In it’s most fundamental of meanings, impulsion is when go equals whoa. In other words, your horse stops and starts equally well. In Level One, we introduced the ‘Follow the Rail’ programme. One of the tasks for this programme, was to practise transitions until you could make upward and downward transitions with no more than phase two. This was your first step toward impulsion and a step of paramount importance to your success in Level Two and beyond.
Impulsion is controlled forward energy coming from the hindquarter. In other words, the hindquarter is soft and yielding, not locking against you in preparation for flight or fight. Many of you would already be able to see the more obvious benefits and necessities of having impulsion; for example a horse that does not run off with you. Other benefits will become more apparent as you progress through the higher levels, in particular the contact riding sections of Level Three.
On a scale of 1 – 10, a horse with true impulsion would rate about a 5. A horse deemed to be short, i.e. one that would rather go nowhere than somewhere, would be on the scale from 0 – 4; lacking impulsion. A horse deemed long is one that is easy to get going but is hard to stop. This horse would rate from 6 – 10; impulsive. An extremely short horse that has no go, or no forward, is one that would go up - in other words buck - rather than go forward. On the other end of the scale is the horse that bolts or shies and won’t stop, regardless of what bit you put in his mouth. Some horses are innately long or short; some have simply learned the behaviour from a previous experience of finding comfort or release. It is our task, regardless of at which end of the scale we start, to get both ourselves and our horses, to the middle ground - rate a 5. In the Quantum Savvy programme, we do this via our homework cards and the impulsion programmes introduced in the Lesson Packs.
Some horses are bred to be long, medium or short, depending on what type of job or purpose they were bred for. Listed below are a few examples.
| LONG | MEDIUM | SHORT |
| Horses bred to go for long periods | Most horses bred to work, especially cow horses | |
| |
| |
| Arab | Quarter Horses | Most pony breeds |
| Thoroughbred | Stock Horses | Appaloosas |
| Walking Horses | Andalusians | Most Draft Horses |
| Gaited Horses | |
Not all long horses run, they may just need to go for long distances, like a Walking Horse covering a lot of ground checking crops, or a Clydesdale trotting all day pulling a cart. Horses that need to get up and go quickly then stop and relax, are ideal for working cattle and are right in the middle at 5.
This then, is the goal of all horsemen, to achieve this sometimes elusive 5; where moving together with your horse is effortless ... turns, yields and stops are light and responsive, on a horse that is calm, cool and collected – mentally and emotionally ... this last being the true key to impulsion.
Naturally, a great majority of the time that horses run is when they are either running away from something or playing. Keep in mind, that to many animals, play is preparation for survival. Watch your horse in the paddock with his mates when they all get going. Where is his head? What kind of expression does he have? Does he seem alert and watchful or dull and switched off? Which side of his brain do you think he is using?
Think back to Level One when we discussed the Flight Response. When a horse feels the need to flee, his head comes up, adrenalin kicks in and he’s off, trying to put distance between himself and the danger as quickly as possible. Straight lines are the quickest way to do this. When he is done running, he will slow down and turn, disengaging his hindquarter and thinking with his left-brain, effectively calming down. It’s important to note then, that straight lines that engage the hindquarter will lengthen a horse; circles and patterns that disengage will shorten a horse.
True impulsion comes from both horse and human being emotionally fit and confident. Some horses, or humans, will be fine at the walk, even the trot however, as soon as the speed picks up, that little right-brain metre starts to kick in again and the emotions and impulsion go out the window.
Through the impulsion programmes introduced in this portion of the *QS programme, you will learn how to gain impulsion at all gaits, right through to the gallop. It is important that you follow the programmes closely, do all of your homework and work on your own emotional fitness. Remember, if you expect your horse to try, to put in effort and to overcome his fears, the same applies to you. Do you have impulsion problems? Do you need to work on your own emotional or mental fitness?
*see Quantum Savvy Lesson Packs for more information.
Read More Road To Horsemanship articles.
- By Meredith Ransley, Quantum Savvy.