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Posted on 01/02/2007 9:57:39 AM PST by HairOfTheDog
Cranky horse, he finally shook her loose after about 8-10 jumps. It's happened to me.
He's a big handsome boy, looks like a good mover too once he settles.
Is it a girl? I couldn't tell.
I say dumb because that horse looks like a stick of dynamite waiting to go off. I wouldn't have been jumping, he needs much more ground work and w/t/c basics first.
The rider was doing all the right things, as far as staying back, keeping his head up, pulling him back to a trot between fences, only jumping singles and not lines, etc. except for not keeping her leg on.
I think part of the problem is the small arena, it's a little cramped in there and he's not a small horse. And he never really did unleash a big one, she just zigged when he zagged over that last fence and got shaken loose.
If I went back to ground work every time a horse got cranky, I'd never get any jumping in!
Well maybe I do know a little bit about jumping then because I did think , hmm maybe she out to get off and discuss this with him a couple of times :')
Were there too many obstacles for him? I was also thinking that it sure looked crowded and maybe if she got him jumping good over one and then gradually added more.....
Also, what do you mean by keeping her leg on?
It's always a problem in an indoor arena, because every square foot costs $$$$$$$$. They're almost always too small. The only answer is to put in as many jumps as you think is right . . . then take out two!
As far as 'keeping the leg on' -- when a horse starts cantering up and down like that boy is doing, and trying to get his head up (she's got a running martingale on him but he's still above the bit), you have to squeeze them forward with your legs and push them into the bit. A horse can't really put in a good buck while he's moving well forward, all he can do is crowhop or kick out behind.
An added bonus of keeping him moving forward is that he doesn't put in one of those big jumps almost from a standstill, where he has to heave his weight upward and over so he puts out an extra big effort. That's almost guaranteed to unbalance you and in this case it did.
A horse that 'jumps out of its stride' - in other words, the actual leap is simply an accelerated and enlarged cantering stride rather than a mad rush, an exaggerated effort or a "pop" from a standstill - is really a wonderful horse to have. You can jump them all day and never be disarranged (one of the reasons I love my mare. A baby could jump her, just point her at the fence.)
And, btw, I stand corrected. It's a mare. A VERY naughty mare.
I figured. Probably kin to mine somewhere down the line:')
We used to have a little red roan Appy at a barn where I rode years ago . . . her name was "R.T." . . . it stood for Rotten Thing. She was just this sort of tail-wringing fit-pitcher, only UGLY (two wall eyes, a jug head and ratty little tail - the old type of App). She really could jump though. I don't like to beat horses, but I had to whomp the poo out of her a couple of times, and after that she was very good.
and the rock bed on the west side of the house...
There's been a mole or something rooting around in the back left corner and the pansies back there have just about croaked. The pine trees that the property owner next to us planted a couple of years ago are really coming on up. They're about 3 or 4 feet tall now and it won't be too long before they start shading that side of the house. Hopefully I won't still be living there by the time that happens.
Wow! Bud's a good looking fellow! I'm glad you're getting back into riding again. Like you say, you'll be sore for a while, but it'll be worth it. Heck, I get sore if I miss even one week. He may be big and broad, but I'll bet he'll slim down nicely if you start riding him more often.
Mmmmm.... Shade :~)
Little bit of snow here this morning...
Ordinarily I like shade, but I've had such a nice little sun garden out there that I'll kinda hate to see it go, plus the view of an old abandoned farm house across that 100 acres was kinda interesting. But such is life when you don't own the property next to your house. It could've been worse. He could've put 4 1000 foot chicken houses out there or built a subdivision. So I'll take nice quite pine trees over that any day.
Bummer about the snow. It's gonna be 70-something and sunny here today. Mmmmmm, Springtime!
Ahh, but as you get older you do not bounce as well! More like a sack of potatoes hitting the ground.
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