by Sarah Iralcea

Created on: June 04, 2007   Last Updated: June 25, 2009

The successful lunging of horse is much more than simply allowing them to trot wildly in a continual circle. When performed correctly, lunging can greatly improve your horse's muscle build-up, patience and engagement.

Lunging is not only for show riders with flighty horses. Every horse can benefit from this activity, as can the average rider. However it is not something that should be attempted by a very inexperienced rider with an untrained horse. The basic principle of lunging is having the horse move in a circle around their handler, who remains stationary, by using a long rope (called a lunge rein), a roller, a cavesson, and side reins. Lunging is an excellent way to settle down an excited horse, break in a young horse, even to improve the horse's gait and skills.

Firstly, you will need to get the required equipment. I have seen many riders attempt to lunge their horses in a headstall, with no other equipment. This is, effectively, simply having a horse go in circles, which is not what lunging must be. Even with a saddle and bridle on, the same benefits cannot be achieved as much as with a proper cavesson, roller and side reins.

The roller is simply a girth that goes around the horse's belly and fastens with a single (or sometimes double) buckle on each side. It will have padding either side of the withers, similar to the underside of a saddle pommel. Different rollers have varying numbers of d-rings' on them; one with just two rings is adequate. The roller should not be fastened as tightly as one would fasten a girth on a saddle. As there is no rider pulling on one side of it, you will find it rarely slips unless it is left much too loose. You should always place a saddle blanket beneath the roller, especially if your horse has not worn a lunge roller before.

Horses will often react differently to a roller than to a saddle, so be prepared that your thoroughly-broken-in ten-year-old may buck and become irritated with the roller. This is usually due to the fact that the horse can feel the surcingle around his middle, but is confused by the fact that there is little weight upon his back. Make sure you get the correct sized roller for your horse. The best way to do this is measure around your horse's belly where the girth would go, and then measure the roller in the store, making sure the last hole on the roller will be tight enough for your horse. It's best to get one that is a little big, rather than one that you will barely be able to fasten.

A cavesson is a

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