am i doing the right thing? coz at the mo it doesnt feel like it

Firehorse

Firehorse

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i have waited 25 yrs for a ponio of my own. now i have the time and money (just!) in my life, i wanted something basically to hack out and be safe enough for my young kids to learn on. maybe a bit of jumping for fun and easy to handle. nothing to challenging!

i ended up with a kind, gentle pony, but she can be a complete tizz head if the mood takes her. after months of hard work, my kids can now safely ride her and my eldest is just off lead rein in walk and trot. she catches 90% of the time. hacks out with other horses and has that bit of sparkle i enjoy. her main problem is i cannot hack her out alone as she rears and naps. having contacted her previous owner i have found out she only started doing this about a year ago. their vet diagnosed hock problems, but treatments made no difference.

i have a horse whisperer to help me. (£50 per session). she says the pony has a twisted spine and we have an osteo coming out week after next. £70 per session. he will be able to confirm whether its a back problem or hocks. this may or may not have caused the rearing. she did hack out alone for 4 yrs with her previous owner. but then started to nap and rear when she was, from the sound of it, overworked.
in the time i've had her, i have hacked her alone a handful of times with no probs. but gave up trying when she did the rearing on the roads.

i have no idea how many times the osteo will need to see her till she will be "sound". i have no idea how many times the whisperer will need to come out. i keep telling myself there is no such thing as the perfect pony and she only has this one problem. the fact she is safe for my kids to ride and i can ride out with others at least once a week, and once she is sound, i can school her - there's plenty to work on. but it is so frustrating that i'm paying out all this money to keep my pony that i cant just jump on and take out whenever i choose.

i know that in time to come, if i sort her out, it will be so worth it, the satisfaction i will get from that, and as she is only 10, we have yrs ahead of us. its just the here and now that is hard. i scan the horse ads half heartedly, but know i cud end up buying something with other problems. she is so easy and cheap to keep, out 24-7, un shod, lives off fresh air and healthy.

what wud you guys do? keep going or look for something else?
 
Why not cut out the horse 'whisperers' visits until the osteo has completed the horse's treatment, that would be a saving.
 
i have done. they are both coming on the 12th. i'll know a bit more then - how many times the osteo needs to come etc. the rearing may hve started coz of pain/discomfort, but it has become a learned behaviour so its not gonna stop just coz we sort her pain out. it'll still take time to re-train her.
 
Are you giving her any supplements or medication to help with her problems. It sounds as though the behaviour is definately pain related so it's certainly worth getting to the bottom of what's causing these issues. I would get a vet out again and give her a thorough going over, I am not sure what the osteo could do to help if it is her hocks, she will need medication which only a vet can provide. I would definately persevere longer and see if you can treat her problems. Don't give up on her, it'll be worth it in the end!
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In my oppinion all horses and ponies have quirks and likes and dislikes. If I was you I would make sure there is not pain or underlying problem and just enjoy what you can do with her. It is really easy to get bogged down getting bounced from one expert to another. If you think the problems are solved then just enjoy her with your kids and see if the problem resloves itself with time.

If you go for another pony that may have much more limiting problems than your mare.
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I would definitely keep going with it, if you can get the hacking alone/napping/rearing problem sorted it sounds like she will be a fabulous family pony.

Try and look forward to your future together and have goals to aim for, for example if you need to get the horse whisperer out approximately 5 times mark all the dates he is due on the calender and look forward to each one (not just the final date) that way the time will fly by before you even realise as you are taking little steps rather then one huge one!

Are you still riding her at the moment? If not then use this time to deepen your bond with her on the ground. Get your children involved and teach them some basic stable management, teach them how to bandage, groom, tack up etc.

Stick with it and it will all be worth it in the end!

Good Luck.
 
Horses and "alternative" treatments can be so expensive. I bought a mare last year as a project - thought she would be a reschool but then found out she had "issues".

IMO for the money you have spent, and will be spending on the horse whisperer and osteo you could have a full MOT done.

For my mare I started with McTimoney for her back £45 (Also have access to a physio at the same price) Dentist £35, Saddle Fitter £35.

At one point I was so desparate to help my mare I did think about contacting a horse whisperer myself but then found someone far more useful...

