HELP FOR HORSE RIDERS. OUR PROBLEM HORSES

Help for Horse-riders - Cures for Problem Horses!

UNDERSTANDING HORSES

Rosa had an easy start in life, with a young, loving rider who hacked her out gently. She then went on loan and came back completely head-shy. Getting the head-collar on was bad enough. It had to be done slowly and carefully. Getting the bridle on was out of the question.

If she hacked out nicely before, she certainly didn't now. Take her more than five minutes from home and she turned into a nervous wreck, stiff, tense and jumpy.

Surprisingly perhaps, she lunged beautifully, went through all the paces and never left the track. Some one had done a good job of her basic training.

So we did a little lunging, to get her back into work. She was more than happy to do this. No saddle, bridle or rider. Just moving freely forward and doing what she was told. After three sessions, it was time then, to start riding again.

The head-shy problem was cleared up in a couple of weeks, but overcoming her fear and dislike of riding took considerably longer. What she needed was a trusting relationship with her rider. To build this up, we started with where she was most comfortable - working on a long, loose rein in the safety of her field.

I thought we were making good progress, but then one day, I made a major error of judgement. I asked her to canter before she was ready ... and she told me so with a massive buck. From then on, every ride started with a few buckeroos. Nothing explosive, but enough to let us know she didn't want to do this.

Although reluctant at first, by keeping the rides very short and slow (mostly in walk, with a little trotting) she started to regain her confidence, until eventually, she was riding normally.

It was also noticeable when she came to us, that her feet were in a shocking state. We soon found out why. She was a devil for picking them up, pulling around all over the place and kicking out violently. Even now, if it goes on for too long, she gets a bit upset - but we're getting there!