Ep 122: Building Confidence and Collection
Collection is a key component of a horse’s foundational success. However, most breeds of horses are not built to be naturally collected. Collection is a learned habit that requires a horse to overcome two natural tendencies.
First, horses are naturally front-end loaded. When a horse is standing naturally, if you were to place a scale under the front feet and back feet, the front feet would have more weight on them than the back feet. This is due to a horse’s body composition, long neck, and head. When a horse is naturally front-end loaded, making athletic maneuvers such as stopping or turning can be rather difficult. When a horse gets ‘sticky’ or ‘front-endy’ in a stop or turn, a lack of collection is typically the culprit.
Second, horses naturally have bilateral tendencies. The easiest way I can describe a bilateral tendency is that the movement of one end of the horse affects the other end. Any time there is movement, the horse pivots in the middle, and the opposite end moves in the opposite direction. The problem with this tendency is that many horses are not naturally soft enough in their head, neck, shoulders and ribcage to make that pivot smoothly and fluidly. Therefore, we are met with resistance and awkward movements that do not put the horse in an athletic position to perform the maneuvers we are asking.
So, how do we overcome these natural tendencies to build collection? It all starts with building their confidence with simple, foundational exercises.
The core of my Level 1 training program is focused on establishing collection through lateral and vertical flexion. When performing these simple exercises, my goal is to build the horse’s confidence through a release-reward system.
In the early days of my training career, I approached collection quite differently than I do now. I used to believe that horses learned from pressure, not release. While it still holds true that you use pressure or contact to get the desired response, the pressure is not what they learn from–it’s the release. When you reward the horse by releasing, that is what they begin to seek, and that is what builds their confidence.
Every time you release you help your horse feel confidence. The goal with these Level 1 exercises is to help your horse understand that there is a release point associated with the contact. Once your horse begins to seek that point of release, they begin to understand how to position themselves to get that release consistently. And, that is how collection is built.
For a step-by-step breakdown of the Level 1 exercises discussed in this episode, enroll in our Foundation to Finish online training program.
“Be Your Best Horsemanship” is brought to you by Classic Equine, Martin Saddlery, Better Horses Network, Purina, Healthycoat, CINCH, Starbar, and Clarifly. These brands have been part of the Phil Haugen Horsemanship team for many years, and their products continue to play an integral role in the success of our performance horse training program. To support these brands, visit our Sponsors tab.
