SOME WORK ON FOOT—THE SUPPLING

It has been said that the term "suppling" indicates the vanquishing of all the resistance offered by the horse, whether voluntary or involuntary. The control which this gives over the actions of the animal is produced by cultivating its instinctive yieldings to the application of the bit and spur until obedience becomes a natural impulse and the animal does not dream of opposition. The lessons are given in such a manner that there are no struggles against restraint, no fears are caused, and there are no punishments to arouse animosity. Indeed, any rough treatment will defeat the object of the trainer, who requires nothing more than patience to insure his success.

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For example, when the bit comes against the horse's mouth, the first impulse is to avoid the pressure and to yield the jaw; the second impulse is to resist the confinement. By the cultivation of the first instinctive yielding of the jaws the trainer obtains absolute control over the mouth of the horse, and by successive exercises, properly arranged, over the whole of those parts in front of the saddle. In like manner, when the leg or heel of the rider is applied to the flank of the horse, its first impulse is to move forward the hind leg of the side attacked, and bend the croup over to the other side; the second impulse will be to come against the leg or heel in resistance. By cultivating the first impulse on the application of the spur the rider obtains control over all those parts of the horse behind the saddle. So, between hand and heels, the man may obtain perfect, because instinctive, obedience from the trained animal. Beyond keeping on friendly terms with the horse, and the avoidance of everything that would start its fears, no trust is to be placed in the animal's voluntary dutifulness, for what is desired may be demanded, and the good-will of a horse is a very slender reed upon which to lean. My horses know my footsteps, and show recognition of my voice, but I have never permitted their blandishments to lead me to trust one of them beyond control without finding cause for regrets sooner or later.

Much of the work in suppling the horse can be done far more quickly with the trainer on foot than from the saddle. Indeed, almost all the education of a riding-horse might be carried on without the trainer mounting at all, and that very expeditiously; the finishing lessons under the saddle would be required to transfer the indications of the whip to the rider's heels. The handling that would be given by the trainer on foot would prepare the horse for anything that might follow, and I have always found that the longer the horse was worked in hand, the better were the results. That is, if the horse be longed carefully; be driven before the trainer in a long pair of reins attached to a snaffle-bridle; be taught to yield the jaw, the head, and the neck to the bits; and be made to bend the croup and to bring the hind legs under the body at the application of the whip, there will be very little left to do when the man mounts.

I shall now describe the least amount of work that the trainer should perform on foot, as few men will have the patience to carry the system farther; but as the principles are always the same any one who desires to try the experiment may readily carry on the training in hand to its utmost limit.

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When the young horse—or any horse, for that matter—is going well in the snaffle-bridle, the animal should be given daily lessons in the double bridle (curb and snaffle) in the following manner: the curb-chain being removed for the early lessons, the trainer should stand at the head of the horse on the right, or off, side, and take the right snaffle-rein in his right hand, while the left hand grasps the two curb-reins at equal lengths under the chin of the horse a few inches from the bit. Then, extending his right arm away from the nose of the horse and drawing the curb-reins toward the chest of the animal, he will, with just so much force as is necessary, induce the horse to open the mouth and relax the lower jaw, the head being held up by the snaffle-rein. As soon as this is accomplished the tensions upon the reins should be released and the horse rewarded by caresses. The snaffle must keep the head of the horse at the proper height, for the tendency of the curb is to depress the head, and the face of the horse should be kept about vertical to the ground, certainly not any nearer the chest. From time to time the trainer will release the tension upon the snaffle-rein and draw the curb-reins, as before, in gentle vibrations toward the neck of the horse to test the progress of his work. When the horse curls the upper lip, and the reins always find nothing more than a light, elastic feeling upon the lower jaw, the crest being curved and the face held perpendicularly to the ground, the man will know that the object of his work has been accomplished, and it remains for him to maintain this condition by constant practice until it becomes habitual. If at any time the jaw becomes rigid, or there is any resistance, a return should be made to the exercises with the two bits, as in the beginning. It is a rule observed by all trainers that when a horse does not perform perfectly that which is desired, to "go back to number one," the first lesson.

The same work should be done with the trainer standing on the left side of the horse, when his left hand will hold the left snaffle-rein, his right the curb-reins. These exercises, and those which follow, should be given at least once every day, twice or thrice will be better, and each exercise should be followed no longer than for five minutes, so that the horse may not be fatigued or annoyed by the monotony.

