Kr*p Kellsall, failed eventer seeks new career

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digger2

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Thinking we had sorted out our nappy issues at Eden, off we went to Kellsall, with nice times and a lovely sunny day. One of our "local" events only hour and half travel.

Tense in dressage, trying hard to ignore, rush and anticipate, broke in walk. :( 38.5 - fair.

Highlight of the day was a clear SJ thought it was a nice big ring, lots of space, colourful jumps and move up from 80 to 90 helped back him off.

Quick change to xc, in my mind ready for the nap, noted patches of missing grass which might prompt a spook, and off we went, didn't fly out the box opting for controlled start, lovely over 1-2 and 3 thought that was big enough, and off down the hill, again not too fast (luckily) slap bang in the middle of the 2 jumps stopped dead gggrrr bast**d.

Sorry to the jump judges who shot out of their seats expecting to have to pick me up, :)knowing he was naughty he chucked a little rear in which poped me back in the saddle lol, rather big wallop and vocals the sod poped over the log and table like nothing had happened.

Bit wobbly to no 7 before the water but didn't feel like there was a stop just needed my leg, then flew round the rest including the corner and brush hedge albeit he was looking to the left to the lorrys and collecting ring, which must have been in his mind as we approaced the feeders with very slight turn away from the boxes and that was that, would not entertain the effort at all. :mad:

Absolutley gutted and furious, he can easily do the job, just chose not too. really thought we might have been on for our first double clear but not to be. :(:(.

Thought long and hard, i'm up for the work needed to get there, 5.45 alarm clock and all that, but cant stand the thought of not being able to trust him to do his little bit on the day. All the scope and ability just not got the attitude.

any comments, apart from try another one ( - its too expensive), welcome.

Strong coffee and sun cream, thanks for reading.
 
Have you had him scoped for ulcers? It would be worth checking on this just before you make any final decisions. Otherwise if you do not want to pay the cost then get a suppliment like https://www.feedmark.com/Product.asp?Product=Settelex and see if that makes a difference. If it does make a difference then he will need to be scoped as suppliments do not cure ulcers they only dampen them down.
 
I saw him stop and there wasn't much else you could have done but he did jump the fence before beautifully! J
Kanapark10.jpg
 
photo_jo said:
I saw him stop and there wasn't much else you could have done but he did jump the fence before beautifully! J
Kanapark10.jpg
Click to expand...

Awe thanks photo jo I was having a ball 'til then, reall enjoying it, thought he was too :(

Know the pro photo guys were at the hedge, (clearly we wont have bothered you jo) anyone know who they were, might be a nice momento!
 
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It is horrible when you put all the work in and they don't meet you half way. Ponies why we can't live with them some days and can't live without them!
It is a very frustrating place to be as he has the scope and ability and seems he just doesn't want to do the job.

It may be not what you want to hear as I had exactly the same issues with my last lad and eventually we decided eventing was not going to be his career as it was so expensive coming out and then him deciding on his terms if he was going to play or not. On a good day he would be up among the leaders and on a bad day he was thrown in the trailer never to be spoken to again.

He just didn't have the attitude and it wasn't as though he was scared or frightened and nothing medical underlying just decided it was too much like hard work and preferred to have an early bath after you had driven 3 hours to get to a competition.(perhaps he was just thoughtful so we could get home before it was dark?)

So he is now playing the perfect riding club schoolmaster and teaching a novice rider the ropes and thoroughly enjoying life now believe me it was not an easy decision as felt I had failed in not achieving what I wanted him to do despite all the hard work and training but our own agendas didn't match and I stopped enjoying it.

You know your own pony well and you have put in the effort so I'm sure you will decide what to do in the long run.Just an idea as I tried it and it stopped the knapping was go off and do jump cross as mine was a good show jumper and put him into a false sense of security as he was away into the country before he knew it as thought he was still in the SJ arena and became the jump cross king!!

