Re: RE: Preventing Herd Bound Behavior?

["Michelle Fink" <michrowe@redwrench.com>]

Thanks Jim.  I just took my mare to her first ride - we had done all of this
separation work you talked about at home and my mare is OK with it.  I often
meet a buddy for a ride (we ride around out in the toolies until we meet
up), ride together for a while, and then we part ways and ride home and the
horses are OK with that.  For the first 5 miles of the CTR ride, my mare was
*perfect*.  She walked the first two miles like a seasoned pro.  Let other
horses pass, trot ahead, jig by, etc. with no problems.  Then after a very
hard climb up a hill (at a ski resort, it was a big hill) & a calm PR break
she came unglued and got VERY herdbound to the point that I pulled from the
ride as the footing was too slick for her jigging and antics.  She has never
done this before, though I was warned when I bought her that she can be hot.
So my question is, was the jigging response because the hill adrenalized
her?  Scared her?  I got her home and rode the next day and she was still
hot & silly.  Took her out alone the next day for a hard ride and she was OK
toward the end.  The next day she had some buddying anxiety but we worked
through it and she returned to her calm self.

I had not ridden her much the week before the ride, is that something I
should do more of?  I wanted her to have good reserves going in as I
actually thought she was low on energy the week before.  Should I give her a
5-10 mile ride at camp the night before the ride?  How do seasoned riders
start a new horse if they don't have a pre-arranged buddy to ride with and
should I even try to ride with a buddy??

I had not ridden on slick footing, maybe she decided she didn't trust my
leadership after I rode her up a steep, slick hill?  She was OK at the top
before the P/R...

Did she just get pumped on that hill & her body was really ready for more?
I wondered if a very fit horse's body gets busy releasing carbos &
adrenaline, and with a 10 minute recovery, maybe it just made her high as a
kite?  She is still very fit from the track, does not seem to have lost much
general fitness.  Is training for this riding up something steep, taking a
break, and then keep heading up the mountain until she decides to use her
energy wisely?

Would a snack at the P/R check bring her down and give her something else to
think about?  She's a terrible food hound, and was way too adrenalized to
eat once she got hot.  Maybe I can keep her "down" with a few well timed
carrots?

Someone mentioned to me that the horse's metabolism adjusts to distance
work, maybe hers is adjusting and the result is toooo much concentrates?
I'm not feeding much grain - just a 1/2 lb. - BP and corn oil.  Maybe she's
fine with just pasture and hay now?  Her body condition is greatly improved
from this Spring.  I don't want to starve her to control her & I want her
somewhat energized, but maybe cutting back on concentrates is a fine idea?

Any input, ideas will be welcomed.  I am re-doing her basic training about
buddying, and had planned to take her to the ski area where they run dude
strings and let her watch the horses come and go all day.  It's also maybe
worth noting that on Sunday I left her tied in camp while I worked, and she
was not a bit hot as the horses paraded through camp on their way out to the
trail.  From what I've seen this usually causes a commotion, but she was
happy enough to hang at the trailer and munch her hay.  She was also very
calm about handwalking through camp, and longing amid the din.

Our next real test of training comes in a month at another CTR. :-)

TIA -
Michelle
(Colorado)