Introducing fillers with This Esme

Fillers can be a real issue for some ponies – and some riders! So, introducing them carefully at home is the key to setting yourself up for success and building confidence, which will help you ride more clear rounds. Plus, boosting your pony’s confidence over fences is sure to make him trust you more in other areas of his work, too.

Move past it

The first step is putting out a filler in the arena and riding around it so your pony can have a good look at it. Start by warming up your pony as you usually would, keeping a good distance from the filler but letting him see it from far away to start with.

Once you’re warmed up, ride a large circle with the filler at its centre in walk, bending your pony around your inside leg but keeping an outside rein contact so he doesn’t fall out through his shoulder to move away from it. Slowly spiral the circle down, using your voice to encourage him if you need to. He can look at the filler, but try to keep his feet moving and him focused on what you’re asking.

Finally, spiral the circle back out and have a go in trot and canter, and on both reins so your pony sees the filler on both sides.

Through the gap

The next stage is to ride between the fillers, which you can position next to a pair of wings like you’d build a jump. Leave plenty of room between them to start with and ride through in walk, trot and canter in both directions. You can gradually pull the fillers closer together so the gap between them’s smaller – just make sure there’s enough room for your pony to get through without having to jump the fillers! You can then add a pole, placing it on the ground behind the fillers so you ride between them and over the pole to help you get ready for adding a fence.

Top Tip

If your pony’s really worried, ask a friend with a confident pony to give you a lead to begin with, so your pony can get the idea.

Grab your copy of PONY February on sale 15 December 2021, for more tips from This Esme on how to tackle fillers with your fave pony