Horse went crackers on 'pleasure ride'.

badgerdog

badgerdog

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Had a disastrous day. I've had my horse since Christmas and apart from being slightly nervous of traffic he has been fantastic. He's a 7 yo TB X Connie. Took him to a cross country competition a few weeks ago and I couldn't have asked for more, he was well behaved, we got a clear round and we went round at a good steady pace.
However, I took him on his first pleasure ride today and he went a bit crackers. The first half hour was ok, we jumped a few logs and although he was on his toes he was controllable. There were a lot of horses around and then out of nowhere he went up in the air and then bucked throwing me clean out of the saddle. I wasn't hurt particularly but I was so upset and was frightened of a repeat performance so I returned to my trailer. Once I got back on him and walked back with my friend he was fairly calm and I felt ok on him. He has never bucked or reared ever before, it seemed so out of character.

Do you think the pleasure ride was all a bit too much for him? I'm quite happy not to go on any more as I prefer to do local competitions anyway.
Or maybe it was the spring grass?
What do people think?
 
Think it was prob combo of both ours are all bit mad on spring grass atm, maybe you could do a smaller scale pleasure ride next time?

Good luck!!
 
I do loads of sponsored rides and my horse is an absolute saint but gets so wound up on them- it normally takes me a good 6 miles before he finally calms down enough to just walk - its just there are so many other horses and open spaces and it winds them up! Dont worry just pick your time as the earliest or latest and avoid the busy periods next time till he gets more used to them.
 
I took my connie on a sponsered ride when he was 5yrs, he totally lost it, jogged for 7miles reared and lunged forward twice, when I got off him at the refreshment stop at the 7 mile point he wickered at me as if he hadn't relised I was with him! his fieldmate might as well not have been there, at home he wont lead, on the ride he lead all the 10 miles. The whole ride was not fun as far as I as concerned, I really didn't know what he was going to do next. My first and last with him I must admit.
 
I took my sane, calm, beautifully mannered horse on a sponsored ride for 'Help the Heroes' last July. My horse went bonkers (despite being used to seeing plenty of other horses at local shows etc). At one point he was backing uncontrollably into the Household Cavalry who had turned up to support the ride!
He did calm down after about 6 miles and I wouldn't be put off doing one again but I would be a bit more prepared to expect the unexpected!

Actually I did consider throwing myself off the horse as he backed into the Household Cavalry as I thought there were lots of very handsome soldiers who could come to my rescue!!:rolleyes:
 
I do think sponsored rides and pleasure rides tend to blow a lot of horses brains. The last one I took my old mare to I don't believe we walked a single pace. We either jogged (forwards or sideways) or cantered at walking pace the whole way round, got her tongue over the bit and was generally a total pillock. I felt like I'd ridden a pneumatic drill by the end of it. Don't despair I think your horse was just so excited he 'forgot himself'

As Mrs M says have a hot choccie and don't worry too much :)
 
I love pleasure rides on my own! With a group my horse is just stupid!

I also enjoy being on my own with my horse.

So, if I have to, I set off with a group and let them go ahead very quickly so my mare doesnt become attached. Then she settles and I have a nice ride. But she will jump better on her own and I would say if your horse needs a lead then it is not as easy to go alone.
 
i wouldn't worry...i DETEST 'fun' rides...they are anything but...i think it takes a saint of a horse to not get wound up by them- especially if you are in a group and are starting and stopping all of the time. i avoid them like the plague and do farm rides (on my own!) instead :D
 
0ldmare said:
I do think sponsored rides and pleasure rides tend to blow a lot of horses brains. The last one I took my old mare to I don't believe we walked a single pace. We either jogged (forwards or sideways) or cantered at walking pace the whole way round, got her tongue over the bit and was generally a total pillock. I felt like I'd ridden a pneumatic drill by the end of it. Don't despair I think your horse was just so excited he 'forgot himself'
Click to expand...

^^^ This ^^^

I don't do sponsored / fun / pleasure rides with my horse, it's a recipe for disaster with him. He's a big ex-hunter (who doesn't think arthritis is a good enough reason to have retired him from hunting!) and he just doesn't "get" fun rides. He is used hunting where he keeps up, stays up front, jumps, gallops etc etc and he just cannot understand why groups of horses on fun rides over take him, why he isn't allowed to gallop off with them, and why he isn't allowed to catch up to groups he can see in the distance miles away. I've tried him a couple of times and I'm afraid I'm now just sticking with XC and HT!! He's fabulous when you get him on a XC alone but he can't cope with fun rides. He jogs, throws himself around, bucks, does mini rears, spends miles throwing his head up and down making us both dizzy, plants himself and shakes like a leaf, spins in circles, runs backwards... it's just not fun!

I would try a very quiet fun ride, try to go at the end of the day (last horse) so you aren't being overtaken and it's quieter. I tend to stick to things like Somerford's farm ride which is open all year round, so there aren't 200 horses trying to get around it in a day. We did Somerford last autumn and only saw one other group of horses, which he wasn't really bothered about. It's much more civilised than a fun ride.
 
I loved doing sponsored xc rides with my 17hander,even tho he was under dubious control for the first few miles. Prob is that even if you are in control, the small child on a popping eyed welshie with their hands practically at the bit rings is not as they hurtle past you (ripe oil seed rape makes a good brake if all else fails I observe)

But my YOs rescued ex racehorse spent the entire 13miles at a sideways canter (even when overtaking other groups), and she never took him on one again......theyre not for all horses!
 
Sounds like excitement or stress from the situation to me. Nothing unusual. As others have said most horses get wound up on rides
 
lachlanandmarcus said:
popping eyed welshie with their hands practically at the bit rings is not as they hurtle past you (ripe oil seed rape makes a good brake if all else fails I observe)

......theyre not for all horses!
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I laughed at that - I'm no child but I've been on that pop eyed welshie at a ride and what stopped us (me!) was a field of wheat. Every time it touched his belly he leapt sideways (further into the field, muppet). I came off on the third leap and he was caught a mile away. How embarrassing. We went on one more ride and he ended up being surrounded by my friends horses just to stop him, after that we decided it was no pleasure.

I used to ride my friends horse instead and he was a saint by comparison.....
 
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