Eugh Another New Horse Thread!

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loverly

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Ok I know what most of you are going to say... "She hasn't settled", "Give her more time" etc..etc..

BUT what I'm asking is what would your next step be?

Background:
Bought a 4 year old mare almost 2 weeks ago and already she's tried to kill herself :eek: Has been broken then turned away.

For some reason I cannot get the video off of Facebook so I'll link you to a video a friend made http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Zs1Ja7wtZI&list=FLNelgZGA6z-TWaXiZ6HftaA&index=1&feature=plpp_video
She's on at 1:50 (iron grey mare loose in the school)
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The drop she fell down which is about an 8ft drop with barb wire. Luckily she only has superfiscial injuries as I was expecting a broken leg. She landed on her side right by the tree stump, got up and tried to jump back into the school which she couldn't as there is fencing. She then collapsed and rolled into the road where she winded herself but got up quickly. After a lot of tlc and sudocrem she went out into the field and trotted around only marginally lame. She has been rather stiff the last two days but it's getting better and the only swelling is on her knee.

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Back lady is coming on Friday and she'll need at least a couple weeks off. But she's lost all trust.
 
What does the owner hope to achieve with the chestnut bronking round the school like that and why was the grey mare loose with whatever it is on her back which looked too far back to me but hard to tell in the video.

Both look like accidents waiting to happen and completely avoidable. I am almost but not quite speechless.
 
FfionWinnie said:
What does the owner hope to achieve with the chestnut bronking round the school like that and why was the grey mare loose with whatever it is on her back which looked too far back to me but hard to tell in the video.

Both look like accidents waiting to happen and completely avoidable. I am almost but not quite speechless.
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I can only comment on my horse who's the grey. She had a roller on and took off when I tried to catch her to do it up tighter.
 
Put tack on in the stable with youngsters until you are absolutely sure they are accepting of it. I would leave her be for a while and then start again but in the stable.
 
Goodness me, I would suggest you purchase 'Foal to Five Years' and read it carefully.

Never out a roller on without a breast girth, unless you want it to turn into a bucking strap.
 
I just watched the video, is that when she fell? Is there nothing in front of that fall except some ruddy bushes? I am horrified by that video quite honestly, young horses who should be having a good start to their education are exposed to all manner of hazards which could very easily be avoided. The chestnut for example, why on earth was he set loose with that thing on his back with obstacles in the arena he could have injured himself on. You should get them used to weights on their back under controlled circumstances only - does anyone there know what they are doing? I am not surprised your poor mare has lost all trust, I would be packing my bags if I was her!
 
loverly said:
Please don't scream and shout at me! In hindsight it was a silly thing to do BUT I was with my instructor who suggested it...

Post and rail fencing and a hedge behind it.
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I don't see any post and rail in front of that hedging and I would be sacking that "instructor"
 
Next step: Turn her out in a field with safe fencing.
Then: Make friends with her again.
Then: send her away to somebody good at backing horses.
Then: follow her there for follow up lessons.

I hope she's OK after that fall. :(
 
I would get a new instructor and stop associating with the person who made the video. To me that video is sickening and listening to folk laughing in the background at that chestnut is appalling. It's not funny and why anyone would want to make a video like that and put it on YouTube is beyond me. It's just the wrong attitude. I see far too many horses being "loose schooled" which is really code for chased around schools in a pointless manner. I do not see the point of it at all. It's not how I was brought up to work with horses

I don't mean to make you feel worse than you already do but I feel it needs said.
 
loverly said:
It's a livery yard and since the livery and riding school has been running on a marine base (and owned by the marines) there has never been an incident like this.
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personally I don't care if it is owned and run by Spongebob Squarepants - not being able to foresee such an accident is pure folly at best. The mare is lucky to be alive and the shame of it is she looks such a lovely sort.
 
HBM1 said:
personally I don't care if it is owned and run by Spongebob Squarepants
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Sorry this did make me chuckle! :D

But on a more serious note, I think the yard is bloody lucky something like this hasn't happened before, especially with what appears to be absurd backing methods in the video.

What happens if a rider falls off at that end of the school, do they fall 8ft, hit a tree stump and roll onto the road? I doubt a person would walk away from an accident like that.
 
HBM1 said:
personally I don't care if it is owned and run by Spongebob Squarepants - not being able to foresee such an accident is pure folly at best. The mare is lucky to be alive and the shame of it is she looks such a lovely sort.
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As above - i am speechless too - that should never have happened, and as for the chestnut, well, i really don't know what to say, so will say nothing.

As others have said, give her some time off, start again quietly making friends with her again, then find someone DECENT to start her riding, and have lessons with them on her.

