I've had yet another bad fall!

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Florrie

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Getting really sick of this!
Every time I mount my gelding he bolts/bucks/broncs and throws me off.
Today he threw me off and I landed face first and winded myself.
When I went to get on him again he bucked and bolted but I managed to hang on, stop him and start working him.

I have no idea what has gotten into him. We've had the vet, back man,saddler and dentist out to check everything. He's as fit as a fiddle.

I really think he's taking the michael to try and get out of working.
He's been doing this for the past week or two.
I'm sick to the back teeth of falling off and hurting/bruising/cutting myself and waking up the next day sore.

I don't know what to do anymore. I've had every part of him checked and he's fine! So its down to a behavioural issue.

Before you say - yes I am sitting on him lightly and slowly, avoiding hitting/touching his quarters with my feet but as I'm swinging to the other side he's off!
 
Sounds like youv'e done all the right things, I hope your wearing a BP, saved me from a winding a time or two, wish I had been wearing it when I got a kick in the ribs about 4 weeks ago, knocked all the wind out of me then.

If it's all out of character it makes you wonder what it's about, about 7 years ago a girl on the yard I was at the time had Micheal Peace out to hers, he was was rather impressive, not cheap though from what I remember.
 
ouch !! have you tried enlisting a helper - someone to hold him totally still while you get on - practice this again and again until he stands totally still of his own accord. I would also cut out any feed apart from haylage/hay if its required and maybe a balancer and possibly lunge him first to save any more bruises.
 
Already tried someone holding him, Meesha. He just drags them whilst he bolts!

I do lunge him beforehand and it does help a little but not totally. He's also only fed on Haylage.
 
Florrie said:
Just Googled Micheal Peace and I might give him a call :)

And a dummy jockey? Never heard of them before!
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Like this (only maybe a cheaper version or home-made, tho need to ensure it is totlly buckproof if you do home-make)
http://www.ardall.com/

But prob would try the professional help route first and use the dummy option as a last resort(or the professional one might have access to one to hire etc).
 
If he were mine and everything had been checked out and there were no health issues I would lunge the b*gger until he was totally knackered before I got on him. If he still had a go I would lunge him again until he was knackered twice. Probably not popular but he needs to know that he can't keep doing this.

That said I would have second opinions on backs and saddles before I did this. Good luck, he sounds a charming toad.
 
How long have you had him?
Is this a new behaviour or something he has always done?
My mare used to be like this.....it was the leg going over that caused the reaction. She would catch sight of it out the corner of her eye and be off like a mad broncing mad thing!
Sorted with a set of blinkers.....
 
I had a horse do that to me when he wasn't getting enough fibre we increased his intake and he's a different horse we also had a mctimoney spinal therapist come and check him over and she made adjustments which seemed to help. Make sure his saddle isn't too low over his withers or pinching his shoulders. You sound very brave and determined if you keep going back and getting back on and the horse is still continuing to buck you off then there is most probably a problem with the horse that just hasn't been picked up on yet. xx Does he misbehave or shuffle around when your grooming and tacking up?
 
Suelin said:
If he were mine and everything had been checked out and there were no health issues I would lunge the b*gger until he was totally knackered before I got on him. If he still had a go I would lunge him again until he was knackered twice. Probably not popular but he needs to know that he can't keep doing this.

That said I would have second opinions on backs and saddles before I did this. Good luck, he sounds a charming toad.
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Agree totally. People sometimes forget horses can do this sort of thing because they've learnt how to get away with things, it's not because they're in pain; it's because they're toe rags and devious. Work the beggar til he begs for mercy then work him some more.
 
I completely disagree with those who say he's taking the mick. Horses don't do that! He is showing classic signs of a pain reaction. Horses do not bolt to be naughty or for fun. It is a fear response. I wold have him scoped for gastric ulcers and xrayed for kissing spines. Just because you have had his back checked does not mean he does not have KS or sacro illiac pain. My horse had ten spines touching or fused, and two vets, a chiro and a physio all checked his back and said he was fine.
 
Maesfen said:
Agree totally. People sometimes forget horses can do this sort of thing because they've learnt how to get away with things, it's not because they're in pain; it's because they're toe rags and devious. Work the beggar til he begs for mercy then work him some more.
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I have never, ever, in all my years of dealing with schoolers and "problem" horses had one that doesn't behave the way it does for a reason. Find the reason and you find the solution. If you can't find the reason (because you don't know who did what to the horse before you had him), then you need to use some ingenuity, maybe some professional help - vet/physio/saddle fitter etc - and probably some patience.

