Standing still and throwing a tantrum!

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Cinder

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Any advice for getting my horse to stand still while out hacking? She is a forward going horse and gets very impatient when asked to stand still. This morning she wouldn't stand sensibly at a junction which caused a few issues with traffic!
She gets tense and fidgets about and when she can't walk on she will start bouncing on the spot and pulling the reins out of my hands and it becomes a battle with her which I want to avoid.

I am very conscious that when she stands still I soften my contact as a reward and try to praise her but she will stand literally for a split second before wanting to move off again. She stands perfectly still to mount and tack up etc.

She is really well behaved in traffic and isn't fazed by it. This morning we were out hacking with her normal buddies and they were both calm and sensible.

She lives out 24/7 and isn't fed any hard feed. She is up to date with teeth and back and saddle fits.

Any advice and help welcome.
Thanks!
 
The only thing I would suggest is finding a quiet field (or off road spot) while hacking out and just practicing stand.

No matter how much she fidgets, hops about or pulls just ask her to stand, if she moves ask again until she does it. She will soon get bored of being told over and over again and will soon get the quicker she stands the quicker you move on.

I wouldn't try to stand for to long at a time at first, just short and sweet.

Unfortunately it's just constant practice. Worked for an impatient mare I had.
 
Thanks I will have to keep practicing with her. I will have to get my sticky jods on with her as the more I ask her to stand she can threaten to rear!

It's frustrating cos she's so good to do in every other way I'm just really cautious about not wanting to cause an accident to her or anyone else.

Did it eventually work with your mare?
 
Second Risky Business, and would just add that I would start with someon on the ground to steady her and slip her a treat for standing still, so she starts to associate it with good things!
 
Mine is the same. I've had her two months and I've been battling this habit since I got her. She is fine in some situations but she particularly knows she can get away with it on a road. She passages like a maniac at her worst. I work on standing still all the way on the hack. She doesn't get to go until she stands still and doesn't fuss. It is boring and annoying but it is paying off. I also stop on a grass island thing on our worst road and force her to stand there for about ten minutes on the way home. She now at least mainly prances on the spot where as when I got her she went all over the place. Its annoying because say I try and stop and let on coming traffic pass until she blooming stands, her behaviour means the cars will stop and wave us over. Then what do you do really you have to go. So there are a few fake junctions out of the woods etc which I pretend are busy roads and make her stand and stand and stand. Boring. R e a l l y d u l l :)
 
It does work, there will be times where she's being particularly determined not to stand.. You'll be thinking "for crying out loud" but just persist it has to be a constant thing or it won't sink in.

It's not the most fun thing to do on hacks but in the long run it will make your life easier, there's no quick solutions to these types of horses.
 
I was thinking a bit more than "for crying out loud" this morning, it's hard to stay relaxed but I shall keep persevering!
Thank you!
 
We are very fortunate in having horse friendly neighbours, who like to chat :) Ours have to get used to random coffee housing, which is always helped by neighbours having polos or carrots :) The other thing we do is reward from the saddle, works for those that don't like standing at the mounting block and those that are impatient out and about, although it takes patience and planning and repertition.
 
Mine was like this to start with- he would not wait at junctions, or tuck into gateways for traffic to pass, or stand to chat to people. He is fine now, through using 'whoa' and then a treat once halted, from my hand. He halts and stands by voice alone now; but he is very food orientated
 
My mare can be very much like this. She will happily stand for chats most days, but some days just seems to have it on her! Sometimes ignoring her and being firm works, other days, when she's really bad a small sharp tap on the shoulder with the whip combined with a growl works, followed by praise if she stops messing about.
 
Don't know how practical it is but sometimes taking your feet out of the stirrups encourages them to stand as it typically signals the end of work. Not necessarily a long term solution but it might help you break the cycle. I would also flex and treat when she stands.
 
Probably a good idea to try and burn off some of the mental energy with a quick school or a lunge at home first, and then practise practise, do it randomly when the pressure is off and keep a couple of treats in your pocket, make standing still the ultimate rewarding experience! She'll get better, just be safe :-)
 
Hot horses do this. Its like teaching some horses to stand while you mount, if you don't let them walk off as you land in the saddle the energy will just come out upwards. Its not something you can insist upon when the horse is really thinking forwards. At road junctions, be clever. Get as close to the junction as you need to to see without getting right up to the line so you've some room to allow bits of forward movement as you need to. If she's buzzy, get yourself right in the middle of the lane and keep doing tiny circles. work on doing lots of long, relaxing hacks, stopping and chatting, and just hanging about whenever she's feeling more relaxed. Its not disobedience or rudeness IMO, they can't help it, but its not that tricky to figure out how to work with it.
 
Thanks everyone
I'll try her with treats as she's very food orientated!
I have to be careful with the whip with her, although I carry one every time I ride she doesn't always react well when given a smack.
She's one of those mares who doesn't seem to get tired, half the time the more she's worked the more up for it she becomes!
Good job I love her!
 
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