advce wanted pls

[lavroski]

Hi all and happy new year.
I am after some advice about re - breaking(kind of) a horse.
He is a 9 yo 14.3 conammara gelding.I bought him a year ago and he was very nervous - he clearly had issues.I turned him out for a year as he needed a dental op (probably the source of his 'rider' problems) and have now started to work with him again.He had to have a tooth extracted and has now fully recovered from op.
I have put a saddle back on him and leant over him on a daily basis.He is very nervous and jittery and I feel his life would simply implode at the slightest noise or wrong movement bless him.He is responding well to the routine and getting easier but as with all things somtimes we do some lovely work and others its like hes never been touched.I know in time he will come and he is a super little horse but I am asking for any tips from anyone who has worked with nervous horses/ pain issue horses.Any tips welcome as I work on my own with my animals and sometimes outside advice is very welcome!I am also debating weather or not I will bit him again.If I bit him he will remember the pain and that maybe another yet uneccasary issue to deal with but due to the permanant calcified lump he has on his lower jaw(down to the trauma of having an infected tooth in his chops for years!) the action of a scrawbrig or hackamore maybe impeeded by this physical defect.It maywell rub him.
Thanks for reading and any advice gratefully recieved

 

[JenHunt]

I would try putting a little rubber snaffle in his mouth just with a headstall so it will come off quickly if necessary. Maybe sit it slightly low in his mouth to start with until he's used to the idea.

have you tried doing some of the desensitising stuff with him? like walking over tarps, under things, past scary things, to get his trust in you?

sounds to me like you're on the right track though, and I hope you're rewarded eventually!

 

[MrsMozart]

It sounds to me like he needs desensitising to the 'normal' things of life. To learn that they aren't going to eat him

.

Whereabouts in the country are you? We use a guy called Mickey Gavin - he's spot on with these sorts of things. Thanks to him, we managed to have one person get a headcollar on and off a wee pony from the market; before MG stepped in, it took three of us!

 

[Moggy in Manolos]

Sounds like you are doing a good job with him but taking it slow.
All I can add is carry on as you are staying calm taking it slow and trying to keep him at ease, perhaps small rewards by way of polo's or something similar after he has been a very brave boy.
I used to like letting our youngsters watch me saddle up and handle the mares who were very well behaved, also I let them watch me get on and ride in the hope they would notice human riding on horse=horse still ok, if that makes sense.

Anyway, good luck with him.

 

[Mari]

Take time, have patience, make each step a small one, be firm but fair & make it clear what you expect from him. Praise/reward every little positive response (I used mints until he learned what Good Boy meant) & either ignore the negative response or teach horse to understand the word no for behaviour you don't want. Don't raise your voice in anger / shout or make sudden sharp or loud movements or hit him. I had to teach myself to do all this with a rescue pony that was a nervous wreck due to early handling. Amongst other issues he expected to be beaten if he did anything he thought ( had been beaten for in the past) was wrong. It took a long time, as in years not months, but now he is the most delightful confident pony who trusts me & most other people implicitly. Meant to say I agree with what others have said. Sounds as if you're on the right road but it is likely to be quite a long one. I also let pony see other horses being handled calmly & how they behaved / responded.