Spooking - give me some hope!

[ILuvCowparsely]

After falling off my horse for the 6th time again today due to a huge spook I am looking for some hope and stories of eventual stopping spooking!!!

Have had my horse for 18 months now and he has always been spooky, he was just turned 6 when I bought him and is 7.5 now. I have tried all sorts of different herbs and calmers and recently tried Vitamin E which seemed to work for a while but eventually he starts spooking again.

I don't feel nervous, I generally ignore all spooks, I generally sit the spooks but occasionally he gets me, and today he got me spooking at canter, jumped right into the heather from the middle of the path, along with the horse in front who also spooked.

Anyone's horse eventually grow out of it? !

i will pm you as I have the queen of spooks

 

[ihatework]

My general experience is that horses are generally spooky types or their not.

Spooky types then exacerbate that behaviour for a variety of reasons - overfed, under worked, pain/ulcers, feed reactivity, stress etc.

So you need to understand and manage the latter reasons, and once you are sure that is under control then the spooky ones need a job and to be kept under the thumb to keep them ‘normal’ spooky rather than naughty spooky.

 

[Barton Bounty]

My general experience is that horses are generally spooky types or their not.

Spooky types then exacerbate that behaviour for a variety of reasons - overfed, under worked, pain/ulcers, feed reactivity, stress etc.

So you need to understand and manage the latter reasons, and once you are sure that is under control then the spooky ones need a job and to be kept under the thumb to keep them ‘normal’ spooky rather than naughty spooky.

I agree with this!
Since I put BB into an every day routine, he has definitely stopped his spooky naughty behaviour. We ride every day and he prefers the routine, even in the rain he doesnt mind anymore. I started off just 20 minutes every day then worked my way up. And he has only spooked at the occasional pheasant flying out the woods etc which is understandable ?

 

[TheMule]

I've had 1 spooky horse and I will not be having another one!
Mine was a sensitive mare and if you got after her she got worse. She was best with quiet reassurance and not reacting to her drama

 

[ILuvCowparsely]

diet and magnesium can play a big part in spookiness.

 

[Hackback]

Mine at rising 17 is far less spooky than he was as a youngster, it's been a gradual process.

However diet can massively affect his behaviour, almost like he's hallucinating and seeing monsters everywhere. Spring grass, some haylage and micronised linseed are all culprits for mine. I knew a pony who couldn't have carrots for the same reason.

 

[Wishfilly]

Mine was spooky when I first got him at 7, but has improved. He lacked life experience, due to being mainly brought on during lockdown etc- he had been hacked out in heavy traffic and is genuinely safe with most vehicles which helps. But he had less exposure to the countryside, so pheasants etc in hedges were a real problem! He would either jump to the side/spin, and sometimes refuse (or try to refuse) to go past things which seemed fairly innocuous to me.

He was always better in summer than winter, and he's now got 24/7 turnout which helps a lot. He's also now 9, so perhaps has chilled out a bit!

He is more of a follower than a leader, so I have to be a bit careful who I hack out with- e.g. another spooky horse he will copy! But if I take him out with something calm and brave, he is much better. If I am confident and determined, he responds well to me. If I am anxious, we wind each other up. If I'm relaxed, but he thinks something is scary, he will react to it- I think he thinks I haven't noticed it!

Not sure if this helps much really, but just so say it's not set in stone, and I do think a yard environment which cause anxiety can be a problem. His new yard is quiet (or at least he is kept on a quiet bit of it) and so I think he is less stressed in general?

 

[irishdraft]

I have a horse I've had since he was a weanling he is now 15 & retired but still the spookiest stress pot, I used to come off him weekly when first backed, he was fine hunting but I used to ride out occasionally with someone who also had a spooky horse & the times we were both on the floor so had to stop riding with her in the end, so no I think if they are of that disposition then it very rarely entirely goes. Which is a shame cos I've bought a new mare who's also proving stressy & spooky hoping it's just the new home .

 

[L&M]

https://www.charliesproducts.co.uk/shop/bareback-pads/rs-tor/

Out of stock....

 

[foxy1]

You say you have treated the ulcers; do you know what caused them?

 

[Fieldlife]

Out of stock....

Okay who here has bought all the stock? They were in stock when I posted link.

 

[ponynutz]

I also agree that they do calm down a little bit with age - all of this advice is very, very good for the meantime but my very naughty and spooky 5/6/7/8 year old turned 9 and calmed right down. Still spooks and can still be a pain to handle but it's no longer scary or makes me worry about riding her/handling her.

No advice for the present, sorry, but just to give you a little hope maybe.

 

[HashRouge]

My general experience is that horses are generally spooky types or their not.

Spooky types then exacerbate that behaviour for a variety of reasons - overfed, under worked, pain/ulcers, feed reactivity, stress etc.

So you need to understand and manage the latter reasons, and once you are sure that is under control then the spooky ones need a job and to be kept under the thumb to keep them ‘normal’ spooky rather than naughty spooky.

This, 100%.

I like Arabs, so I'm used to a certain amount of spooking, although in fairness, I've known non-spooky Arabs too. But I tend to find that they mellow as they get older and do get less spooky. They've always got it in them though, often when you least expect it! My share horse was very spooky when I first started riding him. He was 6 at the time and had just had an extended period out of work after his owner came off him and broke her leg (when he spooked at a rabbit). But he improved massively the more I rode him, and generally I felt safe to ride him on the buckle. He still has a vicious spook in him though, and I almost came off him earlier this year when he nearly lay down after spotting a grate that he'd walked past without noticing about 100 times before!

 

[soloequestrian]

I tried everything with mine over a 4 year period - groundwork, magnesium, hacking with steady non spooky types, calmers, leading inhand, blinkers, removed all hard feed, 24/7 Turnout (all tack and heath checks of course). Tried a dif calmer 5 months ago and so far a different horse. DIid nothing for first 6 weeks - supposed to work after 4 weeks and I was on the verge of thinking would not work but suddenly it seems to. Far more relaxed, just looks rather than spooking ( previously would spin and leg it over a squirrel ) and just far less tense. I am still sceptical but so far I think it is working. Not sure I can say the brand on here but Iif you PM me.

It's fine to mention specific brands on here - which one are you trying?

 

[BSL2]

How is he kept. Stabled? Out 24/7?. What is his diet and what is his exercise regime? How many hours aday?. His Breeding? So many variables. ?

 

[poiuytrewq]

Try a gel out set saver
It won't stop the spooking but might help you to stick on

I feel so much more in place with a decent seat saver!