Horse refusing help!

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horseyhazel

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Hi, after trailer issues previously in the year, we have managed to get our pony Neddy travelling in the horse box to local shows, rallies and clear rounds. However Neddy seems to be refusing the jumps much more frequently than before and seems to have lost a lot of enthusiasm. He does not seem to be scared at all and we think he is doing it to be defiant. Has anyone got any tips to stop cheeky ponies refusing? Does anyone have any idea why he is refusing? Many thanks for your help!
 
There could be any number of reasons for the horse to refuse. Boredom, underlying health issues, rider error.

How often do you take him out to shows etc? And how often do you jump at home?
 
Ponies really don't do thinks just to annoy us. Sometimes you wonder but they really don't think like that. What does your instructor say? As AM says, he could be stale (bored) or have a pain somewhere.
 
amymay said:
There could be any number of reasons for the horse to refuse. Boredom, underlying health issues, rider error.

How often do you take him out to shows etc? And how often do you jump at home?
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we jump him about 1-2 times a week, and have taken him to 5 events this year in the space of about 3 months.
 
Clodagh said:
Ponies really don't do thinks just to annoy us. Sometimes you wonder but they really don't think like that. What does your instructor say? As AM says, he could be stale (bored) or have a pain somewhere.
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I had a lesson with my instructor on friday, she said he is probably bored like you said and so we are not going to any more events this year to give him a break from jumping. I do not think he is in pain because he is not lame, he just seems to be very lazy
 
I would agree it is unlikely your pony is doing this to annoy you.

Something is making it better to not jump than to jump.

Pain is the first thing to eliminate. That includes lameness, saddle, teeth etc etc but also balance of the rider and hands, and being fit enough to do the work.

Next is understanding. Does the pony understand how to respond to aids, and how to jump and be balanced?

The next is making it worthwhile jumping. I jump mine 1-2 times a week quite often, had him 3 years and he has never refused a fence yet. It will not likely be the 1-2 times a week.

With mine we do not have him jumping nicely and then do more and more. We will often warm up over a few fences, jump a course and if it is fab we will stop then. Drives me up the wall sometimes as we hire an arena for an hour, and are often done after 20 minutes, and that includes time adjusting the fences and warming up on the flat.

If we have a problem (as in we "miss" a stride, or knock a fence) we will try not to do whatever the error was again, but if it happens twice we put the fence down or make it easier. Jay is very careful (10 double clears in a row BE) and he is genuinely upset if we make an error. So, if we make an error we decide what caused it (usually he has dropped off my leg) and we improve. For example we will stop doing the jumps and have him moving forward off my leg again before jumping.

If that does not work we do not keep going round and round, we make the job easy and enjoyable.

On occasion we may do as little as 6 fences, and be happy with that.
 
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Honey08 said:
Is he on lush grass? One of our ponies went from forward to sluggish and it was the first sign of laminitis.
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That was my first thought too. First sign there was something wrong with my boy was when he stopped wanting to go forward. Appeared sluggish, but it was laminitis brewing.
 
I would eliminate pain first ( feet, back, saddle ) and can you be certain that the rider is not catching him in the mouth? Any of these can make a horse appear unwilling.
I would, as others have suggested, check for early signs of laminitis too.
 
amymay said:
How is he when you hack him out? Is he fit? Or overweight? Does he need more grub?
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He's usually good when we hack him out, sometimes he is a bit lazy. I would say he is fit as we ride him 4-5 times a week but seems to get fat on fresh air! We are careful with his grazing and don't give him any other feed but he still seems to be a bit on the plump size. He is a new forest pony if that helps :)
 
ozpoz said:
I would eliminate pain first ( feet, back, saddle ) and can you be certain that the rider is not catching him in the mouth? Any of these can make a horse appear unwilling.
I would, as others have suggested, check for early signs of laminitis too.
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Don't want to sound bug headed, but when I have lessons the instructor tells me I ride well. We will definitely check out laminitis, thank you!
 
horseyhazel said:
He is 12 years old and it started in July (since we started going to shows)
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Well there's a chance it could be early laminitis triggered by PPID (cushings), as we are now in the seasonal rise (approx August to November) for Cushings, and this is when early symptoms, such as low level laminitis and lethargy, will start to show. Might be worth checking out :)
 
