Spinning and spooking, argh

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My welsh D Gelding is the biggest scared cat I have ever met. Snorts and hyperventilates at a new brush in his grooming box or a new coloured numnah!

On rides out he's never been the nappy sort and with a push generally passes most things. But he has the awful habit of just planting and spinning at something on the hedge! This could be at a walk or trot and is VERY unbalancing...

So how do I stop this? Or prepare for it? It's so sudden I don't know what's hit me! Any advice would be great!
 
What is he like in hand? A lot of people find leading them out on in hand hacks gives the horse more confidence, but my loan horse is ridiculously strong and more silly in hand so not really the option for me!

Also what is he like in company? In front or behind? If better that will help and could you get someone to come out on a bike or on foot to build his confidence?

I suggest wearing a BP and being careful where you hack but you def need to try and get him more confident!

Also how old is he?

When it comes to spooks it is probably best to stay relaxed and try to ride through it usually, but it depends on how scared he is, or if he is being stroppy (he sounds a nervous type) you could also try a calmer :-) I assume no hard feed is making him go loopy!
 
ive had this same problem with my irish cob! its very frustrating, to the point i didn't want to hack him anymore! i tried calmers and they made no difference. a standing martingale helped with the sticking his head in the air before the spin which made it easier for me to catch him and turn him the opposite way!

he was always perfect in company if behind another horse.

he now does it very rarely and all because i changed his food to a low sugar diet (mollasses free alfa instead of alfa original). he still spooks but no longer overly dramatic and is much calmer in himself, he now walks out on hacks instead of being tensed up!

hope you find something that works for you
 
Ride with two schooling whips (try in a safe, enclosed area first) and practice 'flapping' them up and down like wings by rotating your wrists. Make sure that you aren't pulling on his mouth while you do this. I find that this sends my mare forwards very promptly and without any fuss. Also you are ready for any whipping round. If the horse spins to the right, slap him on the shoulder with the whip in your right hand to straighten him up again. if he spins to the left, use the whip in your left hand. If you time it right (when you feel him hesitate) you can flap both whips and sent him forwards before he gets a chance to whip round. You might want to have a neck strap as you don't want to jab him in the mouth if he shoots forwards.
 
My horse has a 'spook and spin' habit. I ride him out in a martingale fitted fairly short so that when it happens at least he can't get hi head too high. This gives me half a chance of catching him before he spins and even if he does then it tends to be slower and I don't end up in a heap on the floor!
I have to say the best weapon is to have him really listening to me. Think schooling all the way round the ride. He is too busy thinking about what I am asking him to do that he forgets about the monsters hiding.
 
Faracat said:
Ride with two schooling whips (try in a safe, enclosed area first) and practice 'flapping' them up and down like wings by rotating your wrists. Make sure that you aren't pulling on his mouth while you do this. I find that this sends my mare forwards very promptly and without any fuss. Also you are ready for any whipping round. If the horse spins to the right, slap him on the shoulder with the whip in your right hand to straighten him up again. if he spins to the left, use the whip in your left hand. If you time it right (when you feel him hesitate) you can flap both whips and sent him forwards before he gets a chance to whip round. You might want to have a neck strap as you don't want to jab him in the mouth if he shoots forwards.
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:eek:

That sounds like the recipe for a RTA, a trip to A+E and a traumatised horse to be quite frank.

Id be sorting out my groundwork - if your relationship is right on the ground you've got a much better chance of the horse trusting your leadership in the saddle to take him past scary things. Once the groundwork is in place you can take him out safely in hand, if a horse is strong in hand then you are not the leader he is, and work on the scary stuff before tackling it under saddle :)
 
Completely agree with what others have said about keeping him listening, and likewise, using a schooling whip - my horse has a spook/spin habit which, touch wood, we are getting rid of, but it has been horrible at times and it still happens if I relax too much or stop paying attention!

