Backing help ...

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hamandeggs

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Hi Everyone,

I need your advice .... so I am in the process (with the help of an instructor) of backing my gorgeous youngster ... all the ground work has been done, longreining, tack, leaning over etc all fine. Then we got on him, again all fine, for the first two times that is, walk and trot, quite relaxed with no issues, 3rd time as soon as asked to move away from mounting block he exploded and rider came off. Not sure what happened, he is genuinely frightened rather than 'get the helll off me'.

We have since then been leaning over him but he seems really frightened, tense and wants to bronc ! We have now progressed to walking him round with someone leaning over him but he is still really tense about it. So my question is .. what would you do ? Would you continue as is and gradually build up again to someone sitting on him, would you try a dummy perhaps or something else ?

All checks are done so no physical issues surrounding this one ... just looking to see if there is something that I am missing ...

Thanks all for your help!
 
I think the first ridden experiences of a horse have such far reaching consequences, & are so influential & long lasting, that if I had any doubts as to my course of action, & needed advice as to the next step, then I wouldn't risk getting it wrong. Instead I'd get a trainer who specializes in breaking to come & help every step of the way so I couldn't go wrong.
I am amazed you've managed to rule the saddle out though on a horse that was only sat on a few times. How did you manage to ride in it for a fitting? I think I would suspect that first. But, like I said as you aren't sure, get help, there's too much at stake to resolve backing issues by trial & error.
 
In your shoes I would send him away to people experienced in backing lots of horses and be completely open and honest about the issues you have had.
 
i would be inclinced to check saddle aswell sems very strange to have gone from first 2 rides been absolutely fine to 3rd time frightening himself. did you do anything different the 3rd time round?? place people warm up etc?? i definately think get professional help, i would make sure i was their and could also learn why or how to prevent or improve this? x
 
hamandeggs said:
Hi Everyone,

I need your advice .... so I am in the process (with the help of an instructor) of backing my gorgeous youngster ... all the ground work has been done, longreining, tack, leaning over etc all fine. Then we got on him, again all fine, for the first two times that is, walk and trot, quite relaxed with no issues, 3rd time as soon as asked to move away from mounting block he exploded and rider came off. Not sure what happened, he is genuinely frightened rather than 'get the helll off me'.

We have since then been leaning over him but he seems really frightened, tense and wants to bronc ! We have now progressed to walking him round with someone leaning over him but he is still really tense about it. So my question is .. what would you do ? Would you continue as is and gradually build up again to someone sitting on him, would you try a dummy perhaps or something else ?

All checks are done so no physical issues surrounding this one ... just looking to see if there is something that I am missing ...

Thanks all for your help!
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I'd say there are some holes somewhere, you need some help, I'd forget the dummy, horses arn't stupid.
 
As said above, send him to someone who specialises in breaking and be completely honest in what you've done, and what's happened! It makes our lives easier if we know exactly where things have gone wrong so we can figure how to approach this with each horse. Personally, I'd be taking him back a few steps, starting again and making sure there aren't any holes and building back up the confidence again as it sounds like he's given himself a fright and now the rider's fallen off it's worried him.
 
Agree with getting some pro help with this one. When you were doing your ground work was he paying attention or completely not reacting? You get the odd one who just doesn't appear to mind anything at all but in fact they have shut off, these need watching as later down the line they say "b-hell, help". If you are near Kent then Jason Webb is very good.

You must be disappointed, but hopefully you will be on the right track again soon :)
 
amymay said:
He was trotted on the first and second time he was mounted?
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Maybe if he was trotted on both occasions it was a little too much too quickly for him - my lad is 3 and very very laid back i got on him and walked him a little bit the first time letting him get a feel for me being up there - once hed walked a little i got off - got back on and walked a few more paces and increased - i did this a few times and only asked him for trot after a few sessions knowing he was ready- he was very calm all the way through but have broken a lot more than havent been this cool - would not in my experience try trotting the first time of ever being sat on but maybe that is just me - does seem odd as well that you can totally rule out the saddle given you've only sat on him a couple of times and he was so good the first couple of times - was anything different ie. same place, were some horses loose in a field nearby cantering around - getting excited ? - i think in this situation you could carry on and go back to basics ie long lining, groundwork and start over or do as suggested and send away to a professional where someone may have a better understanding of how and what he is reacting to who can give him time and confidence. hope he comes right for you.
 
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RebelRebel said:
Agree with getting some pro help with this one. When you were doing your ground work was he paying attention or completely not reacting? You get the odd one who just doesn't appear to mind anything at all but in fact they have shut off, these need watching as later down the line they say "b-hell, help". If you are near Kent then Jason Webb is very good.

You must be disappointed, but hopefully you will be on the right track again soon :)
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totally agree with this - should have mentioned when i was saying about my boy being relaxed i almost went OTT making sure he was ok with everything as it was he was just very calm but some 'block out' everything and dont really acknowledge what their doing all the time and can appear their fine with it when in fact their just distracted by something else and not focussing on whats happening ?
 
Was it the same rider all three times? What was the aid for asking him to move forward? What has he got in his mouth? How experienced was the rider on each occasion? Had you any problems with his groundwork/long-reining? Was there anyone at his head or not when he was ridden? What is he being fed? Is he ok to catch/bring in/turn out? Does he chillout when tied up? Is he cool about girthing?
 
I'd take it very slowly. I know what's it's like to be desperate to get on and ride your youngster but it can be a bit of a mind blow to be ridden for the first time and you really need to be patient. Just because they seem ready physically does not mean they are ready mentally.

I started backing my three year old in the summer as she looked like she needed a job (she was becoming a bit of a monkey!) so I got all the tack on her, long reined her, introduced her to spooky objects, leaned over her and sat on her, walked her around the school a couple of times and then turned her away again. I'm just beginning to bring her back in now with some long reining and practising standing up to be tacked up etc. The point I'm trying to make is I've spent a long time on the foundations to give her time to think it over and accept it. I've owned her since she was 10 months old and have taken every thing very slowly, only moving on to the next stage when she is completely relaxed and understand the questions I am asking her. She growing into a very easy going, relaxed horse because she's never been rushed or stressed.

I wouldn't want to criticise you and what you are doing, but maybe you are moving too fast for your horse to fully accept what's happening. I used to back and break professionally and always had time pressure on the horses I had to work with, it was never easy to feel like I'd done a complete job I was happy with so when I decided to get a baby of my own I swore I would move slowly and ensure every stage was completed thoroughly.

Maybe turning away for a while would help. Doesn't even have to be for long, just a couple of months or even 6 weeks to relax in the field can do wonders.
 
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