Teach your young rider to feel when their horse is leaning and how to remedy it.
Youth horses have often been there and done that, so they might have a few bad habits or quirks to overcome with their young partners. One of these is anticipation and/or leaning, which can lead to countless other problems, especially in events that include patterns, such as ranch riding, working cow horse, and versatility classes. The horses tend to lean or drop their shoulder at the top of the pen or through the center.
Most young riders don’t feel this, so they need to learn two things: what to feel and how to fix it. Here I’ll explain what we call the Rabbit Ears Drill, which helps a young rider feel the lean or anticipation and then act to correct it.
Step 1: Get Started
Outfit the horse in a bridle to which he’s accustomed and with reins the child can manage. This exercise requires a fenced area so the rider can use the fence to their advantage. The rider can guide one-handed with the reins, two-handed, or go back and forth as needed and as the rider is able. It depends on the rider’s skill level and comfort. Ideally, they’ll start one-handed and then go to two if they’re struggling with the horse bracing in his body or leaning. They’d then go back to one-handed riding once the issues are resolved.
Step 2: Work at a Trot
Keeping the horse about 50 feet off the rail, begin working at a trot, riding a straight line down the length of the arena. When they get to a corner, they take the horse on a small circle to the outside of the pen. They’ll stay working that circle until the horse is soft and stands his shoulders up, holding himself up in the circle.
Step 3: Continue Across the Pen
When the horse maintains good position, the rider can guide the horse off that circle and back onto the rail, maintaining that 50-foot distance. The space between the horse and the rail allows the horse to make a mistake because he doesn’t have the rail for support. Have them continue across the short side of the arena and perform the same circling drill in the next corner.
Step 4: Common Mistakes to Avoid
Many riders will want to come out of that smaller circle too soon, before the horse has softened and lifted his shoulder. The premise of the drill is to get the horse straight and square through his body and to teach the rider that, when they’re in position, the rider drops their hand, and they get a break from the hard work. If they release too soon, the horse hasn’t learned what to do, and the rider likely still isn’t feeling the horse leaning.
Step 5: Work at the Lope
Moving up to a lope increases the degree of difficulty quite a bit. The rider must manage the drill along with changing leads or counter-cantering. For more advanced young riders, I have them counter-canter the small circle to the outside. For example, loping the straight line on the left lead, then circling off to the right, maintaining the left lead. For a less-experienced rider, I have them lope the straight line in a counter-canter so they’re on the correct lead when they peel off into the circle to school the horse — that is, I have them lope the straight line on the right lead and then guide onto the circle to the right.
About the Trainer
Raised on a cattle ranch in southeastern Colorado, Cody Crow built his career through colt starting, ranch work, and rodeo. Today, he operates No Where But UP Performance Horses in Johnstown, Colorado, training horses and coaching riders to success from local shows to world and national championships. Learn more at codycrowhorsetraining.com.