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Cold Back

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Post by AnnOklahoma Thu Aug 12, 2010 2:13 pm

What is a cold backed horse and can it be fixed?

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Post by Got_gait Sun Aug 15, 2010 6:40 pm

Hi Ann. A cold backed horse is one that reacts negatively when you get in the saddle. Usually, they tense up and either act up, or sink their back down to get away from the saddle. I think a lot of it is anticipation of something unpleasant and then tension. If you know you have a good saddle fit, I would suggest some stretching exercises before you mount up and then lungeing all tacked up in order to loosen his muscles before you ride. April Battles has a nice free video she calls "yoga" that is great for stretching and limbering up a horse before and after a ride. Here is a link: https://www.youtube.com/user/HolisticHorseWorks#p/a/u/1/PKEL-aHCDsE. Yes, I think it can be fixed, either by warming up your horse prior to riding, or by stretching and limbering him up before you mount up, and giving him a positive experience so he doesn't tense up all the time.

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Post by Admin Sun Aug 15, 2010 6:41 pm

Ann, I moved your topic here. I think the behavior experts may want to jump in.
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Post by THOHMAN Sun Aug 15, 2010 10:47 pm

[tr] DEAR ANN,

I WHOLE-HEARTEDLY AGREE WITH LUNGING A HORSE WITH THE SADDLE ON. BEFORE YOU TACK UP, THOUGH, RUN YOUR FINGERS SLOWLY DOWN HIS SPINE. IF HE DOESN'T FLINCH,YOU'VE PRETTY MUCH RULED OUT A DEEPER PHYSICAL PROBLEM. NOW, LUNGE HIM WITH THE SADDLE ON. IF HE GOES AROUND WITH NO ISSUES, THEN YOU'VE RULED OUT A SADDLE PROBLEM. NOW, GET ON BOARD AND SEE HOW THE HORSE MOVES. IF HE BALKS, THEN I'M AFRAID YOU MIGHT BE DOING SOMETHING WRONG AND WE NEED TO ADDRESS THAT. I'VE SEEN ALOT OF RIDERS "PLOP DOWN" INTO THE SADDLE. MAKE SURE THAT YOU EASE ONTO YOUR HORSES BACK. WHY DON'T WE TRY THESE FEW STEPS AND LET'S SEE IF WE MAKE SOME PROGRESS. GOOD LUCK!

TOM

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Post by Eric G Sun Aug 15, 2010 11:04 pm

I cold backed horse is a horse that isn't prepared for a ride, figuring out why is a little more complicated. While some horses may only need a good brushing and saddeing to be prepared for a ride, others will need the confidence in your leadership abilities before allowing you a relaxed ride. While ground work isn't one of my favorite parts of horse training it is extremely nessecary especially when dealing with a horse with an issue such as being cold backed. The reason a cold backed horse needs ground work is to determine why it is cold backed, are we dealing with a fear issue, a learned unexeptable response, or is there a saddle fit or other comfort related issue for the horse? There are plenty of good ground work videos on the market the key is finding which one fits you & your horse. I personally use ground work very similar to Buck Branamman's style, but you may prefer that of someone else. Horsemanship is an art with very few set in stone rights and wrongs. Learning basic ground work and taking the time it takes to apply it should help you reach your goals with your horse.

Best of Luck

Eric

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Post by Nancy Faulconer Mon Aug 16, 2010 3:21 pm

Consider that the behavior that is being displayed is the horse's attempt to communicate to us: Either the saddle is uncomfortable (pinching, restrictive) or the horse is unaccepting of the saddle and is not ready to be ridden.

Either way, there are tools that are available to help you educate yourself on what is happening and what you can do to fix it.

I would pursue saddle fitting options before trying to work out the issue with ground work.
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