Spooky bolting horse help?

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Muckyboots

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Help really needed.. I bought a cob mare as a mother / daughter share in May. She is really nervous and spooky when hacked alone, and I have no -one to hack out with. When I viewed her, I hacked her out with someone else. She gets herself into a state where she is neighing and spooking at everything, then tries to bolt home. Today she threw me and galloped off, thankfully to be caught by a dog walker about half a mile down the road.

She's really knocking my confidence, and I don't know what to do.. I can't sell her like this, and there's no way my daughter is riding her. In all other aspects she is lovely - perfect stable manners etc. I've really bonded with her - she's nuzzling me as I write this.

I don't have access to a school, and there's no-one who can walk out with me either. Suggestions really gratefully received x
 
She needs to be made more confident. I would get yourself to a yard with a school and other horses and do lots of ground work and confidence building / desensitizing. A hack that won't hack is not really worth the money/hassle so if you can't move cut you losses and sell as a project.
 
The mare is 9, my daughter is 10. I can't move - I rent my land privately so it's not an option. Yeah I'm thinking that, at 9, there's not much really I can do... I just really like her in all other aspects :(
 
You could try finding someone experienced to come and ride her for you. My boy didn't hack alone when I bought him, but I did a lot of work with him and now trust him totally out on his own.
 
If you rent your land could you find someone else to share it with you so you would have someone else to ride with.
Also get someone experienced to ride her for you.
 
If mine, I would be trying to find an instructor who could come out on foot with me. I gather all usual chks ie teeth back and saddle have been done? Are you sure she is adequately bitted for hacking out? Not necesarily stronger. You say she threw you, how? Rearing, bucking ? Sorry for questions but helps build a picture to what is happening.
 
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Get the previous owner over to ride her and see how she behaves when ridden by her. A move can really unsettle some horses. I had one that took two years to sort out but after that was perfect hacking out by itself or in company. When she was sold to you was she sold to you as 100% Bombproof/Spookproof/Laid back/hack out by itself?
 
Horses are built to be in herds. If we want them to hack alone we have to substitute their innate need for others of their species with a trust in the rider as herd leader. Its not impossible - but it isn't easy either.

It also sounds like you might be keeping her alone as well as hacking alone? That may well be making things worse as she will be in a heightened state pretty much all the time. A single horse is a dead horse and they know it. Very few do well alone. Are there any options for you to get a companion? It might give you the option to ride and lead rather than hack alone - but you do need a bit of experience and practice to do that. If she is alone a companion might make her more settled which might make it easier to start to try to build the trust you would need to hack alone. Otherwise - I know you already said it wasn't an option - but it might still bear thinking about...move to a yard with others? Or get someone else to share your land? If you are keeping her alone and sell this one only to replace her with another alone the same thing might well happen I'm afraid.

Edit to add: Good idea from poster above too!
 
Following on from what Shay said, it could be separation anxiety if you keep her with just one or two others.

I much prefer bigger groups with horses coming and going - they seem to cope a lot better with inevitable separations and changes.
 
I assume then that she is kept alone, which is a dreadful thing to do to a horse. Get her a companion and then start leading her out and about on your hacking routes, progress to long-reining then take her out and get on her for the last few yards home and gradually increase the time/distance you ride her. If she is sensible with someone on foot, let your daughter ride while you walk. If she already has a companion, great, take it from there.
Did you not try her hacking alone if that is what you want her to do? For future reference, always check yourself (don't rely on the vendor's honesty) that a horse does what you want it to do.
 
Thanks for all of your replies.
She's not kept alone - I rent a plot of land from the council next to other plots all rented for horses... Think allotments, but much, much bigger. She has her own space, but horses on all sides to nuzzle with etc.

Only problem is, I work different shifts to everyone else on our site - and no-one rides regularly enough at the time I do to go out with. out of the people there, one is an oap who shows, another has a Shetland for their kid, and the two ladies who ride are never down at the same time as me.

Yep, she's had everything checked, and is in a snaffle. I'm not sure she needs a stronger bit as she doesn't become strong until she throws me... And if I stay on she's easy to stop. She spins and bucks, like a mechanical bull.
She sets off well and doesn't plant, but neighs all the way round. And then, after about 20 mins, flips completely unexpectedly. There's no warning.

When I bought her, I rode her alone, but the lady walked next to me. Again, if I do that with her, she's fine. I can take her anywhere inhand, and she only does ' normal ' spooks, and doesn't neigh. Its like, as soon as I get on, she forgets I'm there.

I think you're all right - I'll lead her everywhere for the next few weeks, and see how it goes.
 
And I doubt the previous owner will bother... She didn't seem too fussed as she'd got her in a part ex for another horse. She did say she was bombproof, but she was at a busy yard and, I'm guessing, mostly went out with others.
 
You have bought a pony with an unknown history, she may well have been swapped in as she did not happily hack alone or suffered from separation anxiety in certain situations, you now need to try and address these issues and may have to be more proactive in your approach.
First is she is living alone, she may have horses nearby but as far as she is concerned she is alone and it may mean she is never truly able to relax, if there is no possibility of moving is it possible for a few horses to share which would be a far better way for all of the horses living in this situation, probably not going to be possible but if moving to a yard is not a consideration it may be worth looking into making the living arrangements more horse friendly.

You say she gives no warning but she is warning all the time she is neighing and tense, it is only a matter of you reading the signs better and dealing with them before she finally flips, I would not wait until then to get her listening, it doesn't sound as if she has bolted with you just that she runs home after you have fallen off, so maybe try walking her out in full tack then getting on for a short while once she is more relaxed, being prepared to get off if she becomes tense rather than trying to ride her through.

I would go out of your way to go at the same time as another person, find out if they are willing to ride with you and arrange a mutually suitable time, you may have to be a bit flexible but if it helps you then it will be worth it, there are only so many daylight hours in the winter there must be some way to arrange to meet up, even just once a week would probably be very beneficial as would finding a good instructor to help you, this sounds too much for you to deal with alone and investing in training now will be worthwhile.
 
Unfortunately, as part of our agreement, we're not allowed more than one horse / pony to a paddock. She does have plenty of friends, and I never put her stabled fully etc (she can go in when she wants) so that she can always have contact with other ponies. She is really relaxed at home - she sleeps in the stable often of her own accord, and generally appears to be really happy. She has particularly buddied up with the Shetland, who she neighs to when we go out (the shettie neighs back).
I see what you mean about reading the signs more - I aught to have got off when she started neighing today and led her. What I meant was that there was no trigger rather than sign - it's not like there is anything that causes her to spook and act like that. But yeah, you're right - I need to get her to the stage where she is happy and not neighing in the first place.
 
I also have a horse who hates hacking alone. Mine plants, or just tried to turn and go home, or goes into reversing mode, or spooks at nothing/everything. She has always been nappy as I was recently contacted by a previous owner who was looking for her. Apparently, when she was a youngster they couldn't even take her out of the field on her own. She is much better these days but can still be an utter pain...

Anyway, someone suggested camomile teabags in her feed (empty the teabag into the feed). As it happened I was looking to change her feed anyway as I wanted to remove alfalfa from her diet so I have just started her on Mollichaff calmer which has magnesium, camomile, lemon balm etc in and is for horses who are fizzy or nervous.

It's too early to say yet if this will help, but I will report back in due course..
 
I would start by leading her out in hand, short routes getting longer, until she settles. If not then see if there is a professional who would ride her out. People who ride for a living tend t have sticky bums and can ride through all that nonsense. If that doesn't work it maybe she is not the horse for you. There are people who don't want to hack alone but you might have to take a hit on her, price wise.
 
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