Any ideas to stop pony playing up having his bridle put on!

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tina60

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My NF pony likes to try it on with me in various ways ! - his latest trick is not letting me put his bridle on. It is taking me ages to get it on him and I dread going out at the moment as it takes forever to get tacked up. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to get him out of this habit? He has had his teeth checked not long ago and everything was fine.
 
When he plays you up what exactly does he do ? Head up, head down, clamps mouth, hides his head ?

Is
it just you he messes about with ? Have you tried having someone else tack him up? No offence intended, but maybe he is feeding off your misgivings about bridling.

I am assuming that you have done all the fitting checks.

I would also go with bribery as an option.
 
Has he been fine with you before and suddenly started doing this? If so, I would probably assume there is (new) discomfort or dislike associated with either wearing the bridle, the process of being bridled or what comes next (i.e. being ridden).

Bribery is usually a quick fix, something yummy like honey on the bit, or stick the bridle on before something nice for a week to create a good association (horses that are bridled to be turned out are rarely difficult to bridle).

If there is an underlying cause though, he will probably regress again later or develop a different "trick".
 
Thanks for your replies - yes enfys he puts his head down to the ground when I put the reins over his neck then when I try to put the bridle on he puts his head up high, a friend on the yard tried to do it for me and he did the same thing with her - laura-nash when I first had him 6 months ago he was doing it then but he suddenly stopped and decided he wouldn't pick up his feet for me ! so I do feel that he tries it on its just so frustrating as its taking forever to get ready and I'm trying not to get stressed about it ! I will give the honey idea a go sounds promising !
 
If he definitely doesn't have any pain issues, leave the head collar on under the bridle and leave him tied up when you put bridle on. Obviously don't do this if he is objecting to bridle due to pain!
 
I would consider changing the bridle for a while, I would use an endurance style one where the cheek straps unclip, so that you can just slip the bit on and clip the cheek piece up without having to fiddle with his ears. Make having a bridle on a prelude to something to look forwards to, as has been said above.

I would also work at training him to raise, and drop his head on cue, apart from making bridling easier dropping the head relaxes a horse, it is a useful cue when mounted too.
 
The first thing I would do is to check the fit of every part of the bridle. Has he grown/changed shape since you bought him?
You say he had his teeth done recently, did the dentist need to do much work? Could it be that his teeth were causing him pain before the dentist came and he learned to dislike the bridle because of this? Or could it be that the dentist left a sharp point somewhere which is now causing him pain?
 
I find a Polo in the hand with the bit a lot less messy than honey. You can then slowly progress to giving it after the bridle is fitted. I once had a mare who was very difficult to put a bridle on, and I changed her bit from a thick non metal mullen mouthed Pelham too a thinner metal one and it was an instant fix. She would nearly put the bridle on herself. I thought I was being kinder using a thicker bit. She did not like a jointed snaffle either.
 
Just to rules out discomfort I would get his ears checked. My TB suddenly decided he wouldnt let me put his bridle on and would throw his head right up. I assumed teeth because he was refusing the bit but it turned out to be an infection in his ears which was causing his problems. For a long time after we had treated it I had to take the bridle apart and put it on in bits as he remembered the pain and didnt forgive me easily!
 
Reinforcement training and "shaping" works well with this sort of training - bridle in one hand treats in pocket (bits of carrot or (less messy) polos. To have the polo handy enough to use promptly I hold one in my teeth for each stage)
Go through the routine of putting on his bridle in stages, rewarding each stage as you go, and pausing between the stages for him to learn it is worth his while. If you have to undo one side of the bit as part of it to get the headpiece over his ears, then redo it once it is in his mouth, fine, that is just one stage and soon you won't need to.
That's a really brief summary, hope you understand, and if you do it well you won't need the stages soon.
(Horses don't "try it on", they either don't know or have a problem with what you are asking for some reason)
 
I agree with JillA (again!:)). Horses don't "try it on". With due respect to all those who suggested looking for a physical cause, many of these behaviours are avoidance that has been inadvertently taught by a previous owner.

I trained hawks and falcons for over 50 years and I can assure you there is nothing more frustrating than training a hawk to accept the hood, though it can and is done. Here is a little video I made using a head cam of how I dealt with a young pony that decided to become head shy using falconry techniques. Notice how at the end of the video the pony is nudging the head collar on the ground in an effort to get yet another treat. It is all about softly-softly and an inch at a time, over days and possibly even weeks. I've never tried clicker training but I can see how it would work and that might be worth trying. If we ever get another head shy pony, I'll make a better video!

[video=youtube_share;IyQ_HHbMn-A]https://youtu.be/IyQ_HHbMn-A[/video]
 
Dry Rot said:
I agree with JillA (again!:)). Horses don't "try it on". With due respect to all those who suggested looking for a physical cause, many of these behaviours are avoidance that has been inadvertently taught by a previous owner.

I trained hawks and falcons for over 50 years and I can assure you there is nothing more frustrating than training a hawk to accept the hood, though it can and is done. Here is a little video I made using a head cam of how I dealt with a young pony that decided to become head shy using falconry techniques. Notice how at the end of the video the pony is nudging the head collar on the ground in an effort to get yet another treat. It is all about softly-softly and an inch at a time, over days and possibly even weeks. I've never tried clicker training but I can see how it would work and that might be worth trying. If we ever get another head shy pony, I'll make a better video!

[video=youtube_share;IyQ_HHbMn-A]https://youtu.be/IyQ_HHbMn-A[/video]
Click to expand...

*LIKE* and love her 'lightbulb' moment when she realises there is an advantage to the headcollar!
 
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