This clip is in slow motion to give the viewer a sense of the close, intimate work that is being done. My goal at this point is to relieve some of the tension that the horse holds in his neck and through the poll. You can see how the way I ask him to yield his shoulder, requires/ allows him to lower his head and move from the hindquarter through the back and into the step. The Freisian can only relax to a certain point– too many years of bracing have created difficult muscle memory for him to overcome, but overall the movement is becoming more relaxed and grounded.
I aks for yielding of the hindquarter also, and then we walk on. He begins to walk with me with a sense of contentment as the head becomes increasingly lowered as he relaxes into his stride. The horse is becoming grounded and is developing a sense of self in relationship to me and the work we are sharing. This simple, grounded, and contented movement, points to a happier future for this Freisian.
Unfortunately, when he gets to the rail, his head rises up, and he lapses back into old habits. Since he is no longer sensitive to my subtle cues, I fuss with the rope — but he doesn’t wait for me to use it before he moves off the rail an onward.
The Horses at Alderlore Present 