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Adult riders: Your tips for canter jitters?

Off Course
#1

I’ve ridden on and off for most of my life and am in my mid-30s now, about five months into a half-lease on a new horse who’s a 9 y.o. homebred TB x Shetland built like a 15.3 warmblood.

My last lease was an OTTB mare about the same age who was a spindly ball of anxiety :lol:. I loved her and we actually built a wonderful partnership together. However, she was a bolter, and despite successfully deescalating her each time, I’ve discovered in the last couple of years that I’m not as confident at a canter as I used to be.

This new horse is an interesting combo of TB athleticism and pony attitude. Through a series of questionable riders, he started 2018 unfit, a bit sore, and very fat. My instructor, co-lessee and I are all working to more or less reground him in the basics before even thinking about moving up into any sort of jumping (her) or dressage work (me).

I’m hitting a purely mental block right now and could use some help. Can go into details depending on what’s useful, but in short, I’ve come off twice after many years of me sticking every spook, spin and bolt. The first time was a very honest spook, and the second time was his fallback response for tough situations, which is to get defensive and spook/kick out/etc. He’s lazy, and it’s also genuinely difficult for him to be forward right now (he’s fitter than spring, but still has a long way to go). So he bucks and kicks out whenever he’s asked to go forward. He’s not a bolter, and he doesn’t feel dangerous to me, but he’s got some 'tude and he’s a challenging, interesting ride.

We’re getting through the bucking reaction with lots of inside leg-to-outside rein, and with a bit of overbending to the inside when he thinks about kicking out. I know he can get better. BUT it’s me who’s the issue currently. My stupid confidence is just crap right now, more so than seems reasonable. I’m scared to canter, scared he’ll buck and I’ll come off or lose control and make things worse. I don’t even know why I’m afraid of those things, because I know dang well that I can sit through his bucks and the worst that happens is I fall off and feel stupid again. Also, before my last fall, we had some lovely canters. But I just have a mental wall anyway and keep coming up with excuses not to do canter work.

The longer I wait, the more I know I’m going to build up the dread. I used to love cantering and am totally frustrated with myself here! So, fellow adult riders: how do you tackle your own Unreasonably Scary Thing? Because I feel like a total doofus right now. :o

#2

He may not be the right horse for you at the moment. Which is not to say that he won’t be the right horse in the near future. But right now, it sounds like he’s weak and out of shape and having trouble really carrying a rider. So he bucks. And i’m guessing he can set against the bit and pull like a tank thanks to the Shetland blood. You need a confidence booster. Something a little older and not coming back off an extended break that you have reasonable assurance won’t engage in unsavory behavior unless it’s stung in the sheath by a wasp or something.

5 Likes
#3

He actually gave up trying to pull against the bit, so we worked through that at least. We don’t have many on the bit moments yet, but we have them, and that’s definitely progress.

Great suggestion, too. I’m popping onto an older mare next week for a few rides to just enjoy some rides, so hopefully that’ll help! She’s about as bombproof as they come.

#4

Mine might sound a bit silly, but it worked for me when I was building my canter confidence after a difficult time. It was to say a mantra, of sorts.

“Sit up, sit back, let go!” Repeated aloud in time with the canter.

Reminds you to give up on the fetal crouch, so you aren’t so vulnerable to a buck or spook, and to release the death grip on the reins which is contributing to the desire to buck, and it helps you develop a rythm.

And talking to yourself helps you breathe, which in turn will make you less tense.

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#5

A year and a half ago or so I was you. Half-leasing a mostly out-of-work OTTB who wasn’t BAD, but he had a bit of an argumentative streak, particularly at canter. The stars had to be aligned before I would consider asking for canter, even though I never actually had a fall with him. He had to have been worked at least a little bit, at least two out of the three days before. But not a super-hard ride the day before. I had to have the time to lunge him for a bit in both directions before the ride, and he had to have exhibited no argumentativeness on the line that day at canter or any other gait. Had to have shown a good attitude in preceding walk/trot work. Most importantly, there needed to people out at the barn in a consipicuous sort of way. Not necessarily watching me directly, but in a sightline grooming their horse, another person’s lesson in the other arena, that sort of thing. I was terrified that if I tried it and got dumped I’d be lying there a long time if there wasn’t somebody around.

I finally decided that not only was he not “Mr. Right”, he was not even a particularly good “Mr. Right Now” for me, and decided to find a better fit. A 3 year old Mustang with 100 days or so of training! Seriously. Followed the Extreme Mustang Makeover, saw this guy being worked by a really cool, sensible trainer, and his attitude was just so quiet and kind and giving, so I bid on him and took him home. No regrets. I’m still probably a bit more cautious than I absolutely NEED to be. I’m not going to take him out to the 40 acre field for a brisk gallop on a blustery dusk with the rodeo (literal rodeo) next door going on, but other than that sort of thing I feel very safe and confident on him. Not just his training and overall attitude, just his gaits are so smooth and easy to ride. If I find myself asking poorly and not “priming” him in the warm up to be in front of my leg enough, and he goes ripping off at an unbalanced speed-trot instead of having a nice transition into the canter, I’m not bounced out of the saddle and can bring him back, rebalance and ask again comfortably.

