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Christmas_Kate

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When we got G there were a few things he wasnt so great at, ie having anything spray near him (ie fly spray)...we've worked on that and he's now fine. Drains...again, with lots of practice we're almost there.
The worst things have to be leading and his total greed.
My eldest can lead him and he's fine, won't barge or pull. If I lead him he just takes the mickey and will try and drag me off to get to the nearest clump of grass. meaning i have to lead in a bridle, which isnt ideal. I usually give him a sharp tug (when he has a headcollar on), but it isnt working. We do alot of stopping, and working on him moving away from my space etc, but he still drags when he's spotted a nice grass verge or someone's front lawn
crazy.gif
. What is the best way of stopping this? I have tried giving him a 'No' with a sharp smack on the shoulder, but he has thick skin and doesnt even feel it! I just want to be able to lead him in a headcollar near grass and not get my arm sockets pulled out.

This moves me onto when he's being ridden. He'll suddenly stop, swerve and stick his head down to eat. Not ideal when he has a child on him. My youngest rides without reins as she only needs to hold onto the saddle, but my eldest is getting quite fed up of being pulled fowards. He only does this on occasion, but it's getting worse.
I have never used daisy reins / grass reins, and don't really know how they work or how to fit them. Would they be a good idea? Do they attatch to the saddle and if so would i need to use a crupper? How do ponies react to them?
 
I have this problem. I use side reins .attached to bit then use another clip and clip other end to d ring on saddle. an old dog clip will suffice.
 
Daisy reins attach to the bridle at the poll and then to the D rings on the saddle. Or make your own with baler twine attach to bit and then to saddle. I used them in the summer for my daughters pony.
 
wit the leading in hand, perhaps carrying a schooling whip behind yoo and wen he pulls over, give him a threatening swish?
x
 
Hiya Katy have you tried those controlling or western/parelli type headcollars at all? We use one on our youngster and have found it does stop with some of the pulling as the knots act on pressure points which the horse is not keen on.
Also as someone has already suggested a daisy chain when he is tacked up will stop him reaching down for grass.
Alternatively for use with a headcollar. A bit attachment so you can attach a bit to it for more control and there was another device I was going to bid on ebay the other day it is another controlling device acts a little like a coupler and attaches on the underside of the headcollar and you attach the leadrope to it.
I cannot remember what it was called though, perhaps someone will?
The young lad used to be scared of fly sprays etc and we cracked that in just a few weeks however since he had to have frontline sprayed on his legs ( mites) he won't tolerate his tail being sprayed with conditioner and will get very toey and try to kick
frown.gif

Bit sad about it really as we had him mastered for spray anywhere on his body so if anyone has any suggestions how to cure his fear of anything around his tail please say so ( sorry to hijack thread, Kate)
He will tolerate water though. Yo has a no go on hose pipes as they are on a water meter but I have seen other's spraying the legs so I thought what the hell.
I have explained that I will bring the horses home in the summer to wash on the drive but I need to know the young one is ok with hosing as the last thing I want is him trying to kick down the neighbours fence lol.
Cazx
 
As far as the diving for grass when your daughter is riding him I'd seriously suggest putting a grass rein on him at least until she is strong enough to deal with the situation. There are commercial products available or you can rig something up yourself pretty easily. I've never had to use a crupper since even the most determined pony usually only tries it with the rein once or twice and doesn't pull continuously if you have it adjusted properly. I don't like the idea of a rein only on one side, which is what the commercial ones are usually like, so I've made my own the few times I've needed one.

When I used to run a large riding school we had one pony who had learned very effectively to just yank kids over his head when he felt like being elsewhere. He was fine with stronger/more skilled people or even if someone in authority was near enough to get at him so it was impossible to school it out of him. I made him an effective and very stylish set up using two dog leashes and two collars in a very snazzy shiny black material. I cut down the collars to a couple of inches so they buckled around the crownpiece above the browband on each side. Through the ring on the collars I ran a thin leash which ran down and clipped to the bit. I put a clip on the other end and attached it to the D on the pommel of the saddle. Then I knotted them both together over the crest to keep them from slipping down and to adjust the length. The idea was to have them just rest on the neck and not come into play until the pony got his head into the danger zone. I took them off when he jumped of course but by the time a kid could jump him he/she had enough control not to need the rig anymore. Of course, the little beggar just gave up trying when he was wearing the reins - which made life much easier for all concerned.

As to the leading, you need more control. You could try a chain shank over his nose (don't shoot me, I like this method so long as the handler doesn't EVER yank on it) or a pressure halter. I would probably NOT recommend a bit since all you're doing is encouraging him to react to the bit by pulling, which isn't a good idea. Bits are for communication not control.
 
I have to say, I used a Daisy rein for our pony when my daughter was a little toddler.....but our clever pony could still manage to twist her head and neck in a strange fashion and manage to get down to munch.

What I did to fix this problem was to put the pony in a flash noseband and this stopped her even bothering to drag her head down for a snatch of grass.
 
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Thanks for all your ideas and advice.

I use a bridle to lead him in if he's in 'one of those moods', but sometimes I need to take him to graze in-hand so can't really have a bit in his mouth. I have even tried a rope over his nose, but he just keeps pulling.
I seem to remember one of the ponies wearing a contraption made of baler twine when I was at a RS (many moons ago). I think I'll see if I can make something myself. Personally I can't see the commercial ones I saw working, as they're just like side reins, and I would imagine in order to stop a shetty getting it's head down they'd need to be pretty short.
 
for leading I'd suggest a dually - if Ty is having one of his days we lead him up the field in this.....think the flash is a good idea too - if it's tight enough and they can't eat they'll soon loose interest!
 
re the leading, he sounds like my boy, only he is 15hh! Apparently those pressure halters are much better than they look, works wonders with my friends horse, maybe worth a try...
 
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