Varying groundwork

[TacheteTreasures]

What do you guys do for groundwork?
I like to lunge, but I vary it with figure 8's, going around barrels, over barrels.
What do you do?

[HeartofSteel]

Flexing, yielding fore-quarters and hind-quarters, sidepassing, leg-yielding, backing, trotting on lead, lungeing -w/t/c and stop, yielding hind quarters on the lunge, roll-backs, square circles, leg yielding again lol, umm.. I think thats about all I can think of.

[TacheteTreasures]

I must ask...what are square circles?

[HeartofSteel]

I must ask...what are square circles?

Ha ha, I know they sound very contradicting.
Square circles, if you are lungeing the horse in a circle at every "corner" you ask them to move there hind quarters over. You want to keep the walk tempo but have them cross over in the hind and turn towards the next direction. Under saddle you can do it that same way with the hind quarters or you can do it with the forequarters to get them to sit back on the haunches and raise there front end.

[mustangluver]

KK square circles I gotta try!!
I do ground driving, lounging, free lounging with jumps, trot polls, other objects. I am sure my horse thinks I am nuts loading the RP up with *stuff*. Tell yeah she minds where she puts her feet now.
I also take her for walks, we jog one way and the way back we walk going through ditches and stuff, just showing her the WORLD out there.
I do lots of give to pressure, bending, stretching and manners, even though she knows them, I thinks he likes showing off.

I think the wildest thing I have done, bring music out crank and start dancing and signing, she was in the corner looking me like I was a freak... then I got her to play it was fun!!!!

[cowpuncher]

My groundwork routine is pretty basic......Before the first ride, I'll sack them out with my lass rope, saddle them, and longe them under saddle, and re-sack them with the lass rope. I'll get lateral and vertical flexion of the poll, they'll move with vertical flexion, they'll yield their hindquarters. Then I get on them. Usually takes about forty-five minutes to get the first ride.

That's my warm-up for the first ten or twelve rides as well, and takes maybe five pr ten minutes to work through daily.

After that, I just get on. I ask for lateral and vertical flexion both static and with impulsion, and then I start working them on my menage training.

I don't do a lot of groundwork. I know it has a lot of value for a lot of people, but I find it used to often as an excuse to not get on the horse.

My motto on that subject is: "Noone ever broke a horse to ride by not riding it."

I VERY seldom have to make a bronc ride anymore, and I can teach all the other menage maneuvers from the saddle anyway.

[Annasmom]

well right now im on level 2 parelli
so I follow the patterns there really awesome
you've got

touch it
weave
figure 8

ect.. and they work all parts of your horse.

also me and my trainer are working on sideways on the ground so it will be more solid under saddle

[gaited07]

Flexing,giving to pressure, yielding fore-quarters and hind-quarters, sidepassing, leg-yielding, backing, trotting on lead, lungeing -w/t/c and whoa, yielding hind quarters on the lunge, roll-backs.