Horse threatening to buck in trot

It sounds as if she has been sold on because she was displaying undesirable behaviour and not simply too forward, this is what many would term a project horse requiring a full rehab/ reschool plan with a decent pro to assist along the way.
She may be in pain that did not show at the vetting, it may be in part the feed/ routine/ tack you are using or numerous other things, going back to basics and ruling out things by trial and error will be the way forward but it will take time, patience, a clear plan and possibly plenty of cash if there is an underlying physical cause.
 
Katiesmum said:
When I tried her she went from a really bad trot straight Into not even canter just taking off I would describe it, she's always anticipating any transitions above a walk like she just wants to go
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What made you decide to buy her if she went so badly at the trial? What was your original plan to improve her?
 
OldNag said:
It is not unknown for horses with a physical issue causing pain to be doped - hence taking bloods which can be run later if this is suspected.
Not saying this is what has happened here, but it does go on.
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Tell me about it, I bought one who had been buted up to the eye balls and she even gave me 6 bags of chaff and nuts all laced with bute!! So yes it most certainly does go on and this was a dealer who was well recommended on here!
 
Katiesmum said:
I agree! But she also done it with the trainer last night
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Just because a trainer is on her doesn't means she will suddenly be fixed.

I would get a physios out to just to give her the once over the just build a re schooling plan.


Spend a lot if time in walk establishing buttons, relaxing etc then as for small trot transitions a few stride and back down to walk again.

This will take months of work and to be honest if you knew she needed re schooling when you tried her then I don't see a problem.

The new saddle could be a good fit but she is now using muscles she hasn't used before. This could amke her sore.

Just take it slowly, maybe look at the TRT Method.
 
Bucking in trot was the sign of SI issues in mine - although it's taken longer than it should and multiple vets to get to that answer.

She walks nicely under saddle and looks sound in trot on the lunge but add the weight of a rider and it gets harder for her. She just used to refuse to trot but if you insisted then she'd buck - big.
 
My last pony came to me as having done dressage with a former owner. However she had been off for some time after stifle problems, came sound and restarted work after several years. When I first had her if you asked her to just jog on very gently, she immediately stiffened, put her head up and shortened up. Felt very unstable and like riding a jackhammer. Turned out her most recent riders had been children who couldn't really ride and must have swung on her mouth. Once we taught her to relax and stretch down she improved massively but it took time. This poor horse sounds to have had a much worse experience. Be patient, lots of work in walk just getting her to relax and trust you.
 
Don't disagree with any of the above, but consider the possibility of ulcers made worse or started off by the stress of moving, she sounds like a stressy horse.

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I'm going with "all of the above" in the sense that it sounds as though this horse isn't established under saddle and is tense. Your groundwork progress sounds great, so why not use this as the foundation for a new start? Take everything back to basics.

I too don't consider new saddle + bucking a coincidence. I've long given up pretending to understanding the saddle preferences of horses. I have had horses unhappy in a "perfect" and very expensive saddle that everyone and their dog agrees is perfect, only to relax and turn into a magical dressage unicorn in a cheap saddle padded out to "make do" ... They do have preferences. One of my mine will not tolerate any shoulder tightness, whereas another couldn't give a stuff if you squish her into a tight saddle so long as the panels sit nicely at the back. Go figure.
 
ycbm said:
Don't disagree with any of the above, but consider the possibility of ulcers made worse or started off by the stress of moving, she sounds like a stressy horse.

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This. When my horse has ulcers it started off with bucking in trot then just became worse and worse. I was quietly reading this thread thinking this and thought I would back up YCBM
 
I was struck by the wording 'threatening to buck' not 'bucking'. If you video a horse with hind gut ulcers/acidosis they'll sometimes do a kind of kicking upwards towards their bellies if you ask them to trot. On board, it feels like they are threatening to buck, but on video it looks more like they are trying to kick at a sore belly while also attempting to move forwards as they've been asked to. And I've had one who did it ridden but not on the lunge, where the vet could see nothing at all wrong with him. Stomach ulcers, as opposed to hind gut, are fairly likely to show as irritation at being girthed, particularly when it's tightened on the right, or when the right leg is applied for an aid to turn right. They can have both.

