Breaking out of canter..

Method_Acting

Method_Acting

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Aug 12, 2005
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My horse can be lazy doing flatwork. He tends to break out of canter and rush off in an unbalanced trot.

I have one instructor telling me I should stay in sitting trot and ask for canter again immediately, even though the trot is like a motorbike! she suggested half halting which DOES help in rising trot but when I am literally bouncing on his back in sitting trot where he's rushing, he hollows and rushes more. He's very bouncy even when his trot isn't rushed.

Other instructor tells me to do rising trot if he breaks and runs, rebalance the trot and ask for canter again. She also recommended exercises to get him more responsive to my leg, lots of transitions etc so he will maintain canter.

Who would you agree with? and what else would help to stop him breaking out of canter?

xx
 
you need to feel for him backing off and tell him to carry on before he breaks, once hes broken out of canter, you need to come back to trot, rebalance and ask again.

when your cantering, dont stop 'saying' canter and take your legs off- leave your legs hugging his sides, giving him support making sure he knows what your still asking for.
 
Method_Acting said:
My horse can be lazy doing flatwork. He tends to break out of canter and rush off in an unbalanced trot.
xx
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I don't do anthropomorphism, but I do do analogies.

Do you (or did you) sit down willingly every evening and work swiftly and efficiently through your homework, never pausing to text or chat with friends or to drink the cup of tea your mum's just making - not even when you're in the process of doing something that's quite difficult, but boring at the same time?

And how do you know he is lazy? If his trot is unbalanced when he drops out of canter, it is highly likely that cantering itself is VERY hard work for him especially cantering on a circle and being asked to keep rhythm and outline.

He's probably not fit enough or muscled enough to canter in the school with ease while carrying a rider, who naturally enough will upset his balance.
 
I know he is lazy because if there's a jump up he'll stay in canter as long as he likes, canter tight circles, do flying changes and is forward going. I know he's lazy because if there's a group cantering he will keep the canter (and sometimes I'll struggle to stop then!)

Thing is he IS plenty balanced enough and he is not unfit.

I keep my leg on constantly when he canters, and stronger if I feel he is backing off... but he doesn't react enough to my leg. And he's too whip shy to back it up with a whip. it feels like I have nothing to back it up with.

I think the rushing after the downwards transition is just his personality, its seriously as if he's thinking OH NO I SHOULDN'T HAVE DONE THAT. he KNOWS i'm asking him to keep the canter and decides to break.
 
In that case my thought is not to do prolonged canters for a while. Instead work on some transitions and then gradually extend out the amount of paces you are getting from each canter. :)
 
Joyscarer said:
In that case my thought is not to do prolonged canters for a while. Instead work on some transitions and then gradually extend out the amount of paces you are getting from each canter. :)
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Good idea.:) Belle throws me out of canter into an ungainly trot, but I think this is because I for a long time didn't canter down hill slightly in the field and now she trot each time. In the school she is much better.
 
Sounds to me like he could be on his forehand slightly - how do you ask for the transition up and does he really push off into canter or does he sort of slop into it (i.e., feel downhill)? If I don't really pick our mare up and ride her up and together, she falls on her nose and can't continue the canter. It could be that your boy canters fine when jumping because he's naturally using his back end more. Hard to say without seeing the two of you.

Hope that helps.

N
 
Joyscarer said:
In that case my thought is not to do prolonged canters for a while. Instead work on some transitions and then gradually extend out the amount of paces you are getting from each canter. :)
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Sounds like a good idea! I think transitions are helping. Its just we have a dressage test today and he won't keep the canter for the lap of the arena :rolleyes:

Thanks nimbus, i'm not sure if he is on his forehand, he doesn't FEEL like he is. hmmm, there's a vid here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6CxhRfjncY

x
 
I would agree with the second instructor. Always get back a balanced trot before asking for canter again. If your horse likes to break to trot I would try and keep the canters short and always go back to trot exactly when you ask and before he breaks. You can then gradually increase the length of the canter.

I wouldn't automatically label him as 'lazy' just because he canters in a group and not on his own - he is a horse after all and they will always want to follow the herd. Are you sure that your aids are 100%? Are you sure that he is understanding exactly what you want him to do? Is he confused? Could you actually be telling him to trot and he is doing what you ask?

After returning to lessons after a break I have discovered that horses I ride do exactly as I ask of them - generally I think if a horse is misbehaving the first thing to do is to look at the rider to make sure that they are correct.
 
