Magic 💜 #mattalynrogersdressage #thoughtfulhorsemanship #dressage #colt #oldenburg #warmblood #gov #usdf #usef #fei #dreambigdreams
We LOVE a success story!
Fame has gone to her new home and has settled right in! I had tears in my eyes seeing how much they have connected in such a short time. Fame is thriving and I’m just so grateful to all the people that helped get her a happy ending! 💜
Remember we have several more horses looking for their best match, so send us a message if you’re looking! #mattalynrogersdressage #thoughtfulhorsemanship #dressage #connection #usdf #usef #fei #eventing #usea #horses #mares #warmblood #oldenburg #trilogyperformancesaddlery #jenniferjarnigansaddlefit
Cooper is coming back into work after some time on the back burner! Bringing the horse back into fitness means touching on the basics and not jumping straight back into where they were, checking in and making sure the horse is physically capable for everything asked before moving onto the next step. It takes a year to develop a good topline! Slow and steady wins the race!
Tipper doing tree-barrel racing and jumps at the end 🤪 be careful letting dressage people control your jumping! Crazy ideas sometimes ensue… #forsale #eventersofinstagram #eventerinthemaking
Tips first time through water and showing awesome scope over some larger fences 😍😍 #forsale
One of our amazing students at the River Glen schooling day working on developing the canter in the circle, maintaining the connection, balance and rhythm. We love to show different examples of the same exercise so everyone can see that the path does not look the same for every horse. We adore Jess and her amazing ottb Chance who is laterally so awesome 😍😍 more to come on that! #dressagehorse #eventersofinstagram #dressage #ottb
Working on consistency in the connection, off property, in the Nalanta bit less bridle. Sending the horse into consistent hands while not increasing tension in the body. Easier said than done!
One of our boarded horses taking advantage of the services we offer here. PEMF therapy and foam pads to stand on help the horse tell its body story of what could be ailing it. Even if nothing is outwardly wrong, it never hurts to take time to listen and see if aches and pains align with inconsistencies in the work.
Ava working through moving the shoulders with Jim Koford. Wow these lessons were awesome ❤️❤️ wish I would have gotten video of everyone! They all did so well with their rides.
Jack, while learning contact, has gotten to the stage where he almost wants to set his head. We don’t want a horse to go around in a ‘frame’. We want him to be elastic.
Jim talks about mobilizing the shoulders, Ava is instructed to leg yield towards and away from the wall. Also bending on a circle, GIVING the outside hand to take from the inside to bring the shoulders to the outside rather than falling in.
Jack says, This is hard!!! Good riding Ava. Thanks Jim ❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️
#dressage #BendOrNah? #dressagerider #ottb #ottbdressage #horsetraining #dressagehorse
Schooling the trot to work on swing and developing the rhythm. #dressage #lusitano #lusitanohorse #lusitanodressage
Thank you so much Jim Koford for all your help! We loved our lessons with you 😍😍 if you’ve never ridden with Jim, you’re missing out on some super helpful exercises and amazing insight.
Mattalyn schooling Half Steps with a young horse. A Lusitano gelding, this is a wonderful example of part of the training process. Here, the horse struggles to compress so he wants to swing his hip to the outside.
We try and help him accept the compression of the half steps while keeping the relaxation.
Honor tries many things, shoulder in, offering a Spanish walk, allowing him to be curious.
It’s all part of the process!
Guide to Belly lifts, planks and butt tucks.
Step one to Topline health is completely free to do and takes about 10 minutes!
Belly lifts and butt tucks. Here, Ava displays how to do a belly lift and what that looks like. Some horses have very little lift and the goal is not to create an arch in the back. We want the topline to lift, maybe an inch or two, or however the horse performs easily.
Then, encourage the horse to hold the ‘plank’ for longer and longer. Start small with 20 seconds. Working up to a minute as your horse develops fitness. Do this three - five times.
You do this by taking your fingers in a scrunched position, then pressing your finger tips to the sternum. Scrub back and forth, pressing upward, start with very little then slowly scrub harder until you get even a little lift. Some horses are very tight and have little lift. Some arch up like a cat!
Next, do butt tucks. Taking two scrubbing fingers, start at the top of the croup and work your way down in parallel lines to be level with the tail head. This should make your horse crunch his butt.
These we do not plank on, we allow the horse to relax, keeping track of if the horse moves a leg away or curls to one side. Alternate pressure to help the horse tuck their butt straight. This will take practice! This helps identify weaknesses as well.
Stay tuned for corrective exercises and then next, lunging!
#dressage #horsetraining #dressagehorse #newtoplinenovember #lessons
When horses get heavy in the canter, it is usually a fitness issue though some horses have learned to lean or think they should be carried. It’s not a matter of thinking in terms of ‘backing them off’
Here, Ava schools a little bit of counter flexion, also focusing on moving the ribs and not just the neck. Softness means nothing if the body is stiff. She then schools transitions and works on developing the trot before picking up the canter again.
Cantering more often for less time gives more opportunities for praise and let’s the horse practice. A rushed trot doesn’t make a soft canter, which means schooling constant transitions from tension only creates worry and more tension.
Canter. Canter often! But don’t canter endlessly on an unfit horse. Also, look inward. Are we making sure to give? Or are we pulling? What makes a horse heavy?
What could be better in your dressage work?
#dressage #horsetraining #dressagehorse #ottb #training #dressagehorsesofinstagram #legyield #lessons #lessismore #coreday
Stay tuned for discussing horses who get heavy in the canter! #dressagehorsesofinstagram #dressage #dressagehorse #horsetraining #ottb #training
Two leg yield examples on two different horses. Both ending with the same ‘issue’ in that they lose the shoulder and lose the connection.
The most common issue In the leg yield is too much inside rein, throwing the horse on the outside shoulder and focusing on the sideways rather than focusing on the actual point of the exercise; more outside rein, remaining parallel to the wall, will help to achieve more lateral suppleness, while measuring the response to the leg.
#dressage #dressagehorse #legyield #somuchsideways
Training horse Gunner trotted under saddle with a rider and was cool as a cucumber 😍😍 when horses are started correctly, there is usually very little drama. This guy is about to graduate kindergarten and we couldn’t be more proud of how he’s come along.
We feel passionantly about starting horses calmly, correctly and allowing them to be present in the process as opposed to shut down and fearful of consequences. This doesn’t mean not having boundaries, this means explaining to the horse the expectations in a way he understands without punishing him for guessing wrong.
We have one spot open for a training horse ❤️ how can we help you achieve your goals?
#dressage #assistanttrainer #dressagehorse #babyhorse #horsetraining #horsesofinstagram #appendix #tallboy
