Distracted when schooling?

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ShannonXX

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I was wondering if anybody had any advise for me.

My youngster is rising 6, but gets very distracted when schooling and hacking. With hacking, it doesnt bother me as much as there is a lot to look at, but in the school he manages to look at everything.

Somedays, this isnt a problem and he listens beautifully but others he'll whinny every time he passes another horse in the school, and go round with his head up in the air looking at every blade of grass and every moving tree:o I think what frustrates me the most is that i know he can listen, but he chooses otherwise.

He also doesnt settle away from the yard, and just whinnies non stop, but this is probably just a baby thing, but if you have advise, fire away:)!

He's currently in a neue schule starter with a french link, so maybe he might better with something with rollers or something to encourage him to listen more?

Any help would be really appreciated:)
 
What are you actually asking him to do when he does it?

If somethings not listening to me I start asking more questions, lateral work is a good one. I use a lot of shoulder in etc when I'm hacking out and they start switching off. I would ask for something else as soon as he stops listening, just ignore his whinnying etc and get him thinking.
 
LouS said:
What are you actually asking him to do when he does it?

If somethings not listening to me I start asking more questions, lateral work is a good one. I use a lot of shoulder in etc when I'm hacking out and they start switching off. I would ask for something else as soon as he stops listening, just ignore his whinnying etc and get him thinking.
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Just walk/trot/canter round :o he'll be fine for a bit and go lovely and then he'll loose it and start focusing on everything but me.
 
Supertrooper said:
Make sure you give him lots and lots to think about. Loads of transitions, lateral work, poles, cones, jumping etc
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We did this with my 5 year old a few years ago,wow.... 7 years ago! haha. it works, apart from when you're in a dressage test and can't all of the sudden ask for some lateral work :p he did grow out of it, but was still always curious. Even show jumping, we were indoors at Sheepgate Equestrian, they have a door that's about 1/4 of the height of entrance, every time we went past it, he was looking at what they other horses were doing, doesn't help when there is a jump immediately after the door :p

but normal schooling, just ask for something else, I found serpentines helped with him :)
 
Like everyone's said, give him stuff to do. And ask him the second you feel he's losing interest, rather than once his heads up whinnying.
 
My 14year old exracer does this too. All it takes is for a horse to walk past and he gets his knickers in a knot! I think it's just him! Owned him now 5 years and he's just so sensitive! I find I can't avoid it but I can manage it if that makes sense by circling, transitions, shoulder in, just getting him to concentrate again! Hopefully yours will grow out of it as only young :)
 
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