trotncowpony - 2013-12-11 2:10 PM

Best thing for a horse that has a good start but has developed this habit would be switching gears and putting them in high pressure training. Like roping. If you know anyone that rides cattle all day and pasture ropes that would be ideal. It will get all the BS out of them and make them start thinking before they react. Ground work won't cut this crap out it will take saddle work and lots of it. Being ridden on cattle and roped on will not give them idle time for bolting their mind will be on what's around them to a different degree than normal riding provides.

cowgalsissy - 2013-12-11 2:50 PM

  I bet if I walked up and tossed her lead at her butt she would freak out. I would do some Clinton Anderson desensitizing till she doesn't twitch at simple taps like the reins would be giving her.

winwillows - 2013-12-11 3:03 PM

What is your feed program? Too much starch will elevate blood sugar and can contribute to a fractious attitude in some horses. You may think of looking elsewhere for the root of the problem.

winwillows - 2013-12-11 4:03 PM What is your feed program? Too much starch will elevate blood sugar and can contribute to a fractious attitude in some horses. You may think of looking elsewhere for the root of the problem.

Southtxponygirl - 2013-12-11 3:40 PM


I like this way of thinking, I have a gelding that would get high off his feed, and the more I did light work with him the hotter he got, so finally had enought of this mess threw him out to pasture for a while, clean out his system and started him on a different feed and now hes a whole different guy. I say check what you'ur feeding her, maybe change up her feed. Good luck

WYOTurn-n-Burn - 2013-12-11 4:07 PM

I do a lot on the ground. I flog him with feed bags, tarps, & the end of the rope. I taught him how to sidepass, roll back, arc around me while on the ground. I make him jump logs, cavaletties, barrels (no picnic tables-LOL). I have access to some fairly large coulees and so I work him in and out of those. When he is down in the coulee I stand above him and desensitze him. I circle drive him, move him between the rail and myself, lots of backing. I loop my rope around his front feet (seperately) and teach him how to come foward off pressure, I "drive" him around by tapping behind his wither with my handy stick, which works great for teaching them to load nicely into the trailer. I do all of this to both directions, constantly switching up direction.
Ground work is not meant to tire them out, it happens in the process, but its not my main focus. My main focus is to engage his brain. In my opinion saying that he needs a fast paced job at this point is setting you up for failure. He needs to learn to "slow his roll" and putting him into something that requires him to think fast when he's already in a reactive state of mind is a wreck waiting to happen. There will be a time for it, but its not now.
Also the feed program is another biggie. I have to be careful the amount of sugar I feed this horse. No sweet feeds, oats,  rice bran, etc. It makes him way too silly. He gets beet pulp, some alfalfa pellets, BOSS, Omega Horseshine, and his Animal Element. The AE helps him tremendously as does our vitamin & mineral supplement (Equilix).
The more I ride this horse and work him the better he gets. Inconsistency will be your demise. Work them daily and with a purpose.
I also don't dril and drill and drill on this horse. Get in get what you need done and get out. He does not tolerate being picked on. HE LOVES obstacles. Give him an obstacle like the 4 barrel drill, or cones, or the logs and he humbles so quickly. For him it helps focus his attention.
I don't think a person can do too much ground work. It softens them up in mind and body.

Rodeo Rose - 2013-12-10 3:13 PM

 School him when he does it. Make him work and see that trying to bolt = a lot of work!

I’ve had a lot of ponies that will try to run away out of orneriness or spooking and the fastest thing to make them quit that I’ve found is keep them running. They soon figure out bolting isn’t a lot of fun and A LOT of work. That makes for a good pony that won’t run away with kids

Of course, all horses are wired different and some are too fragile minded for that and it’s best then to do a lot of slow/trotting WORK – reverse arcs, serpentines, circles back and forth etc. Enough to get them out of breath and want to take a rest. Then you can reward them with a rest and make standing and chilling pretty appealing..
 Make them use their brain
 

WYOTurn-n-Burn - 2013-12-11 4:07 PM

I do a lot on the ground. I flog him with feed bags, tarps, & the end of the rope. I taught him how to sidepass, roll back, arc around me while on the ground. I make him jump logs, cavaletties, barrels (no picnic tables-LOL). I have access to some fairly large coulees and so I work him in and out of those. When he is down in the coulee I stand above him and desensitze him. I circle drive him, move him between the rail and myself, lots of backing. I loop my rope around his front feet (seperately) and teach him how to come foward off pressure, I "drive" him around by tapping behind his wither with my handy stick, which works great for teaching them to load nicely into the trailer. I do all of this to both directions, constantly switching up direction.
Ground work is not meant to tire them out, it happens in the process, but its not my main focus. My main focus is to engage his brain. In my opinion saying that he needs a fast paced job at this point is setting you up for failure. He needs to learn to "slow his roll" and putting him into something that requires him to think fast when he's already in a reactive state of mind is a wreck waiting to happen. There will be a time for it, but its not now.
Also the feed program is another biggie. I have to be careful the amount of sugar I feed this horse. No sweet feeds, oats,  rice bran, etc. It makes him way too silly. He gets beet pulp, some alfalfa pellets, BOSS, Omega Horseshine, and his Animal Element. The AE helps him tremendously as does our vitamin & mineral supplement (Equilix).
The more I ride this horse and work him the better he gets. Inconsistency will be your demise. Work them daily and with a purpose.
I also don't dril and drill and drill on this horse. Get in get what you need done and get out. He does not tolerate being picked on. HE LOVES obstacles. Give him an obstacle like the 4 barrel drill, or cones, or the logs and he humbles so quickly. For him it helps focus his attention.
I don't think a person can do too much ground work. It softens them up in mind and body.