OTTB - Off The Track Thoroughbred?

Here is a link to retraining the ex-race horse, some good ideas. Kath http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=10610

One thing you can also look into if you have an open mind is looking to Clinton Anderson Downunder Horsemanship. I started teaching my wild 9 yr old mustang his way. Also my aunts barrel horse...which was a 'go go go' horse. to work on the 'whoa' what worked great and quick was teaching the horse how to use lateral flexion. just make sure you do this in a plain snaffle bit, but if he is 'hard mouthed', he really has a hard and stiff body which makes his mouth hard. then you might want to use a twised wire or square snaffle. once you get him flexing great lateraly, his nose bending to your knee softly without moving his feet, then you move on to the one rein stop. ride him in an area on a loose rein, if he speeds up faster than you want...just shut him down to a one rein stop...and pretty soon all you have to do is sit deep and put your legs forward on a loose rein and he will slow down. It has worked wonders on my aunts' barrel horse. Good luck. check out www.clintonanderson.net if you want.

kindred definitely has the right idea. How long has it been since he was on the track? Besides going back to groundwork and the basics, I always found the OTTB's I worked with (retraining them for polo) came off the track one-sided. I found that schooling them on the flat in a straight line worked until they balanced out. I use to start with walk/halt transitions and working on turning them off their hind end, then with that in place (no time line - each one was different) I repeated the same exercises but added the trot, etc. I also found that a lot of hacking helped to encourage them to relax and therefore improve their willingness to learn. Once they become balanced it's an easy switch to working in a ring. good luck and keep us posted on your progress

Parelli system covers this well. There are also others who use the same technique of having the horse yeild to the bit by pulling his head around to his side and slowly developing it until you can do this at any gait and have a good 'whoa'. I met someone a few yrs ago who is using Parelli System to retrain OTTB and prisoners at the same time. If you noticed at the races they slowly bring those horses to a stop.

OTTBs are wonderful horses. I have a 14 year old OTTB who I have had since he was 6 years old. The greatest feeling in the world is to be on him and feel the power when he lopes or gallops. Regarding the whoa what has been said here is correct, they do run into the bit. If you want him to whoa don't use steady pressure, use pull and release to make him stop. Watch your leg pressure as they are trained to increase their speed by leg pressure. If you keep your legs off of him and pull and release on the bit he should stop for you. It took some time but Magnum will stop simply by me shifting my weight in the saddle. I would also suggest using a verbal clue so he becomes accustomed to your voice and what you expect from him. Also OTTbs do not stop like a western trained horse. They do not stop on a dime, rather a slow drop in speed from a lope to a trot down to a walk. Watch a race and you will see at the end of the race what they a used to doing as far as stopping. I would also suggest reading a book on english riding it will help you understand your OTTB a little better.

I have an OTTB and a off the track standardbred...one very important thing to remember is TB's are trained to run against the bit...they actually balance themselves on it when they are running. So when you pull back on the reins....most horses slow down, to an OTTB it's a signal to go faster. Working on lots of walk-trot transitions both in the saddle and on a longe line will keep his pace slow while your OTTB learns what WHOA means.

While racehorses have been given a great deal of training for the most part they do not receive any of the training that an average saddle horse is given. Don't be discouraged but start at the beginning. He has never been taught to bend,leg yield or side pass. The idea of "just relax and go forward" is a new thing. Take your time with him and teach him what this new life of his is about. The whoa will come in time and eventually you'll have a nicely trained horse that will be a wonderful companion. Pokey

Thank you for all the feedback. I am just a little too anxious to fix everything at once, but I know it will take time. I love him so much, even with his "broken whoa-er" :-)

I just want to say, I have 2 OTTB, that I trail ride all the time, they are awesome. keep in mind that the are sensitive. , but I wouldn't trade then for anything