bringing frount end through

[tahoespirit]

ok, pls forgive me if i use the wrong wording here. i'm pretty new...

so, after i've disengaged spirits hind quarters, i'll then ask him to bring his frount end through. ok, why is it, (sometimes) he does this little hop? it's not every time, but i noticed it started about 3 weeks ago, and he will do it every once in a while. is it laziness, or could this be attributed to poor saddle fit in any way? or am i doing somthing wrong in my asking him? like maybe letting down my supporting rein in some way... dunno, grasping here...

thanks!

[Mares Tales]

Perhaps you need to slow things down or........you might be too predictable? After you disengage his hindquarters do you ask for the front to come around most of the time? Perhaps he is anticipating and trying to keep a little ahead of you. If so, mix it up a little and walk on or just stand there for a bit after you disengage the hind so as to separate asking the front and back to move separately instead of blending them into one movement.

Hard to tell what you are doing from where I am sitting ......I`m just taking a stab at it.

[tahoespirit]

ahhh.... that makes some sense. he is a clever boy and i am a creature of habit. LOL. thank you!

[Cinch]

I agree with Mares. You are might be rushing things a little & his front feet are not in the right position to come across so he's trying to catch up with your request & that's causing the hop. Either that or you're asking repetitively & he's getting bored with it or anticipating. Think more about the feel & the timing that you are offering him.

[red]

I vote for both Cinch and Mares take on it...you have to set him up to succeed...that means you have to be ultra aware of where his feet are, so that he can accomplish the task..my guess is that when you ask him to disengage and bring it around to the front, his front feet are not in the right position so he can not push off, and make it fluid, he has to take a little "glitch" step, to accomplish the "feat"...if it is uncomfortable for you, it is uncomfortable for him, too..I would practice just moving his front feet so that you can get the feel of how his shoulders move, and where he has his head, learn how he uses his body, by watching, and breaking it down to the small detail.. That is a fun project. just see if you can move one front foot laterally, and then bring it back..all good.

[tahoespirit]

thank you cinch, red, and mares. i'll post tonight after i get home from the barn w/ my progress. spirits had a nice break for a couple of days. so i'm going to take all of your advice and see how it goes w/ my ride this afternoon.

[cynth]

One other thought on where the feet are-- where are the hind feet when you ask him to bring the front feet around. Did he move the the hind end and then leave one hind foot out to one side or more behind him rather than having it up underneath him? This will make it more difficult for him to be set up to rock back a little and come through with the shoulders.
-Cynth

[reata]

Good point Cynth, I was thinking along those lines too after I got past the slow things down a little.
We need to help the horse separate what we are asking for.. The rear end or the shoulders..Rocking the weight back is something many people miss in this exercise and to me its the main point of the exercise.
I look at it this way... free up the hind end by getting it to step over ( that gets the hind end active) then rock the weigh back onto this active hind end. Then ask for the shoulders to free up and step over.. The horse should have his hocks under him and be using his hind end, then the shoulders can get light and free up real nice.
Of course this is easy on paper but it sure made a big difference to me and my horses when I finally worked out WHY I was doing this stuff!!!
Now don't get bogged down trying to do it just right.. work on it off and on for a couple of weeks or so.. get it right in your mind and one day your horse will be "right on"!! :)

[tahoespirit]

reata, thanks for your information and advice. on my ride yest., i tried to slow it down. piece by piece. really trying to feel every step and identify where his feet were.

wow. very difficult. i didn't get the hop. but, i did see right away that i really had to make spirit slow down. he was ready to do everything before i could even ask. so, i really see somthing here.

thank you, and to all! couldn't get to barn today, but tomorrow bright and early we'll be ridin'