Bucking, am sooooo fed up (long, sorry)

0ldmare

0ldmare

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Those of you who have seen my prevous posts will know what a hopeless horse buyer I am (if it bucks, rears, cannot be led or caught, bolts or is otherwise a nutter you can guarantee I will buy it). Well I thought it was all going to be fine this time - I couldnt really try the horse very well as the vendor had no school or off road riding, but she seemed very quiet hacking out and they gave me a weeks trial so all seemed fine.

All went well after I got her home and I hacked out several times last week although could only walk and trot as the bridleways are like a swamp. Then today I took her in a school for the first time and after trotting around for 15-20 mins asked for canter
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A series of bucks followed. So we trotted again for a while and asked again (this time a bit more prepared!) again got several bucks so I smacked her with my whip and we whizzed around the school. Steadied up and did a load more trotting and then asked for canter a third time (this time from walk to make sure we were both very balanced) and she let rip with a load more bucks. I had a quick trot after that and gave up. Am so desperately disappointed I feel like crying. I cant say I am enthusiastic about riding her again and certainly wouldnt want to put my (quite novice) friend or niece on her, as was originally planned.

I phoned the old owner and explained and she said she had never done it before. I said I wanted to return her, but she suddenly seems to have forgotten about the trial (not in writing, but witnessed by a friend who was with me). Just feel so down, maybe its my rubbish riding, it seems the only thing I am good at is sitting bucks (tried another horse the week before I tried this one and that bucked for Britain). Just dont know what to do.
 
The saddle is the one purchased with her - it looks like a very good fit. It didnt move when she bucked! She seemed pretty angry about being asked to canter
 
Sorry I thought you had already HAD the trial and this has happened since you got her home, didn't realise she WAS on trial
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I am being very blonde tonight!

Call the vendor reminding her that you DO have a witness that can back up the fact she (the vendor) agreed to a trial. I would also pop her on the lunge and watch how she is in canter - there are different types of bucks but this isnt the horse you thought you were buying and that is what needs to be addressed.
 
sorry if im getting the wrong end of the stick ... have exchanged money yet ?

and yes i would agree with the lungeing

Also what you could do loose school her with tack on take reins of completely so that they dont get caught up
I know how you feel , esp when you have possibly had different outcomes with previous horses . Keep at it and keep your chin up xx
 
Seems like youve got electric knickers
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.It could be the saddle even if it looks okay. Could also be a hip or hock problem. I would send her back before you end up spending oodles of hard earned money on sorting out possible problems.If the owner is being funny about it, take her back and put her back in her stable or field (after informing owner of course). You are not obliged to buy her
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. Mairi.
 
I have paid the money already so it would be a case of getting them to refund
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Suspect this is not high on their agenda. I am getting paranoid about cantering at the moment. Am going to take my lovely other horse out and have a blast somewhere to get my nerves back in order!
 
Oh no! Isn't it you (forgive me if I'm wrong) who wasn't excited about new horse coming as you felt sure it'd go wrong "again"? Really sorry to hear you are having problems.

If she was mine I would lunge her without tack, then in tack to see if there is a difference in her movment. That would help you rule the saddle in or out. Had a friend who's saddle looked a great fit and yet horse napped for Britain. Turned out it had a broken tree!

I must admit though, I'm a bit alarmed at the vendor forgetting the trial period! I'm assuming money has already changed hands as well. Don't know what to suggest about that. Could be hard to prove your case. Shame it's not in writing, but it's easy to have wisdom in hindsight.

You could always ask and instructor to ride the horse for you, explaining the problems. If you are tense, maybe the horse is picking up on it.

Good luck, how you get the problem solved.
 
Get tough right away. Find out if the seller has sold more than 2 (think this is the right number) horses in the past 12 months. If so, in the eyes of the law she is a dealer and you will have more chance of getting your money back. Say you are taking legal advice and get your friend to make a statement.
 
Yup it was me, the one who was getting all anxious about her arriving. That was why I thought I would just hack for a the first few days to make sure we got used to each other.

I probably will lunge her tomorrow just to see what happens, but even if they wont take her back I have decided I wont keep her. Whats the point, I already have a horse that I adore, but is a bit too naughty to let friends ride (doesnt buck though
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just a bit scatty and not very brave in traffic!) The whole idea was to have something quiet and sensible as companion/second horse).
 
