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Discussion on Young Horse Refuses to Go Forward
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New Member:
reeders
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Posted on Monday, Feb 19, 2007 - 6:21 pm:
My horse about to be 5 years old and she's been on the lazy side since i began riding her but recently she has become purely rebellious (she has never been one to spook at anything or be a moody mare). She is healthy and in good physical shape for her age. I only ride her 4 times a week usually giving her Monday, Wednesday, & Friday off. She has been to some shows & jumping for a good six months now over 2'3 jumps. In the last two months she began ignoring my leg so I began carrying a crop. It only irritates her more (she kicks out when I hit her on her rump) when I use it and she began standing still & bucking in place. I can ride her through it but once she figured out the bucking didn't phase me she began rearing. I put spurs on reluctantly with the crop. Now, the spurs do not make her buck but she stands still and avoids my aids by swinging her rear in different directions. I can straighten her head out & get her going forward but only for a few steps before the bucking and rearing. The part that confuses me is that she can't be bored.. I switch up the routine daily, ride with others and alone but she won't change her attitude. I have even given her a couple weeks off. Once I lounged her as her warm-up and immediately got on her and started jumping. She was fine and willing to go forward. She paces herself to the jumps, never refuses, and picks her spots perfectly. But I want her flatwork between the jumps to be better and I don't want to have to jump her just to have a chance to work on her flat work. What else can I try? Or how could I be causing her to be so irritable?
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Member:
canderso
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Posted on Monday, Feb 19, 2007 - 6:31 pm:
Hi Shannon,
How frustrating!
Some standard thoughts on things to check:
Does the saddle fit correctly?
How about the Bit?
Are you sure the horse is sound?
No back pain?
Are you giving stop (hands, clamping thighs) and go(legs, spurs, whip) aides at the same time?
Is she being over-faced?
Lots of questions, hopefully some will help. Good luck
Cheryl
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New Member:
reeders
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Posted on Monday, Feb 19, 2007 - 6:42 pm:
I actually just bought a saddle with a wide tree made for her since she's a warmblood and she has a simple snaffle for a bit. She's never been unsound since I've owned her and she is not irritable when jumping or trail riding so I have to rule out back pain. As for aids, I don't think I could be saying "Go" in any more ways.
But what do you mean by over-faced?
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Member:
canderso
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Posted on Monday, Feb 19, 2007 - 9:36 pm:
Hi Shannon,
Over-faced means you are asking too much of the horse. In jumping, the jumps are too high or too technical. In flat work, the horse simply hasn't the strength to do the movement (e.g., asking a young horse to canter on 10m circle).
Even if you are giving lots of 'go' aides, if you are clamping your upper leg and/or have a heavy hand, you are also telling the horse stop. Some horses are sensitive enough to read stiff shoulders as a 'stop'. So even if you give lots of 'go', by giving 'stop' at the same time, you can get the kind of reaction you are describing(trust me... been there, done that!!!)
Love the picture on your profile, by the way. Glad to see Irish horses too!!!
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New Member:
reeders
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Posted on Monday, Feb 19, 2007 - 9:50 pm:
I'm having a lesson with her tomorrow so I will try to keep more slack in the reins and keep my upper leg from clamping on her...Come to think of it I probably stiffen my legs when she starts bucking especially!
When I sit down & DrOp my stirrups she will go forward.. I probably have better posture then?
Thanks for the tips!!
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Member:
reeders
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Posted on Monday, Feb 19, 2007 - 9:54 pm:
oh I just had an after-thought.. how do you get two pics of your horses on your profile?
And I have always wanted an Irish Sport Horse!! I just fell in love with my new Warmblood and postponed that dream for a bit longer.
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Member:
canderso
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Posted on Monday, Feb 19, 2007 - 10:07 pm:
Hi Shannon - ask your coach about mixing the aides.
As for putting both pictures together, I did it a loooong time ago so there has to be an easier way to do it now! If I remember right, I pasted both into powerpoint, then grouped the images, then copied and pasted into Paint ... or was it MS Photo... then uploaded that file/image into my profile.
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Member:
jjet
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Posted on Tuesday, Feb 20, 2007 - 1:30 pm:
Shannon, I don't think I can help you with your problem (the only somewhat similar situation I have had was as a child, and was with a stubborn pony cross: she was often reluctant until I found that she really hated to be rushed. When I became more patient about how quickly I expected a response to my cue, she seemed to be more willing to give her all. (We were doing gymkhana way back then and she got very good, she did not like to be told to hurry, she knew it was her job to go fast and would do it on her own.) I also looked at your picture in the profile... Fantastic! It looks like a painting. Did you play with the effects or is that just how it turned out?
