Do you ever get nervous about riding your own horse?

charlie76

charlie76

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Just wondering how many people sometimes get nervous about riding their own horse- I do sometimes, esp. if she is in her spooky,spinny season mode!
I know there are other liveries here that feel the same.
 
I used to - but not any more! TBH i think it depends person to person! As you know I had a nasty accident with my last horse but had always been a bit nervous.... Leg has helped me tenfold and I had TFT which cured me!!
 
i know what you mean! i have a 5yr old tb x id just been broken who thinks its fun to rear and fly leap! not good for the confidence since i fell and broke my back a few years ago! i find as long as someone is up with me i can handle the nerves but dont tend to ride on my own, not worth it yet!! i've heard of people who get off as soon as their horse misbehaves although this often makes the problem worse so they are stuck in a routine!! hard think to master though!!
 
No, I broke her myself and know her inside out. Besides she checks for traffic before crossing the road...she has a strong sense of preservation.
I do have two youngsters, though...and time will tell!
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I'll admit that in the winter yes, I was scared to get on Ty....went through a horrible few months.

My confidence is alot stronger now though and I understand him alot more which makes a hell of a difference.

Feel sorry for anyone going through that though as it's the worse time......
 
With the babies, until I know they're going to be OK in that particular situation, yes. I think it's a natural part of self preservation! And DREADFULLY at competitions, no matter how low-key! Rescue Remedy only partially successful...
 
When I first got him I had quite low confidence due to a nightmare previous horse, so when I was bucked off 3 times in a row I was a little nervous! But I put a friend on board who sat out the bucks for me and then as soon as I learnt to stay in the saddle there has been no stopping us. 4.5 years on and I can honestly say he doesn't scare me in the slightest, he's the easiest horse I have ever had, if a little cheeky at times.
 
I was TERRIFIED of my previous horse, to the point where we'd walk 100m up the road and I'd get off shaking and in tears. I felt like I'd never get past that point with him, so I sold him and bought my current ponio. I still get a bit nervous ocassionally, mainly my fears are around hacking alone, but generally he has given me masses of confidence. However I don't think I could get on a horse now TBH, sounds totally pathetic but I'd rather stick to ponies.
 
Not often unless its a competion but I've got a RC lesson tonight on my baby and I do have a few butterflies I have to admit
 
No I don't. None of mine are spooky or silly and even though I have only just started riding the majority of them after them all having the whole winter off, everyone has been as quiet and lovely as they were on their last ride in November. I only kept a couple of horses ticking over during the winter this year but I never even considered that the others wouldn't be as calm and relaxed as they always are - and I wasn't wrong.
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Yes, esp if I have had a break. This year has been bad as my girl has had quite a lot of health problems. I havent jumped for ages and the thought makes me get butterflies, however for me the more I ride the less nervous I feel.
 
Last year YES!! He made me loose my confidence big time!! But then me has also given me the confidence to pick myself up and start again - now we're flying
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I get a little nervous when he has had more than 2 days off - he becomes bulshy and stroppy and decides he knows better
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I know it's because he's got too much energy but it still makes me a little nervous
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Nope, but I was shaking like a leaf the first time I rode after my broken leg! I trust Chex with my life, and know him completely inside out. I am nervous about jumping again, but not because of Chex, just because I've lost my bottle lol. I know he'll look after me, I just need a kick to get on with it
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Yes, and I perservered as no one else was going to ride him. Now I am fine ( unless jumps are involved - I still ahve to conquer that one!). When I ahve a wobbly moment I tend to start to sing, as this helps me to breath and intern relax, as if I get tense so does he, his tenseness then makes me worse and then we go into nightmare senario.
 
no, i know her inside and out and not much she can do would scare me, she can a real brat at times and buck and rear if she wants, i did some mock hunts on her and they made me super confident as she was so good and made me realise i can handle her even if shes silly or excited
 
I think whilst your building up a relationship then everyone is nervous. Once you are comfortable together then no more nerves
 
Glad I'm not the only one then! She is being very silly at the mo which I am sure is to do with her seasons and this stupid weather!
 
how long have you had her? have you fallen off her?? i fell off mine last year for the first time and luckily it wasnt too bad at all i think this helped my confidence in a very odd way!! because she didnt run off etc or get silly about it it made me realise she's on my side and doesnt mean any harm to me.
 
I have had her since November and she has been great but durning her last two seasons she has been a bag! I haven't fallen off of her but its been close!
 
I came off my new youngster recently (he bucked me off!) and I must admit I am a bit worried about it now. I prefer someone to be with me whereas before it happened i was happy to just jump on and get on with it. It has made me ride a bit more defensively - which I needed to! TBH I am sure the weather has a lot to do with how sharp the horses are - its a nightmare!
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i dont really think seasons are really an excuse for behaviour that could frighten someone - a bit of crabbyness or sillyness is a given, the same as when its our time of the month we can get hormonal or short tempered etc. if her seasons are bad might be worth exploring some supplements that could help or talk to your vet about her hormone levels, as obviously this will be a regular occurence every year!
 