I’m not saying you’ll find your Mr. (or Ms.) Right in a young, green Mustang (although it can’t hurt to keep an eye on the Makeovers, the Ocala competitors just picked up their horses recently), but chances are good that you will feel more confident and progress more quickly with a different horse. It might even be a horse that is still “challenging,” but in a different sort of way than your current mount is that you don’t find threatening. Years ago I half-leased a little AQHA dude that was available for half-lease because they had so few students that were comfortable riding him in lessons. He would get FAST at canter if he got tense, and most learning riders would tense up, grip with their legs, grab at his face, and REALLY make him panic and not-quite bolt. For whatever reason, he never scared me, maybe because I’d ridden enough genuine BOLTS at that time of my life that I could feel the difference, and would just ask him quietly to rebalance and calm down. I felt comfortable enough on that guy I rode him through most of a pregnancy.

#6

This may sound harsh, but it is the advice I give myself and if it is useful to you, then good. If not, no harm no foul.

I have a horse (now retired) with a big buck to go with his super-sized ego and talent. It was always tough to stick and certainly intimidating, so I made a decision.

On any given day, if I was not prepared to get on the horse and RIDE, then I would not get on at all. Being tentative or doubtful was a NOGO. For me, it was mind over matter. I rarely decided to forego a day and we had a long and successful career together. I am not sorry that he is retired happily now in the back field.

I have the same rules for myself with all my horses.

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#7

OP, there is no need to feel like a doofus about how your fears. You have come off this horse twice now, and although you have not been seriously hurt, that potential definitely exists and is more likely the more times you come off, and your brain knows this.

IMHO he is not a good fit for you right now. I have a feeling once you get a chance to ride a more solid horse that the fear of cantering will melt away. You didn’t ask for training advice so I will just say that I would not be riding this horse until in ground work he was walk, trot, canter solid with a yes-maam attitude while never breaking gate unless asked. This situation sounds like you are being set up to fail as well as the horse. It usually scares them too when we come off… (as long as they haven’t learned that a dumped rider = end of work for the day).

I am currently working a younger green horse that I know had spooked and the rider was injured when they came off. He was so ‘lazy’ under saddle that you had to camp horse kick him to take a step and keep kicking him to keep him moving, but he also has a lot of anxiety. We were ground work only for many weeks before I even thought about getting on him again… Had I tried to push through the issues under saddle, I probably would have come off a couple of times.

1 Like
#8

Best thing I have ever done in my life was sent my horse out for 30 days of back-to-basics training. Had he needed it, I would have invested in more. 30 days did the trick for us.

I say this, because I felt just like you. My horse had actually given me no reason to, other than the fact that he is older, a little green, and HUGE. (Percheron/Trekehner) I bought him because he reminded me of a horse I had a long time ago, and I just really wanted him to work. I knew he had a good personality, he was just a little green, a little unconfident, and he was just a little too much for my confidence level.

M own confidence was in the toilet because of a few accidents (with a different horse). I was what was holding us back.

Watching my trainer ride him through some tantrums and watching him progress was confidence boosting. I learned a ton about him from the safety of the side-lines. I took lessons with her on him before I got him home.

He is now everything I hoped he would be.

#9

Let me contribute a slightly different perspective. I purchased my horse 3.5 years ago after not having ridden for the better part of 10 years. The first time he dumped me was 3 weeks after I bought him. I discovered that he didn’t like his saddle. I changed saddles. He likes the current one much better. However, I’ve still come off him a few times for various reasons, generally for something that spooked him.

After the the first few ‘involuntary dismounts’, I lost a lot of confidence. I went back to just walking and trotting. I’ve spent the better part of the last 3 years just walking and trotting. I have no competition desires :). When I did attempt cantering, I was very nervous, which telegraphed to the horse, and he would seem to go faster and faster, and I’d cling like a limpet, and he would (seem to) speed up. Mind you, for the last 3 years I’ve been working regularly with an instructor, who has been quite patient with me and my senior re-rider brain :slight_smile:

In the last year, he seems to have matured a bit and/or grown to trust me more. I’ve started cantering again. Some days. But way more than before. And, I’m not clinging like a limpet quite so much, and wonder of wonders, he doesn’t seem to be rushing as much. Really, I think he’s going just the same speed as he was before, it’s just that now I can sit up and enjoy it a little bit. He’s 17hh and can easily do 1/4 of a 20m circle in an easy 4 strides. It feels huge, but it’s just him. He’s big. He moves big. I have to get used to it. Yes, he has to learn to balance some more, but I’m in no rush.

So, if you’re nervous cantering, maybe don’t for a while. If the other person is okay with cantering, let them do it. You can work on perfecting the lower gaits until you feel more comfortable. Just because you can doesn’t mean you must.

