Rushing-HELP!

[Kylie Chamberlain]

I just bought my horse Dually, a fortnight ago, and we only have one problem-he rushes towards jumps.
I've tried trotting poles, and he'll do them fine, but anything unusually shapped (like the half-cylinder pole I use) or anything raised above ground level he will rush, bounding forward on his hind quarters!
I've tried continually walking him over the obsticle, but as soon as I ask for a slow trot, he leaps forward and races over it!
I've also tried walking him up to the jump, and then asking him to trot just a stride befor, this works once then he just antisipates the change of speed five strides away, and begins to cancer almost at a stand still!
He is perfect to ride otherwise, and I can't think of what I can do to help me horse with such great quaters on him, that it would be a shame for him not to jump!
Any ideas/suggestions welcomed!

[Mehitabel]

try setting up some jumps and then schooling round them. do exercises that kind of take you in front of the jump, but not enough to make him think he's going to jump it. circle round them, do serpentines in and out of them, whatever. he'll probably get excited and think he's jumping, but don't go over any. practice walking towards jump, standing and then walking off in another direction, so heading towards jump doesn't always mean going over it. do this every time you school, without jumping anything, until he's got the idea and will do all this calmly. then, one day, do your usual schooling round the jumps and just pop over one with as little warning as possible. then go right back to your normal schooling as if nothing has happened. keep on with this unitl he learns that jumping isn't anything out of the ordinary. also, stick to doing one jump at a time and if he gets excited afterwards, don't do any more until he's calm and working well again. it might take a while!
don't expect too much of him at first, 2 weeks isn't a long time, and he'll need some time to adjust to you and how you ride.

[maverick927]

Do grid work. My local pony club had a camp and there was a group for the rushers. the made a line of 6 bounce fences, which made the pony keep there speed down. Have some big and small, cross poles and uprights and maybe a parallel/oxer.

[Gracie]

I don't think your wrong or anything, this is just food for thought! (**I juss don't want you to think I'm trying to agrue with you, I'm just curious!) I was taught to never put a horse infront of a jump and circle away from it because it will in return teach the horse to refuse? I'm just curious how you wouldn't confuse the horse by circling away from the jump infront of the jump? Just curious! Thanks!

[Mehitabel]

i certainly wouldn't do this with a horse that didn't have the rushing problem. the idea is to teach the horse to listen to you and do as you ask, rather than what it thinks it ought to be doing - this horse sounds like he thinks that when there's a jump in sight, he should be getting to the other side of it as fast as possible. by walking towards the jump and then standing, you're teaching him to pay attention to what you're actually asking. it's not approaching as if you're about to jump and then changing your mind at the last minute, which can give horses the idea of refusing. what i'm talking about is halting maybe 5 or 6 strides out, standing until the horse forgets about the jumps, and then just carrying on on a different direction, so the horse learns to wait for the rider's cues before going into "jump" mode.
i definitely agree that once you've decided to go over a jump, you can't change your mind and circle away, and i wouldn't recommend that at all. does this make it clearer what i was talking about?

[smarty]

have you had his back teeth etc checked? If not do so before anything else.
I have 2 rushers.
One is 9 and he will never change, I have spent 2 years trying as he came 2 me with the problem. He does the same, leaps from my hands and just goes, resulting in a hollow jump. To improve him I had loads of lessons where in the end he wouls just pop over a 1.20m spread from trot! he felt safe if he knew what was asked of him. It all went out the window at a show as he felt insecure and panicked. he jumps from fear and not from enthusiasm.

My other is a 6yr old. He is just finding his feet and has gained strenght throughout his body. He gets strong and rushes the last 3 strides. This is all through enthusiasm, he loves jumping and is like a machine! To combat the problem I am using no gadgets but obedience. I do constant transitions round the fences to get him concentrating on me so he can't anticipate. If he doesnt listen then i make him listen. I'm firm but not harsh. I also make a point of using my voice on him and he has started to react instantly.

