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Where is his tension? Can you try working with him to relax him, use his body, and de-escalate? I suggest doing simple things like bending him in (make sure he actually bends) and then bending him out on any track. Same with flexing, flex him in (maybe more than youâd normally ride in), being sure to release when he gives, and flex him out. This teaches him to move his head, his neck and his rib cage to loosen his body without changing his gait. Ideally. This will take time for him to accept. I would teach him always to go with a lower neck/head if his tendency is to raise them when he blasts off. Teach him that a lower neck, but with an active hind end, is the way to go. This might take time for him to grasp. He might do it in parts but your months-long goal will be for him to get that this is the way he should go now.
I suggest bringing him to the walk or stop and flexing hard (I donât mean pulling, but I mean asking him to really move his head and neck to unlock them - be patient) every time he blasts off. Donât lose patience. Heâll understand eventually that going fast and tight means youâll stop him and flex him, and then immediately go back to work.
Also, remain calm when posting the trot and sitting the walk and have him follow your rhythm. Itâll feel uncomfy if heâs trotting faster than your posting, and he should learn to listen to your seat.
He should learn to take your leg, so perhaps wrap them around him and donât be too light. Make him recognize that leg direction is a part of riding. You might have to retrain him in this respect. He has to accept leg to move forward over his back and into the bridle in order to âuse himselfâ. Ride serpentines up into the bit and changing figures that require bent - and keep your balance and your inside legs on to keep him from falling in. Itâll be hard for him to blast off when he has bending lines, circles out of the blue, etc. to do. Heâll eventually get tired of being so out of balance and should listen more to your direction. Forward, with leg, kind hands, good balance on your part, and bending lines will go a long way.
Good luck!!
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Agree with the above. I was listening to a podcast and the pro said hot horse need MORE leg and the quieter ones need LESS. This really stuck in my head. With my ottb I know I can just âthinkâ trot or canter and she will just go. But I make her wait and specifically ask with my leg so theres no question or anticipation of what I want.
As far as adding more and getting more impulsion. I have found it easiest on a circle with a proper counterbend. The counterbend kinda naturally backs them off so you can ask for more step behind without jazzing them up.
not a pro but things that I have found to work through trial and error :lol:
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Similar to some iberian horses, lol. First, listen to the above re leg on. Not gripping but there - think like a hug. Yes to the exercises - part of what you want to do is ride some sort of patterns or movements with a plan - so you keep the horse busy and focused on you as well as the balance part. Then also think about slowing the front end and shortening the strides a bit. At this point, less is more. Let him get comfortable and relaxed in a place that has active hind end without the need for big strides. Stride will grow on its own as he relaxes. Then you can ask for more in little bits - go forward few strides, back a few.
Try establishing a good relaxed walk, leg yield out on a circle and ask for trot in the leg yield. Should help the blast off, lol. If its not a nice transition, regroup and do it again.
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Great advice above especially 2tempeâs. Many riders make the mistake with hotter horses of wanting to keep the leg off the horse because the horse is reactive when they do use the leg. But thatâs the problem, the horse doesnât accept the leg yet; instead theyâre reacting instead of honestly moving forward off the leg or accepting the leg aids. Agree that patterns and bending lines are great for acceptance of leg and seat for hotter horses. Iâve found from experience this works better than using lots of transitions for this issue. Its really tempting to want to bring a horse down to walk, for example, if he wants to be too fast, running in the trot. But transitions can actually make horses hotter and quicker - which is why they are helpful in motivating lazier horses. Patterns and movements promote acceptance and like 2tempe said, the relaxation comes from that.
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Remember you must carry you. If you are sunk in the saddle, which is a good thing, but not carrying your upper body yourself he cannot get the extra energy for impulsion. The bit you use has little to do with getting impusion.
Transitions from your body, not the reins will help get his back end under him. Lateral work S/I and H/I are great too, but you donât sound as though, as a pair, you are that far along.
Ride with the leg on constantly but quietly. When you use do nothing more than increase the pressure slightly with side of you calf.
