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High Energy Only At Shows

976 Views 7 Replies 5 Participants Last post by  loosie
Hello!

I have been having trouble showing my horse. This has always been the case, and I have had her two years, but at this point, I feel that it is not just stage fright, but something bigger. She rarely needs to be lunged at home – or, at least, usually every other week. She is pretty mellow at home, and doesn't worry much.

However, ever since I got her, she has been really high energy at shows. She needs to be lunged three, sometimes four times a day. She will buck and kick, which she has never, ever done at home. She sometimes refuses to walk or woah.

I'm wondering what this is from. She has been to about... thirty shows, maybe forty, and every place it is the same thing. She is the calmest horse at the barn, but take her to a show, and she is the first one to flip out. Her diet doesn't change. Her feed times don't change. Her tack doesn't change.

What is going on?
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How much turnout time does she get at your barn. Reduced turnout time is often the culprit of youngsters starting out on the circuit needing to learn how to harness their energy properly. When she is at a 1 day show she is still getting regular turnout.

I like to get my horses a good hand walk twice a day, lunge if they feel the need to stretch their legs but I NEVER let them act out on the lunge line. It is work time. But I find they learn the routine and are pretty tired with a class or two a day+warmup with class A shows. They enjoy their nice hand walks and then want to rest up!!!
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