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Problems?

3K views 18 replies 11 participants last post by  kayeagan2 
#1 ·
Hya if anyone has any problem with training i will be delighted to help if i can! Post me ur probs!!!!
 
#2 ·
well, my problem is my mare backing up when we're on the road. She rides fine in the fields, but won't go up the road. She knows I won't let her turn around, so she backs straight up and I don't know what to do about it. She'll curve inward as she backs up, and her hind end practically goes down into the ditch on the side of the road. I get so angry with her, kicking her, using a crop does nothing. I've gotten off of her and led her a million times, but she constanly pulls this on me. As soon as I'm on her, she's backing up and won't go forward. It's just that she doesn't want to ride on the road...but I do.
 
#3 ·
Personally, as soon as she starts backing, I'd turn her in a circle. Everytime she backs, make her go in a circle until she is willing to go forward. As soon as she takes even 1 step forward, praise her like crazy and release the pressure. She needs to realize that it's alot less work to simply walk where you tell her to. It's going to take a few tries and persistence on your part, but be consistent.
 
#6 ·
Beautifulbay, if it was me (and there wasnt much traffic) i'd try to pivot the horse to where its butt is facing the direction you wanted to go, then i would let it back away! LOL. I'd give the horse a few opportunities to turn around and walk like a normal horse, and if they went to backing up again, i'd turn around and repeat. A good cue for you to do this is when the backing up seems to slow down.

But im passive aggressive.. so don't listen to me if my method sounds unethical, lol.

But heck.. it gets the job done.
 
#7 ·
I agree with turning in circles. You do NOT want to get off your horse when he backs up. That is what he wants. The only time I would say for you to get off your horse would be if it were too dangerous to ride on the road, such as if there were a bunch of traffic or something. I can see Skippy's point. If you can't get him to turn in circles, I might try making him back up for a while, (like it was your idea to begin with.) but I'm not sure that would work.

On a side note, why do you want to ride on the road? Is it a dirt road? Or is it paved with traffic? We ride on our dirt roads all the time, but it can be dangerous to ride on paved roads with our special shoes. A paved road is like ice to a horses hoof and they can slip very easily unless they have boruim on the bottom to the shoe.
 
#8 ·
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#9 ·
TxHorseMom brings up a very good point about road safety.

When i gave my two cents, i was saying what I would do when i was on a bridle path (or yuppie trail as we call them) that are set -beside- the road with guard rails up incase a horse gets spooked so it wont jump into the road. Riding on pavement, or even just off the road is 10 times more dangerous and risky to you and your horses safety.

Try to keep your eye on your horse by feeling the body, watching the ears, and watching the position of the head. If you can see your horse become tense again, anticipate that she/he (i forgot, lol!) is about to back up, and try to work through the problem before it happens. Be light in your seat (if anything, lean forward) have a loose rein (but not too loose, where it would be easy to lose control) and kiss him/her on. Nip the problem in the butt before she/he even does it.

Anticipating and reacting accordingly has helped me greatly in the past when it came to working through vices.

Good luck hun! =) Let us know how it goes!
 
#11 ·
can i just say getting off does have advantages and dissadvantiages (i cant spell lol) if you do get off your horse knows ur frightned and will become dependant on you getting off, although if your in traffic it is a safer option to jump off as your horse could be backing up into cars.
 
#12 ·
i don't agree with the fear sense

Horses do not sense you are affraid. I'm not sure who came up with that.

So this is how I see it.

My horses thoughts: hay she's getting off because she's affraid of me? Coooooooooool mmmmmmmmmmm maybe I can use this later to my advantage.

My thoughts......

I wish my horse thought like that becuase if they can reason I can teach them to feed them selves;)
 
#14 ·
a horse is a horse

A horse will do what it has to do to get comfortable.

If they are in pain due to ill fitting gear they will act out

If they are scared they will act up to run away from what is deemed scary.

A horse does have an excellent memory!

If your horse paws because of boredom and you think it’s because he is asking for food you just anthropomorphosised his actions.

If you give him a carrot during the time he is pawing you just taught him that when he paws he will get a carrot.

They work off of the reward system!
 
#15 ·
Mokinho, from multiple first hand experiences, i must insist that horses can sense a riders fear and anxiety. When a rider is afraid, their hands are rigid, their seat is tense, and their legs are also very firm. Humans tend to "freeze up" when they are fearful, and i myself do all of that when i am afraid while on my horse. In return, the horse feels my rigidity and my tenseness, they can feel i am not walking WITH them in the saddle (since when you are stiff, you dont flow as well with the horse's stride, its almost choppy). And in return, the horse, a prey animal, reacts in such a way:

The Alpha is fearful of something.. i wonder what it is? I better be on guard to make sure nothing attacks me!