If you do suspect ulcers I would suggest that you buy ranitidine from eBay where it's legally available cheap in big amounts, and give her between 36 and 48 75mg pills twice a day for two days. Depending on how big she is, you're aiming for somewhere close to 6.6mg per kg bodyweight. It's a safe drug for horses and it is legal to dose your own (but no-one else's) this way.

It's my experience that within two days the behaviour will reduce right down if it's caused by sore guts, then you'll know what you need to tell the vet, because that won't cure them. Or you could just get her scoped, but that won't necessarily show up hind gut ulcers or hind gut acidosis, which is why I prefer to test by acid suppression. Some vets will sell you omeprazole for the same purpose and not insist on scoping.

Hope that helps.
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I would wonder if the horse was actually sound?

But, aside from agreeing with much of what’s been said, you don’t really give much information.
 
ycbm said:
I was struck by the wording 'threatening to buck' not 'bucking'. If you video a horse with hind gut ulcers/acidosis they'll sometimes do a kind of kicking upwards towards their bellies if you ask them to trot. On board, it feels like they are threatening to buck, but on video it looks more like they are trying to kick at a sore belly while also attempting to move forwards as they've been asked to. And I've had one who did it ridden but not on the lunge, where the vet could see nothing at all wrong with him. Stomach ulcers, as opposed to hind gut, are fairly likely to show as irritation at being girthed, particularly when it's tightened on the right, or when the right leg is applied for an aid to turn right. They can have both.

If you do suspect ulcers I would suggest that you buy ranitidine from eBay where it's legally available cheap in big amounts, and give her between 36 and 48 75mg pills twice a day for two days. Depending on how big she is, you're aiming for somewhere close to 6.6mg per kg bodyweight. It's a safe drug for horses and it is legal to dose your own (but no-one else's) this way.

It's my experience that within two days the behaviour will reduce right down if it's caused by sore guts, then you'll know what you need to tell the vet, because that won't cure them. Or you could just get her scoped, but that won't necessarily show up hind gut ulcers or hind gut acidosis, which is why I prefer to test by acid suppression. Some vets will sell you omeprazole for the same purpose and not insist on scoping.

Hope that helps.
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I’d just be careful about purchasing drugs off eBay, there is no guarantee that they are what you think they are, and aren’t fakes - a lot are, as there’s no method of policing them.

Also buying large amounts of human drugs to give to a horse isn’t necessarily legal, it is illegal for a pharmacist to sell you these human meds to give to an animal against their product license, and illegal for a vet to supply them as it is in contravention of the cascade. Aif the drugs are coming from abroad via eBay or other sites, this is usually illegal.

Finally, there is an exemption for owners to undertake minor medical treatments, and it would be arguable that treating ulcers, etc is not a minor treatment?
On the flip side it’s very unlikely to get you in trouble, but thought I’d just put the opposite argument across
 
It is legal to treat your own horse but no others. It is legal to give your own horse ranitidine. It is legal for a vet to prescribe ranitidine and they often do. It is legal to import ranitidine, it is not delivered under any false pretences, false declaration, plain wrapper like Abler products. It works as a 48 hour test of behaviour change about which to consult a vet, which was what I suggested.

It's generic Zantac, properly boxed and labelled, shipped from a long standing reputable supplier within the UK, an off the shelf medicine that requires no input from a pharmacist, probably made in the same factory as Zantac.

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ycbm said:
It's generic Zantac, properly boxed and labelled, shipped from a long standing reputable supplier within the UK, an off the shelf medicine that requires no input from a pharmacist, probably made in the same factory as Zantac.
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Manufacturers of Zantac and most generics have issued recalls so shouldn’t be available to buy online atm.
 
Good saddlefitters are few and far between. A friend got a saddle made my a company allmeasurements taken and fitted. Within a few days she could tell it wasnt right. They first of all refused anything was wrong. She got her physio out and she said the saddle is terrible. She got a report and eventually her money back.

Have you got any pictures for us to help you with.
 
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