Horse problems!?

Question

I ride a 15 year old QH with a lot of spunk and mind of his own my instructor says I'm really good but i cant get him to trot with out artificial aids. and it also takes for ever to stop him. any ideas?

Answer 1

Quarter horses are hard headed and bred to run so trying to slow them to a trot is difficult. Keep at it and let him know who is in control, he will come around albeit reluctantly.

Answer 2

you just have to keep working your horse and practice with it.

Answer 3

I've Ridden lots of horses like that, that dont want to go...You must use a lot of leg..(i ride english and have been for 10-12 years)  Squeeze so hard with your legs while making the clucking sound.  Sometimes though, their are some horses that are so lazy that you must use  a crop.  Also, with a horse that doesnt like to stop-if it is from a canter or trot, just when you want to stop use all of your aids and focus...Pull back on the rein and just try to sit DOWN as hard as you can...like try to put all your weight into it. its kind of hard to explain..but im trying to do a good job.  

That stuff is really important too..especially if you want to show him..because when they say all trot..they expect it immediately..the same goes for stopping.

Answer 4

im not an expert with horses

but make sure that you have saddled your horse up correctly so that its not in pain

secondly - make sure your horse knows whos boss -- be sharp and if you want the horse to stop then make it stop pull of the reins sarply

sorry i cant help with trotting

Answer 5

Try the passenger exercise. This will get a horse going in the gait you want them in and make them stay there until you stop them. What you do is go to an enclosed pen like an arena or pasture and start at the walk. Walk him out WITHOUT TOUCHING THE REINS. This means no steering! Just hang onto them down at the withers. Let him walk wherever he may want to go as LONG AS HE'S WALKING. The second he goes into a faster gait than a walk, pull his head around to one side (don't wrench his face and make sure to drop the other rein so they can do this) hold the rein at your belt loops until he gives then release immediately. This is the one-rein stop. He needs A LOT of this if he isn't stopping for you! Whenever you're stopped, do some flexing side to side like I just explained. Just make sure to release QUICKLY or your horse will get harder in the face.

So do this at the walk, trot and canter with all the same rules applying. This will teach him that when you put him into a gait (i.e. a trot) that you want him to stay in that until you stop him (one-rein stop him). You will see your horse responding to you much more and really listening to what you're telling him. Good luck and hope that helps!

Answer 6

It's awful difficult for a horse to acquire and maintain a specific gait if he hasn't developed the muscles for it...kind of like a catch 22, right?  How do they get the muscles in the first place....If you have access to a round pen or smaller enclosure than an arena, I would try to go back to the basics, do some ground driving, verbal commands and back them up with a lunge whip, it won't take long, just be consistent with your verbal commands and when they are not responded to the first time, enforce them the second time around with our lunge whip.  Get your horse where he will go from a walk or a standstill, right into a trot, with just verbal commands and a little leg (still in the round pen)...teach the walk from a trot...WHOA is a wonderful word, use it when you want your horse to stop, but don't rag on his mouth, just sit down deep in the saddle, pick up on your reins and say WHOA...if he doesn't stop immediately, turn him into the fence and say WHOA...he will get the message quickly, plus, when you get him to stopping, back him once in a while so that he knows that he has to come to a full stop when you say WHOA.  Be sure and work him equally both ways, remember, you have to train both sides of his brain...you may also learn to say EASY kind of slow and quiet just before you say whoa, just to let him know that you are preparing to ask him for a transition...be consistent, it works, don't give up.

Answer 7

I have a QH lesson horse like that!  ROFLOL  I love him dearly, he sorts the wannabes from the riders.

I normally use him for my western riders and he's sneaky...  The first time I put him into a lope to show the kids how it was done, the little sneaker crow hopped on me just to show me he could.  I think I caught him off guard when I stopped him, spanked his little self (Over and undered him with my 8' reins.) and asked for a lope again.  The kids were laughing!

After our little "session" though, I climb on board and he's a real gentleman. (That was several years ago and he remembers.).  

Not sure which style you're riding either English or Western but sounds like English when you say trot instead of jog, so this is what I would do.  See if your trainer will let you change bits and probably go with a kimberwick (Jointed is BEST)  with a curb chain, then without spurs, use a longer dressage crop and ask for a trot.  When he doesn't respond, over and under the little creep!  When he doesn't stop, use the kimberwick and ask HARDER, he'll stop.

Then without using the crop, but holding it, ask for the trot again (He'll trot for you.).  Then ask him for a halt.

