[xXSweetBreezeXx]

Hi there. Three years ago, I bought a beautiful yearling quarter horse filly. She was started at two years old, and is THE laziest horse EVER! She has no motivation what so ever. This year we decided to start her over jumps. She took it the same as always, no motivation to go. She would just barely clear the jump, and when she decided she was done, she would run right through it. This went on for about 2-3 months. This last month, she made a night and day change. She started bolting after the jump. Never has she bolted to the jump. Its now getting worse, she will rip the reins out of my hands, throw her head between her knees, and start taking taller strides at her canter, and then she just stops and usually I go flying the first time or two, then I get my ballance, and we end up running across the 3 acre field with no control until she gets to a fence and stops. She is still a very lazy horse on the ground, and doing flat work. She has just started bucking now, and I have no idea what to do. I have NO control so circles won't work as she takes the bit in her mouth and just won't respond. We tried half halting before and after the jump, and got nothing. I need MAJOR help!!!

 

[mom2pride]

It sounds like either she isn't comfortable doing what you are doing (3 is awfully young to be pushing into jumping all the time), or she just isn't ready mentally for all the work you're throwing at her. The bolting is just her way of expressing that.

If she were mine, I would be returning to flatwork only, with maybe some ground poles only...solidify everything on the flat, including her 'lack of go', before you try something that NEEDS almost perfect control, like jumping.

 

[xXSweetBreezeXx]

Just keep in mind I got her when she was a yearling (so one year old) and I have had her three years. Therefore 1 year old + 3 years of owning = a 4 year old horse. She does not refuse the jump whatsoever, and when she doesn't like something, she will refuse it (ie: walking on a tarp, etc). We do tons of flatwork, and she does absolutely fine. She has no motivation to go, but that does not mean that she won't go. She just doesn't refuse or act up, she is completely bombproof in flatwork. She just isn't super hyper about moving forward. She will hold her gaits as long as I ask for it, she just is more eager to slow down. She prefers to keep a collected gait, at a walk trot canter, but will extend when asked to do so. She was schooled over poles quite a bit, and is fine with that. There is nothing left to do on the flat, and nothing we need to improve on. And no I am not jumping her every time I ride either. I know that's not a good idea to do with a young horse. If she was uncomfortable, she also would let me know with body language, as she is VERY clear with her signals. After the jump, she is not pinning her ears or anything, she has her ears as forward as they will go, and her tail up like an arab (she also looks like this when she plays with the other horses).

 

[Northern]

You could try off-line longeing her over a jump in a small arena/large roundpen: make a chute with a pole from ground to resting at jump height, funnel shaped to funnel her in, with a ground pole at a stride out, before the jump, to set her up. She'll get the hang of jumping that way; greenies need that development. She should then be calm & confident, then you could see how she does with a rider, perhaps with a "longe person" directing her, as usual, & rider just being a passenger, at first. (Good for rider development of non-interference, too!)

Re: bolting after jumping: Some horses love jumping & speed up after the jump from exuberance; you need to discern the cause, for the proper way to deal with it. Exuberance is not the same as challenging the rider's authority, & fear is yet another possible cause, as well.

 

[MyBoyPuck]

If she's that out of control, maybe bring in a trainer for a few rides to sort of reset her buttons and have the trainer teach you in the process of how to keep up the training.

With the stopping thing, if the first place you attempt it is when she's actually bolting in a field, yeah she's not going to stop. You need to teach it to her in a ring at the walk. Only when that's 100% effective, move up to trot, then canter, and only then try it outside of a ring.

Mares can be tough. There's not much room for error when training them. What it takes a gelding 8 minutes to learn takes a mare 20. If you don't want to bring in a trainer, at least go back to square one. Everything needs to be on your terms. Be fair, but consistent. Take no crap, but only correct to degree you need to be effective. Do not punish or be mean to her. Take it slow and be safe.

 

[xXSweetBreezeXx]

We have tried off line lunging as we have a round pen, and I don't have the same problem, I also jump her without a "longe person" in the round pen without a problem. I have trained several horses myself to jump, have completely broke horses from untouched and turned them into kids horses using NH. I don't have access to a jumping trainer where I am from unfortunately. She stops very well (she'll slide if I really ask her to), at any gait.

 

[mom2pride]

Just keep in mind I got her when she was a yearling (so one year old) and I have had her three years. Therefore 1 year old + 3 years of owning = a 4 year old horse. .

In your first post you said she was started when she was two, and the rest of the post didn't elude to the fact that she was 4 :wink: Sorry for the confusion.

Although, 4 yrs is still probably a little young yet, for consistent jumps, and if she is still lazy outside of jumping, she's just not ready for that yet. jmho.

 

[MyBoyPuck]

She stops very well (she'll slide if I really ask her to), at any gait.

I get my ballance, and we end up running across the 3 acre field with no control until she gets to a fence and stops.

Which is it?
​

 

[xXSweetBreezeXx]

She stops well at any gait, but a bolting horse doesn't really go under that category to most people. She stops everytime I ask except when she's bolting.

