Category Archives: Dressage Exercises for the Gaited Horse

Dressage Exercises for the Gaited Horse

Rein Back To Smooth Gait

2 Comments
How to perform a quality rein back for smooth gait:

Develop awareness of feel while riding—the feeling of hollow, the feeling of round, and the impact each have on smooth gait. Here’s an exercise that can help..

Rein Back to Smooth Gait

By Jennifer Klitzke

My naturally gaited Tennessee walking horse Makana has a rather long back for her size, and she has been rather stiff. That’s one of the biggest reasons why I registered for another gaited horse clinic with Larry Whitesell and Jennifer Bauer.

At last year’s gaited horse clinic, Larry and Jennifer showed me ways to unlock tension and set us on a course to balance and relaxation.

The importance of saddle fit

At this clinic, Larry and Jennifer helped me address my horse’s back bracing issues. We began with saddle fit.

Since 2007, I have tried nine different saddles to find one that fits Makana. I’ve ridden in round skirted western saddles, dressage saddles, gaited saddles, and treeless saddles. Most saddles have been too narrow which pinched her shoulders and restricted her movement. The saddle I have been riding in is an all-purpose saddle which seemed to fit.

At closer examination, the saddle fit my horse in the cross ties. It had plenty of clearance over her wither—until I sat in the saddle. Then the saddle sank and rested on her wither. This is likely a big reason Makana was bracing her back.

Larry switched to his saddle with a gaited tree. It fit perfectly (in and out of the cross ties), and we proceeded with the lesson.

The feeling of hollow, the feeling of round and its impact on movement

Larry and Jennifer helped open my riding awareness to the “feel” of my horse’s back. They challenged me to notice when my horse feels hollow and when it feels round and then pay attention to how each impact her movement.

When my horse hollows her back, she loses forwardness, impulsion, and the depth of stride. Cueing her forward while hollow only makes her take short, quick steps. She feels smooth, but she is not producing the smooth quality four-beat flat walk she is capable of.

Larry explained how I needed to improve the bio-mechanics of my horse’s way of going. Instead of driving her forward while hollow, I needed to help Makana engage her abdominal muscles to lift and round her back before encouraging her forward with relaxed deeper steps.

Rein Back and Forth to Smooth Gaits

Larry taught me a great exercise that helped my horse engage her abdominal muscles to lift her back.

Rein Back to Forward Steps

  • Beginning at a soft and round halt, I gently cue my horse three to five steps of slow and steady rein back
  • Then halt and gently cue my horse three to five steps forward and halt
  • Repeat the back and forth sequence three times
  • The exercise is not rushed or forced
  • It is important that the horse remains relaxed and round from nose to tail
  • Once the horse feels lifted in the back during the last sequence of back and forth, then continue to move forward and maintain the feeling of relaxation and engaged abdominal muscles to lift the back
  • When introducing this exercise, I only asked for a step or two of rein back

How to perform a quality rein back for smooth gait:

  1. For the rein back, I close my fingers on the reins without pulling back. This tells the horse don’t go forward. Then I draw my heels slightly behind the girth, hold my weight in my thighs and move my pelvis upward to lighten my seat. If my horse feels hollow, then I hug my horse with my heels to encourage her to engage her abdominal muscles and lift her back.
  2. The forward cues are opening my fingers without giving away the reins, move my pelvis forward and squeezing and release my calves if needed to move forward.
  3. Repeat the back and forth three times until I feel my horse’s back lift the saddle beneath me. Then I proceed forward ending the exercise and maintain the roundness in her back, the connection back to front, and engagement for deeper steps.

So each time I feel my horse’s back begin to sag, I repeat the “Rein Back and Forth to Better Movement” exercise and then resume where we left off before the exercise. This exercise has made a big difference in my horse’s movement and willingness to go forward.

Makana is happy that I am now on saddle number ten that is wide enough for her shoulders and tall enough to clear her withers.

Does anyone want to buy a saddle?

Video: Back and Forth to Better Movements

More Exercises for the Gaited Horse to improve smooth gaits.

I hope this is helpful. Let me know your thoughts by sending a message.

Visit website: NaturallyGaitedHorse.com
Subscribe: Naturally Gaited youtube channel
Follow: facebook.com/naturallygaitedhorse

Dressage Exercises for the Gaited Horse

Winter Riding with Gaited Horses

Riding gaited horse in snow

No indoor arena? Plan B: Riding through the snowy landscape during the long winter months has been another great way to keep my naturally gaited Walking horse in shape for the show season. It is also the most breathtaking way enjoy the winter wonderland. (Even my lovely husband thinks so!)

Video: Walkin’ in Wonderland on a Naturally Gaited Horse

I hope this is helpful. Let me know your thoughts by sending a message.

