Horse Question -- Hunter/Jumper riders?

Question

Should a hunter/jumper horse's head be down, as in dressage? I know that bending, flexion, forwardness, and the poll being the highest point on the body are all imporant. But in general, what should be the height/position of the head -- does it really matter? (For flatwork.)

Answer 1

you want the horse to be in a nice collected frame.  it's better to have the nose pointing down instead of out, but it's really not as important as if you were doing dressage or something.  If you're riding a hunter on the flat, your pace and your horse's movement is more important than framing the horse's head.  But framing up their head is part of the judge's decision in selecting a winner.  If you are tied with another rider for 1st, the judge will probably pick the horse that's framed.  You want your horse to be down on the bit, but not overbridled (in dressage they tend to go a little too far...  give your horse some movement, but keep it down on the bit... don't let it stick its nose out and pull).  The ears will always be the highest point of the head...  the poll should be higher than the neck.  don't bend the neck so much that you bury the head.  You want a light contact with the bit both from your hands and from your horse...  you want them to settle down onto the bit...  you want the horse to be comfortable.  wherever the head is when the horse is comfortable is where you want it to be... if it's a little too far out and pulling it in makes the horse upset, then let it stay a little out.

Answer 2

The top of the head should be in line with the rear end, so that it’s like a straight line. The neck doesn’t necessarily need to be rounded. The whole idea is to have your horse looking relaxed.

Answer 3

As with everything in riding you have to find a "happy median". You should never let you horses head hang down and if he/she has a tendency to do so on occassion use just your outside rein and pull gently upward be careful not to pull back. If your horse is holding his head really high they're probably really excited try calmng him down and sitting up straighter and maybe even leaning back a little to transfer your weight to his back legs forcing him to push more fluidly from the back and dropping his head to an even height. :)

Answer 4

Well, he shouldn't be dragging on the floor or up high in your face basically the horses' head should be in a straight line with his rear.

http://images.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=ht...

Answer 5

Its nose should be about perpendicular with the ground not as round as in dressage.