Q: My horse doesn’t step across correctly with his front foot when I ask him to spin or move his front end around his rear. He crosses behind or steps on his other foot. I’ve gone back to the ground and practiced yielding his front end, and he crosses over just fine, but he won’t do it under saddle. What can I do to help him figure it out?Jordan Larson and Arc Gunnabeagunslinger performing a spin
A: You never want a horse to step behind with his outside front foot when moving his front end around his rear or when doing a spin because he can get tangled up and knock his legs, which looks uncoordinated and can lead to injuries. When a horse does a spin correctly, where he steps over his inside front leg with his outside front leg, he moves naturally and can really build up a lot of speed in the spin.
Since you mentioned that your horse steps correctly when you ask him to yield his front end from the ground, I’d suggest enlisting the help of friend to sit on him as a passenger while you practice moving him from the ground. It will help your horse get comfortable stepping correctly while having a rider on his back. Your friend will strictly be a passenger and shouldn’t cue your horse or interfere in any way. Once your horse is moving his front end around his hindquarters and is stepping correctly, you can get back in the saddle. Keep the following points in mind to help him step correctly.
This article originally appeared in the April 2011 issue of Horse Illustrated. Click here to subscribe.
Clinton Anderson is a word-renowned Australian-American natural horsemanship trainer. He created a training program called Downunder Horsemanship.
Sounds like great advice!
I wish I knew how to do this with my horses.
Great --spam in the comment area.
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