Sorry not much advice but just to let you know it doesn't happen just to you!! Chin up and don't get too down about it as tomorrow is another day. :)
 
digger2 said:
Awe thanks photo jo I was having a ball 'til then, reall enjoying it, thought he was too :(

Know the pro photo guys were at the hedge, (clearly we wont have bothered you jo) anyone know who they were, might be a nice momento!
Click to expand...

rather surprisingly the pro guys were not at the hedge for the intro:confused: I thought it was the stand out fence in terms of pics for the intro -they chose the water and the hayrack after the corner-(I was disappointed with the pics they had of my horse) the guys at the hedge were the local camera club! I got the majority of section E there
 
aw sorry you had a cr88 day :(
is it worth taking him to a few small hunter trials and just trot and pop around then if you have a stop you can go from a stand still and carry on or even miss the fence and carry on if he really digs his heals in so he isn't learning if he stops its home time ?

you have prob already done that but might be worth a try if you haven't :)
 
I agree with Lec - my final resort would be a loss of performance work up at a top top competition horse vets. I had to do this with my horse after two equine vets told me it was my riding not the horse. I self referred to a different practice and got booked in for loss of performance workups - morning was scoping for ulcers, afternoon was lameness workups from the foot up. We never got to the afternoon! The only signs my horse showed was that he refused to SJ - he was still going round novice XC clear.

If that showed nothing, well, as you say, it's too expensive a sport to keep having days like that, and there are plenty of other jobs a horse can do. Whether you choose to do them with him, or choose to find him someone who wants to do those things is really up to you - buthaving had a horse which didn't want to play ball in the past, whilst the decision was hard, the relief when I'd made it and found her a new job was unbelievable!
 
How massively frustrating - I have been there and got the t shirt with my old horse so trust me I know the feeling! My Welsh D also had all the ability and scope and would do it all beautifully at home and at schooling (and occasionally when he fancied it out competing) but then 9 time out of 10 when we went out he would just pack it in at the first fence because he simply couldn't be bothered.

I think the only advice that I could offer you as it were is to take him to some unaffiliated stuff if there is any round you and ride him round the cross country in a way that gives him no other option but to get on with it and jump. I know I haven't really put that in the best way sorry! You said in your OP that he started to throw his toys out of the pram between two fences? A friend of mine had a horse that started to do this and a winter of hunting made all the difference - don't know if you already hunt him or if you've tried this?


I know its hard but in the end I came to the conclusion with mine that selling him really was going to be the best option, he is now in a fantastic home doing really really well with trailblazers stuff where there is a lot less pressure on him. Best of luck though, I know the feeling but for what its worth he looks absolutely fabulous in the picture posted below :)
 
photo_jo said:
I saw him stop and there wasn't much else you could have done but he did jump the fence before beautifully! J
Kanapark10.jpg
Click to expand...

Cracking picture !!

photo_jo -- did you by any chance get any of number 71 over this (he jumped it beautifully and we are trying to track one down!!) Little black and white chap, with me wearing royal blue and an air vest - looks a bit like this !! .....

picture.php
 
harrietadams said:
Cracking picture !!

photo_jo -- did you by any chance get any of number 71 over this (he jumped it beautifully and we are trying to track one down!!) Little black and white chap, with me wearing royal blue and an air vest - looks a bit like this !! .....

picture.php
Click to expand...

Sorry riding myself when you went-local camera club were there-I'll try and find out if they have one. V annoying best fence on the course and the people doing pics on the day chose the smallest fence:mad: Thanks for filling in ERA form btw-much appreciated. J
 
My advice...dont give up!

How old is he? I had these issues with Shaun, and it has taken me 5 years to get him mentally able to do what i ask! Depends if u want to go down the long rode of tears, blood and sweat!

x
 
photo_jo said:
Sorry riding myself when you went-local camera club were there-I'll try and find out if they have one. V annoying best fence on the course and the people doing pics on the day chose the smallest fence:mad: Thanks for filling in ERA form btw-much appreciated. J
Click to expand...

Thanks - that would be great:)

Not at all :D think the forms are a really great idea!!
 
At the end of the day it is our hobby and 'enjoyment'. If you are sure he physically fine then it may be it is just not the job for him, you could keep trying for another year but may find he always dissapoints. I think you need to think seriously about whether you want to keep trying or if he would better off doing another job :(
 
Oh you poor thing, how frustrating for you :( :(. Does this often happen then? Does it happen at a particular type of fence or is it totally random? Does he always showjump well?

He may have a niggle. I had a brave mare who started stopping at oxers, turned out she was really sick and it hurt to stretch :(.

If you really think it's just attitude (and you know him best) then it may be time to find him a different job. Eventing is SO expensive, really not worth it if your ending the day with lots of tears and a big fat E and you try so hard but feel like your banging your head on a brick wall.

