Horse reared over today..what to do?

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Em123

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I was lunging my ex racehorse today and he was being a pleb, he had no gadgets Ir anything on but a saddle and bridle with loose rein.
He wouldn't go out on a circle so I litterally tapped his leg with the end of the lunge whip and I mean a tiny tap and he freaked out ran backwards, reared and tipped himself over, I managed to cut his mouth slightly by holding on to him but he's otherwise un hurt.
He was shaking so I just gave him a pat led him round 3 times and then took him in.
Did I do the right thing? I'm worried he may react like this if spooked when ridden now!
 
If he was not injured I would have persisted, if he scared himself going over backwards all well and good, just be thankful you were not on board.

I'm not one to pat them if they've been fools, i'd rather growl and make them do what they have to do then reward them well.

As to doing it when you ride, how well do you know him, how long have you had him, what have you done with him . put him under pressure etc etc. If he does go up and God forbid over with you or someone else on top there is only one sensible option and that is pts.
 
He's always been a complete saint to ride, it's so out of character for him. I think that's why i was so shocked and so was he!
 
singing dawg said:
As to doing it when you ride, how well do you know him, how long have you had him, what have you done with him . put him under pressure etc etc. If he does go up and God forbid over with you or someone else on top there is only one sensible option and that is pts.
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What!!?
 
Amymay, yes he does, only difference was the location was a field today all though I have lunged him in random places before so not the first time in a field!
 
If it was me I would carry on as if nothing had happened but be prepared for the fact that that might be a go-to reaction and be ready for it if he does it again.
 
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Do you normally tap his legs with a lunge whip? Sounds more like he got scared, reacted and the going over was no more than lack of balance and not something that he did on purpose. His being so good to date reinforces that.

My youngster went over backwards with me on her where I landed on the road and she landed on me two weeks ago tomorrow. This has actually reminded me I need to update that thread as despite being told I had broken my back and pelvis, an MRI on Friday confirmed no breaks, nothing but severe bruising.

I was extremely lucky to walk away from that. I have a bit of a recovery to bet through, but it is a serious thing and I bleddy well know that, so I would not advise you that this was a one off without genuinely believing it.

That said, i would advise that you move forward with extreme caution. As with Molly, I would get your horse checked out...he was lucky enough to have me to break his fall.

Move on gently. His lack of enthusiasm may be down to not being happy to work. It could have also been that he was needing to let off steam. It could be for many reasons, but try to figure it out and go from there.

I know Molly going over backwards was a pure mistake, lack of balance after a very bed fright and I am very much looking forward to getting back on board when I can...but I will be restarting her from scratch again, not just jumping back on.

You know him, follow your instincts but don't rush into anything.
 
OP, you say yourself that you were hanging on to him, presumably as he reared. This would have much to do with his going right over. A horse which is in the act of rearing is best allowed a free head as it goes up, as any attempt to hold him down will undoubtedly lead to him throwing his head and over-balancing.

It's unfortunate that he got a fright when you touched his leg, but I think the real problem may have arisen with your efforts to restrain him. The first instinct is always to hold on, especially if you are in a field, but if you can give some slack in the rope as the horse begins to pull back you can very often avoid an extreme reaction.

If your horse has always been safe to ride, it is probably unlikely that he will rear when ridden...if you ride him well, that is, of course.
 
I hope he is ok after his fright. I would have his back checked now in case the saddle tree has damaged it and have the saddle checked in case his landing on it from a height has caused damage.
And it sounds as if he got a fright and lost balance - certainly not a reason to think about pts.
He may have some history with legs and whips that you aren't aware of. I would be cautious of tapping his legs with a whip in while lunging, but instead see if de sensitizing him to this is possible, just so you can exclude it as a reason for his reaction. From what you have said, it does sound out of character.
 
Thank you everyone, yes all checks up to date and luckily I was lunging in a racing saddle not my usual saddle!
 
singing dawg said:
If he was not injured I would have persisted, if he scared himself going over backwards all well and good, just be thankful you were not on board.

I'm not one to pat them if they've been fools, i'd rather growl and make them do what they have to do then reward them well.

As to doing it when you ride, how well do you know him, how long have you had him, what have you done with him . put him under pressure etc etc. If he does go up and God forbid over with you or someone else on top there is only one sensible option and that is pts.
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Best advice I have ever heard. Put a shaken horse under pressure etc etc and risk the lives of yourself or someone else just to see if horse will do it again and if it does, kill it.

You should have a column!

Seriously OP...your horse had a fright and suffered a cut mouth. Something unpleasant happened and to be honest, as Angus said, he may only have gone over because you were holding the end of the line.

Give him some time to relax and start again slowly.

To even think pressurising a horse into doing something is acceptable, with the consequence being PTS is honestly beyond me.

No, you can't shelter yourself or the horse from what might happen, but to try an manufacture it is just plain wrong.
 
There is still a metal tree, or part tree, in a racing saddle. If you have ever seen one stripped down you will understand how landing on one can cause injury.
Aengus Og has some good advice. Having a neckstrap to hold on, rather than the bit is good, and be prepared to slip you stirrups and leap off if it happens when you ride. You may never need to, but it is good to have a plan.
 
AengusOg said:
OP, you say yourself that you were hanging on to him, presumably as he reared. This would have much to do with his going right over. A horse which is in the act of rearing is best allowed a free head as it goes up, as any attempt to hold him down will undoubtedly lead to him throwing his head and over-balancing.

It's unfortunate that he got a fright when you touched his leg, but I think the real problem may have arisen with your efforts to restrain him. The first instinct is always to hold on, especially if you are in a field, but if you can give some slack in the rope as the horse begins to pull back you can very often avoid an extreme reaction.

If your horse has always been safe to ride, it is probably unlikely that he will rear when ridden...if you ride him well, that is, of course.
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This has to be a first: I agree with you 100% ^^^
 
In fairness to OP, sometimes things happen so quickly, that you don't have time to react as you would under normal circumstances. As OP said, this was out of character, so she obviously wasn't prepared for such an extreme reaction from horse. I'm sure if accidents happened in slow motion, we would all take a much better course of action, than we would in what feels like a split second.

AengusOg rightly said though, the unfortunate action of hanging into his mouth, was probably what resulted in him going backwards, but I don't think OP should give herself a hard time. These things happen.
 
Just caught up with this post to say thank you to everyone who has replied, he seems fine this morning and my mum came up to lunge him with two reins for ne and he was foot perfect,
The saddle is only an old falling apart thing that no one ever sits on, we basically use it as a roller but I will be getting his back checked soon anyway.
Think it was just one if those things and it happened so fast that I didn't have time to think about even releasing his head..
Thanks for everyone's input :)
 
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