What to do with a 'jumping' pony that doesn't jump?

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confirmedponyaddict

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Ok so a little bit of background knowledge...
Bought a pony in August last year hoping to bring on and sell around Feb/March and if not make a profit, ideally sell for more money than I bought. I also just wanted something ti play with over the Winter as I'm off travelling in the Summer and won't be doing much horsey stuff. He is lovely to look at, good in traffic, hacking- a bit spooky but he is welsh! Going really well in the school and low level dressage, started doing a bit of jumping and its all gone a bit tits up. At first he showed loads of enthusiasm and if anything was a bit too keen, then as I started to add fillers/make things a bit more complicated, he started putting in the odd stop which isn't a problem except once he's stopped his confidence just dissolves and I have to put the jumps back down to baby cross poles and start all over again.
I had this problem with another pony a few years back, took her hunting= problem solved, so thought I'd try it with this one. He was impeccably behaved, jumped everything I asked him too, including some very meaty timber fences and I thought his confidence had really improved.
Fastforward to today...started over small cross poles- very enthusiastic happy as anything, put them up to about 2' uprights and he was a bit hesitant but fine after he'd been over them all once. I then of course got a bit cocky and put one jump on it's own up to about 2'6" whereupon he spooked at a chicken coming off the corner, wasn't looking where he was going and put a stop in at the fence. This then made all the other fences scary and I ended up having to put everything back down to poles on the floor just to finish on a good note.
I'm angry at myself for misjudging the situation and I'm generally pissed off that I was really hoping he'd be a smart little allrounder but I can't honestly sell him as one because the jumping is so sticky :(
If you got to the end you are heroic and thankyou for reading. Just a last note, this pony is NOT in pain- saddle/teeth/back are all fine and I am a very competent jumper even if I did cock up today.
 
Sell him as what he is, a good sensible hack, most peoples highest priority, nicely schooled capable of low level dressage, more people do that than jump, good out hunting so likely to continue to be, a bonus, needs work on his SJ, although I would not actually put it like that, he has more good points than bad so sell those.
There are plenty of people who never want to jump, I have a client looking for a happy hacker pony that is well schooled but it does not need to jump, or you may get someone who is happy to work on it further, if you are honest about the jumping he should still sell for sensible money.
 
Seems to me you are going too fast for him, keep small, dont jump everyday, put the ocassional filler jump in, not all ten of them, get his confidence that way, why put a jump up to 2.6? You need to end on a good note and that stop caused you to end on a bad note. Is he sound, no tenderness anywhere, and are you confident, the rider bot sitting right can put the horse off, because you nkow he doesnt like fillers are you feeling a bit pensive which would go through to him
 
We had a Welsh A that was taught to jump by an experienced small adult so my daughter could take over. We had him three years and he always had a but in him, would jump if I growled at him but would rather not, he was well behaved, well schooled and not nappy, just didn't like jumping.
I have another Welsh A who has only stopped three times in 20 years, if he can not jump it he would scramble over it. Its worth trying with things he can walk over putting strange things over cross poles, sheets, coloured buckets any thing that's safe and does not completed freak him out and change it every time you jump them so he gets used to going over the obstacle even if he doesn't actually jump it, if he stops he still has to go over it. When he has done it well , no stops, leave it and even if its first time leave it and go for a hack
 
putasocinit said:
Seems to me you are going too fast for him, keep small, dont jump everyday, put the ocassional filler jump in, not all ten of them, get his confidence that way, why put a jump up to 2.6? You need to end on a good note and that stop caused you to end on a bad note. Is he sound, no tenderness anywhere, and are you confident, the rider bot sitting right can put the horse off, because you nkow he doesnt like fillers are you feeling a bit pensive which would go through to him
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Where did I say I jumped every day? Incidentally, this is the first time in over a week. I know it was a mistake to put the jump up- I admitted that in my original post. Yes I am confident, and no he is not unsound again please read the OP before being patronising.
 
confirmedponyaddict said:
Where did I say I jumped every day? Incidentally, this is the first time in over a week. I know it was a mistake to put the jump up- I admitted that in my original post. Yes I am confident, and no he is not unsound again please read the OP before being patronising.
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I have had the occasional one in to get jumping that has had confidence issues and jumping every day is often the best way to get them confident and established, I have jumped 5 days in a row, only a little each day, mixing it up with hacking etc a few days off to think about it and the penny has dropped, you can then do it less frequently and make progress. Little and often may be the way to go with this pony, not over jumping but just popping a few easy ones each day they can really start to enjoy it if you do not make a big deal about it and get too carried away by building jumps up too quickly.
 
If he's simply a project who you plan to sell soon, Id forget the jumping and take him out to dressage comps instead to get that experience under his belt. Perhaps a bit of showing even? Then sell him as that, lots of dressage / showing people don't do jumping.
 
My section d is very unconfident jumping but like yours is fine over naturals out hacking. She was sold to me with this stated and it made not a jot of difference to me as I don't like jumping, there's lots out there like me who are past it on the jumping front!
 
My sisters is similar except he's an experienced jumper. Done BSJA and BE and is 100% fine cross counrty. About 6 months after first having him she made a mistake into a fence at a show, he got his legs caught up and she went flying. Took about 8 months to get him jumping at the same level again. The same thing has happened a couple of times, something goes wrong, he majorly scares himself then won't jump for ages. Shes now just resigned to the fact that when it happens its back to the teeny crosspoles then build it up very slowly. Slow and steady is the trick I think, particularly with an inexperienced jumped. But as everyone else has said, there are plenty of people who don't want a jumping pony
 
As others have said but I would just be honest and just say he does jump but he is green. Sounds like you could potentially sell him on the Hunting field though! Perhaps he would make a good Working Hunter prospect?
 
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