I've done the wrong thing... (Anyone else's horse on one tonight

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Elvis

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I got off.

Elvis has had 5 days off after his deep treatment from the physio. Today I was just meant to hop on for 20 mins and do some walk and trot work, just in straight lines.

All was going well until he just lost the plot, it was a bit noisy by the arena and quite a bit was going on but that's normal and has never bothered him before. We had a short episode where he just shot off, but I managed to plant him in the corner of the arena, quickly drop my whip and make sure he was calm before setting off again, he was fine for one lap of the arena and then he exploded into bucks and leaps, I almost came off but managed to stop him- then I jumped off.

I know I should have stayed on and worked through it, but I just couldn't. I did then walk him in hand for a good 10mins until he settled a bit. I know he didn't do it because his back hurt as we were cooling down after having done some good walk and trot work. And he'd felt good and sound. Now I know I have to get back on him tomorrow, but I'm a little worried. I wish I'd had the guts to stay on board...

I think there was something in the air today, apparently he'd been hooning around his field today, and a couple of other horses were particularly on edge today- including the usually docile riding school horses. We also had one horse come in with a horrid field injury that needed the emergency vet, and then got a call from an old livery who needed two boxes as an emergency as her two horses had injured themselves. So I'm hoping it's just today has unsettled all the horses.

Before anyone suggests that maybe Elvis isn't the horse for me because I got off and clearly don't have the confidence to own him- this is the first time since he's been back in work (3 months) he's done anything stupid. And I have regular lessons and support. But I do wish I'd stayed on, I just feel pathetic now.
 
Your biggest problem will be motivating yourself to get on again - break it down into miniscule pieces. Get on and get off again (tell yourself you are doing mounting training if you like) then on and a short walk/halt/walk combo. Repeat until you really really want to do some walk trot transitions and you will have cracked it. Don't rush him or you, that's how people or horses get hurt, just take your time and do it in small steps. And remember to breathe long and slow, and also remember (or practise if you don't already know it well) the one rein stop to disengage his hinds - you could work on that while you are getting back into it.
 
I personally don't think that getting off was wrong. If he wasn't settled and putting you at risk then getting off wasn't the wrong decision. Give him the benefit of the doubt and try another day and hopefully whatever was upsetting him today will have passed. There's no failure in getting off :)
 
Hi,

I am sorry you had a nasty experience.

From my perspective I always feel it is right to get off if you feel in DANGER, but then to also make sure you do not put yourself in that position again. So, for me, unless you either decide it is unlikely to happen again tomorrow or feel confident to ride through a spat I would not re-mount tomorrow.

Maybe if you decide that it was all due to the yard being unsettled today then you may decide it is right and proper to ride tomorrow.

My horse was too on 3 days straight lines this week after routine physio, but after the second day I realised that hacking would not be for us on the third day! I don't feel bad about this at all, it is all about risk management.

I go with whatever I feel I can live with if the worst happened. If I went hacking despite knowing he is feeling a bit fresh and my horse was injured by a car I would not forgive myself.

I did a day with a 10 min lunge before I mounted, and then did a walk on the school. If he had been injured by that then I would have lived with it, I was just trying to keep us both safe and well. We are now back to normal work - yay!

My straight line work was just 3 days because of minor physio, I don't know what your rehab is from, it sounds like it is more than a routine physio. If so why not consult the vet? There are a couple of threads live here now about turnout, rehab yards etc.

Good luck!
 
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Don't worry, I think you did the right thing. If you'd have stayed on and he'd have shot off in another frenzy, he could have injured himself again and could have injured you! Getting off and having more control from the ground was a good idea.
If you're worried about getting on, how about getting a friend to lead you for a bit and then stay with you in the school until you're confident? There's no shame in asking for help :)
 
It's only 3 days too, then back to normal work. He had the physio and vet out, X-rays done, nothing major found, a couple of close spinal processes but not KS, vet and physio both advised 5 days off, 3 days straight lines work, then back to normal. I do think it was that something had rustled him up today.

My sister has just told me she's been asked to go into work early tomorrow so can't help me with Elvis, she was going to come and either lead him with me on or just be there to talk me through it... I can't think of anyone else to help either :(
 
Honestly? There's no shame in bailing out now and again, it doesn't make you wrong or pathetic at all. Better to get off and let your horse and your horse's stress levels come down, as you did, and lead the horse around to settle than risk an accident. You really don't want a pre Christmas visit to A and E ! You also did the right thing by not putting the horse away straight away, which signals to the horse it's all over and you've given up, so much better to stay and work them on the ground for a bit longer.

We're in for some really bad weather, maybe all the horses are picking up on it, they were nuts at my yard this afternoon too, I nearly got horribly squished leading my big youngster in. If I were you I'd leave trying riding again until the awful weather has passed and the horses have all calmed down. And don't beat yourself up!
 
