Whips/crops

[vimto92]

Hello, well I have been riding about a month now with a lesson every week for half hour......the problem is sometimes I feel like I need a whip. No one else in my lesson carries one.....and I don't want to go out there with a brand new whip and feel embarrassed and cheeky.....because there is a bin of whips just outside of the school incase you need one....and my instructor carries a long whip and when I can't get the school pony into trot she leads me and gives him a tap......so my question is....when did you first have a whip and what did your instructor say about using one?
Vic
Please help...ok its not important, but I'd just like to know.
Thanks

[ponylover88]

i first started to carry a whip when i first learnt to canter. because my pony was very lazy, and i wasnt strong enough to use my legs i got given a whip to use. maybe you should carry one, see how the horse reacts, or just ask your instructor for one. they can only say yes/no. if you need one, explain why. :D

[pengapenga]

It was such a long time ago when I learnt to ride I can't remember however my daughter is a novice rider and she had to learn to use a whip on a rather slow pony. Her instructor told her only to use the whip if the leg aids did not work, my daughter had to try three times with leg aid and if pony did not respond then lightly tap the horse with the whip :). Other members may have some better tips to give you though :)

[raingodz]

I don't like using a whip, but that might be connected with the pony I rode alot as a child having a whip phobia (and how a whip led to my only fall)!

In my lessons the RI has handed people a crop if she thinks the pony needs a little bit more to get them going, but as yet we have not been given a lesson in using them.

I would talk to you RI first and see what they say.

[vimto92]

I'll just leave it and if she starts handing me one I will by my own.
Thanks for all your comments though.
Vic

[Soupdragon]

I find this interesting. I used to carry a whip but was reluctant to use it - only occasionally using it if the horse was very lazy. So I would struggle with lazy horses, kicking away but no reaction!

Since having lessons with a different instructor though - the approach has been very different. Even on horses that were to me quite responsive (compared to previous riding school plods!) but which to her mind were not responsive enough, right from the start of the lesson she would make me ask once very lightly with the legs (like a flutter) and straightaway back it up with a light touch of the whip. If the response wasn't immediate, ask again with legs softly and then two light touches of the whip, if still no good (to her mind), ask again with legs softly and then three light touches ... And I have to say it worked. The horses would wake up, be very light and responsive and if any time the response slowed down a bit, tickle with the whip as a reminder. As soon as there was a good response, stop asking.

The thing she definitely didn't want me to do was to kick, kick, kick or boot the horse (which I wouldn't do anyway) so the horse became dead to the leg!

She said I had to job to do too - I had to school the horse as well to learn that it had to respond immediately to leg aids... I wasn't to let the horse get into bad habits by letting it ignore the leg!

I do this now with my own pony and fingers crossed so far it seems to work! Have to say though I did once ride a riding shool pony who completely ignored any kind of aid, including the whip! I found that very difficult and don't know if the technique set out above would help with that kind of pony!

[*Sez*]

I carry a schooling whip with Jake for trotting and pole work, as I find it hard work to keep my leg on for long periods of time when rising to the trot. My dad, however, refuses to use one (even though Jacob goes better when he knows you've got it) and gets along by flapping his legs and really booting the poor little man. Personally, I'd rather a gentle tap with the whip to kicking like that :( . He seems to think it's cruel to carry a whip.

I've ridden of horses that are whip-shy, mostly school ones who have been really smacked with a whip, or been got by someone who couldn't control their temper. I think I've already posted once in a similar thread about a girl I saw get chucked off then smack her mare across the face with her whip in anger. I felt like fetching my schooling whip and showing her what it was like... :mad:

[Lou-lou]

I'm sure your instructor will tell you when you need a schooling whip. My RS hands them out but after ending up with the shortest one a couple of times and being completely rubbish with it :rolleyes: I was advised to buy my own! I'd been riding about 7 months.

[Purple Hugs]

I am handed one about 2 or 3 mins into my lessons as the horse I ride is often 'lazy' at the start - soooo slow at walking! Till she knows I have a whip in my hand and then she perks up.
She only needs one or two taps throughout the entire lesson.
My RI got me to tap her when I was in rising trot to maintain the trot when I felt her slowing down of her own accord just to remind her to keep going.

