It is very common for your horse to begin anticipating the lead change, especially when it comes to a Western Riding pattern. All Western Riding patterns, within AQHA, will consist of two parts - the line & the crossovers. The line can be an area where your horse may begin to surge, anticipate, or lose connection with you as the rider. This video goes over one method of schooling your horse to help prevent anticipation down the line.
There can be many ways to go about this, but the method I am using here is to stop the horse off my leg cues and back him up when he begins to surge forward or anticipate. I try to stop him off of my leg/foot cue first to reinforce the idea of him coming back when my leg squeezes rather than getting too forward. If they won’t stop off your foot cue alone, then you can come in with your hand to pull them down into a stop & back. I don’t ever say the word “woah” when I am schooling in this manner. That is because I am trying to encourage the horse to think about coming back to my aids, rather than just stopping. This method may not work on all horses, so I will go over in another video some other ways to deal with anticipation to the lead change.
You wouldn't build your house without a foundation, so you wouldn't want to skip your horse's foundation either.
Softening is one of the foundational tasks we ask of our horses. This is a key component to not only teaching your horse to change leads, but also having a smooth finished change. Make sure you can ask your horse to soften at both the walk and the trot before moving to the lope. Similarly, you should be able to have excellent control of your horse's shoulders at these slower gates before moving onto a lope.
Now at the lope, we will work on the same shoulder control as we did at the slower gates. Forward is your friend throughout these early stages of teaching the lead change.
The setup to the lead change is, in my opinion, the most crucial part of having a smooth change. Put in the time now to really work on your setup.
We are actually asking for the lead change now. Follow along through the process of putting together the steps we have worked on so far. We will be setting up for the lead change as well as talking you through the process of asking for the lead change. Also how to handle a horse that thinks too much about the change.
It is totally normal for your horse to start to anticipate the lead change. It is your responsibility to manage that anticipation in a manner that is productive. Change up the process and encourage your horse to remain soft. You may need to take a couple steps backwards and that's okay, review the topics we have already covered before coming back to the lead change.