Answer 8

First, make sure that your leg is in the proper position, just behind the girth. Pick up a teeny bit of contact, but don't pull back. Ask first with a little squeeze, nudge, then a thump, while keeping your seat in the saddle. Don't do a deathgrip on his sides, as this will just annoy him. Once you get the trot, keep a light contact with his mouth, and, to ask for a halt or walk, sit deep, exhale, and squeeze your fingers on the reins. If he doesn;t respond, lift your hands a bit and squeeze the reins more persistently until he slows down. Be sure to keep him at a marching walk too, he might not have the muscle to do such immediate transitions. Good luck with him!

Answer 9

put a pair of spurs on and put him in a rubber pelham that way you have the go and the brakes

Answer 10

ok this is going to sound SO stupid but it does work.. ok when asking to trot start posting and then ask and keep posting no matter if he is troting or not.. once he starts trotting then check diagnol and keep going as far as transition down slow your posting down so your going 1,2,1,2,1,2, so now you want to go 1......2....1.....2.......1 walk it helps if you grab your pommel and when your asking him to walk turn your hips sideways.. so when he does slow down your not strait  because i have learned most horses lock up and won't stop.. As far as your reigns dont loosen them or tighten then if you have to do an emergancy stop take both reigns in one hand and create your other hand as a loop and pull strait up.. and if all else fails circle, circle, circle make the cricle smaller then the last until he cant trot them. Make sudden turns of direction. Do alot of walk, halt transitions.. sounds like your horse isn't paying attention to you.. I have yet to figure the trot transition with my mare but try picking up your knees as your asking to trot but only pick them up as fast as you want him to trot.. the last year has been lessons like this.. It will take you a while but it works...

Answer 11

keep working with the stop and getting him to go think of this would you father have a horse that is hard to get going and when he is hestops or a horse that is hard to get going and will neaver stop

Answer 12

Try a diffrent bit. You may need more control. Once you have that you should be able to hold him at a trot.

Answer 13

What artificial aids do you need?  Spurs and a crop or something else?  Some horses (especially show horses) are spur trained and it's pretty much impossible to fix this problem.  That drives me nuts - I want a horse I can hop on and go if needed.  I ride with spurs at shows so that I can have absolute precise control - but I ride during the week with out them.

The horses that I have had that are similar to what you're saying I try to "fix."  I teach them to go using my seat.  They eventually learn to ride off of my seat and I can wean them off the spurs/crop.

You can also teach them to do better by lunging them.  Click to them or say "trot trot" and if he doesn't listen, tap his rump with the lunge whip.  The point is to teach him to go by the clicking or words and teach him to do it before you have to use the crop.  Same thing with "whoa."  Say the word - and if he doesn't stop immediately give a yank on the lead (and have a chain over his nose).  The idea is to get him to do it to your voice before you have to use the harsher aids and eventually he'll learn that it's more pleasant for him to listen the first time.

As for stopping - I would move up to a harsher bit for a while and then really work on teaching him to stop to seat.  After he masters stopping to your seat - then go back to your old bit.

Make sure you're riding with steady hands.  If you're constantly bumping the horse in the mouth when asking him to trot - that could be a big cause of your problems.  If you bump him in them mouth when you ask him to go - then you've taught him to ignore the bumping of the mouth - which would be compounding your stopping problems.

If you don't have steady hands or don't know how to ride with your seat think about getting a couple of lessons geared just toward that.  Talk to your instructor - they're the most qualified to help you as it is difficult to diagnose the problem from on here without seeing the problem.

Best wishes!

Answer 14

strong aids, steady resolve.. lots of patience  and Trot, walk,trot,canter,trot,walk, trot, halt,trot,walk, .... over and over and over till the pair of you work it out.  Changing bits and getting more harsh on a 15 year old isnt likely the answer.

Also there is Nothing wrong with using a crop on a stuborn horse.  Even dressage riders carry and use them... hunters do.. seen them on pleasure horses too..  I do recomend the long dressage type whip for horses that are dead sided.  It lets you apply the aid right behind your leg, and gets them listening.

Nothing Beats plain old time and schooling though ... hard fact of life in a world that wants quick fixes and to have it all now.

Answer 15

more information is needed to answer this question properly.

what bit are you using

what is the discipline

what aids are you using

is he a school horse or your own

the horses height

your height

how long have you been riding this particular horse.

indoor arena or outdoor arena

the reason you put all those things in your question is because you will get answers for english riding when you actually ride western so it will clear up any confusion the answerers have and you will get more precice answers.