Yes I know what you mean. Saying that, Patches is the sanest most safe horse imaginable. Real confidence giver under saddle. She was a nightmare for the first six weeks though. Proper nappy. She didn't fly buck with me, she just went backwards with ears pinned back and point blank refused to move out of walk. She was jumping about, threatending to buck and rear....but she doesn't have that in her really. Bless.

I hacked her for a month, did some trotting and eventually a straight line canter out on hacks. She was fine as she loves her hacking. We bonded and got used to the feel of each other. When I got her back in the school, she was fine and has been ever since.

Sometimes they do need time and can act out of character. The seller could be telling you the truth when they say this horse never bucked in canter before....but then again, the paranoid and cynical part of my nature would assume otherwise if I was in your shoes.
 
Ok, I think it could just be this horse trying you out. My best advice is to get some lessons booked sharpish with an instructor you trust and then I think you will find things will start improving if there are no back/saddle/teeth issues.

Some horses are just a bit fresh when they get to a new home (both of mine are like this) and need time to settle in. Then when worked it takes a few attempts to get them concentrating.
 
our horse always always bucks in canter! i was going to post asking if anyone elses horse did this, but today ash had a lesson and off he went bucking round the ring as usual so instructor told ash to get off his back and canter round out of the saddle....he didnt buck once...sally reckons he has a weak point behind the saddle and needs the
muscles there to be properly warm before you can sit in the saddle and canter which ash did after a couple of time round the ring..he did do the odd fly buck on the other rein which was pure naughtyness on his part though! funny thing is he never does it in the jumping arena or collecting ring at a show,( probably more for him to look at/ think about there though ) he has had his back checked etc so this sounds like a feasible reason as to why he bucks in canter...maybe you horse has something similar going on with her? our boy is a dream in all other respects.
 
I agree its possible the horse is trying me out and it is a new home (even though she seems very settled), but the trouble is my friend was going to be the one riding her mostly and she is quite novice. If the horse did anything like that with her she would hit the deck and I couldnt risk that happening.

Although I wouldnt mind hacking her in walk and trot I have to admit I am losing my nerve a bit at the moment with all these mad horses I have ridden recently. (My friends wouldnt believe this as they always think I can 'stick on anything' but I really dont have a massive amount of nerve left hence the comment about wanting to ride my other horse and have a jolly!)
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Think they do need time to settle in - ours had been moved from previous owner's quiet 2-horse yard to our 50-horse livery yard/riding school and it blew her brains. She was just a bit spooky/nappy to ride but was unbelievably defensive in her stable - quite dangerous with my novicey husband.

Saying that, it was a pity you couldn't ride her in the school when you tried her - more laid back horses can be great out hacking but very tricky in the school when you ask them to go forward. Having someone on the ground can be helpful, but if you're still not happy, send her back pronto and get your friend to back you up about the trial.
 
My horse doesn't do canter in a school either, he just bucks and throws a tantrum - gets worse if you use the stick. He will canter though in a straight line out on a hack without any issues. I just put it down to him not physically being able to do it as he's not fit and never been schooled. It doesn't bother me too much though as I only bought him as a confidence giver for hacking and that's what he is.
Sorry to hear your disheartened and I hope you sort it out soon, one way or another.
 
I think you need to rule out any issues first, tack including bit, saddle, get her teeth checked & her back. She may be weak in her back & this is shown when asked to canter with weight. The can be eliminated by lunging as per other posts. You do need to rule out pain, which may not be in the back area. I was taught that lunging on a tight circle in trot especially on a hard surface will show up most unsoundness that may be present. Unless the horse is on bute it is very difficult to hide any unlevelness. What you do not need is for the mare to get into a habit of doing it, but the fact you have stayed on is a good lesson for her. Does she do it on both reins? And are you asking coming in or going out of a corner?
 
Okay.....so your opinions are limited then. You either need to keep plugging away and see how you get on, or advertise him for sale....either way you want him right. You couldn't sell him for any half-decent amount if he was bucking all over the place....so whichever you do long-term, the short-term solution is still the same. You need to fix this issue.

