Hacking problem. 5 yr old. Advice, can i lead him out?

A

amanda1788

Well-Known Member
Joined
3 December 2007
Messages
204
Visit site
ok, i need some advice. I have a 5 year old and i haven't been able to hack him out in ages as he gets himself so wound up and panicy and leaps and bounds about, rodeos until i come off and either tries to bolt usually to other horses. I know its because he's young and insecure and now i'm not helping the matter as i can feel him tensing which makes me nervous which in turn makes him worse. I have tried with other horses and he's no different. He needs to get use to going round the tracks but without him getting loose and hurting himself or someone and me ending up breaking something. so I thought about taking him out with his bridle on and lead rope, and just walking him round till he gets more comfortable about being out, as i will be a lot more confident to lead which will hopefully give him a bit more confidence and it he leaps and bounds about i have much better chance of holding him than staying on his back. What i wanted to know is this a stupid idea? its just i so want fro us to be able to hack out and i dont know what else i can try, i have had someone leading us, but it doesnt stop him chucking me off and i am a novice rider.

Any suggestions welcome. Thanks
 
Personally, I would rather stay on as I feel much safer on board than on the ground. If he's rearing etc and you've only got the reins, you can't hold him at a distance so it's likely you could easily get hurt.

Do you have an instructor or someone more experienced/confident who could perhaps hack him out for you for a little while with a nanny hors?. That may help if he's bolting towards other horses. Because of that, I definitely wouldn't take him on his own for a while.

If you are nervous and a novice rider, I really don't advise you leading him about on your own if you know he is likely to respond like that. Does he behave the same way in the school?

I would also make sure that everything fits properly, saddle isn't pinching, teeth are checked, back ok etc. He may be very uncomfortable or in pain. Also, speak to your instructor sooner rather than later. I think if you were to lead this horse out, you and he could get injured and all hell could break loose if he got away from you.
 
I always feel safer on board than by the side too.

I agree with Saskia 295.

Is there a confident friend who could ride him out until he gets used to the idea?
 
I would have to agree with saskia295 I would much prefer to be on top rather than lead in hand I just feel I would have more control.

Do you have anyone else that perhaps could hack him out and see how he goes with them, he maybe feeds off your nerves. Maybe long rein him if you can, my 5yr old is just starting to hack out and he was long lined first.

Good luck
 
I think you need to get someone experienced to hack him out for you for a while. Is there an instructor you could ask to do this? I can see why you would think about leading him out as an option, but I am not too sure it would be a good idea to be honest.
 
I have had all his back and teeth and everything checked recently and all were ok.
He doesnt rear, but will leap and maybe skip sideways away from whatever he is scared of. I don't think leading him would be as dangerous as me actually on him. As i find it hard to keep my nerves down and stay on when he is leaping.
Where as when i've been leading him to his paddock before and he's leapt about i can control him easily.
I'm not sure if my instructor would ride him out or not i haven't asked and not sure if she would.
I have tried going with other horses but he is still the same, as he just needs to get use to the area so he is familier with everything. I dont know what to do really.
 
A difficult situation because you will naturally feel nervous if you are on him which will trigger more of his fears as he will wonder why you are scared too! I had the same problem with a youngster which I bought a few months ago, I persevered for a few weeks but he upped the stakes everytime I got him out on the road so I resorted to leading him on his own in hand which he actually behaved very well with. I stuck to exactly the same route and took him out every day for 2 weeks then I started to get on him about 300 yards from home and hacked him back. I managed over about 6 weeks to increase where I got on and since then he has been fine. I do have to give him a flick with the whip now and again as he still on the odd occasion tries to nap when we first leave the yard but the difference is unbelievable.

