RELEASING THE JAW

When a horse feels tens, he will clench his jaw. When the horse clenches his jaw, the whole body gets tense.

When the body is tense, it is unable to operate in a healthy and functional way. Period.

 

A LITTLE EXERCISE FOR YOU, HUMAN

Stand with your feet underneath your hips.

Chew a little with your mouth until your mouth relaxes.

Now bounce up and down while bending the knees.

Now, while you are doing this, clench your jaw and press your teeth together.

The difference of movement in your body is staggering, isn’t it?

It is an exercise I let all my students do for 20 years, to make them aware of this, as it is no different for the horse!

 

WITHOUT RELAXATION, NO COLLECTION!

No matter how hard you push and pull your horse into a frame, a horse cannot truly collect without a relaxed body and face, thus a horse must first be able to relax his jaw, before he can relax his body and then engage the right muscles to truly collect.

 

YOU CANNOT COLLECT A HORSE, A HORSE CAN ONLY COLLECT HIMSELF

Yes, you can entice or motivate a horse to do so, with your aids, but for true collection, a horse must want to do it and do it himself, you cannot force it off him. It will always be a caricature, false, forced… COLLECTION IS LIKE A SMILE, it comes from within and cannot be forced.

 

THE MOUTH AND JAW IS AN IMPORTANT CONNECTION TO COLLECTION

Releasing the jaw lets horses release the forehand and shoulders, engage the upper neck muscles, release the back, raise the withers and thorax and engage the abdominal muscles and hind quarters. A clenched jaw will engage the lower neck, shoulders, triceps and back, which produces the opposite of collection.

 

HOW TO HELP THE HORSE RELEASING THE JAW

Asking the horse forward (meaning active hind legs stepping under the body, not speed!) onto an elastic soft contact on the bit is usually enough, IF and WHEN:

- The horse trusts your hands, not to pull

- The noseband is so loose the horse can move the jaws and chew

What you can also do:

- Ask for a little Stellung

- Ask for shoulder in, in walk

 

When bitless, Stellung and laterals will be of more service for your horse to release his jaw. It might be harder to feel, but when a horse releases his jaw, the ears become floppy and flow with the movement and the back becomes ‘soft’ and swingy. I find the soft cavesson the most effective here.

 

Your horse should be able to eat a large carrot or bite an apple with the noseband on! If you must open the noseband for to horse to be able to eat said carrot or apple, the noseband is too tight!

 

In my book you’ll find a lot of easy exercises to help the horse releasing the jaw, neck and forehand.

 

TIGHT NOSEBANDS ARE DETRIMENTAL TO THE HORSE’S MENTAL AND PHYSICAL WELLBEING.

Quite frankly it is torture. If you were not aware, you are now, so STOP it and loosen that noseband right this second and do not ever close it tight again.

 

 

Let us talk about why riders tighten the poor horses’ nosebands

Is it because the horse would else open up his mouth and that would cost you points?

It is vital though that the horse can open his mouth and chew, lift, and move the bit with the tongue. This is not only information to you on how the horse is receiving your aids, but also vital for the horse to make it possible to relax his mouth and jaw and with that engage the proper movement and posture for collection.

 

Do you close the horse’s mouth so he cannot escape your ‘aids’?

THERE ARE NO OBJECTIONS, THERE IS ONLY INFORMATION!

If your horse ‘objects by opening his mouth’, you need to adjust your aids, NOT close the horse’s mouth! That is, of you truly care about his well-being instead of your competition results.

 

Are you an #equinist? Do you want horses to have a voice and to have a choice?

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that they should read it!

 

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Love,

Josepha

 

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