napping horse - but on way the home?!

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catherine22

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My mare has started napping on the way back to the stables, she wants to canter back (along the road) and when you hold her back she goes sideways/backwards/stops but doesnt want to go in any direction unless at 100mph.

Her back/teeth etc have all been checked and shes fine on the way out and the whole way round our hack its just the way back?!

Anyone has this or have any ideas?
 
yes..s he wants to get home..s imple....
Do you do the same hack regularly.. if so.. change your route.
She is anticip[ating gettig home, but in a way that is both dangerous and scarey.

Lou x
 
is this when you hack alone? or in company? or both?

my boy does this ..... but only when alone - I presume he wants to get back to his field / friends
 
she's not napping about going home, she is napping to try and get away from you telling her not to rush home!

if i have ones that do this i turn them around and make them go back the wya we have come until they stop thinking towards home- this can be 10 yards or half a mile depending on how stubborn they are!

and another reason why my youngsters are always taught to hack past the gate on the way home from the very start so the gate/driveway stops being a fixation
(this can also work if you have a circular hack and can leave the drive from the left and right- just carry on and go for a hack in the other direction instead of turning in!)
 
The minutes she 'starts', turn her around and do another hours work. And if she does it again (at whatever point), turn her around and do another hour's work. And so on.....
 
thanks everyone, we dont always do the same route and she will keep going past the gate (but she wont walk, she wants to do everything at 100mph)

Ive tried keeping her out longer but everytime she just wants to go fast in any direction! (she has been abused in the past and Im wording if ive inadvertantly found a 'trigger' she used to have)
 
I'm going to put my neck on the line and suggest that you probably react strongly/aggressively when she starts getting a bit barmy on the way home, this will escalate into her stronger reaction, which will make you react stronger and so the vicious circle continues.... If this is the case (and sorry if it isn't!!) I can only suggest relaxing, giving her a pat and trying to calm her- rather than adding to the stress by getting cross yourself
smile.gif
 
thanks ali m, I do just sit on her really calmly, because of how she been treated in the past no amount of pain, physically/verbally causes her to reat because she always had worse so i think she can mentally detach herself (if horses can do this) from whats going on if that makes sense

will try schooling her when we get home and see how that goes
 
Yep my ned does exactly the same- will stop dead or reverse (into anything), but only on the way home. And is worse if you get cross! Ive had lots of people say tell him who is boss and get after him when he stops, but it defo doesnt work!! you have to be the one that remains calm and logical when they have lost control lol!

I can now tell when he is going to 'start' so I try to do lots of leg yielding/shoulder in or just move him from side to side on a soft rein. If it is too late and he has got to the point where he has stopped, then I will either sit really quietly until he will walk forwards (usually helps having another horse there-if they come up to him and then walk away) or will turn him away from home and find another path. All dependant on the time factor! If I am in a real hurry (if its getting dark for example) I have got off him in the past- once walking forwards after 5 mins or so he is fine for me to get back on (I dont tend to do this as I like to try and work through it without getting off). You will have to do a bit of trial and error- if it is safer to get off and you know you can get back on then dont be afraid to do this!! I know people say you shouldnt but you have to do what you feel is right for you and your horse- I can honestly say it hasnt made him worse cause I have got off a few times- it takes the heat out of the situation and makes it less of a drama...

I prefer going out on my own now as I dont like putting other people though it! Also have to be selective and go out with a quiet horse that doesnt get bothered! I have had him 5 years now (since he was 5) and sometimes we go for months without an issue- its usually worse in the winter (less work/hacking perhaps). He is an ex racer btw.

You have to find a way of dealing with it though- I had one year where I was getting really scared of riding him- I hated him and didnt hack for 6 months after one incident!! But two years on we are still hacking out! sorry for the waffle!
 
i would turn home into somewhere that doesnt mean 'i can be put back in my field and be free' each time you end a ride.

i would either do ground work, loose schooling session, lunging or schooling when back from a hack so that your horse is going home to work not to play.

it'll soon stop your horse wanting to get home quickly.

also if your horse walks home nicely one day then you can reward her by putting her straight out or giving her a feed or something so that behaviour you like - the walking- gets rewarded
grin.gif
 
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