Driving experts - has your horse ever freaked between the shafts...

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Jericho

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... And have they overcome it?

My 4.5 yr old cob has been away being broken to drive by a very professional and well respected trainer for the last month. I have been over a couple of times to see him / have a drive and he was going really well and the trainer said that he had been excellent and hadn't really had any issues. However I went this week to pick him and have one last lesson and it went a bit wrong.

Basically we drove past 2 ridden horses, he seemed fine but 30 metres on he just starting bucking, ended up falling over and breaking the (meant to be collapsable) shafts. Thankfully he got up and just stood still and didn't seem that bothered even though he was tangled up a bit. We think that he just had a nappy moment however I am now worried that this will affect his driving career. The trainer has kept him for further training to try and replicate the scenario and was genuinely shocked it had happened. I learnt a lot from the experience eg how to react in such a circumstance but it has sadly damaged my confidence in him ( not to mention a sizeable whole in my bank balance!)

Not sure what advice I am looking for maybe just reassurance that he will be ok and safe to drive.... and some stories about other driving horses who have had 'accidents' and got over it?
 
I drove my boyfs 4yo out who has passed almost every farm machine and lorry except from the turning concrete lorry. We ended up in a ditch and hedge. I just undid his belly band and he was out of the harness and back on all fours (I drive in a collar) I always carry a knife as well just incase.

As I was physically ok, as was horse we got straight back in the shafts when we got home. (accident just outside of home).

Is he ridden?

I would think of it as he is a youngster, my green 9yo goes mental (jogging neighing) past other horses and I think its just something they will get out of as they get older, if you do ride just keep going out ridden and and get your confidence back and he will get better. Other option is to go out long reining and put him back in that scenario. To me sounds like a green, novice horse. Just remember he is new to it all, plus when you drive you tend to go out on your own (as in single horse) and there are a lot of horses that wont hack on their own. So just build up your confidence and his confidence. Good luck
 
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it should'nt be a big problem now he's done that once he probaly wont do it again,
and i've always been told never take a horse out of harness for doing wrong if you have to to get him up make sure he goes back in

he'll be ok i've broke loads and this do happen
 
Crikey no it certainly was not that bad. Probably lasted 10 seconds and he didn't even look panicked.

I think Toffee 44 you have hit the nail on the head and probably just experience, his response was just made worse because he obviously was restricted by the shafts. I guess the good thing was was that he didn't really get rattled by it.

Unfortunately the shafts broke so we couldn't drive him back. He did meet the ridden horses on the way home being long reined and he did start jogging and getting a tiny bit interested.

Thanks for replies - it's helped a litte bit...
 
Whilst i would in no way describe myself as experienced in this field we did break our pony to harness. I would say that you need to go a step back and do lots and lots of long reining with a tyre behind that way you can build your confidence back up and hopefully introduce the horse many more senarios without the added hazard of your trap behind.

I agree that it is a very challenging thing to take on particularly if you are a rider and used to having your seat to control your horse. Good luck
 
I think he'll be fine. You get the odd 'incident' now and again.

I cut this little story from another forum I go on, I couldn't be bothered to type it all again. This is what happened to me.

Out having a drive with one of the horses a couple of months back. Nice little trot around the lanes where we live. As one of the tracks is covered in large stones. I thought it would be easier on his feet to go along the edge of the stubble field. Duly entered the field with the dog trotting alongside. As soon as we got into the field I flushed up a bird, the dog thought it would be great fun to chase it, as he was chasing it another one popped up starting a new chase and so on 'ad infinitum' until he was a selectively deaf speck some way off. I had to turn the horse towards him and set off at a fast trot across the field in pursuit. All was going well, I was gaining ground....and then directly in my path was two very deep tractor tracks about a foot and a half deep. The horse stumbles in the first rut and jumps out, then stumbles in the next one as he again jumps out my wheels both drop down in the first rut and SNAP the swingle tree breaks in half. The two ends with some tension hit the horses back legs. That's it he's off. I now have a galloping bucking horse with no control; I'm only attached by the shafts. Luckily we're on the home run and knows where he's going; we're heading for home. As we approach my properly I see he's heading for a ditch about 4ft deep. I waited for the very last second and bailed out (lucky I was wearing a hat). In the next half second he saw the ditch and turned only putting one wheel in it but tipping the cart 90 degrees. If I'd have stayed on I would surely been thrown into the wire fence the other side of the ditch. When I got back to my feet, I looked up to see him standing at our gate as cool as a cucumber ::) ;I walked him down the drive, checked him for cuts and put him in the field. He had a roll in the sand school and trotted off to see his friends like nothing ever happened. ??? That's half the story.

I repaired the cart, made and fitted a new stronger swingle tree. Then it was time to try out my handiwork. We go off for a quick spin around the block. I'm in front with my two wheeler, my wife is behind with her horse and four wheeler. Anyway she dropped her whip and stopped her horse and applied the breaks. The horse manages to get his leg over one of the traces. So off he goes in a blind panic. Instead of charging forwards and taking me out, she steers him toward the trees; in the hope that he'll stop.......no such luck. He runs blind into the trees and only stops when he hits one square on. By this time she's thrown out and is on the ground between carriage and horse with his flailing legs. I jump of my cart and tie my horse to a tree and run back to the scene. By this time the horse has managed to get himself wrapped around a tree with the carriage on the other side. My wife manged to get up by now and was trying to untack him, but couldn't undo all the harness as it was pulled so tight. I put all my weight on the girth trying to undo the buckle and couldn't do it. I pulled out my safety knife ready to cut the harness but couldn't get the blade in anywhere. I tried again with a bit of adrenalin and got the buckle unfastened; and he was loose. He calmed down straight away. We had a quick check over of the harness and carriage; one shaft a bit bent that's all. We tacked him and drove home. He'd forgotten his ordeal and trotted off. When we got home and calmed down my wife realised she couldn't move her hand. Off to A&E 4hrs later loaded with ibuprofen and cuts and bruises and an arm in plaster we get home.

Well, that was a fun couple of days.

The thing is,try to put it behind you and persevere. Personally I don't think you have to go back to square one, because he's 'been there done that' he needs to move on to a higher level not go back. One think I have done since the leg over the trace incident is to long reign with the reigns between their legs; just to get them used to the feeling. I always have a safety knife taped to the vehicle and have now fitted quick release shackles to the harnesses. I've never had a issue with a horse or pony having problems when getting back in the shafts after an 'incident'.

Remember, if it doesn't kill you it makes you stronger :D:D
 
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