The Basics of Backing, part 2: the intermediate horse

Training for a straight and light back
by Pat Wyse and Sue Muir

If you missed the first part of this series in the August issue of NWHS, visit our online archive at http://www.nwhorsesource.com/, where you can read and comment on all of the August issue articles.

Once a horse will back eight or ten steps relatively easily, you are ready to begin refining the maneuver by developing straightness, lightness, and speed. The horse should already know how to move his hindquarters away from the rider’s leg (perform a turn on the forehand). If so, you can begin teaching the horse to back straight…by teaching him to back crooked! Why? Because all horses will, at times, back off to one side. To correct that problem, the rider must teach the horse to guide as he backs. If the rider works only on straightness and not turning while backing, then he will lack an important skill for correcting faulty backups.

Circles and Serpentines
To teach the horse to back to the right, tip his nose a little to the left, begin the backup, then add left leg near the back cinch in the form of light bumps, increasing the strength of the bumps until he begins to move his hindquarters to the right. As was done in early training, give a complete release when the correct response is attained. Then work on backing to the left. As before, work on this for just a few minutes each day. After a number of lessons, the horse should be able to back a smooth serpentine, circle, or other pattern. Be patient--don’t ask green horses to do these exercises with any speed, as they can trip and fall backward. Allow plenty of time to develop skill and coordination.

The leg or spur may be used to help push the hindquarters over.

Keeping it Light
Now the horse needs to learn to be light and responsive in the back. The trick to this is to be very soft in the beginning of the backup, then reinforce for an insufficient effort. Most people find it hard to comprehend what “very soft” is. It means to start much lighter than you think the horse is capable of feeling. Good trainers will do nothing more than lift the reins to begin – without actually contacting the horse’s mouth.

Early in training, the horse will not react to the initial signal at all, but then we increase the pressure until he responds. This increase is done fairly quickly, but must be smooth. If the rider jerks, the horse will become defensive or fearful rather than learning an appropriate response. Once again, fully release when the horse reacts correctly. As lightness improves, add speed. Envision yourself squeezing water slowly from a sponge: start soft and increase the pressure until the desired results occur.

When the horse willingly steps back from the bridle, he is ready to learn to quicken the reaction he already knows. This is accomplished by using leg to excite the horse. Remember to keep the bridle light. Use leg, not bridle, to increase speed. (Exception: when the horse gets “stuck,” use the bridle to get him started again, then immediately return to a light bridle.)

Accelerating the Back
There are two options for using leg to accelerate the back: up by the shoulder or well back near the rear cinch. Different horses may react better to one location or the other. The shoulder position is very useful for horses that evade the bit by dropping the head or over-bridling. The back cinch position is appropriate for the finished horse. Most competitive disciplines don’t allow legs to be used forward of the cinch, so riders showing in those sports may use the forward position in training, but must have the competition-level horse trained to respond to leg behind the cinch.

When using leg, timing and technique are both important. At this stage, the horse should be light enough in the bridle that, rather than noticeably tipping the nose, all the rider needs to do is squeeze the primary rein tighter than the secondary, alternating from side to side every few steps. Signal with your leg on the same side as the primary rein by softly applying calf first, then reinforce by bumping with or rolling the spur. As you alternate the primary rein, also alternate the leg you use. It isn’t necessary to use leg or spur each time the rein is squeezed, just often enough to get some “try” from the horse. Incorporate a regular rhythm for using the leg (e.g., step-step-step-bump right leg, step-step-step-bump left leg, step-step-step-bump right leg…). When you feel an increase in the tempo of the back, immediately release all pressure to reward the horse.

Good leg-hand coordination is critical when increasing speed and degree of difficulty in the back. Although this is a challenging skill for most riders, it is essential to prevent rearing when increasing demands on the horse. When using leg or spur, the rider’s hand must stay soft and light on the bridle, regardless of whether the leg is used strongly or lightly. Human instinct causes riders to want to do things with the whole body - if they kick hard, they naturally want to pull hard, too. It requires skill, awareness, and practice to negate this instinct and keep the hands light at all times.

During this stage of training, a few problems will inevitably arise. If the horse begins to go crooked, use repeated bumps, along with primary rein on the side he curves toward, until he straightens. If an intermediate horse refuses, go back to beginner steps rather than escalating to a major fight. Reward the horse for small improvements. It shouldn’t take long to return him to his previous level. If he freezes up in a serious refusal, just push his hip over to “break him loose,” as described last month. Again, avoid the big fight, and don’t worry about minor setbacks. They happen to every horse many times during the course of training.