Lunging and leaping up into the air

Kelsey5674 · 11-06-2009, 09:57 AM

Ok so my recently purchased TB is a lot more than I thought he would be. He is 18 and he does not act like it. Yesterday we took him outside to work and were doing a lovely little trot, more like a jog and I clucked to him to step him up a little. As soon as I clucked he jumped up in the air with all four feet and than lunged through the air. Needless to say we got a better trot but it took me off guard. I stayed on and we did some tests on him for a little bit. As soon as you cluck he is gone and if you cluck out of nowhere like I did he leaps and lunges. I didnt even use my leg or whip or anything on him. My trainer said he was probably remembering when he was a race horse. Because they use the whip and cluck all the time to get the horse to go full speed. I am trying not to cluck as much but is there another way to desentitize him too the cluck so he will trot and not lunge?

barnprincess · 11-06-2009, 11:26 AM

i wouldent cluck. i'd use voice commands get that down pat then add the light clucking in with the voice commands.

colorblindpony · 11-07-2009, 05:56 PM

To desensitize him to the clucking, I would cluck all the time. Nonstop until you get sick of it, then start again the next day. Until he realizes it's not a big deal. When you're grooming him, cluck. Leading him up to the ring, cluck. Hosing him off, cluck. He'll learn not to associate the clucking with sudden OMG forward movement, but to associate it with general tasks that he enjoys and performs well already. Try not to be too reliant on clucking to get him to move forward. He'll retain that when riding, clicking is the command for 'forward', but the desensitization should tone down his response.

My own horse used to be super sensitive to leg, to the point where you would constantly try to keep from accidentally bumping her because you knew it would not end well. What did we do? Keep leg on constantly all the time until it wasn't a big deal anymore. At first, she was confused and worried because she had never experienced leg on her, but now she's fine and actually takes a ton of leg to ride. She knows that leg = forward, but now it's not a super exaggerated surprise response. To her it was like having your older brother stand there with his finger pointed out yelling "I'm not touching you!!!", and getting startled when he finally jabs you. But if your brother pokes you all the time, you'll know it's going to happen and won't be as surprised when it does. This might be how your guy is feeling, like he KNOWS the cluck is coming and when it does it takes him by surprise and the response is extreme. If he's used to the clucking, it won't be as big of a deal.

meljean · 11-07-2009, 07:32 PM

Do not cluck if in front of him. as he might run over you, like a trotter will. And if he is OTTB then may not have been lunged a lot.
He is still a TB, and flighty is something some of them never get over, we had some in mid 20's, that would act like colts.

11-06-2009, 09:57 AM	#1
Kelsey5674 Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 352 Images: 7	Lunging and leaping up into the air Ok so my recently purchased TB is a lot more than I thought he would be. He is 18 and he does not act like it. Yesterday we took him outside to work and were doing a lovely little trot, more like a jog and I clucked to him to step him up a little. As soon as I clucked he jumped up in the air with all four feet and than lunged through the air. Needless to say we got a better trot but it took me off guard. I stayed on and we did some tests on him for a little bit. As soon as you cluck he is gone and if you cluck out of nowhere like I did he leaps and lunges. I didnt even use my leg or whip or anything on him. My trainer said he was probably remembering when he was a race horse. Because they use the whip and cluck all the time to get the horse to go full speed. I am trying not to cluck as much but is there another way to desentitize him too the cluck so he will trot and not lunge?

11-06-2009, 11:26 AM	#2
barnprincess Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Long island NY Posts: 837 Images: 1	i wouldent cluck. i'd use voice commands get that down pat then add the light clucking in with the voice commands. __________________ GINGER Bella Luna I love my girls !

11-07-2009, 07:32 PM	#4
meljean Senior Member+ Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: NW MO Posts: 1,017	Do not cluck if in front of him. as he might run over you, like a trotter will. And if he is OTTB then may not have been lunged a lot. He is still a TB, and flighty is something some of them never get over, we had some in mid 20's, that would act like colts. __________________ "If you listen to the horse, the horse will tell you what it wants to be." Dale Pugh "You can undo in five seconds, the training it took you five years to accomplish." Wyman E. Bennett Last edited by meljean; 11-07-2009 at 08:00 PM. Reason: mo/in

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11-07-2009, 05:56 PM	#3
colorblindpony Full Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Atlanta Posts: 85	To desensitize him to the clucking, I would cluck all the time. Nonstop until you get sick of it, then start again the next day. Until he realizes it's not a big deal. When you're grooming him, cluck. Leading him up to the ring, cluck. Hosing him off, cluck. He'll learn not to associate the clucking with sudden OMG forward movement, but to associate it with general tasks that he enjoys and performs well already. Try not to be too reliant on clucking to get him to move forward. He'll retain that when riding, clicking is the command for 'forward', but the desensitization should tone down his response. My own horse used to be super sensitive to leg, to the point where you would constantly try to keep from accidentally bumping her because you knew it would not end well. What did we do? Keep leg on constantly all the time until it wasn't a big deal anymore. At first, she was confused and worried because she had never experienced leg on her, but now she's fine and actually takes a ton of leg to ride. She knows that leg = forward, but now it's not a super exaggerated surprise response. To her it was like having your older brother stand there with his finger pointed out yelling "I'm not touching you!!!", and getting startled when he finally jabs you. But if your brother pokes you all the time, you'll know it's going to happen and won't be as surprised when it does. This might be how your guy is feeling, like he KNOWS the cluck is coming and when it does it takes him by surprise and the response is extreme. If he's used to the clucking, it won't be as big of a deal.