Jumping control help

DressageCob

DressageCob

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Hello!

I will preface this by saying I have an excellent instructor who is working with me on my issues, but I just wanted to canvas for other opinions and experiences 😊

My big cob is 8 years old. Although we mainly do dressage I have a bit of an ambition to do a BE 80 this season. We've been out competing SJ a couple of times, done farm rides etc. Cross country schooling is on the agenda for the next few weeks.

Height is never the issue with the big lad. He has got a very scopey jump (although does occasionally leave a hind toe behind when being complacent, particularly over smaller jumps) and makes a nice shape.

The main problem I've been having is control before and after the fence. He has got an enormous canter. It is naturally uphill but can become fast and flat when approaching the fence. I have to do a lot of half halting with my leg on to keep the canter together and uphill. But too much of a half halt and he goes into his default llama pose.
On landing he can be difficult to bring back. He can become unbalanced and disunited and won't always listen to me when I try to bring him back into a trot.

I am not nervous with the jumps themselves but the lack of control between fences is making me nervous. He ran out for the first time ever on Thursday on a related distance, because he galloped flat out at the first fence and then couldn't physically do the jump. Had it not had fillers he would probably have run straight through it but with the fillers it looked like a solid fence.

For now he is in a grackle with a NS turtle top bit. Before he was in a Micklem. He did cross his jaws a bit so I find the grackle marginally better but it is not a miracle cure. He has been in it for a couple of months. I have ridden him in a NS Universal but I would rather not make a habit of it. I don't always soften enough in the air (I'm working on it) so I'm conscious not to bit him up too much. Plus sometimes in that bit he goes too deep and it's like riding a headless horse.

I'm open to suggestions both for exercises and equipment. Any advice?
 
A good exercise for control is halting after each fence. Try to use your core/seat as well as the reins. Stop mabey five strides after a fence then decrease the number of strides until you have enough control to halt after about two or three strides. It get them listening to you.
Edit:I just saw your name is dressage cob; don't worry about getting a nice balanced halt just make him stop, quickly 😉
 
Halting after the fence can help but it can also make some rush more in anticipation of being pulled up, they feel the need to get over the fence in any way they can or it can cause some to spit out the dummy and stop so has to be done with care.
My preference would always be to do gridwork, more gridwork and then even more!! he will learn to shorten up and slow down because the fences make him rather than you and the lessons will be there for life in a positive way, plenty of work on the canter in general, transitions within the pace, leg yielding and in and out from walk will all help, polework on a circle is also very useful with a keen one.
 
Canter - halt is your friend. I do a few of these transitions when I’m warming up and then use them if/when B tries to bog off with me after the fence. You can use the wall/kickboards to help you.

Re bitting/nosebands - I used to have B in a grackle as he crossed his jaw and used it against me but have ended up in a chain noseband instead. Might be worth a try?
 
As above go back a step or two, regain trust regain control. Try not to do the same old same old. When he starts to expect the next jump that’s when you have issues they take over. Train different every day and forgive mistakes as that can also create anxiety.
 
We have done bits of grid work. If the jumps are big enough he jumps through nicely. If they are small he gets complacent and doesn't pick his feet up.

I find he tends to be obedient in a grid, in that he listens to me and waits. I just lose that when it comes to a course.

I sometimes have canter poles leading to a grid and that helps sit him up before the jumps.

My instructor gives us lots of variety. I jump once or twice a week, and generally we will do something technical one lesson, then something more straightforward but maybe bigger, then something complicated etc. Unfortunately, the control issue is getting worse. Probably because my horse is now solid muscle and getting pretty fit.

Thanks for the tips so far. The halting after landing was something we discussed the other day so I will give that a try.
 
The idea of gridwork is to enable the horse to figure things out for themselves. The rider remains quiet, allowing the horse to move beneath them whilst on a soft contact.

It actually may be worth considering doing less jumping and more flat work.
 
Why not try a different/stronger bit for a while? You can always change back to see what your horse is like once you’ve got them listening to you consistently.

Personally, I’m of the opinion that it’s better to have something a bit stronger in their mouth if you need to sock them in the gob to get them to come back to you in a softer bit 🤷‍♀️

My big chestnut goes nicely on the flat in a happy mouth snaffle but I have no chance of getting him back when we’re jumping. I’ve tried and it was horrendous, verging on dangerous.

If you’re worried about not softening your hands enough you can put a plait or a ribbon about a quarter of the way up your horse’s mane and aim to touch it every time you go into your jumping position.

You don’t want to throw away your contact over the fence so I wouldn’t worry too much unless you’re actively catching him in the mouth.
 
amymay said:
The idea of gridwork is to enable the horse to figure things out for themselves. The rider remains quiet, allowing the horse to move beneath them whilst on a soft contact.

