A Good Foundation

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According to Clinton Anderson, a horse can be considered to have a good foundation once he can do the following:

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    Walk, trot and canter on a loose rein
    One rein stop at the walk, trot and canter
    Collect at the walk, trot and canter (with just two fingers on the reins)
    Back up with limited pressure
    Move all five body parts (head and neck, poll, shoulders, rib cage, and hindquarters)

Considerations for Gaited Horses

• The fundamentals for gaiting are: a good gas pedal, good brakes, good cruise control and great steering wheel.
• Work on impulsion (which is controlled forward motion) at the trot and canter to work on collection. This can then be transferred to gaiting.
• Cantering is great for breaking a horse out of pacing. Stiffness causes pacing.
• The even four-beat gait is the smoothest on a gaited horse no matter what breed it is - Fox trotter, Tennessee walker, etc.​
• Quit asking for the gait before you think they'll quit you. The more you try to force it the more resistant the horse will get. Bend and retreat and do a lot of transitions.

The First Ride

• It can be helpful to have a second person to hold the horse and lunge for awhile at the very beginning.
• For steering hold the reins within a 90 degree circle of the head. Use the inside rein to lead the nose around and use the outside rein and outside leg to help push the horse around.
• Use the fence to help turn the horse.
• Never pull back on both reins at once when the horse is wearing a snaffle.
• Transition all of your ground work exercises to saddle concentrating on bending, yielding hindquarters, forequarters, flexing neck, backing, etc. Always work on lateral movement and control first so you will have a safe and responsive horse.​
• Spend a lot of time stepping up and down from the ground into the stirrup and halfway in the saddle. Don't let the horse think that every time you put weight in the stirrup you're immediately getting on or off. They need to wait for you and be able to stand calmly and patiently. Always flex your horse's head around towards you as you are getting on and off.

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​Teaching Neck Reining

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• ​Neck reining works by "pushing" the horse's neck over. Never try to jerk or pull the horse over, when you pull it causes the outside rein to shorten which, in turn, pulls the horse's nose in the wrong direction.
• Before introducing the concept, the horse should be light on the direct rein and know how to move off of the rider's weight and leg aids.
• Start introducing neck reining at the end of training session, when the horse is walking around nice and relaxed. Keep holding the reins in two hands but make sure they are close together. Lay the rein against the horse's neck and place two fingertips on the neck with it. If the horse moves away from the pressure release it and reward. If the horse does not move away from the pressure back up the cues with the direct, inside rein to turn the horse.
• Gradually reduce the reminder cues with the inside rein, remove your finger tips on the neck, and then practice it all at the trot and canter.
• Remember​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​ the horse still needs to tip his nose in, not just yield his neck and body. Remind with the inside rein if they don't do it on their own.

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The majority of the exercises listed on the side bar were gathered from Clinton Anderson's "Gaited Horsemanship" video series. Watching the videos (or someone actually doing the exercises) is still recommended for full understanding.​

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​Podhajsky's training tips come from his book: "The Complete Training of Horse and Rider".

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