[cabanha]

Set up ground poles before the jump which will make him slow down and concentrate on the ground poles. As he progresses, start taking them away one-by-one. That's what we had to do with one of the lesson horses before he could be used in the beginner jumping lessons. :D

[sapphiandpoppy]

my horse rushes becuse she is green so what my instructor and i do is set 2 ground poles before a tiny crossrail. this makes her slow down and think. also when i do ground poles if she rushes thorugh the ground poles when she get out of the grid i walk her so she'll now that she dosn't need to go fast afterwards. and circling before a ground pole or a fence makes her slow down also. these suggestins have helped my horse a lot. :)

[Kylie Chamberlain]

I've decideed to just avoid jumping ali together for now, because Dually's getting more up-set and me more irritated with the fact that as soon as he sees a jump, or even a POLE he goes mad, not just rushing now, but sometimes even bucking too!
So in a few months maybe, I'll start working over poles with him, and we can see where we go from that!

[jUmPingIsLifE]

if you give up you are letting him win

if he is scared of it put some poles in his pasture, he will get curious and at least snif them. and find out there is nothing wrong with it. when you ride have poles set up but Don't go over them just ride around tham w/t/c do whatever and just avoid the poles all together. than someday when you are walking around all of a sudden in a straight line walk over the pole. if he walks over it ok thats enough for the day you have just accomplished A LOT than try it at a trot. if your horse will just never be a jumper you can't change that, if he doesn't enjoy it than you can't change it, don't do it. but at least get him comfy over poles. try leading him over poles.

we have a horse, a TB, perfect in almost every way, dressage is what he does BUT when he was a baby (3-5yrs) he was chased over jumps with loung whips, and scared over fences. when he was donated (with a pricetag of 80,000) they tried getting him over fences but couldn't do it. they could get him over, he is such a willing horse, but he was so afraid, so scared they disided not to put him throught it. however he is still asked to go over poles on the ground in lessons. he is even scared of the poles but he still does it sometimes, he gets better but its so sad to see what has happend to him

[Maya]

Hi!! I know you have a lot of replies and this one probably wont help! but in case it does....
My pony rushes at jumps, and she has done it for as long as ive leased her and as long as the girl before me leased her. I think she rushes because her owner, when he used to ride her, galloped at full speed around courses. I've tried gymnastics and those dont help...she just races through all the jumps without thinking. Ok now for my advice....ive heard that if you try to hold your horse back with your reins, then that gives them something to balance on...they can just grab the bit and run....but if you DONT try to hold them back and dont interfere as much with their mouth, then they have to balance themselves, and then they'll slow down because they cant balance themselves and jump that fast. I have no idea if this works because ive never tried it...im to scared to let Maya go over jumps...im afraid ill die! but its worth a try! Sorry if this doesnt help!

[FreedomStar]

If he starts rushing the jumps, circle away, or go past it. Just keep working him from the ground, until he's soft in your hands and willing and obedient. Then try working from the poles, then gradually building up small jumps, larger, and larger. Whenever he starts getting strong again, just go past the jumps and work him until he listens, then try the jump again. He needs to know that you are in control, and he must be obedient to you.

[Dressage_Luvr]

the horse i ride rushes at jumps sometimes.
she does it because she loves it! lol, i can feel her under me, and her ears are forward, and she jus enjoys it so much, usually if i sit back and stay calm shell slow down, but then again, sometimes she wont!!

The other day we had two verticals set up, along the outside,
but quite a few strides apart, and my instructor said, take her over the first one, and if shes quiet and clam, take her over the second one, but if shes not, just go to the side.

they werent close enough that if u circled away, they would think that they were! lol, but if they do it nice and slow and calm, then u reward them, and let tham jumpanother fence.

she stayed calm by the way, but we had to circle, because i lost my stirrups and almost fell off! lol

[Gracie]

Thanks for your explaination that makes a LOT of sense!;)
I didn't want you to think I was saying what you were doing was wrong because I really admire you! All your posts are witty and wise:) Thanks for the clarification(SP?)
~Kristan~