Help – I’m feeling need for speed but pony isn’t!

[diddy]

Good morning everyone. I was hoping you might be able to give me some advice! I have a lovely pony, who is a pleasure to handle and own. However, he’s VERY slow when out hacking. He’s quite good in trot but at walk he’s very hard going! At first I put it down to being unfit (both of us!) but over the summer he’s been in work every day and is looking very good. However, his walk hasn’t speeded up any!

Am I asking too much of him d’you think..? That is, do some ponies just walk slower than others. Or should I keep nagging him to walk faster? My instructor says to keep at it and he will get faster – at the same time she suggests using only as much leg as I’d want to use on a regular basis i.e. not wellying him on all the time but giving him a good pony club kick every so often until he gets the message about what's required.

As I said above, I love him to bits. He’s very well behaved all the time, isn’t frightened by even the biggest lorries, and will even keep going when the horses we’re riding with turn off to go home a different route. It’s just the very slow walking business that’s getting me down. I’d like to do some endurance with him but at this rate everyone will have gone home by the time we get round

All ideas welcome… Thank you!

Diddy x

 

[be positive]

Does he keep up with the others and go slower on his own or is he not wanting to keep up with them.

 

[spider]

My horse is similar. I find what helps is a) going for some gallops in company b) riding some new routes.

 

[diddy]

Hi guys,

Thanks for the comments. In answer to your question, he's pretty consistent. He just walks slowly all the time whether on his own or in company. And he doesn't speed up when we turn for home either. At first I thought it was because he didn't know where he was but he's been with me for 6 months so he knows when we're heading home, he just isn't at all bothered

 

[touchstone]

I agree with your instructor - keep at it and it will improve!

My mare's walk wasn't very good to start with, then her hacking companion had to do a lot of walk work as his owner lost confidence. I can honestly say that it did her the world of good and her strides lengthened and pace increased over time.

I've also found that horses who have been ridden behind the bit or overbitted in the past tend to have a slow 'piddling' walk, and sometimes working on lengthening them can help. I prefer to use a tap with a schooling whip than a pony club kick though - the pony that gets kicked is the pony that has to be kicked as they say.

I'd also double check to make sure that there is no footiness making him slow, just in case.

 

[diddy]

Hi Touchstone,

Thank you for that - I'm glad it's not just me! Note what you say about using the whip rather than my legs - that's what my instructor says too. I'm just not very good at using it but I'm sure he'd rather I gave him an occasional smack than keep faffing about with my legs all the time! And good to hear it might get better. He's already improved massively in the school - when I first had him he wouldn't move at all and I couldn't get him to trot so I have to remember that we are making some progress at least