Visit website: NaturallyGaitedHorse.com
Subscribe: Naturally Gaited youtube channel
Follow: facebook.com/naturallygaitedhorse

Dressage Exercises for the Gaited Horse

Cantering the Gaited Horse

introducing canter with a naturally gaited horse

When do you introduce the naturally gaited horse to canter? What are the canter cues? How do you correct a cross canter, lateral canter or four beat canter?

This post offers some tips and videos.

Introducing Canter with the Naturally Gaited Horse

By Jennifer Klitzke

How do you start a gaited horse in canter? Lots of naturally gaited horses cross canter, take the wrong lead, or have a lateral pace canter. They blast off into a rough gallop to find balance. I can understand why many people avoid canter and stick with the smooth gait.

I began teaching canter on cue with my four-year-old naturally gaited Tennessee Walking Horse, Makana after her flat walk was established. Developing one gait before introducing another seemed best. The round pen provided a great space to introduce canter. I tacked her up with saddle and bridle and began with free lunging. No side reins or lunge line. This helped her learn verbal cues to canter while also reinforcing a three-beat canter on the correct lead.

After a couple weeks, I introduced canter with a rider in the round pen. Since the rider changes the horse’s balance, many get faster as they learn this new balance. Knowing this, I used the round pen for my safety and prevent her from running off. Plus, the round pen rail keeps the horse on a continual bend which helps the horse take the correct canter lead.

Canter departs cues

To begin with, I applied the canter cue on a counter bend with the verbal cue, “canter” while drawing my outside leg behind the girth. We cantered a few strides and transitioned to a walk and halt. This rewards the horse and lets them think about the canter.

After a few successful canter rides in the round pen, we moved to the large arena. I applied the same cues along the rail at the moment we were turning the corner towards the direction of the barn.

The counter bend is a common way to start the canter with a rider.

Another method with canter departs

After my naturally gaited TWH grasped the concept of cantering with a rider, I changed my canter depart cues. On a 20-meter circle, I applied my inside leg at the girth with my outside leg slightly behind the girth. My inside leg helps the inside bend and the outside leg helps my horse to hold her outside hind leg from falling out. Then I slightly raise and lower my inside rein to soften her lower jaw. Then I use my outside leg behind the girth to ask for the canter depart while also saying the word “canter.”

Starting the gaited horse in canter

This canter cue approach produces the correct lead in a bending position to the arc of the circle. It also produces a rounder and softer canter.

After cantering a few circles, we transition to a flat walk. The canter clearly produces a quality flat walk with a longer stride length because the hind leg steps deeper under my horse’s belly.

It is common for a horse to favor one lead over the other. For Makana, the left canter depart was easier to achieve than the right canter depart. For the right canter depart, it seemed to help when I switched my dressage whip to the outside and tapped her while using the outside leg and saying “canter.”

Challenges with Canter and the Gaited Horse

If you have a gaited horse that pace canters or cross canters, you don’t practice improving the pace or cross canter, right? No! We want to replace these rough gaits with a true three-beat canter.

So, we start with relaxation, balance, rhythm and forward movement without rushing at the walk, trot on cue, and canter using ground rails.

Watch: Starting the Gaited Horse in Canter under Saddle

If want to give canter a try with your gaited horse, the video above offers some tips and describes the process I took with Lady, my naturally gaited fox-trotting mare. Our progress has paid off. Lady is taking both canter leads without cross cantering or taking the counter lead.

Watch: How to Break Pace and Cross Canter using Trot Rails

If your naturally gaited horse pace canters or cross canters, the video above offers ways I used trot on cue and ground rails to aid with Lady in achieving a three-beat canter.

Watch: How to Break a Pace Canter or 4 Beat Canter

The video above offers tips to break a pace canter and lazy four-beat canter with your naturally gaited horse. Plus, it is a fun exercise!

Watch: How to Start a Gaited Horse over Jumps

Wondering how to start a gaited horse over jumps? Join me and my naturally gaited Tennessee walking horse on our first jumping lesson. Rails and small jumps are a fun and wonderful way to improve canter.

Videos: Canter

Counter Canter

Canter Transitions

Rein back canter halt transitions are great for the gaited horse to improved balance, lightness, and canter quality.

Canter Rollbacks

Riding dressage, I focus on relaxation, rhythm, connection, impulsion, straightness and collection. Quickness isn’t something I practice on a regular basis, and it really shows when we sort cows. Rollbacks have been a great exercise for warming up my naturally gaited Tennessee walking horse, engaging her hindquarters, and getting her thinking about quickness and responsiveness to keep up with fresh cows.

Ground Rails at a Canter

Thanks for watching!

Stay connected by subscribing to youtube.com/NaturallyGaitedHorse
Come visit us at NaturallyGaited.com
Join our community on facebook.com/NaturallyGaitedHorse