Cobs - who'd have 'em!!!

[Noblesteed]

I came to riding late and my first horse is a 14.3 welsh cob X gelding. He has so many fantastic qualities; great to handle, easy to shoe, loads and travels well, non-spooky, great in traffic, good in company, not wound up if others are, and generally lovely, laid back chap. He is also very handsome, dappled bay and shiny like a conker! If I could work out how to post a picture, I would! However....you knew I was going to say that! .....he also appears to have a mind of his own!! What were you expecting? I hear you ask! Well, I'm not sure, is the answer. I got a cob because I thought he would be placid and biddable. To a large extent this is true, but when I ask something of him that he doesn't want to do he gets very nappy. He evades by falling out through his shoulders to turn for home and sometimes he bucks too. He does this at shows, hacking alone when we get to a turning he does not want to take, schooling in the field rather than the menage. So, my question for all you cob owners and lovers is....how do you get your opinonated cob to listen and behave?

[joey_olop]

........with great difficulty haha:D :D

You have got to be firm or they will take the mick-Ive learnt the hard way with mine, letting him get away with silly little things, now he thinks he can take the mick all the time.

Good Luck:)

[Miriam]

Thats a cob for you. Stroppy things they are :D Whoever said that cobs were lovely horses :P

[Big Ears]

oh dear, yes got one too!

back to basics I would say. is he good to handle on the ground or is the nappiness only when ridden? we couldn't get Rosie to even leave the yard.....

we did NH halter training on the ground, then ridden, and while she is still a sulky girl when she wants to be, she never ACTUALLY refuses, she may go very very slowly, but she will go. you can feel the wheels going round but she never now says she won't do it.

so that might be a way forward with them

cobs are generally very bright, you have to be one step ahead of them unless you get that rare thing, the totally genuine unspoilt cob - we have a few on NR but not many. with them though the key thing is to be black and white, always consistent, always the same, I never have confrontations with Rosie, but try to con her into thinking it was her good idea in the first place.

pm if you want as she was a bit of a monster at first.

[Big Ears]

napping at a junction - Rosie will sometimes have a preference but if I have decided we are going right, then we go right. if she evades to the left, i just refuse totally to give the rein at all, so we end up at a bit of an odd angle, but she is not allowed to turn her head to the left. you may have to keep your hands higher, and wider but you need to prevent the circling.

with her, she will mutter mutter mutter for the next few strides and i will keep leg on and ride her firmly and with determination, but at the same time be praising her for the fact that she is going the way we want. i use a lot of voice with her.

she does know what is required, but she just needs to discuss it sometimes....

[ANN H]

I got a cob because I thought he would be placid and biddable.

I wish!! I think Welshies especially can definitely be a handful. Misty is an angel on the ground, great for the farrier, fantastic to load and in the main very well behaved when being schooled. However, get her out into a large open space and she either gets very clingy to the horse(s) we're with, or tries to take off. I'm working on it with RI at the moment.

[Guest]

I don't think you can say that this behaviour is typical of just cobs, it's typical of a horse who hasn't had the correct training.
With the correct training and a little bit of persistance I believe that a horse will do pretty much what you ask them if they can.

[kate86]

Typical cob behaviour, my cob mare was v determined to get her own way a lot of the time, mostly its just patience and not giving into them! easy to say I know, but its the only way !

:)

I miss cobs to be honest haha!

xx

[nicolaj]

I'm having problems on the ground at the moment and have a Kelly Marks RA coming out tomorrow evening.

In some respects he is such as good horse, very bright and can work out VERY quickly if I've let him get away with something.

As others have said consistency is key and never 'give up' and let him get his own way, otherwise it does just get harder and harder. I know!!

The problem I believe with some cobs, not all I know, but some people breed them and are very quick to get them backed and sold on as a riding horse, without doing any of the really necessary ground work such as teaching them to lead properly with respect and keeping distance. Standing to have their feet picked out. It took over 12 months to teach my cob how to do that without him snatching his foot and stamping it back on the ground!

About two weeks ago I was leading him in the field, no other horses around, and we stopped, at the 'spooky' corner of the field and he took fright at something, span knocked me flying and ran to the next juicy bit of grass! that really dented my confidence and scared me stupid! So I'm now really having to return to basics and try and build up some trust and a proper relationship with my horse.

