Tegan Mills Horsemanship

Lucky and I. Denman Island 1988

Some pretty moments on Polina today -- I love riding her in my Schultheis saddle in the big wide open space, where she comes to life!

Long lining Zeus, preparation for starting under saddle

To continue in more detail from the earlier post:

Here are some important points for starting horses in a "classical" way -- which is one that takes the physiological situation into account:

1)
It's often not simply that the horse has been overflexed, rather that the horse was never taught to "take the bit forward" in the first place, and as a result they drop behind the bit or curl up habitually. Essentially, this is because trainers and riders do not fully understand the Principle of Forward riding, and are inadvertently doing things, literally, backwards, falsely thinking that connection involves shortening the horse, instead of lengthening and opening the horse, which is essential in order for the horse to stretch through the base of the neck, open the shoulders, make space for the back and hindquarters to lift and carry the load.

2)
Therefore, teaching the horse how to use the bit, and using techniques to supple and stretch the horse so they can de-contract, is so important before the ridden work starts, because horses cannot learn to obey the forward aids if their forehand is stuck, contracted and in the way. s
So the beginning must involve teaching the horse how to use the bit and lightening the forehand.

3)
When it comes to using the bit, it's not that the horse is taught to yield to the bit, as much as it is the horse learning to move the bit with the tongue, in order not to lock up through the poll. I teach the horse to move forward as I stretch the horse with forward pressure (gently with a thick soft leather halter/bridle/cavesson on the poll) and also through forward and sideways movement like shoulder in etc, and lifting the horse into halt instead of using the hand backwards.

4)
I use both the bridle, with a very good loose ring bit, as well as the cavesson, for the early lunge lessons, and for leading until the horse can be easily led with the bit.
The cavesson with reins, as well as the bit with reins, for the first few rides, until the horse can be easily directed with the bit.

5)
When teaching halt by lifting the reins, it's done by walking beside the horse and both slowing down and stopping the horse by lifting the shoulders and poll

For those who want to get some insight into what dressage is for, in the way I'm taught and practice:

Here's a common situation I encounter (and this is something I see in all horses, more often than not):

We have a horse who's not moving well, who's showing discomfort in their expression and behavior, who's not responding to the aids, whose training is not progressing, who's becoming unsafe, and/or unsound.

First, I'm diagnosing the cause (which is always partly the way the horse has been ridden and or trained/untrained, combined with the horse's conformation and the state of the body -- tension, weakness, condition, etc.
But the most important aspect of "cause" is not why it's like this, but what is actually going on, in terms of biomechanics, because that is what will lead directly to the solution.

In many cases, there is a succession of interrelated things going on, observable in the way the horse looks, stands and moves, both under a rider and loose.

Most common is the horse's shoulders are pinched together, there are contracted muscles, and limited range of motion. The body is or becomes rigid in response to aids, there is a total lack of suppleness, and ability for the horse to move "through" their body. As a result the back and hindquarters are not able to function as they must; the joints aren't bending, they push instead of carry, they aren't able to take enough weight.

The horse is simply not in a state to carry themselves or a rider in balance until everything changes.
So "training" means solving these interrelated problems, together and separately, progressively, and fairly, without causing more problems in the process.

What dressage gives us are guidelines, principles, techniques, exercises: theory.

The application takes a highly developed seat, and many many years of practice, under the eyes of a teacher who's learned in this way too. That's why dressage in this form is almost lost.

This is why dressage -- and all of horse training -- is often misunderstood, skipped over, made into something it's not, oversimplified, condemned, ignored, etc.

Photo is Otto Lorke