What Lateral Softness Actually Means
A laterally soft horse is not just a horse that turns when you pull the rein. It is a horse that gives through the neck, the ribcage, and the hip simultaneously when light rein pressure is applied â without bracing, without counter-bending through the opposite side, and without falling in or out through the shoulder. This full-body suppleness is what separates a reining horse from a horse that merely goes through the motions of a reining pattern.
The one-rein stop is the foundation of lateral softness. Teaching a horse to yield its hip and bring its nose around to the rider's foot â and then stand relaxed in that position â establishes the lateral give that will eventually show up in spins, rollbacks, and the departure out of a stop. If the horse braces against the rein, pulls through the corner of its mouth, or fails to move its hip away, it is not laterally soft. Every subsequent maneuver will reflect that deficit.
From Direct Rein to Neck Rein
Young reining horses in the snaffle are ridden with two hands using direct rein contact. The transition to neck reining â where a single rein laid against the neck guides the horse â is built gradually by pairing the neck rein cue with the direct rein cue, then fading the direct rein as the horse learns to respond to neck pressure alone. Clinton Anderson's work with his reining prospect Titan illustrates this progression clearly: direct rein establishes the response, neck rein replaces it.
A horse is ready to transition to a shank bit and neck reining only when it responds to the neck rein softly and consistently at all three gaits, can be guided through circles and straight lines with minimal hand movement, and maintains its own forward momentum without constant leg.
One-Rein Stops as a Lateral Softness Test
Use the one-rein stop as a diagnostic throughout training. If your horse gives immediately, steps its hip away, and stands with a soft, relaxed expression, your lateral foundation is solid. If it resists, pulls through the rein, or speeds up instead of softening, you have gaps that need to be addressed on the ground before continuing mounted work. Warwick Schiller's philosophy here is direct: a horse that resists the one-rein stop is a horse that is not mentally present in the work. Get the mind first; the body follows.
Direction Changes and Lateral Give
Frequent direction changes at all gaits â trot serpentines, figure-eights at the lope, rollbacks off the fence at a slow pace â build the lateral softness that reining demands. The horse that has done thousands of direction changes in training is a horse that changes direction from a thought, not a demand. That responsiveness is what judges reward when they see a horse that appears to run its pattern on its own.
Watch & Learn
Ready to Put This Into Practice?
Work with a qualified reining trainer to apply these fundamentals correctly on your horse.