We're heading for Canter next, so that could be fun! ;)

[Purple Hugs]

I think I've already posted once in a similar thread about a girl I saw get chucked off then smack her mare across the face with her whip in anger. I felt like fetching my schooling whip and showing her what it was like... :mad:
oooh I think I would have been sorely tempted! And threatened her with it at the very least.. :eek: :mad:

The horse I ride has been mis-treated by a former owner, and has a horrible scar on her side, under her saddle. poor thing... she's better now but has had some real problems.

[stormchaser]

One of the horses at the stable I usually ride at is afraid of one of the several whips that are kept in the basket. Most of just just borrow the jumping bats and crops from that basket. As for me I prefer dressage whips that go over my leg. However I had conisdered getting my own as the ones in the basket are pretty worn out, and often I end up riding one of the larger horses and a longer whip is better for that case.

[RiderGirl]

If you think your horse is lazy or acting up, a crop or stick is always effective. But remember to be fair to the horse, never use the crop if you haven't even asked first!

[*HoRsEtArD*]

sorry if i'm repeating everyone but remember when you use a whip to use it correctly, thats the most important thing.
keep it in your inside hand and should be used to back up your leg aids only. a tap behind the leg should do the trick and remember to take your hand of the reins to use the whip. and remember also that a quick tap with the whip is so much kinder than nagging with your leg.

[Crazy Mare]

Does anyone else feel clumsey when trying to use a whip?

My RI has handed me a whip on a number of occassions when she's thought that my horse isn't listening to me but I find myself fumbling about with the reins or worse still tapping my own leg with it :o

Do you think better co ordination may come with experience?

[Enya788]

I've only recently started riding yet have already been asked to bring a whip with me to lessons, I find it hard to do a rising trot and use my legs with enough power too keep the horse moving, which is why ive been aked to buy one. Just bringing a crop/whip with you to a lesson is usually enough to encourage the horse to react to leg aids!

[Izod1360]

i started to use a crop on my 5 lesson as the horse i was riding wouldnt move for anything(shes a big draft horse) but i only used it after i tired to use my legs :) here she is. you can just tell she looks like a lazy horse!
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a306/Izod1360/Penelope11.jpg

[Purple Hugs]

Does anyone else feel clumsey when trying to use a whip?

My RI has handed me a whip on a number of occassions when she's thought that my horse isn't listening to me but I find myself fumbling about with the reins or worse still tapping my own leg with it :o

Do you think better co ordination may come with experience?

Ask your RI if you can tap the horse on the shoulder whilst you gain confidence...

I had to do this initially as my horse was 'off' once tapped.. and I wasn't quite ready for her reaction! :p
Worried me a little getting the whip hand back to the reins! :o

Now I'm fine and happy to take one hand off the reins.. :D

[Horseswillrule1]

I only use a whip for jumping, but when doing dressage when I am training a young horse, actually training a young horse for anything I carry so when they are sold they know what it is etc.

It's perfectly fine to use a whip in lessons. Maybe ask your instructor about it? Does the horse need it?

Hope that helps,

[sidesaddlelady1]

I find this interesting. I used to carry a whip but was reluctant to use it - only occasionally using it if the horse was very lazy. So I would struggle with lazy horses, kicking away but no reaction!

Since having lessons with a different instructor though - the approach has been very different. Even on horses that were to me quite responsive (compared to previous riding school plods!) but which to her mind were not responsive enough, right from the start of the lesson she would make me ask once very lightly with the legs (like a flutter) and straightaway back it up with a light touch of the whip. If the response wasn't immediate, ask again with legs softly and then two light touches of the whip, if still no good (to her mind), ask again with legs softly and then three light touches ... And I have to say it worked. The horses would wake up, be very light and responsive and if any time the response slowed down a bit, tickle with the whip as a reminder. As soon as there was a good response, stop asking.

The thing she definitely didn't want me to do was to kick, kick, kick or boot the horse (which I wouldn't do anyway) so the horse became dead to the leg!

