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  Discussion on Wrong lead on the lunge
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Posted on Thursday, May 2, 2002 - 10:47 pm:

My almost two year old quarterhorse is having problems picking up the correct lead in the lope when lunging to the right. He's perfect going to the left, but consistently gives wrong leg to the right. What can I do to teach him to pick up the correct lead in the lope on the lunge? He's not bitted up or rideable yet.

Posted on Friday, May 3, 2002 - 2:57 am:

First, you need to determine if your horse is stiff on the left side and consequently not leading with the right foot when inside. You can try free lunging and observing if he ever leads with the right. You would need to change him up, woofing him right and left to induce lead changes. Also if he's out running around with other horses (his buddies!) does he ever lead with the right? If not, the problem could be physical and perhaps is nothing more than stiffness on the left.

If this is the case, try to supple him up. Two ways this can be done. The first is to work him in varying circle sizes at the lunge. Remember that for a younger horse a 30 foot circle (15 ft lunge line) is about the minimum. Likewise, a 50 ft circle is getting too large and will not encourage balance or suppleness.

The second thing is what we call carrot stretching. We take a carrot (a full long carrot not a baby carrot) and offer it to the horse but slowly pull it back so he has to bend and stretch to get it. With our Saddlebred, he could stand still and stretch back to a couple of inches behind his rump to eat the carrot. You can also pull the carrot down the chest and going between the front legs to work on stretching the the top line.

Provided that your horse is supple and bends well to the right as well as to the left you can then address the issue of picking up the inside lead when going to the right.

To correct a horse on the lunge for the proper lead you need to either slow him down and he will often correct his own lead to restore balance or transition down to a trot. Then woof him back up to a canter. If the lead is wrong slow him down again.

If you have no slack in the lunge line as proper (easy in theory, more difficult in practice), as soon as he canters of the wrong lead pull back on the line to cast him off balance, and then woof him forward again. This needs to happen in quick succession, especially the pulling him off balance. The best timing would be to pull just as the outside front leg starts to reach forward. This is the point where his balance is most precarious and the teaching effect has the greatest impact. If you miss the timing which is easy to do (as all things with horses never seem to time just right!) its okay because he will still seek to pick up the lead that keeps better balance.

Generally horses learn one side at a time and they don't relate what they do to the left with what they do to the right. When he goes to canter in a round to his right, he will learn that one foot is unpleasant (because of your pull, loss of balance, and getting woofed forward or slowed down when he really wants to do his own thing) and the other one is, well, correct because it is balanced and pleasant.

Best of luck.

Dennis & Beth

Posted on Monday, May 13, 2002 - 1:25 am:

Thanks Dennis & Beth - pulling him off balance has certainly worked a treat. He wasn't stiff or sore anywhere so I figured it was just a training issue. He's picking up the correct lead to the right consistently now - thank goodness!

Thanks for all your help.

Posted on Sunday, May 26, 2002 - 9:59 pm:

Tracey-

Another, less confrontational approach along the same lines is to gently direct the horse toward a visual barrier of some sort, like the arena fence, as you ask for the canter depart. Knowing that he needs to turn away from the barrier, the horse is more likely to choose to pick up the true canter lead. Don't point the horse sharply straight at the fence, which could be confusing or frightening; just angle him toward the fence so that he'll have to turn as he's strking off in canter. Reinforce the right response, and you're there.

I truly believe that the more the horse learns "on his own", or finds the right behavior for his own reasons, the stronger that behavior gets confirmed.

Have fun!

Lauren

Posted on Sunday, May 26, 2002 - 10:05 pm:

It's funny that you mention that Lauren. I actually stumbled onto the method you suggest just last week with another of my horses. It worked like a charm too!
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