I'm so confused...?

Question

I have heard so many different ways of teaching a horse flying lead chnages, I have my own way, but I want to know how you do it....?

Answer 1

Depends.  :-)

Are you riding English?  Western?   What cues/aids does your horse know so far?

Does he have the balance do to flying changes? It's not a beginner's move.  If he's struggling with it, he may not physically be able to do it yet.

Answer 2

First make sure they are very set in all their cues, will go into a smooth balanced & collected canter from a standstill, walk or trot and really have their leads down. I usually start out  working in figure eights in the area. Go slow, start out at a trot till they start expecting the change in direction in the middle (not anticipateing but setting up for it) Go up to a canter around the ends, drop to a trot and ask for a couple steps trotting then cue for the other lead.

Gradually work up to fewer and fewer steps before asking for the canter again in the oposite lead. When you have them working steadily with just one stride of trot before constantly taking the correct lead, just ask for the opposite lead without allowing them to drop to the trot.

They usually just pop right into the correct lead at this point if the stage has been set correctly. If they don't or only change in the front and pop a lead in the rear (i.e. cross-fire, cross-canter). Don't get upset, this is pretty normal. Just drop back to a couple strides of trot, get them collected and balanced again and ask for canter again.

After all this is down and working constantly in the figure eight pattern, drop the circle and start doing the same thing in a straight line. Repeat the whole process as before (i.e. dropping to trot for a couple steps ect) then advance to just asking for opposite lead.

It takes a different amount of time to accomplish consistant flying lead changes with each horse, as all horses are different. Be sure to not push the horse past it's abilities as each progress differently. If it starts getting upset back off on the pressure and drop back to the point it was last calm at and accomplishing well.