QUESTION: What is the right time to start teaching a training level horse lateral movements and what movements should be started first?
Answer submitted by Christie Bigelow:
Coming from a primarily hunter/jumper point of view, my opinions may be somewhat different than others.
But.. I would have to say that your horse is ready to start learning lateral movements when they are listening and responding well to your aids, through forward and downward transitions.
I would say one of the first lateral movements I work on would be the leg yield, one thing I do while warming up is leg yielding on and off the track, getting my horse to understand moving away from my leg, not just moving forward. Once my horse is understanding and responding to light aides, I then start shoulders in and haunches in. This also helps with your circle work, serpentines, and ends of the arena.
Remember, ask often, expect little, praise a lot.
Answer submitted by Diane Marcina:
Lateral movements should be started before the horse is ever ridden
Simple yielding, of the hindquarters and/or shoulders and/or head & neck can be thought safely from the ground at any age
When ridden, a simplified turn on the forehand can be done against the wall, w/almost no use of the hands which is important when 1st done.
Leg yielding in a big circle should then be easy if it was thought on the ground first.
Happy riding
Diane Marcina
Answer submitted by Kerry Petty:
Think of movements as a way to improve the horse and not an end to themselves. For instance, if training a 'training' level 'horse who you want more into the outside rein then I would start to introduce leg yielding. I might also introduce a bit of shoulder fore and/or shoulder-in to help a horse who leans on the inside rein. My thought process as I ride is what exercise or movement will help the horse the most as I seek to ride the horse 'through' allowing him to work through his back from behind.
Lateral work allows you to also teach the horse that your leg speaks a couple of languages: go forward, go sideways, and step more lively behind. Take your time and ask for just a little in the beginning as what you are asking for with good quality lateral work is a stronger horse with more muscle control and that takes time to build. Good luck as you and your horse learn to dance sideways!
Answer submitted by Shelby Wyrostek:
Let's first define 'lateral movement'. Typically, when someone is referring to lateral movement, they are discussing a horse moving forwards and sideways at the same time. Generally people thing of leg yield, shoulder in, haunches in, and half pass when they picture a lateral movement. But the very foundation of lateral movement begins with exercises that are stationary, the turn on the forehand and the turn on the haunches. These exercises establish the ability of the rider to displace the horses hindquarters and forehand.
The most basic is the turn on the forehand, which is the precursor to leg yielding. You can begin the turn on the forehand from the ground, well before the horse is ever started under saddle. In the turn on the forehand, the horses front feet stay within a small circle (think marching in place) and the hind feet move on a larger circle. The horse is bent slightly away from the direction of movement, and the sideways aid is applied on the inside, at the girth.
Now don't panic if that sounds complicated. Let's break it down even further. Let's take a turn on the forehand away from the RIGHT leg. In this case, the horse is slightly bent to the RIGHT. The LEFT rein maintains steady, consistent contact, limiting the bend of the neck and controlling the LEFT shoulder and foreleg. The weight is to the RIGHT. The RIGHT leg is applied, pulsing, at the girth. The LEFT leg is off, allowing the horse somewhere to go. The horse should move softly and willingly away from the RIGHT leg, with the RIGHT restricting forward movement.
So, how do you do this with a young horse who has not yet been started under saddle? You don't have to even have a bit in the horse's mouth yet. You can use a halter in place of the bridle, and the butt end of a whip in place of your inside leg. Of course, this requires that the horse be familiarized with the whip already. If you do not feel comfortable using the whip, you can also use the heel of your hand, or on a less sensitive horse, you can use your thumb (sort of like a spur). Stand just a bit behind your horse's shoulder, facing his body. Using your lead rope, encourage the horse to just slightly turn his nose towards you. Not too much, or he'll have to move his forehand. Remember, this is about displacing the HAUNCHES. Then, use the butt end of the whip, or the heel of your hand, approximately where your leg will land on the horse. Remember, pulse the aids. Your horse will most likely move INTO steady pressure, so remember to release the aids and give him a chance to respond. Squeeze, release, squeeze, release.
Once you have gotten the turn on the forehand down, you can move to leg yielding. Leg yielding is a great suppling exercise that should be started very early on in a horse's training. However, many people perform leg yielding incorrectly. They let the horse fall through the outside rein, and get the sideways movement by using an indirect inside rein. This pretty much defeats the purpose! Beside suppling the horse, one of the best benefits of performing the leg yield is to establish that the horse can move away from the inside leg and into the outside rein. Here is the basis for the connection in the rest of our dressage work. Beyond that, the leg yield has relatively little value, as it does nothing to encourage the horse to engage the hind leg or lighten the forehand.
Basically, you have two stationary movements that are the beginning of your lateral work. From there, they can be built upon for the 'real' lateral work.
Turn on the Forehand ---> Leg Yielding ---> Shoulder In
Turn on the Haunches ---> Haunches In ---> Half Pass
Remember that while Turn on the Forehand and Haunches are stationary movements, the rest of the lateral work can be performed at the walk, trot, and canter.
Shelby Wyrostek
SW Dressage