problem horse question!

i understand what your saying but tbh at the time i couldn't stop she was in a snaffle i know shes not happy and thats why i wanted advice! i know my riding was appuling in that vid but if u rode her u'd understand how bouncy she is and how hard she is to sit! but thanks for your advice anyways :)

But that is the thing, if you can't stop then don't go tearing round jumping. You need to keep it calm. I didn't say you riding was appalling, my point is that polo ponies are ridden very differently and they are very light in the mouth. you are right, she will react to every little movement, so you don't need to do big movements if you see what I mean. It is like shouting at a dog with very sensitive hearing. It will just stress her out. I think if you hang on to her mouth she will react as they are ridden so lightly. My horse is an ex racehorse and the worst thing you can do is grab her mouth if she has a spook, if i want her to relax I virtually drop the reins. I can see she is bouncy and she will turn on a sixpence. you just need to think 'turn' and they will do it. eta try going straight and then just turn your head in the direction you need to go and i bet she will. You won't even need to touch her mouth.
 
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What else do you do with her?

I would be making sure I had help on the ground so that someone can hold her as you get on. I'd do a few sessions where all you do is get on, give her loads of praise when she stands then get off, repeat a few times, and call it a day. I would do lots of schooling in walk and halt, and short trots with lots of transitions, until she's calmer - I wouldn't do any cantering or jumping until you've got her calmer and happier for mounting and in walk and trot. When you jump (and I'm only going on the video) treat it more like a schooling session that happens to have a few jumps in - at the moment you're both focusing far too much on the fences and it's all stop/go/stop/go/tight turns with no fluidity or calmness. Lessons would be a very good idea, and they aren't expensive as part of the overall costs of owning a horse.

If you really can't stop her tanking off, get someone to help by leading you until she's calmer.

thanks to be fair this was a year ago and i now have regular lessons thanks for your advice :)
 
But that is the thing, if you can't stop then don't go tearing round jumping. You need to keep it calm. I didn't say you riding was appalling, my point is that polo ponies are ridden very differently and they are very light in the mouth. you are right, she will react to every little movement, so you don't need to do big movements if you see what I mean. It is like shouting at a dog with very sensitive hearing. It will just stress her out. I think if you hang on to her mouth she will react as they are ridden so lightly. My horse is an ex racehorse and the worst thing you can do is grab her mouth if she has a spook, if i want her to relax I virtually drop the reins. I can see she is bouncy and she will turn on a sixpence. you just need to think 'turn' and they will do it.

okay will take this on board and this was before i knew she had ringbone first time i'd jumped her cuz she was brought as a surprise so didnt even try her :)
 
at the time i couldn't stop she was in a snaffle

Just picking up on this ... she does stop several times in the video, and stands. She seems to react badly to how you ask her to move forward, rather than refusing to stop (if that makes sense) - again, schooling and lessons will help with that.
 
Just picking up on this ... she does stop several times in the video, and stands. She seems to react badly to how you ask her to move forward, rather than refusing to stop (if that makes sense) - again, schooling and lessons will help with that.

yh understand sort of will do thanks for your advice :)
 
Agree with the above Lynswin...
Mare looks like she is just going as a polo pony should.
Please I don't mean to be mean but trying to be helpful. Your hold on her mouth is relentless, in canter you are not giving and taking with your hands as her head moves (because you know she will just speed up), but this is becuase your legs are urging her on constantly- even when you are trying to stop her.
She is only doing what you are inadvertantly telling her to.
What do you want to be able to do with her?- baring in mind the ringbone will limit what she should do.
If you think about her life in polo it explains many of her problems. As a polo pony she may well have been stabled 24/7, muzzled for most of the day, with her feeds placed outside the door. She may only have been exercised by being led out with 4 or 5 other horses at a time. When playing polo she will probably have been in a cheltenham gag, flash, standing martingale and ridden in spurs. While in training she will have been taught to respond to the lightest of weight aids and neck reining at speed.
At the moment she has no good reason to be caught as she enjoys nothing that happens once she come in.
If you want to keep her you need to work on one problem at a time. Forget riding her, work on her enjoyment of being with you. Try and find someone to help you that can work on one problem at a time.
Or take up polo and only do that with her!
 
