Horses are incredible creatures that can be trained to do amazing things. Whether you are training your horse for dressage or just want it to have better control and maneuverability, teaching your horse to bend is an essential skill. The ability to bend gives the horse greater control and balance while turning, and helps the horse to better understand the rider’s cues. Understanding how to make your horse bend better can help you take your horsemanship to the next level.
Understanding the Basics of Bending
When teaching your horse to bend, it’s important to understand the basics of how your horse’s body works. Horses are naturally designed to bend in the direction of their hips and shoulders. This means that the inside hind leg will move slightly in front of the outside hind leg in a turn. The horse’s body should follow the arc of the turn, with the horse’s head, neck, and shoulders following the outside hind leg.
Preparation is Key
Before you begin teaching your horse to bend, it is important to make sure that he is properly warmed up and ready to learn. This means that you should take the time to walk, trot, and canter your horse to warm up his muscles. When your horse is warmed up, he will be more responsive to your cues and more willing to learn.
Using Aids to Bend
Once your horse is warmed up, you can begin to use aids to help him bend. The most common aids for bending are the reins, legs, and voice. To use the reins for bending, you will want to take one rein in each hand and then use the rein on the inside of the turn to pull your horse’s head and neck in the direction of the turn. This will help your horse to understand that he needs to bend in the direction of the turn. You can also use your legs to help your horse bend. By pushing your outside leg back, you can help to encourage your horse to bend in the direction of the turn. Finally, you can use your voice to help encourage your horse to bend. Using a soft, positive tone will help to give your horse the confidence to bend in the direction that you want.
Establishing a Good Foundation
Once you have used the aids to help your horse understand what you want him to do, it is important to establish a good foundation of bending. This means that you will want to practice bending your horse at the walk, trot, and canter. You can start by walking your horse in a circle and then gradually increase the size of the circle. As your horse bends, it is important to keep your outside leg back to help him stay on the arc of the turn. You can also use your inside rein to keep your horse’s head and neck on the inside of the turn. Once your horse has a good understanding of bending at the walk, you can increase the speed to the trot and then eventually to the canter.
Practicing Turn on the Forehand & Shoulder-In
Once your horse is able to bend correctly at the walk, trot, and canter, you can begin to practice turn on the forehand and shoulder-in. Turn on the forehand is an exercise that helps to improve your horse’s balance and flexibility. To do this exercise, you will want to stand in the center of a circle and ask your horse to turn on his forehand by pushing him off with your outside leg and pulling his head and neck around with your inside rein. Shoulder-in is a more advanced exercise that helps to improve your horse’s balance and suppleness. To do this exercise, you will want to ask your horse to walk forward on a straight line and then use your outside leg to push your horse’s shoulder away from you while using your inside rein to pull his head and neck toward you.
Improving Your Horse’s Flexibility
In addition to the exercises mentioned above, there are a few other exercises that can help to improve your horse’s flexibility. Flexibility is key when it comes to making your horse bend better. The first exercise is the half-halt. This exercise helps to improve your horse’s balance and responsiveness. To do this exercise, you will want to use your outside rein to ask your horse to slow down and then use your inside leg to push your horse’s hindquarters away from you. You can also use lateral movements such as leg yields and shoulder fores to help your horse become more flexible.
Developing Your Horse’s Balance & Strength
In addition to improving your horse’s flexibility, it is important to develop his balance and strength. To do this, you can practice exercises such as circles, serpentines, and figure eights. These exercises will help your horse to develop better balance and strength, which will in turn help him to bend better. You can also practice hill work and long-and-low exercises to help your horse develop the necessary muscles for bending.
Using Positive Reinforcement
When teaching your horse to bend, it is important to use positive reinforcement. This means that you should reward your horse when he does something correctly. This could be in the form of a pat, a treat, or a verbal praise. When you reward your horse, he will learn to associate the desired behavior with a reward, which will make him more likely to do the desired behavior again. This will help your horse to understand what you are asking of him and will help him to bend better.
Staying Patient & Consistent
Finally, when teaching your horse to bend, it is important to stay patient and consistent. Teaching your horse to bend can be a long process, but it is important to stay consistent in your training. Horses learn best when they are given consistent cues and rewarded for good behavior. This will help your horse to understand what you are asking of him and will help him to bend better.
Conclusion
Making your horse bend better is a process that requires patience and consistency. By understanding the basics of how your horse’s body works, warming up your horse before training, and using aids such as your reins, legs, and voice, you can help your horse to understand what you are asking of him. Additionally, by practicing exercises such as turn on the forehand and shoulder-in, you can help to improve your horse’s balance and suppleness. Finally, by using positive reinforcement and staying consistent in your training, you can help your horse to understand what you are asking of him and help him to bend better.