# silly behavior or being naughty?



## Nonyabusiness (7 April 2013)

Ive had my lovely chestnut mare (yes ive said the two words together) Since october last year. Shes sweet natured and easy to ride in company and alone in a school/arena environment. Shes an irish sports horse 16.2hh 13 yrs now. The major issue i have and sometimes i do get results and get over it but hacking alone she stops and backs up and backs up sometimes she will back up into trees near ditches. She turns and goes back the way she came. i can stop her and can encourage her to walk forward but i get a few steps and then back up back up again (lovely rein back but...) recently ive been able to get her to move and managed an hour out alone ive carried a small crop as an aid and haven't used it heavy in way. but its very disheartening when she just plants her feet throws her head up and down vigorously and continually, turns and walks on her toes all the way back. At no time will she attempt to bomb home and i dont feel unsafe on her at all. But i need to know is she anxious or just plain silly. the head throwing still happens in company but not in the way it is when shes on one.... she doesnt always like to take the lead although she has started to with encouragement. Ive also started to use moody mare supplement in her feed, shes on slow release sports mix as we do quite hard work when out with hifi and veg such as carrots apples ect.... 

i really want to be able to hack her out alone. advice would be great


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## Cortez (7 April 2013)

You need to learn to make your leg aids effective; to get your horse really forward and off your leg. And you need to learn how to use your crop properly too, so that it reinforces your aids, tells your horse you won't take any nonsense, but doesn't scare her or provoke a fight. You need a good instructor, asap.


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## Pearlsasinger (7 April 2013)

I doubt very much that your horse is in any more than medium work, hard work is considered to be eventing/hunting regularly, so she could easily be getting more hard food than she needs.  I would investigate the head-nodding - is the bit comfortable for her mouth conformation?  Then take Cortez' advice re-riding.


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## RainbowDash (7 April 2013)

Hi,

Is it only recently you have had a problem with her? Or since Oct?

When you leave the yard what sort of ride is it? I.e. Road, off road?

My friends chestnut mare is a little 'cautious' as is my chestnut boyo and we often swap stories of silly spooks and refusal to go foward.  Chiefly a change in the seasons and new smells. Logs they've passed 300 times before are spook-worthy with a new flower near it. Sorry I digress.

Is there any pattern to her refusal to go forward? Even something as simple as a new pile of soil or plant may have a bearing.

Xx


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## mandwhy (8 April 2013)

Only you can tell if she is anxious or not, but I expect she is feeling a bit fizzy as it sounds like she is getting a lot of energy/sugar. As Pearlasinger says, hard work is really hard, not normally hacking. That plus carrots and apples equals even more sugar, so maybe do a little googling to see what might be more suitable. You could also try adding magnesium if she is spooky. I say this as my mare is more nappy when spooky and vice versa, as it all comes down to her lack of confidence. It's something you have to build on and take the authority to say 'you are being silly, now move'. When my mare backs up I tend to turn her roughly in the direction I want to go, lateral work is handy for that, it can actually be less frustrating then when she plants her feet as she generally gives up quicker, but never ideal in a road situation, thankfully she's not too bad then.


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## Tammytoo (8 April 2013)

Not all horses like being ridden out alone - you will have to work on getting her to trust you, so make sure that you don't resort to bullying or hitting her to get her going and don't forget to give her plenty of praise the minute she gets brave and goes forward.  It takes a long time to build trust, but only seconds to lose it.

I would be a bit concerned about the head tossing/nodding - this is usually stress behavior and a sign that she is trying to tell you something.  Have you had her teeth done recently if not it may be worth getting them checked, as well as back, saddle fit etc.

I would also cut out the slow release feed unless you really are doing hard work like regular hunting or eventing.  I would just feed the hi-fi and a feed balancer.  Apples and carrots are high in sugar, so not ideal.  Low sugar, high fibre is the way to go.  

My tb is just fed hay and Winnergy Balancer and she keeps her weight on just fine and has plenty of energy to hack out anfd school 6 times a week.


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## JulesRules (10 April 2013)

Tammytoo said:



			Not all horses like being ridden out alone - you will have to work on getting her to trust you, so make sure that you don't resort to bullying or hitting her to get her going and don't forget to give her plenty of praise the minute she gets brave and goes forward.  It takes a long time to build trust, but only seconds to lose it.
		
Click to expand...

^ This. The problems I had with my girl hacking out alone when I first had her. I could not even walk her up the track off the yard as she would just back up into  barbed wire, electric fences, ditches etc

The problem with my girl was that she was very green, was in a new place and had a new owner and had not yet had time to build up trust.

My girl does still not like hacking alone, ( on her toes the whole time) but at least now we can do it. It just took time and her learning to trust me.

There is another person on here with a similar problem and some people have suggested walking the horse out and then riding back to help you both gain confidence, and getting on a bit sooner each time. 

I would also suggest some groundwork to build your relationship. 

Good luck


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