If a horse is a "devious toerag" then some human has contributed to making it that way. "Work the beggar til he begs for mercy then work him some more." Sheesh.

OP I think you need to go back to square one with this horse and eliminate every possible thing, and if he is physically A1 then I would reback him from scratch.
 
Horses are not devious only humans are, remember that he can't speak out like you and I and he is trying to tell you in his own way that something is causing him discomfort chances are he has given you little signs during grooming or tacking up but like the majority of people you don't think too much into it which is understandable but because those signs have been ignored the behaviour gets worse because by then has to resort to screaming it at you. Does he shuffle around when you groom a certain area or lay his ears back or try to bite you or back off when you put the bridle on or get uptight when putting the saddle on or tightening the girth.
 
I've had him approx 3 months.
I've had him scoped for ulcerss and x-rayed for KS too.

He does shuffle when I girth him up and he isn't keen on having it too tight so I girth him up slowly.
He is an ex racehorse and has been out of it for 2 years, he has only done slight schooling and hacking.

This is new behaviour, I am totally rebacking him from scratch and he's been coming on so well.
 
Cold Backed? Have you changed anything different at all, such as a new numnah or girth? Have heard of people having severe reactions with some synthetic/sheepskin pads x

Edit.. Does he hunch or dip his back when saddled/girthed/mounted?
 
Florrie said:
I've had him approx 3 months.
I've had him scoped for ulcerss and x-rayed for KS too.

He does shuffle when I girth him up and he isn't keen on having it too tight so I girth him up slowly.
He is an ex racehorse and has been out of it for 2 years, he has only done slight schooling and hacking.

This is new behaviour, I am totally rebacking him from scratch and he's been coming on so well.
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You say this is new behaviour (last two weeks)? What prompted you to having him xrayed for KS and scoped for ulcers?
 
Agree with rowreach entirely. I'd want a second opinion on everything. And double check its not something small but different. Eg a thick pad when saddle fitted without, girth rubbing etc. And what's he like for another rider? Have you tried different ways of mounting, eg a leg up? And assume you are using a mounting block, so no possibility its the saddle twisting when you mount? Sorry if thats all been done. If a vet can't find anything I'd try a bute trial, & if necessary something stronger to rule out physical pain.
 
If there is any pain then you could try a course of Bute to see if that helps. If this does help then theirs a pain element to it and you have to find out where.

Bolting etc is running away from something which has to be dealt with.
 
You could try a girth sleeve and make sure he's got a good saddle pad something thick like sheepskin that warms his back, make sure he's had some fibre at least an hour before you ride him and try not to let him get cold, wet and hungry lol. do you use a breastplate that way you might not have to girth up as tight as you normally would, again make sure that you can get a few fingers down the front of his saddle when its girthed up so that you know its not restricting his shoulders and you could try girthing up on the 2nd and 3rd girth straps to lift the front up a bit to be sure.
 
Wagtail I had him scoped a fair bit ago because I know what ex racers are like for ulcers and also the fact he was fussy about being girthed, then that prompted me for X Rays for KS too.

I mount him from a mounting block but I'm too petrified to get a leg up incase he bombs off!
Funny thing is about a week ago he threw me then stood still perfectly for me to get on again, didn't bat an eyelid.

I have lunged him to death and that helps a lot, hence why I think its behavioural since we have ruled out no physical pain. When he's been lunged for 45 mins or so when I get on he will sometimes do it and sometimes will not.
 
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Just a thought, but do you have a strong contact when you mount? I'm not accusing you of socking his mouth etc. But if his habit of tanking off etc has gradually got worse, its possible that you have gradually got in the habit of getting on with a greater contact. And while that might not be an issue on most horses, if he knows little except racing, he may be interpreting the initial contact as a signal to go.
 
If he's not fit then lunging him like that will just make him sore and cause more problems, we have an irish tb who we bought as a project and as soon as you sat on him he would jerk and get uptight and sometimes buck and then he would sometimes stop dead and go stiff and then take leap forward and explode, the mctimoney person just told us that he had a conformational fault caused by people trying to school him from the ground ie lunging him in tight circles in gadgets until he was exhausted and then whipping him when he tried to submit. we used to lunge him to take the edge of him but he would just go round like a maniac and it made him easier to mount but in the longrun it made him sore. He is really flinchy around his girth area so we put a girth sleeve on his girth and he was overdeveloped on one side hence the thick pad and 2nd and 3rd girth straps, He also gets really flighty and uptight when he isn't full enough or when he gets cold so we give him chaff at least an hour before we ride him and since we made those changes he's been a darling.
 
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