If it started since you started going to shows then I would say pony is unhappy with the show environment. You say he had issues loading but now OK with it but its possible he is not OK with travelling and shuts down to cope. Its also possible he just finds the show itself stressful and tries to tune it out to cope. It would be worthwhile a) travelling him some where totally different to do something fun like ride on a beach or a pleasure ride if you can, to show him travelling can lead to good things. b) take him to a few small shows and not compete at all just lead him around and let him settle without the expectation of competing, build up to maybe doing a small in hand class to boost his confidence?
 
hollybear said:
Well there's a chance it could be early laminitis triggered by PPID (cushings), as we are now in the seasonal rise (approx August to November) for Cushings, and this is when early symptoms, such as low level laminitis and lethargy, will start to show. Might be worth checking out :)
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Okay, thank you for your help!
 
kez81 said:
If it started since you started going to shows then I would say pony is unhappy with the show environment. You say he had issues loading but now OK with it but its possible he is not OK with travelling and shuts down to cope. Its also possible he just finds the show itself stressful and tries to tune it out to cope. It would be worthwhile a) travelling him some where totally different to do something fun like ride on a beach or a pleasure ride if you can, to show him travelling can lead to good things. b) take him to a few small shows and not compete at all just lead him around and let him settle without the expectation of competing, build up to maybe doing a small in hand class to boost his confidence?
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Thank you for your advise. We were thinking the same but Ned seems to go onto the trailer better when we load him at home (maybe because he knows he's going to a show and finds it fun?) and we seem to have more problems loading him at the show ground (seeming to suggest he doesn't want to leave because he enjoys it?). We don't tend to do much at the show, last time we just jumped 2 courses, and we are going to give him a rest over the winter and do what you said. Thanks for your advice, we value your opinion!
 
Red-1 said:
Ihe next is making it worthwhile jumping. I jump mine 1-2 times a week quite often, had him 3 years and he has never refused a fence yet. It will not likely be the 1-2 times a week.
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I would just add to this - I think every horse is different, your horse might be fine jumping 1-2 times a week but that might be too much for other horses. I know if I jumped my horse 2 a week for a few months he would sour quickly. Not saying this is the issue here but every horse is different so sometimes you should try something completely different like only jump him every other week or once a week & see if the situation improves.
 
LegOn said:
I would just add to this - I think every horse is different, your horse might be fine jumping 1-2 times a week but that might be too much for other horses. I know if I jumped my horse 2 a week for a few months he would sour quickly. Not saying this is the issue here but every horse is different so sometimes you should try something completely different like only jump him every other week or once a week & see if the situation improves.
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Thanks for your advice, we are going to cut it down to at least once a week and maybe even every other week over the winter and see if this helps
 
LegOn said:
I would just add to this - I think every horse is different, your horse might be fine jumping 1-2 times a week but that might be too much for other horses. I know if I jumped my horse 2 a week for a few months he would sour quickly. Not saying this is the issue here but every horse is different so sometimes you should try something completely different like only jump him every other week or once a week & see if the situation improves.
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I agree that it would be too much with a horse that has a physical issue, a training issue, a rider issue, a tack issue, etc etc which is why I suggested looking into all of those. To me a jump is an extension of a canter, and as I said some times I may only do 6 jumps and be done. I would be surprised if someone said I should not canter my horse (who had no physical/rider/tack/training issues) more than twice a week.

Jumping is just work as is halt to walk, or walk to trot, or having the discipline to leave the yard gate and walk down the road. Rather than just "do it less" as in less times per week I would rather find out what the issue is, or "do it less" as in jumps per session until the horse is confident, as in confident that it will not be hurt, confused, tired, made uncomfortable.
 
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Your horse is refusing help? Or your horse is refusing and you need help?

"I'm starving, let's eat Grandma"
"I'm starving, let's eat, Grandma"

Use commas, don't be a phyco 😋
 
Red-1 said:
I agree that it would be too much with a horse that has a physical issue, a training issue, a rider issue, a tack issue, etc etc which is why I suggested looking into all of those. To me a jump is an extension of a canter, and as I said some times I may only do 6 jumps and be done. I would be surprised if someone said I should not canter my horse (who had no physical/rider/tack/training issues) more than twice a week.

Jumping is just work as is halt to walk, or walk to trot, or having the discipline to leave the yard gate and walk down the road. Rather than just "do it less" as in less times per week I would rather find out what the issue is, or "do it less" as in jumps per session until the horse is confident, as in confident that it will not be hurt, confused, tired, made uncomfortable.[/

Okay thank you :)
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