It actually may be worth considering doing less jumping and more flat work.
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I see what you mean, but I do a lot of flat work. I only do flat with my other horse, and I have dressage lessons at least 3 times a week with this one.

I just don’t have the same issues in the flat work. He is never strong, he listens to my aids so I can be quiet and subtle. It’s only in jumping that I feel he doesn’t listen to me so much.

I think part of the issue is that I don’t trust him to figure things out. That’s my problem, because he’s a very honest horse. In our early attempts at gridwork he couldn’t work out how to get his legs out the way in the right order and just demolished everything. He’d only jumped solid fences before he arrived on my yard and had no respect for show jumps. We are now working better together as a partnership but I do find myself overriding because I just want it to go well. Plus I’ve found him to be very different to my little cob (who is also enthusiastic but can stop or run out if things aren’t perfect), which again is improving.

We did a grid today in his showing bridle (Pelham with two reins, Hunter noseband) and it was lovely. I think because I was aware that he was in a stronger bit, I didn’t pull at all and was very aware of softening over the fence. I could just do quiet half halts on the approach.

It still took a while to bring him back on landing. I noticed that when he landed on the correct lead he came back easily, but when on the wrong lead I struggled. This leads me to think the main issue may be my balance and seat, rather than his exuberance.

I’m sure the bulk of the issue is me, my nerves, my overthinking and general rubbishness at times. But things which trick me into believing I can do it are very useful. Like the Pelham today I suspect 😄

Thank you everyone for the ideas. ☺️
 
Remember- you don’t interfere in the grid. No half halts (you shouldn’t actually have time anyway). It’s just about the horse.

Three dressage lessons a week and two jumping sessions is a lot of school work. Maybe think of balancing them out a bit, giving the horse more hacking and blowing off steam time.

And if you are overriding a fence then that will probably be the basis for some of your issues.
 
I meant half halting on the turn on the approach rather than through the grid. Sorry I wasn’t clear.

I hack normally after the lessons. Or sometimes instead of a lesson. This is the maximum I do. Not every week. Sometimes the flatwork schooling is my instructor because I work all over the country. I keep a lot of the flatwork straightforward...we aren’t learning new things but working on what we do know. I will lessen the lessons once spring is here because my horse doesn’t like turnout in winter (he tolerates it for a few minutes then breaks fencing to bring himself in) and I don’t like him stood in a stable for 24 hours.

My little chap is so easy in comparison. He lives out in a herd 😄

You’re right...most of my problems boil down to me 😁 I used to underride and now I’ve gone too far the other way. Always striving for that happy medium!

Thank you for the advice 😊
 
The Pelham sounds like it's working well. It's interesting about him being better when landing on the correct lead. I wonder would working in counter canter on the flat help improve his balance.
 
mule said:
The Pelham sounds like it's working well. It's interesting about him being better when landing on the correct lead. I wonder would working in counter canter on the flat help improve his balance.
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I suspect you’re right. We struggle with countercanter in that he likes to just throw in a change instead of keeping the counter canter. He just finds it easier and he’s a bit quicker than me 😄 I will work some more on it. Then I can stop avoiding the dressage tests with it in!!

Thanks :)
 
Theocat said:
Does he get worse when the jumps get bigger?
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No, he gets better for the most part. He doesn't flatten them as much. I would say his enthusiasm is the same, whatever the height, but he listens more when the jumps go up because he actually has to think about them. He's less complacent.

But with a course of any sized jumps he gets excited and a bit cocky. Hence the running straight through a jump the other day 😄
 
I'm far from any sort of authority on this, but I just watched 4 Years to 4 Star on Horse and Country TV with Ros Canter - she mentioned a bit about this I think might possibly be interesting for you to watch?

Her focus was on letting the horse sort itself, especially young horses or those green when it comes to jumping. They've got to learn how to get themselves out of trouble so she puts a lot of emphasis on jumping with quite a long rein and popping them through grids regularly until they learn to back off themselves. It might not be the right approach for you but could be worth a watch.
 
Many years ago I did a Riding with your Mind course via our local R.C. I had a very sensitive ex JC jumping pony who wanted to take everything at 90 miles per hour. The instructor suggested using a neck strap to ask for "attention/slow down" before each jump. This stopped me using the reins/bit as a brake but gained the required result.
 
As well as lots of gridwork, I would also get into the habit of doing my flat schooling round fences, and occasionally just popping a fence as part of flatwork, and shortening the time gaps between pops if/as he stays calm. Perhaps also try jumping after a decent hack, so any high jinks have been taken out (although not so knackered that jumping is dangerous!)
 
I think, as others have said, the half halts are potentially making him worse. If you didn’t half halt as much in the Pelham through fear of hurting him or whatever, perhaps that’s the solution for now? And definitely work on strengthening the counter canter so he has more balance as that’s probably why he rushes when he’s on the wrong lead
 
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