She said I had to job to do too - I had to school the horse as well to learn that it had to respond immediately to leg aids... I wasn't to let the horse get into bad habits by letting it ignore the leg!

I do this now with my own pony and fingers crossed so far it seems to work! Have to say though I did once ride a riding shool pony who completely ignored any kind of aid, including the whip! I found that very difficult and don't know if the technique set out above would help with that kind of pony!

I'm with you on this, Soup Dragon - I don't advocate hitting horses hard or on a regular basis but a tap behind your leg is a lot kinder than numbing the horse's sides by spending an hour's lesson kicking away. You use your whip to back up your aids if the horses or pony isn't listening to you. With a willing horse like the WH a tickle with the end of a schooling whip is often enough. I use a schooling whip because you don't have to mess around with your hands so much as with a short whip.

And please don't call it a crop (at least in the UK) - it's not an expression used by real horsemen and women! (oo, get her, talk about snobby! :D )

[Captain Equidan]

I started carrying a whip on my second lesson (didn't have one for my first). I was taught when to use it (if they don't respond to your aids after the second time of giving them - properly and if they are messing about unneccisarily) But I didn't start lessons as a novice rider.

Thing is you can't accidently use a whip, you either give the horse a thwack or you don't. Spurs I im still not entirely confident in trying as if you aren't sure where and what your leg is doing at every given moment then you run the risk of using them accidently

[Gypsy_Vanner]

my instructor told me that it is always best to carry one even if you dont need it. she says it is better to be safe than sorry

[helinski]

i was first given a whip when i started learning to canter . I think it depends it is doesnt do any harm to always carry one just in case

[Wally]

I'll give someon a stick on lesson 3 or 4 once they have the reins, it's only there to back up your aids , never to hit or punish.

[Baileyswalker]

Thing is you can't accidently use a whip, you either give the horse a thwack or you don't. Spurs I im still not entirely confident in trying as if you aren't sure where and what your leg is doing at every given moment then you run the risk of using them accidently

I was given spurs to use when my riding was still fairly novice, and though i don't advocate the use of them for this purpose, it is a damn good lesson in thinking about what your legs are doing. The horse I was on was fairly ploddy without but with them it turned into a complete nut job! Being taken off with around a school whilst gripping with legs and spurs so accelerating, then finally reallising that the only thing to do to slow down was relax legs and not grip! Beore that I used to lose stirrups in the canter frequently, haven't once after that little experience i think!

Back on topic, sorry about the detour. riding with a long whip is far easier than using a short one, especially when learning new things esp. lateral, but i'd always feel pretentious walking into my RS carrying a schooling whip! :o

[HAPPY TREKKER]

This thread is perfect timing for me having just had a ride at the weekend and found my usual horse really ignoring my legs. I didn't want to take a whip out but the escort rider suggested I try a schooling whip, I persevered with my legs until I realised I was truly getting nowhere (actually getting quite far behind the rest of the ride on the hack) and gave Paddy 1 firm tap.......after that he was a different horse. He was much more responsive to my legs and having read previous posts I can fully understand the whole point of carrying a whip.......and I've experienced the result too.

[Captain Equidan]

I was given spurs by a carless person I know (before I started lessons, and not at a riding school) and because of my naiveity I put them on. I have regretted it ever since as I know I had no idea of where my leg was and what it was doing. I must have accidently used them 3 or 4 times.

That horse I wore them on has been sold on to someone i know and see once a year. He is a real ploddy thing usually but has his moments. Name's Dillan, or Dilber or George (after the advert, I'll love him and keep him feed him and call him george) as nicknames. He is one of those dopey horses who will trust you and do anything you ask him to, aslong as he knows you're right behind him.

Funny fellow really, likes so sit in the field like a dog, on his ass with his front legs straight.

Soon I might ask my instructor about Spurs - just unsure of how to phrase it.... Any ideas?

I can't see how I'd use them accidently now as my legs are so long my feet and ankles are below the horses belly!

[Clipperchuck]

...

[Horsesaddle]

where i uselly do ride i have a crop but i rarelly use it for speedy horses

[Captain Equidan]

I use the word thwack very loosely! I just think it's a cool word!

