Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

Kristi,

 

Of course he doesnt like to condition. :)  Sounds like a basic lack of respect for you that has been going on for a long time.  Horses can only think about one thing at a time.  Get his attention and make him keep it on YOU.  Vary your routine.....do a lot of transitions from walk,trot,canter. Halt and back.  Make him wonder what the heck you will do next.  You dont say how often and long your rides are.  You might try shortening the duration of your conditioning ride.  Trot him out and walk him back.  If he gets jiggy, circle, circle, circle.  Ride two short but energetic rides instead of 1 long one. Our Appaloosa stallion is like that as well.  Horses are constantly testing to see who the boss is.  When we ride him with spurs, the blunt ones, he is quite the different guy.  An effective tool when used properly.  Seldom have to apply them once he knows they are there.  Same goes for a whip.   Do some ground work.  Pat Parelli and Dennis Reis methods are, IMO, very impressive. 

 

Always remember that YOU are the BOSS!

 

Merry   

Kristi Schaaf <iluvdez@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> Hi all -
> I'm trying to get my horse ready for a 50 by
> mid-summer. He's 14 and we've been together for 10
> years and many many miles. He has 1000 NATRC, a few LD
> and countless 'pleasure riding' miles. He's been
> ridden both alone a lot and with other horses the
> entire time I've had him. For our conditioning rides,
> I try to vary our route and our terrain, and also vary
> loops with out-and-backs, but he still despises going
> out and doing the miles alone. I hope that he never
> TRULY becomes lame or ill when we're out riding,
> because he's cried wolf so many times that I wouldn't
> believe him. On the ride away from home, he 'gimps',
> is sluggish (I'm lucky to get his trot up to 6 mph)
> and he tries to convince me that he's very near death.
> I also haul him to trails away from home whenever
> possible, but then the trailer becomes his 'home' and
> he
>  acts the same way. Whenever his little nose is
> pointed toward 'home' he becomes a new horse - very
> willing with a trot to die for (and to his credit he
> never gets out of control or anything like that). I've
> tried rewarding him by letting him graze for extended
> periods at the farthest point away from home, leaving
> him standing tied for awhile when we get home, etc.
> But, I think maybe he just doesn't like to condition
> (like the women who go to the gym but hate it). At an
> organized ride or riding somewhere new (but I've run
> out of new trails!), it's a different story; he's very
> willing to go down the trail alone. There is still a
> little thought in the back of my mind that physically
> maybe something is bothering him, but hubby thinks my
> horse is just pulling the 'master manipulator' stunt
> on me. Are some horses just reluctant to condition? It
> would be great to know if other distance riders
> encounter this problem, because then I'd quit
>  worrying
> about it. There is no way that I'm overriding him, if
> anything, I'm not pushing him enough. Kristi 
>
>
>
>
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