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Re: [RC] Spooky Horse - Glenda R. SnodgrassOn Thu, 29 Jul 2004 GoQuarterHorses@xxxxxxx wrote:Hi, I have been having some problems conditioning my horse, because I don't want to ride her on the trail alone, because she has a tendency to go nuts. I can pretty much handle the spooks, but I don't think it's a good idea to go on long rides alone on a unpredictable horse. The ranch I am at has a cross-country course, which I would like to use, but my mare blows up so often in the big open fields, that it seems even more dangerous than riding farther away. Does anybody have any advice? Thanks! Daisy There is no simple answer to this problem, and I'll let the more experienced trainers speak to some of those things, but I'll share one little tip that has helped me with my very insecure, herdbound horse that acts nuts when riding alone, especially in "the big open fields" like you mentioned: he seems to do better on single-track or two-track trail or dirt roads rather than wide open spaces. I think that part of the nutso thought pattern comes from his having too many options and too many things to look at and worry about, in all directions, so his brain just goes into overload. When he is on a well-defined trail and the only place to go is straight ahead, he will follow the trail and it settles him down a lot (not totally, but a lot), whereas when I ride him in a wide open space (even a riding arena) he tends to zigzag, swerve, look here & there and focus on everything except me and what I'm asking him to do. I don't think is true of all horses but I do believe it is true of mine, and it might be true of yours too. -- Glenda R. Snodgrass AERC #M18819 SE Region =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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