pony suddenly gets wrong canter lead

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peaceandquiet1

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Has anyone got any thoughts? Daughter's 13hh show pony has today (at a show) decided he can't canter on the rightleg. He spent the two classes he did on the wrong leg when cantering right. This has never been an issue before. He looks perfectly sound and nothing else has changed. Daughter gets muddled and isn't confident enough to assess if he is wrong-she says his canter is so balanced now that he doesn't feel wrong even when he is!). She is 11 and has produced him from scratch. He used to a wild child but his behaviour was impeccable today, just the canter let them down. She tried at home after the show but it was about 50/50, yet yestyerday he was going absolutely perfectly at home arrrrgh!
 
horsemadmum1 said:
Has anyone got any thoughts? Daughter's 13hh show pony has today (at a show) decided he can't canter on the rightleg. He spent the two classes he did on the wrong leg when cantering right. This has never been an issue before. He looks perfectly sound and nothing else has changed. Daughter gets muddled and isn't confident enough to assess if he is wrong-she says his canter is so balanced now that he doesn't feel wrong even when he is!). She is 11 and has produced him from scratch. He used to a wild child but his behaviour was impeccable today, just the canter let them down. She tried at home after the show but it was about 50/50, yet yestyerday he was going absolutely perfectly at home arrrrgh!
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I think he may have a low level injury or lameness there.
I would advise resting him for maybe 3 or 4 days, then try and see if the problem corrects itself. If he's not right after a few days rest, it might be worth getting the vet to have a look.
S :D
 
As above, but I find a very frequent culprit for this type of thing is saddle fit.
I would pop him on the lunge to see if it's easier for him without a saddle/rider and go from there.
 
MissTyc said:
As above, but I find a very frequent culprit for this type of thing is saddle fit.
I would pop him on the lunge to see if it's easier for him without a saddle/rider and go from there.
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I have taken your advice and lunged him without saddle or rider and he is popping perfectly into canter on either lead. We did use a different saddle at the show and I have to consider the possibility that the saddle has been to blame. We did try him with his usual saddle after the show but my daughter was worrying about it so much that her aids were probably a bit muddled. Will give him a rest then go back to old saddle, and take it from there. Many thanks for the replies.
 
Just another thing to throw into the equation, but has your daughter suddenly shot up an inch or two this spring?

I ask because mine did about that age, and consequently her centre of gravity moved, which affected her riding but also, as muscle takes a while to stretch and grow compared to bone growth, she had uneven growth in her left leg compared to her right which gave her painful Osgood Shlotters in her left leg (google), which meant she was slightly uneven and compensating for her left leg which in turn affected the pony on one rein (forget which one). She visited an osteopath who gave her exercises to stretch the muscle, and also the right leg caught up in length (there was an inch difference in length at one point) in a couple of months, and the pony returned to a normal easy to get to canter on the correct leg.
 
Sounds like the saddle may have been the issue. Poor saddle fit can also cause a sore back - if it was only for the day, that's probably not an issue but if you find there is still a problem with the lead, it wouldn't hurt to get a chiropractor out.
 
I have this problem and without being rude it is my weight distribution especially if she is a tad apprehensive because of atmosphere at a show she may be sitting slightly wonky and the pony is responding(correctly, if this is the case which also means your daughter has done a pretty good job on him : ) )
 
Lol yes she does sit to one side a bit and yes she has grown a lot and sadly is outgrowing him just as she is getting to grips with him. He likes to drift to the left a bit but to date canter leads have not been an issue. Our instructress is coming out and she is petite enough to ride the pony so can assess herself. My daughter has just had her first ride on my 14.3hh Arab and has happily cantered her so looks like she might hijack my horse in a bit! Yes I agree she is probably inadvertently asking for left canter when she means right as he is very responsive now. Her little sis will get the best of this pony, she is only 7!
 
My mare suddenly kept changing her hind legs and getting disunited in canter, got saddle fitter out, saddle didn't fit due to get changing shape and so now borrowing my instructors as she had it changed to fit my mare to get me through. She hasn't changed behind since and is alot freer. Could well be worth a saddle check.
 
Thanks to mall for your replies. I think we have narrowed it down to the saddle. We have put his old one back on and last time she rode him she got the correct lead every time. :)
 
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