Freya does exactly the same. What i've been doing is working on transitions with her.
Yesterday i was literally just asking her to do walk > stand> walk for a fair while til she done it really well.
Then walk > trot , trot > walk, walk > stand .. just lots of simple transitions.Kept doing this until she was soft and responding nicely.
Then tried her with canter.She was still fighting abit, and when i did get her into trot she was still a little ruhsy buut it did make a difference.I also do alot of little half halts with her.
Im going to try what everyone else has said (thanks!) and balance the trot, then send her into canter again.
I'm also gonna find a flash noseband to stick on her, as she does open her mouth abit to evade what im asking her (she gets too excited, teeth etc checked, she just wants to goooo lol)
Hope you sort this problem too!
x
 
Thanks guys.

People don't like the term lazy heh.. He isn't 'off the leg'. That's the comment I constantly get in lessons and on dressage test sheets. He knows what I'm asking (to keep cantering) but ignores it because he isn't 'off the leg'. Transitions is the main thing we've been practicing to get him reacting better, and we've done some lateral work the last few weeks to get him moving away from the leg.

He isn't really a LAZY horse in general, if I was to tap him with a whip he would GALLOP off but that's just fear. I guess most people would be able to back up the canter aid with a crop if needed. I'm still working on getting him used to whips, and on the ground he is pretty much fine now. He is getting better!

My instructor (who I respect a lot, she's a bhsi) told me to try some small ball spurs but I don't know.
 
^would just carrying the whip send him on a bit more?

have you done indirect transitions (halt:trot, walk:canter etc) they get them off the leg better :)
 
Joyscarer said:
In that case my thought is not to do prolonged canters for a while. Instead work on some transitions and then gradually extend out the amount of paces you are getting from each canter. :)
Click to expand...

Agree with this, as well as you needing to develop the feeling prior to the break. Try perhaps a schooling whip if he ignores you. How is the canter overall? - perhaps he breaks through lack of confidence or balance? Also, an relatively inexperienced horse will more likely prefer contact so make sure you keep a contact, and don't give your hands too far forward.
 
Yeah I always carry a whip :) a short whip! he is funny about anything touching behind the saddle... The last time I tried a schooling whip he would not stop he was in such a panic.

And he is great at walk - canter or even halt -canter. I think it's all he's good at haha:p

Today we did a mock dressage test and he bounced around like tigger in the arena 'cause there were flowers out :eek: he lept and spooked and cantered off. It took ten minutes to get him to move in a straight line and not sideways. my pony is a wimp :D

eta: I always thought his canter was quite good.. theres a video HERE :)
 
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A good exercise I was taught which helps with horses who do this...


Firstly, as a side note - throughout this exercise when you are asking for the canter, always insist on a good transition. Running into canter isn't allowed, as soon as you ask for the canter he should "hop" straight into it. A good tactic I use with horses who aren't responsive during transitions is to use your voice aids a lot more. So a few strides before the transition I say determinedly "Aaaaaand...." and then as I sit and put my leg on for the canter.. "CAN-TER!". This gives your horse a warning that you are about to ask for a transition, and makes it clear when you expect the horse to go into that transition. As they become more responsive, you can tone down the voice aids and start to transfer this responsiveness to your aids, until eventually you can phase out the voice alltogether. My boy got so responsive using this technique that now as soon as I say "Annn.." he's off into canter before I can even finish :p

Right onto the actual exercise. Pop him into canter on a 20 metre circle, expect a good, active canter immediately after the transition. Don't throw the contact away or let the canter get long and on the forehand. Canter half of a 20m circle, then bring him back into a trot, trot for half the 20m circle and then ask for canter again... canter half a 20m circle, and bring back to trot, trot half the circle and ask for canter... and so on.

What you're aiming for is to keep the quality of canter for short bursts, rather than have a longer canter which starts to lose its quality and risk falling into trot.

Then start to decrease the time spent in trot, until eventually you are bringing him back to trot for only 4 strides, and then back into canter. By doing these constant transitions you are keeping the quality of the canter, helping him to stay balanced, keeping his attention and most importantly, you are teaching him that trotting isn't an evasion from the canter. By you making that decision to come back to trot, and then back into canter, he will quickly stop bothering to try and fall back into trot ..as he is used to coming back to trot and then forwards again into canter anyway.

This exercise really helped with our canter work :)
 
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