In every issue of Horse & Rider you'll find articles on training by the country's leading experts, the latest on equine health care from top veterinarians, trail riding tips from savvy back country riders, and much more!
A rider with precise control of a horse has a sharp awareness of what’s happening with that horse on a moment-to-moment basis. One great way to hone this awareness is to practice transitions—that is, changes of pace within one gait or changes from one gait to another. For horses that are chargy, pushy, headstrong, or otherwise out of control, transitions are just what the doctor orders, as the horse learns to follow your leadership. I’ll describe how you can use transition work to develop fingertip control of your horse. Practice these transitions in an arena and then, when you feel ready, on the trail. At the walk. Start by asking your horse to walk right out on a loose rein. Follow his motion with your hips to encourage him into…
We can work it out. The familiar line from the old Beatles song sums up how we feel when it comes to trouble with our horses. No one knows our horse better than we do, and when a challenge arises, we want to figure it out and fix it ourselves. And sometimes we can do that…but sometimes we can’t. Sometimes a professional’s help is what we really need to solve a behavior problem or get around a training roadblock—plus to keep things from going from bad to worse. Here, we’ll give you three warning signs that indicate you do need a pro’s assistance. Then we’ll explain how that pro can help you and your horse, plus give you tips for finding that support while staying within your budget. After all,…
Can you identify with being a “re-beginner rider,” with fears and anxieties that somehow hold you back? I sure can. In my case, fear as a rider hasn’t come from a singular event or a terrible wreck. It’s evolved over the last 15 years, while I was immersed in being a mom and working, and not spending much time in the saddle. Little by little, my confidence with horses began to fray, like strands of a rope pulled by distance. A combined loss of physical condition and lack of self-trust cut away at those strands until there wasn’t much left to hang onto. Where I was fearless, I’d become fearful, and what used to feel like second nature now felt like unfamiliar (and treacherous) ground. Back in the saddle again,…
