Not for me? Advice needed...

Switcheroo

Switcheroo

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Hi everyone, for a bit of background:

I bought my horse just over a year ago now after loaning horses for 2 years and riding for around 5. Had experience bringing on a youngster before; she was a brilliant horse but just had some issues such as bolting, bucking, running out of jumps etc... she came out of this and eventually went on to do some SJ, dressage hunting etc. I schooled her up, soon she was jumping 90s, could do some nice transitions like walk to canter, and her balance had improved so much. I trusted her.

I then came to buy my own horse. In my first year of owning him we had a pretty fun summer. This summer though, he began to have problems; he would get very excited, dancing on the spot, attempting to take off, rushing constantly. I managed to bring him out of that again but my confidence wasn't great in canter as this would be when he was most out of control.

He is kept at my family farm in the summer where I have a grass paddock and land to use for hacking. In winter due to muddy conditions, I move him to a local livery yard. I moved him to a yard nearby last Sunday.

When I first purchased him he tended to be very chilled and coped well with new things. Up until moving, he was on 24hr turnout and had been ridden (though he was having the same problems as listed before) so wasn't fresh. He was lunged for 15 mins, I then got on in the paddock. Before I could mount, he bolted with me still with one foot in the stirrup on his left side, and I came off rather hard. The second time he shot off and then proceeded to do 4 massive humps with all four hooves off the ground; safe to say I came off again.

Today was terrible. I rode with 4 other horses, all well behaved. As he was NOT used to riding with other horses in the paddock (no one rode with me the winter before, at a diff. livery yard, the other horse at my farm is retired, so he is always ridden alone) he was very on edge and spooked as horses passed him. I kept him calm with plenty of walk/trot/halt transitions, turning him in circles, keeping his mind busy. He then bolted out of nowhere, nearly hammering a young child and her pony into the ground, and if I hadn't have lept off I would have crashed into the wall. He tried it again 3 times more; on the last time I came off, and he kicked out at another horse as he galloped loose around the paddock. I had to stay out of the paddock with him for fear of hurting someone else and their horse; by this stage, I was terrified.

As soon as I get in the car, I say to my mum: he's not for me. I need some advice on this as I just feel after this week my confidence in him is shattered. I don't understand where this comes from as the previous youngster I loaned would throw me off AT LEAST once a week, and yes sometimes I would get scared of her, but would still hop on and she would be fine. But now I've come home in tears and frankly, the thought of getting on him again feels dreadful. I don't even feel confident in my own riding ability anymore.

Was wondering if anyone had any advice? All his checks have been very recently done, back/teeth/saddle. Thanks if you got this far. :)
 
Paddocks/fields often make horses silly I find. That coupled with being on a new yard and having a party in the paddock probably set him off.

Choose your companions carefully. Don't ride in the fields and keep it qll quiet, calm and boring.
 
I'm not too sure what you are asking for? Do you want help with your confidence or help with managing the horse?
What you are describing is quite extreme and to me sounds like a horse screaming at you that he is not happy, If you are confident that there is no physical underlying issue because your horse has been declared fit by a qualified vet/dentist/Physio and you have had a tack check from a professional saddle fitter then you need to look at how you are riding and handling the horse. How soes he go for someone else? Very very few horses react in this way for no reason, there is the odd one who is wired wrong but even so this is normally down to previous poor management. It's normal to have a horse been unsettled and sharp after a move. It is not normal to be repeatedly ditched in a ridden session or fall off a horse on a weekly basis - something is clearly amiss. I'd find a really good instructor who you like and trust and work with them. They will be able to help you both with your confidence and with the behaviours your horse is exhibiting.
If you do all that and still want to call it quits because the horse is too much for you that's fair enough, find a good rider to work with him till he as at the stage where he is happier being ridden so he stands a better chance of finding a new home. Best of luck.
 
Thanks for replying both :)

Normally I wouldn't have rode with 4+ other horses in the paddock, but as I have university, I have him on full livery, so woudn't be down again till Tuesday. I was under the impression of 'he needs to get used to being rode with others so screw it, we're going in.' I will try and ride him with less horses around.

I'm confident he is sound on the physical side. He's not a bad horse, but falling off 4 times within 2 rides is just really extreme. It's not often that I fall off; before that I'd only came off him twice. I'm more worried about the fact he is being dangerous while ridden with others, when this is something he will need to get used to. I'm not sure how to make this less scary for him; every horse I've had or tried before has been used to this. He is fine to ride otherwise; tonight I took him a small scoot down the yard and back and he was chilled.
 
