Ever come across horses that have some type of itch to be at the front of every group they are a part of? You could have also faced horses that have got the opposite urge: they always lag behind to be the last in the group. Clearly, when you’re riding in a group, such horses could be a real agony because they constantly must be slowed down or sped up.

I have some good news: owners of such horses need not give up on them. It needs some work, of course, but the issue can be resolved satisfactorily.

Whatever kind of horse you are riding, you can attain cruise control with it so that it travels at the rate set by you, instead of itself. With a correctly trained pony, you should have no problems getting it to stay at precisely the speed you wish. You can’t achieve this, though, until you are ready to be more than just a horse rider. You must be a much more effective communicator.

Routinely, horses are actually capable of 4 gaits. Each gait should ideally be composed of 3 paces: slow, normal and fast. What all of this means is that if your horse has a natural bent to stroll slowly, you’ll need to work on getting him to go up to normal or fast pace at your command. Inversely, if your horse has the tendency to walk fast, you have to train him to ease down to normal or slow at your cue. This applies for trots, canters and gallops, too.

What is it you can do to get your horse going at your pace, whenever you would like it? You must start with the walk and move on step by finished step. Make sure your body movements are in complete rhythm with the pony, with your hips complementing his movements, not clashing with them. Feel out your horse’s rib cage in its swinging side to side motion. As your leg comes up against his rib cage, gently press down ‘never use force’ with your calves and then release the pressure. Alternate between your legs, and make sure you are not reining in the pony as you do this. This should result in your pony extending and engaging a rather more active walk. At every point, ensure your hips are relaxed and moving in perfect time with your horse. At the beginning, your horse may manage just a couple of more energetic steps. Be OK with that much, reward your pony by rubbing his neck. As time passes, it is possible to get your pony to enhance his walk for longer and longer spells.

When you are coping with horses with a natural tendency to remain put instead of move, and move slowly when they do move, you need to work with them on terrain with long stretches. This means that you should not be working with them in tiny arenas or pastures. Give the pony an extended workout in a straight line and treat him to a rest at the end of each stretch. You might motivate him more with a treat available when he completes each stretch.

Clearly, horses with too much in the way of energy need to be handled differently. They have to be cooled down. There isn’t any way you’re going to achieve your objectives by becoming involved in a rein-based tug o’war. What you must do involves quite some work with circular variations, which would help most with this type of pony. When you do out and in spirals, serpentines and circles of different diameters with these horses, you’ll be able to persuade them that there is no fire anywhere. Attempt to cease prompting your pony on with swapping legs; have plenty of half halts, utilise a snaffle bit inside rein in a squeeze/release pattern.

When you take the trouble of getting your horse to adjust his gait at your command regularly, you are patently going to stay with any riding group you are a part of. You won’t have to frequently step on the gas or stamp on the brakes with your horse. A respondent pony means more pleasurable rides.

Horses are Heather Toms passion and she enjoys sharing her extensive knowledge through her 100s of articles with other horse lovers, like all things about simco saddles