Sorry to hear that you had a bit of a scare today. You did the right thing getting off. No prizes for getting hurt. A lot of people will disagree with me but I use treats with my lad when we both need a bit of confidence. We had a horrible incident with a car in the summer. It knocked us both for six, and I have owned this horse for 8 years and never felt like that on him or any other horse, it was horrible. I hack on my own so had to get over it. I found hat taking a pocket of treats out worked wonders. After the incident if a car came towards us he would spin and run backwards, very frightening. Using treats I was able to focus him on me not the car. He now hacks fine again. Just wondering if you had treats and you felt him about to be naughty, perhaps standing, giving a pat and a treat to diffuse situation might help? As I said others will totally disagree but he is my horse, it's worked wonders for us and as he will never be sold its not an issue. Good luck
 
I bailed two weeks ago during a broncing fit was not very elegant and I managed to hurt my back but I chose toget away cleanly rather than have one of those awful half clinging on / off falls .
Of course it would have been better to stay on but if your sixth sense says something I tend to think its a good idea to go with it.
Yours if not a half broken horse it will do no harm .
You just need to manage it somehow .
If there a local pro who would help you at short notice ?
 
I got off last week.
We came across a field with two very lively young horses, who galloped flat out to see us, kicked out, then bolted back up the field.
Ned simply didn't know what to do. I know he wanted to be good and was fighting the flight instinct, but the pressure was too much and he started going backwards VERY quickly. There was a deep, fast river at one side of us and electric fence at the other. I got off and I don't regret it.

I think you did the right thing!! :)
 
I think if it had just been a spook or a moment, I would have stayed on, but I knew there was more coming, I think he would have settled eventually, after probably 10 mins of bucks, rears, spins etc.

Unfortunately I've got myself in a sticky situation. My regular instructor is away for a week, and the replacement is fully booked, it's a riding school and it's the Xmas holidays so very busy. I don't have any experienced horsey friends and the other liveries don't have the time/couldn't really help as most of them are first time owners that wouldn't know what to say/do when 17hh's of TB starts buggering about. I know the physio and vet want him back in work ASAP and wouldn't want me to wait until the beginning of Jan when my instructor is back...

Thanks Chan, and everyone who's said I did the right thing, I guess it's just been drilled into me that you never get off a horse, that you are safer on board and you don't want to teach them that being an idiot = the rider getting off. PS Chan I hope Ned's lameness is just something like an abscess as opposed to something more complex.
 
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Hi, i didnt want to read and run. I think you did the right thing as many others have already said. No point in harming yourself. My girl is coming back intowork and first time on she spooked and bolted. Once she had calmed a little i got off as knew she was likely to do it again as felt unsettled. It has been hard to get back on and i spent a few weeks longreining and got somebody more experienced to ride her first. Got back on today for a very short hack and was terrrifed but did it :)
Take it slowly and dont push yourself to do something you may regret. Stay safe x
 
Theres no prizes for sitting it out if you know its going to end up with you head first at speed into the dirt, unless youre a rodeo rider :-)
If you arent confident enough to climb on board tomorrow, work him on the long lines, then if he chooses to be a Twonk you can deal safely with it from the floor and push him on, reassess getting on board after a day or so working from the ground
 
I think u did the right thing getting off if u felt there was more to come.

I was on my youngster once, he bronced and I came off!! I got back on as didn't want to let him 'get away with it'. The second time he meant business, he was getting me off no matter what and I was in too deep to bail out. He threw me against the school fence and I heard my ribs crack as I landed. A trip to A&E confirmed 3 ribs broken front and back!!!

I know the physio and vet want him back into work ASAP but you've gotta do it at your own pace now and if that means waitin for your instructor then so be it. You need to feel safe again. I'm sure after a couple of rides you will be back to normal but if you need that support then wait for it. A few more weeks won't hurt him. Just long rein him until then.
 
OP, a similar thing happened to my daughter today. She was meant to do 20 mins straight line, no hills. Took my horse, friend took her horse, they live in a hilly area so kind of limited on where we could take him... anyway, we couldn't do a loop route, like we would normally do, so we went down the farm track and then turned back. Her horse lost the plot, reversing and kicking out, for his own sake as he is only meant to be walking, she got off. He's a good horse normally but he's early on in his rehab and she had a bad fall back in the Spring (not his fault) and has really lost her confidence with him, and in her riding generally, so there's a lot going on there. She got back on in the school and did a couple of circuits but I could see she was upset. She's going to go back to long lining for a while and then (in their case) I feel she should think about selling him. (Not saying that is what you should do, but my daughter has a lot of other things going on, is feeling low, is short on time etc)
 
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I think they know that the bad weather is coming. I put mine out in the sunshine this morning then went off to the running club for our xmas run. When I came back to the yard, my mare had obviously been milling around the gate and she just wanted back in. I tacked up the other day, led her out the gate and didn't even bother to get on as she was so wired and that was before a bad storm too. They have more acute senses than us, I'm sure.
 
I might try some long reining, although haven't done it in ages, so will be very rusty. My sister has offered to come up first thing with me before work and lead me or just talk me through it, but it would be before he gets turned out and we'd be on a time schedule...
 