Standing at the head of the horse, on the right side, the trainer should take a rein of the curb-bit in each hand, near the branches, and turning the bit in the mouth of the horse, right branch forward, bend the animal's head toward the left; at first making a slight turn only, and by steps increasing the bend until the face of the horse looks to the rear. As soon as the head of the horse is bent sufficiently to satisfy the trainer, he should take equal tensions upon the bit, straighten it in the mouth of the horse, and by gentle vibrations induce the horse to yield the lower jaw so that the reins shall find no more than an elastic feeling upon that part as the face is turned to the rear. The horse must never be allowed to bring its head straight after this bend has been demanded, but the trainer should quietly bring it back into the normal position by means of the reins. In a similar manner the head of the horse should be bent to the right, the trainer standing at the head of the horse on the left side. After the horse has been habituated to bend the head by means of the curb-bit to the right and to the left, its face perpendicular to the ground and its jaw pliant, it will be made to do the same by the snaffle, the reins of that bit held as were those of the curb-bit.

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These lessons, in addition to those recommended in Chapter II., will give the man complete control over the forehand of the horse, making the mouth light and compliant, and developing and suppling the muscles of the neck greatly to the improvement of the horse in grace and in appearance.

Two very simple exercises will give control of the hind quarters, when the completion of the education of the horse will be a mere matter of repetition and riding, as the discipline necessary for demanding instant and exact obedience will have been put in train.

To make the horse carry its hind legs under the body, the man should stand on its left side facing the saddle; then, taking the snaffle-reins held under the chin of the horse at equal lengths in his left hand, he should give some light taps of a slender whip upon the animal's croup, preventing a forward movement by a tension upon the snaffle-reins. At first the trainer should be satisfied when the horse brings its hind feet forward a few inches, but in time the animal should by gradual steps be induced to carry its hind legs so far under the mass that the four feet might stand upon a handkerchief. To transfer the indications of the whip to the heels, the rider should mount, and, as he taps the horse on the rump with the whip held behind his back, he should apply his heels to the animal's sides until the hind legs are carried forward sufficiently to satisfy his demands, while a forward movement is prohibited by a tension upon the snaffle-reins held in the left hand. Gradually the employment of the whip should cease and the horse be made to carry the hind legs under the mass to any extent by the pressure of the rider's heels. After the horse has carried its hind legs under the mass, the man should release the tension upon the reins, and by permitting the forehand to advance, let the animal take a natural position.

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To make the horse carry the croup around the forehand, the trainer should stand at the left side of the horse, facing the saddle, with his left hand he should take a grasp of the snaffle-reins under the chin of the horse and bend the head slightly away from him, and with the whip he should give a light tap or taps on the side of the horse just behind the girth. When the horse makes one step with the croup away from the man, the forehand held in place by the snaffle-reins, the whip taps should cease, and the horse be rewarded by caresses. Another step from the croup will then be demanded, and step by step the croup will be carried to the right completely about the stationary forehand, the left fore leg acting as the pivot, the right fore leg being brought forward to conform to the movement by light taps of the whip, the head of the horse bent toward the advancing croup. The horse must not be permitted to volunteer a step, but every step should be made on the demand of the trainer.

In the same manner the horse should be made to carry the croup to the left about the right fore leg as the pivot, the trainer holding the snaffle-reins in the right hand, the whip in the left, and standing on the right side of the horse.

It will be well for the rider to mount the horse in place, at this stage, and to conduct the suppling and bending exercises just described, from the saddle. That is, from the saddle he should bend the head of the horse to either hand, first with the curb-bit and then with the snaffle-bit, bringing the head back to the normal position by means of the reins; he should elevate the head, and then by dropping the hand and playing with the reins bring the face of the horse vertical to the ground, with the jaw pliant in answer to either bit; he should induce the horse to carry the croup about the forehand to either side at the application of his heel, enforced, if necessary, by the whip held behind the rider's back, the outer fore leg acting as pivot; and, finally and frequently between the pressure of his legs and gentle vibrations of the reins, he should unite and balance the forces of the horse so that by the working of the muscles under him, as the horse arranges the bearers, he may know that the animal is ready to move in hand.