In Hand issues

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DiNozzo

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Got a lovely new horse recently, a rising 7yo cob, apparently backed last year and ridden out on hacks etc. Then has been turned away for a year.

At home he is mostly sweet. He wanders around after you, comes to call in the field and is a poppet to put headcollar on. He'll also move away from you, forwards/backwards/sideways in his stable.

However, he has no real understanding of anything. Follows you around so I can get him to and from the field, but couldn't be trotted up for the vet. Doesn't seem to know voice aids either.

I've tried longlining him, to no great effect- got the hang of steering after roughly half an hour but seemed incredibly backwards.

I've never had a horse so old that doesn't know the very basics before, so anyone have any good tips?
 
Sounds like he needs to learn everything from scratch. If you don't know how to teach a horse how to do these things correctly, you need an instructor who is experienced with youngsters. Some very good instructors have no experience with teaching things from scratch so choose carefully.

If you wanted to learn groundwork correctly some of Heather Moffatt's EE instructors offer specific in hand lessons. There is a lady in Wales who offers lessons with her school masters and also does 3 day clinics. Can't blooming remember her name though
 
He may not necessarily have been taught to long rein for the backing process, some people don't.

He sounds a lovely boy so if he doesn't understand something I think it is safe to say he hasn't been taught it, so start at the beginning and teach him :)
 
LJR said:
He may not necessarily have been taught to long rein for the backing process, some people don't.

He sounds a lovely boy so if he doesn't understand something I think it is safe to say he hasn't been taught it, so start at the beginning and teach him :)
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See, this is my issue, I have seen videos of him being long-reined and then being sat on, but he just doesn't seem to understand whats being asked of him, he just accepts life and the strange things people do to him.

He is exceptionally lovely, and sweet, and he seems interested and engaged, but he just doesn't seem bothered enough by life to really learn from his experiences if that makes sense, but not shut down?
 
Oh, sorry! Fair enough, then I would still go about teaching him, and I would really pay attention to voice commands.

Sometimes the lovely quiet ones can act like this if they are worried, and not show it in a spooky way.

If you haven't had him long then I am sure he come on in time :)
 
DiNozzo said:
See, this is my issue, I have seen videos of him being long-reined and then being sat on, but he just doesn't seem to understand whats being asked of him, he just accepts life and the strange things people do to him.

He is exceptionally lovely, and sweet, and he seems interested and engaged, but he just doesn't seem bothered enough by life to really learn from his experiences if that makes sense, but not shut down?
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Sounds like he is going to be worth a lot of money when you have taught him :) they type that everyone is looking for :)
 
EQUIDAE said:
Sounds like he is going to be worth a lot of money when you have taught him :) they type that everyone is looking for :)
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He's got fairly rubbish conformation so not too sure about that, but he is a lovely boy to have around, and when he has 'spooked' he's only ever done a little jump and then stopped to look!
 
Ha, ha. I feel your pain. I'm currently trying to teach an eight year old pony to lead. She just plants herself. Totally relaxed, just won't move. She's not broken, just bred some foals. She was feral but is really quiet. She thinks I'm mad. I'm hoping to train her to drive (she's 10hh). OH thinks I'm mental.
 
Okay, so pony will now walk in hand politely, has stopped barging, turns and stops politely from just me stopping.

Will walk on and stand from a voice aid, and moves sideways from me pointing in a direction and saying over.

I get not get him to trot. Nothing I do induces him to trot, not waving a bag/ a lunge whip, a whip with a bag tied on, following another pony. Running as fast as I can, he just walks faster, and when I get to the end of the lunge line he just pokes his nose instead.

I am sort of tempted to get one of the other horses in the field that bullies him to chase my pony but I don't want to mean!

Any suggestions?
 
I've found you cannot 'drag' them into trot, you have to push them into it. Stand at the shoulder with the head and neck ahead of you, lead rope in the right hand and long whip in the left and ask for trot. If the pony doesn't trot, flick with the whip in your left hand towards the quarters/flank to push them forwards. I don't mean hit them with it but a good flick to encourage forward movement - it's all about timing. Use your excited positive voice too!
 
