'Undoing' learned behaviour.

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saddlesore

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Basically - is it possible and could I have pointers please??
My 5yo is a tense/nervous type but is basically very lazy and doesn't like to do anything that isn't strictly required
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After a period being ridden by the more experienced riders in the riding school at my yard (as a result of broken ankle) he has taken to randomly shooting off - not badly I should add. He only goes a few strides and is very stoppable but there doesn't appear to be any real trigger as such. Had back/tack/teeth checked and he is currently being rechooled after a short holdiay to sort his head out. The issue is definatley improving, but can it ever be stopped? Any suggestions?
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P.s the general consenus after all checks is that this is his evasion technique - any thoughts?
 
Sounds very much like it - just as much as napping, or planting can be evasions so can running off.
Best way round it is to actually send him forward more when he does it, put him on a circle and make him really work. Only stop when YOU'RE ready - don't let him drop back to trot. Particularly if he's the lazy sort, he'll soon decide that shooting off is far too much like hard work.
 
I think you're right - sounds daft but hadn't really thought of it that way before!
He started shooting off in lessons - mainly when cantering - and of course everyone pulled him up, and being a lazy sod he probably realised that a little bit of effort got him out of more work in the long run. Hmmmmmm..............
 
Sounds like an evasion because he is bored. Have you considered if the RS environment isn't suiting him any more? Being a RS horse at 5 is quite a responsibility and if the lessons are pretty repetitive he could be simply making his own behaviour.

Getting a horse to unlearn things is harder than learning them, but is possible. If you really can't take him off working livery I would get the instructors to get imaginative and add variety and interest to his lessons: prevention is better than cure!
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He's not actually in the riding school anymore, it was whilst my broken ankle was mending itself and then for a few weeks after till I got some strength back in it, but it was whilst in the riding school that the behaviour developed. As a result I turned him away for a month, then got his back etc all checked and he is now being properly reschooled. He might be bored but he's have a cheek as he does a good variety of things lol, although hacking is very difficult atm with the dark nights etc so normally just a short wander - will increase this as the light returns!
Anything you can think of specifically that would help other than ride him through it? He doesn't do it alone - only in company
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We had this problem with a gelding of ours which appeared after a few weeks, as soon as he stepped up a gear from a controlled walk in the school he would zoom it, sometimes not stopping for a good couple of laps. He was fine in every sense (back, teeth etc) he was using this behaviour as an evasion because out on a hack he was the perfect gentleman.

We went back to basics and rotated his work frequently so he wasn't often in the school. When in the school we changed each session so they were never the same and included short excercises so he was constantly thinking about what he was having to do NOT what he could get out of doing. It took us many months mind you but he is fine now and has been with us 4 and half years.
 
Meant to say, that we were told by someone to drive forward and keep going......but I didn't really want to use that as the solution, just my personal preference so we worked him out of it, it took a lot longer but he enjoys schoolwork now.
 
This is basically what he does -he just randomly zooms off! Luckily he has very good brakes but it just seems such an odd thing to do, especially for one usually inclined towards energy conservation!
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