Horse Gets Fast with Daughter While jumping - not with adv. rider

[Soaponarope]

[QUOTE=M. O’Connor;7206824]
Keep in mind that not all ex- show horses are truly appropriate and safe to learn on–while some of them may be a delight, being an ex- show horse is not in and of itself a guarantee that it doesn’t have a few holes, and sometimes these can be very awkward to deal with.

Especially if it was an advanced level horse, it may have trouble accepting a ride with less finesse and polish than your daughter is capable of delivering just now- in this situation a stalemate may be achieved where neither horse nor rider are happy or confident with the other, and this won’t be safe indefinitely. If your trainer can’t find a way to change this dynamic, it may be better to separate these two for at least the time being.[/QUOTE]

Amen.

[Soaponarope]

Being over-mounted or improperly matched is possible whether the horse or child is green or not. Believe me. Also, in the scheme of things, if your daughter is jumping under 3’6" she is green or “advanced beginner” or “intermediate.”

The thing about this partnership is that it is very easy to explain in words what must be done to stop a problem like rushing. But, your child has to translate those words into a series of about a hundred complex mental decisions/movements with her body, mind, and intuition while she is riding a two to three minute course. Mikhail Baryshkinov could probably explain in words exactly how to achieve one of his amazing jumps. He could even theorize all the different ways to optimize his performance. But your daughter has to solve this problem with her body and the horse’s body in the ring. If one step is unresolved - the entire picture falls apart.

Like I said, if the horse does well with different riders consider yourself blessed. Move on if it continues to be a problem. Put her on something she clicks with; there are a lot of horses out there who need a kid. Wish you best of luck.

[alto]

[QUOTE=HLMom;7207024]
She does have the issues you would expect from a horse who has jumped a fair bit in the past. She is on Pentosan and gets her hocks done… So yes, we do worry about keeping her comfortable. She jumps about 18"-2 feet once or twice a week, so her new life is MUCH easier on her.[/QUOTE]

If she’s been on the same dosages/frequency for a while now, it may be time to reinvestigate; with anything progressive, degenerative changes may happen slowly or quickly or some combination.