JillA said:
Your biggest problem will be motivating yourself to get on again - break it down into miniscule pieces. Get on and get off again (tell yourself you are doing mounting training if you like) then on and a short walk/halt/walk combo. Repeat until you really really want to do some walk trot transitions and you will have cracked it. Don't rush him or you, that's how people or horses get hurt, just take your time and do it in small steps. And remember to breathe long and slow, and also remember (or practise if you don't already know it well) the one rein stop to disengage his hinds - you could work on that while you are getting back into it.
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brilliant advice :) just work through it at your pace :) Everyone has wobbles at some point :)
 
With people who get off when things get "tricky", I have little sympathy - personally I've found that if something is genuinely about to explode, you sit tight. As if it goes off when you're mid-dismount it's going to be ugly for you. You know you shouldn't have got off, and I'm sure you'll ride it out next time. Go for it. You'll win no bother (from the sound of the horse) and you'll be on cloud 9 :D
 
TrasaM said:
I personally don't think that getting off was wrong. If he wasn't settled and putting you at risk then getting off wasn't the wrong decision. Give him the benefit of the doubt and try another day and hopefully whatever was upsetting him today will have passed. There's no failure in getting off :)
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This. Don't give yourself a hard time. Just do what you are comfy doing until you feel more confident.
 
I'd say don't overthink it. Some days ive got on mine, walked 5 strides and hopped off, taken tack off and loose schooled him, because I didn't see the point getting into a situation of him exploding. I don't worry about it, next day I just hop on and ride as usual and he's fine. That's not to say I get off every time he gets loopy, I just go with my gut instinct. I'm sure some people would ride it out but I'm not perfect so I do what feels right.
 
Fingers crossed for you Chan, they do like to worry us, I can sympathise, when you've had a horse with 'issues' you always fear the worst when anything goes wrong.

And thanks KatPT that really puts it into perspective, I'll try to make sure when I get on him its with a fresh mind, not worrying about what he's done today.
 
It always makes me chuckle when advised never to get off, you have more control on board! If you cannot control your horse on the ground, why on earth would you ride it? If you don't have manners on the ground, you certainly won't when you are riding? I have a very spooky lad and if he is terrified I will get off and let him have a look at it... Certainly helps with his confidence. What if I knew he was scared, kicked him hard several times and then whacked him with my schooling whip? Oh yes, he would go mental..... If it feels right to get off, do it!!
 
Elvis said:
I know the physio and vet want him back in work ASAP and wouldn't want me to wait until the beginning of Jan when my instructor is back...
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Actually they would probably far rather you waited and were in one piece than got on a horse that was being dangerous.

There's no shame in getting off, and anyone who says there is, is an idiot.
 
No harm in getting off, the horse will not relate that to 'winning'. Why get hurt when you can avoid it? I don't normally get off as my boy is fairly saintly most of the time, and I did sit out a crazed 'going backwards' fit at a show, but I have done in the past and would do so again if I thought I was in danger and could help the horse by getting off. For example, I was hacking out my previous share pony who was as close to bomb proof as you can get, but on a very narrow, steep path she decided to take aversion to something and started going backwards and trying to spin. There was no room to turn, or kick on so I got off and led her past until she settled down, and then got back on and carried on my way. At the time I felt like an idiot, but looking back I realize that actually it was the right thing to do rather than risk her or me. It solved a tricky situation rather than knocking my confidence.
 
Well I missed my chance this morning to have my sisters help. She came in at 7.45 to ask whether I wanted to go and then showed me the weather outside, high winds and lots of rain. I decided with the winds it wasn't worth the risk. She also decided not to lunge her pony this morning as he was being a fruit loop yesterday too. Next chance is at 1 when the arena is free, will have to see what the weather is like and if I can convince my non horsey mum to come along to help...
 
These things happen, don't feel bad. My young sharp TB was being a pratt yesterday, I lasted 5 minutes and now have a broken wrist to show for it, he launched me and I stupidly put my arm out to break my fall. He careered round like a loon before I could catch him and will now do no work for 6 weeks, but we'll just start up again once I've had my cast off. I'm not worried in the slightest, ***** happens!
 
JVB said:
These things happen, don't feel bad. My young sharp TB was being a pratt yesterday, I lasted 5 minutes and now have a broken wrist to show for it, he launched me and I stupidly put my arm out to break my fall. He careered round like a loon before I could catch him and will now do no work for 6 weeks, but we'll just start up again once I've had my cast off. I'm not worried in the slightest, ***** happens!
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Ouch! Hope you feel better soon and how frustrating. I don't know how we stop that reflex ; flinging arm out to save ourselves. I did it when the horse I was on slipped and fell and I landed with my arm fully extended so that full force of the fall was taken on my shoulder. Lots of tendon and muscle damage as a result and still trying to get function back full after 3 months.
Elvis ..take care today if the weather is bad. Pick your moments so that you have a better chance of success. If the wind is too much try doing some ground work instead . Stay safe xx
 
Elvis - did you cut back his food while he wasn't working?

It might be a good idea to do so now until you have him back in proper work. Often this gets forgotten - feed should also equal work load, and during any period of rest or reduced work feed needs to be reduced too.

Though you have had the physio he may be feeling sore if under used muscles are now getting their fair share of the work.

Do 20 mins of in-hand walking before you get on so that you have the initial kinks worked out.
 
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