indoor showjumping help needed please :/

[rocketfilly]

I have a 13y/o sports horse, we jump once a week most & compete for fun up to 1.05m. He's lovely to jump outside and generally very honest but as soon as i take him in an indoor arena to jump, he turns into the devil.
I have been doing indoor training sessions in a group and he has become ridiculously nappy, he'll charge at the fences then drop his shoulders and duck out when he gets to them, they're not even 3ft (he'll happily pop 4ft), he's in a hanging cheek snaffle (single jointed), but he has got to the point where he is getting dangerous, i've fallen off every other training session now i think. My showjumping instructor recommended a bubble bit (dutch gag) and the following week he was an angel in it, however the week after when i used that bit again he turned into even more of a monster, even started fly bucking :/
If i try and showjump indoors at a competition (when theres no horses in there to nap back to) he does the opposite and refuses to even canter.
He is completely happy jumping outside, though since being naughty indoors he is starting to get a bit funny outdoors too.
I have been working tonnes on his flatwork over winter, hopefully this might help a bit. I just can't understand it as he is so honest and lovely outdoors. His teeth & saddle have been checked & he's being booked in to have his back checked to just in case.
Does anyone have any ideas of how i can solve this problem? i don't know whether to change his bit or what to do to be honest, anyway, any help would really be appreciated, thank

 

[Sheep]

Does he live in or out? Is it possible that he is somewhat claustrophobic and panics at being in an indoor? Might he have had a bad experience in the past?

Back, teeth and saddle checks all up to date?

It sounds like much, much more than just a bitting issue..

 

[rocketfilly]

he is stabled in a large american barn at night, so is used to having a big roof over his head, is turned out during the day. Teeth have been checked recently, saddle is being refitted today and i'll be having his back checked in the next few days. BUt i doubt its any of them thats causing the problem, because otherwise he'd be really naughty outside. We had the same problem with indoor arenas last winter, i just thought i'd be able to work him through it, and eventually he wasnt too bad at that particular arena, but we're at a different indoor arena now & back to square one. :/

 

[starryeyed]

Do you have flatwork lessons with him at indoor venues (different ones if possible)? If you do, is he okay, or still unsettled?
Is it an echo-y indoor arena, as it's possible that he doesn't like the sounds of the noises bouncing off the walls? I had this problem with one of mine but she did get over it quite quickly.

How long have you had him? Is it possible that he was only ever showjumped outdoors before you got him and so he's feeling trapped in being in an indoor arena? Or alternatively that he's had a negative experience in one before - for example, maybe being asked to rush fences in jump offs, or a nasty fall or something which he'd associate with an indoor arena? Or quite simply could be that he's being naughty and knows that if he carries on he'll eventually get you off - but strange if he only does this indoors and enjoys jumping.

If he's very nappy with other horses it could be that he's insecure, is he alright to be schooled and hacked on his own?
Sorry for all the questions, will keep having a think! Hope you solve it.

 

[rocketfilly]

i do have flatwork lessons, but all outdoors atm, when we're indoors doing flatwork as we warm up for jumping competitions he is really settled though, in fact on the flat i think he works better indoors, less distractions i think.
I've had him just over 2 years, for as long as i've had him he has been naughty indoors, previous owner didn't mention anything about it, so i don't really know but as far as i know she had jumped him indoors. At first i just thought i was riding him badly and thats why he is doing it, showjumping instructor says its just him being naughty and i'm already doing everything i can to try and prevent the run outs, i just need to keep after him.
He is an angel to hack out on his own or with company, not bothered by gun shots, red arrows (planes), tractors etc, he's not a particularly spooky horse even on windy days, most if the time i couldn't wish for a better horse, but when he wants to play up, boy does he know how to make life difficult :/
think i might try a few indoor dressage competitions, just to get him used to working in an indoor arena without worrying about jumps, and hopefully he'll forget all about his little tantrums,
thanks for replying to the post xx