I'll try that, thanks. Hogan has an incredibly tough mouth. I don't pull on the reins - he does it to himself. At the moment I tighten the reins as we pass the bracken (which is Hogan face height!) and say NO!, but he's crafty - he'll pretend he's not going to do it, then as we're almost past, he'll grab at it. Very wearing, and very irritating!
I agree. The bracken is very high just now and the paths I sometimes ride are narrow. So what I learned from Rashid and others too is that before one moves off after mounting, one should wait for the head to relax and come down.
Then the rein (sorry if I said this already) links the most sensitive part of the human to the most sensitive part of the horse. My current share also leans on the rein. If I relax my hands she may stumble, so the temptation is to get a hold of the reins and kick her on. I have not solved this yet, But I want to get her so I can have a loose rein. And have her thinking about tiny adjustments from my finger.
On my old share we had to walk up a long avenue with hedgerow to the left. So she would turn her head to the left. But after Rashid explained to me about constant communication through a long rein, the tiniest touch on the long right rein would keep her nose central. I am not pretending this is RS easy peasy to do.
You have to relax and also relax the head of the horse and then touch the rein to keep her nose central -may be moving the nose only an inch, or even nothing at all, if it is just a reminder touch.
By controlling the nose before the head goes down, what you are really doing is controlling what the horse is looking at. Before the horse take s the decision to eat, it takes a look and you control the looking.
I think it is the succession of tiny touches which reminds the horse that you are controllng its attention and not wanting it to eat. And one can try it out on part of the track where there is no actual food to reach for.
Carthorse asked me yesterday on what occasions I would not ride the horse from nose to tail. This is an example. One is riding (controlling and guiding) the nose, But the horse is thinking about that. It is on the receiving end of on going instruction. And your leg just keeps it moving forward.
Most horses are not used to being ridden like this with communication through the rein. So it may take a bit of time. My problem with my current share is her napping and turning for home. I guess she is used to being ridden heavy handed. If I shorten the reins she prepares for an upwards transition. And I am ashamed to say, I was so cross and weary with her napping that yesterday I didnt ride her home nicely. I made her work and put her feet where I told her to. So although I am describing what I used to like to do, I havent yet got there on the current opinionated witch.