Agree with the above Lynswin...
Mare looks like she is just going as a polo pony should.
........ Try and find someone to help you that can work on one problem at a time.
Or take up polo and only do that with her!

yes thankyou to be fair this was well over a year ago my hands dont move as much now and i have a good instructor! :)
 
OK, I've watched your video now. Can I just say, I think your mare is gorgeous and looks like so much fun, you're very lucky. What I'm seeing is that you haven't found the buttons. Maybe you have now if this is an old video but going off that it does look like you are out of balance and hanging on. The picture is tension and the only way you can improve it is to improve your "feel". Your mare is clearly lovely and responsive and also forward thinking, but going off the video, you haven't learnt to work with that.

I'm sorry but what you need are boring, basic, quiet lessons with this mare from someone who will help you to chill things out and help you and your mare to understand one another better because there is some serious miscommunication going on. It might be that this sort of fiery horse just isn't for you, she does look hot and it isn't to everyone's taste or fun to every rider but if you enjoy her energy and responsiveness you're just going to have to work hard on your riding to learn how to get her to relax. :)
 
I would be tempted to give you a neck strap. I use one on my mare as she can woosh forwards in certain situations. I like to be able to tuck a couple of fingers under it when she's on her toes, as it then stops me from jabbing her in the mouth when she does woosh.

I think that your horse is a lovely mare - really smart. A few lessons with a good instructor should help you both no end.
 
I would be tempted to give you a neck strap. I use one on my mare as she can woosh forwards in certain situations. I like to be able to tuck a couple of fingers under it when she's on her toes, as it then stops me from jabbing her in the mouth when she does woosh.

I think that your horse is a lovely mare - really smart. A few lessons with a good instructor should help you both no end.

thanks will give this ago :)
 
Slow slow slow. If you can't control her speed with your seat, get someone to lead you around rather than hanging onto her mouth.

Leave your ego at the school gate, there is no point getting fed up because things don't go your way. They'll only get worse.
 
I know I am going to get shot for this, I will try to be as polite as possible. If I do offend you greatly I will delete.

The very first thought I had when I watched this is what on earth are you doing. I watched just under 3 minutes of your clip and couldn't watch any more.

Initial impressions: the rings you have on her are useless, they need to be shorter (I would even say by half). Your position and riding needs serious work. You are telling her to go and stop at the same time. You are reefing her around by the mouth and you are very closed fisted, which is IMO causing her significant discomfort in the mouth (not to mention the rest of her body). You are insecure in your seat or do not have an independant seat and are also trying to balance on the reins - again this is causing you to reef her around by the mouth. You are both expecting a fight from one another and this is what you are getting.

You said it took you 2 hours to catch her and you were very tired. I completely understand how exhausted you would have been but if that was the case why did you ride?

Has she always been hard to catch, meaning for previous owners as well as yourself? Have you ever caught her and then given her a good spoiling (by this I mean do her favourite things, give her a feed, a brush, a bath, pick at grass, watch the world go by, etc, etc) and then simply let her go afterwards?

Stop jumping. Don't ask her to do anything more than a trot. Do the absolute basics. Halt - walk - halt. Progress Halt - Walk - Trot - Walk - Halt and numerous variations of the lot. Can you hack her out? And I don't mean take her for a hoon to blow off steam because that is not going to work for her. Go for a plod. Get an instructor.

She has ringbone, everything is going to hurt her / cause her discomfort, it will just be more pronounced with circle work.

Like I said, I know this is very sharp but it is just the opinion of one person. Tell me to delete it and I will.
 
I know I am going to get shot for this, I will try to be as polite as possible. If I do offend you greatly I will delete.

The very first thought I had when I watched this is what on earth are you doing. I watched just under 3 minutes of your clip and couldn't watch any more.

.......
Like I said, I know this is very sharp but it is just the opinion of one person. Tell me to delete it and I will.

no i complety understand i put it on here for advice 4/5 times that i bring her in, i dont ride just cuddle feed groom if its sunny give her a bath (she loves water) ect to try and calm her, she cant hack she just boms at everything bucks and rears so v. rarly hack her!!! this was over a year ago so am looking for advice for when i bring her back in to work over the summer, shes on bute so shouldn't be in pain now and i have follewed vets advice to a T :) thanks for your advice
 
I, too, am going to be blunt/direct but will attempt not to offend.

What I see is a tense/worried horse who is trying desparately to decipher some quite clumsy/loud aids and winding herself up.

Your hands are quite fixed and tense and it looks to me as though you are relying on them rather than taking the contact in your elbows and keeping your wrists flexed and fingers soft. It could be that she is coming above the bit as a way to evade what must be to her a very different (and somewhat harsh) type of contact than she would have been used to as a polo pony.

