ex-racer training advice

[svenja]

Hello, I'm in need of some advice. I am retraining my five year old mare who is straight off the race track. She was truned away for a couple of months before starting ridden work again.
She spooks a lot, and while the yard is quite scary (construction site next door, loud banging etc...) I think a lot of it is over-excitement as she tends to squeal when contradicted (ie if calmly but firmly made to walk on):rolleyes: ... She is trying hard and has improved a lot (her canter is a lot steadier, although I still mainly work at walk and trot), and I am taking things very slowly, but I find that I spend the first 30 minutes getting her to calm down and am concerned that she may get quite frustrated after a while. Once she is steadier, she works brilliantly. Would it help to lunge her first? I don't mind dealing with it when ridden, just really looking for what is best from a schooling point of view. When she is over-excited, her head comes up and she careers round at a fast trot (would really like to gallop)... At the moment I keep her at a trot, gradually calms her down and the trot becomes smoother. Should I be slowing her down to a walk instead and then asking for a trot again?
I have had her for five weeks and have been riding her three times a week and long reining her once a week (started riding for 20-30 min and building up to 45 min. She gets long-reined for 20 min). She is also lunged twice a week for 15 min, with a day off. Does that sound like a reasonable work load?
Sorry for the long post!!!!!

[sheryl]

Hi,
I'm no expert, but I am breaking my own T/BX at the moment.

First of all I would give your mare a mainly fibre diet. Nothing heating.

Sounds like you are already doing well with her workload. I do think it would be a good idea to lunge her before you ride her. Better safe than sorry, and you don't want her to get into the habit of playing around when you ride her.

I would treat her as if you are starting a youngster, slowly and surely:)

[svenja]

thanks, I think you're right. I will increase the fibre in her feed... on the spooking front, can't say I blame her. They have just installed a wire pigeon hutch on one of the sides of the arena... As a young horse, I wouldn't find tje the sight of loads of flapping birds particularly reassuring!

[jUmPingIsLifE]

Instead of Riding her, can you just turn her out in the arena? let her get used to all the surroundings, let her run around and spook as much as she wants after a while she will get tierd and relize "oh... this is stupid, they really arn't all that scary"

then work on your groundwork with her and see if you can keep her in that mindset and keep her attention on you. Only if you can keep her attention on the ground are you going to be able to keep her attention under sadd.e.

[svenja]

she gets turned out in the arena almost every day:rolleyes: She is a bit of a madam..... You're right about the ground work- I found that she is much more focused when long-reining and that's also had a positive effect on the ridden work.....

[jUmPingIsLifE]

If she deals with these things all the time being turned out in the arena then there is really NO excuss for her to act up when ridden. She is looking for a reason not to pay attention to you and not to respect you. I would do a lot of groundwork, get her full attention and respect only then will she be safe enough to attempt to ride, you would be surprised how gaining her respect and trust on the ground helps once in the saddle too. I "test" tahoe out on the ground before i even get on him if he hasn't been in consistant work, if he doesn't give me all his attention and respects my aids I wont get on. I used to just jump on but it never got me anywhere but back in the dirt.

when riding you can do a lot to get her attention onto you and off the world around her. Make riding unpredicatable, dont just ride in circles and do the same old thing. Change directions frequently, do transitions frequently and irratically with no real pattern to the changing of direction or transition. Serpintines and other figures. If tahoe ever seems to 'loose it' during a ride i wont go around the ring once without doing at least four differant things either figures or transitions. Some sort of change every side of the ring at least. Making it so unpredictable can get their head back into the game.

[svenja]

thanks, I'll give that a try. She spooks when turned out as well although I have to say the fact she squeals when I contradict her spooks when ridden makes me think it's half fear, half taking the mickey!

[Jaimee]

I know as a racehorse she has seen a lot, but remember she is still young. I vote you give her time. You are on the right track I think you are doing all the right things. You just have to expect it to take a whie before she is really settled under saddle, you have only been working her 5 weeks after all. If you try doing anything other than what you are doing I am afraid you might be creating a battle, if she is not dangerous and you are quite happy to ride it out- do just that. You said she settles after 20mins.

I have a 7yo that I have just bought he last raced a year and a half ago. He cant even canter under saddle yet he is just too unbalanced, and yes we have all the same issues as you do:D Thoroughbreds aye...

When you are riding just make sure there are lots of changes of rein, transitions, and transitions within the pace. You will get there! Good luck

[breeches]

take your time is the best advice i can give. my ex racer is 7 , she raced until she was 5 and still spooks, raises her head and all sorts, but its getting less, ive only had her since june and the improvement shows daily.

they raise there head as they are not used to dropping it, its just their way, lunging with side reins a couple of times a week will build up the neck muscles and allow her to be more collected. but its such hard work. sometimes i feel too hard as its like changing years of in- built design that has allowed them to gallop so easily and quickly.

but take your time, it could be a year before you get there, but im sure its worth it in the end.

[galadriel]

The saddles used on the racetrack are very damaging to a horse's back. Every single horse coming off the track likely has long-term damage of many kinds and also a very tender back--it's hard to tell because they're so used to bracing the back, so used to people messing with the back, they they don't react like the back is painful. But it makes a big difference once you put the saddle on.

The back damage that is there can make any horse (particularly a high-strung or sensitive one, as TB's tend to be) spooky, jumpy, or generally jumpy under saddle.

[svenja]

thanks for all your replies, it's a real help. Galadriel, I think you're probably right- she wasn't raced for very long and on shorter distances than thoroughbreds (she's an akhal teke, they have special races for them in southern Russia) but I think she would benefit from some work on her back. At the moment I'm doing as much long reining, etc.... as I can fit in to strengthen her back. Apart from the vet I don't really know who could come and check her back out - I very much doubt equine osteopaths exist here!