| |
Training
Standardbreds to Canter
By
Ann Smith
|
|
 |
Morgans
and Thoroughbreds are some of the most versatile horses
in the world. So if they can do it, you betcha there is
a Standardbred out there that can do it. |
|
| |
It
is not hard to teach Standardbreds to canter, but it does
depend on the individual horse and his or her willingness
to canter or gallop in the field. Standardbreds are first
and foremost horses, so they have all the horse gaits: halt,
walk, trot, pace, canter and gallop. |
| |
Since
Standardbreds are made up of many breeds, they come in all
shapes, sizes and a variety of colors. Because they have
mixed blood, they have different inclinations for different
types of work. Don't forget that the three main breeds that
contributed to the standardbred of today are the Narragansett
pacer, Morgan and Thoroughbred. Morgans and Thoroughbreds
are some of the most versatile horses in the world.
So if they can do it, you betcha there is a Standardbred
out there that can do it.
The biggest
difference between a Standardbred and a "normal"
riding horse is that many were trained to race—normally
in a quick hitch harness at either a pace (from the Narragansett
pacer) or a trot. From the time many Standardbreds were
about 18 months old, they have pulled a person who sat
in a jog cart behind them every day for five miles at
a jog/trot. On race days they pulled somebody around for
10 miles and then raced. Most likely, they were taught
to go faster while still in either of the two-beat
gaits.
|
| |
The
normal method of teaching horses to canter will not
work 85% of the time.
|
|
This
means that the normal method of teaching horses to
canter—ie, "make them go faster and they
will break into canter"—will not work 85%
of the time. Unfortunately, many people only know
this method of teaching a horse to canter. Below you
will find another method that has worked on horses
for the past 4,000 years. |
|
| |
The
first step to teaching the Standardbred to canter is for
the rider or trainer to stop thinking of the canter as a
faster gait. For the race-trained standardbred, the
fastest and most balanced gait is the the trot or pace.
Not surprisingly, whenever they are off-balance or confused,
they will find their balance in either the halt, the trot
or the pace—not the walk or gallop which is "normal."
Remember this, it is part of a quiz.... :-)
The key is to work on gaining balance in the walk, learning
to control the movement of the horse's individual legs (in
both walk and trot), and teaching submission to the bit's
requests.
When we ask for a gait (halt, walk, trot) and to balance
over the haunches, we should get it. We should also be able
to "slow down" (not cover as much ground as quickly)
the trot and ask the horse's hind legs to step under our
body more. Doing so adds some suspension to the normal
trot. The goal is to have a horse that obeys our aids (rein,
leg and seat) and will lengthen and collect (at least moderately)
in walk, sitting trot or jog. We should be able to move
the haunches toward one side or the other and move diagonally.
When the horse and rider can meet these prerequisites, they
are now ready to start working on the canter. |
| |
| Here
is the method I've used successfully to introduce
the canter: Put the haunches in a nice forward springy
smooth trot and then slide the inside seat bone a
tiny bit straight forward and the outside seat bone
straight back. When the horse's hindquarters swing
to the inside, sit on that outside seat bone
when the inside foreleg and outside hind are in the
air. Give a little nudge from the outside leg. |
|
Your
horse should be cantering and not quite sure how
he did it. Go for a few strides, then stop him and
praise him for being so trusting. Make sure he knows
he was a very good and smart horse!
|
|
| |
This
should kick off the canter leg sequence: 1) outside hind
leg; 2) inside hind and outside fore legs together; 3) inside
fore leg goes down; 4) and then a little jump before it
all starts over again. If
it doesn't set off this sequence, you probably just missed
the timing, so try posting on the inside leg and getting
the feeling for when the outside hind is in the air. If
the hindquarters don't move over, then go back and work
on controlling the individual legs and individual body parts.
Supposing this method does start the canter leg sequence,
things get really fast for the rider! You have to
stop sitting heavier on the outside seat bone when the outside
hind hits the ground. Instead, try to sit equally between
the two seatbones, but keep the inside seat bone ahead of
the outside. As you are adjusting your weight back to a
balanced position between the two seat bones, you will feel
a slight pull from the horse on the inside rein.
Do not follow that pull. Instead, nudge the horse
with your inside leg at the girth to keep him going forward
rather than stopping when he didn't have the following inside
hand. This will also pause the inside fore leg in the air
a little bit, making it the "lead leg," so to
speak.
Your horse
should now be cantering and not quite sure how he did
it. Go for a few strides, then stop him and praise him
for being so trusting. Make sure he knows he was a very
good and smart horse!
|
| |
During
this whole time just stay calm and relaxed and most
of all balanced in the saddle. If you tip forward,
over to either side or backward, you will throw off
your horse's delicate balance
|
|
Depending
on your Standardbred, if he is confused and afraid,
you may want to end the session by dismounting and
rewarding him with treats after this first canter.
Or, if he is confused and curious, you may want to
try the method again two or three times before ending
the session. If he drops out of the canter and starts
to pace, stop him and reward him. The pacing
was the horse's way of saying, "Don't you want
this instead?" Stopping him quietly sends a strong
enough "No." The reward after stopping is
for listening to your request for stop and reinforces
in the horse's mind that listening to what you do
is good and coming up with his own ideas will
not be rewarded. |
|
| |
During
this whole time just stay calm and relaxed and most of all
balanced in the saddle. If you tip forward, over
to either side or backward, you will throw off your horse's
delicate balance, making him confused and requiring him
to rebalance you.
What are the most balanced gaits for a pacer or trotter?
Yep, you guessed it—halt, trot or pace. So if he needs
to find his balance he will either stop, trot or pace. He
is listening but he lost his balance, so he tries
to find it again the best way he knows how. The bottom line
is to try harder to stay balanced in the saddle and work
on the prerequisites to cantering. When you are balanced
and your horse can meet the prequisites, cantering will
be a breeze. |
| |
|
|
| |
Ann
Smith is a dressage trainer and an ASAP volunteer. She lives
in Columbus, WI. Click
here to visit her website. Read disclaimer. |
|
|
