Help Teach This Old Dog New Tricks

[Paddys_Mom]

I sold my Dressage horse and bought a wonderful small QH.
We are having a blast trail riding and plan to do all sorts of other fun things like team sorting and obstacle courses.

My problem is that I am used to riding Dressage, with contact.
Jasper came with his old bit (something like this bit http://www.chicksaddlery.com/page/CDS/PROD/1040/238315?utm_source=shopzilla&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=shopzilla%2Bdata%2Bfeed) and is used to very little contact.

We get to trotting or cantering down the trail and Jasper starts getting strung out and fast and I nag with the reins and he flips his head and gets upset. I don’t blame him - that is not how this bit is designed to be used. He has a very good whoa.

So, suggestions? Change to a snaffle? Or tips for retraining me to not be so “handsy”? :o

[BEARCAT]

No harm in trying a snaffle and seeing how it goes. It doesn’t sound like any of your activities “require” a shank? If horse goes okay in snaffle, problem solved, if not, time to re-train you

[UrbanHennery]

You could try a snaffle, or you could see if he’s looking for another signal to collect (and probably slow).

Try picking up your hands (or hand if you’re neck reining), toward your hips, about rib/belly button height). At the same time that you hold with your hands, tap his sides with your legs. If he was actually well trained Western that is likely to somewhere near how he was taught to collect. Steady pressure with your hands is key, as is always using leg and hand together.

ETA - be sure you give back by slowing releasing your hands and stopping with the leg as soon as he gives you what you want. At first that may mean that you pick him up and let him go every few strides as he tries to get it right. He’ll get the idea as you get more confident.

[Pocket_Pony]

I would go with what you feel confident with in the beginning until you get to know each other more. If that means each hand on a snaffle rein, then do that and see how he goes. Are you using both hands on the curb bit? It may be that he’s not used to that level of contact. You will need to get used to and school yourself away from the dressage level of contact. It is hard and feels weird, but now you have something to work toward! I’d probably do some experimenting in the arena to get a feel of what the two of you can work out and what buttons he has before galloping down the trail, but I tend to be cautious that way.

Have fun!

[Bluey]

If your horse was professionally trained, I would see if I could take a few lessons from a trainer, so you both are on the same page.

If he is a horse that was just ridden, he may just not be truly trained and may, as they say here, not even have a “made mouth”, was ridden more with the jerk and kick way of going, which is not necessarily abusive, just not very good at the finer points of communicating with a horse.

Many ranch, roping, trail, playday, penning and such type horses tend to be like that.
Some are well trained in the mere basics, some just were ridden to get the task at hand done, without any true training in the finer arts of learning to move properly and/or communicating.

May help to have someone evaluate your horse’s training and then go from that, get lessons to ride up to that training, or get him trained further for what you want to do.

[Paddys_Mom]

[QUOTE=UrbanHennery;7585481]

Try picking up your hands (or hand if you’re neck reining), toward your hips, about rib/belly button height). At the same time that you hold with your hands, tap his sides with your legs. If he was actually well trained Western that is likely to somewhere near how he was taught to collect. Steady pressure with your hands is key, as is always using leg and hand together.

ETA - be sure you give back by slowing releasing your hands and stopping with the leg as soon as he gives you what you want. At first that may mean that you pick him up and let him go every few strides as he tries to get it right. He’ll get the idea as you get more confident.[/QUOTE]

Oh - I recognize that - a half halt!

[Paddys_Mom]

[QUOTE=BEARCAT;7585206]
No harm in trying a snaffle and seeing how it goes. It doesn’t sound like any of your activities “require” a shank? If horse goes okay in snaffle, problem solved, if not, time to re-train you ;)[/QUOTE]

Nothing I am doing requires anything other than what he wants and what I want, so I will dig through my box o’ bits and see what snaffles I have that he night like.

[Paddys_Mom]

[QUOTE=Pocket Pony;7586385]
I would go with what you feel confident with in the beginning until you get to know each other more. If that means each hand on a snaffle rein, then do that and see how he goes. Are you using both hands on the curb bit? It may be that he’s not used to that level of contact. You will need to get used to and school yourself away from the dressage level of contact. It is hard and feels weird, but now you have something to work toward! I’d probably do some experimenting in the arena to get a feel of what the two of you can work out and what buttons he has before galloping down the trail, but I tend to be cautious that way.

Have fun![/QUOTE]

I am riding with one hand on the reins…until we start getting too quick, and then I revert to two hands and take up more slack and more slack until reminds me “WTF human! Please let go of my head!” :o

[Paddys_Mom]

[QUOTE=Bluey;7586679]
If your horse was professionally trained, I would see if I could take a few lessons from a trainer, so you both are on the same page.

If he is a horse that was just ridden, he may just not be truly trained and may, as they say here, not even have a “made mouth”, was ridden more with the jerk and kick way of going, which is not necessarily abusive, just not very good at the finer points of communicating with a horse.

Many ranch, roping, trail, playday, penning and such type horses tend to be like that.
Some are well trained in the mere basics, some just were ridden to get the task at hand done, without any true training in the finer arts of learning to move properly and/or communicating.

May help to have someone evaluate your horse’s training and then go from that, get lessons to ride up to that training, or get him trained further for what you want to do.[/QUOTE]

His owner was a fledgling trainer, so he was trained methodically and kept by her for 10 years. She originally was working towards making him a barrel horse but he did not have the drive for it, so she just used him for trails and cows and such. He does move well off my leg, forward and laterally, and has an excellent whoa.

I mean, he doesn’t have a spur stop like a pleasure horse, but he does have the basics for sure.

Honestly, I was “handsy” in my dressage work, but it is more of a problem with a curb bit on a western trained horse.

I will play with some snaffles and see if he likes that. I also need to work on my darned hands. I never feel like he is going to run off or doing something dangerous, but I need to figure out how to tell him “Canter is ok, but let’s not turn it into a flat out gallop.” and “Forward trot is ok, but getting strung out and unbalanced is not.”

I am having a blast with him so far…riding like when I was young.
No goals, no levels, just enjoying the ride.

[Pocket_Pony]

[QUOTE=Paddys Mom;7586859]

No goals, no levels, just enjoying the ride.[/QUOTE]

Sometimes, that is the most fun you can have and the best way to enjoy a horse! :yes:

[Paddys_Mom]

You have all been so helpful!
Today’s ride I tried a half halt with a bump of the legs and a slow lift of the reins and shazam - collection!
We had a nice jog going.

Then I found that if I shortened my reins just a little then I felt more confident in a one-handed rein hold.

And to keep myself from grabbing with that second hand too quickly, I held my dog leash in my left hand.

It was an excellent ride!

[Bluey]

[QUOTE=Paddys Mom;7589805]
You have all been so helpful!
Today’s ride I tried a half halt with a bump of the legs and a slow lift of the reins and shazam - collection!
We had a nice jog going.

Then I found that if I shortened my reins just a little then I felt more confident in a one-handed rein hold.

And to keep myself from grabbing with that second hand too quickly, I held my dog leash in my left hand.

It was an excellent ride! :)[/QUOTE]

Neat trick of holding something else with one hand, if you want to keep that hand out of the way.

Those good rides sure make you smile the rest of the day, do they.