Running Reins/Draw Reins and other gadgets

I know I shouldn’t be surprised!

We need to be more horse-focused! Prioritising the horse’s welfare above our own goals and desires!

Last week I was out on two separate occasions at two different local arenas working with clients and their horses.

I know I’m naive thinking that riders don't use running reins/draw reins any more, however, I was a little shocked that in the space of one week, I saw 2 different riders using this piece of equipment, which if fitted or used incorrectly can be detrimental to the horse, as well as being completely unnecessary when a correct training programme is followed.

Sadly, what didn’t surprise me was that the horse being ridden on the flat using draw reins was on the forehand. The other horse was being jumped in draw reins, making it impossible for the horse to use its neck and back biomechanical correctly to get a good shape/bascule over the jump. This horse would have had to come up with a compensatory pattern to help it get over the jumps, needless to say, the horse started taking rails.

I’m doubtful that for either of these horses, the purpose of why these riders were using running reins/draw reins was actually being achieved.

Professional Body Workers and Coaches if you are advising your clients to use running reins, if you have the horse’s best interest at heart, it would be time well spent making sure that your client knows how to fit and ride their horse in running reins or any other gadget you are asking them to use.

Ensure that your client has a good understanding of the purpose and desired outcome of using the running reins. Make sure they know what they are aiming to achieve. Assist them in recognising whether or not they are using the gadget correctly.

It would be hugely beneficial, not only for your client but definitely for the welfare of the horse if you were to watch your clients ride using these gadgets to make sure they completely understand how and when to use them. How often to use the gadget and for how long?

If your client doesn’t think they are using the gadget correctly, ask them to send you a video giving you the opportunity to advise them. Horses are excellent at creating compensatory movement patterns to avoid discomfort, your client could unintentionally be creating the next problem!

Riders, if your body worker or your coach recommends you use running reins or another gadget on your horse, make sure you fully understand how to use them and why.

Ensure for the welfare of your horse and longevity of your horse that you know what to look for when you are using them correctly and what to be aware of if you aren’t. How long should you use them for, and how do you help your horse adjust to this gadget, if you don’t your next problem is on the horizon, horses are extremely brilliant at developing compensatory movement patterns to avoid discomfort. Do your own research! You will be the one with the unsound horse if something goes wrong.

There are no quick fixes! The research is out there! Gadgets are not the answer. Horses are not designed to be ridden it is our responsibility to ensure that we have strengthened and prepared them correctly to carry a rider. To carry a rider your horse needs to learn how to engage its thoracic sling of muscles and engage it’s core and hind quarters.

If you are using running reins for control or to teach the horse to give to rein pressure or give the horse an idea about how they should feel contact and suppleness this is probably not addressing the underlying reason, there is a gap in the horse’s foundation training which needs to be resolved, possibly an unravelling of an old pattern and a building up of a new pattern. In the long term, this will have huge benefits for your horse.

The above is only skimming the surface of a much deeper conversation. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve used gadgets in the past thinking it would help me achieve a desired outcome/outline of my horses but that was at least 15 years ago. As a continuous student of the horse and always trying to improve my understanding of how horses move and think, I know differently now and therefore train and ride differently. Whilst the above is just my opinion it is supported by research, my own personal experience and observations as a rider and coach with more than 30 years of experience.

If you’ve found value in my rambling today, feel free to leave me a message and maybe contribute to my next coffee.