I started to treat his 180 degree spins as I would if he had run out of a jump ie a smack on the neck, turn him back from the way he turned, and make it clear that it is unacceptable behaviour - whereas if he simply has a look/snort or just startles at something without a huge over-reaction, that's fine. It is rather counter-intuitive, I suppose, if the horse is apparently frightened of something, but it seems to be working, and I have gradually realised that my horse isn't really scarred of much, and it's usually just an excuse for messing about!

As someone else also mentioned, molasses definitely makes my horse more spooky so I avoid that in his feed and that helps, too.
 
My Clydesdale / welsh section D has this classic section D spook however I would never tolerate it and he has now learnt a pseudo spook which consists tensing all his muscles then letting go as he proceeds past the scary object .it's very funny .
He also is broken to drive and when hes working really hard trotting long distances pulling the carriage he gives it up .
All the D 's I have known have this spook to a greater or lesser degree they where designed for hard work then developed into flashy eyes on stalks show types so it not really surprising .
 
TT-

Maybe I explained it badly as it really helped with my mare who would also rear and run backwards as well as plant, spin and nap. Riding with two whips in this way (as suggested by my instructor) instantly kept her straight and forwards. She is a stressy, nervous horse and it never, ever upset her in any way what so ever.

ETA. Her ground work is perfect.
 
My 6 yr old TB does this when hacking although he is getting much better. I find carrying a schooling whip is a big help to back up my leg aid( he always spins left so I have it in my left hand) and keeping a tighter contact on the right rein and putting my weight over to the right when I feel he is about to go. ( I can't always anticipate it). He spins in company ( less often) as well as on his own but I am working hard at over coming it. He no longer bucks or tries to tank off but just spins and then I point him back in the right direction and he usually goes forward.Sometimes trotting past something he is unsure off helps him keep thinking forward.( I see yours does it at trot too!) Have you tried not looking at the thing he is spooking at, that can help.I'm really pleased with how my boy is improving and the spins are much less frequent.Hope yours will too because it's no fun hacking out otherwise.
 
Thanks for all the advice! Really really helpful!

He's 14 so not young just silly haha. We walk him out alot if trying a new route etc. then after the first time out he is quite confident just suddenly spooks at nothing!

He's on Veteran Chaff which I think has mollasses in so will have a look into that, and look into swapping!

Just rang instructor (also close friend) and she said it could be trust issues and might settle down. Only had him 2 months and was a complete wreck when he arived and used to bolt as well as spin. He trusts me alot more now and once he's had te enitial spook he listens to me and try's his best bless him! Could this be part of it?

Again thanks for the advice an I shall also try a schooling whip as always use one in the school do might make him realise it's work and he can't mess about? (if that's part of it) and will be able to send him on better :D

Thank you! :D
 
Sprig said:
My horse has a 'spook and spin' habit. I ride him out in a martingale fitted fairly short so that when it happens at least he can't get hi head too high. This gives me half a chance of catching him before he spins and even if he does then it tends to be slower and I don't end up in a heap on the floor!
I have to say the best weapon is to have him really listening to me. Think schooling all the way round the ride. He is too busy thinking about what I am asking him to do that he forgets about the monsters hiding.
Click to expand...

Agree totally. If you have him between hand and leg, and focused on you he is less likely to spook and spin. When you are passing spooky places etc ask him to leg yield a few steps, or half halt, or some other activity just to refocus him on you, and take his attention. If there is something spooky coming up that you know he will look at, turn his head the other way so he cant look at it directly and ask him to banana ( body convex to spooky object) while you walk past, this will also prevent him from turning his head to look at the object, and spinning his bum into the road.

Most horses have a favourite side they spin to. Hold your whip in this hand and if he feels as if he is going to spin, you could try laying it on his neck as a distraction, backed up by a strong leg aid.

Good luck.. maybe best to hack with a friend..too much spooking and spinning can damage both your confidences.
 
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