Long Reining a Horse
Long reining is a way to test a horse how to walk, halt, go left and right, and trot before putting a rider on. Long reining should start when the horse can successfully be lunged, so they can understand voice commands.
Things you need for long reining:
-Bridle with normal reins removed
-two lunge lines ( to put on the bridle)
-tack up horse
-hard hat
-gloves
-good footwear
How to Long Rein:
-When starting long reining it is best to start in an arena ( just in case something were to happen)
-start with lunging to go over voice commands
-string lunge lines through stirrups on either side
-when ready slowly walk far enough back to where the lines are not on the ground and above the hocks
-for safety, so the horse can see you start more on one side than the other
-give the command to start walking and halt to start, slowly proceed when ready with turning (it may take a couple time for the horse to fully understand)
-when successful at the walk, try trotting and slowly work in turning
- also work on transitions from trot to halt, trot to walk, walk to trot, and halt to trot.
- Things to work on steering are going through cones, stopping at a certain point.
The key to this is having the horse trust and listen to what the rider wants. This training will help horse understand to listen more for the voice commands as well as know the feeling when there is a ride on moving the reins.
Things you need for long reining:
-Bridle with normal reins removed
-two lunge lines ( to put on the bridle)
-tack up horse
-hard hat
-gloves
-good footwear
How to Long Rein:
-When starting long reining it is best to start in an arena ( just in case something were to happen)
-start with lunging to go over voice commands
-string lunge lines through stirrups on either side
-when ready slowly walk far enough back to where the lines are not on the ground and above the hocks
-for safety, so the horse can see you start more on one side than the other
-give the command to start walking and halt to start, slowly proceed when ready with turning (it may take a couple time for the horse to fully understand)
-when successful at the walk, try trotting and slowly work in turning
- also work on transitions from trot to halt, trot to walk, walk to trot, and halt to trot.
- Things to work on steering are going through cones, stopping at a certain point.
The key to this is having the horse trust and listen to what the rider wants. This training will help horse understand to listen more for the voice commands as well as know the feeling when there is a ride on moving the reins.