What are some games I could play with my horse during the winter when we r stuck in an arena? Mounted and off?

Question

I'd like games that could be played by just us 2 or multiple people and horses. Also, how i'd teach him to play. He's mischievous and is a quick learner so he won't have to hard of a time learning. Plus, he gets bored with riding arena work so I just want to keep him interested. Thanks in advance.

Answer 1

i love these questions. can am gonna do a ton of these with my horse. and since you have all the barrels/cones/jump stuff. ppl can really get creative.

well if you show your horse, you cant goof off during show season, so winter is the best time for bareback riding! my fav. way to ride.

you can do most of these games bareback...

down and back

make obstacle course with jumping, barrels, etc.

egg and spoon (more fun with friends)

teach yourself to mount a bunch of cool ways bareback

paint your horse

if you have other ppl at your barn, put on a mini show

do some trust games if you have the arena to yourself. play chase

there are tons of games, search "games on horseback" in yahoo answers

Answer 2

Here's some stuff I"m going to try to get my horse accustomed to quick movements - I read about a team of Texas Policemen who use these games to get their horses ready to do crowd control:

1.  Exercise ball soccer.  Start out just you and the horse pushing the ball around.  When the horse follows it with his nose on a lead line, praise him - show him through release and reward what you expect him to do.  Work up to his pushing it about with his front feet.  Wrok on this from the ground until he's very comfortable with it, then get on and ask him to move the ball about the arena.  Later, having other friends teach their horses the same thing and you can play the game with another horse and rider.

2.  Broom polo - pretty much the same process using a broom to hit a ball around - like those cheap KMart colored balls about the size of a basketball.  Work from the ground again so he's comfortable with the broom moving about and the ball.  Get him so he'll go after the ball for you.  Then work around him all over swinging the broom until he stands as if bored by it.  then get on, practice swinging the brooom to get him used to it, then actually hit the ball with it - same thing, friends learning can become a game between two teams.

3.  Nerf football is about he same thing - people throw the ball around the horse while on the ground and graduate to tossing it via horseback.

4.  There's other nerf games you can play with the horse so the objects won't hurt.

You must be careful and do these things though without making the horse become afraid if he's not afraid now.

Maybe before these you wish to do something more basic - like getting the horse to put either front or hind feet in a hula hoop laying on the ground - practice placing all 4 of the horses, feet exactly where you want them - this could be an endless game used all winter until you're a pro.  The horse will not get bored as long as you are:

1.  Asking in a manner he can understand

2.  Asking using small expectations - mvoing hind quarters toward the hoop is the first step, then reward.

3.  Rewarding immeidately at the slightest try and not asking for more until he's got the last step down.

4.  Ending each session on a good note- never ask him to do the next level and quit in the middle without success - if you're having a rough time getting what you want, go back to the last step that was successful, perform it, praise, reward and quit.  A horse will think about what he's done that day over night and remember it the next session.

5.  when he's got it down, don't repeat it over and over and over and over - that's boring, challenge him with the next thing that's different.

Have fun, good luck!

Answer 3

In the winter when there was no one else around, I would go in the indoor arena and hide carrot bits all over the place, creating a "trail of crumbs" with carrots. After he'd cooled out, I would take my pony in the indoor arena, close the doors and let him loose. He loved poking around and finding what I'd hidden. But, being a pony, he became good quite quickly, so I began to hide them randomly, like an easter egg hunt - on top of jumps, on the mounting block steps, all over the place. Just an idea.

I also taught my pony to work without a bridle (there's not a lot to do on Sunday afternoons in the Midwest in the dead of winter). At first people thought I was nuts, but the communication we created proved invaluable. This only works with some types of horses, of course, but I had a pony with an absolutely golden temperament. We showed hunters on the A circuit and it really helped, particularly in Equitation and Medal classes.

Answer 4

A basic one is to put about 5 -6 cones a couple of metres apart and do like a slalom, as you get used to this, you become faster and it improves your horses ability to turn on their hind-quarters. you could put flags in the cones and do the flag race, or a mug race etc...my best advice is for you to join a local games team, aswell as getting advice from instructors, you can compete at shows..(its real fun !)

here are some more details -http://www.games.ponyclub.org/bending.ht...

Answer 5

Join up? Idk. You could take up dressage, jumping, or barrels. I always ride in the arena except when I go trail riding every now and then.

Answer 6

You can teach him to go around barrels, i have friends that use jump standards as barrels and barrel race in english tack. You can set him through a course of cones and have him chase you.

Answer 7

Go to pat parellis website or something and they should have something that u could do with him but maybe u could keep testing him and see how i he can go in the jumps...or line up the cones and weave him through them or something

Answer 8

All these answers talk as if it is summer when you are doing these. Take it easy unless your ring is cleared.

I know my friend's horse enjoys pushing a ball and loves it when you kick it to him. You could teach him that...just let him loose in the ring and kick a ball be careful though!

bareback with a halter and lead rope is a lot of fun! It helps you balance as well! Good luck!

Answer 9

barrels poles and just run aroud with him. then they have this ball that ur horse can chace. those things r pretty fun.