Horses are followers, and most horses follow their leader (aka you, the handler). In the wild, when the leader is frightened, they react accordingly. So, when they feel their alpha is tense and fearful, they also get very fearful hoping whatever is scaring you will not attack them.. if that makes sense.

Even just as recently as today, i accidentally spooked my horse when I jolted suddenly in the saddle because a ladybug attacked me. He felt me tense up suddenly and jumped as if to say "Oh my god!! What is it?!! Ohmygodohmygod!!" The only thing that spooked him, was MY insecurity when i freaked out about the lady bug and suddenly tightened up in my seat and gripped my legs around his barrel tighter.

I hope all this makes sense. I just have to reiterate that i 100% believe (through multiple, multiple personal experiences) that horses DO feel when their rider/handler is fearful/angry/happy through our body language and posture. Any horse person will tell you can speak to your horse by the way you are standing and approach your horse. Its just basic horsemanship =)

I hope it doesnt seem like im attacking ya =) I am not! But this is a huge thing i teach people when they are fearful of leading and riding their horses, they cannot show their fear or they will no longer be the alpha in the relationship ;)
 
#16 ·
No I don't think your attacking me :D

This is a great discussion....

The statement I'm referring to was, "...if you do get off your horse knows ur frightened and will become dependant on you getting off..."

Yes a horse can sense if you are not confident. That's how they survive.

When you loose the confidence they can't trust you to help them to survive.

I was going on a trail ride one day and there was this cow in a thicket of bushes and I new my horse didn't have a clue that it was there and as we walked closer and closer the cow started moving out of the bushes towards us and at that point my horse jumped side was by a length of two feet. I didn't tense up and grasp the reins I sat firm in my seat which gave her a sense of comfort and that what was coming out of the bushes she didn't need to fear.

Horses are dependent on you! We are their herd mate and instinct tells them that they have to rely on us for safety....

Getting off the horse teaches him a lesson. The question is what type of lesson did you teach him when you got off his back????????
 
#17 ·
Skippy! said:
Even just as recently as today, i accidentally spooked my horse when I jolted suddenly in the saddle because a ladybug attacked me. He felt me tense up suddenly and jumped as if to say "Oh my god!! What is it?!! Ohmygodohmygod!!"
:lol: ****! I can soooo totally relate and I had to laugh out loud when I pictured it. The look some horses get when they are freaking out because the rider is freaking out is really quite comical.
 
#19 ·
New horse with issues

Proeventer: Bot 10 yr old morgan gelding last summer after 6-7 trial rides and saw no issues. I am only intermediate rider with 5-6 yrs of riding leased horses. I always had gentle horses with great ground manners until now.

1. RESPECT? On 2nd ride here at his new home, he threw me and broke my ribs. As I think back, I should not have mounted him. He was scared and not ready. I had trainer work with him 4 months and he said "he is a good boy, knows what he is suppose to do but is lazy and can be obstinate".

Snows came and "Tri" was not worked for 4 months. Snows melted this week. I tried working him in round ring first time in 4 mths and he totally "dissed" me and would not work but he did work a little for my husband. I'm bummed now. (When I pointed for him to go and swung rope at hind quarters, he turned to me pointing his body slightly in opposite direction I was asking foreven tho I stayed behind shoulder. )

2. EAR PINNING? Tri has an attitude about food too. I think he lacks self confidence???? Since the beginning, he has pinned his ears back when I feed him but never agressive to me. He is aggressive to the 6 yr old mare he is boarded with and kicks and runs at her with ears pinnedat feeding time. Tri was the submissive horse at prior home while his brother was the dominant horse.

I feel like I need to establish myself as "alpha" and stop the ear pinning thing or can I????? How would I do this????? Does he need to be put with a dominant mare to teach him manners???

Thus 1) he does not respect me and would not work for me in round ring. How do I gain his respect? I pet him, talk to him, brush him while he is eating. He accepts it but sometimes pins ears but never is agressive.

2) Fearful attitude. I work with him on scary objects but next time, he is again fearful of same objects (bags, worming tubes, etc.) Is this related to lack of self confidence and what can I do?

3) Ear Pinning. How do I stop the ear pinning at sight of food. I stopped giving treats a week ago but he still looks for them.

I don't want to feel as tho I made a mistake with him. I had morgans in CA. He is small, sturdy, good looking, was a good trail horse during my trial runs so I went for it. Is he too much for me? I am 64 and just want a trusted trail horse that I can ride 3-4 times a week. ~~ k
 
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