|
|
|
The term “Dressage” can be quite misleading to the beginner in
equestrian sports. Equestrian dressage has nothing in common with
the dressage practised in a circus, i.e. the often unnatural
teaching of tricks to animals
for show purposes. Equestrian dressage serves the purely factual and
practical purpose of
reinforcing the horse’s capacity to carry the weight of the rider,
and of controlling the horse’s motions without coercion through
the rider’s aids.
|
| During the course of
equestrian history, the primary problem for a rider during war
battles or while lance hunting was to induce obedience into his
horse, in order to beat the opponent and stay alive. In general,
brutal force was applied to break the horse’s resistance and to
subject it to its rider’s will. Indeed, already in ancient times
the Greek equestrian warrior leader Xenophon in his still largely
valid riding doctrine postulated “the handling of horses with
as little coercion as possible”, but one can only guess whether
his findings bore any fruit. It was not until the epoch of baroque
riding that a less violent way of dealing with horses evolved.
Today, under the ideals of prevention of cruelty to animals, a
basically forceless riding doctrine has developed, with respect
to the horse’s health and psychic well being. Under the growing
commercialism in equestrian sports, however, the question arises
whether in practice the idea of animal protection not only remains
grey theory but is really applied.
|
| Meanwhile, equestrian sports have grown considerably in Germany not only in terms of numbers of riders but also in terms of numbers of riding styles and equestrian disciplines. The number of riders is estimated to be some 1,5 million, including professional competitors and trainers as well as amateurs and leisure riders of every style. There are show jumpers and dressage riders as well as western riders or gaited horse enthusiasts of various disciplines. Many enjoy riding for the sake of riding, others seek the competition. Not always, however, we find the basic riding abilities, necessary for the correct execution of the rider’s aids, which protect the horse from pain and damage to its health, and which enable the rider to use his aids without coercion. Over time, inadequate riding can turn a horse into an invalid. |
Any doctrine of a significant Master of Riding in history had the predominant goal of maintaining the horse’s health in spite of the strain of riding, of enhancing the horse’s performance through physical training, and of controlling the horse in the softest, lightest and least coercive way possible. There is only one way to achieve this goal: to submit the horse to the basic training of equestrian dressage, developed and sophisticated over centuries, which gymnastically trains the horse’s body, makes it flexible and supple, and strengthens the horse’s “carrying apparatus” in order to avoid early attrition. Such basic training should be applied to almost any horse that is expected to perform in dressage or similar disciplines. For every rider, however, no matter which style of riding and which type of horse he prefers, dressage basic training is the indispensable foundation for a harmonious unity with the horse in balance and movement. |
As a basic rule the following principle applies: "The beginner rider is paired with a well trained horse, and the green horse with an experienced rider, in order to allow the one to learn from the other."
|
The often used slogan „happiness lies on the back of a horse“ praises only the pleasure of the rider and conceals the toil of the horse. The joy of the rider, however, can turn into resignation and disappointment if he lacks in riding competence, horse sense and knowledge, and passionate devotion to the horse. Ambition and vanity, egotism and domineering are the wrong motivations to put your foot into the stirrup. |
|
|
|
|
The beginner should first visualize the principle of equestrian dressage to understand its meaning and purpose and to be able to act fairly to the horse. A rider puts weight on the back of a horse which by nature is not meant to carry a load. Therefore, he must endeavour to strengthen and enlarge the muscles of the back by alternately causing them to stretch and relax. Only strong back muscles will allow the rider to swing with the gait rhythm, and allow the horse to lift the spine which lowers and bends under the weight of the rider. Weak back muscles which have not had gymnastic exercise cannot lift the spine. Over time, the discs between the vertebras of the horse suffer from contusions, gratings and overstrained ligaments which cause painful infections and, eventually, the calcification of previously moveable joints. The spine looses its elasticity and can no longer swing in harmony with the back muscles. The influence of the rider‘s seat aids becomes nearly ineffective as the horse’s back is stiffened and hardened, and is nearly unable to react to the seat aids. The weighted back, therefore, is one part of the horse that requires the rider’s utmost care in order to maintain its elasticity and its load carrying capacity. |
||||
|
||||
Room for Head and Neck |
||||
The second and equally sensitive part of the equine body is the area of head and neck which the rider affects through the use of the reins. Running freely, without a rider, the horse uses neck and head as a balancing pole which compensates for any unsteadiness during movements and ensures that the horse does not loose its balance, stumbles or falls. Consequently, the rider must not confine this balancing pole with his reins in order not to hinder the horse’s search for balance. |
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
The horse’s neck must always remain long and relaxed while between the reins, and the head profile is to stay in front of a vertical line except for occasional short half halts for the purpose of admonition, reprimand or correction which cause the horse’s nose to cross the vertical line and thus cause deliberate discomfort - but never pain in the mouth. As the mouth is the most sensitive part of the horse’s body, the considerate rider’s hand has to handle it with utmost care to avoid rein coercion, pain and injury. In principle, the rider’s hand is softly asking questions and the horse’s mouth answers by chewing playfully. This permanent “conversation” is to loosen the chewing muscles in a supple way and to generate the flow of saliva.Therefore, the horse’s back and neck-head portion are those parts of the equine body which a rider uses primarily to exercise his influence over the horse, and which in turn have to receive his utmost attention. |
||||
Collection in Dressage |
||||
How can a rider achieve the physical development of his horse through dressage? What does he have to do to durably enable it to carry the riders weight? Which aids does he have to master and to execute to achieve obedient reaction and zealous cooperation, without opposition? Only forbearing gymnastic training of the backhand and the back over years, which eventually will round out the whole horse to a compact, supporting „bow of tension“, leads to the desired collection. The phenotype of the collection and its degree of concentration can vary according to the built of the horse’s body. |
