Tag Archives: gaited horse

Dressage for the Gaited Horse

Emotional Balance & its Effect on the Naturally Gaited Horse

emotional balanceBy Jennifer Klitzke

Emotional Balance

There are many ways where balance improves the quality of movement in the naturally gaited horse, such as leading the horse into a balanced posture and relaxation of the mind and body; developing a balanced riding position; and for me, maintaining emotional balance while riding.

I think back to the first few years with my dear, sweet trakehner/thoroughbred gelding Seili. I purchased him as a well broke, yet green five-year-old, and I was yet only two years into my dressage journey.

Adding to this, I thought riding would be a great way to release my stress. Wow, bad idea! It didn’t take me long to realize how sensitive Seili was; me being emotionally out of balance by taking my stress to the barn expecting my horse to make me feel better produced my worst rides ever!

Stress caused me to tense my body and riding position which translated tension and nervousness to my horse. When Seili was  nervous and tense, his movement became stiff and rushed.

When I wasn’t present with Seili, he didn’t have a trusted leader to guide him, so he took the leadership reins which caused reactionary fear in me. I felt out of control. Then the reactionary fear in me caused my nervous horse to further lack confidence that I could be trusted as a leader.

The harmonious dance that I had hoped for to relieve my stress was replaced with a two-way battle for preservation: I wanted to live through the ride where I felt out of control, and my horse was running away from me to find relaxation that I hadn’t provided.

I left the barn more stressed than when I arrived and I humbly realized that emotional balance is my responsibility, not my horse’s to resolve.

Seili at 29 barefoot and sound
Me riding Seili when he was 29: a lot happier duo with emotional balance!

It became clear how important it is to find emotional balance before I step foot into the barn and de-clutter my mind and heart. This way I can be present to lead my horse into a partnership of trust, harmony, balance, relaxation, rhythm, connection, engagement, straightness, and collection—all of which impact the expression and quality of movement whether the horse is naturally gaited or of the trotting variety.

If you are on this naturally gaited dressage journey, I’d love to hear from you. Please contact me, join the NaturallyGaited Facebook community, and subscribe to the NaturallyGaited YouTube channel.

Dressage for the Gaited Horse

What is Gaited Dressage?

what is gaited dressage

By Jennifer Klitzke

Gaited dressage doesn’t require trot, riding in an arena, an English saddle, or showing. You might be surprised what else gaited dressage doesn’t require and all the benefits you and your gaited horse can gain.

What is Gaited Dressage?

By Jennifer Klitzke

Gaited dressage doesn’t require trot. It doesn’t mean that you have to wear fancy clothes, buy an English saddle, fit your horse with shoes, and it doesn’t mean that you’re confined to riding in an arena. You might be glad to know gaited dressage doesn’t require that you show!

Best of all, you’ll be glad to know that gaited dressage is not abusive. It never uses harsh bits, heavy shoes, chains, pads, artificial enhancements, or mechanical devices to develop natural smooth gaits. No not ever!

As long as you are riding your smooth gaited horse in a well-fitting and balanced saddle and a comfortable and appropriate snaffle bit, gaited dressage embraces your English or western preference—whether you show or not.

What gaited dressage is

Gaited dressage is a humane way to train the smooth gaited horse and rider. Through ongoing lessons, the rider develops a balanced riding position and effective use and timing of rein, leg, seat and weight aids. These aids lead the horse into relaxation of mind and body, balance, rhythm, forward movement without rushing, connection, symmetry, and collection. This foundation helps the gaited horse develop strength and flexibility, full range of motion, quality smooth gaits, and a partnership of harmony and trust.

Gaited dressage is versatile

Gaited dressage is a consistent communication language between the rider and horse that can be taken wherever you and your horse go and whatever you do in or out of an arena, along the trail, while negotiating sneaky cows in the sorting ring, jumping a course of fences, and more.

naturallygaited-working-with-cows

You can even show gaited dressage

There are many schooling shows, breed shows and even virtual open shows that offer gaited dressage. Showing gaited dressage is a great way to receive written feedback from a trained dressage professional about your horse’s training as it relates to rhythm, relaxation, connection, engagement, straightness, and collection, as well as feedback about your riding position and use and timing of your rein, leg, seat and rein aids.

