Lots of people have asked me what it looks and feels like when a dressage horse is on the bit. They want to know not only what to look for, but also tips that will help them recognize success when they achieve it?
When your horse is on the bit, here’s what he’ll look and feel like:
- He feels like he’s one unit rather than a jumble of “disconnected parts”.
- He’s more comfortable to sit on because his back is relaxed.
- In trot and canter, he feels like a beach ball bouncing along.
His back (behind the saddle) is up and swinging rather than dropped and tense. - From the saddle his neck is widest at the base (just in front of the withers) and becomes progressively narrower as you get closer to his ears.
- From the side, his neck looks longish and relatively low rather than up in the air and short.
And, just as importantly, when he’s on the bit, your dressage horse will feel like he can do anything within the next step. For example, he can immediately go from trot to canter. Or he can immediately go from working canter into a canter lengthening.
