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LisaS
11 Mar 2010 20:13
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I part share a 5 year old warmblood gelding. Both jockeys are reasonably experienced. Due to the recent bad weather, he hasn't been turned out for about 2 weeks but lunged or ridden daily and walked out in hand. He seems very settled in his stable but now when we ride him out of the yard towards the school, he reaches a certain point on our lane and spins round very quickly and, if given half a chance, stands bolt upright. If one of us is on the ground, we can grab him and he will then walk forward and he will go down the lane for a brief hack or into the outdoor school all in a relatively sensible fashion as if nothing has happened. He works well in the school with no real issues but our instructor does tell us he needs to really learn to go forward more as he's a lazy s*d!
We just can't fathom out why the resistance/nappiness appears in exactly the same place as if he's saying I simply can't go forward here but once he's done his little routine, he then says OK.
Any ideas? He's got quite a talent at standing up almost vertically and it's becoming quite unnerving....
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Horse Hero Guru
12 Mar 2010 10:53
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Hi Lisa
You horse has learned to nap and in so doing, to rear. You need to stamp out this habit fast before it becomes an issue as rearing can be dangerous.
I presume that a few weeks of inactivity have not caused any weight gain and that his saddle fits well. Do not forget that, at 5 he is still growing, and nothing is more likely to cause a rebellion against work than badly fitting tack – how far would you run in shoes that were too tight?.
If everything is well in that respect, remember that many horses are creatures of habit – some will spook at the same bit of plastic day after day, and yours has decided to nap at the same spot each day. He stops, spins round, then he gets led for a bit then carries on – if all does not go to plan he rears up and then everyone panics and he is managing the situation. Your instructor says he is a lazy s*d – he is also a manipulative one and is doing very well at avoiding having to do too much work.
However, his fixed behaviour pattern is to your advantage – you know where you are going to have the problem, so it will not take you by surprise. As soon as he starts to whip round on you, pull his head tight and keep him going round, and round and round. He cannot rear if he is in a tight circle, so in that way you are safe. After about five turns ask him to walk forward in the direction in which you were going. If there is any hesitation in response, keep him circling for another five turns and try again. He will rapidly learn that life is much easier to go straight forward rather than to have to turn tight circles.
It is more than likely that when you have sorted out the napping at this spot he will try it at another location, or may decide to vary the routine by standing absolutely still, or turning in the opposite direction. All you will do is immediately repeat the lesson and, so long as the napping has not been going on for too long and hence become ingrained, you will have cured the problem.
Concentrate on riding him forward all the time and get him as responsive as possible to the aids. If he is being lazy and you are continually having to kick him forward then he is going to find life somewhat boring and will try to develop new ways of making life more fun!
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LisaS
13 Mar 2010 10:12
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Many thanks for your reply. We've reduced his hard feed whilst he hasn't been turned out and our saddle fitter has adjusted his saddle recently. We'll certainly give it a go and hopefully nip this in the bud before it becomes a real issue.
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joallan
15 Mar 2010 14:45
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Some horses are very sensitive especially at this age, if the saddle or the weight of the riders are causing him to be unhappy, then he will look for a way out; he is not a happy horse, if he is rearing.
Go back to basic training with long reining, to identify the reason for this. Very few horses do this unless the rider is not able to cope, and gets frightened. Remember that if the horse cannot go forward and cannot go backwards, he has only one option, ie to UP!
Go back to basics and do not put pressure on him, cut back the feed and increase the grazing period. Get the teeth rasped. Run your hand over his body to check for spasms.
If you have limited experience, send him to a good rider to sort out, this does not mean beating him in to submission, it means getting him to relax and getting him to work nicely. Do not expect miracles from any rider, short-cuts do not work, I consider 3 weeks is the shortest time required to sort out most serious problems, and if it is sorted out in one session, you still get the advantage of 20 days schooling.
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LisaS
16 Mar 2010 15:35
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Thanks for your feedback.
His saddle is certainly not a problem, his teeth are fine and neither jockey heavy nor inexperienced. His hard feed is minimal and he is now turned out weather permitting.
The horse hero guro's method was tested over the weekend and it seemed to work. As soon as he gave the sign that he was thinking backwards, we turned him quickly in tight circles until we were able to ask him to go forwards again. This had to be repeated just a couple of times which totally diffused the situation each time and he walked forwards quite happily. This certainly gave you, the rider, a little confidence in that there was something you could do apart from sitting there passively waiting for the worst to happen!
Obviously if this method is unsuccessful after a period of time and we revert, we will again check for physiological issues and take advice. Neither of us are adverse to asking for help and it is my view that with horses you never stop learning!
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