bolting

K

kombikids

Well-Known Member
Joined
6 September 2007
Messages
1,811
Visit site
my friend has a horse she has had for a few months and he is perfect apart from the fact that he has bolted - in the outdoor school, twice. does anyone know if there is anything she can do - ie she has been told that once a bolter always a bolter but does it really work like that? she has had saddle checked and back and teeth, hes working nicely one minute then off the next. he has done it to her instructor so its not her riding... any ideas as she is going to sell him and any ideas on where to send him. she doesnt want to sell to a dealer as she feels that they might not be hinest about him.thanks
 
personally i think he is pain of some sort ... as if hes doing it with the instructor as well , i don't think once a bolter always a bolter
we had a 8 yr old 17hh gelding that did this for a a while and he was just him trying it on
my instructor got us me and sis to Shorten one of the reins a lot (Like a foot), and pull it a bit sideways too, when the horse runs, so the head of the horse is bent to the side alot. If the horse just stiffens against it, grab the other rein and do the same, as all pony's and horses have one weaker side than the other apparently . Hold it with all your force. Imagine that you want to pull the nose of the horse around to your leg. Most horses stop then. also you could try using something like a market harbough(sp) so he cant get his head ?
id defiantly make sure you get the horse checked by the vet
good luck xx
 
Sounds horribly like my friends 's horse - he had a neurological disorder finally diagnosed after a long period of dangerous behaviour. He is now retired.

That horse was however constantly tense and worried. Does your friend's horse seem soft and lovely and then suddenly flip? If the latter, I would be looking at back/tack again as it might imply that the point when he softens suddenly causes something to hurt.

If she is determined to sell him, she'll have to be very very honest about him - maybe www.projecthorses.co.uk ?
 
From how you have described him, the horse doesn't actually sound like a true bolter to me. It sounds like a behaviour and respect problem to me.

Sounds like a good candidate for project horses.
 
I don't understand how anyone can say it's a pain thing when they've not even clapped eyes on the animal... you'd need much more info to come to that conclusion.
 
If you keep pulling on one rein and the mouth is not strapped shot, then a true bolter will simply let the bit slide through the mouth.
 
Horses do things for a reason and I would say he's either in pain, trying it on or nervous about something. If he only does it in the outdoor school he's not what I would call a bolter. It could simply be that she asks more of him in the school and maybe he does it when he feels pressured. Selling him is not the answer because he'll just get passed on and on. I would look for the eason and then work on a solution. Easier said than done if he's knocking your friends confidence.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I don't understand how anyone can say it's a pain thing when they've not even clapped eyes on the animal... you'd need much more info to come to that conclusion.

[/ QUOTE ]

Of course you can't say definitively that it's pain (or remembered pain!) from information on a message board.

However, of all the problem horses I get here for schooling/re-schooling, once you're ruled out rider error (and he's done it with the instructor too) then you're left with pain/remembered pain (either from a problem in the horse or a problem with the tack) - or downright ill manners! If the horse only does it in a schooling situation - and the OP said he's well mannered the rest of the time - then pain - probably back or hock pain that 'hits' when he's working on a circle - seems a pretty good bet!

ETA of the two problem horses I have in at present (both for bucking!) one has remembered pain issues (having been abused in a trekking centre with bad back/ill fitting saddle etc.) and the other had a saddle - fitted by a Master Saddler!! - that is the most awful fit I've seen, and a rigid tree to boot, making it far worse. In a decent saddle - and the addition of a Suber pad for good measure - he doesn't buck at all.
 
he was a gypsy horse apparently and they think he may have been mistreated. she doesnt know whether to persist or not - shes a mum like me so has responsibilities and doesnt think its fair on anyone to risk it. we have richatd maxwell at our yard is it worth a try?
 
My friends horse did this down a main road for no apparent reason but it was pretty terrifying for her and he had no real reason to do it. She had his teeth checked and also had a McTimoney back person out and it turned out her horse was in a fair bit of discomfort. The treatment he had (as he was so bad) was over several sessions but since then he has gained weight (she was struggling to keep it on before) and is a lot more relaxed and happy in himself. Think the problem stemmed from his teeth and had caused pain and tension all down his neck so he had compensated in other ways.

I think try ruling out all physical reasons first as from what you've said it doesn't sound like the horse is necessarily being misbehaved. A sudden bolt is almost like it has had some shock of some kind - does it do this when asking for a specific movement or work? If so, it could be quite logical it is getting a nerve related/muscle pain causing it to 'run away'
 
Sounds alot like my horse. Totally abandons the controls and seems panicked but you can't understand what about? My horse has some strange scars and having had all the vet checks/back checks (incl. x-rays)/ teeth checks we had to conclude it is down to something in her history but we'll never really know what. I tried Richard Maxwell and Brian Seddon and was very disappointed with the lack of progress using their methods. A professional in Cheshire called Jonathan Parrott helped get through to my horse and I'm now able to compete her. The running away and the switch in her head is still very much there - and although I don't yet feel she's ready for hacking she's doing a job. I can give you contact details if you like. Good luck.
 
Id try and work out why he did, ie. what set him off? One of mine bolted with me 3 times out hacking and I linked it to cows! The first time he bolted as some cows spooked him, we galloped through a barbed wire fence... so I guess because that hurt he linked cows with pain afterwards as in the month that followed he bolted twice more when he saw them. I simply dont hack alone anymore! He's fine with them if there's other horses around. Either way, I just dont hack alone anymore and he's never ever bolted at any other time. What Im saying is, as long as pain things have been ruled out (ie. tack etc.) then Id try to think back and work out what possibly could have spooked him?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top