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 Extreme Veteran
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Location: My own little world :) | Hi all! I have a mare that is 5 this year and is loping a nice pattern but is just sooooo lazy!! I haven't ever really rode anything I had to push. She just doesn't have a lot of pep in her step if that makes sense. She is however getting to know the pattern and anticipates firing off to the next barrel and wants to turn....she has speed when she wants to use it. But in slow work or dry work she is just a dog. Like its just killing her to even take a step. What do you all do to keep them interested/motivated? And how do you deal with this?? I like them laid back but this just seems excessive. Thanks! Also, she has been gone over with a fine tooth comb by my vet and chiropractor so I don't think anything is wrong with her and she has been this way all of her life. Occasionally in the spring she will act like she is alive but that is it. |
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 Undercover Amish Mafia Member
Posts: 9992
  
Location: Kansas | could be tying up.....maybe stick her on DMG? I had a mare that was like that, DMG gave her some UMPH |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 540
Location: My own little world :) | But she has always been like this. And i have her on supplements, salt, and selenium because we are difficient in my area... Isn't all of that supposed to reduce the chances of tying up?? |
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Undercover Amish Mafia Member
Posts: 9992
Location: Kansas | low starch/high fat feeds help, DMG helps. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 596
Location: Somewhere in the middle of nowhere | I am riding a 4 year old like that....since I am just starting to pattern him it is really nice. To watch this horse spook, he is even lazy..... I know I am of no help but wanted to let you know you aren't alone. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 540
Location: My own little world :) | I really don't think it's feed or tying up. She is most of the time grazing on dry land pasture. This time of the year I supplement a little bit of alfalfa and grass hay. She's on platinum performance with their selenium and renew gold and free choice plain salt. |
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Expert
Posts: 4766
Location: Bandera, TX | Give her a blood builder once a week for three weeks. I have a friend that had a lazy horse 3 weeks ago. Boy, did he ever wake up... |
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 Expert
Posts: 1857
| Give her a different job for awhile, breeze her, and get after her to move her feet. A lot of time we let our young horses get so used to poking along when we first break them that they never learn how to move out. I would make her hustle, move with a purpose, all the time for a few weeks. Even if your just riding to the mail box, or check fences, she needs to move out in a fast, head bobbing walk. When you ask her to move, ask nice once and then demand the next time. Don't be mean but let her know that she needs to move with purpose and the first time she's asked. |
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Posts: 129
Location: South | Breezing mine several times a week made a world of difference in my horse |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 1182
Location: Do I hear Banjos? | Try taking her out where you can do some long trotting and intervals of trot/canter/trot...stretch her legs outside of the arena some. |
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 Own It and Move On
Location: The edge of no where | Make sure you're not constantly picking at her with your leg to move forward. Ask once, then have consequences for not moving out.....do not constantly nag. Nobody likes it.... LOL |
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 Money Eating Baggage Owner
Posts: 9586
Location: Phoenix | See if you can chase cattle or find a field/track to open her up in. Mine is 16 and still lazy. But he can haul ass when he needs to....cattle is what gets him going. Loping circles in the arena.....not so much. |
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Veteran
Posts: 120
| Shes 5 and lazy.......I think that's AWESOME! She doesn't know how to run yet. Like the other posters said....take her out of the arena and breeze her. Start asking for a little more on the pattern. She will figure it out. I would rather put speed into them than to try to take it out. For the record, we have a smoking horse at home that has very little work ethic...lazy as all heck...but she knows her job on the pattern and will go out and win the 1D. Just how we like them. :) Good luck. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 540
Location: My own little world :) | banjomia - 2015-07-15 2:30 PM
Shes 5 and lazy.......I think that's AWESOME! She doesn't know how to run yet. Like the other posters said....take her out of the arena and breeze her. Start asking for a little more on the pattern. She will figure it out. I would rather put speed into them than to try to take it out. For the record, we have a smoking horse at home that has very little work ethic...lazy as all heck...but she knows her job on the pattern and will go out and win the 1D. Just how we like them. :) Good luck.
This is good to hear. Actually thank you everyone that has commented. She has no work ethic! But it is promising that she perks up around the barrels. I agree I would rather have to speed them up than slow them down but I guess I wasn't thinking quite to this degree ;) |
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 Good Grief!
