All about horses

One of the important things about riding the horse correctly is to make sure that the horse’s neck is in the right position. If his neck is round and stretching down he can relax the back.The neck is an extension of the back .

(You can try this yourself by bending over and letting your arms stretch down.)

This is a very important in order to keep your horse calm while riding.

What is that position?

The poll should be the highest point (excluding the ears).

The nose should line up with the middle of the chest . This is where the ring of your leather breastplate would be .Looking at the side view the nose should not be lower than the point of the shoulder.

Also the horse should be paying attention and not swinging it’s head all around .This is known as being “heady” and can be unsafe.

All of these details don’t happen right away it involves training the horse very repetitively and with a lot of patience and perseverance!

Keep correcting the horse but also reward by talking and patting him when he gets it right.

Sometimes you will have to work with your mount from the ground and take the reins up to get him to accept the pressure of the bit .

Only use thick snaffle bits to encourage the horse .

Remember to allow your horse several breaks where he gets to completely stretch down with free reins to maintain calmness.

Long Reining and Lungeing can be helpful if performed correctly by the handler.

More on the neck later…..