Horse rushing at fences (back to basics?) Advice please

[spotty_pony]

I have finally got time to start schooling/jumping my mum''s eight year old ISH again. Last year, we were competing in Unaffiliated Dressage at Prelim Level and Unaffiliated Show Jumping up to 85cm. Then, in March I bought a project pony to bring on and sell so I didn't have time to ride him as well as my boy so he has just been hacking out for the last five months. I have just started riding him and he is going well on the flat and I want to start jumping him again.

However, he is finding it all too exciting! I attempted to jump a very small cross pole the other day and we were about ten strides away when he spotted the fence, his head went up and he tried to rush (we were only in trot!) so I turned away and tried again but the same thing happened so I decided to leave it, as I don't want him to learn that he can rush his fences. His back, teeth and saddle have all been checked and are fine so I think he is just excited to be doing it again! Some of you may remember my post last winter about not being able to hold him when he gets excited. He was in a loose ring snaffle for everything but last winter he started taking advantage of it and I lost control a couple of times out hacking. After a lot of thought and advice we decided to try him in a straight bar happy mouth dutch gag on the second ring and he was a lot better and is fine out hacking with my mum in this bit, although I am still a bit unsure as to whether I can hold him - he did unnerve me a couple of times last winter when I hacked him out in the snaffle and lost control, so I'm not sure if it's just because I have lost trust in him. I am going to book a lesson soon but I was just wondering what everybody else would do in this situation? I really want to be able to ride him and jump him like I used to but at the moment I am stuck in a bit of a rut.

Sorry for the long post! Thank you if you took the time to read all of it! Any advice/ideas would be much appreciated. Thanks

 

[orionstar]

Have a jump set up in the arena regardless of whether your going to jump or not so the horse dosent immediatly see it and think yah! Then use placing poles and grid work when you do jump to give him something extra to think about, and fillers placed at the side of the jump to try and get him to back off a little, this worked for my youngster who decided after a few months of jumping that the only way to do it was flat out once she'd seen the jump once - we went right back to basics.

 

[Rachaelpink]

Grid work as mentioned above and also circling infront of the jump and only jumping it when the horse isn't rushing. Trying to relax also helps, although I know how difficult that is!

 

[spotty_pony]

Thank you.