Re: RC: Slowing down canter...help!

["Cora" <bandc@teknett.com>]

Good Advice....Cora
----- Original Message ----- 
From: Rides 2 Far <rides2far@juno.com>
To: <ridecamp@endurance.net>
Sent: Saturday, July 07, 2001 8:18 PM
Subject: RC: RC: Slowing down canter...help!


> >My horse is a mad man > in the
> > ring. He seems perfectly normal at the walk/trot, but when you ask >
> him to> canter, whoosh, he's off.. He just wont slow down. 
> 
> Hey Kelly,
> Your horse sounds like the one I started endurance on.  I'm no great
> trainer when it comes to changing behavior, but I'm pretty good at
> working around it. >g<  The key to my horse was to never canter.  He
> would hold a nice trot for me, but he only ran away and got stupid at a
> canter.  He was an absolute nut for 9 years, but then when I started
> training him really regularly for endurance he *finally* settled down and
> was wonderful (I could even canter)  That was the good news.  He was
> perfectly sane while he was in very regular training (I was young and
> riding him 5 days a week).  The bad news was that when I quit doing
> endurance with him he got stupid again.  
> 
> I do not recommend "running it out of him" to settle him down.  They just
> keep getting stronger and it takes longer every time. It's too exciting
> and somehow seems to just build on itself and make them get worse and
> worse.   I have far more success with boring it out of them.  Just be
> boring.  Don't do anything exciting like racing.  Just stop, start, turn,
> walk, trot up loooong hills, and then do it again.  Go for a picnic. Tie
> him up for an hour or so and go in the house (or at least watch from a
> place where he can't see you).  Stop and let him eat for awhile (took my
> horse forever to chill out enough to eat).  I know it seems like a hyped
> up horse would do well at endurance, but actually those are the ones who
> are way too willing to hurt themselves and will do it with little or no
> encouragement on your part.  There are lots of endurance riders down in
> your area, and the GERA is very big on recruiting.  I am forwarding your
> post to Ann Cofield, the nicest lady in the world who has recruited lots
> of endurance riders in that area.  Maybe she can hook you up with someone
> who can give you some guidance.  Good luck!!!!  (It really is a blast!)
> 
> P.S. Are you anywhere near Dawson Forest?  Where's Gwinnett Co. in
> relation to Atlanta?
> 
> Angie McGhee
> Wildwood, GA (near Chattanooga, TN)
> 
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