What is a common training technique to enhance a horse's agility?

Lunging is a widely recognized training technique used to enhance a horse's agility. This method involves working the horse on a long line while it moves in a circle around the trainer, allowing the horse to stretch its muscles and improve overall coordination. During lunging, the trainer can encourage the horse to transition between different gaits (walk, trot, canter) and direction, which helps to develop the horse's balance and responsiveness to commands.

Additionally, during lunging sessions, the trainer can incorporate exercises such as changes of direction, extensions, and collections, all of which can further contribute to improving the horse's agility. This controlled environment allows the trainer to assess the horse's physical condition and make necessary adjustments to the training routine to enhance performance.

While other techniques like ground driving, jumping, and roping contribute to various aspects of a horse's training, they do not specifically target agility in the same comprehensive way that lunging does. Ground driving focuses more on teaching the horse to respond to commands while being guided, jumping enhances jumping technique and strength, and roping is more specialized and often involves specific tasks that don't necessarily promote agility. Thus, lunging stands out as the primary method for improving a horse's agility effectively.