She looks lovely, i hope she's ok
 
Your youngster must've been seriously panicked to run through a hedge like that. Really...really not good. She should be calmly accepting tack in a controlled environment. You're lucky she wasn't killed and truthfully she deserves better care.
 
The thing this makes me think of is the thread about are we producing unridable horses. No. Uneducated riders are being produced who are then trying to produce youngsters like this. The knowledge is clearly not there, and my thoughts are backed up by the op expecting to be told it happened because the horse hasn't settled in etc. It's nothing to do with her being new it's completely due to the wrong handling.

I feel bad for you op because this thread is going to hurt and it's not fair in a way because you have obviously received poor advice but please take heed. Richard Maxwell's train your young horse and a new instructor would help you a lot. That mare looks a lovely type.

When working with a youngster you really don't want it to buck or rear. You want it to be completely accepting and happy of every stage.
 
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FfionWinnie said:
The thing this makes me think of is the thread about are we producing unridable horses. No. Uneducated riders are being produced who are then trying to produce youngsters like this. The knowledge is clearly not there my thoughts are backed up by the op expecting to be told it happened because the horse hasn't settled in etc.

I feel bad for you op because this thread is going to hurt and it's not fair in a way because you have obviously received poor advice but please take heed. Richard Maxwell's train your young horse and a new instructor would help you a lot. That mare looks a lovely type.
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I thought that too I am a bit hot under the collar to tell the truth that video with that music like it was funny people laughing at lovely young horses having bad experiances that may affect their whole futures .
 
I have to admit I have been harsher in my tone because even AFTER the mare went through that stupidly inadequate "fencing" there is a complete lack of acknowledgement of any wrong-doing as an owner by the OP. Not only this but we are shown a video of such awful horsemanship, as if it is acceptable. I really do hope you do learn from this OP, stop listening to complete idiots when it comes to educating your lovely mare and move to a proper yard where you really will get good advice. Honestly, if I had bred this mare I would be heartbroken at seeing this. All you can do to rectify it is learn by it and protect your mare from these horrors in future. It is your responsibility to do so.
 
montysmum1 said:
As above - i am speechless too - that should never have happened, and as for the chestnut, well, i really don't know what to say, so will say nothing.

As others have said, give her some time off, start again quietly making friends with her again, then find someone DECENT to start her riding, and have lessons with them on her.

She looks lovely, i hope she's ok
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This - I'm stunned. First at this being some way of backing horses, but mostly that it's filmed and posted on you tube as some sort of entertainment. Please get your mare out of there and to somewhere that will bring her on slowly and correctly as she deserves. And take the chestnut too if you can - poor thing. :(
 
Goldenstar said:
I thought that too I am a bit hot under the collar to tell the truth that video with that music like it was funny people laughing at lovely young horses having bad experiances that may affect their whole futures .
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Yes I agree. I switched off after the mare went through the fence as I couldn't stand it.

I know I bang on about RM all the time but I was recently confused in his book where he said he used to say never use a dummy due to the damage he had seen done with them. It all becomes clear now. (he went on to say in some situations and very careful use was ok, obv not like that vid!).
 
I have not asked to be underscrutiny of what I did - I have ALREADY admitted it was a silly thing to do in the first place. No one envisaged her running through the fence and hedge, if we could all see into the future we'd all change things we've done.

I was under the instruction of my riding instructor who is fairly well known on the BSJA circuit - so I trusted her judgement.

I asked for everyone's opinion on what you next step would be, not what I should and shouldn't have done.

Please if you are going to drill into me anymore, don't - I've already read 3 pages of it.
 
loverly said:
I have not asked to be underscrutiny of what I did - I have ALREADY admitted it was a silly thing to do in the first place. No one envisaged her running through the fence and hedge, if we could all see into the future we'd all change things we've done.

I was under the instruction of my riding instructor who is fairly well known on the BSJA circuit - so I trusted her judgement.

I asked for everyone's opinion on what you next step would be, not what I should and shouldn't have done.

Please if you are going to drill into me anymore, don't - I've already read 3 pages of it.
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Your next step should be to get her out of there quickly before any more damage is done either physically or mentally. Good luck.
 
My only peace of advice would be: Don't do or let anyone else do anything with the poor mare and try to sell her to an experienced home asap. Anyone who thinks the behavior shown in this video, not only your mare but all the horses shown is acceptable, shouldn't be allowed to have another living, breathing animal under their supervision. I'm sorry if this sounds harsh but these horses are going to end up being labelled as 'problem horses' if this kind of behavior is allowed to continue!
 
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