Wading into water doesn’t come naturally to many horses due to the way their vision works. Their eyes are
TRAINING TIPS
Conquering water
set up high on the sides of their head, which means they have excellent long-range vision, perfect for spotting predators on the horizon. However, there is a drawback. Because the eyes are not positioned at the front of the head like ours, they struggle with depth perception. When you ask them to step
Is your horse convinced that scary monsters lurk in the murky depths? All is not lost, CHRISTINE ARMISHAW is here to throw you both a life line.
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into a puddle, they find it hard to judge whether it’s ten centimetres or a metre deep, especially if it’s muddy or murky. Regular practise will help your horse learn to trust that you are not going to ask them to jump in over their head.
ou may have noticed that there’s one spot at events where you will always see a
cluster of spectators: the water complex. Why? Because that’s where a lot of
possible when you make water training
A weekly paddle is the ideal scenario
part of your regime.
to help produce a confident and keen
Water tends to be one of the biggest challenges on the cross country course
individual when it comes to getting their feet wet.
primarily because it is something that
Getting ready
just doesn’t come up that often in daily
Always check the footing under the
not so much fun if you are a rider having
horse life. Most people don’t have
surface. Giving your horse a fright is a
trouble with your horse. Fortunately,
access to water to play around in at
sure-fire way to give them just cause
creating happy memories of cantering
home and if you fall into this category,
to distrust what they perceive to be
boldly through the splash and jumping
you have to go out and find some; the
dangerous depths. If you are not certain
bravely in and out of the depths are all
more often, the better.
what the footing is like, there is only one
drama unfolds! Fun if you’re watching,
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