I even thought seriously about selling and giving up! But friends talked me round, and pointed out how much I had acheived in 2 1/2 years and that if I got another horse they could cause me just as much of a problem in other ways!

Hopefully once more of the groundwork foundations have come into place I will again be more confident in the saddle and we can move onwards again!

Don't give up, but if necessary don't let things drag on like I did, if you feel you are beginning to lose confidence then contact somebody you feel will be able to help be it your RI or a NH trainer or trusted knowledgable friend.

[bexj]

Oh the old myths, that cobs are ploddy - I haven't met one yet:p We have a cob at the yard who is difficult to catch, and barges his way out of stables at any opportunity. My cob is about as temperamental and stroppy as they come - she is big and powerful and knows it. Endless consistent ground work has helped no end, and now, if she throws a paddy when riding, I ride her strongly and confidently through it - then have a good laugh at her! Fortunately, I am a (stupidly) confident rider. I don't think I would still have her if I wasn't. Echo the advice of getting some help before he becomes too big for his cobby boots though.

[Whatanejit]

When we were first looking for a horse lots of people said get yourself a nice cob - heavyweight to cope with OH's weight. In my research, though, the current reputation that cobs are safe and ploddy isn't really true. They are just like any other horses - there are safe and ploddy ones, there are hyper dangerous ones and there are ones in the middle.

I now share a cob and although I feel quite safe on her she can be very spooky, v.v.v. nappy, a bully in the stable and my goodness does she know her own strength.

It is difficult to be firm and consistent - which I am - when you are the sharer as it is not followed through by her mum.

I think the reason why I feel safe is that she is an armchair ride and is only 15hh compared to Cooper's 16.2hh so it is not that far down when you fall off. She did, however, try to run me over outside a pub the other day when I was positioning her by a bench to mount - she knew exactly what she was up to - was enjoying the grass and wanted more. You really have to be firm with them.

Echo the advice with others re the ground work. You seem to have done a good job so far though.

Good luck,

Dee

[breeches]

i love cobs, once they stop taking the micky they will do anything for you. Rosie 1 was a prime example, when i had her she was all of the above, then one day it all stopped, took a few months but it was as like, "well dad, ive tried to take charge, but its not working, so best we have good times together".
id have another cob tomorrow.

[Lucyad]

I think all cobs are like this - they take the p**s and do what they want to do not what you want them to. I couldn't believe when I got Oscar that he didnt really seem to have much of an opinion on anything! Now I suspect that he has an opinion, it's just that he keeps it to himself...Cobs are the opposite. Any prefference in, say, which way they want to hack today, and boy will you know about it. But that's just part of their lovely strong personalities, isnt it! I think that you have to just grin, and be VERY firm.

[eventerbabe]

i've a cob, and an opinionated one at that. i've also a welsh cob who'd put mariah carey in the shade with her diva-like behaviour.

i agree with something mentioned before, i think a lot of cobs are pushed way too young. i got my lad when he was 3. he spent 6 months on field rest after an op, then after a short spell back in work was turned away again to mature and develop. cobs are notoriously late developers (mine wasn't out of his tantrum phase til he was about 8!) and too much work too early can leave them jaded and obstinate.

i have a wonderful bond with my cob. we love eachother to bits. he will try anything for me because we have a huge amount of trust in eachother. i'm positive this is because i've had him since he was so young and have spent alot of time on the ground getting to know him. he's not so bidable with other people though ;)

[bexj]

cobs are notoriously late developers (mine wasn't out of his tantrum phase til he was about 8!)

Couldn't agree more - I got Molly at 8, and I reckon she was nearly 10 before she matured.

Would also agree with the comment above that once you have established that relationship with a cob, they will do anything for you, and I would definitely not be without a cob in my herd!

[colettybetty]

ever heard that expression ' he's got a cob on ', meaning someone in a stroppy mood ? think it must have orginated from cob owners ! Cobs can be beautiful, sane and stoic, giving and lovable, but equally stubborn gits too.
Think, perhaps , because they are seen as a straightforward ride their early training is often skimped on and once they learn how strong they are, they use it.
Just come back from a group ride on OH's cob, who was determined to have a good blow out on his terms, its not a fun ride when you are constantly having to hold them back from tanking off !.. back to the school for my sunny lad !