||||
|
|
||||
|
|
||||
Collection begins with a more spacious gait with the hind quarters reaching far forward underneath the rump, causing the back muscles to stretch and vault with every step. The stronger backhand increasingly carries the rider’s weight, relieving the weaker fore hand. The forward thrust from the backhand is carefully caught, regulated and controlled through the reins without confining head and neck.. Therefore, the forward driving aids of seat and leg are always applied first, before the retaining aids of the reins catch the forward impulse. The reverse sequence would stifle any forward momentum right from the start. The more the hind quarters footing over time moves forward under the rump, the more compact and shorter and rounder and more supporting becomes the „bow of tension“ within the horse’s body, starting at its mouth and ending in its hind legs. |
||||
|
|
||||
At an advanced training stage, gymnastics will - if the anatomic aptitude of the body allows this – increasingly improve the bend of haunches which finds its strongest expression in a perfect piaffe. There, the croupe lowers and the head-neck portion straitens up a little. With the piaffe, on the brink to the lessons of Haute Ecole or High School, the horse reaches its maximum weight carrying capacity in its backhand. Only special lessons like the levade or the courbette demand even more. The expression „the horse is falling apart“ addresses the contrary of collection, e.g. a rider is unable to collect the horse or – to give an extreme example - the horse is stretched to its total length being allowed to wander at long reins and strolling along in full relaxation. Different faces of collection in the piaffe, caused by different anatomies. |
||||
|
|
||||
Not every horse is suitable for dressage collection. The anatomy of the body has to allow for the curve of the bow of tension. Otherwise, the rider can be tempted to use coercive means or even manipulations which let the horse suffer. From here, the transition to torture and cruelty towards animals is not far away. Every effort to accomplish real collection by fair and suitable means is ultimately in vain because the horse can not execute the demanded lessons and opposes mentally and bodily. |
||||
The Riding Horse Model |
||||
Successors of the wild horses of the ice ages which already show the points of the riding horse model. |
||||
|
|
||||
Some breeds bring along the foundation for a riding horse model as part of their genetic inheritance from their wild ancestors. They are more or less build for collection. Systematic breeding strives to improve the external appearance to produce the ideal riding horse model which, though, in each different breed can have different outcomes. Some say the right selection for breeding equals the first half of a successful training program, an experience which manifests itself in the Andalusian horse with its extraordinary aptitude for riding. Nevertheless, the breeding goals in the various breeds are determined by the purpose of use and the task for the horses which not necessarily ask for this particular aptitude but, for example, for flat and spacious galloping or spectacular action etc.. Yet, from a riders point of view, the rideability and an obliging character should be the predominant criteria to look for in a riding horse in order to stabilize the rider’s seat and to avoid unwanted hard shocks to the rider’s spine. To force a horse into lessons that it is anatomically unable to perform would be senseless cruelty to the animal. |
||||
|
|
||||
The desire to accomplish the riding horse model by breeding selection is illustrated in terms of „Deutsches Reitpferd“ (German Riding Horse) for the German warm blood breeding and „Selle Francaise“ (French Riding Horse) for the French warm blood breeding. Both do without differentiation between regional breeds in order to demonstrate a uniform breeding goal. The riding horse model which, in general, based on its bodily built, is suitable for dressage collection stands out for the following anatomic features: high attached neck, slender and hollowed out at the gullet (to allow room for the parotid gland behind the cheek) , and muscularly developed only on the upper side which altogether allows for un-coercive position „in hand“; distinct withers with a gentle transition to the back which provide for the stable positioning of the saddle without the need for a crupper, short to medium long, muscular back with an inviting saddle area and a closed, strong loin portion (no carp or sway back); long, moderately sloping croup; long, acutely angled upper and lower limbs which enable wide strides and allow good setting under of the hind quarters under the rump (particularly desired for warm blood breeding); slightly bow-legged back legs which support a distinct bend of haunches (Baroque type of horse). Riding horse models in selected breeds: |
||||
|
| ||||
|
warmblood
type |
baroque horse type | |||
|
|
||||
Nevertheless, there are horses which do not fully meet these criteria and still are able to masterly execute demanding dressage lessons. The chance in the breeding process also has always surprises in store. |
||||
Basic Training of the Rider While basic training in classical dressage is considered mandatory for most but not for all riding horses ( e.g. western horses), it is an indispensable requirement for every rider, in order to be able to support the horse with proper aids. This applies for every riding style and every purpose of use. The problem of a correct seat with respect to the centre of gravity and a balanced seat is the same in every riding style. The elderly rider who enjoys a stroll in the forest on his “gentleman” horse may be happy with a lesser degree of collection than the professional competitor who aims for top performances in the dressage arena. Also Western- and gaited horse riders gain experience and expertise to the benefit of their horses if they have had conventional dressage training. The horse reflects the rider’s understanding of riding. The horse’s behaviour and its reactions to the aids tell the observer whether it has been treated properly and horse-appropriately or if it refuses willing cooperation and shows opposition and resignation instead because of rude mistreatment and overcharge. To achieve the desired „happiness on horseback“ the rider has to commit himself to thank his horse by at least treating it properly and sympathetically, and by applying his aids skilfully and sensitively. |
||||
|
|
||||
|
The
following books by the author further explain the principles of
classic equestrian dressage: |
||||
|
|
|
|||
|
|
||||
|
|
|
|||
© Gerhard Kapitzke (copyright for text and photos) |
||||
