how to get your horse to back up?

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lasha

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May 27, 2003
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HI, I am a new rider and was wondering how to back up your horse while riding? Any help would be great :) Thanks. By the way, this board has been very helpful to me as a new rider. Great stuff here.
 
HI, Thank you for your quick responce, but a couple more questions, tug like a whoa? apply leg pressure behind girth? which leg? Thank you so much, sometimes I just feel I'll never get it, sometimes it all clicks. I wish it would make up its mind LOL
 
Hi Lasha, this maybe contentious but I have been taught it's a big no no to pull on the reins to ask for rein back but it maybe that I ride English in the UK and I suspect you are in the US and then maybe ride Western (pls excuse me if I am making assumptions here!)

Riding English to ask for rein back you ask the horse to halt (square) and ensure he is listening to you. Then squeeze the reins (as in squeezing out a sponge) gently, no rapid or sharp movements and apply gentle leg pressure just behind the girth to encourage them to step back squarely. There should be no tugging or pulling on the reins. The squeeze prevents forward movement and the leg pressure encourages a step back.

Initially you may only get just one or two steps back but give huge amounts of praise when that happens and keep practising.

When I ask for a rein back I also use a voice command ie "back" and then lots of praise.

I've just had a mental block and have got myself confused about the leg pressure being behind the girth and not infront of it but I'm sure someone will pick me up on that if it's wrong!

Good luck and hope I haven't confused you too much.
 
HI, yes, I am in the US and ride western.Thank you very much for your answer, I like the "sponge" Good visual. I'm going to try this out later today,I'll keep ya posted. Thanks again.
Lasha
 
please don't "tug" western either !!:eek:

With a well trained western horse, you should find that if you just shift your weight backwards (when in halt), they will pick it up and start to back up. (i.e. like a very slight lean back).

You sometimes see western riders tap the front shoulder with their foot if the horse is not reacting quickly enough - but I've only seen this rarely. Personally I prefer to stay in balance but I'm just a everyday rider...

Of course you may be riding two handed with a snaffle, or one handed with a curb ?

Say you are in walk and you ask for a halt - the rein back aids are as if you do not relax and give once they halt, but keep on asking for halt. It should not be a pull or tug - no backwards movement in the hand. Some western horses will recognise if you raise the hand(s) slightly. Just close the hand (or keep it closed) around the rein. Effectively the rein is there just to prevent forward movement, not to make any backwards movement.

Shift your weight back slightly and apply a light leg. If the horse does not respond, you can bump him slightly with your leg. But don't bump with the rein - just keep a 'holding' feel.

As soon as the horse steps back, lighten the rein contact and open your hand. If you want more than one step, and the horse stops at this point, close your hand and 'hold' again, and reapply leg pressure. But as your horse gets tuned in, you should find your weight aids are enough to sustain the back up without more leg and hand.

One final thing - it is really useful to establish that your horse knows HOW to back up by doing it from the ground first ! Use a gentle pressure on the nose, or on the chest, to ask for a step back. Again reward as soon as the horse responds. Once they get the idea you can keep your hand in place but with very little pressure and they should start to take more steps.

So check they understand about yielding to pressure like this and THEN get on and do it from the saddle.
 
When riding 'english' you bring your weight forward a little,tipping very slightly and use your legs a little behind the girth. The rein aids and legs aids are together at first but then you use your legs as if walking (alternate sides) to keep the steps going.
 
Hi guys,
Well I tried it all and no backing. I checked to make sure she knows how and she does, I'm the one who doesn't. I'm not giving up, I'm going to ask a barn mate for help w/ this because I dont know what I did wrong,or just didn't do. THank you all for your help, I'll still take any more advice though.
Stay safe.
Lasha
 
so what goes wrong ? Does the horse go forward ? Or try to lean on the bit ? Or go sideways ? Or just stand there like a lemon ?

Having someone on foot can help - they ask at the same time as you do, and the horse gets the idea.

You can signal more strongly what you want by using a fence or corner. Halt in the corner and then ask for back up. This will help stop the horse going forward.

Make sure your weight is not too forward - when the horse backs up it needs to be able to shift some of its own weight back to free the front legs to go back. If you are too far forward, it can 'block' the initial steps.

virtuallyhorses talked about sitting slightly foward when riding 'english'. IMHO this is more about lightening the seat, so is a very subtle move and is not in complete contradiction with my point about weight above.

My problem with the rider going forward is that it is quite easy then for the backward movement of the horse to throw you off balance and further forward. Whereas if you take your weight back slightly, effectively the horse is moving back into balance underneath you and it is easier to stay with the horse. (IMHO). But if you are a good rider on a well trained balanced horse, then you should do what works. But with a less well trained horse you need to exagerate the aids a bit at the start, and staying in balance can be very important !

Even in western you want a light seat to back up - but you should be able to keep it light while shifting the weight back slightly. (Its a tilt, not an actual shuffling of the seat backwards).(By the way, if anyone has a problem with their english horse doing back up, you might try doing it western style with the weight going back a fraction (but very subtlly)).
 
Hi everyone,
I did it! She backed. It was so easy once my friend gave directions from the ground and I knew what to do B/C of reading about it here. Thank you all!
Lasha:) :D
 
Well done, lasha! Now, were you instructed to sit slightly forward or slightly back? I was taught to sit a bit forward to lighten the haunches. It's interesting that Western style is different.

I can do a rein back, but my method would never make it into the books - it involves a lot of shuffling of everything! (Neither would it pass muster in an official test!! But it works!)

So glad you got it!
 
:D just imagine if you were sitting forward when the horse did a sliding stop !

I see it is a continuation of downward transitions e.g. the same as trot-walk, walk-halt, then halt-reinback.

And it is also about staying in balance. I think when you have a well trained horse, it is so subtle that there is little movement in the body for either style. But when the horse is less trained and less balanced, you have to help them out a bit.
 
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