Any Ideas? advice please

Darkly_Dreaming_Dex

Darkly_Dreaming_Dex

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Hi ,my OH horse is behaving strangely and i would welcome any advice. He was bought a year ago, vetted, and hunted last winter perfectly(so many people tried to buy him as he jumps, stands when others are kicking off, great with hounds etc) Normally he is a lovely steady/safe 8 year old 16.2hh ID x who is the sweetest person but can be quite spooky-just a big poof not nasty
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Snaffle mouthed, regularly shod,hacked (alone or company)or lunged daily, back, teeth & saddle checked. In at night, hay. 2 feeds of HiFi and D&H Pasture Mix(1/2 scoop per feed).Not the fastest horse, can be a bit of a "kick start" but always goes!
Ok enough background!
Last Saturday and today he has been weird. Both times he was with his cob friend, once in a field with cob behind, once on wooded bridleway with cob in front: We were almost home from a hack and he stopped dead and froze, Could not communicate with him, He doesnt respond well to the whip so tried turning a circle-nothing- then Pony Club Kicks- He freaked out, shot backwards, spun around and tried to climb the bank alongside the bridle way, bounced off a tree etc. wouldnt go back up the bridleway or down. eventually he threw himself down and through the gateway at the bottom and settled back down to donkey mode
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OH was shaking. I am much more confident than him so I plan to sort this myself but would love ideas! I thought about getting off and leading him til he got over himself as he is so easy to mount...
 
Pheasant? Squirrel? We have the odd peacock sometimes. Deer? Buzzard? I'm thinking something HE saw as life threatening but either you didn't see it or didn't register it as unusual? Did his heart pound, eyes go huge and his nostrils flare? Sounds like terror that he dealt with by freezing rather than bolting. Thank god!
 
Sounds like a major attack of terror to me but could be wrong. I know some visiting horses to Exmoor are terrified of the deer when they first see them, same as some are with pigs, so if you have them in your area, that might be a reason. No evidence of a ghost down that path is there?!
 
Sounds like a classic 'that leaf is a MONSTER' moment. He may be feeling a bit fresh with the change in weather. My advice is to not make a big deal of it.

To get my youngester moving I get her to step forwards and sideways around the object - ie don't expect them to go straight towards it, but allow them to feel there is a way round it. Oh and it helps to go 'oh! what's that over there!' as it stops them from thinking you're staring at the monster too so it must exist!

I've reversed horses past things in the past which helps as they have to think about where their feet are going.

But you got him past in the end without it turning into a confrontation so he knows that he has to go where you want, monster or not, so you're doing well so far!
 
it sounds like genuine fear, not being naughty. i think if he freezes like that again, i'd try to get his cob mate or another horse to go ahead of him, whatever it is he's seen (or thinks he's seen) shouldn't be as frightening if there's something between him and it.
he may well have seen/smelt/sensed something you didn't, i guess. there are big cats around... i know they're few and far between, but they are around.
 
walk back on foot and see if there is a dead badger near-by...

my pony doees exactly the same thing with dead badgers....

not bothered by anything else, dead or alive..just badgers...

it's apparently aodd smell they give off...besides the obvious !!
 
I agree, he seems terrified but as it has happened in 2 totally different locations & countys, Im struggling to see what he is scared of, when he spooks he normally blows/snorts and scoots round it rather than stopping. It makes no difference if he is in front or behind and today i walked his cob friend back up to him so they were touching noses but he wouldnt follow him. Its a shooting estate so he is used to all the wildlife- the fields are full of pheasants and Muntjac deer- dont think a big cat would last long with Gamekeepers
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His eyes were checked in the vetting 11 months ago so i dont think that`s the problem- I just have to work out how to unlock him as once he is unlocked he goes back to his very sweet self.
 
If he's totally frozen, you could try babying him through it - ie to get a confused baby moving you nudge with one leg then the other in a slow steady rhythm which can get them to move each leg in time with your nudges. (called 'bump-starting' I think!) It is also less claustrophobic for them than a squeaze with both legs together.
 
This is similar to my mare, I have posted about alfalfa intolerance, 'cos I think that may be at least part of the problem, could it be your horses prob?
 
I dont think its Alfa as he was on Alfa A last winter with no problems and now he has HiFi with the cobs.

Thanks AmyMay He is well in himself, fit enough for the beginning of the huntingseason

Thanks Orange I will try "baby kicks"!

BTW the first incident was in a different county so i doubt its monsters in the hedge syndrome.

Any other tips for unfreezing horses?
 
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