Horse with a Traffic problem.

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Roisin_M

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Not sure if this is the right place to post this, but the same horse that I posted about a few days ago (bit problems) has another problem thats worrying me.

When he's being ridden out, he has a problem with traffic, as I know many do, except he's slightly different. He's fine with traffic that comes from behind him, and he's fine with traffic that slows down or stops for us to walk past. Its only when cars come towards him, that don't slow down, that he absolutely explodes! I try my best to slow traffic down whenever I can but they don't always pay attention, and i'm afraid that he will explode in the wrong direction one day and be hit by a car.

how can i deal with this? i thought about finding a quiet lane, riding or leading him, and getting my boyfreind to drive slowly towards him to find out what speed he starts to get bothered. I've not got a solid plan tbh, any advice would be greatly appreciated.
 
Trouble is the only way to make him confident is by conditioning ie do more of it and unfortunately, a lot of motorists won't understand what you are trying to achieve, you may also have to change your technique and ride what we call 'defensively. This doesn't mean cowering in the gutter BTW quite the opposite.

First thing I would do is wear a really good high vis jacket, not just a flimsy tabbard, you need to look like you mean business and give drivers maximum time to react. When you see someone approaching make eye contact and ask them to slow down by moving your right arm up and down. If you then move over and stop to 'reward' them they will often help you out by passsing more slowly. It would also help if your OH walked alongside you until your horse is more settled, he really needs to wear hi vis too.

Mine was bit like this to begin with, he was pretty convinced everything coming towards him was going to hit him and if it was bearing down and closing on us quickly he could spin. I quickly found he dealt with vehicles much better if I pulled over and halted (I always have a 'plan' ie a gateway/wider verge I can get into if needs be) once I was sure I'd been seen and the car was making some effort to slow down. He was more relaxed if he got a chance to have a look at stuff from the relative safety of a gateway and somebody with us on foot was great help.
 
i would find him a field right next to a busy road, or even better right next to a busy train line. a week in there will help him to adjust to traffic from all directions at little risk to your self. if you cant do that then i suggest you hack with a solid companion who is perfect in all traffic, failing this hack with a person on foot who will slow the traffic for you (and thank them) leaving you to concentrate on riding your horse forward positively. plenty of hi viz should be worn and i would hack towards the centre of the road as when at the edge of road sadly drivers have little courtesy. Good luck, try to keep yourself and horse safe.... also make sure you have public liability insurance just in case. and easier said than done be very confident, dont feed your horses anxiety with your anticipation of a situation.
 
My mare can be like this with vans or bigger especially on a narrow road. I tend to halt her on the verge for trucks, vans and then if it is a tractor, lorry will then jump off as she is better with me on the ground and will stand and shake. She is actually much better with stuff coming from behind and on wider, busier roads.
 
If he's OK with traffic coming from every other direction but in front; I'd be inclined to (just make sure) and get his eyesight checked, coz it just could be that.

Once you've checked this; then ditto all other suggestions especially getting someone either on foot or bicycle to go alongside you and give some confidence.

The other thing that I've heard my trainer say when dealing with horses who are scared of traffic, is to (when safe to do so) "chase" traffic away, e.g. actually turn the horse around and chase the vehicle along the road. This mimics the behaviour which would happen in the herd where the instinct would be to "chase away" an invader in their territory, and might help to give your boy a bit of confidence about the situation.
 
Hacking with a solid, sensible equine and human companion has done my boy the world of good. Make sure your companion rider is prepared to take the lead and stand his or her ground when it comes to oncomming traffic and that he or she politely explains to drivers that it is a young horse (even if this is not the case) who is just learning about traffic so could they please drive slowly past.

I think your idea of getting your OH to drive towards you is a good one but if your horse has another horse to learn from, you will undoubtedly find that he learns quicker.
 
CBFan said:
Hacking with a solid, sensible equine and human companion has done my boy the world of good. Make sure your companion rider is prepared to take the lead and stand his or her ground when it comes to oncomming traffic and that he or she politely explains to drivers that it is a young horse (even if this is not the case) who is just learning about traffic so could they please drive slowly past.

I think your idea of getting your OH to drive towards you is a good one but if your horse has another horse to learn from, you will undoubtedly find that he learns quicker.
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Fantastic advice.
 
One of my home breds was hit by a car (idiot driver pushed past in lane where there just was not room) and so we had to re-traffic proof him. He was spooky from behind, as he was hit from behind, but same principles apply.

ONLY ride with a rock solid horse, which needs to be on your outside at all times.
BOTH of you need lots of high vis, horse as well. I use a hat band as well as all the standard stuff so you can be seen over hedges. Bands around the horses neck are good too.
You "outrider" needs to stop/ slow down every car that comes using hand signals and by riding in the middle of the road (I'm assuming here you're on quiet lanes/ roads)
If you don't feel the lane is wide enough ALWAYS find a gateway and stand him in it with the older horse on the car/ road side.

This is how I traffic proof my babies, but same applies to older ones who've lost their confidence too.

If he was mine i absolutely wouldn't ride out by myself, it only takes one driver to ignore your hand signal and you run the risk a) of him being hit and b) him losing ALL confidence, even if he isn't hit.
 
Totally agree with getting a sensible hacking partner. We started taking my young horse out on the roads for quiet trips by himself but also with my old boy who is very 'solid'. The calmness of the older horse rubbed off on him and his first trip in heavier traffic went very smoothly. I've also found having a paddock next to a busy road really helped and I have sadly enlisted my husband to drive past so that I knew they would have a good experience with cars. :)
 
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