Napping help needed!!!

[Tigge]

Hi,
So I have had a new horse ( my first horse moving up from ponies) and I have been riding all my life but would still call myself quite novice and defiantly not an experienced rider as I am quite young. I have had her since February now and every time I ride her or every week she seems to get worse and worse. She now will not enter the arena or leave the yard without napping and rearing, even going out with other horses she still naps, even at a completely different pace she will nap. We have had my instructor ride her and she finds her just as difficult and many other people, she is out every day and I cannot see a reason why she is doing this or a way to stop her. I am quickly losing my confidence and my parents are angry because I'm angry and annoyed and I am just really starting to hate riding ( also because she cost a lot so my parents hate me losing intrest and confidence so quickly). Any suggestions are helpful!

 

[Leo Walker]

Mine naps if his saddle is anything less than 100%. So first things first. Saddle, back, teeth, vet check. If thats done by people you trust then you know its not a physical issue. But it really does sound like it is! Mine is a superstar! Bombproof safe and suitable me for as a disabled rider. It would have been very easy to dismiss it as him being a sod and chancing his arm. It wasnt. We got another saddle and had his back done and hes fine now

 

[Tigge]

Thanks frankiecob that helps a lot as we have had her back checked and it's not perfect but it has never been an issue in the past, but currently still looking to get a new saddle as saddle fitters are usually terrible at timing and all that so have been waiting ages and it's great to know that it might be the only issue ��

 

[Henry02]

When was the back last checked? Are you parents horsey? If not it may be hard convincing them to spend money on getting back, teeth and saddle checked. (I know of parents that won't pay for horses back and teeth to be done, as they are too expensive, but will pay to go out to shows!)

However, if they will not listen to you, try and explain what you think, and ask them to research themselves about getting things checked, and it might just help

 

[Shay]

You need to rule out pain as a cause of her behaviour first. But the timing also suggests she might just be trying something on? Most new horses / ponies go through a horrible phase after changing hands where they try to find out what the new rider will let them get away with. We used to call it the "New pony horrors" - although now we are onto horses they do it too!

You haven't said how old she is, what she is fed and what level work she is on. However - once tack, back, teeth have been checked have a look at feed against workload. Is she worked harder than she was used to before? Or not as much? Is her routine not as varied so she has gone school sour? Might she have been over competed? (Easy to do on a new horse which has been successful before). Could this be just spring madness? Is she missing something in vits & mins? Or overloaded on something? Is she barley sensitive? Too much sugar in her feed? Does her behaviour worsen with her heats? Is she a bit girthy? Could there be ulcers or ovarian changes?

The thing with horses - they are very seldom naughty just for the sake of being naughty. It can take a lifetime of experience to figure out what is wrong and for the rest of us it is trial and error. But there is always a reason somewhere.