The ârubber band exerciseâ is the classic for getting quicker response to the aids in a dull horse, yes. But transitions donât have to be about getting horses hotter and quicker, and they can have a place in getting a sensitive, forward-thinking horse to use its forwardness for more organized movement, rather than âblast offâ. Especially when used to get the horse listening to the seat, and ultimately adjusting down the tempo from seat alone.
I love sensitive, forward-thinking horses. But theyâre not all alike. Some get tense in response to the aids because theyâre claustrophobic. Some get tense when they donât know exactly what theyâre being asked to do. Some just seem to live life in a higher state of arousal. What works for individual horses will vary a bit, so I hope OP has a good trainer involved.
Across the board, though, I think spending a long time in slower gaits or halt and expecting the hot horse to relax there can be like telling an anxious person, âjust relaxâ. It doesnât address the involuntary physical things going on and isnât likely to work unless youâre also doing other, more proactive things.
OP, whatâs most appropriate for your horse will depend on where youâre at. Spiraling in and out, and leg yield are pretty classic exercises that can help a hot horse get used to leg, and to make sure your horse is really in front of your leg when you give him something more complex to do. But you can get a lot more creative from there, depending on what specific type of hotness youâre dealing with, how youâre riding it, how your horse responds. It seems like thereâs actually a lot youâre trying to do â get the horse comfortable with the leg, work with a sensitive mouth/potentially develop a more comfortable contact, generate impulsion â so breaking it down a little further into sub-tasks and figuring out which to tackle first might help.
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Agree x-halt salute, with all said. And for certain, horses are all individuals and should be addressed that way in training, both in their mental and physical aspects. I guess I should clarify that my point wasnât to say that using transitions, rubber band exercise being one or full transitions in and out of gaits another, is always wrong for a hotter horse. I was wanting to say that many riders are uncomfortable with a hotter horse who can be reactive to the leg. Lots of riders want to either âshut it downâ by going down to a âslowerâ gait instead of addressing acceptance of the aids or not put the leg on at all for fear of getting an explosive reaction. That also involves a rider being able to use their seat and legs effectively enough towards that end. And I also think easy, bending lines which involve use of riderâs legs and seat, promote an acceptance of the aids, balance ( which, the more balanced the horse feels, the more relaxed he can be) which 2tempe wrote about really well.
Does he know shoulder in? Thatâs my go-to if I have a horse who wants to sewing machine trot - shoulder in, 15 m circle back to shoulder in, 15m circle, and on and on⊠you can practice transitions in shoulder in, too.
That and slloooowww down. The idea that forward is everything comes AFTER relaxation, and these hot horses already have an active hind end (overall). Small circle, super duper small. Post sooooo slow, wait him out, even if he walks on his own, heâs a good boy. Slow the cadence down, the reach comes later.
Some things I try to be accommodating on if a horse gets offended. Other things, the horse has got to figure it out and cope - itâs a part of riding. I donât get upset when they react - just keep on going like they never got offended to start with. Suck it up, buttercup. 
Only one of the two of you can be reactive to stimuli - he already has taken that spot, so youâve got to be the valium to the crazy.
Hi all!
Just wanted to drop back in and first of all, say thank you to all of the thoughtful replies and words of advice.
I am working with a trainer. We are mainly in h/j land but have a dressage clinic coming up soon. Just thought I would pop over to the dressage board for extra advice.
He carries his tension in the base of his neck and back when he gets hot- almost turns into a pogo-stick. But, he will also plod around lazily (ineffectively) at the trot. He does enjoy stretchy trot and has figured out that stretching actually feels good. He gets tense/ready for blast off when I add leg while heâs long and low. So it seems right now weâre either just plodding along slow trot, stretching long and low, OR âpogo-stickingâ. He is much better at the canter and has an excellent walk.
Weâre finally at a point where he accepts my leg wrapped around him without panicking, itâs when I add more leg where he can blast off. We can shoulder-in and leg yield correctly for maybe four or five strides- baby steps. The only reason why I mentioned his bit is that he of course is fussy-mouthed and will accept the contact with his current bit. It took a lot of trial and error to find what he would be happiest in.
Thank you all again. I look forward to trying the above suggestions, we have a lesson tonight!
