When something goes wrong, what do you do?

Jessey

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Dec 20, 2004
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Or perhaps what is your reaction when something goes wrong on a ride?

I took Jess out Tuesday and explored a new route and came back via a stubble field, she's been a bit absent minded of late when I ask for canter on the straight she just picks up her stronger lead (left) and isn't actually paying attention to what I am asking for. So I asked for right lead first, and took 3 more tries to get it, then asked for left and took 2 more tries to get that! Then when I tried to slow to a trot as there was 100's of little holes freshly dug by bunnies, she just collected right up, tossed her head and carried on. I won't call it bolting because it wasn't, she wasn't running scared/blind. This was just willful piss antics and being strong, it was a little unnerving though, I was having kittens that she would find a big hole and stick a leg in it.

My reaction to this was to turn the corner of the field and do 3 strides canter, 2 strides trot, 3 strides canter, 2 strides trot for the entire length of the field (just over 1/4 mile), if she's finding a downwards transition a struggle best we practice it some more! And I was itching to take her up there again last night too, to practice a bit more! but didn't as I'm trying very hard not to overwork her so only riding alternate days in the week. Guess where we are going tonight ;) As a kid I was always pushed to get straight back on, even if you are scared, I guess that stuck with me.
 
I'd probably be the same as you and see it as an opportunity to learn or practise something, but then I'm not scared of Raf at all. If I were on another horse things might well be different :p
 
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Oh and as a child I was taught to just push on even if I was scared - not horse riding but life in general. It makes me much more stubborn with myself!
 
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We are having issues with right canter lead. I block is me but when he goes wrong I repeat repeat repeat until we get it. But if it is something new I will try a few times but go back to it once or twice before the end of the session
 
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Buddy can take the mick at times, I just laugh at him. for example, he can't lift a hoof to have his hoof boots put on but can manage It when he gets home for his breakfast......on the plus side he is bloody amazing with hazards, he will face up to the largest lorry but faint at a squirrel....I occasionally have to read him the riot act to get his attention but most of the time I let him be Buddy. Some of the others no, it is immdediate correction
 
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In the situation you describe I think it depends so much on the horse. I would be bricking it about the rabbit holes, but once they were in them I'd rather give them their head and sit very quietly so they at least concentrated on where they were going rather than arguing with me. The later trot canter trot transitions, well I don't think I've ever had a horse that that wouldn't hot up to a crazy level and it's not something I'd do with someone else's. I'd probably settle for walk in an outline until we left the field, and no canter the next few times. Out hacking I'm not fussed which lead they pick up, and since Little Un's aid is a verbal "go on then" it would feel harsh to complain at whatever he gave! Schooling is different, but then we don't school nowadays. Schooling Jim I'd take a couple of wrong strides then ask again, if that didn't work then do something else for a few moments then ask a different way, maybe out of leg yield or returning to the track after a rein change across the diagonal. If that didn't work then leave it because there was a good chance there was a problem and forcing the issue would not end well!
 
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Luckily Brodie is usually very good so not too much happens. Recently I was cantering him behind a friend and completely unable to stop, my body was still riding but my mind went into sheer panic meltdown mode. We cantered again later and I made myself sit up and ride from the start (not letting him just run into it) and he was good as gold. I do sometimes get off for certain things, mainly because I don't want to give in and turn round if we've met something scary but I also don't feel confident enough to ride past it. I try and push myself, if I'm feeling worried I'll try and carry on a bit further before heading back as I usually settle down again and then feel like that's okay to turn around and head back. For example I went out yesterday evening and there was a quadbike in one of the fields. He was absolutely fine but I was being silly about it all getting worked up that he was going to spook. I rode him past then we had a short little canter and relaxed walk for 5 mins. Turned around and headed home then. Now you know why I hack on my own alot, mountains out of molehills and all that!
 
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If mine goes faster than I want then I will go and do something else then go back round. She can get a little whoopie.
But I wouldn't do the transitions you describe unless I wanted to be eating grass. That would seriously piddle her off and she would fling me. The issue we just had was the speed of the transition behind us, so I would go back round and either ask again, a or from walk knowing it's usually collected and calmer or trot or walk that part and finish.

Actually yesterday mine was having difficulty cantering in a straight line! She leans either to the left or to the right. But I think it's the camber of the hill in her defence.
The only flat place here is the school and the fields are dome like so it's not simply up and down.
 
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Sadly, canter is just a dream at the moment. Got 2 strides ( :rolleyes: ) and pathetically, was quite pleased. I've learned with Hogan, it's very definitely softly softly catchee monkey. In trot however, if he doesn't respond, or argues, I try to keep calm and ask again, and again until I get what I want. He pushes me onto the right diagonal, and gets irate if I bounce onto the left - so I keep doing it and then back off after he's given me a good stretch on the correct one. No doubt it'll be a similar story in canter. Lightbulb moment! Perhaps I should ask for canter on the opposite leg to the one I tried? That might be the key to his reluctance.
 
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Jess doesn't really get het up with lots of transitions, after the first few she knows what's coming and settles into a rhythm, it was a big part of her schooling when we were competing as she has always been more go than whoa. Its generally when I have let her bowl along regularly that she is more likely to argue about stopping before she thinks she is done.

Last night's ride was a mixed bag, on the way out to the stubble field she was great, both leads first time walk>canter on the straight. The stubble started well, nice up side 1. Side 2 she was being antsy, even in walk she was trying to turn to the forest (I don't know if she could hear something in there) and as soon as I asked for canter she'd toss her head, drop her shoulder and go off at 45 degrees across the field away from the forest. So we did some walk circles and rein backs and tried again, success. Side 3 we mostly walked, some on the buckle, a couple of little trots, fine. Side 4 we trotted and 3/4 of the way along I thought 1 last little canter to end on a good note, well that was a mistake! rein snatched, head went left, body went right (back up side 1) and if I so much as tried to touch the rein it got worse, totally ignoring my seat, it was a bit unnerving. We had a few more little canters on the way home and managed to end on a lovely one with perfect downwards transition.

Teeth are no where near due and I am currently bitless so going to pop her back in a bit for our next ride. I suspect it's just an evasion, perhaps she was getting tired. She wasn't even particularly stressed, when she buggered off her bottom lip was floppy (I could see because her nose was somewhere near my left foot!) I feel like a few good schooling sessions to get her brain and body back in order would be good, but I haven't schooled her properly in years because of her old unknown lameness thing, I'll have to see about getting her to a big school with a proper surface to work on I think, or perhaps a beach trip is in order :)
 
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I was thinking about this thread today because usually when someone says what would you do it's a guesstimate reply.
However I think the cob had logged in behind my back and read it!!

Today all was going well until she suddenly did a shoot off across the school. I mentioned in the above post that she was struggling to be straight in canter, oh she was dead straight alright!
First thought through my head wasn't what you would hope for, "I don't know if she's gonna stop", followed by "oh crap the gate's open"
My brain must have applied the brakes to the runaway train because she did stop and turn back round at whatever ghost had flicked her bum.

Anyway what I did was walk her round in the other direction, then trot then go back the main way in walk and trot and finished before anything else went wrong. :p
 
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We tried again today, and although she tried the old rein snatch and drop the shoulder trick, with a bit in I was able to straighten her back up easily, she tried a few more times then quit, I think she'd just found a cheat in the hackamore and was taking advantage of it.
 
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