Strong horse won't stop running?

[TheHotSensitiveType]

@Susan Dwyer

… First off he doesn’t respect me through flying lead changes… he usually gets them but he just runs and runs and runs. …

This does not sound like a ‘respect’ issue but instead an anxiety issue. For whatever reason, flying changes with you make your horse extremely anxious. Does your horse do the same thing with other riders? If you set your horse up for a change but never ask, what happens? Nothing? Does he start getting anxious?

I too think that you need to find an instructor/trainer to evaluate the issues you are having. There are more likely than not other issues that are leading up to the flying change problem and pulling you down after jumps needing to be addressed first. If nothing is improving and you are getting regular lessons (at least 1x a week, 2x if you can afford it), I would suggest trying out a different instructor/trainer. These sound like issues that you can address with the right direction from a professional.

For example with me, my instructor kept having to remind me to keep my inside hand up on the right canter lead with my horse. What was the root of the problem? She wasn’t straight, and I had developed an unconscious habit of doing a weird thing with my hand most noticeable at the canter to straighten her. Once I FINALLY figured out why I was doing it, I found out that problem is there in the walk and trot too! Would you believe lateral work and changes are tons better now that we are working on straightness and suppleness. If I wasn’t getting regular lessons, my horse and I would have kept on keeping on doing it wrong and wondering why things were not getting better.

[IPEsq]

^^ I agree. It’s very likely an anxiety problem. Whether it’s because it hurts to do the change or the horse is anticipating a punishment, or the horse anticipates the change, leans/dives/lunges/whatever and misses the change which is uncomfortable, or you try to chase the horse through the change then wonder why he runs, or it’s just been drilled to the point where the horse is now nervious/anxious about the exercise itself with no relation to the physical part of completing the change, there’s anxiety that needs to be fixed. Ruling out a physical issue like hocks, stifles, etc., you can start to chip away at the anxiety by breaking the parts down into very simple pieces, at slower gaits. Walk across the diagonal with change of bend and leg yield to the rail if the horse is thinking of diving in rather than picking up that new inside shoulder. Trot, halt, walk on the diagonal. Then do it on a serpentine path. Go either with the diagonal or serpentine and continue on with the transitions. Then trot, halt, walk, trot. Then trot, walk, trot. Then trot and change bend while continuing to trot. Canter, halt, walk. Canter, halt, walk, trot. Canter, walk, trot. Canter, walk, canter. Canter, trot, canter. Can he (and you) do all of these things without anxiety and with straightness and relaxation? Yes? Then go, canter, change!

[jetsmom]

Can you do a counter canter well?
I’d agree with either pain or anxiety.
I’d practice counter canter, simple lead changes, some basic lateal movements. I wouldn’t school flying changes. If you jump, I’d keep it low, do lots of trot jumps. Do simple lead changes until his anxiety is gone.