GERMAN rider, author and equine veterinary surgeon, Dr Gerd Heuschmann, a lifelong advocate of classical training methods, provided an insight into correct training, particularly with young horses, and also the crucial foundation of a good seat in riding.

The first two years of the horse’s experience under saddle are the most vital in his vast experience of riding over 12,000 horses. “The younger the horse, the more careful you have to be,” he informed the rapt audience at Cavan Equestrian.

Born on a farm and having grown up with horses, Dr Heuschmann explained that his mission in life now is to share as much knowledge of classical training to try to prevent damage being done by poor riding and harmful training to horses.

In 2006, he published his first book Tug of War which highlights the damaging effect of poor riding and training on horses and this was followed in 2012 by his second book, The Balancing Act, which focuses on training techniques.

Citing the Classical Riding Philosophy, Dr Heuschmann said: “If you are tense on the horse, you have no chance of being supple. You will get a running horse or a stiff lazy horse that does not want to go anywhere. You will get a crooked horse. Don’t bend (the horse) in the first year with a young horse. There is a lot of misunderstanding. The dressage culture, we have almost lost it – it is only a little bit in the competition world. I’m not sure if you can bring competition dressage and classical dressage together. The babies (young horses) should get the best start.”

He added: “If you are a supple rider, you get things done. This is the foundation – the seat. It is everything. Good riding is a question of philosophy/culture. It is not a question of breed or discipline. You work on your seat every day for all of your life. What does it mean? It is not just hands up, heels down. You must be supple, relaxed, friendly, self-confident. If you are arrogant, or a person who is shy and tries to hide, your seat is the mirror of your character. It is impossible to ride if you are trying to show other people how good you are.

“It is very hard to be a young master. Only an old master; it takes years and years and years. As soon as you hang on the reins, you are done (finished). You cannot turn a wheel by working on the horse’s mouth. Get a solid contact.

“A good seat is a character, it is a development. If you are sad, tired, angry, any unbalanced emotions – you hang on the reins, it does not make sense. You must be comfortable, stable, resting inside – benevolent cosiness. If you are a stressed, tense person, ride a bicycle,” advised Dr Heuschmann.

Military rulebook

Dr Heuschmann touched on the HDV12, a military rulebook dating from 1912, drawn up by officers in the German Cavalry with later influence from the Swedes, Italians, French and British. “They collected the knowledge and they made a rulebook which is HDV12. It is based on Steinbrecht’s Gymnasium of the Horse and it is very much the rulebook today in any sport horse federation of the world.’’

Looking at the horizontal balance of the riding horse Dr Heuschmann illustrated how he starts at the poll and assesses the poll, neck, back, loin and croup. He looks at the thoracic and lumbar spine, describing these as the “carrying parts of the bridge” with the legs as the pillars. He took the audience through the importance of the withers, the nuchal ligament or the withers’ cap, outlining how the length and position of the neck has an influence on the horse’s back.

“It is simple and clear. It is the line to the development of the horse’s back. If you have the horse’s back, you have the horse. We have the top line starting at the poll and ending in the hamstrings’ area, connected to the high part of the stifle. The poll is very important as the two muscle systems come together there and you can influence the poll area by having a supple seat.”

Describing the hindquarters as an ‘energy plant’, Dr Heuschmann likened the horse’s back to a water hose and the rider’s hands as ‘waiting for the water’. “If you don’t get it (the water/energry flow), we have it against or behind the rider’s hand and not to the rider’s hand. We start our babies wrongly. We need a horse to gallop forward. He cannot do this if he is stiff.

“Dressage means full control of the horse outside of cross-country with soft aids everywhere. A dressage horse should be able to jump a ditch or a small fence. It should always be a riding horse first.”

Backmover versus leg mover

The important influence of a closed or open ribcage in a ridden horse was explained with Dr Heuschmann describing horses as either falling into the category of a backmover (desirable) or a leg mover (not desirable). The leg mover is the horse with a closed ribcage, the water [energy] is not flowing anymore, he drags the hind leg. The backmover has the open water hose, the energy is flowing. The horse swings through the back and the rider is part of it, you swing with him and the legs step underneath him,” he explained using diagrams.

In the backmover, the arch between the cervical spine and the thoracic spine is open and raised. The trunk is raised between the horse’s shoulder blades, this can elevate to four fingers when the rib cage comes up through the shoulder blades. This elevation is key – described as self-carriage or horizontal balance.

“So in the front, the horse gives a rounded, apple-feel and shape (open ribcage). You don’t want a pear shape (closed ribcage). We need this for the horse to bend. Bending is not hanging on the rein and pulling the horse inside. We bend with our legs and not the inside rein. If you pull on the inside rein, you increase the crookedness, you end up with bridle lameness, you run into all the problems. Never flex a horse’s poll with your hands. You ruin the horse, you will end up with a stiff ruined horse,” cautioned Dr Heuschmann.

The backmover’s chest is hanging freely, it is up and free to move and rotate. The horse is in self-carriage or in balance.

When riding a young horse, Dr Heuschmann said that he ‘wants it to let go in the neck’. The neck has to fall in front of the withers. “If you sit like a sack of stones and pull on the horse, he has no choice but to brace.”

The correct contact was summarised as having a rhythmic forward impulsion in trot with the neck falling in front of the withers.