Horse training problems.?

Question

i got my first horse last march. ive been traing her ever since. she wus verry green and a complete psyco. since then shes been to 3 diffrent farms and like the one shes at the best . so will keep her there a long time. so far she has calmed down alot! her jog is about show ring. i need help training her with her lope and heatset. ( when we first got her she trotted as fast as she could and galloped) how do i slow her canter down? its been taking forever. and i have been doin that pull and release it works a little. i just need some more opinons. also on her head set. its hard to controll her to, she cuts corners super fast and like to do sliding stops with me on her. how can i fix that? shes a verry verry strong stock horse mare. 15.2h and is 9. thnx ^_^

im not sure what it im using. its working great she just has some problems from a mean last owner to. she has a pretty strong bit, we have tried about 10-15 other, this one seems to work the best. she is verry strong. im not a begginer rider if u think this beacuse shes my first horse. i have been riding almost 11 years

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Answer 1

Don't listen to the people saying to get a harsher bit- harsher bits are just because the rider can not control the horse- it is a fault in the rider's training, the horse shouldn't be punished.

What I suggest should slow her down AND get her head down- both go hand in hand: Try riding with two reins, I am assuming your pull and release is like a half halt, though if it is taking forever, probably is not effective how you are using it. Stay in circles until she slows down- it is harder for them to run away with you)/.Do this at a walk first, then trot, then canter only when she is listening well.
I am assuming you know basic training with leg pressure (every dicipline uses it) You really can't expect much out of her if you haven't trained her with that. With the two reins, give a slow short tug on the outside rein and push her over slightly with the inside leg, let the inside rein normal. You should feel her inside hind leg come underneath her more, and her head drop slightly and slow down a pace- her nose should still be in the way of the circle, or slightly outside. She should just feel like she is changing her position, not actually shove herself to the outside. It may take a couple times for her to understand what you are asking. If she does it correctly, praise her.
After she has a nice calm slow walk with her head where you want it and listening well to your legs, ask for a jog for a few strides, shift your weight back in the saddle (more on your butt) and then go back down to a walk- transitions lighten up your horse as long as you are not jerking on the reins to get her to stop. Slowly lengthen the time you are jogging, but only if she is listening, slower, with her head down. The speed doesn't have to be perfect- what you want is her listening to you. She will get better in time, once she listens to the outside rein, inside leg cue. After she is good at the walk and jog, then try a canter. It should be a piece of cake with all of the groundwork laid.
Oh- one more thing- when she listens well with direct reining, you can go back to neck reining- all you should need to do is use inside leg and a little jiggle of your finger to get her to slow and drop.
If she is a little strong for you, you can ride in draw reins (try to only do it about half the time) and use the same methods as above. A nylon pair costs about $15. They will just make it a little easier for you.
I am a dressage rider myself, but have used this method for reining and western/ english pleasure horses.

Answer 2

I would gradually change his feed to a mix of Senior and something lower-energy such as Allstock pellets. I'd ask the vet for what amount to feed so that he was in fit condition but not too overweight. Then I would start in a roundpen working him on the ground to get a trot and canter in each direction. Only after he was solid in those would I then ride him in the roundpen until he was fine to trot and canter there. If I had trouble I'd back up a step and go back to groundwork. I would not rush this horse. I think if you do this he will come around, it may take time. Once he was ok riding in the roundpen then I would try riding in an arena and then on the trails again. Just go slowly. Let him tell you how much he's ready for. He may need more work to settle down. I agree with the previous person who says he might have been drugged before. So I would approach this from scratch as if he were a colt in training, if I wanted to keep this horse.

Answer 3

About her headset- horses are built in an amazing way and their body moves in a way to keep the horse balanced. Some horses were built with a naturally low headset some weren't. While draw reins and other contraptions may cure this problem temporarily, they don't fix the problem in the long run. If your horse is keeping her head up at a lope or canter it is because she needs it there to keep balanced. If you are competing in events that require this naturally low headset you should have considered that before you purchased the mare.
Make sure the saddle you are riding is fitted for your horse- if its not you could be causing pressure on her back that is telling her to keep going forward.
If you want to work on controlling your horses speed I'd get her into a large round working pen- or a breaking pen. If you are practicing in a large arena or area your horse will be harder to control and easier to distract. You want your horses full attention.
I've been training cutting horses and reining horses for a long time so I know all about speed control. The most important thing as a rider you can do is get your body to relax- from the way you are talking it sounds to me that you might tense up every time you ask your mare for a lope or canter. When you tense up so are your legs- and your horse could be responding to this pressure. What I do when I encounter a horse that is hard to slow- I just make it uncomfortable for her to go fast. What I'll do is just quit riding her at the lope or canter to the point I'm bouncing up and down and not rocking in motion with them. When they slow down to the speed I want them to, I'll start riding in motion with them again. Pretty soon they realize if they don't go the speed I want them to go- they'll get a sore wake up call to their back. When you get control of her speed this will also cure the cutting corners fast.
As far as the sliding stops go- count this a blessing. I'd much rather have a horse slide to a stop than bounce dramatically when his front end slows and his hind is still running.
If you are dead bent on giving her a low headset- work on vertical and horizontal flexion. When your horse has this mastered at a stand still you can move on to having your mare flex at a walk and then progress up wards.