 

[Arksly]

Is there maybe some problem with her back? Is the saddle not fitting correctly? Do her legs hurt?
My last horse had sore feet and when I first got him I went to walk him over a cavaletti (sp?) and he leaped over it and took off. Perhaps you could get a vet out to look at her just to rule out pain.

 

[Bandera]

Well I dont think she is too young, my horse was showing 3'3 when she was 4 lol. I have a horse i ride who is super lazy, like REALLY lazy and no motivation. When i jump him he is very easy to the jump but after her takes of and start bucking. With him i have to sit there and squeeze my legs on him really hard and stand there in 2 point and he will stop and come down to a trot. since he is so young you just have to let it trickle out as pulling the reins and yelling will confuse the horse more. Once the horse realizes its there choice they are going fast they will not do it any more!

Here is zeppie

And that is when it started to get better lol.

 

[xXSweetBreezeXx]

I guess I forgot to put in that an equine chiropractor came out to work on her, and she is absolutely fine, and the saddle has been fitted to her. She was also clean on her yearly checkup by the vet a couple months ago.

 

[Bandera]

Did the video look like what ur horse does?Really though young horses just test you and sometimes the best thing is to say okay do what you want, make her tired and she will slowly start to realize what she is doing is stupid. The thing that unsettles people about horses going fast and taking off is not the fact of how fast they are going but how are you going to stop them; dont worry about that. If you are on 3 acres keep on going around the 3 acres until your horse realizes that they are the ones making that choice. When horses realize they are working harder then they need to they will stop.

 

[Bandera]

Oh and when she is taking off stretch up as high as possible and make you back and legs hard so when ever she comes up in the gallop or canter she runs into you (not literally) and don't move with her, make you own balance and become independent. In the video you can hear my trainer tell me to stretch up and when i do things start to get better.

 

[wild_spot]

The horse is only four, yet there is nothing left to do on the flat and nothing to improve? In sorry but I find that hard to beleive. Even grand prix dressage horses still have things to work on.

I am on my phone so can't write as much as I want, but I will say this. Jumping is a great way to find holes that are there in the foundations.
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[mom2pride]

The horse is only four, yet there is nothing left to do on the flat and nothing to improve? In sorry but I find that hard to beleive. Even grand prix dressage horses still have things to work on.

I am on my phone so can't write as much as I want, but I will say this. Jumping is a great way to find holes that are there in the foundations.
Posted via Mobile Device

Agreed...heck my mare is 10, and we've still got a LOT of work yet!hahaha! Course, I got her and she was unrideable, so we have come a long ways atleast. :lol:

 

[Solon]

The horse is only four, yet there is nothing left to do on the flat and nothing to improve? In sorry but I find that hard to beleive. Even grand prix dressage horses still have things to work on.

I am on my phone so can't write as much as I want, but I will say this. Jumping is a great way to find holes that are there in the foundations.
Posted via Mobile Device

Absolutely. It sounds like the horse is trying to tell you she's not ready for what you are asking. Physical age doesn't always equal mental age. Just because she's four doesn't necessarily mean she's mentally ready for what you are asking.

Give her some time off then try again. Otherwise, you're probably going to continue with what is happening now.

 

[xXSweetBreezeXx]

Thanks so much for the video! She pretty much does that, but she also has her head between her legs and is flinging it everywhere. I will try the legs thing, and see how it goes! Your horse is beautiful by the way!

 

[Gent N Diva]

The horse is only four, yet there is nothing left to do on the flat and nothing to improve? In sorry but I find that hard to beleive. Even grand prix dressage horses still have things to work on.

I am on my phone so can't write as much as I want, but I will say this. Jumping is a great way to find holes that are there in the foundations.
Posted via Mobile Device

Very well said!

No 4 year old horse has nothing left to learn on the flat work. Most any horse of any age has things they can still learn on flat work. Perhaps you are rushing her mentally faster than she is ready for. She also may not like jumping. Just because she does it does not mean she likes it. I would go back to working on some flat work and for a while and slowly bring her back to very low cross rails until she is taking 1 or 2 of those comfortably without bolting off. If she is bolting off there is a problem and there are holes in her training mentally, even if not physically. If you keep on doing it the way you are, you will train her to bolt after all of the jumps and keep bucking you off. I'm sure that's not where you want to be.

 

[Bandera]

Well im glad the video helped! Yeah, the legs should help more with her putting her head down. The hard thing when horses put there head down is if they curl it under if you keep on pulling you curl the neck and head more, thats when it gets scary and you have to wait it out. my friend had a horse that would run off randomly and her head would be down and way behind the vertical and she would just stand up, plant her knuckles in the horses mane, and the horse would pull against her self and eventually would stop. After 4 cross country outings she never ran off again.

Yeah and zeppelin is pretty funny, he isn't mine though, he is my trainer's client's horse that she lets me ride. They said he was lazy and then (on the flat) he took off with his head down and bucking.... I was like yup, he is the laziest horse i have ever ridden. -_-