You are quite heavy in the saddle - not meaning that you are physically too large for her (b/c you are not), more that your seat isn't particularly light or subtle - and it may be that which is causing her to hollow/run away from your seat.

Everything is far too fast. Yes, I know you have said that she runs through the bridle - and that you had a hard time stopping her in a pelham - but as a polo pony she will have had two speeds - canter/gallop and stand still. She has been programmed to go fast - and when she goes fast you stick your feet forward and haul on her mouth - which winds her up - so she runs through the bridle.

You need to almost retart her. Get her to carry/balance herself and you comfortably in walk first . . . get her understanding transitions within the pace without tensing and running off b/c she doesn't understand. If you need to, get someone to walk alongside you both/put you on a lead rein. As someone else has said, leave your ego at the arena gate - this is about you helping her. Lunge her in walk - get her used to responding to your voice (this will help when you're on board) . . . lunging doesn't have to mean small circles - I always walk with Kal when I lunge him.

For her sake focus on keeping your hands still, quiet and (above all) soft, your seat light and still and everything quiet and consistent. At the moment your aids are all quite "noisy" and I feel that once you quieten everything down she will be able to listen to you more - I hope that makes sense.

I'd park any fast work for now . . . walk and trot for a while until you are both in harmony with each other. Leave the jumping. I know you said she won't hack, but would she walk out on a lead rein with someone on the ground? Just an idea as it's another way of teaching her not to go everywhere at 90 miles an hour.

She is very pretty and looks like she's trying really hard for you . . . but she needs your help.

I hope you take the above in the spirit in which it is intended. Good luck.

P
 
Another blunt one.

Lovely, lovely little horse - very sensitive I'd imagine, which is not helped by the very novice riding style. It would be interesting to see a different rider on her.

You need some serious help from a very good instructor, and I would not jump her at all until you do that.
 
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I, too, am going to be blunt/direct but will attempt not to offend.

...................

P

will take this advice on board thanks :) this was over a year ago, she's had some time off and on bute so i was really looking for advice when i bring her back in to work although this is very helpful (riding no so bad now had only ridden her a couple of times when this vid was taken, first time id ever jumped her!) thanks wonderhorse11 :)
 
Another blunt one.

Lovely, lovely little horse - very sensitive I'd imagine, which is not helped by the very novice riding style.

You need some serious help from a very good instructor.

have one now riding not as bad, shes been off for a year and i have been consentrating on my other one with regular lessons was really looing for advice for when i bring her back in to work but thanks anyways! :)
 
going from the video you posted, you are holding onto her head a lot which is making any issues worse - if my mare is on edge, I ride on a very loose rein. If I were to hold onto her head she would naturally tense more. Ride from your seat, not your hand. When you bring her back into work, just take things very slowly and continue regular lessons
 
have one now, riding not as bad. She's been off for a year and I have been concentrating on my other one, with regular lessons. Was really looking for advice for when i bring her back in to work but thanks anyways! :)

Oh, sorry - didn't get that from your initial post.

When you bring her back in to work you walk, walk, walk and walk some more - every day on the roads (no school work). You'll need to do this for several weeks, before introducing some quiet trot work. You should be able to go in to the school after about 5 weeks of roadwork. And as she has ringbone, her jumping days are probably behind her.

What type of ringbone does she have?
 
Oh, sorry - didn't get that from your initial post.

When you bring her back in to work you walk, walk, walk and walk some more - every day on the roads (no school work). You'll need to do this for several weeks, before introducing some quiet trot work. You should be able to go in to the school after about 5 weeks of roadwork. And as she has ringbone, her jumping days are probably behind her.

What type of ringbone does she have?

im not sure, shes on bute so shouldnt be in pain have been told about an operation but £8000 for something that may not work i dont think is fair on her or the bank balance!!:) thanks for your help
 
I would second a few of the other posters and when she cones back into work just try and restart her as a riding horse. Start with lunging and get her responsive and build up slowly. I have re-schooled a few pOlo ponies and you need to start by them just learning how to bend around your leg and use very soft hand aids, in polo they have no concept of leg aids it's literally run like mad them turn etc etc so it takes a long time to build up just the basics. Ground poles - trotting is also very useful- beat in mind a polo pony is never trotted when ridden so this I find takes them a long time to understand and get a rhythmic balanced trot. Good luck with her- who is her old owner on passport do u know, and where abouts are u in uk
 
I'm not sure, shes on bute so shouldn't be in pain. I have been told about an operation but £8000 for something that may not work I donit think is fair on her or the bank balance!!:) thanks for your help

It's important to know what type of ringbone she has, as then you'll know what the outcome is likely to be - as well as how the disease will progress.

