Disengaging a Horse Hindquarters for Mounting with Jesse Krier - Greatmats Horse Training Series

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In this next segment, we’re going to get on this filly. We’ve walked her around a little bit, showed her she can move on all four feet and now we’re going to get on her.

One of the first steps I take when I go to get on is I want to disengage this hip. I want her to loosen up through her hind end, loosen up through her spine and give her face, because that keeps us in control as a rider when we go to get on.

So when I do that, I’m going to ask for this hind leg to step in front of the other hind leg. We want this maneuver. So it’s a forward moving procedure. I’m going to ask her to move forward in doing that. So forward motion and then we’re just going to try and manipulate her hind end to do it correctly.

A horse that’s tight and tense or a horse that’s going to buck gets stiff through their spine and they won’t do this crossover process. As opposed to doing that, they’ll actually - instead of crossing over like this with those hinds, nice deep crossover crossing over - they’re actually going to go like this.

Step here because they’re stiff and tight and tense, or they’ll step behind with that foot.

We want that inside foot to cross over and cross up and in front. That tells me that this filly is relaxed. This filly is not super relaxed because she is on guard when I’m pulling her around here. She’s pulling on her face a little bit.

I want her to just almost melt around me right here - almost like she’s walking right around my body.

There. That’s better.

And I don’t have a real invasive grip on this rein. This rein is pretty loose in my hand but we’re still asking for a little bit of tension.And I’m trying to bump with my hand just a touch to really sell it - really get that deep stretch.

This stretch really leads into if you’ve ever had to do this stretch if you’ve ever been in any kind of sport where you’re trying to stretch out your lower back. You reach down and do this right here.

In essence, that’s what we're trying to do with the horse. When we’re asking that horse to do this maneuver.

Picture that they have all four feet on the ground. We’re asking them to do this maneuver right here.

It also takes core. To get that core, this is not something they’re just going to do overnight. This is something that’s a little bit more of a step-by-step method. We’ve done this a few times on this filly already. So she’s pretty good at it.

Like I said before, to the right, she’s as good with anything.
She’s on guard to the right here. She’s grinding her teeth a little bit

She’s a little nervous. I’m having to pick up on this rein a little more to get that hind end to cross. You can see there’s kind of a stutter step effect. When she does it, she’s just not comfortable to the right.

Traveling in her front end. If I wanted to stop that front end, that’s when I start picking up on this rein, shut that front end down a tough. But we still want that crossover. Really help in aiding her by pushing with my hand here.

Good Girl.
It’s better than it was.
Baby steps.
Good Girl.

One more time this way.

This is the side I end up doing more so, because this is the side I’m going to get on her. I do step on from the right as well so she sees me with that I, but today, we’re just going to get on from the left.

Just stop that and really make it black and white. We’re going to ask her to back. Black and white that that segment is over for her. She’s got to learn that when I walk to the side here, that’s the same body position as if I was going to be asking her to move over. But now, I’m going to be mounting.

So to make that black and white to set the difference that we’re going to not be crossing over anymore. That’s where I ask her to back a couple steps, hoping it triggers her mind to think - Ok we’re done with that technique. Now he’s going to mount me. And she has figured that out pretty well.

Ok. So this is a 2-year-old filly - 2-year-old quarter horse filly. She is a running-bred, race-bred filly, and when you get a race-bred filly, they’re kind of a little bit more gassy, I guess you’d say. And that’s what this filly is. She’s been here for a while now and she’s learned quite a bit, but she’s still on guard.

This is a big step for her. Just taking all this in and getting used to a rider on her back. Every day we work with her is a learning day.
So we’re just going to get our foot set in the stirrup, ask for her face a little bit, have that in our arsenal if we need it, and step up.
We’ve been to this point.

Desensitize the body a little bit - especially that right side.
Gonna bump the face a little bit so it gives me a chance to get my foot on the stirrup.

Think happy thoughts.

Relax. Relax our body as a human - and keep her body relaxed. Just like we were doing from the ground when she was on the ground.
And reward her because she did good.

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