How do you address a horse that rushes to fences in Working Hunter?

A horse that rushes to fences is one of the most common problems in Working Hunter training and one that directly undermines both the jumping quality and the hunting pace the class rewards. A rushing horse arrives at fences too fast and on a forehand-heavy, unbalanced stride, which produces a flat, scrambling jump rather than the correct, bold effort the judge wants to see. Rushing also makes it very difficult to maintain the consistent hunting pace between fences that Working Hunter rewards, because the horse is accelerating toward each fence rather than maintaining an even rhythm throughout the course. Addressing rushing requires identifying its cause before applying a correction. Some horses rush out of genuine excitement or anxiety about fences, while others rush because they have been ridden to fences with excessive leg and have learned to associate the approach with strong forward pressure. Horses that rush from anxiety benefit from extensive trot fence work, where the slower pace and lower height reduce the excitement response and allow the horse to learn that arriving at a fence calmly is both possible and rewarding. Bringing the horse back to the trot several strides out from a fence, jumping it from the trot, and then quietly rebalancing on landing is effective for re-establishing the association between approach and calmness. Horses that rush from excitement or habit benefit from gridwork, where the set distances prevent the horse from accelerating between elements and require it to maintain a consistent rhythm. Cantering past fences without jumping them — requiring the horse to maintain a steady rhythm while fences are present but not jumped — also helps horses that have learned to associate the sight of a fence with an increase in pace.