Re: [RC] Conditioning Down Hills - Barbara McCrary
The other option is: Sit upright and
deep in the saddle, squeeze with your legs and collect a little with the bridle
(one rein.) I would say that a snaffle might be the best for this.
Squeezing tells the horse to get under himself and use his hindquarters, just as
squeezing tells him to push uphill or to stop. You might ever try tapping
on the hip and see if this helps. I just try some of these cues and see
how my horse responds. If I get the response I want, then I continue to
use the cues that bring that response. I'm not a great horsetrainer at
all, but I've learned that (to me, anyway) horsetraining is knowing what it
feels like when the horse is doing what you want. When it feels right,
you're on the right track.
Does anybody else have any tips on how to teach a horse to go
down hill using his hindquarters correctly? I love Barbara's post, but unless
you have a horse that is goosey, it doesn't help much! :-)
Thanks, April Nashville, TN http://www.tracetribute.com "Get your facts first, then
you can distort them as you please." - Mark Twain
This
particular horse was very goosey when we first got him and would tuck his
butt under himself if we so much as started to brush him or even reach
out to touch him. I started using this habit to train him to
get under himself going downhill. I would reach back and
either tap him on the hip with my fingers or just rest my hand on
him. He tucked! Gradually, he figured it out and
became one of our best downhill horses. He also got over being
goosey.