[Kanuma]

spurs should not be for novices full stop!!!
ive been rideing for over 16 years and i still hesitate in useing them (have only had to do so a few times) unless your lower leg is very stable then you shouldnt even think of spurs.
there is a reason why the ponyclub ban them with out a specific test, why show pony riders are not allowed to have spurs and most novice classes arnt allowed them. you can do untold damage in a very short amount of time with a wrongly used set of spurs. all it takes is for you to lose your balance or your lower leg to get tired and the horse gets a very severe jab in the ribs which are actualy quite sensitive!!
spurs should only be used by very experianced riders, and when being introduced to them under the strict supervision of someone who knows exactly what damage they can do!

[jacstar]

My Instructor always says the whip is an extention of your arm not a whip :rolleyes:

just be careful when introducing it if you decide you need one, they will let you know that they know that the whip is there :eek:

One horse i used to own was lazy as...until i held the whip in my hand with my reins and asked him to trot (didnt touch him with the whip) and he flew to the point of hold on.....

so all i did was pretend that i was going to mount with it in my hand but i would throw it on the ground and he was a perfect moving angel :)

[laura kevin]

i used a whip when i learned to ride. it may not have been the right descision to give me one on my first lesson, but it helped and i now hardly need to use the whip. when i ride my share horse, i don't carry a whip, as he's someone else's and i don't like to look mean, but he doesn't need it as i hardly need to use one anyway. :)

[angelfben]

I always carry a whip when riding in case Alpi has a napping tantrum, but I don't think I've ever actually 'smacked' him with a whip. He gets a quick tap which is literally a tap and that's enough for him to react and sometimes I just have to raise the whip back as if he is going to get a tap and he goes, he knows that he gets plenty of warnings and that when the whip comes out it's time to pack it in ;) He's one of those though that if he's really not going to do something smacking him or trying to bully him in to it will just get you on the floor, when he's playing up he's just messing about and the whip is nothing more than an extra aid rather than a threat or anything that actually bothers him - he humours me ;)

[morgan4eva]

i carried a whip on about my first riding lesson. my instructor said it is correct dress and that at least it is there in case in need it.

[lovehorses:)]

i have been riding for 7 months now, i used to ride a very very lazy pony at my RS, probably because he knew he could get away with things!!!lol
i was handed a whip after about my second/third lesson!
i think it just depends on the horse and how forward going it is
hope this helps
xxx

[raingodz]

I have moved up a group since I last posted to this thread, and things have changed a little on the whip front. I now cary one every lesson, not because I need to use it but because my RI wants me to get used to holding it and swapping it from side to side, in the last four lessons I have only used it on the horse once.

[Kezzabelle]

When I started riding a good 10 years ago and you were on an unresponsive horse without a whip my RI would break a stick off a tree and tell you to use that or tell you to smack the horse on the neck with your reins :eek: :mad: Since then I have never been to a riding school that uses those "techniques".
If I were you then I would ask your instructor at the end of your next lesson if he/she thinks you should carry a whip? In my experience all it takes is for the for the horse to know you are carrying a whip and they magicly become more responsive ;)
I think you should carry one during your lessons just so you get used to it, who cares what other people think, its all about YOUR progress ;)

Kez xx

[hannah:)]

I have to say that I almost always carry a whip unless the RI tells me to do otherwise. In lessons I prefer a schooling whip, and on hacks I normally shove a short crop down the leg of a boot just in case a bit of leg back-up is needed. A lot of the school horses I ride have developed advanced methods of work avoidance, and a quick tap with a stick is better than constant nagging with the leg, which will normally be ignored anyway in my experience! Most riders will carry one at some point, so I think that it's important to learn to carry and use one sensibly early on.

