Schooling tips please

[alicep]

So i tacked up Alice this morning, put the draw reins on and expected to get a really positive and hard bit of flatwork done.... unfortunately alice had other ideas. Spooked at absolutely every jump in the school (which she sees every day) Threw a total wobbler when i asked her to do any thing. in the end i got so fed up and just got off.

so the result was... 20 minutes of fighting, both of us very sweaty and the feeling of defeat.

Any one any helpful tips on keeping her focused and actually moving in straight lines instead of zig zags? My main objective when shes like that is to try and drive her through it. usually she settles but there are times when it doesnt work.

 

[fizz-tally]

why did you have the dr on?

 

[alicep]

we use them from time to time as she works very well in them. she is ex race horse and the last owner basically turned her away for a year so they help with working on the bit and help give her topline.

 

[Peanot]

I find that when my horse is being silly, as she is spooky too, I use lots of transitions and turns. Doing different things keeps her mind working. But they have to be in quick succession so she has to keep her mind on it. I work around the school, changing across the diagonal, lengthening and shortening on a circle and down the long side, throwing in the odd 5m or 10m circles. Different shaped serpentines, trotting and cantering. Also, some shoulder in and half pass keeps her interested, as well as straight lines down the centre and then a small circle at any time. I keep letting her have little stretches too to relax her.

 

[zizz]

Disagree that draw reins put her in an outline. in my experiance they tend to bring horses on the forehand and block foward movement probably not a good thing for an ex-racehorse that would be on the forehand anyway. Have you tried and elasticated harbridge instead? find these encourage them forward alot more.

Any way would reccomend the usual circles and lots of changes of direction and transition. maybe introduce some trotting poles to keep her mind focused.

 

[mickey]

Is your horse normally like this? Sounds like she has a load of excess energy - Maybe the wind has not helped? I guess check the feed levels, maybe think of introducing a calmer supplement if this continues.
I would say you need to get some of that energy out before you can get any useful ridden work done. I would lunge on both reins until some of the fizz has gone and then keep the flatwork varied - to keep her focused - like another person has mentioned above.
Personally I try to avoid draw reins as they can be difficult to use effectively and the danger is that the horse's head gets pulled in creating a false outline. (Ie horse not necessarily working from behind into the bit).