New horse bucking

[Dumbo]

I bought an 11yo cob from from the field last month. He'd been out of work for a year but previously been in a riding school and then owned privately as a riding club horse.
I was told he went sour as a riding school horse and can Buck when he's excited.
Lovely temperament, saw videos of him ridden so I took the risk and bought him.

I lunged him the first week. He'd buck when I flicked the whip but generally no issues.
Week 2 I got on him after a quick lunge and walked round the school for ten mins, no problem.
The next day I didn't bother to lunge first and got straight on. 5 mins in, we were quietly plodding around and next thing I know, I'm sat on the floor! Out of nowhere he'd put his head between his legs and bucked me off. I got back on and he was fine.

So I went back to lunging for another week. He's very good on the whole but unpredictable. He will be trotting along then have Buck a couple of times then carry on nicely. Nothing obvious that triggers it and he does it both with and without a saddle.

He also does it in the field. He'll be grazing then all of a sudden goes off bucking then stops.

It's strange and I'm starting to worry I'll never trust him. I want to be able to hack out without worry that any second now I'll be in a hedge? I want to blame it on him being fresh coming back into work but we're 3 weeks in and thought he'd of settled down by now.

Had his back and teeth checked and no problems.

I'm thinking I could stick him on a calmer. He's not on hard feed at the moment but will start having a low cal balancer.
Does anyone have any suggestions?

 

[bonny]

I'm sure everybody will say get the vet out to check for the obvious issues but you might get further by looking more into his background. Did he buck at the riding school and maybe learn that he could get out of working that way ? Maybe try just hacking him, could be he's fed up with being in the school and might be a different horse out enjoying himself instead. I would stop lunging him, can't see how that's going to help anything.

 

[Casey76]

Why had he been out of work for a year?

Even if he's been mooching around a filed for a year he will be very unfit and not have any "riding" muscles. Lunging may have made him stiff and sore. What was your plan to bring him back into work, and/or fittening program like?

 

[stormox]

You say you were 'quietly plodding around ' when he bucked. I would make sure a horse like that is going forward, up into the bridle, on a contact, and you keep him going like this.Horses who have learnt that a buck gets them out of work usually do it as an evasion, they can sense when the rider isnt on the ball and put a sharp one in. Keep on his case, forward, twisting,turning, make sure he knows you are ready for him.

 

[hackedoff]

Check its not a health or a tack issue. My very well mannered pony bucked me of at a gallop as her saddle had gone up over her withers, I think her choice was buck me of out of the way or fall on top of me as I was going up her neck! Fortunately for her I have owned her for three years so knew it was the saddle at fault.

 

[PeterNatt]

I would be thoroughly suspicious of any horse that was for sale from a field.
Get a vet to thoroughly check out the horse and find out if there are any physical problems.
If not get in an animal behaviourist in to determine if there are any issues.
Then if no issues get a good rider in to sort it out.

 

[Goldenstar]

I would be thoroughly suspicious of any horse that was for sale from a field.
Get a vet to thoroughly check out the horse and find out if there are any physical problems.
If not get in an animal behaviourist in to determine if there are any issues.
Then if no issues get a good rider in to sort it out.

I would suspicious too ,how much of the back did you get xrayed ?

 

[FfionWinnie]

Is he better when warmed up. My cob only ever bucks if her PSSM is causing her an issue (which isn't all that noticeable to the uninitiated!) and I am asking too much of her. When she is ok, she doesn't buck because she is physically able to do as I ask.

I'm not saying he has it, but it is in my opinion, rife in Irish cobs and somethings I would always keep in mind with any apparently unpredictable behaviour.

Is he generally sweet natured and calm?

 

[Pearlsasinger]

The fact that he bucks when in the field makes me very suspicious. I would want a vet to x-ray his back as thoroughly as possible, although he may just have muscle damage from being over-worked after being off work for so long. Lunging is hard work for unfit horses, I would stop the lunging and start in-hand walking/long-reining in straight lines to build up his muscle tone, which will only help,whatever the problem is found to be.

 

[julie111]

I agree with others, lunging at the moment is pointless, he needs a full check up. If all well could you maybe hack him quietly with company, he may have gone stale with riding school work.