[~*sugarlump*~]

i always rty and ride without a whip. i think its best to ride without lots of 'gadgets' if you can.
one mare in my RS gets too sensitive if you carry a whip, and if she sees a jump and you have a whip, she tends to gallop over a 1 ft jump :eek::rolleyes:
but i think it is kinder to use a whip when a horse wont move. otherwise you are constantly kicking and the horses sides can become numb....so i would rather give a horse a quick samck on the bum every now and then than a constant thumping on their sides.

but some horses dont take kindly to whips. one pony at my rs is very slow, but if you use a whip with him, he will buck and sometimes bolt :eek:

[vimto92]

Thanks everyone.:)
Problem sorted months ago though but thanks for your genorisity anyway.
I purchased a dressage whip and it helps.:)

[eml]

I tend to give people a lesson on holding/using a short stick as soon as they have a reasonably balanced trot and can control their hands. I usually work on the ask nicely squeeze, re-inforce nudge, serious nudge, tap with stick principal but in all honesty just carrying a stick on most school/horses ponies is enough.

I don't allow schooling whips until I am convinced of the riders position and 'emotional' control and ...spurs...well just lets say you have to convince me you have total control over your position and leg movements.

BTW I have a total aversion to instructors carrying sticks..who is supposed to be riding (unless its alonge lesson:rolleyes: )

[~*sugarlump*~]

I don't allow schooling whips until I am convinced of the riders position and 'emotional' control

errrmm what is a schooling whip exactly? i think i know but not sure :o

[eml]

Sorry....clarification ...schooling whip is dressage/ long stick designed to flick behind leg without taking hand off rein. Unfortunately these days often driving whip length and used incorrectly to punish horse.

[Purple Hugs]

I used a dressage whip yesterday for the first time, and accidentally 'tickled' (not purposely using it) the horse into a canter.. :rolleyes:
However, if I carried on using it, I think it would be nicer than a standard short one.. as sometimes fear taking my hand away! :o

[~*sugarlump*~]

Sorry....clarification ...schooling whip is dressage/ long stick designed to flick behind leg without taking hand off rein. Unfortunately these days often driving whip length and used incorrectly to punish horse.
oooh ok. i dont like using those (i have used one before, but didnt know that it was a schooling whip :o)

i don't know why6 but i dont like them because i think they're lazy (i have no idea why though :o)
it just seems so easy to give the horse a smack rather than trying to use leg aids. if possible i ALWAYS ride without a crop (short crop) unless the horse is a real plodder

[carrimclaren]

I rarely use my schooling whip when in the school. I learnt my lesson when i first had her as she was being nappy on a 20m circle towards another horse and i over enthusiastically gave her a tap and ended up vaulting through the air and landing on my ar*e :D Soon learnt the meaning of the phrase "don't hit it if you can't sit it". I gave her a tap the other day as she was napping a bit at the gate and ignoring my leg and she grunted and bronced, nearly had me off the tart :o

I ride out with a short whip but only so i can use it as an extension of my leg when riding down the road. I prefer to have it there as it makes it less likely that on the odd occasion she does spook, that she'll move into the middle of the road. I tend to find i always ride with a whip but rarely use it. I think it;s more there for maybe the odd occasion where you really do need it.

I don't hold with these people that fall off and then stand on the ground smacking the animal, they just show themselves up and point to the fact that they can't ride and are bullies. I saw a girl at a show who was riding a very highly strung big horse who started napping and then having a bucking fit. She started to belt the hell out of it (mainly showing off) and then to my utter joy got chucked off right infront of me. Don't think i've laughed so hard at someone at a show ;)

[BecknSkye]

I got one on my first lesson because I was riding a very slow pony who had gotten used to ignoring beginners, such as me :D
I always carried one every time I rode up until four years ago when I got Skye, who had never seen a whip before and freaked out in a major way if I carried one. Now I'm really uncoordinated with one in my hand, which means that it flicks around with every step he takes and I drop it occaisionally, and that isn't a good situation for getting a horse that has never had a whip before used to one :rolleyes:

[stormchaser]

My regular RS horse just hates long schooling/dressage whips. He freaks out at them so I just the 'jumping bat' type. Most of the time only use it to press it against his shoulder if he's ignoring aids for a turn. Or sometimes I end up tapping my own calf :p but it's enough to get his attention.

[Method_Acting]

I pick up a whip depends on which rs horse i have.