Gaited dressage with a Tennessee walking horse

Gaited dressage teaches the rider how to train the horse

Gaited dressage educates the rider to educate the horse. The rider lears how to lead the horse into relaxation, balance, rhythm, connection, engagement, straightness, collection, and harmony. Over time, these training elements develop full range of motion and quality smooth gaits.

Six ways dressage teaches a rider how to train their gaited horse

1) Rider position and application of aids. The rider develops a balanced riding position over the horse’s center of gravity. In addition, the rider learns the effective use and timing of hand, leg, seat, and weight aids. These aids lead the horse into relaxation of mind and body, even rhythm and tempo, forward movement without rushing, connection with the horse, symmetry, flexibility and strength, and balance, engagement, and collection.

2) Accept and follow contact. Gaited dressage teaches the rider how to teach the horse how to accept and follow a light snaffle bit contact. It also teaches the rider how to follow the horse’s natural head and neck movement with relaxed shoulders, arms, and hands.

3) Feel awareness involves noticing how the rider’s body, breathing, and thoughts impact the horse. Noticing and releasing tension in the rider’s shoulders, arms, hands, hips, back, and jaw, breathing deep into the belly, following the natural head and neck motion of the horse with the hands and following the belly sway of the horse with relaxed hip joints to encourage relaxation in the horse. Becoming aware of the timing of aids and the feeling of when the horse is in the moment for the cue.

4) Feeling of right means knowing what is feels like when the horse is relaxed in its mind and body; balance on all four legs; moving with steady rhythm and even strides; moving forward without rushing; having symmetry (meaning evenly flexible in both directions); and developing engagement from the hindquarters, abdominal muscles and chest to lower the hindquarters, lift the back and wither head and neck over time.

This also means learning to notice when the horse is on the forehand, tense in the lower jaw, hollow in the back, disengaged with its hind legs, crooked, stiff, and rushing.

When a rider has developed this feel awareness, they can restore the horse to the feeling of right through effective use and timing of leg, seat, weight, and rein aids.

Gaited dressage: The feeling of right

5) Consistency training helps the rider develop a consistent communication language with the horse through the use and timing of leg, rein, seat, and weight aids. This consistent communication leads the gaited horse into more and more moments of relaxation, balance, rhythm, connection, forward movement without rushing, and symmetry. Developing the feeling of right helps you notice when corrections are needed to bring the horse back to the feeling of right. And the proper timing of rewarding the horse early and often.

6) Becoming a trusted leader with the gaited horse through an ongoing, two-way dialogue. It requires the rider to declutter their mind and heart and be present with the horse, listening to and seeking to understand what the horse is saying, and learning to effectively communicate with the horse and lead them into the feeling of right. Then listening to the response of the horse for adjustments as needed.

Gaited dressage is more than a training system

Gaited dressage is an on-going journey of a relationship between the rider and horse over time. This takes time to develop. Yet nothing is more deeply rewarding when the communication, connection, and harmony between a rider and a smooth gaited horse lead to the horse feeling safe enough to accept the rider as a trusted leader.

A Trusted Leader

How gaited dressage benefits the rider

  • Improves the rider’s balance and effective riding position
  • Improves the rider’s communication with their smooth gaited horse through the effective use and timing of leg, seat, weight, and rein aids which helps the horse develop greater trust, relaxation and harmony with the rider
  • Developing the smooth gaits are easier on a rider’s body
  • Aging dressage riders who have invested years of time and money taking dressage lessons on trotting horses can apply their knowledge and skill with a gaited horse and enjoy a smooth ride that is easier on the body
  • Gaited dressage can be taken on the trail where the rider can cover a lot of ground quickly and the rider’s body won’t pay for it later!

