# Tips Exercises to make horse move off your leg



## hotdog (28 April 2009)

Could someone give me some tips exercises to try to get my horse to move off my leg.

At the start of schooling he is sometimes a bit slow to get going - I warm him up by walking, trotting and cantering on a long rein to get all his muscles moving.  Then when I start to take up a contact he backs off and it takes a lot of effort from my legs to get him going forward and into a contact.  

Last night I tried walk long rein, pick up contact to walk and then when relaxed into trot then back to walk and long rein again.

He fights the contact with his head so I'm trying to sit on him more and ride from teh back end if that makes sense

Was wondering if anyone had any other exercises/tips to try


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## skewby (28 April 2009)

I got mine moving off the leg by using a light leg aid, then if no response, backing it up with a flick from a schooling whip.  It took a lot of practice for me to get out of the habit of increasing the leg aid, but once I got it right it was fab and he now moves well off the leg.  Getting stronger and stronger with my legs was exhausting and also caused me to tense up.  You end up feeling like you are carrying the horse and it's not nice!


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## Spot_the_Risk (28 April 2009)

I read a something in a mag once (one of those reader has a lesson with famous person picture shoots!) about a horse like yours.  The trainer said don't start on a long rein, you must keep a good contact even if working long and low, otherwise the horse will resist when you pick up the contact, and to demand that the horse pays attention to you from the moment your bum hits the saddle.

Regarding lazy off the leg, I've always been taught to not nag, but to give the horse your normal aid, if no response then go for the pony club kick - he will probably be shocked and shoot off across the arena.  Go with it (give with hands) and when he settles again, go back to the normal aid.

Good luck, and I should say I'm not a top riding instructor, just a happy hacker with a thirst for knowledge - I read a lot!


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## hellspells (28 April 2009)

Ditto not riding on a purely long rein.  You need to have a constant contact making him work over and through his back.

Also like said above, one normal ask for trot, canter etc - then ask and flick if not response.

Hundreds and millions of trot, walk, trot transitons on a circle, going large a) to get him listening to you and b) to get his hind legs engaging.  Vary the length of walk from 4 strides to one clear one.


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## cob1 (28 April 2009)

My cob has days where he can back off your leg a bit. My trainer gets me to walk a small circle in the corner of the arena before teh long side, and set off down the quarter line and leg yield him to the track. Once on the track, i ride forwards into trot and he is more free through his hindquarters. 

The same thing in trot activates my cob really well (do the circle then leg yeild on the quarter line in trot as well).


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## devilinajar (28 April 2009)

I am finding with the mare i ride that i am going to need to use a small spur.  I have tried all the exercises you have surgested over the last year but nothing works, she is still dead to the right leg!  On Saturday while hacking back home my friend put her right spur on me and the mare finally started to listen to my right leg!


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## Nailed (28 April 2009)

transitions transitions transtions!!!!!!

Lou x


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## RachelB (28 April 2009)

[ QUOTE ]
Regarding lazy off the leg, I've always been taught to not nag, but to give the horse your normal aid, if no response then go for the pony club kick - he will probably be shocked and shoot off across the arena.  Go with it (give with hands) and when he settles again, go back to the normal aid.

[/ QUOTE ]
This is known round my way as "scary legs" - it works a treat! It cannot be done once though, you need to repeat it as many times as it takes for the horse to realise that if it ignores your first aid it's going to get a blooming good boot in the ribs. My horse now moves off the tiniest leg aid, and once in a blue moon needs kicking to remind her. It's SO much nicer than nagging!
You MUST give with your hands though... I was doing scary legs with my share horse in a lesson last week, and because I'm nervous about him going too forwards I was grabbing his mouth accidentally 
	
	
		
		
	


	




 I got a telling off from my instructor and I held the neckstrap after that and he really went nicely once we'd both got the idea!


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## Silverspring (28 April 2009)

First off I would make sure he's happy with his bit and mouth etc.  If so and the backing off is just laziness I would recommend lots and lots of transitions.

Carl Hester reckons you should aim to do 50 transitions in any schooling session...and he defines one transition as ... to ... then ... to ... so not just up but up and down.  If you're schooling for 45 minutes that means you should be changing speed twice every 54 seconds...if you do this the horse will be far more alert as it's constanly explecting you to ask something.  It also really helps with balance and transisitons 
	
	
		
		
	


	





Also don't ask the same question twice, if you ask for trot and don't get it right stop and ask again with more vigour.  Don't try to correct a bad transition in the pace, stop and get it right first time.  I find horse's start to spring off your leg if they know every time they stagger into trot they are asked to walk and do it all over again and you kick that little bit harder!

I used to own such the lazy WB, had hundreds of hours worth of lessons trying to get the bugger to show some energy.


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## Silverspring (28 April 2009)

[ QUOTE ]
The trainer said don't start on a long rein, you must keep a good contact even if working long and low, otherwise the horse will resist when you pick up the contact, and to demand that the horse pays attention to you from the moment your bum hits the saddle.



[/ QUOTE ]

Did the trainer say not to start on a long rein or not to start on a loose contact?

I can ride my horse into a relaly quite long rein while maintaining the same contact that I have when on the bit.  People do tend to see horse's going long and low and assume the rider does not have a contact but if you are riding correctly no matter how long or short the rein you should have a consistent contact.

I hack with the same contact I ride in the school with but on a very relaxed (but not quite long as she'd fall over her head!) rein. 

The contact should never be dropped by the rider unless you are completely surrendering control to the horse (eg maybe at the end of a lesson by actually dropping the reins) and as far as I am concerned (as in my trainer) you either have a conact or you don't, there's no grey area, no 50% contact 50% not.


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