Collection is developed by gaining control of and strengthening our horses hindquarters. The work of collection need not be complicated.
The development of Collection in our horses serves as something more than just a task in a dressage test or western horse show. The purpose of collection is to keep our horses sound and comfortable throughout their lives and to enable them to carry a rider with the least amount of effort.
So what is collection?
Basically it is this: helping the horse to round his back, lighten his front end and carry a larger percentage of his weight over his hind end.
Riders will forever debate the position of the legs, the activity of the seat or back, and the proper use of the reins, however on this point they will all agree - the surest way to eventually lame a horse is to ride him on the forehand with his back hollowed out.
Collection comes in varying degrees from a slight backward weight shift to an extreme of literally standing on the hindquarters (called levade in dressage). There are numerous ways to begin developing collection in our horses. Again there are debates, but it is commonly agreed that lateral work is needed to strengthen the hindquarters and in order to do proper lateral work the rider needs to be able to gain control of the hindquarters.
Sylvana Smith has written an excellent article on Getting to the Hindquarters, available to be viewed on the Eclectic Horseman Website. I highly recommend it to every rider.
