Confused by RI's

AnnaQuinn

AnnaQuinn

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Had private lesson today as feeling better than yesterday so thought I would have an hours private.. now there 2 instructors at my RS one less advanced than other (but she is YO she will be No 1, the more advanced lets call No2) and I have each regularly.

So today, I have YO No1... keep hands down consistently being shouted at me......horse a bit spooky and she wants me to put whip on his shoulder which sends him doo lally, i tried couple times and he just cantered sideways to evade! So I just used outside rein inside leg and kept his attention and that worked fine whithout whip so declined to use whip as requested... am i wrong??

Other one No2 on Sunday asked me to bring hands up and keep them still....just flexing when necessary and dont use whip unless leg is used count 123 not listening tap tap...
But she wanted my hands higher...

No1 wanted me to put reins in one hand tap tap tap to make him listen as a bit spooky... but he had not actually spooked??? Just looky so I got his attention before he had chance to spook. I feel uncomfortable tapping a horse that is 'very afraid' of whip when not necessary or should i just as told and sit the consequences??

No 2 says I ride with brilliant contact, no 1 says I am very good rider but need more confidence to deal with scary situations (because i decline to use whip unless necessary in my opinion?)... was she trying to flip him out to see how i cope?

And whats with the hands???

Sorry rant over ... pavalova for u all x
 
You sound like you don't like the yo way of teaching tbh. I have to say though, if horse was being spooky sometimes a slap on the bum works and their attention stays on you. I know at my rs there are a couple of horses who use spooking as an evasion from work and after a slap all of a sudden work beautifully. But teachers who don't know the horses well don't tell people to tell them off for spooking and so the poor rider spends the lesson flying left right and centre with the horses having a Fab time doing no work. Maybe the yo knows that said horse is quite the pee taker?
 
PonyIAmNotFood said:
You sound like you don't like the yo way of teaching tbh. I have to say though, if horse was being spooky sometimes a slap on the bum works and their attention stays on you. I know at my rs there are a couple of horses who use spooking as an evasion from work and after a slap all of a sudden work beautifully. But teachers who don't know the horses well don't tell people to tell them off for spooking and so the poor rider spends the lesson flying left right and centre with the horses having a Fab time doing no work. Maybe the yo knows that said horse is quite the pee taker?
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No i do like it i just hate the difference you master one way of doing it to be told do it another way, suppose i need to shut up and get on with it.

As for smack.. yes she knows him very well, probably one of her favourites but she does not ride, and I know he 'hates' whip, and I suppose i rather not wind him up when I was happily getting his attention without using it?
 
Ooh pavlova! :D

Hands should always be higher, never lower. It definitely sounds like number 2 has some hidden agenda. :rolleyes: I'm joking, but I've had instructors who sound like her, though a bit more 'SMACK IT! SMACK THE DAMN THING!' Riding for them is like... :eek:
 
I'll certainly have some Pavlova, my favourite - thanks!
Which way do you think your horse goes best, hands high, or low? I'd go by that. I doubt if I'd use the whip if the horse really doesn't like it and reacts badly. After all you are supposed to be trying to get the best out of your horse, not winding it up unnecessarily!
Do you school without your RI? If so why not ask someone to video and see what helps your horse to go well - in fact you could video lessons with both RIs and then make a decision. You never know you might even decide on a complete change.
 
Pearlsasinger said:
I'll certainly have some Pavlova, my favourite - thanks!
Which way do you think your horse goes best, hands high, or low? I'd go by that. I doubt if I'd use the whip if the horse really doesn't like it and reacts badly. After all you are supposed to be trying to get the best out of your horse, not winding it up unnecessarily!
Do you school without your RI? If so why not ask someone to video and see what helps your horse to go well - in fact you could video lessons with both RIs and then make a decision. You never know you might even decide on a complete change.
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Its RS horse i ride alot, he goes beautifully any which way as long as you have his un divided attention... so it makes no odds to me high or low... just hate being told hands too high by one and too low by other.
Reins to short, reins to long.. he he.. cant win!
 
Problem with having two teachers Im afraid then! I would say experiment with what the horse likes hand wise but i would give the yo the benefit of the doubt just once and try giving the horse a sharp wake up call to see if it has a positive impact on the horse. If it does you know for next time, if it doesn't your teacher won't ask you to do it again. Win win.
 
PonyIAmNotFood said:
Problem with having two teachers Im afraid then! I would say experiment with what the horse likes hand wise but i would give the yo the benefit of the doubt just once and try giving the horse a sharp wake up call to see if it has a positive impact on the horse. If it does you know for next time, if it doesn't your teacher won't ask you to do it again. Win win.
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Unless, as I predict, he throws a wobbler, I go out of side door and then i swear at RI for making me do it! ;-)

Might try though (good plan sneaky and i like it)
 
Personally I wouldn't use a whip on a spooky horse. Where I rode in the States (at a Western barn) we rode our trainer's clients' fully fit performance horses and some of them were pretty sharp and spooky when they first came out. In western you never even carry a whip. We were taught that you avoid spooking by having the horse's full attention - ask him to do something more interesting. Don't just mooch around the arena - flex, counter flex, circle in, leg yield out, shoulder in, travers, leg yield, transitions, half pass, push the hindquarters out 90 degrees on a circle, get your horse listening and it won't spook. It certainly worked on all her horses.
Now I only ride my horse who isn't spooky. I think this is a lot to do with her nature but also to do with the way that I ride her - strong focus on where we are going and if I lose that (eg I am more nervous bareback) she picks up on it and might have the odd spook. If that happens I can't imagine that smacking her would help but having her attention would.
 
I find carrying a whip with a horse thats really wary of it causes more problems than not carrying one.
Agree with unbalanced, switch his brain into gear with loads of school movements,transitions and lateral work, ask him lots of questions making him think where he needs to put his feet and where hes going next, im also big on using your voice with a horse like this to reassure him and help build confidence, way better than a crack with a whip imo.
 
I am 100% agreed whip is last thing he needs.. phew glad I am not just being awkward. RI is an older style teacher (politely) if they mess about smack em.. show them whos boss..
I prefer to build confidence and praise the good..
But if she insists next time I will do as she asks but if he flips I shall never do it again! & stick to my guns ;-)
 
Youre there to learn, and part of the process is to be able to determine what feels right or not with each horse !! Dont just do it because she says so, give the same rationale to her as youve discussed on here and negotiate where youre going to go with it, if shes worth her salt she'll help you work through it, even if its to prove you wrong on that horse, or hopefully you'll be right :)
 
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