Dancing at the gate

Teaching my horse how to maneuver a gate is an exercise in patience. This is the first time I teach it from the first steps. Clearly we needed to have a solid sidepass, turn on the haunches/forehand, straight back and forward, baby steps, neck rein, and ability to stop while I lean over to grab the gate, before we could even begin.

Its taken me 3 years to get to that point. Lets just say I took the long road. 🤣

Having done this work before I now know that I must proceed very slowly, otherwise the horse starts anticipating and rushing (and the gate falls down, and all the cows run away). And since Q is sensitive with lots of try, I needed to take this even more slowly. Like molasses-dripped-on-a-brutally-cold-winter-day slow. And maybe even slower.

So I took advantage of being stuck in the arena while the trails are icy to begin practice. Two jump standards to be the posts. No gate.

Gates are a very specific dance move. The standard process with reins in your right hand and gate on the left is:

1. Stop at post, grab the gate with left hand
2. Back two steps to clear the post
3. Turn 60 degrees to the left, on the haunches
4. Walk through the gate, without letting go
5. Turn 120 degrees to the right, on the forehand
6. Sidepass left back to the post
7. Close the gate with same left hand
8. Breath a sigh of relief

The gate can be done backward or forwards, right or left hand, push or pull ... which makes for 8
variations!

But Im just looking to master the common variation (forwards, left, push) first.

So I wanted to master the basic dance moves around the posts without the complexity of the gate. And before I tackled the dance moves, I wanted to make sure we knew how to stop at the post, approach softly and quietly, and then wait for my next request without anticipating. A tall order. Q is all about anticipating. Like the overeager student raising his hand and jumping up and down “I know this. I know this. Ask meeeeeee!”

And if he made a mistake and I corrected him, he would get flustered and throw himself all over the place even sidepassing across the arena. So I went slowly. And stopped. Hung out at the post. Stopped. Backed two steps. Stopped and paused for a few minutes. Forward to circle and start again.

So tedious.

When I started adding a few steps, Q would get flustered. I returned to the basic post. Stopped and paused. So tedious.

But today was our second time and he was doing better. But it is very very slow progress. 

Q has been going well in the loose ring snaffle but would like us all to know he would prefer to be bridleless. Maybe one day.