Sassy and I have progressed from ground driving to ground reining- this is just a sample; I usually give her 5 -10 minutes of this. (Please ignore the ugly baling twine hobble on the snaffle! I'll get around to putting a leather one on, honest!) This was her third lesson on this, the first time she took a little time to figure out that I wanted her to go forward with me walking along side, but we got there in only a few minutes. She reins quite lightly, and doesn't get excited about things. After this session, I stepped in the stirrups. She wanted to walk off with me when I did that, mostly because my toe was poking in her elbow, so I had Ted hold her, and I was able to step up on both sides and lean over her and pat her on the opposite side. It was quite rewarding to see her eye soften and get all relaxed when I did that. A couple of more days of doing this and it will be time to swing over and settle into the saddle! I'm loving the mind on this filly.
7 comments:
Looks good ,she is coming along well. you must have more snow at your place or less ice, we are still pretty slick
I forget how tall you are too I don't know if I could reach over and ground rein with such ease
There's no ice in the horsepens; good thing! And I'm about 5'10, so I found this a fairly easy way to do my ground work. I like it better than driving with long lines- you get a better feel of their mouth.
So is this how it's done? Is this how you train a horse to recognize reign commands? Wow! I've never seen it done before but always wondered how it was done.
I know. I'm too much of a city boy to even know the basics:0)
OH, she is a smart one!
I have a dumb question. I ride English, and I ride one of my horses in a ring snaffle. When I see western horses in a ring snaffle they have a curb chain or "hobble" as you called it, on the snaffle. It doesn't make sense to me, at all. When I use a curb chain or strap, it's on a curb, kimberwicke or a pelham and snugged up so when pressure is applied to the bit, the leverage causes the chain/strap to hit the chin. I just don't see how that could possibly work on a ring snaffle.
Could you explain it's purpose in Western/reining? What action does it have?
Jenn, in Western, snaffles are usually only used when training a young horse. The reason we put a hobble on the snaffle is to keep the bit from sliding too far through the mouth when we are teaching the horse to give to the bit, and to turn.For example, if I pick up the rein for a left turn, and she tosses her head or tries to evade by turning to the right, the bit will stay in place instead of having the rings slide into her mouth- which could be damaging to her teeth. It is not meant to add pressure as when using a leverage bit such as a kimberwick, or a curb bit. When you have an older, well trained horse and you ride in a snaffle, the hobble isn't necessary, though most people still leave it on.
Shirley, thank you for the explanation, it makes much more sense now. I always pondered why the heck they had the curb straps on the ring snaffles, but I was too chicken to ask!
Isn't it funny how the disciplines differ in equipment use? The first bit I put on a horse is always a snaffle, but it's usually a full cheek or a D-ring to prevent the pull-through. The loose ring snaffle is used later on a more finished horse and then even later, paired with a curb in the double bridle for an extremely sensitive dressage horse.
Post a Comment