I buy a lot of horses so I am quite used to the fact that they are often very different the minute I get them home from what I saw at the sellers place. They always settle within a couple of weeks and for some it takes about a month, but they generally always do go back to exactly how they were at the sellers place.

I also sell a number of horses and I do give after-sales help purely because of this fact. Purchasers always see a different horse from the one they tried however with a bit of encouragement and allowing the horse time to settle they all have the fabulous horses I sold them.

You really do have to give them time. Just because the horse has bucked it honestly doesn't mean that once he has settled that he won't be suitable for a novice rider. Often they act totally out of character for a week or so and then they go back to how they are normally.

Don't be disheartened - I think you need to be looking at keeping him for a month at least and then make your final decision. As I say, you may have to keep him for a few more weeks anyway to get him right again and in that time you may just find the horse you went to view shine through again.
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First of all thank you ALL for being so supportive. Yes she did it on both reins. I asked on a circle the first 2 times and then in a straight line the 3rd (from walk the 3rd time) The school is wider than most so they were quite big circles.

To be honest it would cost an awful lot of money to get me back on that horse in the school again.
 
I'm so sorry you feel that way. Must admit, Patches scared my instructor when I first had her! She said I should send her back. We laugh about it now though.

I really hope the same will apply to you in this case. If you don't mind me asking, was she expensive? The point I'm raising is, that if she was, you'd risk losing an awful lot of money if you sell straight on as a "problem horse". Maybe the old owner would be willing to come to your yard and ride the horse for you, give you some hints and tips?
 
She cost £3000 so not massive amount these days, but more than I can afford to lose. I will have to send her away to be sold if the old owner doesnt keep her word and have her back. As you say nobody would want to buy her if she bucks all the time.
 
Why don't you just call the previous owner and ask her to pop over and ride the horse for you? Most sellers will do this as they want to know that the horse has gone to the right home.

I think you may be being a tiny bit rash here. ALL horses take time to settle in but they all do in the end. Your horse is no different from many others who display actions which are not normal to their character.
 
Tia, they live about 200 miles away so its not likely they will want to visit. I know what you mean by my being a bit hasty, and I do agree that I am not giving it much of a chance, but this horse is supposed to be a ultra safe and suitable for a novice. I have had horses and ponies since before I could walk and its un-nerved me. Do you really think its likely to have such a character change? If you think its possible I suppose I could fasten my seatbelt for more aerial acrobatics? (But would want an ambulance standing by!)
 
Honestly it is. My horse was a saint the THREE times I went and rode/viewed her before I purchased her. I wanted to be sure too as I have little confidence and had bought wrong horses far too many times before.

I was so scared and upset when I went to ride her and found I had this "psycho" horse. She really was very nappy and whilst she didn't throw huge bucks, she was giving me a mini warning. Same with rearing. Both feet were coming off the ground, but she wasn't going "up" high.

I was really upset. I couldn't believe it. I spoke at length with her previous owner who was genuinely as shocked as me as Patches had never acted in this way or even half way demonstrated such behaviour.

I figured that as Lucy had owned her for four years and she was only seven when I had her, that it was a big change for her to move yards, new horses and a new rider. She was clearly very insecure and confused and was showing me this in her behaviour.

Patches was however happy to walk around. It was only when asking for anything more than walking that I started to get the behaviour. This is why I gave schooling a wide berth for a month and worked on bonding with Patches both on the ground and under saddle. Lots of grooming and massages and hour upon hour of lovely hacking. She has always loved her hacks. After a month to six weeks I took her back into the field to school and the transformation was amazing. She was responsive and there was no napping.

She has never displayed that behaviour since. I truly believe that all horses should be allowed a good month to settle. Mares seem, in my experience, to be particularly sensitive to change.
 
I get someone very experianced to try the horse. See how it behaves, if it still does the same then you know its the horse. You had a witness, verbale details of the horse is binding. You can try and get your money back. write a letter and explain about the horse and your contract. You can claim via the small claims court sayying it was missrepentation as it bucks and it was not as discribed. If you put this all in writing to the seller they will take you more seriousely. good luck, You should of got it vetted, well worth the money cause they will check it for you even on suitability...
 
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