HELP naughty pony syndrome....

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Darcy Boy 2012

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Hya everyone, i could do with some advice regarding our 5 year old welsh sec c. We backed him in october last year and turned him away. we then bought him back into work a month ago and he has been a very good boy. throwing the occasional buck which you expect of a youngster coming into full time work. The past few days he has taken to bolting, and if you try to stop him he broncs. Now yesterday when my daughter got on him he threatened to rear. he WAS on 2 feeds a day and adlib haylege, he is now on a handful of chaff and a couple of carrots and hay, incase the feed is fizzing him up.(conditioning cubes sugarbeet and chaff) he is out in the day and in at night. we have the back lady coming on wed and the saddle fitter coming fri, just to rule out everything and he had his teeth done a month ago. any advice will be gratefully received as my boy is starting to become dangerous to the point i do not want my 9 year old daughter on his back.please help....
 
A 5 year old Sec C is quite a lot for a 9 year old child to take on from scratch, have you got an instructor to help?
I would go back a step or two, get him working on long reins, re establish the basics, with help if required before riding him again, get the checks done, it may be that he has changed shape after his break.
The odd bucks were possibly a warning that something was amiss, reading youngsters and how they behave is down to experience and any behaviour that is out of character needs to be taken seriously, especially when such a young child is involved, I am sure with help you can get back on track.
 
Hya hun i have had youngsters for nearly 20 years and have done everything to make his education good. longreining, lunging he is amazing, comes straight from your voice, he is very well educated on the ground and has been fantastic ridden. Although he is a C he is only 12.3hh so not a full up for my 9 year old. in the week whilst my daughter is at school i play with him lunging longreining going for walks in the park and on the roads to ensure he doesnt get board. My daughters instructor cannot believe how he was yesterday in there lesson, last sat he were fantastic. the only thing other than the back lady and saddle fitter coming next week is that he is overpaid and underworked. we have done everything right, and had his saddle fitted when he came back into work to ensure he were comfy, and always wears a gel pad and numner.im just up against a brick wall now. i suppose tho until the back lady has been and saddle fitter im still sat wondering why..x
 
Sounds like you are doing all the right things when it comes to his education, so maybe have a look at management next. It's probably a good idea you cut down on his feed, what about having him turned out 24/7? I know it's a bad time of year so maybe put it off until the spring now but my three year old warmblood is on 24/7 turnout because she does not like to be stabled. She doesn't do anything that would immediately make you think she was stressed, she's just off and can be sharper when she's working. Your pony may not show many signs of stress in the stable (like pacing, kicking etc) but he may be feeling it and it's coming out through his work. I don't know, I just know it made a huge difference to my youngsters work when I made the decision to keep her on 24hour turnout. She much more relaxed and happy in every way.

I hope your daughter didn't get too much of a fright from this behaviour? She could be feeling tense from the previous bucking and the pony could be picking up on this? Maybe a lesson on a school pony to boost her confidence again before she gets back on him? Or do you know an older child/light weight adult who could sit on him, even just for your daughter to see him ridden and make her feel a bit more confident again? I'm only thinking through what it could be, obviously I've not seen her ride so she may be feeling perfectly fine about the whole thing!

If you have still to have his saddle checked then I wouldn't worry about making drastic changes yet anyway, you might have your answer there as some horses are incredibly sensitive to even a slightly tight or off balance saddle. And if he's coming into proper work, chances are he's changed shape.

Hope this helps, just some suggestions!
 
It sounds as though it could be a pain issue, so until he has been checked out there's not much point in having a plan. However, if it is down to bad behaviour it may be an idea to get a more advanced rider on him. It would be a shame if you daughter lost her confidence or, worse, was injured.
 
Hya LittleLegs, I have gotten on my boy, just to see if he would with me and he never put a foot wrong, i can ride him with no contact and ride him from my seat and voice aid and hes amazing, a really good boy. But i dont want to keep getting on him as he may think that my daughter is not big enough to deal with him and he may take the mic...x

Hya Orls, its not possible for him to be out all night where we are im afraid, and the facilities are just too good for us to relocate. Thank you, my daughter is not frightened of our pony, she is a very good little rider for her age, much older than her years. when he bolts she sits calmly and doesnt argue but slows him through her seat talks to him and he comes back to her lovely. Shes a very brave competent little poppet bless her. She jumps xc sj wh on her other pony, and dressage on our youngster. but i still keep up with her lessons once a week to keep her upto scratch bless. she loves her lessons...

Hya Tammytoo, i know what your saying about the pain, that is why im getting every angle checked to rule everything out before labeling him a naughty boy. i think deep down tho a combination of too much good eating and not being able to go out for the past 3 weeks due to snow may of had something to do with it. Also i really do not want to put someone bigger on him like i said previously, he does behave impeccably for me. I think its just a case now of ruling things out...

Thanks everyone. Its lovely to have others opinions, there may just be something simple Im missing. lol even after owing horses for nearly 30 years something could be staring me in the face and im missing it...xxx
 
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