Are you looking to step up the dressage levels with your horse? Petplan Equine Ambassador Heather Finlay shares her advice on how to introduce a number of different dressage movements to your horse, from Prelim up to Medium level.
Think about your turn as a half ten metre circle
Riding down the centre line is required at all levels; without halt for Prelim level and with a halt for Novice level upwards. Heather shares her top tips for how to improve your centre line and maximise your marks in your next dressage test.
Start with one or two steps in walk to get their confidence first
A movement required from Novice level upwards, in the give and retake of the reins the horse should not change his way of going but keep the rhythm and the balance and not lift in front.
The trick is not to let the quarters lead or trail
Point the shoulder in the direction you want to go. Take the shoulder across as if you’re going to change the rein across the diagonal and then bring the quarters over.
I find the easiest way to teach a horse to leg yield is to start on a circle
Leg yield is the first lateral movement required in Dressage. Here Heather shares some advice on how to introduce this to your horse.
Start on a circle – it’s easier for your horse to keep his rhythm and balance
Medium trot is required at Novice level and above. To introduce this movement, Heather recommends beginning with a shortening and lengthening exercise on a circle, before introducing it down the long side and diagonals.
Teach it on the ground first, so that the horse understands what backwards really means
Rein back is first required at elementary level. Stand the horse square in the school, apply a little contact down the reins and say ‘back’ several times from the ground. You can then progress to asking for the aid in the saddle.
It’s bringing the shoulders in off the track so that your horse is working on three tracks
An easy way to introduce shoulder in to your horse can be to start with a ten metre circle. As you finish the ten metre circle and you come on to the long side, keep that turn feeling so you’re bringing the shoulders across after your ten metre circle, as if you were going to change the rein. Keep that feeling along the long side.
A popular movement in elementary tests and above
This movement is required at elementary level and above. It is a canter – walk – canter transition, to change the leading leg in canter.
In this movement, we’re looking for the sit and the steps behind with the fore legs moving round in a circle
At Medium level it’s a basic pirouette but we are looking for those back legs to step under and the fore legs to move round in a nice rhythm. At first, it’s easier to work on a big circle and then make it smaller and smaller, so it’s not such a big deal for the horse.
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