How gaited dressage benefits the gaited horse

  • By relaxing the naturally gaited horse’s mind, the horse is more teachable
  • By relaxing the horse’s jaw and back, pace can be replaced with smoother natural four-beat gait
  • Gaited dressage can break cross canter, a later canter, and a four-beat canter into a true, three-beat canter
  • Through the effective use and timing of rein, seat, leg and weight aids the naturally gaited horse can be led into relaxation, balance, rhythm, connection, engagement, straightness, collection, and harmony to improve the horse’s full range of motion and quality of natural gaits on cue
  • With lateral exercises like the shoulder-in the horse can find balance, activate the abdominal muscles to lift the back, engage the hind and develop a deeper stride beneath the body which will lengthen the stride overall from hind foot to hind foot
  • By connecting the energy from the horse’s hindquarters through the horse’s body to the bit while riding with a light and even contact on both reins following the head and neck motion, the naturally gaited horse can develop a consistent head nod in the flat walk, running walk, and fox trot

Most of all, smooth gaited horses flourish when ridden using dressage methods that build trust, relaxation, and respect.

Enjoy the journey!

If you are on this gaited dressage journey, I’d love to hear from you. Please contact me, join the NaturallyGaited Facebook community, and subscribe to the NaturallyGaited YouTube channel.

Dressage for the Gaited Horse

Misconceptions about Gaited Dressage

Misconceptions about Gaited Dressage

Does dressage permanently alter smooth gaits? How is gaited dressage different from rail class shows? Could rider aids influence the outcome of a horse’s gait?

Misconceptions about Gaited Dressage

By Jennifer Klitzke

Dressage will make my gaited horse trot. Cantering my gaited horse will ruin my horse’s natural smooth gait. Dressage will destroy my gaited horse’s show gait. These are misconceptions about dressage for the gaited horse.

Where do misconceptions come from?

  • Do people watch a recognized dressage show with non-gaited horses and believe that competition dressage makes horses trot?
  • Do people expect to see show gait from beginning to end of a gaited dressage test?
  • Do people believe that dressage permanently alters the length of stride when a gaited horse shows collected movements with shorter strides?
  • Do people think that competition dressage is evaluated with the same criteria as rail class?

Here’s good news! Dressage teaches the rider a balanced riding position and effective use and timing of rein, leg, seat, and weight aids. This is a communication system with the horse to improve the quality of natural smooth gaits on cue and develops the horse’s full range of motion. Dressage can even improve the quality of the show gait!

You can learn dressage with your gaited horse and reap these great benefits without ever showing. If you do show competitive dressage with your gaited horse, here’s more good news…

Gaited Dressage and Rail Class are Different

First of all, competition dressage and rail class shows are judged by different criteria. It is like comparing apples and oranges.

How Gaited Dressage is Evaluated

medium-walk

Competition dressage offers many levels and tests from Introductory two-gait tests to upper level three-gait tests. The higher-level tests require more range of development such as extended through collected gaits and engagement from the horse.

In competition dressage the rider and horse perform a test in front of a professional judge. The horse and rider are evaluated on how well the rider helps the horse execute the Pyramid of Training as they move through a series of required gaits, transitions, and movements precisely on the letter.

The 2019 Pyramid of Training:

  • Rhythm (Regularity and Tempo)
  • Suppleness (Elasticity and Freedom from Anxiety)
  • Contact (Connection and Acceptance of the Bit
    through Acceptance of the Aids)
  • Impulsion (Engagement and the
    Desire to Go Forward)
  • Straightness (Improved Alignment and Equal,
    Lateral Suppleness on Both Reins)
  • Collection (Balance and Lightness of the Forehand
    from Increased Engagement)

Harmony and submission are factors in scoring, as well as the horse’s gait quality; the rider’s balanced position; and the rider’s effective use and timing of leg, seat, weight, and rein aids as the horse is ridden through the test requirements.

Competitive dressage is a great way to confirm where you and your gaited horse are at in your training. You’ll get written feedback by a professional dressage judge which can help you know where you need to improve or confirm that you and your horse are ready to move up a level.

How Rail Class is Evaluated

TWH 3 gait trail pleasure class.
Tennessee walking horse three-gait Trail Pleasure class.

Rail class is a performed in a group of horse/rider teams. A judge will award ribbons for first through sixth place. The judge evaluates the horse’s movement according to the class requirement. For Tennessee walking horse rail classes, big strides and exaggerated head nods are prized.

