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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 342
 
Location: Alabama | I have a gelding I've had for about 3 years, he's good as gold, until here in the last 3-4 months... nothing has changed, he's seeing the same vet, eating the same feed, seeing the same equine dentist, seeing the same chiropractor etc etc...
he's always been a little hot headed, nothing terrible but he knows when it's game time and doesn't play, well in the past few months he's had no happy medium, either he cruised through and spins 3 pretty barrels or he takes the bit going up the alley and you can't do anything with him, but hang on and pull, And this maybe 3 different runs on the same weekend.
He slow works like a champ, and you can cruise him through to make flawless runs, and at the show, if he's not running away with you, he's making beautiful runs, just without fire and not cutting the clock off, & 6 months ago he was running in the top of the 1D with 500+ horses.
I don't know if it's mental, if I need to change his bit, etc....
My chiro said he's in amazing shape, the vet can't get him to go off sore and his X-rays are fine, his saddle fits, I just have no idea what's made this change in him. | |
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 Miss Laundry Misshap
Posts: 5271
| There's pain somewhere. Go to another vet. | |
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 Owner of a ratting catting machine
Posts: 2258
| I would:
Scope lungs, do a BAL.
Treat for ulcers.
Teeth.
Front feet
Specialized lameness vet. | |
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 A Somebody to Everybody
Posts: 41354
Location: Under The Big Sky Of Texas | Go get a second opinion from a different equine Vet maybe they can find something that your vet missed.
Edit because I forgot a word, lol.
Edited by Southtxponygirl 2017-09-12 3:34 PM
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 Born not Made
Posts: 2937
Location: North Dakota | If I were you, I would seek a second opinion. Not saying that your vet is bad but sometimes a fresh set of eyes can help.
It's almost always pain when there is a SUDDEN unexplainable change in behavior.
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Go Get Em!
Posts: 13503
Location: OH. IO | classicpotatochip - 2017-09-12 4:00 PM
I would:
Scope lungs, do a BAL.
Treat for ulcers.
Teeth.
Front feet
Specialized lameness vet.
This is where I would start as well. | |
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| Apparently your horse knows his job and the pattern very well.
You are looking at the process of burn out due to working the
pattern and legging up in an arena at home way way too much.
Your horse does not need the pattern practice but the rider does.
Back off and pasture ride him and go back to basics ..
stop.. backup.. rest from various gaits including running fast
and continue your ride ...
A horse should always have stop on their mind .. so use split reins
work each rein to re teach a stop ... pulling straight back achieves
nothing to his stopping.
In the pasture start ending your lopes, gallops and runs with a one
rein turning into a circle as if you were finishing a pattern run.
You will notice they will slow down on their own free will as long
as the rider gives the same cues ... race horse jockeys stand up
in the stirrups and relax as the cue the race is over.
Barrel racers do one thing that irritates the fire out of me and that
is racing out of the arena and jerking a horse to a stop or dumb enough
to run at the fence to get a horse to stop. Then they wonder why their
horse has leg, hocks and stifle problems. A circle at the end of a run
as if in a closed arena is the best way to increase your horses health
and a longer barrel career because they slow down on their own freewill.
Race track trainers are smart enough to know that after a hard exertion
the horses legs are numb .... so they have taught the jockey to stand up
let the horse free wheel to get his legs and breathing back by loping
half way around the track and lope trot back to the winners circle ..
this also prevents tying up.... sure they could jerk them to a stop
at the finish line and then walk them over to the winners circle ...
and end up shortening the racing life of the horse.
(if you don't believe in leg numbness ask any high school track star)
Since I am on my soap box .. 2nd leg peeve ... haul a horse 2-5 hours ..
running late .. jerk horse out of trailer ... do a couple of trot circles ..
go run the event and go tie horse up to trailer. Then you wonder
why the horse gets to hate the arena???!!! Trailer rides will give
a horse numb legs more than the event due to them locking them
and trying to sleep standing up ... not going to mention the viberations,
ruff ride they get in most trailers ... or likely hood of tying up or
being so sore they can barely move for the next 2-3 days. lol
In the pasture you have plenty of room
and at the same time he is not associating anything you correct
with his ability to run the pattern correctly.
Horses are naturally lazy .. so identify your stopping cues with each
rein, your butt, and say HO!! rather sharply and get his mind on stopping
so he can relax, catch his breath and be lazy .. and do not use the
long winded whooooooaaaaaaa ... lol
Go back and find your oldest videos and watch the rider and see
what has changed to the most recent videos.
We all develop bad habits without realizing it ... most of the time
it is the loss of rider focus and subtle body messages to the horse ....
Sounds like you have a very nice horse ... so stop working so hard
and take some long pasture // trail rides, relax, talk to your horse
and get to know each other again while enjoying each other's company.
GOOD LUCK ... CYA AT THE PAY WINDOW!!
Edited by BARRELHORSE USA 2017-09-12 10:53 PM
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 Extreme Veteran
Posts: 415
| Struggling with the exact same thing with my mare, would run top 5 at big shows and then run past every barrel and take the bit. ugh! Doing a BAL next week as we suspect she is bleeding when the weather gets hot and humid | |
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 Shelter Dog Lover
Posts: 10277
| I own a gelding that fits the description to a tee. This was several years ago and back then no one was talking about ulcers, not even vets. I know that was his issue, he was a nervous mess when we bought him. We gave him a break from barrels , put him on poles-which he loved, changed his diet and after a while he started firing again in barrels. My trainer gives her good horse a couple months off every year. I would definitely scope him and possibly give him a break. | |
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Member
Posts: 36
| This sounds exactly like a gelding I had, except he never found the "happy medium". Working slow, he was perfect, going fast, and he was fast, no turn and no stop. He didn't have ulcers, wasn't lame, etc., he just got addicted to the adrenaline of the run. The last time I ran him, he side-swiped me on the fence in the alley at a 90-degree turn. It crushed the muscle above my right knee, skinned my shin to the bone, and severely bruised my whole right leg. I was on crutches for a month, and had to have physical therapy to be able to extend my knee.
My husband took him over, and he made a DANG good heading horse. He never got out-run. He was okay running TO something, but he totally lost his mind just running. My husband had the perfect analogy-his brains rolled to his a$$ when he ran, and rolled back in his brain when he stopped on his front. He is 16.2 hands, and taller horses are more likely to do that.
Don't really know if it's physical or mental for your horse, just giving a different perspective on the same problem. Good Luck. | |
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 I'm Cooler Offline
Posts: 6387
Location: Pacific Northwest | My first thought was ulcers or bleeding. | |
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Advice needed for a horse with no happy medium....