Recreational spooking??

[PapaFrita]

PF has always been a bit spooky, but now I'm convinced she spooks for fun. It's like she needs the adrenaline rush of a good scare or something! She never, ever spooks in traffic or at shows, even with loud music, flags and crowds, but when we're hacking out near the yard and going past dogs, bins, etc she's seen a million times before, every now and then she does a huuuuge theatrical sideways launch only to metaphorically clutch her chest and girlishly fan her face in relief that she hadn't been eaten...
Today for instance, she and the same poodle she's seen on every hack for over a year stared at each other for 10 seconds with neither of them moving although I could feel her heart speed up under the girth... when poodle finally made a move, PF spun 180 degrees and launched into a flurry of bronc bucks only to stop suddenly and walk calmly past the now-rather-surprised-and-subdued dog (probably thinking "WTF!!!") with my expletives hanging in the air and my heart going like a pneumatic drill...
Anyone else's horse addicted to the thrill of a good spook??

 

[Marianne]

Lmao someones seen the flora add?
"do something that scares you everyday"

 

[PapaFrita]

LOL! I haven't seen the ad, but that sounds like PF alright!!

 

[tashyisaudrey]

LOL, caff's a bit like that - sometimes we're like woo! at dogs, going sideways and messin about. she used to be an ex hunter and is around dogs all the time so I reckon she does it for fun. The other day she spooked at her own poo!!! LOLOL!!

 

[siennamiller]

harley watched a chinook fly over his head the othe day ( very low) and was fine, then spooked at a BUTTERFLY flying past his shoulder!!!! WTF
Quite funny tho

 

[allijudd]

we found tents the other day...went passed one sideways...only to meet another one so verved off the other way to meet yet another one........

the leg yeilding was perfect...just not required!

 

[0]

Well - you could have been describing my horse there!!!!!
She definately spooks for fun.
some days (very very rarely though) she is bombproof and other days she spooks at EVERYTHING!!!!
When schooling, i always walk for 10/15 mins before doing anything and this bores her and she spooks the whole time at everything (in the same school everyday which is indoor and there is nothing to look at!!!) i usually don't even know what she is spooking at. Then when i pick my reins up and she has to work hard she is fine! then when we walk at the end suddenly everything is scary to her again!!!!
I know that she does it out of boredom because she never spooks when working and is also good at big shows (which after eight years still suprises me and i still expect the worst of her!) but she doesn't do it to avoid work she just does it to amuse herself!!!
out hacking (which we don't often do) she is terrible in walk but when we have a canter she is better?!
i ignore her and let her get on with it because its not worth us having an argument about and i've had her so long i know that when it counts she won't do it because she will be concentrating and therefore won't feel the need to entertain herself!!!!

 

[BethandHenry]

Sometimes I think Henry does it for a laugh, I was just setting off up the bridlepath when he saw a rabbit about 5m away just hop across the path and disappear, so he stop, stared then started to go backwards! I got off and pulled him along for a bit, got back on and he was fine! Weird...

 

[Pidge]

oh yes! Pidge will go past all sort of big tractors, JCB's etc even protects his girlfriend from them on the road, but as for birds well he does a very good impression of bambi on ice
LOL! His best effort to date, and highly embarassing for me was when I went over Cannock Chase for a spin with my sister. We were cantering in the front when he spotted a log on the right of the track, we sppoked to the left only to spot a different log on the left so he spooked back to right panicked and slammed on the brakes so I went over his head

Best of it is he was a hunter in Ireland before I got him so how many logs has he seen?

 

[piebaldsparkle]

Sparks spooks at things if we pass them in both directions on the same ride i.e. walk calmly past (within 3ft) full size wicker horse (outside rider hating antique shop!!) on way out. On way home past same wicker horse in opposite direction (so now on other side of road and a good 14ft away), rear, spin and run backwards (threatening to sit on a bonnet of a car) then rush past at speed - GREAT

She also thinks there is something quite sinister about squirrels, rabbits and sparrows

 

[PapaFrita]

Ah yes... logs... the scariest of all monsters!!

with plastic bags.

 

[JoBo]

Oh definitely! Otto is more then happy with Lorries, tractors (we ride over a footbridge that goes over a very busy A road) etc. But he's not too keen on leaves especially when I'm just starting to relax and let my reins slip a bit. He's not a fan of horse eating sheep either; this is the horse that came from Wales!!

 

[lordflynn]

think vico does it too-he has proved to be fab in traffic with all sorts of rattly lorries, trailers, 4X4s with surfboards on roof and jumpjets, helicopters and farm equipment, dogs charging through undergrowth and footballs being kicked in front of him.

However, someone has put a wooden bird hide up in the woods and yesterday he was convinced there was a sniper hidden in it-if he was being made to walk past he would do it at speed and in the closest approximation of passage either of us are likely to reach!

They had also moved the cows from one side of the track to another which he thought was outrageous quite frankly and was met with much indignant snorting.

failing anything novel rocks that he has seen before will do as will really big leaves!

 

[Sal_E]

Yes, definitely! N will spook if she's fresh but be pretty bombproof if she's been worked well for a few days. If she's in a spooky mood it starts as soon as you leave the yard - she literally moves her head around where she's actively looking for things to spook at...

 

[PapaFrita]

Ah yes!!! PF swings her head from side to side too as if, in the words of C "She's at the shopping centre"

 

[Prudence]

YUP - the old hunter would do that, especially if out on his own! He'd also look down at the verges and up in the hedges and trees. His favourite trick was to splat spook!! Ya know, when they are happily pootling along and then they suddenly snort, leap about 30ft in the air and land with their legs/feet all splayed out and then nonchalantly carry on as if nothing in the world mattered and butter wouldn't melt - meanwhile you are draped around their necks having palpitiations and requiring oxygen and the horse just looks at you out of the corner of their eye with either a "what IS the matter with you now?" look or a "ha ha ha haaaaaa gotcha" accompanied with a smirk!

 

[PapaFrita]

OMG!! PF does the 'splat spook' too!!! LMAO! Clearly she's an Olympic standard spooker;
She's got the 'splat spook', the 'sideways launch' the 'turbo spin' with and without simultaneous bucking. Also the 'Huge double take' as in; I missed it first time, won't make that mistake again and the 'all four feet off the ground spook' followed by 'splat spook' or 'turbo spin'. Also, any of these can be preceded by the 'frozen stare' at any object/animal that might eat her.