I completely agree with you about the surgery.
 
IMO its the wrong horse and rider combo. The horse needs a different rider to get her to relax and the rider needs a different horse to give her more confidence in her mount and to learn not to rely on the reins to balance.
 
If I were you OP I would want to rule out pain before deciding on a course of action. She looks to me to be a tryer, was she gifted to you?
 
I'm not sure the saddle fits that well either. Its certainly helping you to slide back into a sit back and haul position. It would be worth a check esp as she has been out of work :)
 
i have a beutiful chestnut mare but she has ringbone so she wouldnt pass any vetting she getts sweet itch and laminitus wont load wont be caught walks off when you try to board the second you get on she just gallops and wont stop even with a pelham! ive had her back teath feet everything checked vet said she can still jump but cant do tight circles and she is amazing at it (see my albums for pics) she also responds to every little tiny movement you make!

do you have any tips to help her? she has a really sweet nature and the galloping isnt out of nastiness shes always got her ears fawed and seems happy! i think that she thinks that what shes doing is right how do i re train her? ive tried normal riding, the whole barefoot treeless bitless thing and parelli so i dont know what else to do! she was no better which ever i tried!

unfortunatley i dont know much about her past as she was brought as a surprise for my birthday 3/4 years a go! i belive she is ex polo becuase her passport is from an argentinan polo yard!

sorry for such a long post!!! any help/advice very much appreicated here's a vid if it helps to see what shes like! please excuse the riding but she was being really mad and after 2 hours of trying to catch her i was pretty tierd! :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mOpaILn2yqw

I'm a little confused. Where above does it say that she has had a year off and you are wanting to know how to restart her ridden career? Also, not meaning to be harsh, but if she has ringbone, why on earth are you a) jumping her; and/or b) having her make such tight turns?

I think you need to start by understanding what type of ringbone she has and what the likely progression and prognosis is . . . then you can sort out how to restart her under saddle.

If she can be ridden (and you'll need to talk to your vet about that), then you'll need to take it really, really, really slow. Like I said in my other post (before I read that you were looking to restart her after a year off), stay in walk. As she has ringbone, lunging probably is out, even in walk . . . but you can still longrein her (in straight lines). If she won't stay in walk while you are on board then walk her in hand and once she trusts you enough long rein her . . . she needs time and exercise to build up her fitness before you even think about getting on her in the school. Like I said about lunging, longreining is great b/c (aside from being good for building her fitness - and yours) it's also great for teaching voice commands which can then be used when on board.

Once in the school keep everything as calm and slooooow as you can . . . get her to think about where she is putting her feet . . . try asking for a walk so slow that you can literally feel her putting one . . . foot . . . in . . . front . . . of . . . the . . . other . . . and try and do it on as long a rein as you can.

Don't worry about getting her "on the bit" . . . give her the longest rein you can and try and ride with your seat and legs . . . what you want is for her to stretch and relax. I noticed from the vid that she is very short and choppy in both walk and trot - you want to be thinking about the quality of her steps . . . is she relaxed enough to really step under and track up? Only when she's balanced in herself (physically and mentally), relaxed, loose and soft will she begin to carry herself (and you) and not rush because she is unbalanced or run away from your legs/seat/hands. On the flip side, you need to train yourself to be more sympathetic and subtle with your aids so that you are not "shouting" at her.

All of the above will only work if she is not in any pain (other than the ringbone) . . . if her tendency to go hollow is pain related then no schooling will fix it - she needs to be physically "mended" first.

Lastly, call me a fluffy bunny, but your statement "she's on bute so her ringbone shouldn't be bothering her" (I'm paraphrasing) bothers me. My understanding of ringbone is that it's degenerative . . . alongside a regimen of work (however gentle) to get her fit, I'd like to understand what your vet has said about both the stage and progression of her condition . . . and what you are doing to manage her. I'm getting to be quite aged myself and have all sorts of aches and pains - I could dope myself up with pain relief and work through whatever ails me, but sometimes the pain is my body's way of telling me to be careful. Just because your mare is on bute and not necessarily feeling pain, doesn't mean exercise isn't contributing to the further degeneration of her joints.

P
 
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