i need help, my horse wont canter

am3l1a

am3l1a

Well-Known Member
Joined
4 February 2010
Messages
101
Visit site
hi, my names amelia im 16 and have bought an irish sports horse x, 10 years old. i bought Beauty as a project to bring on and sell. i have had her for 4 months and have gone back to basics with her as she was very confused about the aids. she can walk,trot, do pole work, jumps ,but she just wont canter in the school. Beauty's trot is very good, she picks her legs up high and can be very fast. In her past i am very sure that she has been driven, so i have been trying to slow her trot down and ask for the canter but it just doesnt work.


i have spent quite a lot of time going on hacks and getting her to canter there which has been working and getting her to go forward. she has also built up muscle. i have been doing jumping in trot to strengthen her hind quaters and she does break into canter on landing. i have also lunged her in canter and she is fine with it but if i ask for canter in the school while riding, she just slows right down and bucks. The whip is no use either it just makes her buck bigger. I would be so greatful if you could help me and advise me on the best thing to do
frown.gif


thankk yoouu Amelia x
 
Hi Amelia

To be completely honest it is nearly impossible to advise you without seeing you riding your horse
frown.gif
Is there any way you could get some video of you riding her to post and then more specific advice could be given
smile.gif


x
 
It is really difficult to comment without seeing the two of you together but I get the impression you are seeking finesse without establishing forward movement. Lighten your contact, even take a two point seat and really encourage her to go forward, then think about controlling the pace once you have got her going. Once she understands that cantering in the school is OK you can lengthen and shorten in canter and work on your strike off.

You will start off with some messy 'running' transitions, that is just a phase that you have to work through. Lateral work will help with strengthening the hindquarters to assist your strike off too.

Don't struggle on your own though, a good instructor on the ground could save you an awful lot of time
 
As weezy says, its difficult to say without actually seeing it.

However, whe you say she slows the trot and bucks when you ask for canter it sounds a little like she is backing off your leg commands for canter.
If that is the case you need to look at why - she obviously can canter if she does it hacking, jumping and on the lunge.
Have you had her back/tack/teeth etc checked to eliminate any pain?
It could be poor training in the past that she has been allowed to get away with not cantering, or she is misunderstanding your aids for canter.

Alternatively she may just be taking the p!!
 
thank you for your comments
laugh.gif
yhhh i will try and get a video up on here, i'm not sure how but i'll work it out
smile.gif
and yhh beauty did have a problem with moving away from the leg so i have been doing leg yield with her. but also going into canter she'll lean one way so i can pick up the right leg. im not bothered about her picking up the leg at the moment, but it makes it so awkward to ask her to go forwards because she kicks in. would i be best just to ride her through it ..??
 
i'd say get her back and teeth and saddle etc. checked first to rule out anything else that could be causing a problem.

if she is still struggling try lots of pole work.
 
and yes to roody2. shes a typical mare and wants to do things her way !! i have had her teeth and tack checked, but not her back. i was told by her previous owner that she had her back check, but i might get it checked just incase.

but also, i do think she is taking the piss ! on the other hand, me kicking and using the whip. is that making too much of a fuss about it ..??
 
If you say she might have been a driving horse in the past that might explain why she finds it difficult to canter,she either hasent been taught to canter or might find it hard to canter if she has always been stopped from cantering when being driven.
 
yeah i would question whether the back could be an issue? I do equine sports massage and commonly find horses who struggle in the trot-canter transition have some lower back discomfort. Definately worth getting it double checked before you proceed. Also saddle and teeth. Once you know those are ok then it is a case of looking with the schooling to see how is the most effective way forward. Otherwise what about practising transitions to canter outside of the school first?
 
Definitley try and ride her through it, the mare I had a couple of years ago did this when I asked her to go into canter in the school, if she was bored or basically just didn't fancy it she would either kick in or buck and twist, however she just got told to get on with it and ridden through. However with your girlie it may be because she is not entirely sure what you are asking or because she does not feel confident enough going foward in the school, or as Roody2 said she may just be taking the p!

2 thoughts that have just occured to me though; you say she canters on the lunge, would it be possible to either have a lunge lesson with a good instructor (best option) or have someone lunge her whilst you sit on her and see if she will canter.
Alernativley maybe see if you can build up her confidence cantering in the school through jumping, if she lands in canter and seems relativley enthusiastic about jumping you could pop her over some fences, maybe two fences three or four strides apart, and just see if you can get her to hold canter between them, they needn't be big, literally just x poles would probably work.
Please feel free to ignore this advice though! I am probably talking rubbish so anyone please correct me if I am!
 
Please do not take offence because I am only offering an honest opinion
wink.gif

Do you really think that you have enough experience to train this horse yourself?
I have been riding for 36 years and I have just 'trained; a horse for the first time, i will never do it again, but I have kept him and have a good relationship with him as I have owned him for 3 years, but my god.............. I have had hell with him.
Whipping and kicking will not always achieve the desired result, some horses have issues which go deeper than that.
I dont know you or the horse and you may have all the skill required, but as you are only 16 years old I wondered if you really had got the expertize to do this.
I know i couldn't have at 16.
 
i definately will get her back checked then !! i have noticed she walks and trots holding her tail slightly to the right, is that a sign or could it be from driving and something irritating her from behind and is now a habit ..?
 

i am at a stables where there is a lot of people around, my friend trains ex race horses and my riding instructor has done everything, all her stages and things.

