Dutch Warmblood ridden problem.

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NB1221

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Hi Guys

Just wondering how I can help my mare in her ridden work? She is a 5 year old Dutch Warmblood who was broken in the UK in May. She has been pushed rather quickly and I think this could be part of her problem. She is quite a nervous mare when ridden in the school but she is much better out hacking and being ridden in the field. We have had her saddle,teeth and back checked and are all ok.

She tends to run away from my leg and doesn't like to accept it, she also tries to run off when I try and do anything with her saddle while mounted but this does not happen when I try and do it on a hack.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

Thanks :-)
 
Unless you have a real need to do lots and lots of schooling work I'd stick to hacking with maybe just short 10 min bursts in the school before a hack - and then not every time.

Hacking will help her get her balance, confidence, develop muscle and topline and start carrying herself. She will not be 100% in balance yet as she is still a young horse - she needs to learn that balance and she needs to learn it with a rider on board. Circle and bending work may currently be a struggle for her or she may be associating it with being pushed further than she is ready for.

Build her confidence, muscles and balance and then slowly re-introduce would be my advice.
 
If it is only in the school she is nervy she probably connects it with a bad experience and being a sensitive mare she is going to be constantly on edge all the time she is in there, I would keep hacking as much as possible and do some schooling out hacking to get her really confident and accepting the leg as much you can.
I would forget riding in the school for now and go back to basics on the ground as if she was unbroken and think of it as restarting, getting each stage right, her totally trusting and confident before moving on to the next stage, so lunging in full tack, stirrups down etc. long reining, then leaning over making a big fuss when she relaxes and taking each step very slowly as if it is all new to her, if you build up gradually and really give her a chance to relax she should become more trusting and learn being in the school is no big deal.
 
My thoughts would be to teach her leg contact in the school is nothing to fear. What I'd suggest might be hard to explain via text but get a schooling whip (make sure she is fully comfortable with being touched all over with the whip beforehand) then work her in hand in the school. Start out without a saddle.

Hold her as if you were lunging (but close enough as if you were leading her), touch the whip to her belly where your leg aid would press and ask her to walk on. If she panics, keep the whip pressed against her side until she stands still, then instantly remove the pressure. Repeat on both sides until she is comfortable with having the pressure applied.

Then use the whip in the same fashion (again repeating on both sides), ask her to walk on but now, instead of removing the pressure completely, keep the whip very gently pressed against her side while she is walking.

Then progress to repeating the above with saddle on with stirrups up, once she's happy with that, move onto the same exercise with stirrups down.

In the interim break up the training with hacking.
 
Assuming you have had her back properly looked at as rushing away from the leg the leg is a huge warning sign for KS I would do the following .
Take her on exercise led from another horse on return take her and lead her round the school from the other horse for ten minutes at the end of it feed her some treats do this every other day on her ridden days lead her round the school when you get back and fuss ,give treats .
After she accepting this easily hack out with the horse you lead her from and go in the school walk round on loose reins chatting gradually indroduce some trotting and gradually build up to some 'training '.
I would do this before I put the horse into the situation of working with the trainer it might take three months but it will be time well spent .
 
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