Teaching leg yield

[Marmite]

How really. How ould you teach a horse to do a true, leg crossing, straight bodied leg yield? Said horse works from behind, is slowly coming together into an toutline, so we're starting to teach lateral work. Any advice appreciated :) he already does turn on the forhand, crossing his hind legs round him.

[Marmite]

bumpity bump :)

[conkers]

Hi marmite.

I'm just starting to teach Mandy to leg yield.
My first question would be - does your horse move away from you when you ask on the ground? If you put your hand where your leg would be would they know to move away?

If he does, then start your preperation as you usually would - make sure that he is working in an outline and walking on.

Plan where you want to start your leg yield - usually at one end of the school, just coming off the bend as you start to work up the long side. Ride on an inner track as you come off the bend. Put more weight onto your inside seat and push with your inside leg either on or slightly behind the girth - about the place that you have been pushing over on the floor.

If he is a little confused, tap gently with your stick to back up what you are asking. You will need to support using your outside rein and leg but not too strongly - the aim is to keep him moving forward and straight but stepping sideways.

If all goes well, he should move over. Just ask for a few steps to start with and then let him walk on straight.
It will depend on your horse as to whether you can start doing leg yield on a straight inside track or whether you need to move over at a slight angle to start with e.g. ride from A to B and gently move over a few steps.
Mandy prefers learning leg yield on a straight line but with Connie I had to use the slight angle building up to leg yield on a straight line.

If he is struggling to understand you, see if you can get someone to walk along side you and give a gentle push from the floor as you ask with your leg. It shouldn't take long for him to get the idea.

I hope this helps.

[Fanshawe]

The way I was taught in the Netherlands and which works a dream involves you knowing when the inside foreleg (if you are going 3/4 line to outside track) is going forward. When this is happening you apply your inside leg firmly, the next stride apply softly (to keep the horse moving forward) then hard then soft etc. The firm will initially need to be very firm until he gets the idea then you can reduce it.

Keep the outside rein contact constant (but not pulling!) and the inside rein should be slightly away from the neck to get the inside bend. Only do a couple of strides to begin with and then ask him to go straight.

If he does it at an angle it is normally your body that will be out that is making him do that. Make sure you sit in line with his shoulders, head pointed forwards and sit tall with shoulders even. If you drop a shoulder he will angle away from that hip. Keep the outside leg at the side but not applying pressure.

Don't expect too much initially and get impulsion before you start and keep the forward movement (with the soft leg aid) so that he has enough momentum to go across as well as allowing him to get the 'expression' eventually. Plus it is easier for him but harder for you (you have to think and work twice as fast) if you do it in trot! So do a little in walk to get the idea but if you can move up to trot as soon as you can manage it to make it easier for him (essentially in trot you apply the inside leg when you rise and if you want to go the opposite direction-outside track to inside- you'll need to change diagonalls as well as legs!)

[JamesJackson]

I'm just wondering how you're getting 'an outline' without lateral work! Anyway... How I teach it is two-fold. Firstly you start with the turn on the forehand. When the horse can do this well (and 'well' is an important point, these things are all progressive), you then turn a turn on the forehand into a leg yield:

1. Prepare for turn on the forehand etc etc
2. New inside (old outside) leg behind the girth to get hindquarters stepping over
3. When you have a ~30 degree angle to the wall, move the inside leg onto the girth, open the outside rein (this can be a very drastic opening to show the horse the way), block the inside shoulder with the inside rein, then ride the leg yield!

When the horse can leg yield up and down the wall until the cows come home (this length of time depends on how good the cattle man is), you can then progress to leg yielding along a long diagonal:

1. Change the rein across a long diagonal, ride straight to begin with
2. At X, apply the beginnings of the turn on the forehand aids, indicating to the horse that he has a new inside and also to move the hindquarters over
3. When the hindquarters have stepped over, move the inside leg onto the girth again, open the outside rein to show the horse the way.

If the horse gets stuck, reduce the angle. They won't be straight to begin with! If the horse is having difficulty and isn't going to make the point you've chosen on the other side of the school, then turn and ride straight at it. Next time reduce the angle.

[coss]

i'm with conkers on this one...
how is he on the ground? can you get him to walk along and push where your leg would be to ask leg yield on the ground? that is always a good starting point. a helper is always useful but not essential. my gelding was taught leg yield from me in the middle of a 5 acre field without any added help. it is however, easier in a school ;)

if you are working in a school there are two ways i would try to encourage leg yield... inner track to outside track or on a circle, it depends on your horse really.
you have to make sure your aid is very clear and that it is a pushing aid rather than a nudging aid so that the difference between "move over" and "more impulsion". use the pushing aid when the inside hind leg comes off of the ground as this will then ask it to cross over.
if you do it inner track to ouside track that usually encourages most horses as they naturally want to be on the outside track (most of them do anyway). if your horse ia little confused don't worry, just try again and possibly ask someone to walk without and give a bit of a push.

for doing it on a circle you spiral in to a small circle and then the horse will want to go out onto a bigger circle so apply the leg yield aid and hopefully your horse will do a good step.

after one or two leg yield steps ask for straightness and pat your horse so they know they have done good :)

[Joyscarer]

Yep, do it on the ground first then try it ridden. You can always have someone on the ground with you when you try it ridden to help the horse make the connection.

I would also back up what a previous poster said about timing your leg aid when your horses belly goes in if that makes sense :D

[Marmite]

I'm just wondering how you're getting 'an outline' without lateral work!

Circles, serpentines, long and low work, pole work, transitions, turn on the haunches and forehand. For months and months now. Just starting to work into a shorter contact.

Anyways, thansk very much for all your advice, will try each way in turn and see which suits the horse best. Thanks again!!!

[JamesJackson]

Aha, you see, turns on the forehand *are* lateral work. The order I believe the exercises should be developed are:

TOF
Leg Yield
Shoulder fore
Shoulder in
Travers / Renvers
Half pass

Time spent on each depends entirely on the horse, but from beginning to end of the list is measured in years...