Help and advice needed please.

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BonBon

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Hello Everyone - Happy New Year. Right, down to business! Can you help/offer advice? My friend has a 5yr old Welsh D. She has had him since he was 9 months. He was professionally broken as a 4 year old and was good as a four year old, now that he is a 5 year old she has hit problems with him. The problem being he sometimes goes into Broncho Mode. He bounces into the air (like a deer- head up, bounces, arches his back) and quite often by the 4th bounce she comes off. This is understandably denting her confidence. She has regular lessons with him. His teeth have been checked, she has an appointment booked to have his back checked. His saddle was professionally fitted, (but in all honesty) it is probably due to be checked.

Now when he starts this bouncing there is no set pattern - sometimes its in company, sometimes alone, sometimes after a jump, once in the collecting ring and the worst case (and the first) was on the road and she got concussion.

The other thing we have is that he is overweight - which we are trying hard to deal with. He is fed a handful of hi-fibre cubes a day, and if its snowy he gets hay. Thats all.

Has anyone encountered this problem before? Did you overcome it? Any feedback gratefully received. Thanks.
 
5 is a difficult age for some horses. I have a cob who went absolutely psychotic at 5, broncing, rearing, generally being a pain. I had everything checked and considered all causes under the sun, but it turned out ... he was a sod! Luckily he outgrew the phase within about 5 months of being gently but FIRMLY ridden on, ignored the bad and highly praising the good.

THAT said, it's likely that at 5 years of age, a saddle fitted more then a few weeks/months before will no longer fit due to changes in muscle structure so hopefully the back check + saddle fitting will help. Remembered pain needs to then be ridden through, but only when you're sure the horse is in no dicomfort.
 
Thank you for your feedback. We think its probably down to exuberance, but would prefer to come through this intact!! If we knew he was going to outgrow this then we would be happier.:)
 
As you've had/are having all the usual checked, it sounds like a case of the common Kevins (Kevin the teenager...), multiplied by 10 as its a Welsh having them. Yes I've encountered it before, yes it can be overcome, it requires a lot of bravado from your friend as some Welshies love to scare their riders and get a reaction, along with sensitive and correct riding and training. If your friend thinks she's up for it then carry on and make sure she gets good advice on the ground from a trainer that understands the situation and can improve it. If she's not then sell him on, no point in having a horse that isn't right for you, he will be the right horse for someone. Regular (daily) exercise of a suitable intensity and length of time will improve his waistline and his attitude.
 
I've got a Warmblood x TB who is still having the "Kevins" through excitement at 13..... If I can stay on for the first 2 or 3 broncs, he'll get bored and stop. Get a balance strap (dressagedeluxe.co.uk do some good ones) and it should help.
 
Kevin the teenager often gets brought into the conversation about this horse! Funny you should mention him too. lol. You are all confirming exactly what we are thinking. And yes, the subject of selling him has been discussed - she's not there with him yet though. Shes still at the stage of wanting to keep him and get through this with him. The reason I asked Spider when her Welshie "grew-up" was just because I've heard a good few times that the are slow to mature. I'm not looking for a definate time scale when he will behave. (If only it was that simple.......):)
 
Our boy (1/2 welsh D) was awful, he would bronk, rear, buck, the lot. My daughter must have superglue on her backside as she rarely came off, but it was very demoralising for her. Glad to say that now, as a 6 yr old he has grown out of all of it and is frequently in the ribbons.
 
My 5 yr old WelshDxTB (who came to us rising 4 and had an expensive saddle fitted) started to buck. We changed her saddle (as it happens to a cheaper one) and all was well, (until her feed allergies kicked in but that's a whole other thread).
I actually swapped saddles with someone else whose 5 yr old Anglo Arab was doing exactly the same.
I suggest that your friend stops riding her horse until she has had his saddle and then is back checked.
 
my welsh was lovely at 4 and a real brat at 5/6. she used to really throw her toys out of the pram and really would take you on big style riding wise. i'm pleased to say at 8 she is now an angel and out on loan. to be honest i would have sold her/got rid of her but due to health issues she was turned away for 14 months as a 5/6 year old and came back amazing when she'd grown up a bit
 
I currently have a skinny mini but my previous horses were both overweight when I bought them, one I managed to get so much weight off that her story was used by NAF in adverts.

Questions to ask:
How many rugs is he wearing? Keeping them a little cooler is a good way to burn calories
How often is he worked? The trick is little and often as it raises the metabolism.
What is he being fed? You say only a little but how little? What type of HiFi? Having researched it Good Doer is the lowest calorie you can get but HiFi Lite is better if you've got a laminitic.
Is he getting enough fibre? In my experience this is why most people with fatties can't get the weight off. If you aren't giving the body enough fibre then they think they are being starved and they'll hold onto what fat they have. Feeding ad lib soaked hay is the best way to get round this. Let them eat as much as they want but take the calories out. You'll be amazed what difference this makes.
 
BonBon said:
Kevin the teenager often gets brought into the conversation about this horse! Funny you should mention him too. lol. You are all confirming exactly what we are thinking. And yes, the subject of selling him has been discussed - she's not there with him yet though. Shes still at the stage of wanting to keep him and get through this with him. The reason I asked Spider when her Welshie "grew-up" was just because I've heard a good few times that the are slow to mature. I'm not looking for a definate time scale when he will behave. (If only it was that simple.......):)
Click to expand...

Mine's 14 and still a prat at times and has been bouncing about all over the place the past 5 weeks that we've had the bad weather and he's been out of work. Don't think they ever grow up much!
 
Thanks so much for all your replies. He is unrugged at the moment to try to get rid of some of his fat. He is usually ridden 5 days out of 7, due to work commitments. He is literally given a handful of Spillers Hi-fibre cubes and a handful of Happy Hoof, so the tip about not getting enough fibre makes a lot of sense. Same as humans on a diet, if you dont eat enough of the right foods, then you wont lose weight.
 
Thanks again for your advice everyone. I texted my friend earlier and told her to check out the forum and see the answers and hopefully that will give her a bit of moral support. Its much appreciated.:D
 
My part welsh has been a pain since she turned five (this Sept). She just went into hyperdrive and if something upset her would spiral into 'I can't cope' mode, throwing herself around and being really silly. I've ridden her through it, and she is starting to settle now.

I would get the saddle checked though. In the meantime, run your hands over the horse's back. Their muscles should be soft and pliable (get the feel from a horse you know is ok). Any hard/stiff spots are a cause for concern.
 
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