Ideas for making lunging more interesting

[Hullabaloo]

My horse has had a sore back and the vet has recommended 6 weeks lunging in a pessoa.
We've just started week 5. We're doing walk, trot & canter transitions, different sized circles and raised poles as suggested by the vet. He's getting really bored (I'm not that thrilled either!) - we've been through the naughty phase and now he just can't be bothered.
Any ideas what else I can do to try and make it more interesting for us both?

 

[TiaPony]

someone else i think used their pessoa to long rein, a change of scenery could do him good?
x

 

[NewHeights_SJ]

What about long reining, is this allowed? It means you could acutally get out and about a bit, maybe for a walk around some fields or something?

 

[mickey]

I don't know quite how much you are allowed to do with him as he has a sore back. But you could try a pole at each quarter of a big circle......or normal trot/canter poles......perhaps some grid work???? Some people also place trot poles at various distances apart so that the horse has to find it's way through them, more taxing than if they are all equi-distant.

Another thing you could do is see how spooky he is by placing garden chairs in the school (maybe with poles on) or old rugs on the floor, (get him to walk over them) flapping plastic bags attached to the fence. You can use this groundwork to make him less spooky if he's that way inclined.

Long reining is good - You could perhaps set up cones and test your control at walk weaving in and out of them/through them......

 

[Tia]

Yep I'd agree with Feefee - take her long reining.

 

[Hullabaloo]

Thanks guys - think I'll try Mickey's idea of long reining in the school first to make sure I've got control before we venture anywhere, but could be fun. Like the idea of the poles at different distances too, that should make him think.
The only restrictions we have are that he's working behind the vertical and has no weight on his back.