Lazy on the flat and sharp when jumping

[ann-jen]

Any ideas how I can give my horse more energy on the flat without turning her into a loon when jumping?
The problem I have dressage wise is she will work well for about 40 minutes and then completely runs out of steam. Dressage instructors advice is to up the hard feed. Fine if I didn't want to jump as well.
The problem I have jumping is bad behaviour - mainly rushing and occasionally bucking caused by anxiety. (There is a long story behind this - but there are no more physical problems but a lot of emotional ones). A lot of these problems have been improved by a lot of hard work and reschooling but she still has off days where she gets very tense and then I get tense and we set each other off.
Jumping instructors advice is to try her on a magnesium based calmer. Fine except will she then become even more lazy on the flat?
My aims for this year are to affiliate BD and to start jumping again unaffiliated. She currently gets turned out and therefore grass during the day. Haylage at night. She gets a handful of Happy Hoof in the morning and 1 scoop of Happy Hoof, 1/2 scoop of cool mix and 1/2 scoop competition mix at night. She's a 16hh warmblood type. She is exercised 6-7 days a week for 40-60 minutes schooling most days with occasional days competing or odd hack.
Any ideas? Does anyone have any experience of Nupafeed liquid calmer? Would it calm her anxiety jumping without making her too laid back on the flat?
Thanks.

 

[MagicMelon]

Do you do flatwork around jumps? Might spark her up a bit yet make her learn that just because there's jumps up, there's no need to get heated up when she's not even jumping them. One of mine gets grumpy with flatwork but loves his jumping, so if he starts to get fed up I usually pop a fence once or twice and then go back to work again!

Have you tried working flatwork into your jumping, so do lots of polework but on a circle etc. then rise them a little (onto bricks) etc. Id just go back to basics so she's doing flatwork over tiny weeny fences so hopefully she'll stop with the rushing / excitement factor.

I personally wouldnt put it down to feed. But I guess a calmer wouldnt do any harm. You could try it and see what happens. I have heard good things about Nupafeed which I believe just makes them more level-headed which is probably what you want.

 

[ann-jen]

At our yard we have to put the jumps away after every session so there is never any jumps out to school round. For the last 6 wks or so I have been doing polework nearly every day. The jumping a fence and then returning to flatwork is a good idea to improve her during a flat session though - I wish I could have a practice jump at dressage competitions - LOL.
At my old yard there were always jumps out and it didn't make any difference to the flatwork - I must give her the 'we are jumping cue' that sets her off I think.

[ QUOTE ]


Have you tried working flatwork into your jumping, so do lots of polework but on a circle etc. then rise them a little (onto bricks) etc. Id just go back to basics so she's doing flatwork over tiny weeny fences so hopefully she'll stop with the rushing / excitement


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This is basically what we are doing now. Leg yielding into corners before jumping, loads of transitions, riding in and around fences, circling and transitions until she's settled. It is paying off but if I let her get away with say falling in round the corner on the approach to a fence then she's off and it takes ages to settle her down again. She used to get het up right from the start of the session but now she'll either be fine all the way through the session or in my last lesson she was tense but well behaved for about 40 minutes and then when she tried charging at a fence I turned her away in a circle and then she was a nightmare for the last 20 minutes. My instructor said I shouldn't have turned her away although she could see why I did. With hind sight I should maybe of jumped it and then made her pull up on the landing side. Once she gets to that level of anxiety its difficult to settle her down again. Instructor tried a row of trot poles followed by a small cross which she managed to bounce over the poles two at a time and then do the jump.

We ended up having to end the session back with poles on the ground and walking and then halting and then walking then halting all the way up to it until we calmly stepped over it. Was very frustrated as she had been going so well through the week.
If the Nupafeed would make her level headed without being lazy that would be ideal. Personally I'm very sceptical about these things but I'm guessing it won't do any harm to try it.
Thanks for your advice.

 

[vicm2509]

I have the same problem but mine is also naughty hacking alone as he gets very nervous and also gets worked up hacking in large groups in canter as he is scared of being left behind yet wont go infront and is quite nervous when jumping aswell. But again very laid back on the flat so I would also be interested to hear answers.

 

[ann-jen]

I have to say I don't ride on the roads much as my last horse had to be PTS after being hit by a car when we were out hacking and so I only really ride around the farm or travel for off road hacking.
She's variable - one day I could hack round the farm and pass killer sheep and cows no problem and one day she'll be spooky and unpredictable. On the whole she is totally fine when other horses are present so it must be an anxiety thing too.
We went off road yesterday on a big estate near us and rode through fields of sheep and cows and she never flickered, even went through some quite deep moving water no problems.
Cantering in a group she would be fine so long as she had her nose in front. She has been on hunt rides where people have zoomed past her flat out and she's never flickered and then other times she might try to diddle off after them. She's a real Jekyll and Hyde character.