Chronic barrel mare, easily 1D/2D with work, has no concept of a right lead. She thinks left is the only way to go. We’ve worked balance, circles, chambone, ground poles, grids and bends. I’m a dressage enthusiast playing in speed events for fun, but this has me baffled! She has a great canter and I would love to show her in working ranch horse but dang it we have to canter in both directions to do that!
Have pain and saddle fit been ruled out? Does she have troubles picking up the right lead on the lunge line or in the round pen?
Just a thought and only talking from experience but maybe some pain or stiffness in the hocks, especially her left? Horses push off into the canter with the opposite back leg. I found this out with my gelding who is reluctant to pick up the left lead because he has an injury to his right hock.
My old barrel horse was was like that too BUT she’d switch to the right lead just before turning the first barrel. As soon as she was straight, she’d switch to the left and be on her merry way. It bothered me at first but she always ran fast times and didn’t hit barrels so I couldn’t complain.
I know that doesn’t help you much but just tossing that out there 
If she is overmuscled on one side from ‘just’ doing barrels mostly, I’d work her much more to right than left for quite a while before expecting change. I had a one eyed horse, missing left eye, who became unbalanced just because he tended to move toward the sighted side. He protested muchly when I longed him to the left (where it was routine with both eyes) and we discussed, and he got over it. But I did have to disproportionally work him to the left to get that left side muscled up again. It took a good six weeks of almost daily work. If I had your horse, I’d spend a lot more time at walk and trot, relatively little at the canter. I’d certainly ask for both leads in most workouts (but not all, sometimes just walk only or walk/trot workouts get them thinking, especially horses prone to anticipate what is coming next). Use that dressage knowledge you have- when she is responsive to seat and legs at walk and trot, then you ask for those canter departures. Yep, bends, serpentines, circles, poles, etc, all good, it just takes time.
Does she get the lead on the lunge line?
I’d focus on the hind end, with flat work including lots of lateral work. Will she move her haunches to the right easily, or is she resistant? Maybe when she is going fast she can’t step her left hind underneath herself to do the change.
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Is the horse in pain?
-When is the last time a chiro checked her?
-When have her teeth been done last?
-Does your saddle fit correctly?
-I think a check by a lameness vet is in order to be sure. Barrel horses are notorious for having hock and stifle problems. -
Are you cueing her correctly?
-Please explain how you are asking her. A video would also be helpful. -
Will she pick up the right lead in the pasture on her own, or on the lunge line?
Everything physical checks out. It’s the very first thing I go to in these situations. I am riding her in my Antares which fits wonderfully while I have our barrel saddle made. She will canter on both leads in the pasture and I believe it comes down to training. She was a 15/16 second horse on the pattern before she went back to trail riding. Ridden in a combo gag with wire wrapped noseband, ick. Ridden in german silver french link loose ring snaffle until I need more collection. She never swapped leads on the pattern. Has some arthritis, but an extremely mild case, mild HA product keeps her happy and if I’m out, 1g of bute every other week is sufficient. She has some lump on her hind right fetlock, which I was told was scar tissue. Has been checked by a vet, cold and set, doesn’t bother her. She will take a shorter step at the trot, but not lame, no heat. Lunge only for flexion and strength training, mostly at a walk with ever changing terrain. I don’t want to stress her joints any more than necessary.
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She was a 15/16 second horse on the pattern before she went back to trail riding. [/QUOTE]
Just for clarification for the folks who don’t know anything about barrel racing, it means nothing to say “she was a 15/16 second horse”. The time a horse will run the barrel pattern depends on how big or how small the pattern is. A winning time at the National Finals Rodeo (small pattern) will usually be a mid to high 13-second run. Compare that to the Pendleton Rodeo where a 28-second run will be good on their enormous pattern.
The only time you can actually compare a time on a barrel racing pattern is when you are referencing a Standard Pattern. Currently, the world record is a 16.586 on a standard pattern.
http://content.breederoo.com/users/lscott/images/content/standard-barrel-pattern-600.jpg?2
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She never swapped leads on the pattern. [/QUOTE]
Can you clarify? Do you mean she runs the entire pattern on her left lead and never changes? Which barrel does she run to first?
I believe she was shown NBHA. I just compete at county riding clubs so I think we have a 90’-110’ layout, if I remember correctly. She starts on the left lead, left barrel and ends on the left lead going home. Even with ground poles on the approach and straight always. She’s a free runner so as long as keep her nose straight she’ll take care of me.
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I believe she was shown NBHA. I just compete at county riding clubs so I think we have a 90’-110’ layout, if I remember correctly. [/QUOTE]
If this horse was running a 15 to 16 second pattern at those shows, there’s no way it is a standard pattern as you can see by the world record I posted above. It’s gotta be smaller than a standard.
[QUOTE=time fault;7497174]
She starts on the left lead, left barrel and ends on the left lead going home. Even with ground poles on the approach and straight always. She’s a free runner so as long as keep her nose straight she’ll take care of me. [/QUOTE]
Do you have a video you can show us? (Of barrel racing and/or of riding her and trying to get her to take the right lead.) If we are ruling out pain and you say she swaps on her own in the pasture, then it has to be the way you are cueing her.
Does she switch to her right lead right before she gets to the 2nd and 3rd barrel?
If she is so bad with her right lead, why do you make only 1 left turn and 2 right turns? If she’s a leftie, I would expect her to make better left-hand turns; thus you would want 2 left turns in your pattern.
Beau makes a valid point. A mare I showed in western pleasure and other events for a friend in the late 60s/early 70s gave us fits about picking up the correct lead, or so we thought. We finally figured out that she had simply been trained to cues with the inside leg, rather than the outside leg as we were accustomed to on our other horses. Once we had that lightbulb moment, no further issues. It taught me that it’s always good to just play with a new ride and see where the buttons are.
She doesn’t swap in the pasture, she will canter on both leads, but not change. Her last owner/rider had the same problem. I have tried cues, remember I am dressage by nature, changed the bend, counter bend, whole nine yards. Inside leg, outside leg, change of hand. Our riding club rides on that pattern, with me she does a 17-19 and change as I hold her back. I’m not really pushing her to do the pattern as she doesn’t have the right lead and I don’t want to burn her out. Maybe I’ll just take her roping or cutting.
