How to TRAIN a Horse to Go on the Bit?
i have a nine year old tb mare, she is great, the only problem is im a step ahead of her, she does not have dressage training and my instructer says im ready for her to start working round. I have tried to jiggle my reins around to get her on the bit but she doesnt do it, i know im probably doing it wrong but she is not a young horse and therefore is harder to teach new things. How do i go about actually training her some basic dressage?
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All of the answers above are good ways to get a horse to be round. Leg and hand are both essential aids. There a few different ways to use your hand – you can either gently pull back while squeezing, or work your fingers.
Different types of bits can really help get a horse to frame. Of course, the severity of the bit you should use depends on what your horse does. Is she forward? Is she resisting your efforts to make her round, or just confused?
These are all things to think about. Your best bet is to get a bit that has a lot of leverage, such as a 3 ring bit. With a 3 ring, you can add draw reins, which really do help to make a horse round. 3 ring bits come in many different styles.
For a stronger horse, I personally recommend a ball bearing 3 ring, but they also come in milder, jointed varieties.
Another very simple trick is to sit to the trot, rather than post. This adds an extra aid – your seat – which can work with your leg.
It is also important that you know she is listening to any hand or leg aid you may use. Try practicing exercises such as leg yields, figure eights, a serpentine, or shoulder ins – even something as basic as a circle. Although it may seem unrelated to framing, it is a good way to get her paying attention to your aids.
Hope this helps, and good luck!
As a side note: If you’re able, don’t be afraid to have a professional sit on her!
Do what your doing just on longer reins and use your leg.
Also its more of conditioning your horse to be on the bit more than training.
DISCLAIMER: If she is in physical pain in some way (such as an ill fitting saddle) it will be impossible for her to go on the bit.
before you ask your horse to go round she has to be physically ready, work a horse into it to quick and you’ll develop problems in the future.
first work on building a good topline.
and get your horse used to a more flexed frame, work on circles, leg yielding and you will notice that when you apply the right aids your horse will soon bend. no jiggling of the reins needed, that just annoys the horse and so they lower their head to get away from it, that’s not true carriage.
over 50% of the horses you see around are in an improper frame.
read up on it from the german national equestrian federation, they have been developing high class horses for years.
i too used to think that jiggling the reins and restraining would do it but its more you legs.
legs to hand and that’s the only way.
Rule #1: inside leg to outside rein! if you don’t know what that means, then you need better guidance. i horse isn’t truly "on the bit" unless they are FORWARD from your leg and seat. try using your 20meter circle to help you. stay on it and work on the rule at the walk, then on to trot. but honestly, this is something that words from strangers can’t teach you, it takes practice and developing your timing and feel to get it right. your instructor needs to explain to you and show you how to do this if she feels that your horse needs to be going round, and maybe even ride the horse her self if that’s what it takes.
Jiggling your reins doesn’t put a horse on the bit. To train a horse to go on the bit, you ride them the way you would put any horse on the bit: correctly, with seat to leg to hand to soften.
First, you have to get the horse foreword. Work transitions from different gaits or within the gaits(ie, extension and back). This puts her on her hindquarters, also neccessary. Next, work on bend– do lots of circles, big and small, patterns, lateral work. When you’ve got these two, start working inside leg-outside rein(inside leg pushes into a supporting outside) and you’ll get on the bit.
The moment she puts her head down, SOFTEN for a stride. Don’t throw away your outside but be sure to give bigtime with your inside hand. She might come back above the bit, that’s okay. Just ask again.
Try using draw reins at first this is what i used, squeeze with your leg not nudge. Then after i couple of weeks take them off squeeze and keep contact on your reins and give little squeezes alternatively on your reins in till she drops her head.