My instructor at a mere £15ph. Like you I thought the bad behaviour may be difficult to crack, and it seriously knocked my confidence, with help I am now on the right path with her reschooling and we are progressing in leaps an bounds.
 
Sudden change in behaviour does tend to make you think of pain problems. Horses do some dumb things to themselves out in the field and most of the time we wouldn't have a clue what they've done. I watched one of mine do the splits a few months ago trying to corner at speed.

Definately have the chiro out as many times as needed. You could also start with having a thermal image taken of the pony as it will pinpoint areas of inflamation.
 
Has the Osteo been recommended .... some are definitely better than others?

If in doubt, you could post a question on here asking for best back person in your area and see if there name comes up!
 
[ QUOTE ]
her main problem is i cannot hack her out alone as she rears and naps. having contacted her previous owner i have found out she only started doing this about a year ago. their vet diagnosed hock problems, but treatments made no difference.

i have a horse whisperer to help me. (£50 per session). she says the pony has a twisted spine and we have an osteo coming out week after next. £70 per session. he will be able to confirm whether its a back problem or hocks.
i have no idea how many times the osteo will need to see her till she will be "sound".

[/ QUOTE ]

Regarding the napping and rearing when hacking alone, if she goes out happily with others this is a confidence problem. Its very common and one I think worth living with if you can mostly go in company and either not go alone or choose your rides carefully being very positive.

Regarding the £70 osteopath wanting repeated sessions before telling you where your horse may be in pain, tell them to stuff it! Go back to your own vet who will do a straightforward back check and will investigate probable hock problems.

Your mare sounds nice and it sounds like she mostly does her best to do the job for you, stick with her IMO.
 
Agree with the others regarding the vet and the osteo working together.

IMO the 'whisperer' is a total waste of money - and you're better off spending it on getting the professionals to properly diagnose her and get her right.
 
i was having lessons with an instructor, which helped build both our confidences in the schooling paddock. even that i started jumping her after a 17 yr break! but when it came to hacking her out, he really didnt have any useful advice. we took her out for 5 mins so i could show him what she does, and he told me to trot her past scarey things. which in theory, probably would work for some horses, but when mine is standing on her hind legs, she's not going anywhere, other than up, spin for home.
she is quite spooky even when with other horses, so yes, she does lack confidence, but she has improved in the 10 months i've had her. i can take her in front now, which i cudn't before. she'd also been in several different homes for the year before i had her and unridden for most of that year. her previous owner had sold her as a companion because of the rearing. she felt it too difficult to find the right home. unfortunately she was then sold on to a dealer, who sold her to me as a family pony. oddly enough, she didnt nap when i tried her out, but she'd only been at the yard 24 hrs.

i turned to the horse whisperer, as a friend of mine had recommended her. the osteo is gavin scofield - also comes highly recommended. deep down, i know i will keep going with Breeze as she is 90% perfect for us. plus on the money side of things, if i sell her i'd only have the money i make from her to buy another pony and like someone said, i cud end up with other problems. i just need to get it into my mind she is somewhat a project, a challenge. altho thats not what i wanted, thats what i've got. she'd been given up on by her previous owner, even tho they had her 4 yrs. and oddly enough, i see a lot of me in her - life's all a bit much at times, and only the last couple of yrs have things started to come together for me. i love her to bits and so do my boys. its just so frustrating at times and i need an infusion of positivity now and again! thanks guys for your comments. onwards and upwards eh?!
 
In fact you are unlikely to be able to sell her honestly as a riding horse if she naps when ridden. I agree that if she rides out in company this is more likely to be learned behaviour coupled with lack of confidence than current pain.
You could try leading her out in hand and riding her back home, you don't have to go far and you and she will know that she hasn't been worried by anything on the way out. Another trick is to take her to a friend's and give her a feed, when she recognises that this is where she is going she is unlikely to want to refuse to go
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thx, i do lead her out and ride back, mostly without a problem. i get on her a little bit sooner each time and stick to the same route. (or did do until the farmer blocked the access to the field we were using). when i did try to go on further recently, she had a hissy fit and i ended up getting off and leading her till she knew we were going home. its just so frustrating doing this at times. i guess i am doing the right thing, i just find it hard to stay positive at times, especially when the suns out and i wanna go riding.
 
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