Jumping your horse is supposed to be fun for both of you, but if he’s nervous about the activity, it can turn scary and dangerous quickly. Sometimes horses are nervous because jumping is new to them, and other times they just weren’t born as brave as others.
These tips will keep you and your horse feeling confident and ready to jump.
Bring a Buddy for Your Horse
It’s always safer to have someone on the ground while you are jumping, and having a friend in the ring with you when jumping a nervous horse has a bunch of benefits.
If you have to get on and off of your horse to adjust jumps, move filler around, and set up grids, it can seriously break up the flow of your ride. Sometimes with a nervous horse, needing to pause to get on and off to move things around is like pressing the reset button on your entire ride, making it hard to see progress. Your barn buddy can also be there to support you and encourage you and your horse.
It’s best to take regular lessons from a trainer, but sometimes extra practice sessions can help you reach your goals. Always get permission from a parent before jumping, and never, ever jump alone.
Try a Cross-Rail Oxer
Nearly every jump course has oxers, but having a second pole on a jump can make some horses wary. It’s best to introduce your horse to oxers using something your horse is familiar with: cross-rails! Make an oxer with two half cross-rails, so that while the jump might be wider, it looks familiar.
Once your horse is confident over that, you can make a cross-rail on the front set of standards and a vertical on the second set of standards before raising up the front pole to complete the oxer.
Building the oxer in steps that feel familiar to your horse can help him realize that oxers are no big deal, and are actually fun to jump!
Introduce Filler
Whether it be flowers or something more scary like fake alligators, filler under jumps can back a horse off from a fence.
It can help to let a horse sniff the filler to see that there is nothing to be scared of. However, be careful not to make it a huge deal and spend lots of time with your horse’s nose on the new filler, or he might begin to think there’s something to worry about. But for most horses, a quick touch and sniff is helpful.
Start with the filler on the side of a jump your horse is already comfortable with. Slowly move the filler closer to being under the jump, until it is fully in place. If your horse gets nervous, you can always bump the filler back to the side to rebuild his confidence.
Be aware that some horses react to scary filler by jumping bigger to avoid touching the scary thing. Grabbing mane, or a neck strap, will help you stay out of your horse’s way so he doesn’t panic over the fence if you accidentally grab his mouth when he takes a big leap.
Use Guide Rails
Sometimes, your horse might need a little extra reminder that the goal is to go over the jump, not around it. Using guide rails will help keep him focused and moving in the right direction, and let you focus on riding to the fence.
Prop two poles up in a ‘V’ shape with the more narrow end toward the jump. Be careful not to put the poles too close together so that your horse doesn’t feel trapped. This creates a chute to direct your horse over the jump and helps prevent him from getting into the habit of ducking out.
If your horse has a tendency to drift in a certain direction, or run out only one way, you can also use just one guide rail on his tricky side to help encourage him toward the middle of the jump.
Consider Building Grids
Just like oxers, grids can be built up slowly to instill confidence. Here, we set up a grid with three trot poles to two cross-rail bounces followed by two strides to a vertical, and then two more strides to an oxer. This might sound a bit overwhelming, but when built up slowly, it feels much easier.
We started with just the trot poles to the first cross-rail. This helps to build the horse’s confidence by letting him begin by doing something he’s already a pro at.
Next, we added the vertical, then the second bounce cross-rail, and lastly the oxer. By building up the grid slowly, a nervous horse can see that each added element is OK, and by the end of the grid, both you and your horse will feel accomplished!
Of course, most jump courses don’t involve a grid, but to continue building confidence at home, you can set up some jumps unrelated to the grid to keep the motivation going. Try doing the grid, then continue on to a few more jumps to see how the confidence gained from the grid carries over through the rest of the course.
Key Takeaway for Building Jumping Confidence in a Nervous Horse
Lastly, remember that every horse learns and builds confidence at his own pace. Whether you accomplish getting over some poles, or a cross-rail oxer, that is a success! You can’t rush confidence. Often shorter, smaller sessions are best for nervous horses.
Take things slow, add in elements over time, and the careful steps you take in developing your nervous horse into a brave jumper will pay off.
This article about jumping a nervous horse appeared in the July/August 2023 issue of Young Rider magazine. Click here to subscribe!