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So hack him out with a nice sensible companion.

I know what would happen if I rode my horse in the circumstances you describe. Total enhilation for the jockey - me.
 
Will try that, and get some lessons sorted. Being only young, he could do with the schooling that the paddock provides; we only have access to offroad hacking and the ground is very hilly and rough in some places, making anything more than a walk a no no.
 
If you are confident that his tack fits and he has no pain issues, then the next thing I would be looking closely at is his feed, having had a horse in the past that could not tolerate any refined sugars or grain, who became an over re-active monster and currently have a mare who cannot be fed alfalfa or carrots as she completely looses the plot, this is one of the first things that I would look at. I would try him on forage only (with no supplements or balancers) for three weeks and see what happends then. Do make sure that the yard is aware that this is what you want, as there is a tendancy on some full livery yards to feed mixes to any and everything.
 
Switcheroo said:
Thanks for replying both :)

Normally I wouldn't have rode with 4+ other horses in the paddock, but as I have university, I have him on full livery, so woudn't be down again till Tuesday. I was under the impression of 'he needs to get used to being rode with others so screw it, we're going in.' I will try and ride him with less horses around.

I'm confident he is sound on the physical side. He's not a bad horse, but falling off 4 times within 2 rides is just really extreme. It's not often that I fall off; before that I'd only came off him twice. I'm more worried about the fact he is being dangerous while ridden with others, when this is something he will need to get used to. I'm not sure how to make this less scary for him; every horse I've had or tried before has been used to this. He is fine to ride otherwise; tonight I took him a small scoot down the yard and back and he was chilled.
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Oh OK, I think I get what you mean now - it's just riding with others that sets him off? The way I read your first post it sounded like he was just dropping you all the time! So tips for getting a youngster used to riding with others... ride with one other super quiet and chilled older horse. If he is good to be handled you can start doing ground work in the centre with someone else working round the outside, keep the focus on you, working on a long line and encourage him to turn in towards you if he shoots off, so you become the safe zone (there are some good videos by Jason Webb showing this) and work up to being back in the saddle. Once you are on ignore normal school rules and stay on the inside so your horse doesn't feel pinned in between the other horse and the fence. Stay on the same rein so you don't ride 'at' each other as that can be quite confrontational and then just build up from there. Also always wear your back protector and use a monkey strap it'll give you some confidence.
 
Agree with the advice above. Certainly my quiet cob would be going nuts in the ride you had today - anyone overtaking him, and he would have bucked me off in excitement.

This may sound a bit boring, but I would go right back to basics and just walk everywhere for now, on your own, or with another quiet horse you trust. get an Instructor out asap to help. If your horse is truly bolting, on the other hand, it may not be safe to continue.

Will be interested to read more replies ((hugs))
 
My daughters first pony bolted out of nowhere with her ( at 14yr old) 3 times, twice she fell off, but he was a cracking pony and we bought him and didnt look back, all 3 times were in the field, once alone...they can get stupidly excited in the field...depends how confident you feel that you can get on top of this or not as the case may be...once he had bolted 3 times, he never did it again, for the remaining 2 yrs we had him.....
 
I THINK this is the cause of the problem. There were 5 horses some of which were working in canter and cutting across the school. He was doing BRILLIANT for the first 20 minutes, was responsive and listening, but was clearly uptight. (chomping at his bit, a little TOO forward for my liking.)

However, what puts me off is the fact he was like this before the move, when ridden at home. However, he had been out of work quite some time due to the grass paddock being a bog. I did lunge, but he still seemed really uptight.

I'm just worried that he gets into the habit of this bolting/humping duo. I can sit the humps, but bot when he tears off and I'm trying to avoid trampling anyone I just have no chance of staying on. I also have the cowardly habit of taking my feet out of my stirrups and jumping/flying off if it gets too hairy!! Shame on me.
 
I certainly don't see bailing as cowardly, you've certainly got guts to get back on! Great advice, definitely work on desensitising him to new situations gradually though rather than just going for it. You'll build up your confidence by taking it slowly and you will get there.
 
Is the horse still living out 24/7? You said he was previously which I think is when he was behaving? If he isn't, I'd find somewhere where he can go back out 24/7. That could be all it takes. Would also get a second opinion on his saddle, back and teeth. The only two horses who have ever bronc'd me off it turned out to be saddle or back issues.
 
