Your horse will not be able to flex the pelvis, come under with the hind leg, or come through the back if the neck is being destabilized by the rider. There is not enough leg, big enough spur, long enough whip to get the haunches tracking straight if the base of the neck is not coming straight out of the shoulders. The horse can’t lift its withers, rotate its trunk to bend properly if the base of the neck is not coming straight out of the shoulders. If the base of the neck bulges left or right coming out of the shoulders, the hind quarters will track in a way that helps align the haunches, shoulders and base of neck to stabilize the spinal column.
What does this look like? Many times we as riders are hanging slightly or pulling firmly on the inside rein. The horse will flex the nose to the inside and shorten the distance between the chin and shoulder to avoid the pull of the rein. This makes the base of the neck bulge the opposite direction of the nose. It closes the throat latch and restricts the airway. So if the nose is being pulled left. The base of the neck will bulge right coming out of the shoulders. The horse will more heavily weight the right forelimb. In order for the body to maintain spinal column stability, the haunches will track to the right to align with the shoulders and base of the neck. Our body feels the “drift” right and we grab more left rein to “hold the horse” which just perpetuates and intensifies the cycle. You could try adding outside leg to fix the problem, but it will be futile unless the base of the neck is straightened. If the base of the neck is not straightened, the horse will just hurry when outside leg is added.
Trainer’s Tip Tuesday
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