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QUESTION: Tonight when I rode my horse she was soo naughty! She had trouble getting on the right lead. Left lead she did okay. She'd go into her canter real clumsy too, and she'd kinda tilt towards the lead she was on. I thought i was gonna fall off! Got any ideas?

ANSWER: Well to start with you should make sure that you are giving her the right signals and riding her correctly. 99% of horse problems are caused by the rider, so you should make sure that you are not giving her confused signals in any way.

To get her into canter you need to make sure that she is listening to you, and going in a steady rhythm and controlled pace. Then you need to make sure that you SIT UP really tall (like there is a string pulling you up from your head) and move your outside leg back (not too far but enough so that it does what it is supposed to: prevents the horse from swinging her hindquarters out and resisting the canter aid) and use your inside leg firmly (not too strong or your outside leg won't back it up properly, but firmly enough that she feels it and isn't able to ignore it). make sure that you have her collected before you ask for the canter transitions so that they aren't too clumsy (my pony Minnie is very similar to this! she goes into canter unbalanced too)

To collect her you should be sure to be sitting tall, have an even, firm contact on her mouth (not too firm or you'll slow her down, just enough to get her collected and also to make her be listening) and anything else that will get her attention. A half-halt works well with my pony, i sit up straight (and sit to her trot for a few strides before asking for a canter). Minnie tends to try to rush into canter as soon as I go into sitting trot,so if this happens it can help to do some work in sitting trot so that the horse doesn't start to anticipate cantering.

Ask for canter in the way I just described, and make sure that you keep your inside leg on while cantering and SIT UP STRAIGHT while cantering on a circle so that she doesn't fall in. Many people lean in or forward in canter transitions, and this just has bad effects. If you lean in then your horse will too, and if you lean forward your horse will go onto the forehand and be very unbalanced.

QUESTION: I am interested in dressage and would like to compete seriously in competitions. But one problem I have is that my horse has a very bouncy trot, which I can't sit to! Can anyone help?

ANSWER: I know EXACTLY where youre coming from! I have a little grey Arab who is wonderful at dressage and has a very natural rhythm and cadence. Unfortunantely his trot is very bouncy! I've never had to sit to the trot in a competition but once I had to for an exam.

I found that with Caddie, the reason that his trot was often so difficult to sit to was that (although his natural stride is bouncy, he 'floats' like a true arab) was because he wasn't suppled up enough along his back. This was a problem I encountered with him because his previous owner never worked him properly in dressage, and he worked on the forehand when I got him. So I had to get him to use his hindquarters and come off my hand into a light contact, which I could only acheive through getting his back suppled.

There are a few exercises you can do to help with this.

Bending: you can set up a series of poles/markers in a straight line and 'weave' between them. Focus on getting your horse to really 'bend' around them and use his back. You will be able to feel the difference when he does.

Serpentines and loops: in the school, working in serpentines and loops is excellent for getting your horse to bend correctly. As a dressage rider, you will know that the horse has to use his hindquarters and back as he bends, and encourage your horse to do this by using your inside leg firmly and well back if you need to, to encourage him to really use his hindquarters.

Make sure, however, that before you do any of these exercises your horse is warmed up properly, and that he has had a chance to stretch. This is especially important for stabled horses, who spend a lot of time standing still (which is why I keep my horses at grass). Give your horse a long rein, and encourage him to stretch his neck right down until he is 'sweeping' the ground with his nose (not literally, of course!) If he doesn't want to put his head down, 'feel' each rein gently in turn, and
give him a little more rein each time you do this, to encourage him to stretch his neck and back. This will help to supple him up, and do it at the walk and trot, even canter later on. It's very good for your horse to have stretched out when you bring him back to more collected paces which are required for dressage. You will find that doing these exercises will help to supple your horse up and make his trot smoother and easier to sit to.

This exercise is great for any horse, especially young ones. Even if your horse hasn't got a bouncy trot, try it and see how it works. I guarantee positive results!