Very One Sided Horse??

[ChelseaFilly]

Hi everyone,

I've recently started loaning a pony that I fell in love with and would love to take on full loan. He's great in every way except he seems very one sided. I know every horse has a good and bad side but I've never experienced it to this extreme before. He's 14 years old, an ex show jumping pony so he's never really had proper, lateral schooling or anything like that. He's a bit clueless when it comes to working from behind etc which is something we're working on slowly.

I've started doing some lunge work with him and on the left rein, he's fab, on the right rein though, he will only go round in tiny circles, he gets closer and closer, regardless of how much I push him out. It's like he just doesn't want to work on that side. I know it's not because he doesn't understand because he lunged perfectly on the other rein. This is noticeable when riding too as on the right rein he tried to avoid the outside track but much more extreme when lunging.

I had his back done a couple of weeks ago and she said his right hip is very slightly lower than his left but she has no concerns about him or anything so I can't see this causing that much of a problem?

His tack is all checked and fine, feet and teeth are up to date. Is this something I should get a vet out to check or would you be satisfied that it's just evasion and will get better with time?

Thank you!!

 

[Barnacle]

This is very common in a horse that hasn't been schooled properly... Unless he acts out and seems like he's in pain, I'd just put it down to one side being less/more developed than the other. One worthwhile thing to change is how he is fed if he has a haynet. Horses will preferentially tilt their head one or other way when pulling hay from one and it can cause quite shocking asymmetry if they are stabled regularly. Feed on the ground instead and persist with lots of work on the weak side - don't give in and be tempted to swap to the "easy" side - and you'll see improvement in time.

 

[wkiwi]

Agree with Barnacle about the lack of schooling, and just wanted to add that you need to build up the work on the weak side gradually, as a sudden increase could cause muscle strain. It can take months for muscles to build up, so work out a progressive increase.

 

[MotherOfChickens]

It's something you can work on (gradually) on hacks as well-lots of shoulder fore progressing to shoulder in, make sure you change diagonals regularly when trotting and ask for the appropriate bend, leg yield, ride shallow loops etc Personally I would hold off lunging him because going badly on that rein will only be doing harm.He's not wanting to work on that rein because it's very hard for him to do so. Feeding from the ground is good and it might be worth getting someone to check teeth at some point-that can also cause asymmetry if he is eating 'funny' due to a missing tooth/sharp tooth on one side etc. I don't practice anymore but I am a qualified body worker-the stiffest (and most stoic) equines I ever worked with were show jumping ponies-they work very hard.

If he's been going incorrectly for a long time, it will take a long time to correct and he'll be lacking correct muscle as wkwi says. There are lots of different exercises you can try on the ground too-look up Straightness Training (they often have free downloads). I totally recommend this DVD http://werc.co.uk/dvd.htm as well for starters lol! There's a great DVD and booklet set called 'Activate your horse's core' by Hilary Clayton but its a little more pricey and hard to get hold off now.

 

[ChelseaFilly]

Thanks everyone for your replies - glad you hear no one is worried!

Does anyone have any good tips to get him more balanced and working a bit better to in hope, even him out?

Thank you

 

[MotherOfChickens]

do you have an instructor? We are also often very one sided so you need some eyes on the ground for yourself as well. If not, get someone to take some video of you riding.

 

[ChelseaFilly]

Thank you MotherOfChickens, haven't had any lessons on him as of yet but as soon as he moves yards and comes home, I will be straight back with the instructor!

 

[Barnacle]

I'd do lots on a loose rein so the horse is carrying itself. Walk, trot, canter if you can manage it (unbalanced horses sometimes rush in canter on a loose rein so you may have to take up contact and release a few strides, take it up again, release etc). Lots of transitions and lots of bending as well. Transitions should be between and within gaits. Keep it interesting. People get too stuck on the outside track... Forget the track is there and just curve your way around the arena

 

[ChelseaFilly]

Thank you Barnacle,

Yes he does rush in canter so I think it will need some giving and taking!!

Will start doing this at the weekend though

Thanks for your help!