Jumping Problems Solved is set to be series of articles addressing problems a rider may encounter when jumping their horse. Included in each article will be causes of the problems, how to fix them, and exercises to improve the rider’s overall ability.

What is running out? Running out is when a horse detours around a jump instead of jumping it.

What can cause running out? This is the most common jumping problems among bother eventers and hunters, and there could be several reasons a rider may find their horses avoiding a jump.

First, a rider must determine weather it is a medical condition, as this is the most serious of causes. If the horse misbehaves when he normally doesn’t, or behaves in a strange manner, a vet should give the horse a soundness exam (or check-up). If a rider or trainer tries to address the problem before they know the horse is sound, it could make the problem worse and hurt both horse and rider.

If the horse has a clean bill of health, the rider should check to see if they are the cause of the problem. Many issues can be resolved once a rider improves their ability. Quiet hands, a soft seat, and steady legs that don’t agitate or excite the horse could keep the horse focused on the jump.

The next option to consider is fear (on the horse’s part). This is a pretty common cause of running out. More options that might cause running out are inexperience on the rider or horse’s part, and the horse may take advantage of the rider.

So, how can the problem be cured? There is a saying that goes, “if your horse answers a question incorrectly, you asked the question wrong or you asked the wrong question.”

Beginning with medical issues: the vet should give the horse a normal examination, but should be asked to pay special attention to the horse’s mouth, back, and legs, although shoulders and hindquarters can be a problem, too. A chiropractic vet in the area could also help solve the issue.

Now for rider error: the rider should ask their trainer or find a trainer to watch them (attempt to) jump. They’ll probably be able to see what the rider is doing wrong and give them some exercises to help fix whatever it is they’re doing.

Let’s cover fear now. If a rider thinks their horse is being “bad”, or their horse is out to get them, they’re probably wrong; the horse is probably fearful. This could result from the horse being overfaced (rushed forward in training too fast or jumping too high before the horse was ready), the horse had one or several bad experiences with jumping, or the horse doesn’t know what he’s supposed to do and has some holes in his training.

For all the reasons, taking it back to the basics is the best answer. The farther back the rider goes, especially if the horse has some gaps in its training, the better. This could mean going back to the most basic of basics: leading lessons, lunging lessons, basic groundwork lessons. This’ll give the rider and trainer a chance to see what went wrong with the horse, plus it’ll give the horse more trust in in the rider. If the rider only takes the horse’s training back to cantering over poles, training will go faster but the horse won’t get as much benefit.

If there is a snag while retraining the horse, patience and repetition are key. If you start to feel yourself getting mad, put your horse away and take some time to cool off. It’ll only make your horse more scared if it feels like it might get hurt while it’s doing something. Once you’ve coaxed your horse to do something once, repeat, repeat, repeat. Horses learn by repetition. Don’t spend 3 hours trotting over poles, because this may bore the horse especially if they are Warmbloods or ht breeds like Thoroughbreds and Arabian, but once it feels like the horse has at least a little more confidence in what the rider is doing with it, the horse should be rewarded with a release. The horse should be allowed to stop, and should be praised quickly. If the horse does something wrong the rider should try to maintain their temper, not reprimand the horse, and just go back and repeat whatever they were doing until the horse figures out what it’s supposed to do.

Rider inexperience can cause a lot of agitation and fear in horses. If the horse starts running out and it’s pretty green, the rider and trainer should move back to something that both horse and rider already know that they can do together. This should restore the horse’s confidence in the rider by doing that. Then the rider can lead their horse or walk it up to the jump want to jump. The horse should be allowed to sniff it, nibble it, whatever it needs to do to be comfortable with the obstacle. Then, the horse should be trotted up to the jump, keeping it horse between the rider’s leg and hand and creating a channel with the rider’s arms (i.e. if your arms are a foot off your sides, your horse has that much more room to maneuver. If you keep your arms very close into your sides, your horse only has a straight path to go on). The horse should not slow down, but shouldn’t speed up either. More pace will only cause the horse to run out faster. Just keep the horse at the normal pace as it would work on, on the flat.

However, if the horse knows that it can get away with running out and is purposely doing it to avoid jumping (this is from laziness, NOT fear), it is acceptable to use a crop and/or spurs. Don’t go to town whipping and kicking the horse before it even thinks about running out, but if a rider (or trainer) see telltale signs that the horse is thinking about it (one of both ears cocked forwards, not responding to leg or hand, etc.) they can give the horse one quick, medium tap with the crop on the side he’s beginning to run out on and the rider should use LOTS of leg pressure on that side, too.

If the horse stops in front of the jump, encourage it to jump it from a standstill if that’s possible. Don’t let the horse turn away and start over just so it can run out again. If the horse does start running out, halt it as soon as possible, back it up until the horse can get to a spot it can take off from a standstill, and persuade the horse to go over it. Then stop for the day.

The horse did it right, and there’s a risk that if the rider tries to push it again and again, the horse will get bored or mad and be more determined not to listen to the rider. There’s always tomorrow. You can start again the next day with a fresh mind and a fresh horse.