so here is the point my horse is very lazy and doesnt like lifting up his feet :) when were walking or in a slow trot but when you pick up speed he is fine.

anyway so my problem is everyone at the paddocks where l agist him think his lame cause they hardly ever see me ride but is there any way to get him to lift up his feet when l ride

thanks
EDIT.......i have had 4 differant vets (4 because l never trust one is diagnosis lol) in and they said he is fine it just he is lazy

and yes there are horses that are lazy it really just depends on their nature
ok so l do not do mucch showing anymore and he does not stumble majorly but it is just l want him to pick up his feet because l ant to go to the snowy mountains (australia) with him and l do not want him to stumble because he soesnt pick up his feet

Try to get him to lift his head while he walks, that will straighten his posture and make him lift his feet more

Spend more time with him (i know it sounds weird but it works!!)

You should have the vet check him for muscle and joint problems. It sounds like his feet and/or legs are hurting or sore. Horses by their very nature are not lazy animals.

Give him something to do, things to walk over & obstacles. Walk him in rougher terrain if possible, over poles/logs, a place with many tree roots, twists & turns. Take him to new/different places, keep his mind occupied & engaged. Any of these things will encourage him to lift his feet, watch where he is walking & generally be more enthusiastic about the ride.

l have to disagree with Jeff Sadler on his idea to use a crop on ur horse if he is being lazy or sleepy. Hitting ur horse for generally no reason is a good way to create problems in the future. If u want ur horse to be engaged in the ride & 'awake' u need to keep their mind occupied. Using a crop to 'wake' them up just shows a lack of real horsemanship on ur part. A good horseman should be able to keep his horses attention & keep him mentally & physically engaged the right way.

Help him be more aware of where he is placing his feet
try doing grid work poles, x rails, small verticals
and cavelletis work the best although it may feel akward the first time a horse does them
if you dont have cavelletis use ground poles
=]

Do you have cavelitties by chance? If you do, walk him over them when you're riding. When he figures out its either pick up his feet or bruise his legs a bit, he will be picking them up in no time!

Try to keep him moving from your leg and moving forward. Maybe try some ground poles and figure eighting to keep him focused.

For starters, chain weighting & ''rapping'' r cruel treatments for teaching a horse to pick up its feet, & if u r seen doing this anywhere near show grounds u can face serious charges. l do not necessarily disagree with weighted shoes, but ur farrier may, so u will need to ask them before u put all ur eggs in that basket. As with any behavioral issue, l always suggest that u have ur horse thoroughly evaluated by u vet before beginning any rash training techniques that ur yee-haw buddies have told u about. Some background information is also necessary to properly answer this question. Is ur horse literally stumbling over himself because he wo not pick up his feet, or r u dissappointed that he is not high-stepping for show? Is this horse a gaited show horse, such as a Morgan, in which this high-stepped gait is ''necessary'' for show purposes? If u merely want ur horse to high step, l will not give u any advice, seeing as l feel that this unatural movement is cruel. But if ur horse cannot be ridden because he stumbles & trips over himself, then l can offer advice. If u r dealing with case B, u will need to try & determine the root cause of this behavior. Is it physical pain or just laziness, etc. When did ur horse begin to drag his feet? Was it after a long turnout where he perhaps got hurt? Or did u buy him this way? Was this horse a competitive pleasure horse improperly trained to keep his feet low to the ground? Does he have a serious confirmation flaw? All of these questions need to be considered before u throw weighted shoes on ur poor horse. In the meantime, do not ride & keep ur horse in a small turn out pen (preferably dirt, in the event that he has foundered on grass.). Do not keep him locked in a stall 24-7 to prevent him from moving, but do not be too generous with his turnout space. Call the vet. If the vet check comes up clean, call the farrier. Sometimes vets will overlook feet problems, or will not thoroughly recognize the beginning signs of more serious hoof issues. If ur farrier also gives u a clean bill of health, talk about the weighted shoes, but only as a last resort. The worst thing would be to throw heavy shoes on ur horse & have him react adversely by not moving at all, or stumble because of the weight & injure himself.

Once both professionals have assured u that ur horse is just being a pain in ur neck, u can begin working the horse in a round pen. Work ur horse without any tack for the first several sessions. Before u begin, pick up his feet as if u were going to pick them (heck, pick them!) & stretch the leg a bit. Send him on to the rail, working all three gaits. When ur horse trips over himself, keep him moving if possible. Try teaching to horse to rollback (all of this can be found in a Monty Roberts technique book if u r unfamiliar with round pens). The rollback movement will force ur horse to lift his feet, & be aware of where they r going. Many lazy footed horses r only that way because they have no idea where their feet are; they respond like clumsy kids, rather than graceful dancers, by dragging their feet & tripping. There r many quick fixes to this problem, such as weighted shoes, but for ur horse is safety & ur own, u should start from the basics & work ur way back to riding. Sort of re-break ur horse. If after a few weeks u r not getting the results u want, consult the help of a professional trainer or a knowledgable neighboor. Pay attention to the little things, too. How does ur horse respond to u in the round pen? Is he trying desperately to pick up his feet? Does he seem nervous or scared to do so? Or does he just ignore u because he is busy watching the pretty butterfly? Even how he moves in his turnout pen (which should be little for his safety!) can clue u in to why he is acting a certain way. Without knowing too much about ur horse, this is the best advice l can give you. If u still have trouble, feel free to contact me & l will try to think of something else!