Switcheroo said:
No, he's a chubby connemara and four/rising five.
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He is still very much a baby, you have had him over a year so were riding him at 3 rising 4 when he was probably still growing and to some extent less likely to think for himself so was quieter and well behaved , it sounds as if he has probably missed out on some basic stages of his education, he is reacting as many young horses will when they are unsure in a new situation. He has possibly never been ridden with so many other horses, he has just moved to a new yard, new routine, is getting restricted time out, maybe too much feed and not enough exercise a bad combination for such a young pony.

Where you go from here is hard to really recommend without knowing your circumstances but firstly try and get him out as much as possible, cut out the hard feed, get an instructor to help you plan how to get him through this by gradually introducing him to new experiences without you being put at risk, falling off several times in one session is not acceptable, falling off once a week is extremely unusual, if the horse is properly educated the rider should rarely part company with the horse.

Remember how young he really is, try and avoid putting him into new scary situations until you have established some more confidence and take your time to think about every new thing you introduce rather than expecting him to do something an older experienced pony would take in its stride, they all have to learn from experience, try and make his new experiences positive ones.
 
How much turn out is he getting? If he is used to 24/7 then to being stabled more, this may be causing him an issue?

He is still very young and sounds like he may have some gaps in his education, so might be an idea to get help from an instructor or even send him for some professional schooling.

Good luck and keep safe!
 
I think people misread my original post a little; I don't fall off him every week. I made the comment in exaggeration about my last youngster who I had a troublesome relationship with in the beginning.

He is being turned out 1-3 days a week currently, but he seems very happy and content in his stable. He's a great boy on the ground, but his behaviour was really dangerous tonight and honestly I dread getting on him again.

I did try to make this an ok experience for him; no one was being pushy or getting in his space, so there were no real 'triggers' for his bolting. I was riding in the center and keeping him busy with transitions walk/trot/halt/backup and giving him lots of praise for being responsive. That's why I think he's gotten the idea he can get me off with these bolting broncs he now pulls. They also come out of nowhere with no real signs as to when he will try them, which is wrecking my nerves.

I feel so overwhelmed with this tonight I might sleep on it and figure out a strategy tomorrow...

Maybe I am expecting too much with him being on the new yard. But to put it in perspective, I did the same last year and rode him the day after he was moved in a windyish paddock (albiet alone) and could barely get the sod into a good, active trot. He was never ridden at this yard with a friend though, as the liveries mostly hacked. His behaviour is so out of character, I just wonder if he's learned to take advantage of me, or has secretly gotten a personality transplant. :S
 
Only getting turned out 1-3 days a week is not fair on him or you, however content he seems shut in his stable he will not be using up his energy and that alone is enough to make him feel like running off when he does get out to be ridden, last year was 12 months ago, he has grown physically since then and they do change as they get stronger.
If he is on full livery he should be getting some turnout or exercise each day otherwise he will probably get worse as the winter goes on.
 
You said you lunged before you rode usually, did you do that on both of these occasions?

Also how many times a week is he being worked?

I would suggest since he is only getting less than half a week of turnout then he needs more work. Now this doesn't need to be intensive, even just walking out in hand or going hacking. But a stabled horse should really be getting some form of exercise daily. Also if it is the problem with others then try going back to groundwork and lunge him in the centre with them around, keep the friends safe though and no young children, give them instructions on what to do if he gets out of control and have a safe word so everyone stops. Make sure you wear good boots, gloves and hat, i know its common sense but just checking. If you dont feel confident enough to do this then just lead him from the ground to start around while they ride and progress from there.

Sorry if i have got anything wrong along the way but just my thoughts.
 
All liveries in the surrounding area work on the same basis as this... don't mind to sound narrow minded but I've never known any different, or had a problem with this before. My previous mare of the same age and less experience was on this routine when I got her, and coped fine with it. She was ridden 4/5 times a week and if she wasn't ridden got out for an inhand walk with me to stretch her legs. Then again, no two are the same.

If it helps, he was as antsy ridden at home, when on 24/7 turnout, but that may be due to him not having been ridden for a month because of bad weather and a very mucky grass paddock.

I've been advised to lunge before I get on but I don't know if this is solving the problem or masking it.
 
Sorry just to add: I didn't lunge him tonight. He was lunged and rode on Wednesday and was much better. No dangerous bolting or anything.

Problem though... there is a small sanded area where I can lunge, but there are no lights, because I come to the yard after university, its normally dark. I'm not allowed to lunge in the paddock. It just makes this whole thing a lot more difficult. I don't drive so I can't use the headlights of a car as a substitute.
 
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