EQUIDAE said:
I've found you cannot 'drag' them into trot, you have to push them into it. Stand at the shoulder with the head and neck ahead of you, lead rope in the right hand and long whip in the left and ask for trot. If the pony doesn't trot, flick with the whip in your left hand towards the quarters/flank to push them forwards. I don't mean hit them with it but a good flick to encourage forward movement - it's all about timing. Use your excited positive voice too!
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Yeah this was the issue that I was having- do you think that if I lead and someone else tried to send him forward that it would be more effective? He doesnt react when I try to use a whip and tried - I resorted to using it quite hard whilst asking him forward and he just didnt react.
 
To make my lazy horse more responsive to my legs I started from ground work again.
So first he stands and I tap him on the side (where your leg would be)but I start with very light tap-tap-tap and increase the pressure every five seconds until he moves, as soon as he does I stop and reward him with a "good boy" and a scratch on the wither.
I would do that 3 times and move on to the next stage which would be would be for him to continue walking so I repeat the same and when he stops walking a tap-tap -tap until he walk again. When you feel he understands that move on to trot. So you start with walk, once you have a good walk you start tapping again very small pressure at first and increase until he trots (he needs to find the answer himself as to what you are asking). Once he trots you stop the pressure , say good boy and a scratch on the wither. Then repeat a few times to make sure he's got it ! You can use the voice command first before starting the pressure so he learns voice commands.
The essential thing (for me) is that the pressure has to be very quick tap-tap-tap and increase pressure until I get the response that I want. If I stop before, he will learn to do the wrong thing !
I was also doing next to him but walking backward at first so it's easy to have the exact place for the whip.
 
Got him trotting!

I had to resort to using food, which I hadn't wanted to do as he is a bit nibbly and can be quite rude about his food.

However he does now trot when I run- as long as he is trotting towards me! Not convinced that he has learned the voice aid, but it certainly better than before!

He also is starting to move away from me, instead of wanting to be on top of me the entire time- a lack of confidence I suppose which is slowly getting better.

Need to keep going until I can ask him to move off from behind and he doesn't just turn round to nuzzle into me! Do you think a foot soldier would be useful or counter-intuitive? I'm currently just working him in the arena with a head collar and lead rope
 
Update:

The baby horse now has a field friend! Glad that someone likes him and the horse that bullied him badly has left the yard.

I can also lead him- he takes part actively now, and will stand/walk/trot and turn from a voice aid. Have done some sideways stuff with him as 'over' because he was such a pig sometimes on the ground and he's now pretty good at moving away from a pointed finger.

He now lunges really well- does transitions from halt up to trot and back down again, canter is still quite messy but he is getting the hang of it.

Also long reins, not particularly forwards, but he does!- just a couple more arena sessions then some hacking on long reins with a foot soldier (we don't have any help, or suitable nanny horses).

Very happy with the hairy boy (getting clipped soon!) especially as only working him 3x a week due to work at the minute.
 
Is he from Ireland? Mine had been in the UK a few weeks and when we tried to trot him up for the vetting, he just wouldn't! We tried all sorts and eventually, busting a paper bag finally made him move! Lunging was hilarious, I was used to push button voice command warmblood then got cobwhoknewnothing. Green as grass, bless him.

I bet yours is going to be a dream! Mine knows his own strength and can occasionally be bargy, but only when he's really had enough, dream boy otherwise. Have you got pics?
 
I bought him as an Irish cob, but from someone in England.

He's really lovely, lacks confidence so did want to be on top of me a lot, to protect him from the big bad world, but he seems to be growing a lot recently in confidence and size- he was meant to stay 15.2 but he's gone bum high again!

Mines the same- long reining him last week was hilarious! just decided he'd had enough and towed me into a corner. He just looked like he was walking but I was 45 degrees to the floor asking him to stop! (This has mostly reduced since bitting... ).

I find stopping and offering food and a scratch every 10/15 minutes or so at the moment helps prevent those moments. It does seem to help him concentrate for longer and longer each time.

No pics as broken phone and camera!
 
Food is extremely useful with cobs! First time trying to lunge, stupidly imagining he would know how, he just dragged me over in the lunge pen: shameful!
 
Yes! Though it didn't help with lunging exactly, more his confidence, which then enabled him to lunge? His first time he kept turning towards me for a cuddle! proper sweetheart.
 
He sounds like the twin of mine! Kept turning in to get to mummy, under confident, no idea what I wanted! Bless! And a swine to get into canter on the lunge! Took a lot of practice, but he's good now, just has a mini tantrum at the start, head between legs, squealing, bucking! Makes me die!
 
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