[statsgodric]

Hi y'all from Illinois. I ride a wonderful lesson horse every week named Zara. She is very sweet and docile and delightful. There is only one thing. She won't stay on the railing of the indoor arena.

Any advice would be welcome.

 

[Golden Horse]

Inside leg to outside hand

More inside leg to outside hand..

Maybe back up the inside leg to outside hand a whip, used just behind your inside leg, as it’s pushing, bumping and nudging the horse out

Spoken by the person who feels like they have a groin strain from using my whole leg trying to keep my little monster on the rail today.

 

[statsgodric]

Inside leg to outside hand

More inside leg to outside hand..

Maybe back up the inside leg to outside hand a whip, used just behind your inside leg, as it’s pushing, bumping and nudging the horse out

Spoken by the person who feels like they have a groin strain from using my whole leg trying to keep my little monster on the rail today.

Thank you for the advice. I call my groin my groan. Hee hee

 

[tinyliny]

if the horse is bending such that the inside shoulder drops toward the center, in effect the horse 'falls into ' the middle in an attempt to shortcut the distance it must travel , you have fundamentally two choices;

1. let it; Let it go to the inside, but turn it so that it is not falling into the center counter bent. instead, lift the inside rein, get it to lift up that inside shoulder, bend a bit through the neck and 'follow' the rein around in a small circle to the inside until it goes full around and is back on the rail. Keep doing that until it becomes tired of that 'game' and decides not to shortcutt.

2. use the inside rein and the inside leg to create a bend toward the outside of the arena and push the horse over. I'm not a fan of intensive 'pushing' of a resistant horse. so, I might smack the horse once behind the inside leg to say 'smarten up and listen'. THEN push it out, but if it's bending its nose toward the outside, using the outside rein will only pull the nose further that way. You need to use the inside rein and inside leg to correct the bend.

video?

 

[statsgodric]

Inside leg to outside hand

More inside leg to outside hand..

Maybe back up the inside leg to outside hand a whip, used just behind your inside leg, as it’s pushing, bumping and nudging the horse out

Spoken by the person who feels like they have a groin strain from using my whole leg trying to keep my little monster on the rail today.

Hello - what do I do with my reins?

 

[dogpatch]

The best tip I ever came across was from a western trainer. I don't remember exactly what he called it, but basically it is a "shoulder over" or he may have called it "shoulder up". Yep, I think he called it shoulder up.

I invested a lot of time teaching the horse to simply lift its forehand and step to the side. It's not exactly a turn on the haunches, because you're not asking the haunches to remain immobile but it is a clear request to step over with the forehand. As a matter of fact, it's probably easier for the horse to move his shoulders over a step when he's moving.

I didn't take this cue to great heights (my so-called training is always getting interrupted). But the result has been, when the horse starts falling in on the shoulder, I simply give the cue with the inside leg a little in front of the girth. The horse generally says, "Oh! Okay!" And steps back onto the track. Loose rein, no sweating on anybody's part. But the cue has to be solidly taught, from the ground, from the saddle. It also needs to be refreshed occasionally if the response gets a bit dull, but corners and circles became much more fluid.

One exercise is doing "squares". Walk along the rail, halt, give the shoulder over cue with the outside leg. Ask for a step at a time until you are facing the opposite rail. Walk forward, halt at the rail. Ask for the shoulder over with the outside leg, walk the rail, halt, ask, etc., until you have completed a square. You can simply walk randomly, and while walking, ask the horse to take one step over and continue walking. One step, continue, one step continue, alternating which shoulder you are influencing. But teach it solidly in one direction first. "Too many changes of direction makes too many new beginnings for the horse" (Herm Gailey)

But it has to become a learned response. You can't just try to shove the horse back onto the track.
Once you have a conditioned response, hopefully you will have better luck keeping the horse on the track. Ask with the inside leg to move the shoulder back on to the track. Don't hold the shoulder out with constant pressure from the inside leg cue or the rein. Ask, get the response, release.

Remarkably, this little move seems to soften the horse from nose to tail, so it is not an isolated response like it sounds.

 

[dogpatch]

Note: For the smoothest response, it's best to give the cue as the outside foreleg is leaving the ground

 

[dogpatch]

Hello - what do I do with my reins?

If it was me, traveling on a straight line, I'd try to keep my hands passive, if you're riding on a nice even contact, and the horse understands the "shoulder up" cue, His head is going to follow the rest of his body, I see no reason to throw multiple messages at him when one will do.

If you are in a corner or a circle, generally speaking, you don't want any more bend than to be able to see the corner of the horse's inside eye. But you may be surprised how little rein it takes to maintain a soft bend when you get full control of the shoulders. That has been my happy experience, anyway.

 

[beau159]

She won't stay on the railing of the indoor arena.

Any advice would be welcome.

Well, just like if you drive a car, YOU are responsible for keeping it on the road. So, therefore, you (as the rider) as responsible for where your horse goes.

If the horse is not doing what you are asking, then are you likely NOT asking for the correct thing OR your horse does not understand what you are asking. (Which would be like hitting and brake and the gas pedal at the same time in your car)

Hello - what do I do with my reins?

Are you riding Western or English? I'm just curious if your riding instructor is having you ride with one hand or two hands on the reins.
For an issue like what you are having, it would likely be easier for you to have two hands on the reins. Let's say you are going around the arena to the right, in a clockwise direction. That would mean your left hand is along the wall (outside hand) and your right hand is your inside hand. So if your horse is wanting to go right and go to the middle. Then you would use your right LEG (inside leg) to "block" your horse from going that way. Make sure your left (outside) leg is not making contact with the horse so that you "open the door" for the horse to go that way. With your reins, you would use your left (outside) hand in a direct rein fashion to steer your horse back to the left. You would still keep a little contact with your right hand (inside) just to be there to balance and support the horse.

If you are having trouble understanding this or knowing what to do, ask your instructor!!!

 

[tinyliny]

How much riding instruction have you had? I'm afraid that the most of this advice given is too far advanced, perhaps, for what you are ready to put into action.

 

[statsgodric]

if the horse is bending such that the inside shoulder drops toward the center, in effect the horse 'falls into ' the middle in an attempt to shortcut the distance it must travel , you have fundamentally two choices;

1. let it; Let it go to the inside, but turn it so that it is not falling into the center counter bent. instead, lift the inside rein, get it to lift up that inside shoulder, bend a bit through the neck and 'follow' the rein around in a small circle to the inside until it goes full around and is back on the rail. Keep doing that until it becomes tired of that 'game' and decides not to shortcutt.

2. use the inside rein and the inside leg to create a bend toward the outside of the arena and push the horse over. I'm not a fan of intensive 'pushing' of a resistant horse. so, I might smack the horse once behind the inside leg to say 'smarten up and listen'. THEN push it out, but if it's bending its nose toward the outside, using the outside rein will only pull the nose further that way. You need to use the inside rein and inside leg to correct the bend.

video?

Sorry but I don't have a video