Plenty of horses who will do that level happily. The thing I love the most about my horse is that he never ever let's me down competing and is always on my side 100%, there's no feeling like it. Everyone who puts as much effort as we all do deserves a horse who wants to do it as much as we do :)
 
Didn't get as far as you have but this is why I (finally) put my horse up for sale. He just does not enjoy his XC at all - highly frustrating as does well in the other 2 areas and oddly enough, really loves his hacking. Fingers crossed he passes the vetting tomorrow before going off to be with a nice couple who think he is fantastic as he is, and not a failed event horse. He put a lovely big smile on the ladies face but it has been a very hard call to make. I won't think about it though till he has passed, been paid for and gone..
 
Thanks for your comments everyone.

Photo-jo, sorry if my comments were odd, computer at work doesn't show pics so cant see the one you have posted !!

Saw the camera club guys after the hedge and assumed they were the pros.

Thankfully the weather is nice this week, i've turned out, and am having a think, deep down feel it is an attitude thing, am really not sure i could ever trust him, and i would like to progress beyond 90.

Its not one type of jump and he's more than willing to stop dead between jumps, thinking about it the stop between 3 and 4 was as we turned properly away from the lorrys/collecting ring.

He's won at county in youngstock classes, maybe showing /WH might be his thing?

(not mine tho)

Thanks again not being the only one lessens the bitter blow :o
 
How old is he and does he hack alone? Mine is the same and i have been battling with it for a year now and I too thought eventing just wouldnt be her game-great with the fences but slammed the breaks on between fences heading away from start bow/lorry park- found it a waste of money so have taken things back a few steps and let her grow up a bit including making her hack on her own/more independant at home and yesterday we managed to get all the way round a small hunter pace- one napping incident but we completed for the first time ever. So i would say do not give up!! I was already to sell my girl last summer after lots of eliminations and me falling off at most events but yesterday was light at the end of the tunnel and confidence for both of us and i might even enter a BE soon. Good Luck i hope it works out :)
 
Going against most of what people have said so far...

Got mine when he was 12, he'd evented up to BE100 with a pro but obviously been hauled round and as soon as he realised I wanted him to want to do it, and didn't want to make him, he told me in no uncertain terms that he DIDN'T want to do it and could I please go away!!

We couldn't get out the startbox, if we could we'd stop at fences 1-5 and then generally get going. Even at BE he'd get 2/3 of the way round, get a bit tired or unfocused and then call it a day, stopping at part b of every combination and just in case I didn't get the idea, chucking in some small rears and bucks and lots of running backwards. He'd nap back to the horseboxes, nap to other horses, nap at pretty much everything, and sometimes he wouldn't go just because I'd told him to!!

I would get SO frustrated when we'd be having a brilliant round, bold as brass, and then out of nowhere he'd run out at something - once it even happened at the last fence!!

But I've stuck at it, because I know that he's got all the talent in the world and I couldn't afford to go out and buy something readymade, and he's the sweetest horse on the ground! I'm now home full time, riding every day, taking him on lots of long hacks, and for the first time we really have a bond and he's actually trying. We did our 2nd BE100 at the weekend and he'd been stressing a lot in the run up and completely lost his edge - too much adrenaline for too long! He was making silly mistakes in front of jumps, almost fell flat on his face at one point when he forgot what to do with his legs, and we got a silly runout when he just didn't register a fence, but despite all that he tried his little socks off right to the end. If he got too close he'd make an extra effort to pick up and there was none of the napping at all.

That was a pretty crap day, but 2 years ago we wouldn't have got halfway round - on Friday he was really scraping the barrel to keep focused and get us round!! On a good day (and we're getting more and more of them, and better each time) there's nothing you can put in front of him he won't jump and most importantly, he's the one carrying me to the fences - I was told he was a horse who would always need riding in!!

Sorry to have written a gushing essay but my point is that if you have the time and the patience, sometimes they come good :)
 
argh how frustrating for you :( i have to agree with some of the others that it might be a case of finding a new job for him to do...been there myself a few years ago. had a very pretty grey horse who had bags of scope (PN easy- was schooling Novice no problem) but also bags of attitude. i persevered with him for a long time because when he was good he was very good- top 4 placings at both intro and PN....but when he was bad he was horrid- stopping when there was no reason to stop and refusing to budge... eventually i sold him as a dressage horse. he is now well loved and enjoying the bit of jumping he does with them. he just didn't want to event it would appear. you know your horse best, so it might be worth trying the ulcers route... but otherwise good luck in what you decide. FWIW my 'new' (i've had him 2 years) horse has made me appreciate what a ***** my old horse was. he's much spookier and i fall off him all of the time. he's also a wimp and its taken ages to get him to the point of being able to event- but he is genuine. if he stops its because he's scared or i have done something stupid.... and i love him to pieces, don't think i would ever sell him.... :)
 
photo_jo said:
I saw him stop and there wasn't much else you could have done but he did jump the fence before beautifully! J
Kanapark10.jpg
Click to expand...

