Hemirjtm
Well-Known Member
I'm at a loss and would really appreciate some ideas/opinions! This could be very long sorry
A bit of background : I have a well bred 4yr old dressage horse, who we backed last year. We had planned to ride him for a couple of months through his 3rd year then give him the winter off and bring him back into work around March this year. He got kicked in the field where he was on livery (nothing major!) and afterwards lost weight and wouldn't put it back on easily. So I brought him home and turned him away sooner than I would have liked. This was in June 2011.
At the end of October I decided he needed to do something so I started to lunge him, he was really good and soon we moved onto long reining. Followed by some ride and lead. And the end of November I got back on with no problems (started slowly and leaned over, someone holding him..etc!) We then started little hacks and worked up to longer ones. I was always riding a happy horse who would go out in front, walk/trot/canter and go everywhere. He has lived in overnight all winter with T/O whenever possible for as long as possible on long grass. He definatly needed a holiday as he grew almost a hand from just under 16.1hh to 17hh now !
Fast forward to beginning of March and we moved him back to livery as I don't have facilities at home. It was same place as last time but he is now stabled with limited T/O and goes in the round pen/on walker when he can't go out. We worked him the first day he got there as he was as chilled as a cucumber, really good,couldn't have asked for more.
We took it slowly for a few days then started asking for more. after a couple of weeks he became very defensive and argumentative and all hard in his mouth. After this we got everything checked, had his back done and teeth checked, saddle..etc. He had put his pelvis out slightly and vet said that this was very recent and probably done in the stable. Vet advised no work for 7 days and then to just walk for 2 days and then no trot work for a week. We have a nice big outdoor school (90X70) so he said that we should canter around that a few times each way getting out of the saddle and off his back.
This was fine for 2 days - never been outside before. But on the third day he through his toys out of the pram. Every time I put my legs on to ask him to go forward he would either bounce on the spot or go backwards. I smacked him on the bum once and he went bolt upright. In the end I won and he cantered around the arena like nothing had happened. Next day the same thing happened, so spoke to vet and made the decision to lunge him in walk and canter in outdoor school as could make the circle bigger than 20m like in lunge pen - he possibly wasn't balanced enough to be cantering with me on his back...
After a few days we added trot and he worked for about 10 days on the lunge, learning to be balanced and use himself without having to deal with me aswell. I got back on and he was OK but not good, very negative and if I asked anything new he would have a hissy fit and do what he did in outdoor - we were indoors! My trainer got on him and quite quickly got off as it was just like he couldn't cope with a change of rider - bounced and bucked and they got bigger. I got back on and after about 10mins he calmed down but he still didn't want to go forward on his own accord. He was spooking at everything.
I decided to hack him out as he was feeling so negative and everything seemed like it was getting too much for him (he is not in pain - got everything checked!). He hacked out perfectly and didn't care about anything around him, no spooking, went first... :/ Hacked out a few times and decided to give him a week off and just walk him out in hand - no pressure, just relax and chill.
Lunged him on Tuesday then got back on, in lunge pen as this seems to be his "safe place". He bounced once and didn't listen to my leg at all. picked up a schooling whip and he went forward really nicely, trotted on both reins and called it a day. Yesterday - made sure he went out BEFORE I roder - normally goes out afterwards. I went in the lunge pen again, got straight on and although he spun as my trainer was giving me a schooling whip he was really good, we cantered and he felt balanced
Not felt that before.
Now today....Went into the indoor school, did the same as yesterday and put him out before riding and then got straight on him no lunging. He worked really well on the left rein, working on straightness and the cirlces. changed the rein, one side has stables and a door at the end that was open, every time I came round the short side he wouldn't go up the long side of the school and seemed to realise I don't have enough strength in my right leg to keep him over. I got very frustrated and felt like giving up but instead put him on a 20m circle and the end he didn't like going round, trotted and made him use himself, come up to me and finally felt his shoulder and his back end working. Had a canter where he was a bit bouncy but really listening and he was between my legs not unbalanced at all. He felt better than before, but still not 100% confident.
He gets bored very quickly, when he is working, in stable, in field..etc. So we are thinking about trying something new everyday. never doing the same exercise two days in a row. He's not nasty in what he does, not in pain/uncomfortable he is just really negative, and sometimes spooky but after he has done it once he does it all the time and his answer to when he is unsure, negative, spooking is to either go backwards or spin. He's a big lad and I'm not so I try not to have a fight, just send him forward and get him to get on with it, but it's really frustrating and I'm feeling disheartened, and like I can't ride I'm not getting rid of him because of this, I want to get through it and find his buttons and what works with him ! I'm sure once we find this he will be special
As I have said everything has been checked so it's defiantly not pain...just confused as he's a lovely gentleman on the ground and I'm really frustrated that we are getting nowhere.
So anyone had this situation before? Or any ideas of how to overcome this? Do I carry on doing something new and keeping his brain occupied or do I concentrate on one thing and get that right? Maybe he is a horse that just needs more time to mature? Needs more T/O than he is getting at the moment ? Should I bring him home for the summer and hack and get his brain back in gear and the maybe start more work again - but would I be in the same situation ??
Any ideas/opinions greatly appreciated Sorry for such a long post, I can offer galaxy chocolate and champagne (well fake bubbly!!) for any opinions, ideas...for reading it !!!
