Horse planting when asked to work

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zblc015

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My mare has gone from a forwards going, straight off your leg ride to planting the moment I ask for a contact in the arena, doesn't matter how light, loose or low. She started about 6 weeks ago when she was struggling with her canter work - planted, then kicks out and turns to bite my leg. Absolutely nothing can shift her.
Really unusual reaction and entirely new so had vet, chiro, sports massage and saddler out to do a full MOT and all came back good or with minor problems which wouldn't have caused such a severe reaction. Since then she's been hacked out a couple of times a week and I've gradually been reintorducing gentle schooling out and about and she goes beautifully, working into her contact and stepping through, gentle lateral work. So I took her in the school for the first time in 5 weeks today, did 10 minutes warm up on a long rein, asking her to stretch (which was fine) then the moment I asked her to pick up and work, she planted and did exactly the same thing, and I cannot get her to move whatever I try. For the last couple of times I've had to just call it quits because I haven't had the time to sit in the same spot for 30 minutes to move
I'm absolutely at my wits end with her; she has never been easy, but now she's won't do anything at all and I don't know what to do. I can't have lessons on her regularly (weird schedule). I'm 99.99% certain that she's not in pain because if she was in that much pain, it would have shown up in other rides or through the 4 people who have checked up over. I'm certain it's just napping, but I have no idea how to tackle it; everything I've tried on other nappy horses just doesn't work! Won't respond to voice aids, leg aids (gentle or pony clubbing), has never really responded to the whip
Looking for any suggestions as to what may have caused it, anecdotes, or things to try. She has been so difficult for the last few years and normally the good balances up the bad but I can't keep a horse I can't work. Maybe that sounds selfish but she is a fit 14 year old so I potentially have 10 more years of her slamming the breaks on every time I ask her to do something she disagrees with.
 
I suspect she has a reason and that so far it has not been found, 14 year olds don't just decide one day that they are going to be uncooperative for no reason other than to annoy you, the minor problems that were found may be just that or they could be a part of something more serious that is making work uncomfortable for her, schooling out hacking can be easier for them, working on a long rein much the same but having to work properly in circles, on turns or possibly a different surface can just be too much for her to cope with.
I would firstly try doing a whole session on a long rein and see how she goes, you take some of the pressure off but can still work her through all paces just in a longer frame with less pushing through from behind, if she copes with that then you can rule out napping, which it really doesn't sound like as all the nappy horses I have worked with have napped whenever and wherever they wanted to and not just when asked to work a bit more and never when they had previously been good, any that suddenly decided not to work had a physical reason and once found and treated stopped napping.

Your 4 people who have checked her have not got xray eyes, have not been able to look inside her so cannot totally rule out pain, some horses have a higher threshold than others and she may be one that is intolerant to something minor, ulcers can have symptoms as you describe but I would also not rule out spavins, at her age they are fairly common, it could also be SI issues, mine was inclined to plant and kick out at the leg aids and that was his problem, he was also given the all clear by several vets before I finally got a diagnosis because I would not keep working him through as I was told to.
 
Vet has checked for lameness, joints and spine. She was scoped for ulcers last year and came back all clear, as did bloods this year. I would have expected with ulcers though that she'd stop consistently whereas it's only in the school? ��
 
zblc015 said:
Vet has checked for lameness, joints and spine. She was scoped for ulcers last year and came back all clear, as did bloods this year. I would have expected with ulcers though that she'd stop consistently whereas it's only in the school? ��
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So this is not something completely new if you had reason to scope last year, she may have been clear then but not now, without xrays they cannot say there is nothing wrong with the joints even if they are sound and do not respond to flexions there could be something that twinges at certain times, a bute trial could be worth trying it will not rule out pain but could rule it in if she responds but obviously not great for ulcers although I would risk it for a week just to try and clarify things it is easy enough to stop if she gets worse and then you are being pointed towards ulcers.
The ulcer expert I spoke to told me to bute trial my horse, in his view it would make little difference if he did have ulcers and would allow me to have a better idea of what was going on, he did improve slightly but went lame in front while on bute so we got side tracked sorting that out before finally getting to the SI. He was fine out hacking and wandering about on a long rein in the school it was only when I put more pressure on to increase the work that he stopped going forward properly and would kick at my leg.
 
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Mine only planted when schooling, not when hacking. Scoped him and found ulcers. Treated the ulcers. He stopped planting when schooling.
 
After with everything bp has said.
Would add that if all of those things come back clear on re-examination, it could be hormonal in nature. My younger mare can become very difficult with napping and planting in the school when she's having a major season. Regumate helps her immensely in spring and autumn. If it hadn't, our next step would be to scan ovaries.
 
Also different surfaces can bring problems to light.

We are 100% sound on a good surface. In the sand school it all goes wrong because its deeper and the arthritic hocks start to shout.

I had to video behaviour to get the vets to believe there was an issue. When they do their lameness work-ups not only does adrenaline mask problems, but they always had me trotting her up on much better surfaces than she's usually ridden on!
 
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