Turn the Spin Cycle on!

Posted at October 30, 2009 // Clicker Training

Minnow spins around an end pole during competition

Minnow and I during our very last competition as a pair.

So one of the most important skills that a mounted games pony can have is to be able to spin. Not just any spin. A sit on your hind end, light to the touch, high speed spin! Easier said than done, right?

I’ve had the goal of teaching Boomerang an amazing spin from the beginning. I dream of having a pony that my competitors watch and think – thats the pony I wish I had – he’s got it all, looks, personality, speed, agility….sounds like I’m talking about the ideal man! haha.

So here is my plan of attack to teach an amazing spin to my 6 year old Chincteague Pony, Boomerang.

Step one: Teach him to back up

Step two: Teach him to use a specific leg first when backing up

Step three: Teach him to move away from leg pressure

Step four: Teach him to put his weight on his hind end

Step five: Get him to spin with weight on hind end and continually cross his outside front leg over the inside leg when doing so

Step six: Add speed to the spin

Step seven: Polish the spin by using it in competition

Minnow rocked back on his hind end to complete a spin

Minnow spins around a bucket

Might seem like a tall order, but I can tell you right now that I’m on step 5/6. So now I’ll break it down and discuss how I taught Boomer during each step. Spinning can be a great skill for any horse to learn. Its not just for the speed horses or the western riders – any discipline can take advantage of a nice spin!

Step one: Teach him to back up. I taught Boomer to back up by walking him up to a fence, putting all my weight back and shifting my legs forward. I then applied light rein pressure until I felt his body shift or a leg move, anything that indicated he had the right idea. As soon as he gave me something I would then click and reward him. As he progressed I would ask for a little more each time – until he would back up with just a shift of my seat, some light rein pressure and the verbal cue back.

Step two: Teach him to use a specific leg first when backing up. I accomplished this by asking him to back up just like in step one, but this time using one rein at a time to signify which leg I wanted him to back up with first. Its easiest to do this drill by starting off by asking him to move his leading foot back first. So if Boomer was standing with his right front foot slightly forward I would pull on my right rein and ask him to back up – then the left – then the right – alternating rein pressure. Then clicking and rewarding when he responded to each rein cue. This step is important because I don’t just want a spin, I want a controllable spin. I want to be able to control each of my horse’s legs.

Step three: Teach him to move away from leg pressure. Next I ask Boomer to back up and during the back up I apply my left heel (toe pointing out) right at his girth (this is assuming I want him to turn right). I apply heel pressure and open up my right rein. My left rein is used to try to keep him straight (this exercise is best done along a fence). Any movement on Boomer’s part to go towards my open rein gets a click and a reward.

A western horse performs a spin

Step four: Teach him to put his weight on his hind end. At this point Boomer is successfully spinning away from leg pressure and towards an open hand. But now I want him to only spin with his weight on his hind end. So we go through our step 3 drill again but this time he only gets clicked and rewarded when all of his weight is on his hind end. At any point when my horse gets “stuck” or won’t move its usually because he’s too much on his front end, meaning he will need to be backed up and asked to move away from leg pressure again.

Step five: Get him to spin with weight on hind end and continually cross his outside front leg over the inside leg when doing so. Now I not only want him to spin on his hind end, but I want him to cross his outside front leg over his inside leg each time. In doing this I ensure a more fluid turn – without him getting stuck on his front end instead of using his hind. I accomplish this by asking him to back up and spin away from my leg – when he crosses the outside front over the inside front he is clicked and rewarded.

Step six: Add speed to the spin. To add speed I start with some drills. Keyholes are great for this. I ask him to go inside a box spin and return at the canter. As he progresses we ask for more and more speed – each time rewarding when I am giving the effort I expect from him.

Step seven: Polish the spin by using it in competition. The more I practice the spin in race type settings (while clicking and rewarding) the more Boomer will begin to associate his spin with turning around objects.

Here is a short video of Boomer working on the keyhole drill with me. As you can see he doesn’t actually cross his left front leg infront of his right – he sort of shuffles them. Also near the end of the spin he put a little too much weight in his front end. He got some good boys from me, but he didn’t get clicked and rewarded this specific time because he didn’t cross/spin like I wanted him to. When getting to the crossing over legs part its helpful to have someone watch you and tell you exactly when your horse crosses its legs – that or use a mirror.

Some horses have a tendency to be more on their hind end than others. Minnow was easy to teach to spin because he naturally kept his weight on his hind end. Boomer has taken a lot longer to teach to spin because he naturally wants to put all of his weight on his front end. He has improved greatly though!

Below is an awesome video of a horse doing a reining spin at liberty. Obviously taught with clicker training and I love it! Maybe someday my boy will be this good! Watch how he crosses his outside front over the inside leg.

And here is one more video of someone who used clicker training to teach the spin as well. She started by teaching her horse to spin on the ground first then transferred it to the saddle. I chose a different approach because as you saw from my post yesterday Boomer likes to bite me when I lead him – and while we are working on this, he wasn’t ready to learn to spin from the ground first. I think I’d have a swollen arm if I did that. So since we’re currently actively competing in the training division for mounted games I really needed to keep moving with my spin goal – so I opted to teach him under saddle first.

-KD
www.ponypaintings.com

I am by no means an expert in horse training. I simply use techniques that I have discovered work best for me and my horses. Use my techniques at your own risk.