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Question about riding...?

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my family and i have two horses. normally my mom and i ride together around our property, because our horses do not like to go out by themselves. what are some training things i can do with my mare so that i can start riding her by myself. i'm itching to ride, but my mom was just diagnosed with osteoarthritis in her knee and she won't be able to ride for awhile. sorry this is long and probably doesn't make sense!

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  1. i think the best thing for you to do is to get to know your horse really well. maybe know her habits or treats that she likes to help her trust you to take her out by herself...or just try and walk her around instead of riding. it may sound boring but it might help and you still get to spend time with your horse.

    i hope your mom feels better!


  2. well..if your a good rider with good balance..then perhaps you could ride by yourself with a very firm hand. do not let her get away with anything bad. i agree with the other person about seperating them for a while at a time. but if you dont think you could handle riding her alone simply because she might act up then you might just want to find a friend to ride with you. i hope your mom feels better soon. :]

  3. my mare was excatctly the same! what i found worked for me was taking her for 'walks',  just short ones to beguin with then gradually increase them. make sure the other horse is in the stable for when your horse comes home so he wont think hes missing out on anything interesting in the field!

    if theres a field near yours but out of sight from the other horse then ride your horse in there for about 10 mins then bring him back to his friend. do this for a few weeks then gradually take him out on shorter ride but somewhere else. and eventually increase the length of the ride. keep the rides interesting with lots of cantering etc (when you feel ready too)

    your horse may want to turn around a run home but get angry with him and tell him that ur the leader and u say where to go. if he does turn 'pull' him around the SAME way he went around. eg if he spun around to the right 'pull' with you left rein and use your leg (otherwise he will think he can get his own way). once you got him facing the right way give him a kick and tell him to walk on. once he does tell him hes being good! he may try to take off aswell but pull with one rein and let the other rein become loose- they cant gallop off if they cant see where they are going and so they stop. if he 'grabs' hold of the bit and puts his head down so you cant pull him up then give him a BIG boot in the belly (that is gunna sound mad!) but they are surpised by the 'spur' on and so they raise their head and so you can pull him up!

    i also found that my horse spooked at lots of things she wouldnt normally because she was by herself! dont let your horse take advantage of you, if he spooks at something make him go right up to it before you move on but dont get all paniky about it as your horse will pick it up and act to it!

    i hope this helps and sorry for my ranting! good luck and keep going at it! its nice riding with someone but when you gallop with just you and your horse it feels like your one... its truely AMAZING! keep going and dont let him take advantage of you! i hope your mum gets better soon.

    p.s im not saying that what other people have suggested is wrong (about the splitting them up) but horses are herd animals and they need to socialise. so splitting them up will just agitate your horse and so he will be more highly strung or it will have the complete opposite and make him depressed which may lead him to eat less and loose condition. so i would keep them together and bring them in together aswell, so that they are happy and they will hopefully soon realise that you too can be just as good as a horse! lol

    pps spend lots and lots of time with your horse in the field- even if its just reading a book or sleeping as he will beguin to trust you and accept you as an 'equal'

    sorry about ranting again! good luck!

  4. ride out away from the other horse alittle bit then come back then alittle more he will learn your not takeing him away for good it will take some time. good luck.

  5. They are herd bound so I would suggest (if they are not already) to separate them for a while. If they are in the same pasture put one of them in the barn or in another pasture so that they are apart from each other. This is what we do with our horses that get attached to each other and it seems to work. Other than that I am not sure what else you can do. Hopefully others will post more ideas.

    I would also like to comment the person that said separating your horse can lead to bigger issues such as acting up and depression. I have owned horses for about 12 years now and currently own 10 of them. I separate all my horses for a certain amount of time and also rotate them around in different pastures, paddocks, and stalls. They are usually by themselves but can communicate with others through the fence. I have never had issues with loneliness, depression, or defiantly not loss of appetite. I have noticed just the opposite. They seem to react and behave better than they would if they are always together. But of course each horses is different. I just wanted to let you know my horses have never experienced those issues.

  6. Start by taking you horse on short rides by herself.  She will want to panic and run back just make sure you have control.  Once she is moving out calmly then you can turn her around and come home.  She will soon learn that the world doesn't come to an end if she goes out by herself and her friend will be waiting when you get back.  If at all possible put the horse that is staying home in the barn where she can't see him as you leave.

  7. ride her away from the other horse, praise and feed her when she's good.

    don't punish her when she does get seperation issues, it's not really going to help by punishing. when you are around the other horse, work her, and when you are far away, let her chill out. she'll learn that being ridden by the other horse means work, while staying away will be relaxing and calm and pleasent.

  8. Start by taking your horse alone for short walks on the trail. This will get her used to being on the trail alone without you risking getting bucked off or something. If you make the walks short at first, she will get used to the idea that she will go out by herself and come back safely.

    Also spend some time doing groundwork so you become the leader of your horse. That way your horse will trust you as her leader and not be afraid to go out alone. Maybe right now she sees the other horse as her leader. Too many people are "itching" to get out and ride right away. I often hear people criticize Parelli as having too much groundwork but on the other hand lots of people want their horses to be like dirt bikes and just "get on and ride". But a horse is a complicated animal with a mind of her own, so an investment in groundwork is essential.

    David

    http://gentlenaturalhorseman.blogspot.co...

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