You may be an awesome rider- but just because you're a good rider, doesn't mean you'll be a good trainer. Just think what's best for your horse and your sanity. It may be more worth while for you and your equine to partner with a trainer you trust while you're riding your mare or to send her off to be trained.

Answer 4

Please please PLEASE listen to Danielle B.

I was about to answer when I read her response and there's no need for me to retype everything she suggested.

Her ideas and exercises really will help you if you utilize them

The trick is patience. Your mare doesn't understand what you want because 1) her former owners likely did not teach her the way you are teaching her or 2) you're not being clear in your signals (its possible.) or 3) you're not asking her to do something she's phsyically able to do.

If you've had her for a year and you're still experiencing these issues I would imagine you are working to the best of your ability. Perhaps the mare has exceeded your abilities? We all reach our limits with our horses and perhaps she needs just a change in trainer?

Also you've switched her farms quite a bit in a year. That's VERY unsettling for a horse. Most working horses take at least a month to settle into the herd and routine at each farm. She barely gets that before its time to go again! That could be part of the reason she acts so high-strung.

Please ride with a deeper seat, independant hands, and ride in a Snaffle Bit. Be PATIENT with your mare. She's a GORGEOUS girl and she's got the potential to be a great horse for you-- you just need to give her some more time. It might be a year before you get her canter perfected. It might be another 6 months before you're both understanding each other when it comes to head-placement. So it takes time. Every rider and every horse learn at different paces.

The only thing I need to add is that you should look at your mare's feed. Just ensure she's not getting more feed than she needs, thus upping her energy level and making it hard for you two to work in harmony.

Please consult with your vet to get her back checked to make sure she's not resistant to dropping her head due to a spinal pull.

Also-- DESPITE what anyone says, "head Placement" is one of the worst things we can do to our horses. As someone else mentioned, horses are all built differently and some horses are limited to where they can carry their head based on muscling and bone structure!
Learn to ride your mare on contact or "on the bit." so you have a light feel of her mouth at all times. Riding on the buckle or on a loose rein then popping her in the mouth when you want to stop (as many western riders do) does NOT encourage the show-ring frame (aka: headset) that is desired. It actually encourages exactly the OPPOSITE Effect.
Let your mare know the bit is a SAFE place to be and she will learn to release her pole and reach towards the bit, giving you the frame you want.

Consider getting your mare 6-9 months of dressage training. Just to give her something new to think about. Besides all "dressage" means is "training" and it just coaches the horse's body to be balanced and supple and to be focused on the rider. It will DEFINATLEY help all the issues you've mentioned.

Answer 5

Try putting her on a plain snaffle bit. She seems responsive enough. Don't do the pull and release.

Try taking her into a round pen and putting the reins over the saddle horn (if english then hold on to them loosly. Don't direct her at all, just hold on to her neck. Tell her to walk and if she starts to go too fast turn her neck and force her to stop. Make her sit there for a second (I make my horse flex his neck) and then tell her to walk again. Keep doing so until she walks at the pace you want. Then do the same thing with a jog and then a lope. As soon as she starts moving too fast turn her into a stop, but DON'T pull back on her mouth.

She will learn within a week. For the headset, use a martingale. I ride both english and western (only training) using one and it's worked with both of my show horses. If you want to, hold your hands down, more at knee level and direct her from there and that should lower her headset also.

Hope it all works out!

Answer 6

Ok let's break this down a bit, she cuts corners cuz she is dropping her inside shoulder. do you know how to lift the inside rein and pull with the outside? also use your inside leg to push her up and over off the inside shoulder.

cantering or galloping instead of a lope is cuz-1- she doesn't know how prob never been taught and she's not using her rear end. she's pulling with her front end instead of pushing off the rear. so some rollbacks and stops are good to help her use her rear. do a rollback to a trot off, stop, rollback and trot off again. do this until you can move her up to a canter. this will slow her down cuz she never knows whent he stop is coming. so the same thing canter stop and rollback and canter off again. you will be amazed how well this works. also doing circles at the canter with 7 stride stops. canter 7 strides on a circle stop rollback or backup canter off and do the same. remember since she likes to cut corners use alot of inside rein to lift her up. you can also try trotting her straight into a corner and stopping her and then do the same at a canter. so she learns she can't cut corners.

now head set will be a bit harder, you need to know how to get her to flex over at the poll and you may need some help with this and all the other problems you are having. her doing slide stops may be cuz of you changing your positions and not realizing it. Just cuz you have been riding for 11 years doesn't necessarily mean you can train a green horse and I would never rec doing this cuz alot of times you end up with more problems than you do solving them. since you've had her almost a year now and she still has problems that she had a year ago most of these if not all would have been solved had you sent her to a trainer for 3-6 mo. Do not use draw reins on this horse as you could get hurt and flip your horse over if you use them improperly. you have way too many other issues that need to be solved before you put draws on this horse. If you don't know how to do the things that I have given you here and don't understand them then PLEASE send her to a trainer before you get hurt. good luck

