Help me i'm having a problem with my horse!! Any tips will help!?

Question

I have a problem! Whenever I try to trot my arab alone without a group, she anticipates the canter so goes into the awkward canter when im trying to trot! I mean, shes fine in a group, but otherwise... please help. I sit and half halt but she wont just trot shes like in this canter trot thing. My instructor say im tensing but i dont really feel like I am and im trying to relax but I need help!

please help!! PLEASE! any tips!

Answer 1

keep practicing and listen to your instructor.  tell them how you feel and ask how to correct.

Answer 2

SIT BACK and GET your LEGS out of her!  When you press with your calves and knees, she WILL immediately go into a canter when you ask for a transistion from a walk.  So, as you're walking along, think LEGS out, then quietly ask for an upward transistion into a trot.

Answer 3

Tell the horse to trot or find a new riding instructor because yours didn't even teach you how to make your horse trot!

Have a nice day!

Answer 4

If she canters, just sit for one...putting your butt in the seat helps give her cues to slow down. It might take some time, but when you ask for the trot, you can't think "shes going to do that canter thing", just think about trotting, and thats what you're going to do. Horses are very intuitive and can sense these tense thoughts.

Sit down, give half halts (small squeezes on your inside rein...Im assuming when you said you were 'in' half halt, you meant half seat?). When she trots normal, praise her so she knows thats what you want. Horses like praise just as much as a dog would when being trained.

Also, you can try making her walk really fast into a trot, that way the abrupt cue wont be misunderstood. Definatly work on different transitions and different speeds at each gait. This will help her understand theres at least 3 gaits, and even more than that....and she needs to pay attention.

Good luck!

Answer 5

My mare doesn the same when i haven't lunged her.

You could try  lunging her before you ride, and if she still breaks into the canter stop and back her up to where she started cantering until she understand that if she keeps doing it shes going to get punished for it.