Pony coming back after loan lazy??

[xCiaraGx]

Hi all,

My horse has been on loan for 2 years. It was a full loan but I still was able to see him and occasionally ride him. With in the first couple of months of this nervous teenager taking him on he became what I call lazy.

He is a native cross. Very chunky but i used to have trouble stopping him! He was known as the super cob who could keep up with my friends eventer!
Out hacking he still likes a good blast but never gets fizzy any more (I sound like a whinging kid here but it was another endearing aspect of this hairy cob known to fizz up more than a racer haha!)
He’s totally sour to the school as that’s all she ever did with him. His schooling is now lethargic and on the forehand massively. He slugs over jumps and I used to compete 90-100 BE on him and I wouldn’t dare try and 80 now due to his sluggish approach!

Any tips on getting him back to enjoying work and engaging his mind (and preferably back end?!) YO has set up a pole/jump field so that will help the arena problem but he loves crazy polework to really test so give me ideas!
Thanks a lot!!

 

[Pinkvboots]

Maybe just hack for a while if his school sour.

 

[xCiaraGx]

Maybe just hack for a while if his school sour.

That’s the plan, but I want to work on his schooling in the field, hence request of any good exercises. He’s very on the forehand which worries me and he’ll get locked up and stiff at his poll and down his back.

 

[Pinkvboots]

I dont do much in the way of jumping but some pole work should help, might be worth getting the physio look at him if he seems stiff it could be the cause of the laziness if his not comfortable, one of mine gets tight through his neck and wither and he won't school properly when it's not right.

 

[ester]

Is he physically ok?

 

[xCiaraGx]

I dont do much in the way of jumping but some pole work should help, might be worth getting the physio look at him if he seems stiff it could be the cause of the laziness if his not comfortable, one of mine gets tight through his neck and wither and he won't school properly when it's not right.

Physio and Chyro have just been. Everything else up to date. Just need help with different exercises as I’m no good at thinking of them!

 

[xCiaraGx]

Is he physically ok?

All up to date. Pysio and chyro done last month and everything else in routine. He changed very quickly after the loaner (who was incredibly nervous and only schooled) took him on. It seems to be that he partly adapted to her, partly is sour to the school but maybe partly pure laziness as she let him get away with all sorts (his manners have also gone down the drain on the ground).

I’m no good at thinking up difficult exercises so hoping people can help on that? Also any past experiences of a similar kind! Like I mentioned he used to BE!

 

[MiJodsR2BlinkinTite]

mmmm..... sounds like he's sooohh totally school-sick from the whole experience; I'd be inclined to think about maybe doing something totally "new" with him which would get him thinking outside the box and make him use his brain!

I was thinking along the lines of mebbe something like TREC, which would engage his mind. or Horse Agility. Something - anything, to get his mind engaged and get him thinking again. You could set up a few little training/prep obstacles at home which would be different from what he's done in the school but would give him something where he has to think about what he's doing!

You could kill two birds with one stone in fact, and doing some TREC in-hand to start with, would act as a very good improvement exercise for his groundwork and cultivating better manners in general, which you say has declined noticeably since the loan. You could then go on to do the whole thing repeated under saddle. It might help you to go along to a TREC competition locally and see what sort of obstacles there are, and this would then give you ideas for adapting them at home.

Or perhaps a Pleasure Ride or two to get him going forward again??

Anyway, some ideas, for what their worth!

Its a shame there's no hunting at present coz the other thing that would put him right for sure is a good day or two's hunting!

 

[xCiaraGx]

mmmm..... sounds like he's sooohh totally school-sick from the whole experience; I'd be inclined to think about maybe doing something totally "new" with him which would get him thinking outside the box and make him use his brain!

I was thinking along the lines of mebbe something like TREC, which would engage his mind. or Horse Agility. Something - anything, to get his mind engaged and get him thinking again. You could set up a few little training/prep obstacles at home which would be different from what he's done in the school but would give him something where he has to think about what he's doing!

Or perhaps a Pleasure Ride or two to get him going forward again??

Its a shame there's no hunting at present coz the other thing that would put him right for sure is a good day or two's hunting!

Thanks, what kind of obstacles do you mean? We don’t hunt but understand what you mean, I’ll look out for some rides. Ideally I need to get him to a hunter trail with friends as he loves them but nothing till late June so far as I’ve seen!

 

[Michen]

Take him on some sponsored rides, to the beach, some fast fun hacks. Get him fit, he’s probably very unfit if he’s just been in the school moochint around.

My previous boy was pretty dull when I got him. I got him very very fit and made life exciting for him and he became a whizzy bundle of fun.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

It sounds as if you need to work on his fitness and get him off his forehand - hacking over varied terrain is the best way to do that, ime.

 

[j1ffy]

I agree on the fitness point, but also he may have simply learned to back off the leg. My PRE goes very lazy if he's allowed to, but if he knows he needs to be in front of the leg he gets quite buzzy.

Polework sounds like a good plan, then lots of transitions (you can do this out hacking too) and maybe some lateral work to get him thinking and off the forehand. My PRE's loaner struggles to keep him in front of the leg and her new instructor has them doing lots of different exercises to keep them both thinking and to stop him anticipating. He's very clever and will go onto autopilot once he thinks he knows what to do next - the the extent that we've done an entire Novice test at an Area Festival with almost no input from me! They do leg yield on / off the track and half circle to change rein, shoulder in to circle or across the diagonal, baby half pass, diamonds with turn on the forehand. It all keeps him switched on and really tests if he's on the aids or not.

On the odd occasion when I ride him I'll pop in a x-pole or poles between exercises as a reward, which he loves (loaner doesn't jump). Just a few ideas but I agree that sponsored rides, beach trips and maybe some xc schooling should help both fitness and enthusiasm!