How to stop my horse eating when lunging on grass?

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Hi all,

My horse has now started rehab and needs to be lunged and long reined to build up a top line with no weight on her back (various back problems and no riding allowed). My school is tiny and uneven in surface so i dont want to use it. YO has opened a lovely field for use, flat surface but a nice, very slight incline but, as the title suggests, my pig of a horse is struggling to stay focused.

Shes a smart, incredibly stubborn and extremely hot headed horse. She really needs to start being worked, she hasn't done anything now for around8/9 months. Shes goes peacefully in the school but how can i get that to transpire to the field? Trust me when i say she isn't starved or lacking in turnout/ad-lib hay - definitely a case of the grass is greener.

I have lunged her there before, last year and i long reined her in it yesterday. She will be fine then stop dead with her head to the floor and any kind of flapping from me makes her over react dramatically but she never learns the lesson!

Any help or advise? Please no nasty or snide comments - i really dont need it.
 
Are you using a lunge whip? I would just chase her with the whip - as soon as she even goes to slightly back off then crack it and chase her. Then once she brings her head up and moves forwards then take the whip away. As soon as she backs off again then chase her again. Use your voice too to tell her off.

I'm sure people may disagree but I think do anything you can to get her head up, then as soon as she focuses on you and works forward take away all pressure and praise her with your voice.
 
Have always lunged on grass as that's what we've had. Used to use side reins in the early days (many years ago) but don't think I ever had a major issue with them eating - albeit I'd only lunge on the already eaten bits, the other side of the strip grazing might have been trickier!
have also done walk work in hand so when on the lunge can trot straight off, Frank never nailed the multi tasking required to eat and trot at the same time so would just risk walloping his chin with a front leg at least. But also not hot headed so if he had stopped an absolute correction would have worked without screwing up the rehab/it depends if you need to keep slow.

Have a look at straightness training.
 
I only have a field to work in and found that when I lunged on well grazed down areas there was no problem with my very food oriented cob trying to grab a bite of grass. If I worked on an area which had plenty of grass I found the same problem as you, my solution was to use side reins, fitted quite high up but as loose as possible, just enough to stop him getting within 6 inches of the grass. I found they had to be fitted high up rather than girth level . Once he worked out he couldn't reach the grass he'd give up trying and work nicely.
 
I lunge on grass as no school, the only one who tries to eat is the Shettie x. I use a lunge whip, never had to crack it though, if snaking it isn't enough to keep her moving she gets a flick on the bottom.
 
Hannah97 said:
She will be fine then stop dead with her head to the floor and any kind of flapping from me makes her over react dramatically but she never learns the lesson!
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Echo all the above. What sort of flapping? You shouldn't be flapping! Are you lunging correctly with a whip? It is an aid, you need to use it as one, consistently, tactfully if necessary, but she needs to understand that it is the forward aid, as well as your voice! How are you lunging? Keep the circle small to start so you have control and only once you have control on a small circle, let it get bigger, and if you lose control, make it smaller again. If you are consistent and clear, she will learn.
 
Funnily, I use lunging on longish grass for exactly this reason - I want the to put their heads down and stretch for grass and it works wonderfully. The trick is to keep them doing more than walk. At walk, they stop to eat, at trot and canter they stretch and hope to grab a mouthful... it works perfectly!
 
alexomahony said:
Funnily, I use lunging on longish grass for exactly this reason - I want the to put their heads down and stretch for grass and it works wonderfully. The trick is to keep them doing more than walk. At walk, they stop to eat, at trot and canter they stretch and hope to grab a mouthful... it works perfectly!
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It is ideal for this but you do need to be really switched on to keep them moving, using a muzzle may help, the horse will still try to stretch but will be lucky if it gets the timing right to actually get anything before the handler moves it on, fill in the gap if it really insists on stopping.
 
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