First time (part) loaning a horse?

WindRacer

WindRacer

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I have been riding for two years - my first year was only hacking so I have only been taking lessons for a year. I can walk, trot, canter confidently. My jump needs a little work, but I can pop over small jumps with no issues. I am loaning a pony for the first time. He is a nervous pony, I have ridden him once. He isn't the spooky type, he has just been mistreated in his past and finds it more difficult to trust someone new. If there is someone near by, he likes to follow them and have them close by. If you happen to ride past them, he will slow down and come to a halt.
I was just wondering what I could do to help build our bond and trust since I will be loaning him for a while. Leaving cantering and jumping out, what exercises could I do (in trot) to help him listen more and enjoy the work while focusing on me and not people around him. I will be grooming him and being with him nearly everyday so this will help our relationship.

Thanks guys.
I am new to the forum. :o
 
Hi there! I am sort of in the same boat as you but mine is a 16.1 ex racer!

Thankfully, on the ground she is very trusting, but riding she is always looking around and trying to find something to spook at I swear! We can't even hack as she is so nervous.

Just today - I had the best ride yet on her and in trot we were doing exercises where she was really listening. The important thing is to get him working down the bit and really moving off your aids - especially the legs with the bend. If you can incorporate transitions, that will keep him alert and not anticipating what he's going to be asked to do. You would be surprised at how much getting a balanced, working trot can grab their attention!! School movements such as serpentines and figure-of-eights will also help put your bending work in practice :D

I'm sure that doing your grooming and stable duties like you said will help build a bond in no time.

Good luck with everything! :o x
 
My mare tends to get distracted easily so I like to do lots of transitions to get her thinking and listening to me walk to trot, walk to canter etc.
 
when riding do lots of transitions, not just walk-trot, trot-halt, but try a slower collected trot then down the long side a more extended trot. Also try not to go round and round on the track, do 10m circles, 20m cirlces, serpentines, or just do random things at every marker!

to gain his trust when not riding, could you try some little tricks and stretches? get some treats and ask him to stretch his neck to each side and down to the floor. a little trick you could do is to teach him to touch/target your hand. Hold your hand slightly above his nose, wait for him to touch it then give him a treat- keep doing this till you can hold your hand further away and he will still touch it :)

You could also let him loose in the school and just spend time with him having fun- run around and see if he will follow and play little games :D
 
I am not brilliant up top, but do lots of walk trot and halt transitions with Boyo, and also lots of half halts.

I do a lot of ground work with him - just very simple things like asking him to stand, back up, move over from pressure. I also groom him every time I go up. I feel it is the grooming and groundwork that has established a bond more than the riding, and as a result he is much better under saddle and listens more if that makes sense.

When I first started riding him he would test me constantly, now it feels like more of a partnership - he can trust me to make the decisions about where we are going and what we are doing, I can trust him for example on rough ground I ride with very loose reins and let him pick his footing, or when we jumped for the first time the other day, I am a newbie to jumping, so trusted him to take me over safely and he did. I wouldn't have dreamed of hacking on the buckle or jumping a few months ago, but we now seem to have an understanding, and I am over the moon!
 
Abused horses are always a bit more of a struggle- may be easier to go for something a bit more straightforward for your first but if you are set on this one, I think hacking can do wonders for the spooky horse, once you have basic aids sorted in a school. They really end up having to trust you to deal with scary objects and you will end up with such a good bond.
Make sure however brakes etc are in working order! And don't do anything that you aren't comfortable with. nervous horses are harder work but once you get that bond, there is honestly nothing like it- an amazing feeling. Keep relaxed and you'll be there before you know it. Good luck!
 
I started a part share last year and had no facilities at the yard so it was all hacking. Although she hadn't been mistreated she could be quite spooky at times, looking for spooks really!i've found keeping her interested, transitions, halts, making sure you maintain a good contact helps. I think you're going to have to be very patient and not expect too much too soon. Just try to relax and have fun on the ground as well as in the saddle. It takes time to build a bond and that trust has to be earned. I rode my girl out alone- she's not keen to be by herself, for the first time last month, although we got lost :o and she tried to be a bit silly I felt she trusted me and I trusted her, you take care of each other and you can't go far wrong. Good luck, it's daunting at times but exciting to be taking the first step towards a horse of your own :)
 
Thanks guys for all the help.
I have finally ended the loan after just under 4 months and it was brilliant. His trot work came on brilliantly, on our first dressage test I fell off and fractured my wrist but we continued on and came 2nd out of 5 riders, towards the end we done a lot more hacking and he even started cantering on both reins. He was just a pleasure to loan and the owner has thanked me so much for reducing his spooking and pushing him through things that have scared him, he used to be a trouble to catch in the field - he was so scared that he would trot away sometimes and it would take 10 minutes for him to let you near his head even if you had a carrot, but at the end of the loan he was absolutely no bother to catch. It's my first time experiencing amazing progress with any horse and I couldn't be more happy with the overall loan...

Thanks again guys for your help and lovely comments... :)
 
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