Ok for all you horse people out there help!?!?

Question

so my horse is 3 years old cremello mare and she is so clumsly and lazy. sometimes when i use spurs she goes but idk i don't like spurs because then she becomes desensitive if you no what i mean. shes been clumsy since we got her at 6 months old. she won't pick up her right lead and something is wrong with her shoulder and we can't figure out what. shes very nice and sweet shes just not the brightest. we've had all sorts of meds and vets and chriopractic and farrier help and they can't find anything. they just say it's genes cuz shes a mustang. but i think it's something else. i work with her everyday and lunge her on her right lead but when i'm on her she won't pick it up. i hope some of these makes sense and someone can give me advice of what to do! thanks!

Answer 1

well if yo are willing to spend a lot of money nd it most likely will be A LOT of money look oon-linefor a sspecialistfrom and really good school i am talking about someone who has dedicated like their iin-tirelife to this kind of studies.  

Answer 2

These are some exercises my sister and i do to our horses before and after we ride try picking up her front hooves like your going to pick them for rocks or what not then have someone you truly trust lunge her as you lay across the saddle ( not sitting in it ) then gradually as they are still lungeing her slip over the saddle to a sitting postion this should get her to start using her right lead more but you have to go at it from the right lead or it may not work. Then when you are lungeing her try putting the saddle on her and putting maybe a hay bale on it and going at it from that way it should help and i hope that it does the best of luck to you  

Answer 3

Try doing in hand bending exercises with her.  

Answer 4

Well vets and farriers don't know everything you said she is clumsy lay down some ground poles trot her over them get her to pick her feet up. then for the right lead thing get on her and have someone hold the lunge line canter her and have the person lunging ask for the lead the give her your cue which should be lift up your inside hand and pull back lightly while at the same time use your iside leg and put pressure there and slide your outside leg back and put pressure. but do all this at the same time do your cue after she is cantering on the correct lead then trot then use your cue to ask again just keep trying this seems like a hard horse but you can also use spurs to emphasize your canter que. but use the canter que in both directions.

Answer 5

for the right lead problem, i agree with amy s. what might help with her clumsyness is lunging and/or riding her over poles. poles help because they make her think of where she's putting her feet and helps with balance and coordination. poles also help develop better back/leg muscles. if you dont have any poles and dont want to spend a bunch of $$ on fancy ones you can just got get some pipe (about a 6" diameter)  at a hardware store-its what i use...good job at working with her every day! keep it up!  i wish you the best of luck!

Answer 6

Could you by chance post a link to a video of you riding her and asking for a right lead?  Also, does she pick up the left lead with you on her?  I think I know what is going on, but would like to see a video to confirm it before I make a recommendation of how to fix this problem.  You can e-mail me at [e-mail] if you would like to discuss this any further.

Answer 7

maybe she was born like that. if not work with her and do excersises.

Answer 8

try rubbing her legs and picking them up. make a maze of poles on the ground and make her do some turns over them keep doing this for a week or 2 you should see her improving if it takes more time then go with it.

Answer 9

Try trot poles she will learn to pick her feet up when going through them and get a better pace. Trot poles would really help her she would have to focus on you while watching where her feet are going.

Also try riding on uneven ground (like a hill or pasture or trail). She may trip a lot but eventually she will figure out how to carry herself and you in balance but still focusing on her feet and where she is going.

As for your lead problem it something is wrong with her shoulder it would make it more difficult for her to lift that side up into the canter. Do a lot at the trot to get her shoulder to come up. If her shoulder is permanently damaged you may never get an easy right lead, she may allways have problem.

Answer 10

3 years old is awfully young to expect a lot out of - she's got a lot of physical and mental growing to do, like a good 5 more years until she's to be considered mature.  any physical ailment has chances of being corrected when a horse is that young.

However, you say she picks up the lead when you lunge her which tells me she's not in pain or lacks the ability to do so physically.  So I suspect it's more a matter of teaching her to take it.  Each horse is either left or right "handed" - they'll pick up one lead or the other MUCH better than the one they don't.  Additionally, consider your riding style - is there any reason about the way you ride that might be hindering her ability to take that lead?  Do you lean a little heavy on the right that might be making it hard for her to pick it up?

When asking for a proper lead, you must remove weight on the side of the lead you wish to take.  I've heard people say something that makes sense to me "open the door" - lean more into the left stirrup to take a right lead and "open" your right leg a little to prompt the horse to move in that direction.  Additionally, horses pick up leads properly with the hind legs, not the fore, so you must concentrate on getting the hind feet to pick up the right lead and the front will naturally follow.

You must ensure you have trainer her properly to move away from pressure.  I've found that teaching my horses leg cues and side passes before attempting to control leads helps them learn to shift their weight better.

That's about all I can do with words here in this forum.  I have seen a number of books and videos and segments on RFD TV to know there's help for you out there in the form of books and video.  Look for some basics like the ones Western Horseman offers - they're inexpensive, usually less than $20 - and cover all sorts of subjects plus they are easy reads.  Look for colt starting by Mike Kevil, Ranch Horsemanship by Curt Pate, even perhaps the barrel racing book by Charmayne James might help you.  Chris Cox has a new one too that I haven't been able to complete yet called "Ride the Journey" that's all about natural horsemanship and likely broaches the subject of lead controls.

Also check out these folks websites to find information - the subject of lead changes is often one that people encounter difficulty with because they don't always understand the physical "mechanics" of how leads work.  There's folks like Pat Parelli that give good talks on this subject - Ray Hunt's website has a Q & A area that might help you too.

Keep it simple and don't press your little mare too far as she's young, you don't want to discourage her from giving you all the try she's got.

Good luck!

Answer 11

give her a lot of encourage ment and just keep doing what your doing. getting someone to lunge her while you ride her might help and reward her a lot and maybe she will get the idea. sometimes it takes a while for the horse to understand and get faster. be firm and reward her. i hope this helps

Answer 12

Try having someone lunge her while you ride her. First they give her the cue for the right lead, then you do. If she will pick up the right lead, she will learn to associate your cue with picking up the lead. Good luck :)

Answer 13

This horse may be good at heart but I dont think she'll be winning any ribbons anytime soon. I personally wouldn't go through all this trouble just to make a next to useless mare a little better.

You don't have to sell her or anything, but i suggest to think of her more as a big pet or perhaps she could be a stable buddy for a lonely horse.

Maybe a beginners pony?