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Member:
lhenning
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Posted on Tuesday, Feb 20, 2007 - 2:16 pm:
Shannon,
"Once I lounged her as her warm-up and immediately got on her and started jumping. She was fine and willing to go forward."
Have you tried lunging her before flat work? Maybe she is testing your leadership, and if so, then lunging is a good way to gain respect.
I had similar problems last year when my horse was the same age as yours. They are like teenagers. I would go back to basic stuff for awhile. Get her back to being soft and relaxed. Maybe she is feeling too pressured.
Then, when you start back to doing what you are doing now, begin in small steps a little at a time, always looking and rewarding softness. Don't make your goals her priority. Give her some time to grow up and gain maturity.
Linda
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Member:
reeders
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Posted on Wednesday, Feb 21, 2007 - 5:59 pm:
I do believe it was a control issue with her.
thanks for all the advice y'all!! I rode her while my trainer stayed in the center or the arena with a long whip and whenever she threatened to ignore my 'go' aids my trainer would go behind her and urge her forward. By the end she was going forward willingly when I asked.
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Member:
gwen
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Posted on Friday, May 25, 2007 - 8:27 pm:
I have a similar issue with Jack at this point. When I am riding alone, he is torture to keep forward. I am sure that it is probably me,but what is interesting is that he is forward when jumping. The problem there, is that he gets really heavy on his front end and isn't respecting my half-halts. He did improve by the end of the lesson today and I noticed that his tail swishing actually decreased too (see below). The trainer tonight said that that is what we should be working on, but I am picturing working on a half-halt during our practice sessions, and I wouldn't have NEARLY enough horse to half-halt with his lack of forward movement!
ALso, I am noticing him swishing his tail at times. I really can't find a HUGE consistent factor that permeates throughout the behavior. He does it a lot when we are jumping, and sometimes on the flat. He also will do it when just standing still. Could he be just a horse that expresses himself in that way? I am thinking that someone might respond that they are seeing red flags, but I REALLY want Jack to be beyond his physical limitations! We have come soo far and I have done soo much! Thanks for any help!
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Member:
imogen
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Posted on Saturday, May 26, 2007 - 3:16 am:
Hunting or charity/cross country rides with a bunch of other horses teaches them to be forward going in their general attitude.
Imogen
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Member:
redhen
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Posted on Saturday, May 26, 2007 - 7:23 am:
I just had a professional saddle-fitter here yesterday and she mentioned tail-swishing when saddle doesn't fit well...I assume you know about looking at the sweat pattern when you finish working Jack, and making sure your fingers fit under the front of the saddle when he's walking (moving scapula) without pinching. Could be that he likes jumping/the adrenalin kicks in and he can ignore other discomfort then...good luck!
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Member:
gwen
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Posted on Saturday, May 26, 2007 - 7:39 am:
Thanks for the tips. I will check the saddle fit. I was thinking that the saddle was a non-issue because I have one of those pads with a ton of support around the spine. He does love jumping!
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Member:
lhenning
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Posted on Tuesday, May 29, 2007 - 1:16 pm:
I had a couple of thoughts. First, check your own body and tension when he slows or stops. Is your back soft, are your hips relaxed? Clinton Anderson has a good exercise called cruising to address this issue. Get your horse into a posting trot and allow him to go anywhere, do not steer. The goal is to keep him moving at an even tempo and at the desired speed. If he slows, squeeze first, then cluck, then use a dressage whip or spank with a mecate rope. Using the three progressive steps teaches the horse to move forward on the squeeze. The reason you don't steer is to enable you to focus solely on the squeeze, cluck, spank.
If he is stopping altogether and rearing or just not moving at all, then the goal is just to get the feet moving. Small circles are effective for that.
Before you can begin working on a half-halt, you first have to get your horse moving. Work on one issue then move on to the next.
Linda
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Member:
gwen
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Posted on Tuesday, May 29, 2007 - 5:16 pm:
Yes, Linda I have been trying to assess as I go. I know that I continue to revert back to pinching a bit and nagging, so that was my first instinct, to check that. I had a great ride on Saturday and will keep a close "eye" on things. Hopefully me being aware every step will help.
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