Cantering Issues

Unfortunately on Sunday Heather lost her rider during a school hack. I'm not sure of the exact details, but helped in the recovery of horses and rider, which involved emergency services. The rider was quite badly injured and I wish her a speedy recovery.

In my recent posts I have mentioned quite a few times, that Heather has great difficulty in cantering on the right rein. That is as though circling clockwise. She is noticably stiff in trot on this side also. It's taken a while for me to find this out. Firstly I had her napping to deal with..planting feet. Any canter was a huge bonus not so long ago. Then with the realisation that head shaking was the root of all her ills. The magic powders supplied by the vets school at Leahurst gave me a chance to get her fit through the Summer. So at last I've been able to find out and start addressing the latest issue, with a horse who perhaps could go well by the name of Puzzle!

My attempts to get her to canter on the correct lead by just riding her in the school and using the conventional aids are just not working. I've got her so finely tuned that on her favoured left rein, we can reliably halt to canter. This gives me quite a buzz and her impulsion and power cannot be doubted! Other way round and it's all a big jumbled mess of her trotting..running so fast or shuffling onto the wrong leg. I think she's as frustrated as I am and we usually bounce to an awkward stop.

Recently I've started lunging her for the first time in a while. She had some lameness in the Summer in her fetlocks which I thought might be aggravated by lunging. With this long behind, it was suggested I might progress with her cantering issues on the lunge. She is reasonably easy to lunge...as usual getting her to move is the hard part. The scary bit is then making her work! This is after all an alpha mare! You have to be ready to be charged..!! This is still her reaction to the lunge whip. Demand and she charges in towards you. You have to be quick and solid, point the whip at her shoulder and push her out. Now we're moving!

I read somewhere that a horse always picks up the correct canter lead after a jump. So I set up a small pole on the ground at my end and raised diagonally to a foot and a half outside. Lunged her over it..trotted towards then demanded canter as she went over. On both reins she picked up the correct lead. The theory works!

So today I set up exactly the same pole in the same place. Instead I rode. Just the same. Started everything off on her easy side. Then switched. Six out of six correct canter leads on the right rein after popping the little jump. This works! Another reason to feel totally elated and thrilled. The big bonus being that she really seemed to enjoy her schooling. Might have to include a little jump or two more often. I now have a starting point from which to work. I'll continue with this method, then perhaps drop the pole to the ground...then eventually lose it. Can't say enough what a boost this is to me. Riding and educating myself and this horse has been the most fruitful challenge...