SHOULDER-IN - RIGHT vs LEFT

The challenge to all horsemen through the ages has been to create a horse that can move equally well on both sides of their body.

When we feel the resistance to bend, it is natural for riders to introduce shoulder-in, or even just a hint of shoulder in (shoulder fore), to help them find bend.

Shoulder-in is a good exercise to help with this, but the way we ride it could make all the difference.

While shoulder-in can be easy on the side that the horse finds easy to bend, the shoulder-in can have the opposite effect on the “stiff” side (the side the horse leans on), if we are not careful. Using a rein that brings the energy back, only contracts the shoulder more - the horse's body stays straight and stiff and the exercise has no gymnastic value.

We need the shoulder not to block the base of the neck and we need the neck to lengthen properly before we will find that the shoulder-in on the "stiff" rein has the ease, grace and bend that we seem to find so easily on the "soft" rein.

On the side your horse bends easily, ride the shoulder-in “straighter” and on the side your horse finds it difficult to bend, ride the shoulder-in with more bend in order to help even out his natural asymmetry.