|
|
Elite Veteran
Posts: 936
  
Location: Wyoming | I've got a four year old colt that I've struggled with, he doesn't like to go forward. He doesn't completely resist, it's more like he sees no reason to move out! I have to wear spurs just to get him to trot and I nearly break a hip trying to get him to lope! Thoughts on this? Suggestions? Anyone have horses like this? Is he ever going to RUN or is it a lost cause?! I'd love to get him to the track with a well broke horse next to him and see if I can breeze him..... Thanks for any suggestions! |
|
| |
|
 Veteran
Posts: 224
Location: Southern OK aka God's Country | I am curious to see what the trainers say on here. I have a colt at a trainer right now and she is having issues with forward movement in his initial training. So I'll just plop myself right into your thread if you don't mind.
Edited by SoonerLawyer 2013-12-03 9:54 AM
|
|
| |
|
  Northern Chocolate Queen
Posts: 16576
 
Location: ND | Quit using the spurs & kicking for forward movement. Use the end of your reins or a crop & give him a good tap to move him out. Some horses have a tendancy to hunch up & resist when you kick on them but a spank will get them to stretch out as you're not stabbing their ribs. |
|
| |
|
 I Don't Brag
Posts: 6960
| Yes, there is hope...but not any promises. My first decent barrel horse would wear me out just trying to get him to walk a little faster. That is until he got his first taste of speed. After that he was about 3 feet off the ground all the time. He was 5 and I had gotten my first chance to run in actual arena the day before the first rodeo I entered on him in the Novice barrels.
I currently am FINALLY bringing along a 10 yr old mare that I raised. Could never quite get up the nerve to finish "breaking" her after a fall 10 years ago, that stripped me of my courage and made me doubt my riding abilities. She's stout and strong but going forward had been an issue from the get go. The only way she would move forward was to follow someone else! And Whoa was her favorite command. Another lazy, slow walker too. I had been trotting (slowly  ) the pattern at the point I sent her away to wean her from her 2 yr old orphaned baby brother. I had only been one her once or twice since she adopted him and wanted the trainer to ride her down for me so I would hopefully not be afraid to ride her when I got her back. Didn't even care if her rode the pattern on her. Two weeks later he sent me a video of her RUNNING her through the pattern.
I am currently nursing a bad back from running her at a jackpot last weekend. She is STRONG and showing more than enough speed!
And the mare I am currently rodeoing on can be about the laziest thing ever....another slow walker and lazy about everything else UNTIL you come through the gate for a run.
So I would not give up on that baby yet, if you like him. Sometimes they need a little taste of speed (they have to LEARN to run with someone on their back) before they can decide if they like it.
As far as suggestions, riding with another horse could be very helpful. Spurs an whips may just not motivate him and could sour his attitude.
Edited by rodeoveteran 2013-12-03 10:37 AM
|
|
| |
|
The Advice Guru
Posts: 6419
| How many rides does the horse have on him |
|
| |
|
 Owner of a ratting catting machine
Posts: 2258
| Spend a bunch of time lightly working him in the round pen. Don't ever run him out of air and upset him, but teach him to really reach out and catch another gear for a circle or two. Couple of days.
Then go to driving lines and teach him to move forward while you're directing him where to go. Couple of days again.
Purchase a dressage whip with a large popper. It will make more noise than hurt. Stay off his face, ask for forward, then get him once or twice with the popper. Give him a chance to respond and don't hit him too much, but do educate him that there is a really good reason to move off.
If after a week or two, he isn't better, get his spine checked for kissing spine and do a lameness exam in case he's hurting somewhere. |
|
| |
|
Elite Veteran
Posts: 936
Location: Wyoming | He's a healthy happy boy. I've got no concerns about lameness of any kind. I see him LOPE in the pasture but never RUN. He just lacks motivation! Lol! I broke him last winter, then sent him to a rancher pal who rode him for about two months. So he's broke, they roped off of him, moved cows, etc. He will lope and keep up with cattle! They said he can cover some serious ground, he's 16h already... I think drive lines are fabulous, I'm just not coordinated enough to be using them lol! But that's a good idea. And laying off the spurs and kicking is a good idea too. |
|
| |
|
The Advice Guru
Posts: 6419
| If he was working for the ranchers then I would ask them what they did. My guess you posture is miscueing him. |
|
| |
|
 Chasin my Dream
Posts: 13651
Location: Alberta | cheryl makofka - 2013-12-03 11:48 AM If he was working for the ranchers then I would ask them what they did. My guess you posture is miscueing him.
I agree.... |
|
| |
|
I AM being nice
Posts: 4396
Location: MD | I had a big 5 year old gelding come into my program that was just about as lazy as you could ask one to be. He was never dull, or unresponsive, just lazy. He was a bit of an oaf, actually. I started patterning him and he had a bit of a move to him, but he did it at half the speed of smell. I was breezing a few one day and decided that it was time for his first baby breeze. Got him out in the back field and was loping along. When I reached down and cracked him, smooched at him and pointed him across there, that sucker broke like he'd just come out of the starting gates! Took him to a barrel race that weekend and it was back to his normal high(ish) lope. He continued like that through the winter and early spring. When we finally got to our first barrel race in a big outdoor, that sucker flew and ran 3rd!
He always did stay very quiet. Would walk in and out of an alley like an old plow horse. If given the chance, he would all but fall asleep in a holding pen situation. He continued to go on and run huge though. Sold to OK and won a few before selling on from there. |
|
| |
|
 Own It and Move On
Location: The edge of no where | Absolutely agree with the 'do not pick at him with your feet'. Be really aware of this especially if you are wearing spurs. Nobody likes to be nagged at all the time. I would cluck and shift my body to a forward position everytime I asked for a transition forward. Cluck, if he doesn't go forward, lightly tap with a crop. If you haul off and whack him hard, make sure you've got a light hold of his face and he can't bog his head and buck you off for it. Pretty soon he will figure it out. I would also try to trail ride him outside the arena if possible.
|
|
| |
|
 Twin Sister to Queen Boobie
Posts: 13315
Location: East Tennessee but who knows?! | You've gotten some good advice on here.
Horses usually do free up when they're moving behind cattle. If they've roped off of him, he's moved out so there's got to be something you're doing different that they weren't.
My guess is that you may be using more leg continually even when you're not asking him to go and he's gotten a little dull on his sides. That and if you're picking up on his face at all when you're riding, you're discouraging forward movement. Sometimes we don't realize we're picking up to change directions, etc as much as we really are. Yes, they need to learn to move forward still when you take contact and collect them up but you have to good solid forward movement and impulsion first before you can go there.
Another thing that would probably help and that I've seen and participated in at a clinic is have someone else "lunge" you in a big pen or even in the pasture. They've done it from horseback with a stock whip with a piece of rustly fabric (flag) on the end. You ride and they only flag your horse to push him forward when you need a little help because you're not getting a response. That way you're not having to nag your horse. It really builds the energy in them.
Horses learn by reptition. So if you do something 2x, then the 3rd time they're usually expecting it. Exaggerate bringing your legs way out off of him when you ask for him to move forward in a canter and put some energy in to them and at the same time, pop pretty big (not hard necessarily, just big so he can see it) with an over and under. As soon as he moves forward with any energy at all, quit asking and make sure your hands are pushed forward. The next thing you know, he'll be moving foward when you just start to move your leg out to cue him to move forward. |
|
| |
Folks on-line