Too Much Forward Thinking??

[Maci]

Hi Heather!
I don't know how to explain my problem, so I'll try my best and hope that you understand!

Q: Is it possible to have TOO MUCH forward thinking? Whenever I want Mac to pick up a trot, I squeeze my legs, which he never responds so I squeeze and back it up with crop. I do that a few times and I guess he gets frustrated and always picks up a canter. My trainer says I have mixed signals and he can't understand what I want; she also said that I give him the forward thinking, but he gets so confused with my signals he picks up a canter. She never really told me how to fix this, so I'm stuck! Is it possible that I'm using too much crop and not enough leg, because I never really used to use my crop until now, and there's never really been a problem until now. That's what I concluded, but how can I fix it?

Hope You Understand!
Thanks,
Maci :)

[Heather]

It doesn't sound as if your signals are that confused. What hapens if the trainer gets on him, Maci? Does he still doo it?

Inwoudlmtry as you use your legs to begin rising to the trot. I have had several horses for reschooling like this in the last few years. I find that by starting your rise/sit, as you use your legs, even if the horse hasn't actually gone into trot yet, it tends to stop him cantering and sort of sets up the trot rhythm so that the horse breaks into trot rather than canter.

How old is your horse and have you had his back checked?


Heather

[Maci]

The thing is, my instructor won't actually get on him anytime during the lesson, but she says he works good with her when she does work with him......which makes me mad because I feel like I'm less and that she should understand that she's WAY MORE experienced than me.....

He's 13 and so far his back is alright, but his hip is
always sore because he has arthritis in the one, which makes his canter VERY stiff, so I get a chiro. to do an adjustment every once and a while, and he seems fine then.

I'll try the rise up thing before we trot, which will probably help. He doesn't really do it anymore but I'm still going to check his saddle fit and back!

Thanks,
Maci :)