Bucking for no reason?

P

polopony

Well-Known Member
Joined
13 August 2010
Messages
365
Location
England
Visit site
(sorry for the long thread!)
Ok so most of you probably know I have an ex-polo pony who has been rather difficult. We finally thought we were getting somewhere and managing to start successfully hacking again (with someone on standby in the landrover)
But this morning he was a nightmare - he spooked at sheep and spun around as soon as we got out of the yard, he did another spin at the end of the road, but I kicked on and we continued. Went to the top of the lane, just before I was about to turn for home he decided to turn around and buck me off, I lost my stirrups and came straight off - unfortunately in the landrover was my grandad (he bought me the horse) who worries alot saw me fall to the ground and hurt my leg (and the bloody polly riding hat came loose again!) started ranting about shooting the 'bloody oss'! But I jumped back on and went home, came along the grass and he started being silly again, bucks, bucks, on the road, yep bucked off! Pony ran up the bloody road :mad: (thankfully someone caught him)

My fingers are hurting as I type this thread but I would love to know if anyone has any ideas of what to do. :confused: (by the way everything has been checked - back etc)

Thanks for reading :)
 
Is this the first time he's done it? Could you try to find an instructor who knows something about polo ponies and have a lesson on him?

From your past posts it sounds like you are having quite a few problems with him :(, I would say definitely get some professional help before you get hurt again or start to lose your nerve a bit :)
 
If pain has been ruled out - and I would agree with other response to recheck to be certain including checking saddle fit etc - are you able to ride out in company ?

Polo ponies dont really get experience in being ridden alone, even during exercise they are taken out in 'strings' generally with a rider on one and the rest led from ridden horse so the concept of 'solo hacking' is probably rather alien ..

Just a thought, as i've not followed your posts previous to this one I dont know the background.

Good luck ! :)
 
The spooking and spinning sound like classic confidence / napping issues.

The bucking sounds like either pain or fear, he knows he can get home if you are not on his back to stop him.

Has he got an attachment to another horse at the yard?
 
Well we've been talking to someone at a hunt meet this morning who knows a person who is a polo player and an ex point to point rider who isn't fazed by much and will ask him to ride him to see if he can control him and if he's silly with him, failing this everything will be re-checked :)
 
he doesn't do it every ride - if we go somewhere different then he becomes silly or sometimes (not as often) we go down a familiar route and he's silly again.

Unfortunately hacking in company isn't really an option - firstly nobody really wants to hack out with the bucking bronco and I also dont think it is fair for them too. The only other horse at our yard is in her thirties and has just retired properly, so I don't think it's fair to pull her out again - but saying that, even when she was being ridden with him he was silly.
 
Horses dont buck in general for no reason - pain,fear confidence,wrong feed any number of reasons - but i believe its a natural reactiion in general to pain or fear - look at every avenue - back person ( get a proper quaified back person out not just your vet - mine found a number of problems with big lad my vet didnt pick up on) a good qualifed saddle fitter a dentist speak to Nutrion people at feed manufacturers. a good qualified instructor - But could be a confidence issue - just cover every avenue possible before getting people to "sort him out" hugs and goood luck and hope works out :) xxxx
 
I'm another who would have a second opinion on all the checks, then I'd look at his diet. I'd also stop riding until I'd got it sorted out but do as much groundwork as possible, with inhand exercise to get him used to the routes you want to hack along. Can I ask was the landrover engine running close to him when he bucked? I ask because my mare bucked me off on the road as a car passed us (she was reacting to the noise) and that turned out to be because she had a bad back.
 
Maybe get his shoulders checked?
I know it's a long shot but I've had two horses that have had shoulder injuries and the vets never picked it up. I went down a different route and when I confronted my vet about it their responce was "Well shoulder pains/injuries are very rare."

Doesn't mean they don't happen though ;)

On the other hand if he is just being a bugger, I'd get a bloke to ride him through it and show him it isn't acceptable.
Vouching for lessons too, at least then you may be able to ride him through it yourself too :)
 
As crunchie1 said, polo ponies are usually worked in company - and his problem could be just fear when he's 'alone'! Of course, he's NOT 'alone' - he's with YOU - but he obviously doesn't have enough confidence in you yet!

It is also VERY possible that he wasn't backed very well in the first place - there are rough & ready idiots in polo too (they're everywhere:( ) They're usually pretty sticky riders - and work their ponies quite hard. So a change of routine, work and rider is finding out the gaps in his education.

It's also true that a LOT of trainers don't hack youngsters alone as part of the backing process - they always go out with a companion and are reliant on that companion.

I think the problem is almost certainly a training/confidence one - and a rider who will 'bully' him into behaving ISN'T going to solve the problem long-term, even if it provides an apparent short-term fix. He needs re-educating - and he needs to learn to be confident in his rider.

IF your polo player friend has NO trouble with him, then the problem may be that he is sensing a lack of confidence in you - and that's frightening him. The problem will be that you're not likely to get MORE confident, until he starts behaving. It may well be that some professional schooling for him - to include hacking solo - followed by the trainer working with you both together - may well be the answer.
 
