"Kicking" - a breakthrough!

[Emma H]

Anyone who saw my post in the No Confidence thread will know I am an adult beginner who is very worried about hurting the horse. During my first 2 (1 hour private) lessons I was told to "kick the horse" to make him move forward. I was very unhappy about this and asked many times if they really meant "kick". I asked my instructor to move my feet as she wanted me to and I found that she really did mean me to move my feet out and back, smacking my heels into the horses sides. Now, before my lessons I had never been on a horse before and I have no idea what is right and what is wrong, but this felt wrong and for the first 2 lessons I couldn't do it. In my third lesson I finally took a deep breath and gave it a go. It worked, but it still felt wrong. Then finally, this weekend in lesson number 4, a breakthrough! I had a new instructor who went much further with trying to explain why I should do things in a particular way. I had told him at the start of the lesson that I felt uncomfortable kicking and he said that was good as there is no need to "kick". He had me spend a lot of the lesson walking without stirrups keeping the horse moving with just a gentle touch with my heels. Once I'd got the horse listening to me it finally felt right! We kept moving and I didn't feel like a monster. Then I tried trotting and it was miraculous. Normally when trying to rise and "kick" I lose my stirrups and make a real hash of it, but this time I didn't have to try to move my feet away from the horses sides, I just had to use an almost natural motion from my legs to keep him going forwards. I didn't lose my stirrups once in the whole lesson and I really felt I was getting somewhere. I guess the moral of this is to keep asking when your unsure or unhappy with something. I left the lesson feeling as if I had really achieved something and I am still on a high this morning - so much so that I had to share this. Thanks for listening.

Emma

[This message has been edited by Emma H (edited 27 April 1999).]

[Gail May]

Dear Emma

I thoroughly agree with you - as an adult beginner I cannot bear the thought of kicking. My first lessons were all about kicking the poor horse to get him going. I hated this - now that I am having one to one lessons, like you, I only apply pressure from the legs and as you say, the relief is so great!

The other thing that I have just discovered is that for 2 and a half months of learning, I have been holding the reins upside down - and nobody has corrected me!

Anyway, keep up the good work -

Gail

[Helby]

Gosh I feel for begineers who don't find proper instructors! Firstly, you should never normally kick a horse, you squeeze and use your seat. This will come with more experience. Secondly to not be shown how to hold the reins properly is abysmal! Find a new instructor! Jules - BHSAI/HND in Equine Studies

[Sean]

Never kick a horse to get him going that is wrong. Kicking is a form of punishment to a horse. You squeeze with your legs or calf area into his sides to get him to walk and trot. When he is moving you don't keep the leg pressure because he is doing what is told of him, you relax your leg and hold it on his side, this way if he slows down you can give him another squeeze to get him going again. When you rise or post you don't rise kick rise, you rise, rise, rise. When a horse dosen't respond to the leg aid you use a whip on his side right on the girth, then you give him another leg aid until he realizes this is how it works. I never kick a horse, I use a riding whip and this is better and more effective. Remember you don't kick a horse its leg pressure that gets him to move.

[Jo]

I'm a little confused here - when you say "kick" what exactly do you mean? My instructor tells me to "tap, tap, tap" gently until the horse does what I want. One tap is a wake up call and then the squeeze get the horse moving. When trying to get a reluctant horse into a corner, a series of gentle taps pushes it out. Am I right to tap? I don't want to hurt a horse.