix them. The aim here is to set riders/trainers thinking and give some useful ideas to follow.
As most problems are due to the horse’s back or it’s head or neck set, complete relaxation and suppleness are pre-
Requisites for any successful correction.
A too long back, especially when it occurs in conjunction with week loins, make it more difficult for the horse to step with its hind legs underneath towards the centre of gravity. The hind legs seem to be dragged and do not engage sufficiently. Any work which will strengthen the back muscles, cavaletti work or hacking is asked required.
In dressage training frequent transitions ( walk-trot, trot- canter) can help to get the horse more “together“. Such horses should only be worked in an outline as for hacking.
Horses with a back too short are very difficult to make supple. Due to the back being stiff the horse is usually hard to sit on and there is a danger of putting stress on his legs. Often those horses are very easy to collect, but they find it difficult to bend laterally (rib-bend).
Short horses should be ridden in a long outline, trying to get the back as elastic as possible. Long-term training over cavalletti will help the horse a lot as well as gymnastic jumping and riding out in the country side.
Some horses are over-built, meaning the horse is higher in the croup than in the withers. The horse is said to be croup high. This conformation defect makes engagement and collection very difficult and the rider feels like riding “downhill” all the time. Over-built horses often have long, steep, straight hind legs. Long-term gymnastic training will help the horse to bend the legs and the hindquarter joints.
Other difficulties to train with are horses with a roach back and a hollow back.
Horses that have developed the wrong muscles in the neck (swan neck, low-set neck, ewe neck) will also cause problems for a rider/trainer. An incorrectly muscled neck can be reshaped through long-term specialized training with the correct use of side reins. In the hands of an experienced and sympathetic trainer those auxiliary reins can be useful.
A badly set head will leave very little room between the jaw bone and the neck muscle. Horses which are thick through the throat or horses with a short, thick neck with heavy jaw bones have difficulties at the poll and are unable to establish a correct contact. The rider must first ride the horse in a long and low outline until a better neck position is achieved and the horse is able and willing to work more through (more over) the back. This can take a considerable long time. Under no circumstances should the rider should try to put such a horse on the bit. That would be very dangerous and would easily lead to heavy resistance and even rebellion.
With problem horses the rider/trainer must always take conformation faults and weaknesses in account and be aware, that these horses are unable to work as properly as correct built horses. Otherwise the training will be very unfair to the horse.
Reasonable results will only be achieved with long-term and patient training.
classical principles. These principles have been developed over hundreds of years by very experienced masters.
Each new rider starts with no experience and must find his way within a single lifetime. Each new generation thinks that there are shortcuts or technological improvements to make faster and better progress.
Through better selective breeding, better management and nutrition, it is rare to meet a horse with a serious conformation fault or an inborn bad temperament. But when we as a rider/trainer do come across such a horse it is necessary to train it with extreme patience.
Training a horse does not always proceed according
to the plan. So many diverse problems can arise that it is impossible to mention all of them. Sometimes it happens that horses which are basically good to ride, willing and reliable suddenly develop temperament problems.
The first the rider/trainer should ask themself is whether the horse has had sufficient and regular work, regular exercise and whether it has perhaps been given too much too early.
Temperament problems are much more difficult to correct than problems which result from conformational defects. They are often the result of incorrect training or handling in the preliminary stages or may be caused by the horse being pushed too hard at the beginning of his competitive career. It’s excitable, erratic behaviour is then due to fear and insecurity resulting from bad experiences and lost of confidence.
The better the rider is at empathising and thinking with the horse, and the more skilful his riding and training, the less likely he is to get himself and his horse into problematical situations.
The rider/trainer must determine the underlying causes of such an unhappy horse and analyse it’s behaviour.
In my opinion most horses with faults in temperament are man-made.
If a horse is born with a bad temperament he should only be ridden - if at all - by an experienced, tactful and extreme patient rider.
The purpose of this article is not to go over possible training problems and ways to fix them. The aim here is to set riders/trainers thinking and give some useful ideas to follow.
As most problems are due to the horse’s back or it’s head or neck set, complete relaxation and suppleness are pre-
Requisites for any successful correction.
A too long back, especially when it occurs in conjunction with week loins, make it more difficult for the horse to step with its hind legs underneath towards the centre of gravity. The hind legs seem to be dragged and do not engage sufficiently. Any work which will strengthen the back muscles, cavaletti work or hacking is asked required.
In dressage training frequent transitions ( walk-trot, trot- canter) can help to get the horse more “together“. Such horses should only be worked in an outline as for hacking.
Horses with a back too short are very difficult to make supple. Due to the back being stiff the horse is usually hard to sit on and there is a danger of putting stress on his legs. Often those horses are very easy to collect, but they find it difficult to bend laterally (rib-bend).
Short horses should be ridden in a long outline, trying to get the back as elastic as possible. Long-term training over cavalletti will help the horse a lot as well as gymnastic jumping and riding out in the country side.
Some horses are over-built, meaning the horse is higher in the croup than in the withers. The horse is said to be croup high. This conformation defect makes engagement and collection very difficult and the rider feels like riding “downhill” all the time. Over-built horses often have long, steep, straight hind legs. Long-term gymnastic training will help the horse to bend the legs and the hindquarter joints.
Other difficulties to train with are horses with a roach back and a hollow back.
Horses that have developed the wrong muscles in the neck (swan neck, low-set neck, ewe neck) will also cause problems for a rider/trainer. An incorrectly muscled neck can be reshaped through long-term specialized training with the correct use of side reins. In the hands of an experienced and sympathetic trainer those auxiliary reins can be useful.
A badly set head will leave very little room between the jaw bone and the neck muscle. Horses which are thick through the throat or horses with a short, thick neck with heavy jaw bones have difficulties at the poll and are unable to establish a correct contact. The rider must first ride the horse in a long and low outline until a better neck position is achieved and the horse is able and willing to work more through (more over) the back. This can take a considerable long time. Under no circumstances should the rider should try to put such a horse on the bit. That would be very dangerous and would easily lead to heavy resistance and even rebellion.
With problem horses the rider/trainer must always take conformation faults and weaknesses in account and be aware, that these horses are unable to work as properly as correct built horses. Otherwise the training will be very unfair to the horse.
Reasonable results will only be achieved with long-term and patient training.