Conference noted::equitation

    Tina,
    
    The question that comes to my mind first is:  do you really "need"
    to lunge this horse?  Horses just like people are sometimes forced
    to do things they really hate, and become sour doing them.  Is he
    that hot at 25 that you feel you need to lunge him before you ride?
    I have found that trying to force a horse to do something he is
    truly unhappy doing will only make him harder to work with.  Try
    streching him out by hand walking him in small circles and pulling
    his head right around to his side to strech his muscles, which is
    what I do with my 5 year old because I don't want to sour him to
    the lunge line.  
    
    Good luck,
    
    Linda
    
    

    Re .1
    
    No, I don't need to lunge him prior to riding because he is really
    sweet to ride. My reason for lunging him is that He only gets ridden
    once a week and I want him to keep his muscle tone. Where he's older,
    the more in shape he is, the healthier he will be. (Sort of like
    an apple a day...). 
        I really don't want him turning into a porker. That's when you
    come into trouble when they're overweight, underdeveloped, and that
    age.
    
    Tina
    

    	Our trainer taught our colt to lunge by ground driving him with
    long lines. WHen the colt tried to turn toward him, the trainer
    used the off line to hold him in position. Maybe this would help.
    
    	George
    

    Tina,
    
    Does the horse have a place for turnout?  We have a 25 year old
    standardbred at our barn that never gets ridden, is left in the
    pasture all summer, and in a small turnout area during the winter,
    and the horse doesn't look a day over 15.  Its really amazing how
    a horse will keep itself in shape if it has a good sized area in
    which to move on its own.  Try cutting back on his food to keep
    him healthy, but not too skinny.
    
    Linda
    
    

    
    Tack him up for long reining, with two lunge line, and standing
    behind him ask him to go forward.  When he is used to this, stand
    further back from him and try large circles.  You will eventually
    end up standing in the correct position for lunging with the outside
    rein running above his hocks, this rein will enable you to hold
    him out onto the circle.  After a while you can get rid of the outside
    rein.  
    
    Using the two reins you can go from lunging on the right rein,
    straighten him out to long rein and back onto the circle on left
    rein without having to stop.
                
    Mike.

    
    How long to you lunge him? Just a hand walk up and down some small
    hills for fifteen or twenty minutes would do just as well don't
    you think? If he's only working once a week you don't want him too
    fit. Of course this means that you walk fifteen or twenty minutes
    too. (Good for your legs my mother would say) 
    
    Nancy
    
    ps - I mean WALK not stroll
    

    Why not try bareback?  After weeks of arguing with my two older
    horses about how we were going about this lunging business,  I decided
    that bareback might be the answer.  This seems to help everybody!!
    The horses get about 15 to 20 minutes exercise and I certainly get
    an equal amount.  Lots cooler for everybody during all this heat!!
    
    Good luck with whatever you decide to do.
    
    Betsy
    
    

	Well folks, my mare Crunchie (she of sesamoiditous 
	fame - see note 1581.10 ) has is now being treated by a
	homoeopathic vet over here in the UK.  (If folks
	are interested in details of this type of treatment
	I'll enter a seperate note).

	As part of her treatment, he's requested that I start
	working her 10 - 15mins on the lunge each day.
	Crunch being someone who's seen the world, knows
	how to literally run rings round me, particularly if we 
	just lunge, with no variety.  Unfortunately I don't have
	any poles at my displosal, so any work along those
	lines is impossible.

	Has anyone any ideas on how to break the monotany,
	keep Crunch interested, yet prevent her from playing 
	every trick in the book on me.

	Judy
    

    
    
    Have you tried adding upward/downward transitions to the work?  The 
    transitions will keep her thinking and will help her develope balance
    and muscles that she will need to start her under saddle work again.
    
    Keep the transitions random, both in gait and the place that you ask
    for them on the circle.  Get more and more demanding that she do them
    as soon as you ask for them to help develope her obedience to voice and 
    physical (whip and lunge line) cues.  I have a mare that developes an
    attitude problem every so often and to cure it I put her on the lunge
    line and we school transitions until she mellows out again.  
    
    You might also want to add side reins to help reach for the bit and
    come forward when you lunge.
    
    Pat    

long-lining! 

wonderful training, more interesting for the horse, and gets you *both*
some exercise. i suspect there are descriptions elsewhere.

-cjs-

    I second the suggestion for long-lining! With a bridle and a 25' set of
    reins you can do circles, figure eights, obstacle courses weaving
    around road cones, discarded tires(tyres in the UK?) or even hay
    bales. With long-lines, you could go large around the entire arena,
    changing directions, do circles, turns, serpentines, half circle and
    reverse, just about any pattern you can do under saddle. If you have 
    access to cavaletti, you could also add a section of them off the track
    and go over them occassionally for additional variety.
    
    John