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Lead Changes, Pivoting, Side Pass2007-11-24 21:18:19

What is the best way to teach a horse its lead changes in a small arena? And how do you re-teach a rusty pivot and side pass?

Answers:

your horse naturally knows how to do a lead change so what you need to do is teach him how to know when you want a lead change. this can be done by jogging your horse in a circle then watch his shoulder and when the correct shoulder is out in front you can ask for the lope. there is just a split second time frame that you have to work with so this can be hard but it will come easier with time. when you are doing this don't lean forward to watch the horses feet as this will make it harder for it to get the lead. after the horse will pick up the leads you can lope in a figure 8 and as the horse comes around in the center of the 8 make it a nice strait line and just before he goes around the same way again turn him the other way and kick with the out side foot. make him get the lead before you come out of the circle and make the circle smaller to force him to change. remember to praise the horse for improvement but don't punish the horse when it does something wrong because it does not know what you want yet. for pivot and side pass just ask for them frequently and praise the horse for any good reaction to your cues. soon the horse will remember and will do them on command. Good Luck

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Try the forums on HorseLover.net http://horselover.net/index.shtml...

You'll find lots of posts to answer at least some of these questions.

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I know a lot of people teach a horse to do lead changes with a pole on the ground in the middle of a figure 8. When they go to change direction onto the next circle of the figure 8, the horse must cross the pole and it encourages them to lift their front end and change their lead. I suggest the book 101 Arena Exercises, it gives MUCH better details about all the maneuvers than I can explain. I find it a very helpful book. Also, when in doubt ask your trainer! They can probably explain things in a way that will be easy to understand and can demonstrate.

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Flying lead changes are very complicated to teach, and its something I suggest you do with the help of a trainer. A true flying change does not occur just because you turn your horse one direction or another (your horse is capable of doing that naturally on his own in the pasture) A true change happens when you ask for it, and often performed in a straight line. Its not something I would give advice for in a sentence or two, except to say that first you must be able to move all the parts of your horse seperately - hip, shoulder, and neck. And that your horse must understand the concept of picking up his leads on the straight before you go any further.