Have you ever considered starting from the beginning? I got an OTTB that I wanted to learn with and build a relationship. with. After he was turned out for 9 months I started with natural horsemanship on the ground that eventually led to ground driving and long lining. They do not know what you are asking and a sensitive emotional horse is just trying to say, I don’t get it! They have to learn everything as track life is all she knew and barn life outside the track is very different.
Imagine you are travelling abroad and they speak Swedish and you have to go to school. How easy would it be to learn if no one took the time to teach you but rather just put you in a classroom of students in the 6th grade…
There is a lot of literature out there about starting over but the best is slow quiet rides without asking for anything. They do not have the right muscle to do a lot of what might be asked also.
My horse is 19 and had to be retired due to injury but we have such a bond that makes my day every time I go out in the field to see him.
If you are going to treat for ulcers just do the gastro guard it is worth it. We have been using georges aloe juice after and seems to keep everything okay.
Don’t give up… Too soon and it may not be the right training methods for her.
So many good posts with wonderful advice. I’ll agree- I don’t think you have the right trainer for your horse. Especially since you said you are committed to this horse, don’t rush things. A month isn’t long enough to sort out her issues, especially if there are potential pain-related things going on.
I would strongly recommend getting her scoped for ulcers. See what you are dealing with and figure out a course of treatment. I’ve had success with sucralfate and gastrogard. The stall walking, sensitive sides, etc, are similar to what my mare displayed. Though it really isn’t the right time for it, you could also try her on regumate to see if it settles her. Mine was always more reactive and anxious when she cycled, year round. Regumate has also helped with her body soreness/sensitivity, which turned out to be related to her cycles.
As for work, I used a similar method to @Hey Mickey , long trots that focused on keeping a tempo and rewarding her when she relaxed. Mine also had, and still has, a wicked spook, both under saddle and on the ground. She is incredibly kind, though, without the intent to dump or step you, so I learned to firmly correct her and keep going without drama. She reacts differently to those corrections than when I would try to correct something caused by her anxiety, if that makes any sense. As someone said, it took a lot of retraining of myself to be as patient and calm of a rider as she needed.
I got her right off the track and it’s taken five years, but she’s the first horse I’ve ever fully trusted and we will hopefully be making the move up to prelim this fall or next spring. It seems like you are okay with taking a slower route and that might be what your mare needs. Finding a good, patient trainer that can work with both of you would be a good first step. Also, making sure that you are comfortable with having a high-maintenance, seven day horse. I think they are totally worth it, but that’s definitely a personal decision.
I highly recommend going on trail rides, I started several of off the track guys this way and it was very helpful in getting them to relax. My old, very hot, mare would have breaks in her training that consisted of several weeks of just trail riding, she was an experienced event horse but had a sensitive brain that needed breaks from the ring.
