So my horse Clippy is a barrel racer, but he also can jump like 5ft. And i have only jumped him about 3'9''. And now he is starting to charge the jumps how can i stop him from doing this???
Upnover, I love your posts, especially this one.Like I said, rushing to the fence is always an anxiety issue. What are some reasons that cause anxiety?
1. they aren't balanced through the corner (they don't like feeling like they're going to fall down)
2. they aren't balanced to the fence
3. getting to the right distance to the fence
4. getting hurt over the fence (hit in the mouth, back, etc)
5. what to do with his legs (meaning: doesn't really know how to jump)
6. too slow through the corner and they feel like they can't get over the fence at that pace
7. rider is fearful and causes the horse to be fearful
8. horse is afraid of the jump itself (too many reasons to list)
9. it's too high of a jump then what they're physically prepared for
10. it's too high of a jump then what they're mentally prepared for
I could go on and on and on but I'll start with those. My guess is that your horse is not prepared to be jumping anything higher then 2 ft max right now. I cannot stress it enough, HEIGHT DOES NOT MATTER. It is QUALITY. The horse I've been working with that used to charge fences is incredibly scopey. My hope is for him to be my 3"6 horse, possibly 4" unless I sell him. I'm pretty certain I could hop him over a few 3" jumps now without it being an issue, but i won't. I'm going to take my time and let him get very very comfortable at 2'3-2'6, probably for the rest of the year before I start to raise the fences. This is a crucial time in his training for him to learn to use his body well and gain confidence. 6 inches doesnt seem like a lot but there is a TREMENDOUS difference between jumping 2'6 and 3'. Lots of people can jump 2'6, even if maybe they shouldn't be. No one should be jumping 3' unless they are absolutely prepared to. There is also a tremendous difference between jumping 3' and 3'3 and by the time you are doing 3'6 you should be a very accomplished rider. You can't be inaccurate, you can't be unbalanced or your will either 1. get hurt 2. hurt your horse 3. completely screw up your horse. The fact that you have been jumping your horse 3'9 terrifies me and it is no surprise that your horse is charging fences. I'm sorry if that is harsh but I'd love to get my point across that you have got to lower the fences and work on the basics!
I was very happy to hear that you are open to trying a little dressage work to see if it helps and that it does seem to be slowing him down. Remember too that just because he is nice and slow at 2" does not mean you should raise the fences the next day. Like I said, I plan on keeping my horse at the 2"6 mark for pretty much the rest of the year. My desire to have my horse jump well and comfortably is much more important to me then my desire to jump big.
And just to add... I don't consider 2nd level to be impressive or contain "the most amazing dressage things". Yes, I am impressed by people who do it well but a horse that jumps 3'6 should at least be schooling 2nd level if not higher.
You do not NEED to know dressage to jump. You NEED to know dressage if you want to jump well.I do personally believe that Dressage has alot to do with balance and precision and what not. but i totally disagree that you have to know Dressage to jump?? i've been jumping for about 4 years and have never heard that in my life. And my new trainer is HUGE into dressage, and she has never once told me this??
But anyways, good luck and i hope all works out!
Excellent PostI just read the entire thread that someone posted with the link to Clippy's critique. Question, have you seen him jump 3"9 or did his previous owner tell you he could do it (like she told you he was a 3rd level dressage horse -3rd is what your previous post said- and that he was worth 20K) ?
More questions.. in the thread you mentioned that you cannot loosen your reins otherwise he will bolt with you. Have you resolved that? Because that's something that I would consider to be a huge huge issue that absolutely must be resolved before you start jumping him. What do you do when you go over the fence, can you release or are you still hanging on your reins so he won't take off? Are you jumping him with the shanked bit and the tie down? I'd really REALLY like to help you, for your sake and his. But you're going to have to really really want to be helped before any change can happen.
Clippy does not look like the first picture, he tucks his head. And he is starting to look like the second The reson his head is high, is cuz, he was also trained as a saddleseat horse, mounted police, and a carrige horse.I thought this may be useful for you -
Because of the way you are riding your horse, he is arching his back creating a 'hollow back' which is also causing him to carry his head high (besides the tie down). Anyways your horse looks something similar to this, does he not? -
When your horse should look a little more like this -
http://www.freewebs.com/canterburydressage/cosmo 016_low res.jpg
(sorry pictures way too big lol)
I just thought maybe if you saw the difference then maybe you'd be more motivated to get out there and work on that dressage! :wink:
I do personally believe that Dressage has alot to do with balance and precision and what not. but i totally disagree that you have to know Dressage to jump?? i've been jumping for about 4 years and have never heard that in my life. And my new trainer is HUGE into dressage, and she has never once told me this??
But anyways, good luck and i hope all works out!
From the pictures I've seen he tucks his head in because hes bracing against the tie down. I bet if you took off the tie down his nose would be pocking up like that horse. There are more clues to how he balances himself out, how he carries himself and how his legs are stiff shows that he is bracing against a tight rein and the tie down.Clippy does not look like the first picture, he tucks his head. And he is starting to look like the second The reson his head is high, is cuz, he was also trained as a saddleseat horse, mounted police, and a carrige horse.
About 4 months after i got him a iwas jumping that. Because that is how high the previous owner has been jumping himI do barrel racing/team penning/endurance (Though I am working my way into the english world) and I do a lot of dressage (Even if it is in a western saddle).
If you actually have taken our advice of dropping the jumps and working on dressage instead, then I guess you have your answer.
I just can't seem to get you straight I guess. You say you haven't been jumping, but then say you are working on starting to event and have jumped 3'9 with him. Whatever the case, hopefully you begin to see that Clippy does not carry himself properly like the photos posted and needs a good solid base on him.
I hope you are able to find a good Dressage instructor.