Answer 7

Ma'am, to slow her canter down you need to get her in a small pen and put her into a canter but let her go as fast at that speed that she wants to. Keep her at a canter for a long time. Keep her interested by changed directions though. You want to tire her out please keep in mind that humans get tired of riding a lope before the horse is worn out, so you need to stick with it until she is about to drop because shes so tired. Then when shes gettin tired tell her easy and just barely pull on the bit until she slows her canter down to an easy lope. For her headset, if you are not going to be riding around or in water or in pastures with large drop offs or anything where she needs her head to balance her then i would put a tie down on her. Use it every other day or so, so that she doesnt expect to have that on to make her head stay down. With the sliding stops, I would use less pressure on the bit and slow her down by stages instead of asking her to STOP like if your in a lope and you ask her to stop do it so that she jogs then walks and stops, but only let her take a couple steps in each stage.

Answer 8

I got my first horse, after years of riding and trainning, about 2 years ago, and he sounds a lot like your girl.

I would recomend using a shambon to help correct her headset, it may also help you slow her down. This helped my horse out a lot, and its much easier on your hands! You can either buy one, or make one yourself. The shambon runs from the girth up through the headstall and connects to the bit. You then adjust it so that she feels pressure on her mouth when she pulls against it, but when she puts her head where it should be (bridge of nose perpendicular to the ground) the pressure releases. You then lunge her with the shambon on. I prefer to free lunge in a round pen. She might freak out the first time you use it on her, but don't let that stop you. If your horse is as psyco as mine, it could get pretty...ummm, interesting. (My gelding fliped himself over) But don't give up! She'll soon learn what she is supposed to do and that she can't force her way out of it. The shambon should help the problem a lot, but you still have to enforce proper headset when your on her back.

As far as what to do at the canter/lope, I would recomend a lot of work at the canter. Also, make sure that you are sitting deep in the saddle and are very relaxed, don't let your body move. Continue what you are doing right now, and reward her slowing down by releasing pressure. Don't stop her until she has slowed down. And, when you stop her, try giving her a little more leg so that she still stops, but does a little longer doing so that she doesn't slide. Downward transitions may also be helpful when addressing these problems. Also, make lots of small circles in sort of a spiral down the arena.

When you are going around a corner try picking up her inside shoulder with your inside rein and inside leg. Be very exagrated about it at first so that she gets the idea.

Almost all of my trainning (esp. with green horses) is done in a snaffle, and almost everything that I have recomended has worked very well for me, but I have only used snaffles when doing these things. They may work very well with other bits, but I'm not sure, so I just thought that you should be aware of that.

I hope that this is helpful and works as good for your mare as it did for my horse!

Answer 9

Be careful with draw reins when you first use them. They force the horse to use muscles she is not accustom to using, which means she may become fatigued much faster. Of course some horse also freak out when you first use them, so always walk them around with the reins first to get them use to the motion. Of course I'm sure you are already doing this.

What are you riding? English? Western? Saddle Seat? It makes a bit difference in HOW you want the horse to move. There has been a tendency lately for Western Pleasure riders to slow their horses down the the ridiculous, sure you may win ribbons with a FOUR BEAT canter, but you are destroying a perfectly good horse. I guess what I'm getting to, is you want to focus as much on having a well balanced canter, as having a slow one.

- Allx

Answer 10

i ride a 4 yr old Hanovarion mare. she is 16.3 and still growing and she can be a real dinosaour in the wintertime. put her on a 20 meter circle and dont come of it. start at the walk and take your inside rein and take it out and open toward your knee, use your inside leg to keep her from falling in on the circle. when she drops down into the contact give and release your hold on the indside rein and bring it back to normal position. do it agian if she raises her head or gets tense thru the poll and wont give. DO NOT LET HER JIGG!!! at first she probaly wont want to use her hind end but this exercise will engage her butt and raise her back. do it in both dirrections. she should be streching down over her topline by herself and giving/steping underherself before you even think of trotting. do this exercise both directions. IN the trot do the same thing. keeep her on a 20 mt circlewith your inside lef /outside rein and take you inside rein and open toward your knee. she should give. DO NOT LET HER GO FASTER. establish this give when you open you rein and apply your inside leg before you try strait lines. for the first time you do this just do a circle no strait lines. this same concept can be aplied to the canter/lope. it will make her use herhind end and she will push with her butt and have more wight on her hind end with a free open shoulder. she should become relaxed and slow down alot.you will be able to push her into the corners. good luck she sounds llike a lot of fun to ride!!!! have her teeth checked and her feet done. with this tequnice i am sure you can go down to a nicer bit.
p.s i ride dressage

Lily