 |
Re: [RC] re: running martingale - Elizabeth WalkerTo expand on the earlier replies:"A properly adjusted martingale" ... I agree it should be adjusted so as not to interfere with the line between the hand and the mouth. Some additional info on adjusting it: I got this from John McLaughlin in a riding clinic. He firmly believes in martingales, and rides all his horses in one, whether they are just being put under saddle, or have years of experience. I don't remember his reasons, though, so I won't try to put words in his mouth. I do know that when I put the martingale on Caisson the last day of the clinic, he did a lot better. His head carriage was lower, less tense, and less fidgety. His steps in how to adjust one: a) with the martingale attached to the girth or the breastcollar, standing in front of the horse, hold it by the rings and pull **straight** up. b) adjust the length so that the rings are between the top of the shoulder blade and the top of the withers. If the rings are too high (above the withers), it is ineffective. If it is too low (below the top of the shoulder) then it will pull on the bars of the mouth and make things worse. As for whether they work or not, well, "it depends" on what you are using them for. :) I never used one on my old horse, Shadow, who I raised from birth, broke and trained. I never needed one and he never wore one. However, Caisson came with a confirmed head-tossing problem. He is just fine as long as you are doing what he wants to do. If he has other ideas, though (like blasting through a ride at 25 miles an hour) he will start the head-tossing as soon as you even *think* about using the reins. This isn't a reaction to the bit -- he will toss his head if the restriction is coming from a hackamore or halter as well. It is the command to "slow down" that he is resisting. :) I put the martingale on him after our first 25 mile completion. We finished, but I wasn't going through another 25 miles of constant head- tossing, some of which came pretty close to my nose. Did it fix the problem? Answer: only when he is wearing it. :) However, given the depth of the habit, I doubt any amount of retraining will fully break him of it. On normal trail rides (riding alone), I don't use it because I just don't like the feel of the reins with a martingale. In situations where I think he will have an emotional meltdown, it goes on. On Sep 1, 2009, at 5:18 PM, Mary Krauss wrote: .... 2) a concern that the martingale was causing the thin snaffle to pull down on the bars instead of more benignly on the corners of his mouth. I wondered if removing the martingale would have let the gelding relax about the bit. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
|