I get butterflies sometimes before things, but when I'm actually up there and doing it i'm fine. I worry because I am always on my own at the yard, and when something happened a few years ago it was awful knowing that you're on your own and helpless!
 
No my horse has never scared me even when she has had me off through bucking ha ha. Maybe i just have a death wish!!! The only time i get nervous is at comps in case she is in a nappy mood and i want to do well so thats not coz she really scares me as such
 
No not any more, as she is now 12 and I've had her since she was 4. There were a few times when she was younger, as she could put in the odd rear and lots of plunging/bucking/bunny hopping across the school!

Actually I do get nervous jumping her so not sure if that counts, but its not about her, that's about me and the jumps - as she is the only horse I will jump!

Personally I think its a very positive thing to recognise and acknowledge nervousness. Its easier to deal with then and is absolutely nothing to be ashamed of.
 
yes, I spent the first few months terrified of my new TB (I had a bad bolting incident while horse shopping) and now just over a year on I still get a little nervous and some days I just don't want to ride. But we are really building on our bond now and I am having lessons on him which has helped no end - now out hacking he is much better behaved and I am far more relaxed so he doesn't react as much (he used to spin and jog really badly - I have been close to selling him a few times).

People said that TBs were sensitive, but I hade no idea just how sensitive they really are until I got mine! On the plus side, he is teaching me to be a much better rider and after speaking to other people on the yard they told me that everybody goes through the nervous times (well, not everybody, I am sure, but I wasn't alone in the way I was feeling!) and once the trust has built up things are much better.
 
If he's in a funny then I always make sure I've got someone around when I ride - I wouldn't say I'm nervous of riding him (wouldn't get on if I was, I'm not brave!) but I'm well aware of what he can do.

The one thing he does that scares me is he seriously bucks on grass, not all the time but often enough that it's an issue. Coupled with bolting for home minus the rider it means that he isn't ridden on grass anymore because I don't feel I have the right to endanger anyone who may get in his way.
 
I have gone through ALOT in terms of nerves - I bought my first horse over a year ago now - despite passing a stage 5 he was found to have suspensory ligament damage - so the recovery involved nearly 4 months of box rest followed by restricted exercise (building it up slowly)

I had to get on my horse that had been on that much box rest as we had to be doing an hour a day walking - the first few times were horrendous and i felt like i was on an unexploded bomb - and i couldn't lunge because it is too much strain on the ligaments......

I managed to get through this with some help from friends - and we slowly built things up to the point that i was happy on a hack but terrified in the school (yes screwed up I know)

but once he got signed off from the vets i started having lessons which improved my confidence in the school we can now walk/trot/canter and generally i am ok - although i do feel the nerves before hand but once i'm on i'm ok

now he's spooked majorly once which left me on the floor but that didn't knock my confidence really as it wasn't his fault - instinct kicked in before brain did.

I do find i'm better if i keep on riding and if i have a break i feel worse - for example in my lesson last week he was foot sore so we stopped and with the weather he's had a week off - but as i can now lunge him it helps - so i'm lunging tonight and have my lesson tomorrow

a friend at the yard (who isn't frightened of anything) did say to me: " I have respect for those people who get nervous because they have a genuine fear to get on their horse sometimes, but they get on and get through it - which is far braver than me - because I don't feel the fear so I'm technically not brave because i'm not having to overcome something before i get on" Since she said that I've been feeling more confident

Infact weather permitting I will be doing a beginners equitation class this sunday and hopefully a walk and trot dressage test at the end of july - eek!
 
Yes, only yesterday! I dont get nervous on my other 2 horses. But one of mine petrifies me hacking. Probably because he bolted with me through a barbed wire fence and bronced until I jumped off a while ago and then tried to bolt again not long after so I got off and then he got away from me and bolted full pelt along the road home!! So no wonder I hate hacking him! I actually decided never to hack him again because it was too dangerous and it didnt bother me not to (I just school instead). However I took him just a tiny way down the road yesterday to go into a big field the farmer said I could ride round. He was spooky as hell and I could just feel myself getting that horrible feeling that he was going to go! I had to get off. Its silly though because he sometimes pisses about / spooks at events - like he was behaving like an idiot at the last ODE I did (we had to hack through trees to get to the XC section) but in that situation I feel fine!

Im totally comfortable with this horse an had him 4 years now. Ill merrily pop round Novice BE and BSJA etc. but hacking sends shivers down me! I cant be bothered to work through it either because I dont have anyone to hack out with and its just too dangerous to do on my own!
 
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