Do You Ride Horses? V.4

[wibeke]

Ok thanks! The horse is 6, we jump her around 3 lessons a week. Around 20-30 mins of jumping lessons and the rest is on flat and trail/dressage.We lunge her a few mins before riding and she has shoes. We only jump in the outdoor arena.

Is there any chance you could get a video of her? It would help a lot to know exactly what happens when she jumps.
It sounds to me like she just needs to be taught to be more balanced and land correctly. How high does she usually jump? I'd take her back to doing a lot of smaller jumps (cross rails, etc.) and make sure she can jump and land those perfectly before jumping any higher. You can also set up jumps one or two strides apart to make her really think about jumping correctly and balancing herself.
If she's almost falling over after every jump, there's something wrong with either the horse (since she's apparently sound, that's doubtful) or a hole in her training somewhere that needs to be addressed. Jumping high is fun, but if she's that off balance then it's incredibly dangerous for both her and anyone who rides her to continue jumping her.
It could also be the rider throwing her off balance. If you don't ride correctly over a jump, it can really throw off a horse and make them have to compensate for their rider's poor balance. Which is another reason why a video is so important, it could show that the rider is the one that needs work, not the horse.

[YeehawYall]

I will for sure post later today because I will go ride in 2 and a half hours lol if anyone wants to message me for just horse chat, I'm bored out of my mind and I love to talk! haha X)

[puppkins]

I love horses <3

[.Scarlet.]

@Amy Pond- omg! Reggie is Soooo cute! I hope he turns out being that perfect all around horse for you! He has the cutest face too!

@Hime-I remember that picture! I've still yet to see a fluffier pony.

Speaking of ponies... I rode one today. He's about 14.1/14.2 hands and he's an Arab cross. All I have heard was good things about him and my instructor wanted me to ride him. Mind you, I am about 5 foot 11, but in no way too heavy for him. Plus, I've ridden short stirrups many of times. And this pony pulled me off, not once, but twice! We had a good lesson, just so frustrating. I'm usually good at sitting things, but I haven't ridden a pony in probably at least 2 years! The first time he got me off while we were cantering. Completely random and I just hit the dirt. Next time, right after I took a jump, my instructor kissed a bit and he bucked, then ducked and I was in the dirt again. I think my height in this situation was a huge disadvantage. He isn't in any way stocky, so he just wiggled out from beneath me. It was just funny because she has gone on and on about how great this pony is and I hit the dirt! But other than that, we worked on flying leads(which I can't remember the last time I rode a horse with those) and we did a few courses. All ended pretty well.

But help me pony/shorter horse people:
I am great with sitting the long strides canters but I feel like I can't figure out how to get the rhythm of it and sit it nicel . I think I did better today than I ever have, but still. Help! Am I just not meant for these smaller creatures or is there a secret that I just don't know about?

[Nocte Luna]

@ Scarlet <3 Usually when I try and sit shorter strides, my butt does come out of the saddle a little bit just because it is such a short stride, and it feels a little bit like a trot because of the way you get bounced out of the saddle, but just do everything you'd do for a canter on a horse: heels down, sit deep and tall, etc. Any bouncing that occurs is probably because of the pony stride and how fast and quick it is.

@ My riding So we had the last lesson of 2014 Saturday! I got some good video for my Spanish project, and Gizmo (new horse, I call him superdressagehorse because he acts like a dressage horse) got a little cranky and kicked out at another horse. Everyone was okay, though. He's getting pretty good at jumping, though towards the end of lessons he gets more wiggly and moody. He's got a pretty well set body clock for lesson times, so it's hard to keep his focus at the end of lessons.

My instructor is kind enough to let us come next Saturday to help groom the horses so they get clean, even on their days off. I'm excited because I think she's going to let us ride her horses after we help out, which is so nice of her.

[kathwren]

after about 4 years of searching, i've found an amazing trainer and a horse to half-lease!
his name is yager and you can see pictures of you click the link in my signature! c:
i signed the paperwork yesterday cx i'm so happy!

[ShortyTheHobbitess]

@Scarlet And here I think my 14 hh mare is the most perfect height.... I honestly couldn't tell you how to sit better in a short horse as I seriously haven't ridden anything over 14.3 in a really long time, heck at the fair I stood next to a 15-some horse & said what a giant!

Seriously nothing new in my horse life, I've been filling the hay-bags & putting them in the barn the last few nights as its been so damp & icky, not to mention that the drylot is a mucky mess because its been above 32F (0C) the past week. I've been dreaming of a white Christmas & it's doubtful that I'll get one at this rate. -.-

I have been on Pinterest though (my secret addiction) I've been drooling & looking at horse-related things, some things kinda make me want English lessons, but seriously the only person I can go to in the area is my trainer but no one rides in the winter & the horse I would be doing it on is Shorty & she doesn't know what she's doing either >.< I even looked at how to teach your horse to jump, obviously I wouldn't do it on my own nor with my mare, but just the thought seems interesting...

Maybe over break I'll share some pictures I've been meaning to for a long time...

[Equine~CrayCray]

Ugh.. I am so stressed, I have three clinics this week and having two tests to study for isnt making things better >.< I have a 15 yr old paint mare named Annie that i use for my western pleasure and gymkanha. Annie is such a sweet thing but she is a bit spooky….

[Tsar]

Hello everyone! I'm still riding Tanka, and he has improved so much! I'm riding him with the saddle more often now, but still riding him bareback on a regular basis. Now that the cold weather has hit, I need some advice. How do you measure a horse for a blanket?

[Mustangs]

Hello everyone! I'm still riding Tanka, and he has improved so much! I'm riding him with the saddle more often now, but still riding him bareback on a regular basis. Now that the cold weather has hit, I need some advice. How do you measure a horse for a blanket?

Here is a Youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_4AZM7F9ug


We measure horses for blankets from the centre of the chest to the centre of the tail,