Tension in arena

[blitznbobs]

I have a baby (4) horse. He is a sweet thing and new to me recently … he is absolutely wonderful to hack - hacks a lone with no issues but the second his toes hit the arena he gets very very forward and tense, his aim is to go forward and any signal I give him pretty much he interprets as ‘go faster’.. I have put this down to tension as it doesn’t happen on a hack and I have started hacking him out then ‘hacking around the arena’ then continuing on my hack before hacking him around the arena and going home (luckily my arena is part way round our little farm ride ) with view to him not associating the arena with anything other than a simple hack type walk on a loose rein.

I also have been doing a lot of ground work with him in and out of the arena and he is not tense doing this often…

But part of me is saying oh just get on with it, take him into the arena if he wants to canter let him canter round and when he stops ask for more and he will get over it quicker…

Which approach would you take or would you try something else?

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I would stick to plan A. I would want to help the horse relax

 

[silv]

I wouldn't be doing too much in the arena, lots of downward transitions and teach him to half halt, do not let him rush off as he will just get unbalanced and think he can do as he pleases. I went through this with my mare, took a while but she is is good as gold now. I wouldn't be letting him canter either till the trot is well under control. When he comes back to you and slows, give him heaps of praise and finish on a good note.
I would keep sessions very short and as soon as his is nice and not rushing carry on with your hack.
He sounds lovely and is obviously a super hack

 

[Squeak]

How much leg do you use out hacking? Is it that you use more leg in the school (could just be to do with asking for more transitions and turns etc in the school rather than that you use a stronger leg if that makes sense)? Is it possible that he doesn't really understand what the leg means and that it doesn't always just mean go?

If so it could be worth teaching some baby lateral work so that he learns the leg doesn't always mean go but can be supportive and mean sideways etc too?

 

[blitznbobs]

How much leg do you use out hacking? Is it that you use more leg in the school (could just be to do with asking for more transitions and turns etc in the school rather than that you use a stronger leg if that makes sense)? Is it possible that he doesn't really understand what the leg means and that it doesn't always just mean go?

If so it could be worth teaching some baby lateral work so that he learns the leg doesn't always mean go but can be supportive and mean sideways etc too?

Nope definitely not… I use more leg on the hack but if anything - he does it even if I just let him mooch round on a long rein. Yes we are definitely working on lateral work on the hack bit and we do tonnes of lateral work in hand too. He definitely doesn’t understand what leg is for but his pace quickens the second his toes hit the sand… I have taken to not holding the front end at all and bringing him back to halt if he trots without being asked so hopefully he will get the message soon

 

[Cloball]

My pony was very tense in the arena when she first arrived but she was 9 super green and a bit unknown. Slightly different to a 4 year old we suspected she had some stressful memories possibly. We found letting her go faster and faster and trying to wait until she got bored did not work and just resulted in a very sweaty stressed pony, she would not offer to slow down which confused everyone for a while. Any hoo... Ground work and keeping her brain thinking but not getting to the point she boils over because she is stressed has helped. I did a lot of work in walk within hers and my comfort zone-circles, shapes transitions bit of lateral work ( I say a lot I do a few short sessions in the week and hack at the weekend). If I feel her getting stressed or if she starts a session quite up for some reason I try take start with exercises that she finds easy and bring the energy right down. We always have a walk about in hand in walk before I get on so I can assess what horse I have I call it the flushing of the pheasants. It has taken a while though but the biggest thing has been getting her brain on side and that's allowed her to accept the leg rather than just running away from it. When we started we couldn't even halt for a whole breath before she was off again.

 

[magicmoments]

I have a baby (4) horse. He is a sweet thing and new to me recently … he is absolutely wonderful to hack - hacks a lone with no issues but the second his toes hit the arena he gets very very forward and tense, his aim is to go forward and any signal I give him pretty much he interprets as ‘go faster’.. I have put this down to tension as it doesn’t happen on a hack and I have started hacking him out then ‘hacking around the arena’ then continuing on my hack before hacking him around the arena and going home (luckily my arena is part way round our little farm ride ) with view to him not associating the arena with anything other than a simple hack type walk on a loose rein.

I also have been doing a lot of ground work with him in and out of the arena and he is not tense doing this often…

But part of me is saying oh just get on with it, take him into the arena if he wants to canter let him canter round and when he stops ask for more and he will get over it quicker…

Which approach would you take or would you try something else?

I would do a mixture of hacking and taking him the arena, either as you are, or on separate days. He's not going to get more relaxed in the arena by not taking him in there. I'm presuming he has some learned anxiety, rather than natural anxiety. In which case it's just got to get boring, asking nothing of him except to walk sensibly, without getting yourself or him het up to do this. Disengaging his back end by asking for maximum neck bend, releasing as soon as he slows, and walk on. Warwick Schiller explains much better than me. For me as soon as he walks calmly for a couple of steps, I would hop off immediately and end the session. That to me is the best way to reward what you want for now.

 

[Midlifecrisis]

Our baby horse was like this to start…(another trainer had done something with her in the arena that had scared her and she really hated the arena) so the wonderful new trainer said rhythm rhythm rhythm slow steady trot moving around arena in large circles surpentines shallow loops with regular changes of rein.
The idea over time is that the slow steady rhythm is the secure base to return to after a spook or new movement. It helps them to build balance too. When steady and secure then stride lengthening and lateral work then when canter transitions were introduced little mare didn’t get excited afterwards but returned to steady balanced trot. Mare sees arena as friend now and is relaxed and we can start real work straight away instead of settling her first. It ll come…