spooky, bolshy horse

[Kiko]

My horse has got incredibly spooky and will literally spook at anything and everything. Even in the school at the same thing everytime round, sometimes I think he does it on purpose and just uses it as an excuse. He can sometimes be quite bolshy in his stable.

Has anyone got any handy training methods that can help? I'm thinking of putting him on a calmer as well as he is naturally quite stressy. He is currently fed 1 scoop of Hi-Lite, 1/2 scoop of No.4 Baileys top line conditioning cubes and a handful of pasture mix and also corn oil. Would changing his feed help at all?

He is a 5y/o dutch warmblood so still young, i just want him to relax more as its impossible to ride out alone, he is fine following others on a hack though. Any advice would be great

thanks guys xx

 

[Seahorse]

He sounds exactly like my horse, I've just put him on a calmer today so I will hopefully see a difference soon.
I have tried loads but this one contains Valerian, and I'm hoping it will do the trick.

I posted on here last week about him spooking at the same spot in the school even though we've been there for over a year, and he's the same at competitions, he'll fix on something and then won't go near it, not very helpful when we're trying to do a dressage test and he won't go down one side of the arena because he's scared of a blue banner.

He's also 5, and like your horse fine out hacking with others but impossible on his own as he's a bit of a wimp. I have hacked him out twice on his own and he really surprised me and was brave and we had a lovely hack, but another time he wouldn't even leave the yard.

Good luck
Sam x

 

[soph21]

OMG my horse drove me crazy

today!!! i threatened him!! i told him to buck up his ideas or i will sell him!! (i wouldnt but i thought i'd worry him!!!) he is pathetic, he spooks at different colour leaves and the shadows of trees on the ground!! he drove me mental today!!!! GGGGRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

bloody horses. its not like a leaf will jump up and bite him!! and he also spooked at a bit of plastic so i made him sniff it and then step on it and he didn't bat an eyelid so he isn't bloody scared!!! Any hints or tips anyone??!!! PLEASE!!!!!

 

[Seahorse]

I know, I could cheerfully kill Axey sometimes! He drives me mad.
I put in my other post about jumping him, he's terrified of the fillers and wings etc when they are sitting in a corner of the school, but he jumped them without batting an eyelid at them. Make up your mind, are they scarey or not??

When we went in the school the next day the same jumps were up, and he even shied at them

 

[chestnut cob]

I don't think this weather is helping! From what I can see and am told, most of the horses on my yard have turned into nightmares the last few weeks!

Topspec calmer is pretty good, used that with success in the past.

 

[Sneedy]

My boy was a plonker today as well, think its the weather!! Anyway, he behaved in exactly the same way last spring when he got put on some lovely spring grass, his brain was total mush!! He'd even spook at his own poo in the school. I put him on Naf Magic and it worked a treat, totally calmed down and stopped imagining there were monsters behind every dock leaf....good luck

 

[rosierox]

Hello I know someone who had a really spooky horse and she tried everything but anyway the horse turned out to be partially blind in one eye but one thing she did is took what scared him and rub it all over him (like a plastic bag) then she would try to get him to walk over what scared him. and when he spooked she did not stroke him because spooking is not good but only not stroke him if it is something really not scary. Hope this helps