Horses don't buck for no reason poppet. The hard part is working out why he's bucking but believe me, there WILL be a reason and it's 99% certain to be pain or discomfort related. Good luck x
 
There is never no reason for bucking. It could be pain or behaviour - just becuase we don't know / understand the reason doesn't mean there isn't one!!
You've got your usual pain suspects - this should be ruled out first not as a last resort.
Re behaviour - he needs to have trust and confidence in you to feel that you are a safe person to be out with if he has no horsey company to take confidence from. If you can ride him quietly with confidence and try not to get flustered or tense at his antics then he will slowly learn you are to be trusted if this is the prob. Start with little things that he can handle - even if it is a hack on his own for a few hundred yards away from the yard and back - que nice pats and a calm ride from you! When he can handle that without a breakdown (and you can keep calm and confident during it) then increase the distance slowly.
Getting a stronger rider is not a solution. If you feel that you are getting tense during these hacks then someone unflappable might be a good option so the horse sees the rider as someone worth having confidence in.
Def rule out pain as a first step - the horse will never ever find confidence in you and be calm to hack if he sees you as a source of pain.
 
He isnt doing it for no reason.
He should be used to scarey things being and ex polo pony.

What are you feeding him?
What turnout is he getting?
What is he like in the school?
Maybe you should stick to riding in the school, get some experineced help before you hack him again.
That way you can establish basics, get to know each other before going into the big wide world!
 
There is always a reason. Get a really good Chiro to check him over completely (not just the back but every inch of your horse)- my usual guy missed a "lock" in my boys knee for 8 months and kept blaming his tripping on a dropped shoulder. got someone else out who was recommended to me by a very knowledgeable lady and hey presto. Also get saddle and teeth done. Ask a nutrition expert to go over his diet. Find someone who has more expereince that you, I don't mean that in a rude way but it is worth doing, particulary if they know the horse or have worked with ex polo's in the past, get them to ride him and watch you ride him. can you ride out with someone else or get your Grandfather to walk with you rather than drive behing you. there is so much advice we could all offer but start witht he basics, good luck and keep us posted.x
 
Box_Of_Frogs said:
Horses don't buck for no reason poppet. The hard part is working out why he's bucking but believe me, there WILL be a reason and it's 99% certain to be pain or discomfort related. Good luck x
Click to expand...
I second this thinking. :)

Also agree with this for the 1% left.:) I include stress/worry as a physical problem myself.
JanetGeorge said:
I think the problem is almost certainly a training/confidence one - and a rider who will 'bully' him into behaving ISN'T going to solve the problem long-term, even if it provides an apparent short-term fix. He needs re-educating - and he needs to learn to be confident in his rider.
Click to expand...

I'd start with looking though his eyes and trying to work out why he is behaving in this way rather than just expect him to stop by not feeling able to express himself or he'll get 'bossed'. He really is imo trying to tell you something isn't right in his world...
 
Last edited by a moderator:
There is a lot of good advice above.

Probably the most important thing is GET YOURSELF A RIDING HAT WHICH FITS PROPERLY - i mean by the properly qualified person in a shop rather than an internet purchase. You can't carrying on riding any horse, tricky or not, with a hat that gets lose when you fall. there is clearly a problem with the hat so get it sorted!
 
as everyone else as said get second opinions including dentists and equine chiropractors rather than just the vet.

The bucking can be: fear, pain or excitement.

How many times have you come off or taken him home when he has been bucking - they are clever creatures and soon realise how they can get their own way.

Lastly I had one that would buck chronically, got everything checked - everything was fine, then by a process of elimination it turned out that she took objection to the crop and the spurs.

I hope its something as simple as that xxx
 
Loads of good advice on how to help your horse above but I really, really must echo the advice to get a new hat. Even if your one was perfect before your latest fall the fact that it slipped means something probably knocked it (we often don't notice everything that made contact with the ground it all happens so fast) so you'd be advised to replace it anyway. Good luck.
 
Hi everyone thank you so much for all your replies you've given me lots of ideas.

Firstly I would like to say I know that there is a reason for his bucking, I just have no idea what it is.
Unfortunately we don't have a school, but have used the fields for lunging which proved successful, but when I got on him he was slightly 'over energetic' to put it lightly which I believe is to do with him being in the field he is often in for turnout and is used to being allowed to 'play' in. As for turnout, yes we've got plenty of acreage on the farm and he is turned out for about 8 hours per day. He is fed a small amount of manger mix along with a hay net and lots of grass. The Landrover was far away, but he is never bothered by any traffic anyway. I had a Mc Timoney practitioner to check every area and she was fantastic, and did not identify any problems. (along with other people for teeth etc)

What makes it such a mystery is that he began napping a couple months a go after being out of work through being lame from mud fever, so not wanting to be injured I decided to build up slowly: I began literally going to the end of the street with the head collar over his bridle and Grandad leading us out. Once this was mastered and no problems encountered we upgraded to no head collar and Grandad walking besides us, again successfully mastered (apart from the occasional spin once in a while) so I decided to go (not very far at all) with no grandad, OK, and then a little further with grandad following in the landy for safety precautions fine again, then when we did the same on Sunday he started again with the bucks and spins :(:confused::confused:

As for the riding hat - a new one, fitted by the lovely lady in the tack shop has been purchased :)

(sorry for a very long post!)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top