by

Susan Schoettle

                Recently Jean Luc introduced my horse, Mac, to in-hand work – Jean Luc style.  Jean Luc’s approach to in-hand work is very different from what I had seen before – where the reins are held to the side and a long whip is used to “activate” the horse’s hind legs.  Instead, Jean Luc walks alongside the horse with his hand near the withers and uses the whip to gently guide the horse into the straightness necessary for collection.  The activity comes entirely from the horse – not the whip.  I am relating some of my observations and thoughts about the initial days of Mac’s in-hand work.

My horse, Mac, a twelve-year old Danish warmblood, came to Jean Luc with a sacroiliac problem that likely had caused him pain for many years.  Mac’s reaction to his problem was to sometimes refuse to move.  Jean Luc’s training has removed the physical issues, allowing Mac to use his back properly and move freely.

One day, after I watched Jean Luc’s DVD “One Hand on His Shoulder” and expressed my amazement about the in-hand work, Jean Luc said “Let’s try it with Mac,” and so he did.  Jean Luc took the reins in his right hand at Mac’s wither and walked forward next to the shoulder.  The whip was held in the left hand behind Jean Luc to encourage Mac to move forward.  At first, Mac was confused and simply circled tightly to the left around Jean Luc.  Gradually, Mac figured out that he could go forward in a straight line.  He could have left Jean Luc at any moment, but Mac chose to stay next to Jean Luc and soon began collecting his walk, turning left, turning right.  Jean Luc then placed the whip in his right hand, with the reins, and very lightly used it to direct Mac’s hind quarters.  To my surprise, Mac easily organized his body and his movements to do some left and right shoulder-in in a very collected walk.  Mac seemed as surprised as me at what he had done.

The second day – Mac began to focus on this new puzzle.  He and Jean Luc walked in shoulder-in, in half-pass and even began the trot.  Not once did Mac think to take off.  Instead, he began to explore his physical capabilities beyond where he has gone under saddle.  Since collection is physically easy for him now, Mac began playing with very high collection.  Once, I happened to be standing behind Mac and watched while he, with guidance from Jean Luc, took his body from a medium walk to a very collected trot.  I saw his body do all the little things he does under saddle to “avoid” coming through his back – move the haunches to the right, push in with the left shoulder, etc., etc.  Then I saw him move beyond all these “resistances” and laterally straighten his spine, improve his balance by flexing longitudinally, and lift into a highly collected trot that was balanced, through, and perfectly in control.  He seemed to be enjoying what he could do with his body without worrying about his old memories and protections.  Mac not only had chosen to come through his back, but he had chosen to take himself to a level of collection that we all dream about – all this without a rider and with very little assistance from Jean Luc at his side.  Watching a horse that you are very familiar with, and who has at times been considered an “unwilling” horse, control his body and achieve a very active, balanced collected trot without any of the “assistance” that we as riders believe are essential was a complete revelation.  I have seen horses in freedom sometimes perform very collected movements at times of high excitement, but this was something very deliberate and purposeful.  Mac was using his brain to explore what he had learned under saddle without a rider.

The third day – Mac continued to explore his ability to collect at the trot.  It seemed to me that he was beginning to move differently – not just more collected but also more powerfully.  His trot gained more spring and elevation while staying in a very slow and rhythmic cadence.  To my surprise, he continued to lift the base of his neck and go higher in his collection.  Jean Luc then asked him to lift even more and not go forward --- the piaffe.  This request was made by Jean Luc placing the reins in his left hand while facing Mac’s shoulder with the whip in the right hand held above and parallel to Mac’s spine and used to lightly tap the croup for a slow trot tempo and for straightness.  Mac began to further explore controlling his balance and the force generated by his hind legs to stay with Jean Luc while keeping a trot cadence.  The piaffe had been introduced to Mac under saddle, and he had come very close to solving the problem a number of times.  However, he often approached the question by simply reducing the forward push of his hind legs rather than reorganizing his force upward.  For the first attempt in-hind, he used the same approach – he simply pushed less but continued to pick his legs up and down.  But as I watched other attempts, Mac began trying different ways to use his body.  He lifted himself and redirected what was normally a forward force into an upward force.  The piaffe suddenly was generated from Mac’s back; it was almost like the legs were just along for the ride. 

The fourth, fifth and sixth days – Jean Luc warmed Mac up with different movements at the walk and the trot and then would again pose the piaffe question to Mac.  Even thought it had seemed to me that Mac had figured it out on day three, Mac was not convinced and continued to try different ways.  Sometimes Mac lifted his hindquarters too much and pushed down on the forehand.  Other times, Mac lifted his front end too much and lost the trot cadence behind.  A few times he failed to control the force generated behind and moved forward out of the collection needed for piaffe.  Each time Mac explored a new approach, Jean Luc calmly stayed by his shoulder and allowed him to try, even when it seemed obvious to me that a particular effort was not going to work.  As Mac focused more and more on the piaffe, Jean Luc used less and less cues to the point where the whip was used only to remind Mac of the need for straightness.  Each day, Mac seemed to get one piece of the puzzle but not everything at one time.  One day, he was very through but didn’t have enough lift.  Another day, he had the lift but was not coming through.  But every day he continues to work on the puzzle and to put more of the pieces together. 

It has been and continues to be fascinating to watch Mac explore solutions and the capabilities of his body.  Suddenly, one day last week Mac demonstrated another level of his development by taking the collection higher and adding a moment of extra lift – almost like taking a breath at the apex of each stride.  The piaffe is still a work in progress, as can be expected with this very difficult movement.  But Mac has already carried the powerful spring discovered in high collection through to his under saddle work with all his gaits displaying greater throughness, power and control.