mini horse driving aids

Question
How do I teach my mini to extend her trot when driving - what aids do I use? All I seem to be able to do is get her to trot faster.
Thank you,
Marilyn Justice

Answer
Hello,
First of all... What kind of bit are you using?  Make sure it is a snaffle that rests comfortably in your mini's mouth.  Many of the cheap mini snaffles have straight moughpieces, not curved ones.  All my minis are driven in either French Link snaffles or curved mouthpieces.  This will greatly help you, believe me!  
At first when you are training your mini to extend, she will probably just speed up.  At first, that is okay, but it sounds as if your mini has been "just trotting faster" versus extending for quite a bit now.  
Harness her up as usual, but don't put her to the cart.  Instead you will ground drive her.  Put the reins though the rings as usual, and stand behind her (unless she kicks, then stand to the side).  Warm her up at the walk and mix it up with some circles (make sure she bends her body around the circle) and serpentines (S-shaped figures).  This will get her muscles ready for extending and collecting (yes, horses require more muscles and more energy to extend and collect).  If you don't work your mini a lot, she may not have the necessary muscles to extend very well, but ground driving and the circles, ect. will help.  
Ask her to trot, and let her pick the speed.  From there, pick up a little bit of rein contact (but you must move smoothly and not pull and jerk).  She should slow down, but ask her to move on.  Listen to make sure she keeps the same tempo.  Your should notice, with the more rein contact you have, her steps should be closer together and you should have to slow down.  This is collecting.
Once she has that down, you can work on extending.  Keep in mind some minis have this natural ability to really move out; others unfortunatly don't (when looking at minis to purchase as driving prospects, I make sure they have a free, ground covering trot, but many minis without the natural stride make lovely driving horses, too!).  
Keep her on the bit again at the trot, but this time ask her to really move out.  If her steps just get faster, slow her down with a bit more rein contact, and ask again.  If she doesn't have the natural ability, this is going to be hard for her, and she is going to have to work on this quite a bit.  When she tries really hard, let her walk and perhaps "grab a little snack".  This lets her know that what she did was good!  Don't worry, with a little (or lots...) of work, she will learn how to move out!
Another thing that might help you is this book: Schooling Horses in Hand, by Richard Hinrichs (all my horses are trained this work in hand method, and this really, really, really helps their stride!)
Good Luck!
~rb