Re: [RC] What to watch out for in the canter - Linda Hedgpeth
Thank you Kat. I will work on this when I
start my gelding again in March. Already, he shows much willingness
for a slower, collected canter. I consider him still very green even
at 6 because I haven't been able to ride him much. I teach
all my horses to pick up their leads on cue and to do flying
changes........except not him....yet ;-)
> **If** a horse is a to-die-for #10
canterer and > demonstrates he prefers it, are there specific
tendon, > bone, joint, etc. issues to watch for that would be >
different from training using the trot as the primary gait.
One of the
biggest differences between the trot and the canter is that there are
phases of the stride in the canter where the entire weight of the horse is
being born by a single leg (the outside hind and the inside fore if the
horse is on "the correct" lead). The fact that the entire weight of
the horse is on the outside hind at the start of the stride is of very
little (but not none) consequence, because the other diagonal legs come
down before the outside hind breaks over. However, the entire weight
of the horse is on the leading fore during breakover, which SERIOUSLY
hyperflexes the joint and puts a lot of stress on the flexor tendons.
The less you extend the horses gait, the less impact this has, the less "on
the forehand" the horse, the less impact this has, and the more you
practice it by working up to it slowly and building the flexibility of the
flexor tendons, the less impact this has.
Additionally, since the
canter is a "one sided" gait (i.e. there is more stress on the horse at the
canter if the horse is counter cantering than if it is on the inside lead),
it is important to teach the horse how to use both leads, and it is very
helpful if you have also taught the horse to change leads when asked.
And even if you are going down a long straight path, it is important to
change leads occasionally just to give one side a
"rest."
