hi it's Josie and today I'm going to help to answer a question I get a lot and I see people
have a lot of problems with how to get your horse to go out on the lunge now classical dressage
people and people who start horses under saddle in a classical way usually use two people so one
person stands in the middle and somebody else leads the horse around and that's all well and
good if you've got two people but if you're like me and you work on your own it doesn't work like
that so it's very easy to get a horse to Lunge and I'm using that in inverted commas because I
don't do the old lunging in the in the classical dressage way either even though dressage is my
love I don't do it that way but it's easy to get a horse to go out onto the circle because that's
what a lunge is just go what lunging is is out on a circle if you teach them the steps this mare is
a mare that's here to be started under saddle by me she's had three weeks work she's not been
in here to do any work and she's not been lunged I have not lunged her I used the round yard to start
them but I don't chase my horses around the round yard that's not how I work she works up close with
this lead so this really isn't a lunge lead so I'm going to show you the exercises I teach the
horse first and then I'm going to show you how it relates to helping the horse understand how
to go out on the circle so let's not use the word lunge let's use the word go out on the circle so
first things first this is what most people try to do when they want to Lunge their horse they
get around behind it and all of a sudden they're doing this is it does this look familiar to you
you're trying to get the horse to go and and that's what's happening you're like it won't
go out that's because the horse is doing what it actually thinks you want it to do is move
its hindquarters away from you you need to learn a little bit about horses understanding your body
language and what your body language needs means to your horse because if I walk at her hindquarter
she needs to move it away if I walk it with energy which is what you're doing so the two main things
that the horse needs to know to help you to Lunge the horse put it out on the circle and have it go
in three nice paces out there is it does need to know how to move its haunches so I should
walk towards this Mare and she should move those haunches away from me like that with the inside
hind leg stepping in front of the outside because that will become your stop on the lunge that will
become your a horse that won't walk that will be how you will help the horse to learn to walk on
the lunge but to get the horse out on the circle she has or he has to be able to move the shoulders
it's the shoulders that need to move out and then they can walk on the circle so this mare has had
her groundwork done she understands it so I need to be able to walk towards the mare that way and
I I don't walk towards the shoulders that's a big mistake you don't walk towards the shoulders
I walk under here and I take her nose that way and she will move her shoulders away from me see
there they go that was the first step out onto a circle I'll do that coming towards the camera
so I'm walking directly through here I'm looking where I'm going I'm just taking her nose there
and she will step out onto the circle okay so that is how you get your horse to go out onto
the circle and I'll show you how that works so when I take what once she's understood that and
I've taught her a few more I take my hand up here and she takes her shoulders out and onto
the circle and then I can bring her nose here and she can come nicely around me in a little
short Circle and when I want her to go out I just take my hand out I haven't done this in
here with this girl and she will go straight out on the circle I'll just ask her to trot a bit yep
and when I want her to slow down I look at her haunches and ask her to move them
out and then I can go like that and she will walk forward
then I can turn her haunches and slow her down and then I take my hand out and she will walk forward
and then she can go backwards and walk forwards when I wanted to stop okay she's not stopping good
girl the way the dressage people want which is in a straight line which is what I said I don't ever
lunge my horses in the old-fashioned it's not old-fashioned pardon me but in the classical
dressage sense I don't have a need for I don't lunge very often at all but now I can send her
shoulders that way and then she's out on the circle that's how you get your horse to Lunge
I will pop her on a long a proper lunge rein now good girl and we will see if she will go
out I promise you I have not done that in here stay there young lady all right now I have no
idea what may happen here you can see I've had a whip in my hand but I don't need to use it
because she reads my body language but we'll see how we go here ready so I wanted to go out
get it out on the circle there you go
I'll just get her up into trot see if I can get it I haven't done this I don't know how far out
she'll go good girl so if I need her to go out more I'll walk towards her shoulder good girl
I promise you this horse has never done a lunge before not in the round yard she's
done a circle on that short rope that's it good girl what a beautiful girl if I wanted
to walk I just have a little tip and look at the haunches there and but then say walk on
she might come in that's the girl if I will need her to go out I'll just walk towards the shoulders
and if I wanted to slow down walk on good girl good girl good girl not bad for a only been here
three weeks was it had never lunged in her life was is here for starting under saddle and has
been a rather spooky reactive mare I'm very happy with where she's come from so I'm hoping that that
gives you some ideas on how to help your horse learn to go out on the circle it has to move the
shoulders first getting behind the horse is never going to get it out there you're just
going to be doing this never-ending Circle I'd love to hear how you go if you go and try I'd
love to hear if you have problems with your horse lunging and thanks for watching [Music] [Laughter]
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