im obviously not that experienced but i believe i can do it with my friends help. no way would i be able to do it on my own !! i just thought it would be a good bit of experience. im not training her for the money at all, but do hope to sell her. i did take a bit of a gabble, maybe she is too much for me to handle. but she has come so far in a few months, i think we're doing well together
smile.gif


im not taking offence at all, i appreciate your help
smile.gif
its nice to get lots of peoples opinions
smile.gif
 
I spy a manor farm girly !!
smile.gif
Even though you don't realise you have made huge progress with the little mare - keep going with her she looks like a different pony to when she arrived
smile.gif
I think she finds the confines of school a bit confusing as she is having to deal with a pace that doesn't come naturally to her,corners and ridiculous school that we have. As you have said she can and will canter out hacking - keep with it lovely
smile.gif
 
AHA! So school is small, corners come fast, she used to be driven - bingo, there you go, for starters anyway! Out hacking try doing transitions within the canter, so slow it down, push her on, bring it back, etc., show her how elastic she can be if she wants to, and it will help. Good luck, looking forward to seeing the vid!
 
[ QUOTE ]

i am at a stables where there is a lot of people around, my friend trains ex race horses and my riding instructor has done everything, all her stages and things.

im obviously not that experienced but i believe i can do it with my friends help. no way would i be able to do it on my own !! i just thought it would be a good bit of experience. im not training her for the money at all, but do hope to sell her. i did take a bit of a gabble, maybe she is too much for me to handle. but she has come so far in a few months, i think we're doing well together
smile.gif


im not taking offence at all, i appreciate your help
smile.gif
its nice to get lots of peoples opinions
smile.gif


[/ QUOTE ]

Bless you x
wink.gif

Sounds like you have help on hand then when you need it.
Good luck, I admire your dedication to doing it.
 
This girl is an absolute superstar - she is totally dedicted to her horse and takes all the rough with the smooth,any feedback she puts into practice and is generally a lovely person to have on the yard. Hacking over the weekend perhaps??
smile.gif
smile.gif
Glad you have found this place - some really sound advice is given on here and has got me out of many a confusing time
smile.gif
 
aha manor farm ;P the transitions out on a hack definately sounds like thats what i need ! yyaaayyy so much advice !! i'll definately take it all on board !! i might actually start to get somewhere again !i will get the video so you can all see the dodgy horse and rider ;P x
 
Does sound like she's doing a really good job
smile.gif
Honestly, I have been in the same situation, when I first got my boy he couldn't trot a 20m circle, now he works novice on a good day
smile.gif
. Its bl**dy hard work and its taken me almost two years for it to come right but don't give up because it will be worth it in the end I promise
smile.gif

And yes I have had people tell me I wasn't experienced enough, and looking back I wasn't however it has taught me so, so much and really drummed home to me that there are no shortcuts and the basics must be there. Really looking foward to hearing more updates
smile.gif
x
 
also remember to use your voice when you cant er on a hack. as she canters say canter. and keep repeating canter every stride. lots of praise all the time she is cantering. Same when you lunge.
also make sure that you are not trying to hard to get her to canter. it can be such hard work when they are like this, Just a thought try looking over your outside shoulder as you ask just in case you are leaning inwards, seen that happen a couple of times

Good luck and do let us know how your going on. a video would be great but also explain how things feel too
 
Amelia - sounds like you are doing a good job and where you know you need some help, you have come on here to ask. Good for you hun. Just wanted to echo what was said above, as a driving horse she will have been taught NOT to canter. And she may have been punished if she DID. So she may just be horribly confused at the moment.
 
[ QUOTE ]
i definately will get her back checked then !! i have noticed she walks and trots holding her tail slightly to the right, is that a sign or could it be from driving and something irritating her from behind and is now a habit ..?

[/ QUOTE ]

Carrying the tail to one side is a real red flag that something in their back needs attention. Get her back looked at as soon as you can. In the meantime I'd leave cantering in the school until you get the back checked and have her comfortably cantering in a larger space.

Does she respond to a voice aid for canter? If she does try to use this to help you out, if not start using voice aids now on the lunge and hacking they are really useful with youngsters.
 
i do try and really think about how im riding so im asking her to do everything properly and do use my voice a lot. she'll go from walk to trot with just me saying it. she'll respond to canter on the lunge and mostly on hacks. and will definately get her back checked then !!

thank you for your advice
smile.gif
x
 
just to let you all know, the mare that wouldnt canter...... had a foal !!!!!!!!! thats why she couldnt canter!!! we got the vet in may .. 6 weeks later little Alfie was born :) x x
 
i can sooo empathise - i also took on a 10yr old ISH with serisous issues - hers was from badly fitting saddles - and having only ever hunted - so basically straight lines - she could bearly trot round the arena when i first started with her - canter was just a total no-no!!

you are doing all the right things from what i can read - and some of the advice on here is fab :) def check back and saddle - mines is checked every 3months due to her previous issues and even when nothing is really wrong a sports massage does help her :)

i didn't ask for canter in arena until we'd really 'got it' on hacks and on lunge - then i'd ask with voice and get up off her back into xc position and let her canter about freely in the arena - she'd motobike etc but she was cantering and not bucking (yup she was (and still is :rolleyes:) a bucker!) i couldnt sit to her canter for quite a while or she'd block up again

it did take ages but we got there as you can see from my sig ;)

keep going at it - sounds like you're making progress already - you'll get there x

ps - Honey STILL holds her tail to one side btw - its habit now - back is fine
 
Have you had her back, teeth, tack etc checked?

It could be the rider unbalancing her.
Are your aids clear?

Is her canter on the lunge nice or rushed and all over the place?

Get a good instructor, they can see you riding and advise what to do from what they see.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top