Very Strong Draft Cross

[xRecklessRenditionx]

Hey guys,

I own a very seasoned eventer. So he thinks he knows best. He gets very strong out of an arena thinking everything is going to be xc. We do go out a lot and usually I have his dressage bit because he’s starting to understand at home it is just trails, but if we go off property for trails he turns into a tank. On xc he can get very very strong and I’m not the biggest or strongest rider right now. He has a short shanked pelham now on the leverage ring for xc and he just runs through. I’m looking for options. It isn’t behavioral because he’s fine in the stadium and dressage phase, but the adrenaline between the two of us amps him up. So all options will be considered.

Thanks!

[devvie]

My immediate thought is walk only until he can hack on a loose rein and not expect any kind of pace or excitement whatsoever

[Miichelle]

My daughter’s draft cross gelding HATES poll pressure but does well with his Micklem with the clips attached. The next step is to try a jumping hackamore and see if she can get a little more controll with a little less effort.

[AKB]

My daughter had a big English horse who used to get strong xc. She used to make him walk out of the start box and trot the beginning of every Training level course until he learned that xc does not have to be exciting.

[Highflyer]

It IS behavioral-- he listens to you except when he prefers to do something else and then he does whatever he wants. A bigger bit is not going to fix it-- the fact that it shows up even trail riding is pretty telling. You can’t ever let him do it, even if it means you jump a fence and come back to a walk or halt, or you trot ten steps on the trail and come back to a walk or halt. And when he does come back, you make a big fuss and praise him.

[Winding_Down]

Heck, he is a draft cross! Get a stronger bit!

[xRecklessRenditionx]

He can walk on a loose rein at home now since I have worked on trials, but we went to an endurance fun charity event and he pranced mainly because he was stuck in the back and he prefers to be in front. I don’t just let him do it. He is 16.1-16.2 and I’m 4’11. We do walk in and out of the start box as well with my trainer leading in case he does get to excited, and he’ll trot out of the start box or even walk, but as you approach the first fence is when he grabs the bit and goes.

[kcmel]

More XC schooling? Perhaps with your trainer riding him for a while. My draft x used to get strong, but we halted after every jump so that he learned that he had to come back to me after. Before jumps I would circle until he settled before I would jump (as long as your horse is not a stopper, which it doesn’t sound like he is). Now I jump in my dressage bit, or at most a wonder bit (because he sometimes wants to dive on his forehand before a jump, not because he gets too strong).

[Miichelle]

Have you tried anything other than a bigger bit? Obviously he’s running though the bit he has now. Try something with different pressure points. My daughter is 5’3" and her Arab Percheron cross is 16.1hh and there is nothing dainty about him. He’s in a metal Mullen mouth, no shanks. If we put a “bigger bit” on him he just gets angry. Nose pressure works well with him and there are many “levels” of pressure you can go with depending on your equipment, from very mild to very severe. Just because it’s pressure on the nose doesn’t mean it’s less effect and it can be combined with a bit.

After you have your horse’s attention, THEN you can work on his behavioral issues. It’s easy to say, do this or do that, but it’s hard to do when the big galoot is running though your bit.

[xRecklessRenditionx]

I tried a bosal just for trails and he ended up diving down to eat now that there was nothing in his mouth.

[talkofthetown]

So he’s big, heavy and strong, and you are very petite. Some of that will never change, but I would still recommend working on strengthening your upper body. I used to ride a small-but-strong-as-an-ox OTTB that was on his way to becoming an UL eventer (so he knew his stuff too, he wasn’t green). He was STRONG. Especially compared to my own super light-mouthed OTTB. And he liked to maintain a very heavy contact with you at all times. He wasn’t pulling, he wasn’t grabbing the bit and running, it just felt like you were carrying his entire head and neck in your hands.

He was, however, EXTREMELY sensitive and well-tuned when it came to my seat and leg aids. If I forgot and tried to slow him with the reins, good luck. But if I sat up and asked properly, he was the easiest horse to rate. I would recommend really focusing on your own aids, and your horse’s response to your aids. Up the training ante, so to speak. (Now, if your boy is truly running away with you, that’s different. Please be safe!)

[CindyCRNA]

[QUOTE=xRecklessRenditionx;8430299]
Hey guys,

I own a very seasoned eventer. So he thinks he knows best. He gets very strong out of an arena thinking everything is going to be xc. We do go out a lot and usually I have his dressage bit because he’s starting to understand at home it is just trails, but if we go off property for trails he turns into a tank. On xc he can get very very strong and I’m not the biggest or strongest rider right now. He has a short shanked pelham now on the leverage ring for xc and he just runs through. I’m looking for options. It isn’t behavioral because he’s fine in the stadium and dressage phase, but the adrenaline between the two of us amps him up. So all options will be considered.

Thanks![/QUOTE]

You own my mare’s twin!! We are fox hunting in a short shanked Wymouth and she’s like, “yay, whatever!”

[Come_Shine]

Maybe a Wilkie snaffle?

[Duramax]

Nothing to add but I LOL’d at CindyCRNA’s signature line… at first I thought that was her advice! :lol:

[kt-rose]

My hunt horse is a big Cleveland Bay cross, very well behaved but a big, heavy horse that requires a fair amount of balancing out there. After shoulder surgery this summer I was worried I would not be able to hold him sufficiently to keep him safe but he neither needs nor likes much bit. I found the Stubben EZ Control with hooks to be very helpful. I have the big D and it is very soft in his mouth but when I need a little leverage it becomes a mullen mouth and does have a curb. Even galloping in the hunt field it gets his attention and I can balance him without overdoing the shoulder or putting too much in his mouth. The right tools always help!! Best of luck!!

[xRecklessRenditionx]

Basically what he does too. xD I was told to try an elevator, but what I need is to bring his head up so he can duck btv.

[Rainier]

I had a big strong draft cross and what ended up working with him (so that he didn’t curl and tuck btv) or pull was a center revolver bit with hooks. I don’t even know where to find them now. I had tried so many (including some pretty big bits … Micklem, waterfords, pelhams, miracle bit, etc ) before coming across this one. It really helped me to control his shoulder, which was a big part or our problem when he got heavy and leaning. I think it acted basically like a gag bit, but helped with the shoulder. My horse was just really not very sensitive. very much unlike my present ottb.

http://www.ejeffries.co.uk/p/loop-ring?pp=24

[Dutchmare433]

I think it would be worth while trying an elevator or wonder bit (loop ring posted above), these have a lifting action when used, as opposed to the Pelham which is probably contributing to him curling behind the bit.

[Come_Shine]

[QUOTE=Dutchmare433;8433277]
I think it would be worth while trying an elevator or wonder bit (loop ring posted above), these have a lifting action when used, as opposed to the Pelham which is probably contributing to him curling behind the bit.[/QUOTE]

Wonder bit is another name for a Wilkie snaffle. I have one with a thin, single jointed mouthpiece and wow - that sure has some brakes. The first time I stopped my mare in that, she stopped so fast that she almost sat down. I have another Golden Wings version from Stubben that has a double jointed jointed mouthpiece and I use that sometimes when we go to clinics.

[BigMick]

[QUOTE=Come Shine;8433549]
I have another Golden Wings version from Stubben that has a double jointed jointed mouthpiece and I use that sometimes when we go to clinics.[/QUOTE]

i have this same bit on my draft cross for hunting and it’s not nearly enough bit. How do you have yours set up?