1 Like
#10

Totally reasonable and advisable if one OWNS the horse that’s being problematic and generally likes him a whole lot overall. If you’re leasing (or worse, half-leasing), though, it’s not reasonable to be plowing that money into somebody else’s horse, even if it’s allowable under the lease terms. I briefly thought about buying my not-quite-right half lease so I could invest that in him, but then decided I’d be better off starting from scratch and buying a horse that really made my heart sing rather than trying to force a fit that just wasn’t going to happen.

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#11

What is he sore from? Bucking into the canter in my case has always been caused by a physical issue. With one it was hocks with the other it was the SI. Maybe lay off cantering work on balance and adjustability at the trot and make sure he’s not hurting.

I’m partial leasing a horse and she’s used to travelling on the forehand and rushing/falling into the canter. Not dangerous but makes me slightly uncomfortable. I’ve been working in lessons on getting her to lift, use her hind end and had told my instructor I didn’t want to canter. After a month and a half in our last lesson my trainer pushed me to canter and we had some amazing canter departures and I actually liked her canter. That was what it took to get my nerves to go down for her.

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#12

I’m going to throw out there the idea of using imagery to help you as well, whether you ride this guy or another horse.
Have you read the book by Jane Savoie, “That Winning Feeling”?
In it she talks about imagining yourself riding correctly/successfully through whatever it is that is holding you back.

YEARS ago I was having issues leaning forwards when I asked for canter, which meant the transitions sucked.
I spent a few minutes several times a day imagining sitting up, square, shoulders back, exhale, …. and going through the steps to ask for the canter and then imagining a lovely depart where I was sitting where I was supposed to, and it all went correctly.
It helped immensely.

Maybe you can keep those memories of the good canters you had on this horse really close at mind as you imagine yourself through practicing a canter depart and cantering calmly, controlled, relaxed… successfully?

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#13

A couple of thoughts:

Can you do a lesson on a lunge line that might help you feel more in control, less vulnerable to sudden horse whims? That might help you regain some confidence.

Can you break down what you want from canter into something smaller and smaller until it is not a big deal anymore? Like-- two steps of canter, OK, done. A canter down the long side, done. Or whatever-- so that you get small victories and allow your confidence to come back.

Can you do some no stirrup work at the walk and trot to help you feel more confident in your balance, seat and legs?

#14

haha, I missed the lease part, sorry

If I were just leasing, I’d probably find another horse that suited my current needs.

Otherwise, lots of lessons would be in my future. I still get a lot from watching other people ride my horse. Its just where my confidence level is currently. Maybe some lessons like that might help the confidence. Does WONDERS for mine.

1 Like
#15

Thanks, everyone, for your thoughts! I think I’ll try some visualization and mantras — and I am all about groundwork, so I need to start looking around for some additional resources here. Lunging with a purpose is helpful, but I think he’d really benefit from ground driving and neither my instructor nor I have much experience there.

For folks who asked, yes, I absolutely think he is stiff in the stifle on his left hind, in addition to the fitness challenges. Alas, being a lease-holder and not an owner, I can’t convince them to do the vet exam yet, even if I did pay for the whole thing. Working on it. (They are weird; leasing is challenging; owning is not feasible currently, so I work with what I have.)

He absolutely may not be the perfect horse for me at the moment, but he is the horse I have, so I want to see if I can figure things out and get us to a better place. Lots of remedial training in our future, for me and for him! And please feel free to suggest training and groundwork tips — I just didn’t want to spam you with even more text, but I am VERY interested in those, too.

Finally, those of you who think we may be a poor match could be right. I’m keeping it in the back of my mind — and occasionally the front! — and my instructor knows that I want her to say the word if she thinks it’s time to try an easier mount. I trust her completely and also have a personal limit that I adhere to safety-wise. Having MS will do that to you. :smiley:

#16

Oh, and yes, we’ve just upped to 3 lessons weekly instead of 2 and a hack.

#17

OP look on COTH for threads with stifle exercises…that definitely something you can do, even if without owner paying for Vet intervention.

#18

With the stifle. Do you notice him having more trouble tracking one direction? I’m no expert (nor do I play one on the internet!) but I’ve noticed that horses with poorly developed toplines tend to be buckers on the canter departure.

I’d forgotten about using a mantra, too! I taught my daughter to use one to help calm her down during shows. I’m a crazy yoga teacher type so I use “Rama” , the name of one of the avatars of Vishnu. It’s easy to remember. I find music helpful for controlling the pace, too. The Great Gate of Kiev is my favorite mental soundtrack for slowing down the trot, for example.

#19

Please do consider the “not the right horse” comments. I was there - after all, it’s always the rider’s fault, right? No, not right. Getting the right horse has made all the difference. If you are leasing not owning, it seems to me it is easier to change horses… selling horses is so difficult…

Do you canter on a different (safer?) horse?

Have you tried cantering from walk? It’s easier for some horses and you don’t have the problem of a “running trot” into the canter…

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