Now at home and can see the pic, think I'm even more annoyed!!!!! Can do wont bother attitude ggrr.

Thanks for letting me see the pic tho, will put that in my confidence bank for next time.
 
Is this you digger2? Im going by your xc colours in the other pic! I was fence judging at the water and took a few photos when I could:

IMG_4699.jpg


Re your problem, also been there and done that. My horse went up to Novice and then one day decided he didnt want to do competitive xc anymore. It was highly frustrating as he would school all day long but in comps he would get to fence 5ish and have enough. Im thinking I might try it again though, as we went to kelsall to go xc schooling today and he flew over everything I asked and we both throughly enjoyed it.
I hope it does come right for you :)
 
I'm sorry you had a rubbish time, it does sound like he is getting there though. I was at Eden Valley in the 80, my second event lol. I was also booked to do the 90 at Kelsall but I withdrew because my horse had a little knock in the field and came up a little short in trot, he looks absolutely fine but didn't want to risk it. Sounds like you will probs be at very similar events to us though :)

keep at it. Your horse looks lovely.
 
How long have you been trying to event him for?
How many cross countries/hunter trials has he done?
Has he done any pairs xc?

I ask because they have several brilliant jumping horses in one of the yards that i work at. Two of them took a good 18 months to produce because they were solid brats for 18 months. Napping, refusing, not wanting to go near fences-Generally freaking out- and there was nothing you could do except sit there and ride it out. Both these horses had exceptional jump ability and just had to be given time to get used to the show atmosphere and settle down into it all- think they went out several times a month for a good 10 months of the year.
Now they both practically win every time out and are absolute jump machines.

I dont know how long youve been trying for, but if its only a handfull of events that youve done, then consider trying for a bit longer. I think we can all expect it to happen far too quickly.
 
I would def suggest trying the feedmark supplement. Another thing maybe to consider is one if those animal communicators ? I had a horse similar attitude - he would leave me in tears on the way home he could be that bad. If he hadn't died this would have been my next port of call
 
Digger where on courses has he previously stopped. What struck me in your post was he was going down a hill and that would prompt me to get loss of performance work up done. I may be way off the mark but we were on the verge of retiring a pointer last year who kept pulling himself up despite working super at home....then we ran him on a flat track! we twigged the issue and got it sorted and is now flying in a new home teaching a novice rider the ropes. I may be a mile off but you never know. Pic looks fab. It is soul destroying when these things happen.
 
but above all, just remember that this is supposed to be your relaxation and hobby. If it it isn't working and you aren't enjoying it, then I honestly don't see the point of carrying on!. I have gone down that route so many times - yes I might have kind of got there - in the end - but I could have gone a lot further if I had reviewed my horses earlier. I finished my first ever intro on an absolutle cricket score and was delighted to have nursed my horse round!. He finally went back (after 18 months) to point to pointing as was never consistent with water. Schooling didn't help as he "knew" all the waters and would go in an out all day. New course, new water, not a chance. I finally ended up with a mare who not only had the t'shirt, she had written the book. Took 6 months to get her back into full time work, and she took me upto Novice .. in 18 months. Double clear was the only acceptable outcome with her. So, same amount of time, similiar money to pay for the horses, same costs and effort put into it BUT.. enjoyment level - off the scale. Would I push myself with a horse that doesn't have its heart? well I have tried with mine and because he is so much fun and does everything else with ease I kept going. I should have let him go a long time ago. I have a lovely unspoilt and bold boy now, I have professionial help to get him going and will take it steadily but my ulitmate objective is to get back to Novice.

I am older too which has a real bearing on my decisions. When you are in your 20's, you are far more gung ho and I sat on numerous difficult horses and loved it. If no one else wanted to sit on it, I did. As I keep telling the girls at our yard - this bravery/stupidity/whatever does go. Mine has waved goodbye so my horse must do the job I want him to do and safely or he will be sold on. I really did try to convert to SJ and DR only but just never had the same satisfaction (or fear factor) I get from eventing. Finally (!) eventing is EXPENSIVE!!, horribly horribly so. I know - you get 3 for the price of 1 fee but to bring a horse on to have any capability is a big task. I have one semi retired horse (old event mare) who will live out her days with me so not a fan of selling on but you must do what ultimately will make you happy and looking forward to what you want to do and enjoy the most.
 
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