Before I bought my horse, he was cowboyed. If you dont know what that is,its when a horse is made to run barrels and nothing else. No fun trails or anything. So when I bought him, he was pretty much crazy. Over the 3 years that i have owned him, I have trained him alot. But now I have been working on some dressage with him and I have been lunging him over some caveleti. (hope i spelt that right) he has been doing really good in the ring but if I want to just take him on a pleasure ride he gets all hyper and he doesnt have any brakes at all. I have tried using different riding hand and leg signals and i have tried using a kimberwick strait mouth, a double jointed D-ring, a snaffle, and an eggbutt. the one that worked the best was the kimberwick. but it just didnt have what i wanted. not enough brakes.i thought about using a slow twisted snaffle for more brakes. should i?
Answers:
Brakes do not come from a bit they come fram training.
If all he has done is run barrels I would leanr how to do a one rein stop.
I would trail ride in what ever bit you are going to be using when you compete or show. That way he will get used to that type of bit.
When they have done spped events you spend alot of time teaching whoa or stop.
I work with off track thoroughbreds. I spend much time on teaching whoa and slow and work through the idea that they run everywhere they go. I also teach that they have to stand still to be mounted, something OTTBs are not taught to do.
I start all of mine in a french link snaffle and that is what I use for all of my horses. I do not change bits but I also do not show or compete so there are no rules about what I have to use. I like the french link as alot of the TBs have a low roof to their mouths and the break in the center keeps it from poking them in the roof of the mouth. Then they do not head toss.
I would spend more time training but I would use the bit you are normally going to use. Sometimes switching to a harsher bit makes things tougher than they really are.
Have some fun with him also and he may decide that trails and just out riding is a good time when understands he is not expected to run each time he is ridden.
First of all being Cowboyed has nothing to do with running barrels.
Your horse is probable used to a bit with leverage or a gag. A twisted wire might work just don't go to thin. The whoa factor has to start in the arena. I would start using verbal cues and a twisted snaffle and go from there. If you must go on trails then I would pull him in a tight circle and say whoa and sit deep, once he stops pat him and try again ( every few steps until he gets it).
Make sure when you 1/2 halt and ask him to stop you say whoa and once he begins to stop then release pressure.
Good luck
I assume by your horse being "cowboyed" you mean he was ridden western or stock horse style. Most horses ridden in this style progress from a snaffle type bit as a young horse, to a bit with "shanks". The shank is the part of the bit that is outside of the mouth that creates leverage. When you said your horse worked best with a kimberwick, that tells me he is used to a leverage type bit - leverage bits also use the chin strap to increase this leverage. Horses in speed events such as barrels are notorious for their hyperness and hard mouths. I applaud your use of a "softer" bit while training, but if you want to pleasure ride him you'll need to find a "harsher" bit to keep his attention and be safer. See if you can find a trainer or other rider that has alot of different bits for you to try out before spending money on one - they can be expensive. You are going to try and find a western style bit. It can be broken (like your snaffles), it can be a solid mouth, whatever. The longer the shank, the more leverage you have. Different horses work with different bits. Try to use the mildest bit that you can that still gives you control. Also consider using a mechanical hachamore. That also creates added pressure instead of only your own muscles strength that is achieved with the bits without shanks. Stay in an enclosed area while you're trying them out so you and your horse gets the feel of them. Of course, if in doubt, find someone to help you! The goal is of course is to soften his mouth and get his respect, so keep working in the ring with the "english" bits and use as soft a hand as possible when you ride with a leverage bit and you can get him to eventually respond without using the other bit. It may take awhile tho!
I always used a hard-rubber pelham with 4" to 5" shanks. It's basically like a straight kimberwicke with a tad more control. I had no problem pushing any of my horses onto the bit, and got great collection humanely. Just a heads up; I never used voice commands with any of my show horses, since any other rider who uses voice commands can influence another horse in the ring, especially if it is a large class on the flat.
It may not be the bit nessicarily (sorry, im bad at spelling) because if he is ok in the ring, it may be another issue. You said he was cowboyed, so it sounds like someone might have just breezed him on trail, so every time he goes on trail he thinks he gets to run.
I would try going with someone else, and keep him in back. If that doesn't work, you may need a stronger bit just for trail rides, and use a lighter bit for the ring, so you are not using more pressure than you need.
You could also try to just walk him a few times on trail so he gets used to trails more.
Once he calms down on trail, you could use his regular bit for trail.
Good Luck!
it isnt the bit it is how he has been trained or him just being nervous. if you have a more trusted horse that he knows and someone willing to ride him you can ride the one that was cowboyed and maybe he will calm down. if your trails are wide enough and you dont mind walking him through them would be a very good idea! it will also make it so he cant run off if you are at his head he may also be more relaxed!
good luck
Personally i would try a different snaffle bit or a bit with copper beads on it those are really good i just forgot the name of it also round penning him and tell him to stop and go also practices the so called brakes. The bit only helps a little. Hope this helps
They have a high port kimberwick you can get. That has better brakes, if he liked the straight kimberwick, but it wasn't quite enough.You can get something called bit keepers, they attach to both rings on the bit, usually nylon or leather so you can have more leverage %26 even pressure, %26 sit back deeper on him, until he learns to slow down. It keeps him flexing nice too. Dont give him his head at all to take off. Horses like that you have to think before they do %26 don't give him the edge. Don't let him make any decisitions on where your going ever. Do the opposit of what he tries to do until he learns quietly he can't do what he wants all the time.Do a lot of small circles with him every time he tries to take off until he calms down. You have to be patient with him until he's reprogramed to walk %26 behave.
Cowboy'd where I come from, (south dakota), doesn't mean that they were barrel horses. It means that they were just saddled up and ridden until they stopped bucking. No ground training at all...probably put in a chute to get the halter on...that is what Cowboy'd in my state means. You horse is just use to going all out all the time as that is what running barrels is. Since that is all he was used for...I agree with the other answer that said to learn the one-rein stop. It works wonders. Best wishes to you and your horse.
i would take him back to the round pen and ground drive him for awhile. that will soften him up and get him to respond better. a harsher bit isnt the answer, a little more training is.
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