Posts: 6343
Location: Cap'n Joan Rotgut.....alberta | Appreciate her......thats what i do with mine......as long as she fires when she needs to enjoy the laid back time.......most ppl are trying to keep them calm and quiet....i agree way easier to spyped one up than to be fighting to slow em down...m
Edited by mruggles 2015-07-15 4:39 PM
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  Warmblood with Wings
Posts: 27846
Location: Florida.. | MS2011 - 2015-07-15 3:14 PM Make sure you're not constantly picking at her with your leg to move forward. Ask once, then have consequences for not moving out.....do not constantly nag. Nobody likes it.... LOL
This...also when you do ask.. if she doesnt pep up take a small whip and tap tap by your foot or right behind your knee.. then stop.. dont put your leg on her all the time. just ask then release.. make her realize that leg means forward and dont let her get lazy in her walk.. ask release, tap tap.. make her walk with a purpose.. not fretful but purposefully.. |
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 I'm Cooler Offline
Posts: 6387
Location: Pacific Northwest | My lazy horse I just ride outside as much as possible. He does much better when he thinks we're doing something, even if its just long trotting in a field. He thinks arena work is about as fun as having teeth pulled. But get him outside or have him work cows or even set up some jumps and he comes alive. |
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 Born not Made
Posts: 2937
Location: North Dakota | My 4-year-old colt is the same way. SOOOOO laid back. Sometimes it drives me nuts on how laid back he is, but I just have to keep reminding myself that this is way better than a freaked-out-flighty-crazy-hot horse.
I actually do very little barrel work with him in the arena. I spend most of my time out on the trails and working on his body cues and conditioning there. I've been teaching him how to run (breeze) as well. He hasn't caught on quite yet though.
I also employ the rule that I ask him to move faster ONE TIME and if he doesn't respond he gets a whip or a rein to the butt. I don't want to have to nag him to keep up the pace I asked for. He can be laid back, but I won't tolerate lazy.
At my most recent run with him, he FINALLY had a small light bulb come on and he seemed to get a little excited about what was going on. Unfortunately, he is now out for the year due to an injury, but it was fun that he got a little "spark" for that run, as that was the first I've seen of it!
https://youtu.be/CQgIDXtVYkU
They usulaly eventually come around and learn to love to run barrels! Just remind yourself to appreciate how QUIET your mare is.
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 Coyote Country Queen
Posts: 5666
| I would suggest maybe checking her for respiratory issues. My really lazy mare had a bunch of breathing issues. However, even when the issues were being managed she was still lazy! But it was a different kind of lazy, not like it was such an effort to move out. That mare would be hanging her head until we got up to the gate and then she would come alive. She'd make her run, then immediately go back to her laid back personality.
Another thing to consider is that sometimes a lazy horse just needs to be more broke. And by that I mean that they might just need to develop better muscles to be able to carry themselves better, or they might need more time to gain the confidence and understanding to move out. If all looks good health wise, then I'd say keep riding, try some of the things suggested, and just give her time. |
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Veteran
Posts: 112
| Zanadoo88 - 2015-07-15 12:41 PM Hi all! I have a mare that is 5 this year and is loping a nice pattern but is just sooooo lazy!! I haven't ever really rode anything I had to push. She just doesn't have a lot of pep in her step if that makes sense. She is however getting to know the pattern and anticipates firing off to the next barrel and wants to turn....she has speed when she wants to use it. But in slow work or dry work she is just a dog. Like its just killing her to even take a step. What do you all do to keep them interested/motivated? And how do you deal with this?? I like them laid back but this just seems excessive. Thanks! Also, she has been gone over with a fine tooth comb by my vet and chiropractor so I don't think anything is wrong with her and she has been this way all of her life. Occasionally in the spring she will act like she is alive but that is it.
Don't do anything, just let her be lazy. There is nothing wrong with her being so laid back, and its not that she isn't interested. My mare is 7 and trots like she was trained in western pleasure and has a super super slow lope. But when its time to make a run you can bet she is all run. It can be a little frustrating feeling like you have to push to get them to move out, but she is young let her be lazy. It's better than having a horse that is high strung and stessed out all the time. |
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 Veteran
Posts: 134
| I read a great article about some "lazy" horses are just plain bored. I have one of those too. (the one in the picture!) Now i do weird stuff with him and he seems way happier and forward moving. I ride him in the pasture, breeze him, pony my other horse on him, lots of stuff to break up the bordom. He's 7 now but has been lazy since day 1! He's still not super fast but at least he likes his job better.
Good luck!
Edited by htaucher1 2015-07-16 1:55 PM
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 540
Location: My own little world :) | That is interesting because I have heard that lazy horses are bored. I was watching a trainingbarrelhorses.com video with Jolene and Molli Montgomery and they mentioned pushing a horse to test them and challenge them. So like on the pattern instead of drilling slow perfection challenge them by pushing them faster occasionally and make them be accountable and figure it out. I think I need to think outside of the box with her and do different things. |
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Member
Posts: 12
| I've got one as well.  |
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 Go For It!
