At 18:15:44 on 08.05.10, Colex wrote:
Hi guys, my horse has never been brave, bless him, and when I first started jumping him he'd refuse EVERYTHING. I found he preferred more rustic looking jumps and practising them seemed to gain our confidence, now he does jump colourful ones yet still finds them daunting, and we always have a refusal before he jumps them. Once he's refused, he'll jump it, and when he gets into it he jumps really nicely, so i'd love to show him if only we could get rid of the practise refusals! They're quite dirty refusals too, he'll stride boldly up to it then shove the brakes on before trying to jump around it. So if anyone has any tips for me or for him please share! :))

At 13:12:53 on 09.05.10, kibby wrote:
one good tip someone once gave to me is ride each jump like you've already refused. I'm not great with the refusing stuff my horse doesnt spook at anything...

At 19:41:16 on 11.05.10, ToriSilverson wrote:
hey i know all about this! i had a pony hu knew all the tricks in the book haha but your horse sounds alot like a riding school pony at my yard. he is very cautious when he jumps and spooks at them. He is very good at gridwork tho it really boosts his confidence because once they figure it out its easy. try starting with cantering poles and slowly build it up into a grid, it will make jumping fun for him too. you could also try building a jump thhat he would usually spook at and warm up around it, if you ignore it then he will eventually relax about it and theoretically be more willing to jump it, you could also try getting a lead from a friend into the jump.

At 20:02:38 on 11.05.10, sophieandcallum wrote:
I did tiny courses to gain my pony's confidence...yes we did a 40cm course! But we actually got round!! He wouldn't jump at shows...no way! Refuse point blank to go over the first jump and have broncs and all sorts. So worked out way up 40 and 50 one day next show 50 and 60 now we're doing 70 and 80 :) no refusals and a confident pony :)

At 21:23:17 on 11.05.10, lozzyhorselover wrote:
i agree with slowly building up, and im the type of horse-whisper people, understanding the horse and building trust, if u join up with him, and do t-touch on him, u will form a bond with him, which will make him trust you, if you want to do join up, ask me about it, and also, can u describe his face for me, e.g; ears-are they large, curved, wide set ears, curved, close set ears, medium sized ears set far apart,delicate curved ears with tips that point towards each other, round small ears, or long straight ears? muzzle- is it a slanting muzzle, a slanting muzzle with a grooved chin, blunt, round muzzle, low chin, small delicate muzzle, small,or a rounded muzzle? profile-long straight profile or just a straight profile? eyes-large, curved, wide set eyes, hight set, pointed eyes, large round eyes, medium sized eyes with large eyelid, almond shaped eyes, low set almond shaped eyes,low set round eyes or high set, pointed eyes? overall face-bump above nose, broad forehead and dished face, slightly dished face, long chin,dish face with bump above nose, dish face, bump below eyes? mouth-long mouth? describe ur horse using a combination of the possibilities above, plz get back and hope this helps, Lozzy.xx

At 21:28:48 on 11.05.10, sophieandcallum wrote:
Agree...a bond helps obviously! That is another that helps if your horses says "no way mum!" if you give him a nudge "yes you can" if you have a trust and bond there he should give it a go for you:)that's the difference I've seen anyway and it really does help especially when it comes to cross country!

At 16:42:52 on 12.05.10, Colex wrote:
Thanks so much for all your advice! I'll definitely try it out and let you know of any updates :) Lozzy, here's a picture of him, hope it helps!

At 16:46:07 on 12.05.10, Colex wrote:
... and when we actually get over a jump!

At 17:27:49 on 12.05.10, lozzyhorselover wrote:
ok, right, he's got a good jump, his ears are large, widely set and curved, which means he's very intellegent and steady, his muzzle is slanted, which means he might be potentially stubborn, he has a straight profile which means he's straightforward and uncomplicated, i cant tell what his eyes or mouth is like, but his face is slightly dished which means he's intellegent, these are jusr rough estimates from the picture, but do any of these match his personality?

At 17:28:51 on 12.05.10, lozzyhorselover wrote:
and another thing, how old is he, and did he have any accidents before you bought him?