What are cavalettis used for?

What distances can I place them at? What are the benefits for our horses and ponies, depending on the discipline we practice?

These are some of the many questions that most of us ask ourselves and which are often not very clear to us.
Well, today we are here to answer them!

What are cavalettis and what are they used for?

Bars are round wooden 3 metres long and 8 cm in diameter, which are placed on the ground in different shapes depending on what we want to work on. The cavalettis, which are elevated on the ground, are used for the basic training of our horses and ponies.

In addition, they bring great benefits to our horses or ponies, improving their physique, their technique, the rhythm of the horse’s gait and most importantly, relaxing their mind, which is the most important thing, because this will help all of the above to take place.

What is the best distance to place a cavaletti?

Most of us ask ourselves this question: Which distance is the most comfortable for my horse or pony?

Here are the official measurements. But the most advisable thing to do is to know your horse’s or pony’s height in order to adapt the exercises to your horse’s or pony’s needs.

(If you have any doubts about the height of your animal. Here is a trick: You only have to measure two consecutive steps of the same limb over regular gaits in the working gaits (walk, trot and canter)).

What are the benefits for our horses and ponies, depending on the discipline we practice?

JUMPING:

– Improves the regularity of the stride.
– Develops the dorsal musculature.
– Improves the horse’s flexibility by working in circles.
– Correction of inadequate approach techniques.
– In the rider, it improves the rider’s references concerning the distances to the obstacle.
– In the rider, an improvement that facilitates the tucking of the hind legs…

DRESSAGE:

– It is particularly beneficial in the use of the cavalettis at the walk and trot.
– Its use is valid for improving and learning the gathered gaits (passage and piaffe…).
– Also for the initiation and improvement of extended gaits (medium trot, long trot…).
– Helps to maintain regularity and cadence in the stride.
– Improvement of the horse’s suppleness by working in circles.

EVENTING:

– Improvement of regularity and amplitude of the stride in the cross-country test.
– Development of the dorsal musculature.
– Correction of inadequate techniques for approaching obstacles.
– Improvement of the horse’s flexibility by working in circles.
– Improvement of the rider’s references on the distances to the obstacle.