Put him on the bit. By doing this the back lifts via the abdominal muscles & the loin muscles contract also & that lowers the quarters. The horse should also yield to the bit. But this allows the horse to pick his feet up more & step farther under himself.

Try it yourself ( l have.Lol): Get on all fours & round ur back & then lift ur knee forward & see far u can lift it. Then hollow ur back & see how far u can pick ur feet up.

If he is lazy though u will either need to adjust his diet or make sure he is not bored with his work etc, to make sure he can move off ur leg. As this is the first step in getting him in a frame(forwardness).

Ok.this actually an easy problem to solve. First if all the lifting of the head is a good thing to do. But in order to get him to be consistent u need to go back to ground schooling. You will need a lung line a halter that will put a little pressure on nose (you can tie knots in a rope halter & attach it somehow) & some obstacles to put on the ground like poles & things he will have to step over. You need to just send & resend him over these obstacles till he learns to keep picking his feet up, if u can squeeze a little time every day that will help a lot. The other thing u can do is when u feel him stumbling or lagging..squeeze & dig ur heels in a little until he picks up the pace to a faster walk. At a faster walk he will be forced to pick up his feet. Release the pressure of u heels & legs when he picks up his pace & feet, after awhile he will associate the two together. It is vitally important that r fully aware & do not miss when he begins to lag, consistency is everything with horses. It may take weeks to get him where u want to be but u will be rewarded. Another thing u could do is vary the trail & when he starts lagging start doing figure 8 is & turns & vary the routine, he could be bored. l hope some or all will help you. Horses r so rewarding & enjoyabe but they do require work in every aspect. Good luck & happy trails P.S. do not worry what others say do what u need to do & enjoy the ride.

I've had a few horses like this. Here r ur options (or at least what l tried). Some work better for some horses & others for others.

1. Make sure his feet r not too long in the toe.

2. Ride over poles until the horse learns to lift its feet.

3. Put on weighted shoes for 2 to 4 weeks & then pull them off.

4. Ride for a while with ankle chains or ankle weights.

5. Every once in a while a horse will go to sleep while walking. Wake them up with a riding crop. Do not beat them, but a quick smack can do wonders.

6. Your horse may be bored to death in the arena. Trail ride with him. If this solves ur problem then u know this is the problem.

7. Up the grain a little for a little extra energy (you have to know what u r doing here)

The thing is that u want him to lift his feet not just when u r watching & making him. You want it to be second nature even when u r not. On the trail that is essential.

While getting ur horse to lift his head may make him walk faster, that will also cause him to hollow his back. Work on getting ur horse to accept the bit & lower his head. After he does that, work on collection. To help with the laziness, give him things to do. Ground poles, cavaletti, cones. Lots & lots of transitions so that he really pays attention to you. Lots of working trot. When l mean working trot, make it big & make him work. Working on getting ur horse to accept the bit & work in frame will help with him picking his feet up, too. Squeeze with ur calves & do half halts with the inside rein to get more impulsion & to get him accepting the bit. Do circles & figure eights in addition to the ground poles, etc. Absolutely do not let him be lazy, even if it means u r having to work ur tail. When he does well for a while, be sure to reward him with a nice, long rein walk.

Is he a young horse? (3 to 6 yr.s) l have had 2 horses that were that way and they grew out of it.

My Clydesdale didnt pick its feet up as well but there were 2 solutions,

1. It was too hot to ride and l needed to wait until cooler weather when it wasnt so tiring

2. Work on its fitness. ride often. At first it may trip over its feet a bit,but once its fitness levels get high enough it will learn on its own

Is he old? Is he in good condition? If he is in slightly poor condition, this could be making him tired & causing the problem. He may need more protein & energy. Try lucerne hay & maybe some oats. Many people r afraid to feed oats in case it makes their horse unmanageable, but ur horse seems to have the opposite problem & needs a little 'wake up' feed. Alternatively u could use a premixed feed like 'Completo' etc.

Pole work is a good idea.

Taking him to the mountains will be great experience & help him work out where his feet are. l am sure u will have a great time. It will be a lot of fun. Good luck.