Help with nervous/spooky horse

[Charliexponio]

So I was grooming my pony yesterday, and I put the brush in the grooming box and moved my arm up quickly, He startled a bit and he startled when ever I made a sharp movement. He seemed quite nervous, and he spooked badly when I tied him up, but I tied him to string so he broke free. I want to know any tips about getting a pony to trust you/bond. I put his bridle on and he was fine with it, apart from putting his head down.
If anyone knows any tips on getting to now/trust/bond with my pony it would be a massive help! Thank you

 

[Shay]

Most horses - no matter how bonded with you - will startle if you move suddenly where they are not expecting you. So probably the first tip is... don't make sudden or unexpected moves. Other than that - really trust comes with time and with you being a good "herd leader" for your pony. So spend time with him. Be consistent, be fair, be understanding - but not letting him walk all over you.

 

[Ponycarrots]

Agreed, horses don't like sudden movements. Spend lots of time grooming him and finding his favourite spot to be scratched. Establish the fact that you're the leader. He may like you if you're really kind and soppy with him but if he doesn't respect you as well you'll experience more problems and trust issues.
Find out his little quirks. My horse loves it if you breathe on his nose!

 

[Princess16]

I find gentle scratching on my pony's poll and withers (which is usually where other ponies scratch) works well. I also always talk to my boy when grooming him and just generally walk around the field talking to him. Horses pick up on any kind of fear/movement so try to be calm around him. It just the little things that help,you bond, be fair but firm though as he must respect you as the leader, no-one wants a disrespectful pony. Let us know how you get on.

 

[Emmangel]

Ditto the above. Also, it helps if you talk to them whilst grooming - it's very soothing. Good luck.

 

[Barnacle]

Just do whatever you did over and over - making sure the horse isn't being hurt in any way by whatever you are doing. Start off with a gentle movement and as soon as he looks comfortable, stop doing it and wait a few seconds, give him a treat and a pat. Then do a bit more of a movement and repeat. Gradually exaggerate until you are waving your arms violently. Your horse will learn that those things won't hurt him and will get over it. You can do this with basically anything a horse is frightened of - they learn quickly that scary things aren't scary if you expose them to the same thing again and again and they don't suffer any negative consequences. The flight response in horses is extremely sensitive - much more so than they would need "in the wild" - so they also very easily learn not to respond to "scary" things that don't hurt them... Otherwise they'd be spooking at everything all the time and that's a huge waste of valuable energy.

 

[Sukistokes2]

As others have said you need to desensitise your pony. Do not move slowly around. Make noises, wave your arms, jump up and down. Make sure he is tied safely or stood in his stable. You get flags and umbrellas and March about in front of him when he is in the stable. At first he will react, as he realises it doesn't hurt he will get over it. Set yourself a course up in a field , poles to cross, plastic bags hung in trees, umbrellas ( I saw a woman thrown from her horse at the start of a ride because the steward had a baby in a park with an umbrella, the biggest problem I had was keeping my horses head out of the pram) even flags. Make it fun, lots of praise, treats and pats.