Equitation Notes, by Miguel Ralão Duarte

Young Horses Training

 

The horse is an animal that in its wild state is always the prey and never the predator. It also has complex social behaviors because it is a herd animal. Its status as a prey animal makes it a very tense and nervous animal in uncomfortable situations, while its instincts might cause a reaction typical of a stallion or a mare that in any situation should be perceptively assessed by the rider.

These are essential factors that we should take into consideration when we start training a young horse, as well as the man who will be the link with this so unnatural world where it will be starting to live in from the moment it starts to be backed.

Training the horse, like everything in life, is nothing but a series of choices we make. We should take into consideration the factors that I’ve stated above, as well as matters of discipline, related with conformation and the development of the horse in question, and of course the technical aspects. All of these aspects working together with a good dose of common sense and some modesty normally lead to a positive result. Without training it is just an admirable animal. When it has a function it usually becomes more harmonious and pleasant for those who ride it.

Nowadays, breeding plays a very positive role because it’s rare to find young horses that are completely “wild”. This is the phase that will affect the relationship between man and horse for the rest of their lives and so we should take reasonable precautions to avoid accidents and traumas,. It’s important to have a routine that allows us and the horse to be safe and have confidence in every step.

When we initiate the training of a young horse, we should have in mind that whatever the breed or conformation may be, the weight of the rider on the horse’s back causes an immediate change in its natural balance. This could trigger several reactions that should be studied, bearing in mind the individual conformation and temperament.

One quite common example is young horses speeding up as a result of balance problems when first carrying the rider. When the rider tries to slow the gaits by shortening the reins with his hands, the horse fights the hand and speeds up even more. Sometimes side reins or draw reins are used to control the neck’s height and with that make the horse accept the hand and control the speed. However, this prevents the horse from learning to walk and balance with the rider on his back, and will probably result in him having trouble later on in doing anything without the support of the rider’s hand. It’s a typical example of: “The hand that comes to the horse” and not “The horse comes to the hand”.

This first training phase aims to recuperate the horse’s natural balance that has been disturbed by the rider’s weight. We can even say that the Low School is nothing more than the training period for the horse to recuperate all of its natural balance through basic training exercises that together with gymnastics for flexibility and lateral and longitudinal strengthening of its body, allow us to keep several rhythms in and between gaits, as well as balanced lead changes.

A horse without serious conformation and temperament problems at the end of this stage should:

· Be able to maintain the rhythm in walk, trot or canter, without the rider’s constant help;

· Commence lengthening and returning to the original stride length in all of the gaits;

· Be able to go in a straight line or circle;

· Go from walk to trot and from trot to canter with fluidity and harmony;

· Initiate lateral movements, including leg yield and shoulder-in;

Personally, I believe that we should try to train a young horse a “shift” or two above his natural gaits, obviously keeping him calm and without causing imbalances, so that later on when we wish to collect the movement, the horse still keeps the will to move forward without the rider having to constantly be “pushing”. The term Self Carriage describes what should be created in this phase. Only with self carriage can you get concentration with flare.

Another important point to highlight is that when we achieve a correct and stable contact with a young horse, on his longitudinal balance, this contact shouldn’t be “too light” (varying slightly from case to case). Lightness appears from shifting the weight to the hind quarters and flexing the hocks, lowering the hind quarters, lifting the withers and poll. The rider should verify that the horse is indeed in self carriage with several exercises.