To achieve a maximum length of stride, the horse needs to be positioned in a frame where the hind leg trails behind the tail and pushes from behind while the other hind leg steps deep under the body to pull the horse along. This frame positions the horse in a neutral to hollow back and flat croup where the push and pull of the hind legs activate the head and neck nod with each step.

The Rail vs Rider Aids

A horse ridden in rail class is predominantly ridden in straight lines along the rail. During a dressage tests, there is no rail for the horse to follow so the horse needs to be directed by the rider’s balanced riding position and effective use and timing of rein, leg, seat, and weight aids.

The purpose of the rider aids is to lead the horse through the test requirements of circles, transitions between gaits and directions, and lateral exercises. The goal is to produce soft, round, relaxed, engaged, and balanced movements.

Why the show gait isn’t seen throughout a gaited dressage test

The show gait is achievable during portions of a dressage test when a flat walk or running walk is called for along the diagonal. However, the show gait becomes bio-mechanically impossible to maintain during collection while the horse performs small circles and lateral movements.

Collected and engaged
Collection and engagement place the horse in a frame that bends the hips and hindquarter joints. The horse carries more weight from behind and lightens the fore. Instead of pushing and thrusting with its hind leg steps for maximum length of stride, the hind steps remain in front of the tail and under the horse.

Here’s why. As the horse advances to higher levels of engagement and collection, the rider encourages the horse to bend the hindquarter joints to carry more weight from behind, engage the abdominal muscles to bring the back to a neutral to slightly round position, while engaging the chest and shoulder muscles to lift the wither and lighten the forehand. The horse grows taller in the wither, head, and neck. The movement produced by this posture is biomechanically different than that of the show gait. This makes it impossible for the horse to push and pull with the hind legs and produce the same length of stride as in rail class.

Instead the horse’s steps are shorter because there is little to no trailing of the hind leg extending behind the tail. The collected gait shortens and the head nods less.

stride length: pushing power vs carrying power
Notice as pushing power increases the hind leg becomes disengaged (stepping behind the tail) and the overall stride length increases. As carrying power increases, the hind leg disengages less (steps less behind the tail) and the stride becomes shorter.

Does Dressage Permanently Alter Gait?

Does this mean that dressage permanently alters gait? Yes and no. Yes in the way that dressage helps the naturally gaited horse develop its full range of motion and improves the quality of its natural gaits—collected through extended.

No in the way that collected gaits or extended gaits are simply the response of a horse’s training combined with the application of rider aids that position the horse in the expression of gait. One set of aids allow more carrying power from behind for collected gaits. Another set of aids allow more push and pull for maximum stride length.

Dressage helps the naturally gaited horse develop its full range of motion so that even the show gait can improve in quality with deeper strides. Plus, dressage teaches the rider a balanced position and effective use and timing of the rein, leg, seat and weight aids.

Does dressage permanently alter gait? Yes it does, but in the best possible way.

Enjoy the journey!

What are your thoughts? Please reach out send me a message or stay connected by subscribing to the Naturally Gaited youtube channel and “like us” on facebook.com/naturallygaited.

Dressage for the Gaited Horse, Overcoming Riding Fear, Western Gaited Dressage

Gaited Dressage for the Trail Horse

Gaited Dressage for the Trail Horse

by Jennifer Klitzke

Have you longed to learn dressage with your gaited horse, yet have a trail horse that detests arena work? That’s me and Lady.

Gaited Dressage for the Trail Horse

Not all horses are wired the same. That includes my naturally gaited fox trotting horse Lady. I began riding her in the arena, because that’s how I’ve introduced all of the horses I’ve ridden to dressage over the years.

Lady is a marvelous trail horse, and I quickly discovered that she didn’t understand the purpose of riding in an arena without a change of scenery!

Gaited dressage on the trailInstead of fighting with her, I brought Lady to her happy place—the trail. And that’s where we work on our gaited dressage. We use natural obstacles to maneuver around such as trees and the fire pit. Then we leg yield from one side of the path to the other, followed by a soft halt, and a gentle and slow rein back, to a slow balanced walk, and then transition to her easy gait before transitioning back to a free walk on a long rein.