My horse went from napping in circles to standing up and leaping forward regardless of traffic so I think it is something that you have to feel more comfortable sorting out without injuring you or the general public, and for this reason I felt leading in hand was far safer. If I had the same issues in the school he would have been sorted out immediately, but I felt he was genuinely scared and time has sorted this so good luck
 
i have the same problem, but he isnt scared he is having a tantrum! he was fine for the first few weeks then he changed on all the hacks we know, he is going along fine then, buck leap, stamp, gererally flinging himself about - today it progressed to a very vilolent buck and nearly ditched me in the road, it seems to be triggered by memory of where we go into trot or when he thinks the road is the one home! he has had, back,teeth and saddle checked and re-checked, i am at a loss as well, all i know is i dont want to hit the tarmac from one of his brokos and smacking him makes it worse.
 
So he is naughty on his own and naughty in company ? I assume he behaves in the school ?

It sounds like you have a naughty and strong 5 year old who is stamping his feet and getting away with it.

He has already defeated you, so there is no shame in getting a professional to help. If you can afford to, get someone in, or send him away for a month.

Alternatively ... on the basis that I think most horses are fed too much and exercised too little. Whatever your routine is, lunge him and ride in the school and REALLY work him. I don't mean spin him on the lunge for an hour, I just mean really make him work hard and submit to you. Then try to take him on a short hack with another quiet horse. He sounds like he needs a bit of discipline and hard work to focus his brain.
 
My suggestion would be to long rein him, BUT:
a) you need to know what you're doing and feel confident long reining, and if the horse hasn't been long reined before then you should practise in an enclosed space first (in fact that would be a good idea anyway). If you don't feel confident ask someone experienced to help you;
b) Always take someone with you;
c) Start with short distances and build up gradually, but DON'T give up and go home the minute he starts playing up, stay calm and wait til he has calmed down, and then ask again, so that the work is always on your terms not his;
d) Make sure the reins are long enough that you can get out of the way if he starts leaping around - without having to let go. And run them through loops so he can't get tangled in them.

And finally - don't do any of the above if the tracks you hack round have motor traffic using them!

hope that helps
 
My very sane 5 year old is a little worried about going under railway bridges - not surprising as they are dark and tunnel like so to start with I just get off and lead and then get back on once we are through. He gets confidence with me going first as if he can see me going past something scary first then he is not scared as nothing bad has happened to me.

Though I have the advantage of him only being 14h so I can leap on and off quite easily and it is fear rather than a tantrum!

If you feel confident leading and it is fear then go for it - if it is tantruming then it probably won't work though!
 
I am afraid to say that a young inexperienced/nervy horse and a nervous rider just does not work.

My advice would be to sell him and find a horse that you can relax on and enjoy riding out.

Horses are expensive and time-consuming animals to keep.
 
I have to say I agree with the above
frown.gif
and also with the suggestion of getting someone experienced to hack him. In fact if you can afford it, I would send him away to a professional for a couple of weeks, and see if they will come out to you and ride him out a few times afterwards for good measure.
But if you do feel you want to persevere yourself and feel happier on the ground, I do think long reining would be safer than leading, and will also teach him confidence to venture out on his own.
 
i'd start with the ground work i'm afraid.

i'd work on it in a safe area where there are no distractions until i felt confident to lead him out then i could suss out what the problem was

if its nerves on his part then i'd treat it entirely differently to cheeky behaviour.

i don't understand it when people are not confident with their horse on the ground because i've never ridden a horse i wasn't confident on the ground with first

maybe that's old school?
confused.gif
people don't seem to get the tuition from their RS anymore in this area of horse training
frown.gif
 
I agree with tracey01, it is difficult to determine whether a horse is scared or just being a brat sometimes. But I think they must be submissive and do as they are told. I agree that some1 more confident should sit on him, it isn't worth getting hurt over.

He needs to learn who is boss and 5 year old tend to test their luck the most!
 
i would personally follow the same kind of action plan that dressage-babe has suggested, if you are happy and confident to lead him out in hand then give it a go, build a bit of a relationship from the ground, do lots of walk halt out on the route as well to keep him listening to you. Altho you could send him to a professional you may find that as soon as you got back in the saddle your boy would pick up on your nerves again and revert back to his current ways. You both need to have confidence in eachother
wink.gif
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top