Why Do Horses Hyperflex?
When you see a horse in a hyperflexed position or under the vertical , in either a photo or in real life there could be a few reasons why the horse is in such position and its important not only to notice it, but to understand it and get curious about it. These are the main six reasons for which it happens: 1. The horse is afraid of the contact with the bit and closes his head in to avoid it. Note in this case the rider’s hands are not necessarily related and it can occur even with the lightest contact, it however can and usually is caused by another rider’s previous harsh use of his hands.
In the photo below, although there is some tension on the snaffle rein, the curb is almost parallel to the head indicating little or no tension and that is confirmed by the looseness in the rein.
2. The rider’s hands are too strong and are causing pain which the horse is trying to escape by either raising the head and inverting the neck or tucking it inwards towards his chest. This coping mechanism with time becomes more and more established and affects the horse's strides, movement, muscle development and emotional stability. A common effect of this is an open mouth and contracted neck, evidently shown in the photo below.
3. The rider considers it a good training technique to develop muscles and movements. A common example is trying to 'lift' the horse's back, this however is an illusion because the act of lifting the back is achieved by the horse contracting his lower contraction system which is mainly its abdominal muscles, and the upper contraction system.
Curling his head in, only pulls the most likely tense back muscles, again, giving the illusion of a raised back. In the vast majority of cases this is obtained with the use of force and pressuring the horse in this very unnatural frame. This is also connected to Point #3 as the horse is still often trying to escape the applied pressure in its mouth.
4. The horse has been trained (voluntarily or involuntarily) to maintain this position and positions his head this way as a habit. Also after some time the muscles would develop in such a way that it becomes easy for the horse to maintain the posture. Here again a rider could have very gentle hands but the horse expects that position to be the one requested and has to be corrected constantly or it will revert back to it. This is the same mechanism as when a horse has been always ridden with an inverted neck, it takes some practice and muscle development to change its posture.
Moving on the to less common reasons that have been argued...
5. A more ridiculous yet possible case, which most riders have experienced, is when the horse is scratching or has a fly biting him and uses his mouth to remove it. One could take a photo in this moment and claim the horse is ridden in rollkur. This behavior however does not happen when a horse is moving, implies the reins are not pulling and the horse is not being asked to do it by the rider. (Photo below is of a horse scratching but the horse behaves the same way with a rider.)
6. Its a moment in time and the horse did it for an unknown reason. Sometimes this happens, it could be a misunderstanding by the horse, a teaching moment where the horse responds in such a way as a result of seeking the answer or an involuntary mistake on the part of the rider. It belongs to this instance when none of the above points are applicable to the situation.
(Eg. If the horse is in training and does it as a moment in time because its still not confident with the bit, its still Point #1.)
So, wrapping it all up...
If the horse isn't purposely placed in such position, in that moment or before, the rider has soft hands and the horse is not afraid of the bit, the horse shouldn't be over-flexed or under the vertical at all. The often common claim that it was only an instant an a photo can absolutely happen, if none of the other options are occurring.
If the horse is hyperflexed in one shot and in the next (if its taken in a sequence) it isn't, its very unlikely that the horse at least isn't avoiding contact with the bit.
A great example is this photo sequence in an article by The Horse Magazine.
Instead of constantly claiming that it was "just a moment in time", I'd like to hear the accused riders explain why their horse was in such position in the first place.
Having the horse under the vertical is for sure is something that can be avoided on a horse in training and should not occur in a well-schooled performance horse. After all, this is what's required by the FEI and claimed by talented riders such as Philippe Karl. (See FEI Dressage Rulebook )
A message from the author:
Curiosity is a great thing, so I ask to you all who are reading this, the next time you see a horse under the vertical or hyperflexed, ask the rider (politely) why their horse is in such position.
If your horse is like the ones above and you don't know why, ask your trainer.
IF you find or know a different reason than the ones above, contact me on my Contacts Page.
Photos: © Nightrunnerstock & © Wakedeadman & © Greenleaf-stock (Deviantart)