Gaited dressage on the trail helped our training in 5 ways:

1) Passenger to Participant

Instead of being a passenger and let Lady follow the trail, I became an active participant in our relationship through the exercises and transitions,

2) Tuning Me Out to Listening

By being present with Lady and guiding our travels, it gave gave her a reason to stay dialed in to me instead of just following the trail.

3) Tension to Harmony

During our ride on the trail Lady lost the tension she had in the arena and we developed more harmony.

4) Fight and Flight to Trust

Working together on our journey through the woods helped Lady and I develop a partnership of trust. Lady began to listen to me for the next cue, release and reward. This helped establish me as the trusted leader of our relationship where Lady looked to me over her fight or flight defenses.

Gaited dressage on the trail5) Developing the Basics of Gaited Dressage

While on the trail, we began to ride the elements of a low level gaited dressage test by establishing relaxation, rhythm, balance, connection, and forwardness, as well as developing harmony and softness. While I worked on applying effective aids and reinforcing a balanced riding position.

Lady seemed happy working gaited dressage on the trail.  Come to think of it, so did I.

Dressage on the trail has become a new kind of training for me—training without walls in the beauty of nature which feeds my soul while freeing me of the rigidity and perfectionism that often plague me in the arena.

Let me know your thoughts if you’ve given dressage on the trail a try.

Stay connected by subscribing to the Naturally Gaited youtube channel and joining our community on facebook.com/naturallygaited.

Dressage for the Gaited Horse, French Dressage for Gaited Horses

Following Arms & Rubber Band Fingers

Following the Head and Neck Motion

Many gaited riders choose to ride still or to ride with a long floppy rein. So, why follow the natural head and neck motion of the gaited horse with relaxed arms, shoulders, hands and fingers? If dressage is your riding style, here’s something to consider.

Following the Head and Neck of the Gaited Horse with Relaxed Arms & Rubber Band Fingers

By Jennifer Klitzke

When I returned from my Seattle vacation last Fall, I was excited to try out all I learned from Nichole Walters, a student of Classical French Dressage Master Philippe Karl. I was especially curious about following the natural head and neck motion of my naturally gaited horse with relaxed shoulders, arms and hands.

Granted, I rode non gaited horses at Nichole’s farm. Yet a trotting horse walk expresses an even four-beat gait. The head and neck nods naturally with each step. This is where Nicole encouraged me to relax my shoulders, back, and arms so that I would follow the horse’s motion.

It got me thinking. This seemed like a direct take-a-way for how I ride my naturally gaited Tennessee walking horse and fox trotting horse. It was critical that I learn to follow the natural head and neck motion while maintaining a light, even contact.

After publishing the video: Following the Motion of the Head Shaking Horse, I received a great tip from someone on the Naturally Gaited Facebook page. Along with following the natural head and neck motion with relaxed arms, a women encouraged to open and close my fingers with each head nod. This is what I call “rubber band fingers.”

I began giving this idea a try with both my naturally gaited Tennessee walking horse and my fox trotting mare.

Along with following the natural head and neck motion with relaxed arms and rubber band fingers are leading my naturally gaited horse into:

  • Relaxation: relaxed in the mind and relaxed in the jaw and back which will help break up pace.
  • Balance: so my naturally gaited horse will carry equal weight on all four legs and not be heavier on the forehand or leaning on the bit.
  • Rhythm: that my naturally gaited horses tempo is even, steady, forward, and not rushing.
  • Engagement: that of the hind leg steps deeper under the body more than trailing behind the tail.
  • Straightness: so that the shoulders are carrying equal weight and the horse isn’t leaning on the inside shoulder or bulging the outside shoulder.

I am seeing great results from combining these elements. My naturally gaited Tennessee walking horse’s head nod is more defined and regular in timing with the hind leg steps. Her rhythm is more even, and she seems more forward and engaged from behind.

Video: Following the Motion of the Head & Neck

I hope you find this video helpful. Please let me know your thoughts by completing the contact form.

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