Location: Texas | Leave her alone... lazy is nice! If she doesn't wake up and get a little snappy when you ask for it then pop her with the over and under and wake her up. Trust me on this one... It's way easier to wake one up then to mellow one out. My horse looks like he's in a western pleasure class in the warm up pen. He wakes up when we head towards the alley though. He just turned 6 in April and he's doing great. All my horses have been pretty lazy. I like lazy! :)
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 Expert
Posts: 1526
Location: Texas | Keep her stalled. They waste all their energy out. Over and under her to liven her up. |
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Expert
Posts: 1526
Location: Texas | Oh and I hate lazy! I want my horses calm but super responsive! |
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Go For It!
Location: Texas |
Let me elaborate on my "lazy" since I may have used the wrong word... I want a quiet calm horse with a good work ethic... I want a horse that is a pleasure to ride. Responsive but not sensitive. When I stop and sit I want them to be well mannered and quiet. I would still rather have a horse that is lazy that one that is nervous or high strung always having the go-gos. That being said, I want to be able to do lots of stuff with my horse and not just barrels. I enjoy riding on the trails and letting my grandkids ride too. A quiet horse that leans to the lazy side just fits my long term program better. You will have to decide what fits yours.
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 396
| hoofs_in_motion - 2015-07-15 11:49 AM
could be tying up.....maybe stick her on DMG? I had a mare that was like that, DMG gave her some UMPH
Was the DMG immediate or did it take a few days of feeding? |
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Expert
Posts: 1599
| I have a LAZY colt that immediately livened up last night when I asked him to track my dog ( to get him out of the pen). He LOVE it, very cowy. So I'm gonna work him on the flag and track cattle a bit to give him something to do before I start on the pattern. |
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Expert
Posts: 1477
Location: In the land of peanuts and cotton | uno-dos-tres! - 2015-07-15 1:39 PM
Give her a blood builder once a week for three weeks. I have a friend that had a lazy horse 3 weeks ago. Boy, did he ever wake up...
I have one exactly like your. He's seen 2 vets and a chiro. Other than routine injections there nothing wrong with him. He's just seriously unmotivated.... To do anything except for eating. When I go to bring him his food everyday is the only time he peps up. The last vet which was one that specializes in preform acne horses suggested the blood builder. He said if that didn't work we would try Ventipulmin syrup. But I don't want to go that route so hoping the blood builder works. He suggested Red Cell. |
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I AM being nice
Posts: 4396
Location: MD | I don't mind lazy. I like it actually. I will not however tolerate one being dull. If I get after one to move out and they don't, they learn what an Over N Under is real quick. I won't nag at a lazier one to be peppy all of the time, but they have to have a gas pedal and when I step on it, I expect to go somewhere. Some of the best horses have been super laid back though. We were actually talking earlier today about one of my favorite horses ever, Bunnys Trucker. You had to carry a hand quirt just to go lope circles on that sucker, but when you pointed him up the alley, there weren't many who could outrun him! |
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 I too, shall remain nameless!
Posts: 2248
Location: Wearing a winter coat...... | grinandbareit - 2015-07-19 5:56 PM
Let me elaborate on my "lazy" since I may have used the wrong word... I want a quiet calm horse with a good work ethic... I want a horse that is a pleasure to ride. Responsive but not sensitive. When I stop and sit I want them to be well mannered and quiet. I would still rather have a horse that is lazy that one that is nervous or high strung always having the go-gos. That being said, I want to be able to do lots of stuff with my horse and not just barrels. I enjoy riding on the trails and letting my grandkids ride too. A quiet horse that leans to the lazy side just fits my long term program better. You will have to decide what fits yours.
Love my lazy horses....... I have been passed by baby strollers on my way to the arena BUT they know how to run. |
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Expert
Posts: 1599
| I had to add....my colt just didn't wanna pick up his feet. Stumbled every once in awhile. LAZY. Kinda dead to my leg on his left side. Ntohing major tho, I could pull on his tail and everything was good. I started him on EPM meds and started riding him again yesterday...he is a different horse. Light, soft, holds himself better, no stumbling! |
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 Expert
Posts: 2135
Location: Somewhere else | Mine is the same way.....nothing wrong with him except he is lazy. But he has tyed up on me twice in all the 10 yrs I've had him. He by no means is EVER gonna a speed demon but he came from a cutting horse to a western pleasure horse, then I got him and turned him into a barrel horse and breakaway horse. You just have to really work at him getting him to open up and run. |
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What do you do with a lazy horse?