A bit of background : I have a well bred 4yr old dressage horse, who we backed last year. We had planned to ride him for a couple of months through his 3rd year then give him the winter off and bring him back into work around March this year. He got kicked in the field where he was on livery (nothing major!) and afterwards lost weight and wouldn't put it back on easily. So I brought him home and turned him away sooner than I would have liked. This was in June 2011.
At the end of October I decided he needed to do something so I started to lunge him, he was really good and soon we moved onto long reining. Followed by some ride and lead. And the end of November I got back on with no problems (started slowly and leaned over, someone holding him..etc!) We then started little hacks and worked up to longer ones. I was always riding a happy horse who would go out in front, walk/trot/canter and go everywhere. He has lived in overnight all winter with T/O whenever possible for as long as possible on long grass. He definatly needed a holiday as he grew almost a hand from just under 16.1hh to 17hh now !
Fast forward to beginning of March and we moved him back to livery as I don't have facilities at home. It was same place as last time but he is now stabled with limited T/O and goes in the round pen/on walker when he can't go out. We worked him the first day he got there as he was as chilled as a cucumber, really good,couldn't have asked for more.
We took it slowly for a few days then started asking for more. after a couple of weeks he became very defensive and argumentative and all hard in his mouth. After this we got everything checked, had his back done and teeth checked, saddle..etc. He had put his pelvis out slightly and vet said that this was very recent and probably done in the stable. Vet advised no work for 7 days and then to just walk for 2 days and then no trot work for a week. We have a nice big outdoor school (90X70) so he said that we should canter around that a few times each way getting out of the saddle and off his back.
This was fine for 2 days - never been outside before. But on the third day he through his toys out of the pram. Every time I put my legs on to ask him to go forward he would either bounce on the spot or go backwards. I smacked him on the bum once and he went bolt upright. In the end I won and he cantered around the arena like nothing had happened. Next day the same thing happened, so spoke to vet and made the decision to lunge him in walk and canter in outdoor school as could make the circle bigger than 20m like in lunge pen - he possibly wasn't balanced enough to be cantering with me on his back...
After a few days we added trot and he worked for about 10 days on the lunge, learning to be balanced and use himself without having to deal with me aswell. I got back on and he was OK but not good, very negative and if I asked anything new he would have a hissy fit and do what he did in outdoor - we were indoors! My trainer got on him and quite quickly got off as it was just like he couldn't cope with a change of rider - bounced and bucked and they got bigger. I got back on and after about 10mins he calmed down but he still didn't want to go forward on his own accord. He was spooking at everything.
I decided to hack him out as he was feeling so negative and everything seemed like it was getting too much for him (he is not in pain - got everything checked!). He hacked out perfectly and didn't care about anything around him, no spooking, went first... :/ Hacked out a few times and decided to give him a week off and just walk him out in hand - no pressure, just relax and chill.
Lunged him on Tuesday then got back on, in lunge pen as this seems to be his "safe place". He bounced once and didn't listen to my leg at all. picked up a schooling whip and he went forward really nicely, trotted on both reins and called it a day. Yesterday - made sure he went out BEFORE I roder - normally goes out afterwards. I went in the lunge pen again, got straight on and although he spun as my trainer was giving me a schooling whip he was really good, we cantered and he felt balanced
Not felt that before.Now today....Went into the indoor school, did the same as yesterday and put him out before riding and then got straight on him no lunging. He worked really well on the left rein, working on straightness and the cirlces. changed the rein, one side has stables and a door at the end that was open, every time I came round the short side he wouldn't go up the long side of the school and seemed to realise I don't have enough strength in my right leg to keep him over. I got very frustrated and felt like giving up but instead put him on a 20m circle and the end he didn't like going round, trotted and made him use himself, come up to me and finally felt his shoulder and his back end working. Had a canter where he was a bit bouncy but really listening and he was between my legs not unbalanced at all. He felt better than before, but still not 100% confident.
He gets bored very quickly, when he is working, in stable, in field..etc. So we are thinking about trying something new everyday. never doing the same exercise two days in a row. He's not nasty in what he does, not in pain/uncomfortable he is just really negative, and sometimes spooky but after he has done it once he does it all the time and his answer to when he is unsure, negative, spooking is to either go backwards or spin. He's a big lad and I'm not so I try not to have a fight, just send him forward and get him to get on with it, but it's really frustrating and I'm feeling disheartened, and like I can't ride
I'm not getting rid of him because of this, I want to get through it and find his buttons and what works with him ! I'm sure once we find this he will be special As I have said everything has been checked so it's defiantly not pain...just confused as he's a lovely gentleman on the ground and I'm really frustrated that we are getting nowhere.
So anyone had this situation before? Or any ideas of how to overcome this? Do I carry on doing something new and keeping his brain occupied or do I concentrate on one thing and get that right? Maybe he is a horse that just needs more time to mature? Needs more T/O than he is getting at the moment ? Should I bring him home for the summer and hack and get his brain back in gear and the maybe start more work again - but would I be in the same situation ??
Any ideas/opinions greatly appreciated
Sorry for such a long post, I can offer galaxy chocolate and champagne (well fake bubbly!!) for any opinions, ideas...for reading it !!!