Naughty pony, advice needed! Very long sorry!!

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welsh_monster

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Hiya, just looking for some advice regarding my pony.

She's a 6 yr old welsh d mare who I've had on loan, then bought over 4 yrs, broke her in myself and never had any serious issues with this.

She's always been quite hormonal so been on a herbal supplement for this for the past 3 yrs and seems to have chilled a little with it, but never been entirely sure whether it's just her growing up or the supplement!

Anyway rode her last Sunday with her best mate, was cantering along, threw a whopper of a buck and I was ungracefully dismounted!!! She has never bucked before, has stuck a leg out as warning when tapped on bum with whip so avoid doing it as I don't want to wind her up! Hadn't done anything differently, quite often canter that stretch but not always, so wasn't anything new, put it down to being excited.

So rode her out with her mate again on Saturday, only did a brief hack but didn't put a foot wrong, was incredibly brave for her and was an absolute angel!

Yesterday rode her on her own, literally wanted to go 5 mins down the road and back. Got about 50 yards out the driveway, tractor was coming so asked her to stop and wait (she's absolutely 100% bombproof in traffic, just a narrow lane hence wanting to wait!) She danced for about 10 seconds, then span, started to trot, then canter along verge, followed by another buck, dumping me on the end of the verge leading into our driveway.

Got back on, rode her the 5 mins I wanted to do with friend walking alongside was very good, a little joggy but fine.

Started her on equine America magnitude on Saturday, so that is different but only had it twice so can't see that making a difference. Vet is coming on Thursday to check teeth and back again, have a chiro booked in a couple of weeks anyway and saddle is checked on a regular basis.

Can anyone suggest anything to help/what could be causing/any general advice!!! My first thoughts are seperation anxiety for yesterday, but doesn't explain the first one!

Sorry it's so long! And thank you if you made it all the way through!
 
Start with back, teeth tack. If thats all clear and there is no physical reason for her behaviour then you'll need to start the long process fo figureing out what is going on in her head.
 
You said shes welsh sec d, so native.. Have you had any changes in feeding? Could the sugar in the autumn (well, winter) grass be affecting her? Maybe different hay, maybe a different crop? Sugar levels in hay can vary alot..

Also, her age could have something to do with it, we had a mare who was straight forward and so easy to break, but at 6/7 went utterly nuts! Vet said it was hormones..

Their my suggestions, could be wrong, but if its not her saddle, and when the vet comes, if they say its not teeth or back then thats what i would think it might be :)
 
If all usual checks are done-

Could it be the Magnitude?, I tried different calmers on my mare, and anything with Magnesium in high levels sent her loopy, they only work if they originally have a deficiency.

Is she clipped? At this time of year my clipped mare sometimes gets a bit of static from the nylon inside her rug which has made her a bit crackly as well ( I know it sounds bonkers but she does:o)
 
Thank you all for your replies!

Rs2002- she doesn't get a huge amount of grass (very pathetically strip grazed) as she's a natural fatty and got her to a nice weight a few months ago so would like to keep her at it. She is on hay from a different supplier but it's quality is crap compared to what she used to have, but again weight issues force it! Hormones were a first thought and that's very interesting to know, as I don't think she's in anyway in pain but have to have these things checked for peace of mind etc, I'd hate to think I've caused her any unnecessary pain.

Jakkibag- I was very dubious of putting her on a mag calmer due to the reasons you have said, mum and friend have been subtly hinting I should but didn't see the need too until these events! But it wouldn't explain the first Sunday as she only went on it 2 days ago. But yes she is clipped, always had a blanket before but has a hunter this year so that is a thought!
 
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