Hi board: here's some problems for you to try to solve I know I sure cant at this point. I bought a draft/quarter horse (I think) 14.2 hh from a local riding stables who was going out of business. He had never been out on the trail alone only in a long line of horse just walking every day for about 12 years. I did not realize that this was going to cause problems when I bought him, he seemed so gentle and sweet. When I got him home and after about a couple of weeks letting him adjust to my other horse and place I started to ride him. Okay so I am riding him alone out on the trail, I did walk him with other horses on the trail to familiarize him with the trail several times before going out alone. He is very spooky at everything and then he bolted on me and I couldnt stop him. this scared me to death as I have never had a horse do this. I jumped off of him and led him home, a long walk. I ordered Clinton Anderson videos about learning the one rein stop and I have presently ordered every video he has on training on the ground and riding with confidence videos.
This horse has a very thick neck and I cant get him to flex around to learn the one rein stop. He pulls his head out of my control every time. I have worked him for an hour and a half in the round pen doing all the ground exercises for controlling the feet, basically he will not turn in to me and latch on. Once he did turn in to me but when I approached to rub him and ask him to follow me he runs away every single time consistently. I have never seen a horse do this. He has a bad attitude and just does not want to latch on to me. I dont have any idea how to fix this problem. I have tried to teach him to back up on the ground and he stands there and wont move no matter how much energy I am projecting to get him to move. I wiggle the rope and use a light crop to tap him on the chest to get him to move, he just looks at me. I am worn out from trying to teach him and I dont know what else to do. I have tried working him in my pasture working on serpentine exercises for head flexion and control or simple go, stop cues and he stops and refuses to go, he jerks his head out of my control, I am not strong enough to get his head around he just jerks his head out of my control, he is very strong and built like a tank. The last time I went out on a trail ride with a friend, she was ahead of me and took off trotting and he broke into a dead gallop and I could not get his head around to one rein stop him. Okay so I dont know what to do wtih this horse. Do any of you have any suggestions?
This horse has a very thick neck and I cant get him to flex around to learn the one rein stop. He pulls his head out of my control every time. I have worked him for an hour and a half in the round pen doing all the ground exercises for controlling the feet, basically he will not turn in to me and latch on. Once he did turn in to me but when I approached to rub him and ask him to follow me he runs away every single time consistently. I have never seen a horse do this. He has a bad attitude and just does not want to latch on to me. I dont have any idea how to fix this problem. I have tried to teach him to back up on the ground and he stands there and wont move no matter how much energy I am projecting to get him to move. I wiggle the rope and use a light crop to tap him on the chest to get him to move, he just looks at me. I am worn out from trying to teach him and I dont know what else to do. I have tried working him in my pasture working on serpentine exercises for head flexion and control or simple go, stop cues and he stops and refuses to go, he jerks his head out of my control, I am not strong enough to get his head around he just jerks his head out of my control, he is very strong and built like a tank. The last time I went out on a trail ride with a friend, she was ahead of me and took off trotting and he broke into a dead gallop and I could not get his head around to one rein stop him. Okay so I dont know what to do wtih this horse. Do any of you have any suggestions?