What's the stupidest thing your horse spooks at?

abi31

abi31

Well-Known Member
Joined
22 March 2010
Messages
307
Location
Suffolk
Visit site
I decided to ride out on Thursday afternoon, it was a nice sunny day and I had finished work early. We went down the main road and through the deep, scary puddles on the bridleway which we had a hissy fit at the previous day with no problems. Then we turned onto a trail where we had spooked at another horse a week ago causing the other rider to fall off (felt a bit guilty but I sat the same spook slightly better than she did!). I decided as she had been very brave that we would have a relaxing walking hack with no cantering to soak up the sun and snatch a bit of grass when every grouse and pheasant in Britain decided to erupt out of the foliage around us. We spooked left, then right, then reared, then tried to run away but were blocked at each turn by more squawking chaos. I then decided to stick to the roads where it might be safer. In the distance I saw a huge lorry, pulling another huge lorry... I feared the worst and imagined glue all over my saddle, but she ambled past without turning a hair.

I was reassured by my friend not to be concerned as all the birds would be dead soon and get there comeuppance. What joys have your horses had hissyfits at?

PS. Well done for getting to the end.
 
People! If theres someone on the distance he wil be backing off for ages then when he gets closer he's all on his toes! You'd think he'd be used to people :p
 
Daffodils - yes I know - and you know what makes it worse? She was imported from Holland! How's that for irony?
What makes it even worse still is that she hardly ever spooks at anything else. Just when you are getting her used to the yellow perils they all die back and then there's a year goes by before they reappear - I'm resigned to horse eating dafs every April!
 
His own shadow....Herc is very special....I also came of him as he spooked at a family out with a push chair. They didn't even sneak up on us. They were walking towards us and politely stood to let me pass and Herc'l decided he didn't want to and spun. No idea why as he'd never done it before with something like that and never has since.

Oh and the hose pipe....but that eats horses you know.

Thankfully Blue is more sensible.
 
Last weekend, Harry spoked at my OH picking an apple. Funniest thing was when I tent was put up during Summer, Harry thought it was the Devil in disguise and spent days snorting at it everytime he had to get near it and staring it out in the field.
 
Grass!! Not just any grass but if a clump of grass is a different shade of green to the rest of the field she'll give it a wide berth unless she can follow another horse through it...
 
Foxgloves. I kid you not.

This was from a old, old boy, totally bombproof usually, done some years with the RDA. I had previously put my non-horsy b/f on him for a hack without a leadrope, and we even cantered across a field with b/f dropping the reins and holding the saddle, he was that trustworthy.

But once, with an experienced rider, he spooked really badly and the only thing we could see were the foxgloves. :confused::confused::confused:
 
Varies from time to time and generally things that you wouldn't expect......

at the moment horse poo in the road or little puddles. (Is fine wading through deep water though).

There's also a dog down a track that we ride which sometimes leaves his little teddy out which is pretty scary!
 
spooking is my boys best subject !! :rolleyes::rolleyes:
1. horses
2. logs on the ground
3. tree stumps
4.one particular tree we pass out hacking :confused::confused:
5. chalk on the tracks
6. and his personal favourite the empty grass after the council have removed the rubbish that has been dumped
 
The letter K on the wall of the indoor school

A patch of sunlight that was coming through a crack in the roof

One afternoon the school had been hosed to keep the dust down, and someone had sprayed water on the wall, and it looked a little bit like an elephant's head waving it's trunk... he nearly fainted when he saw that.

:rolleyes:
 
My yearling kicked up to her belly to get rid of a fly, then slammed her foot back down on the ground. The noise her own foot made (just on grass, she didnt hit anything), sent her into orbit and she freaked out for AGES!
 
The white speed limit numbers painted on the road. We used to go trotting quite happily down the road and then he would stop.Dead.With absolutely no warning. First time he done it I very nearly went straight over his head!
 
moving leaves
her own shadow (literally)
moving trees
birds flying out of trees
Gates that are hidden to the side or driveways/ houses which are also slightly concealed.
Jump wings that have been jumped before fomr the other side of the hedge.

In the winter-
cars driving on the road beside the bridlepath
and literally anything else that moves

but gets better as the ride goes on and is fine with scary traffic/brollies/pushchairs .
 
Anything and everything! think i have the worlds spookiest horse! His own shadow, everything in the school that he has been going in for the last 6 months especially the poles at the side of the school and if someone has dragged a pole and left a line in the sand that is terrifying!

The hosepipe even though it is used everyday on him, oh and the best one if his leadrope dangles in front of him on the floor when attached to his headcollar, that is a horse eating snake and is also terrifying for him.Lol

Saying that traffic he is ok with, but a piece of paper on the floor is another issue! I could throttle him at times the big wuss!
 
Absolutely nothing. Literally.

We would be going around the paddock or out on a hack quite happily and he would suddenly spook, theres nothing new there its stuff hes been past so many times before and suddenly it will be horse eating!!! This was my last horse, he was a lot better when I sold him but the new owners were fully warned before taking him.

And my new 4 yo decided to have a go at this behaviour a week ago after a bit of time off, now I cant ride for 5 weeks :rolleyes:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top