BackonTrack
New User
3 months ago I bought a 4 green year old to event. I have experience and have evented up to Novice but know I have my limitations and only took him on knowing I could put him with a pro rider to work with us. He's been going brilliantly in some ways but has, what I believe is a nasty streak and just wanted to hear others opinions or experiences. He is brilliant to handle, clip, box, travel, shoe, hacks out on his own, school on the flat, poles work, all of that. The problem is he has a bold streak that I'm not sure he'll ever grow out of, it feels like his default when, he either doesn't want to do something or is unsure. Do they ever leave the nasty streaks behind or does it stay for life - that's my question.
Yesterday I decided to give him a canter in the field as hed been so good in the arena for 2 days. There's some x/c jumps scattered around so we decided to do a few. The girl who rides him during the week has jumped everything on the course with him but has had major rows and had a massive row during the week but felt she won out in the end and I've no reason to doubt her. We went into the water, over the tiny log again and all was good. Cantered in the field, up and down little bank and headed home. Went to drop down into water and he said no, got after him and he went in 4th time, did it 4 more times. Popped a tiny cottage, turned back to jump it again, which was pointing for home and he quit and had a melt down. Could not get him to jump it, he reared, plunged, bucked, twisted, kicked out, jeez seriously bold. Thought at one point he was going to go over backwards. Knew I couldnt let him away with it but could not get him anywhere near jumping the cottage, so trotted back to the arena, he backed off all the way and I had to kick and smack him to get him to go forward, quit again before we went in, tried to rear but I was ready this time and twisted him onto a tiny circle, hunted him into the arena, trotted round, made him jump x-pole a few times, trotted back out of the arena, over a tiny pipe jump, cantered on down to the cottage and 2 strides out he quit again and started again, rearing, twisting, kicking out, plunging, bucking, nearly got me off. Im afraid I went home, he scared me and there was a bit of me going, am I bothered trying to sort this out. He was seriously bold. Yes, I know, I hear you, he's only 4 but it's not like he's over-faced or not ready or any of those things, and the things you think he'd spook at or misbehave at he's as good as gold, and the stuff he should do, he just says no, it doesn't feel like a green horse, it actually feels like a very practised nappy horse.
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Can I ever trust him. I know I shouldn't have quit I should have made him jump the cottage but I could just not see a way to get him to do it. She rides 3 times a week and I ride 3 times a week. I've taken him to dressage shows and he's done brilliantly every time, she does all the teaching work with him, over grids, little courses etc and has started him over all the x/c jumps anything I do is what she's already done. My plan is to move him to an eventing yard end Dec, who have a very good instructor, so I'll have plenty of advise on hand and he'll continue to be ridden 3 days a week by a pro and 3 by me. I can easily sell him from there if I want to but do they every quit this kind of behaviour.
Thoughts?
Yesterday I decided to give him a canter in the field as hed been so good in the arena for 2 days. There's some x/c jumps scattered around so we decided to do a few. The girl who rides him during the week has jumped everything on the course with him but has had major rows and had a massive row during the week but felt she won out in the end and I've no reason to doubt her. We went into the water, over the tiny log again and all was good. Cantered in the field, up and down little bank and headed home. Went to drop down into water and he said no, got after him and he went in 4th time, did it 4 more times. Popped a tiny cottage, turned back to jump it again, which was pointing for home and he quit and had a melt down. Could not get him to jump it, he reared, plunged, bucked, twisted, kicked out, jeez seriously bold. Thought at one point he was going to go over backwards. Knew I couldnt let him away with it but could not get him anywhere near jumping the cottage, so trotted back to the arena, he backed off all the way and I had to kick and smack him to get him to go forward, quit again before we went in, tried to rear but I was ready this time and twisted him onto a tiny circle, hunted him into the arena, trotted round, made him jump x-pole a few times, trotted back out of the arena, over a tiny pipe jump, cantered on down to the cottage and 2 strides out he quit again and started again, rearing, twisting, kicking out, plunging, bucking, nearly got me off. Im afraid I went home, he scared me and there was a bit of me going, am I bothered trying to sort this out. He was seriously bold. Yes, I know, I hear you, he's only 4 but it's not like he's over-faced or not ready or any of those things, and the things you think he'd spook at or misbehave at he's as good as gold, and the stuff he should do, he just says no, it doesn't feel like a green horse, it actually feels like a very practised nappy horse.
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Can I ever trust him. I know I shouldn't have quit I should have made him jump the cottage but I could just not see a way to get him to do it. She rides 3 times a week and I ride 3 times a week. I've taken him to dressage shows and he's done brilliantly every time, she does all the teaching work with him, over grids, little courses etc and has started him over all the x/c jumps anything I do is what she's already done. My plan is to move him to an eventing yard end Dec, who have a very good instructor, so I'll have plenty of advise on hand and he'll continue to be ridden 3 days a week by a pro and 3 by me. I can easily sell him from there if I want to but do they every quit this kind of behaviour.
Thoughts?