Sometimes horses decide not to listen. That's ok, they're probably bored. Or maybe they just think they know what you're about and they don't wanna.
What to do?
Confuse em.
Do something weird. Mix it up. Surprise them.
On Saturday, I decided I just really didn't want to lunge Opa. He probably didn't need an official lunge session, and also they are probably soooo boring anyway. So I decided to just push him around the paddock a bit before taking him in. This definitely confused him, he kept giving me the side eye. And I sort of wanted to see how willing he'd be to come back to me. I discovered we could improve our bond a bit more... At first he was like, "don't chase me, I'll come in" and stood there waiting for me put his halter on even while I clucked at him and swung the lead rope. But, after running around a bit and giving him some opportunities to come to me, he still didn't. So that might be something to try to work towards.
Anyway, then I groomed him, tacked up, and got on. And then I thought, what would happen if I just gave him his head while trotting? He's been a little reluctant to go forward and tossing his head a bit, and although I have very soft hands, maybe I'm relying too much on the contact, pitching forward and using it as a balance point. So, I nudged him into a big trot and kept my reins very long, only giving him a little guidance on where his nose was or slowing an outside shoulder here and there. And he was soooo confused. But we got some big giant trots and some pretty consistent cantering and it gave me some confidence in my seat. We also did some leg yielding exercises to improve his responsiveness. Then, we walked out of the arena and did two loops on the drive around the barn, which was like 10 minutes of walking. Since he was already listening to me thanks to the variety of things we had done, there was only one tiny spook near the hay trailers and we walked on a loose rein the whole time.
It was a good riding day.
So if you're feeling bored, or suspect your horse is getting bored, switch it up! Do something weird and surprise them, they'll usually respond by listening better :)
What to do?
Confuse em.
Do something weird. Mix it up. Surprise them.
On Saturday, I decided I just really didn't want to lunge Opa. He probably didn't need an official lunge session, and also they are probably soooo boring anyway. So I decided to just push him around the paddock a bit before taking him in. This definitely confused him, he kept giving me the side eye. And I sort of wanted to see how willing he'd be to come back to me. I discovered we could improve our bond a bit more... At first he was like, "don't chase me, I'll come in" and stood there waiting for me put his halter on even while I clucked at him and swung the lead rope. But, after running around a bit and giving him some opportunities to come to me, he still didn't. So that might be something to try to work towards.
Anyway, then I groomed him, tacked up, and got on. And then I thought, what would happen if I just gave him his head while trotting? He's been a little reluctant to go forward and tossing his head a bit, and although I have very soft hands, maybe I'm relying too much on the contact, pitching forward and using it as a balance point. So, I nudged him into a big trot and kept my reins very long, only giving him a little guidance on where his nose was or slowing an outside shoulder here and there. And he was soooo confused. But we got some big giant trots and some pretty consistent cantering and it gave me some confidence in my seat. We also did some leg yielding exercises to improve his responsiveness. Then, we walked out of the arena and did two loops on the drive around the barn, which was like 10 minutes of walking. Since he was already listening to me thanks to the variety of things we had done, there was only one tiny spook near the hay trailers and we walked on a loose rein the whole time.
It was a good riding day.
So if you're feeling bored, or suspect your horse is getting bored, switch it up! Do something weird and surprise them, they'll usually respond by listening better :)
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