How to Keep a Very Looky/spooky Horse's Attention in the Show Ring(dressage and Cross Country)?
I have been showing with my 16 year old mare for 3 years now. Being a thoroughbred, she can be wild and very spooky, but usually once we get to a show she’s fine. We haven’t really had any problems until this year. It’s happened at two events now: she warms up beautifully and relaxed. When it’s our turn to go circle the dressage ring, she’s pretty calm until she randomly freaks out about a flower or one of the letter cones. This is when all her concentration goes away, head comes up, eyes go wild, and I no longer have her attention. I know that one way to fix this is getting a bend, but my mare gets very stiff no matter what I do. She only picks one side of the dressage ring to act up by, and this ruins our test.
For cross country, she gets very excited and tends to not listen very well inbetween jumps. For example we will make it over our fence but she’ll see the prelim fence off to the right or left and spook at it(throwing her shoulder and running sideways). This cost me a fall at the last show when we were heading into a table with a larger fence sitting just to the right of our jump. She was going fine up until the point we were about 15 feet out from our jump, she zeroed in on the larger fence and started to run sideways, I carry a crop in my left hand so I tapped her shoulder, it didn’t work. Like I said earlier, she gets very stiff in her neck and with her head and when she doesn’t want to do something, it’s nearly impossible to make her do it. I can tell you that I was sitting up on the approach to the fence and that my trainer(who was watching) said I was doing everything right and that neither she nor I could figure what had gone wrong. But to finish up, we approached the fence where she slammed on the breaks, I lost my balance and slipped off the side of her neck, landing on my feet.
We NEVER have this problem at home unless its when something has been placed on the outside of the ring such as a tarp or something different. She spooks,looks,snorts, and prances. Anyone out there know tips to get my mare’s attention?
I am not a nervous rider when it comes to shows, im very laid back and relaxed, so im pretty sure she’s not getting spooky from my feelings.
She’s has been to over 20 shows each different then the last: dressage,jumpers,eventing
Being that you have had her for a while and didnt previously have this problem, I wouldn’t think its a real spook issue. Sometimes they will spook at weird random things all of sudden, but not usually all the time.
You can test it though, put her in situations like when she does it and see what she does. If she truly is spooking at them, she might have had some kind of bad experience that brought this on. If that is the case…. Do some desensitizing, keep putting her in the situation over and over. Do it for the minimal amount of time you can, that way there is less time for her to spook. If she spooks rite away, just take your time to collect her back up and walk her over to the problem. As soon as she doesn’t react, take her away from the scary thing and praise. Keep doing this till you get no reaction.
You can try 1/2 halting her (sit deep squeeze and check with you hands) to get her to pay attention.
I had a friend with a horse that would be perfect, at home, in the warm up, then as soon as the class started he would act up. She was advised to do different classes, walk into the show ring and go rite back out, do different patterns in the class (circle different, take a different path to line up then usual etc.) They suspects that after years of doing the same thing her horse was getting bored. She did that for a while, went to small shows and lost some classes because of it. But it worked
The more shows you go to the better your horse will get. She will arrive at another show and think "oh great another long day of riding." She will get used to this and she will nt feel the erge to look around. When you approach a fence give her a little tap will the whip to encourage her or a kick with your heels. Hope this helps!
The realistic answer is your going to have to just blow some classes and just work her in the show. Is there some lower level shows that will allow you to do this?
As far as loosing focus, one thing would be have her checked for ulcers. They can be normal one minute and bonkers the next for no reason.
If thats not the case, then stop what you are doing, make her listen to you by asking her to do nauseating intriquite movements, like framing up, turning on the forehand, on the rear, side passing, shoulders in and out, pivots… all the basic things that are boring, but she needs to do them and perfectly before you will release her. If she refuses a jump, start all over again. Make it easier for her to go over the jump than to refuse. Make it easier for her to respond than to go bonkers and give you the bird.
Try to sing to her quietly. It keeps her attention on you.
Maybe school her at home in a neck stretcher, as it makes it difficult for the horse to look out of the ring (and it strengthens their top line to make them rounder). They’re cheap and easy to attach to your tack.