Why is my horse so spooky!? Please, please Help!

[michnb]

I'm having real problems with my 21 year old Irish sports horse. He's always been a bit flighty, but he pulled his check ligament 2 years ago and has suddenly got ten times worse! He's the most laid-back, bomb-proof animal you could ever meet, but as soon as I take him out hacking he turns into a horse from hell! In the space of 5 minutes we could probably have 25 to 30 spooks at stupid things like leaves and docks. I have 2 other people who take him out for me occasionally when I'm busy and he's always fine for them, it just seems to be me, and its getting to the point where I don't enjoy hacking out any more because he just spooks so much! Please, please help if you can; he's had me in tears the past 3 hacks and I just can't take much more!
He really seems to be hyper-vigilant and sensitive when I take him out, which has made me wonder whether he's lost trust and confidence in me as a rider? Would you say this is possible? If so, how could I gain his trust back? Would something like Parelli help? Any thoughts or advice would be extremely gratefully received. Thank you so much! xx

 

[MrVelvet]

taking his age into consideration.... might it be worth getting his eyesight checked? along with all the other things that could be physically wrong?
if youve had him that long i doubt its a trust issue or try taking him out with a 'nanny' horse. hope you work it out x

 

[meandmyself]

Try having him scoped for ulcers, too.

 

[Honestly]

I have 2 other people who take him out for me occasionally when I'm busy and he's always fine for them, it just seems to be me, and its getting to the point where I don't enjoy hacking out any more because he just spooks so much!

Does seem odd that he only spooks with you, so I doubt that it is his eyes or a health issue. Something must have started this issue and such a shame as it will knock your confidence and ruin your rides. Could there be a possibility that it is made or getting worse as you may be unknowingly displaying signs of anxiety, one fueling the other so to speak.

Perhaps as another member said here, you could ride in company for a few times and see if he is any better as you may be more relaxed and not just waiting for him to spook. If this is not possible, then perhaps begin with short hacks, hum to yourself as you ride, think happy things and try not to think about him spooking. If on short rides he is better, make them a little longer each time, if/or/when he improves, you may find you relax more and so get back to how he was.

In a nut, he may be picking up on you. This is only a thought, I could be completely wrong, but worth a try I imagine.

Good luck, I do hope he improves for you, please let us know how you go.

 

[horseless jorge!]

In a nut, he may be picking up on you. This is only a thought, I could be completely wrong, but worth a try I imagine.

Good luck, I do hope he improves for you, please let us know how you go.

Agreed. Seems it could be the case as he only spooks with you. Do the other people take him on different hacks/ do they hack at different times of the day?

 

[canteron]

Yikes, I have a spooky horse so know where you are coming from - sometimes you just aren't up to it!!! Here are some possible things to consider.

Consciously breathe as thats pretty much the first thing to go!!! I breathe in for 4 and out for 4, this also has the impact of keeping me sitting pretty correctly. I also make a huge effort to ride really positively and forward.

Secondly, it may be worth just doing really short hacks for a bit and treating them as schooling hacks. Conscioulsy walk here, trot there, do a circle here, I think my mare sometimes spooks to entertain herself if I am not keeping her brain occupied.

And why not try a scoop of something like Magnitude (a magnesium oxide supplement), it may help and shouldn't do too much harm. A lack of magnesium can make them less calm.

Good luck.

 

[Kaylum]

Could it be that you arent riding him just quite right? Have you had any lessons on him lately? May try and get an instructor to help you.

 

[rockysmum]

We have a 21 year old cob which my daughter used to show, this pony is bombproof (or so we thought) it has been ridden on busy roads, in company or alone, big county showgrounds, evening performances etc etc, it didn't even bother about an army tank, royal horse artilary, parachutists, I could go on for ever.

I advertised for someone to take her for the odd hack on another forum and stated all of the above. A lovely lady came to ride her, she behaved like the horse from hell. Wouldn't go out alone, spun, bucked, tanked off for home, spooked at everything. I couldn't believe it. I made excuses and looked for every reason I could think of. The lady gave up and the pony became a field ornament.

A few weeks ago I decided to get back into riding and my own 35 year old doesn't do more than a short trip round the fields. So I got on our cob, I've never ridden her as she doesn't go forward enough for me to enjoy. I was expecting trouble. She has been absolutely brilliant, doesn't spook, goes out on her own or in company, I even took her to a show and she was an absolute star.

We have decided that she takes all of her confidence from her rider. If the rider isn't bothered then neither is she. If you show the slightest doubt or nerves she falls apart.

I hate to say it but it sounds as if your horse could be the same, especially if its OK for other people.

I agree about going out with someone else and having a few lessons. Could you ride something else out for a while to get your confidence back. From our experience its a vicious circle, the more the horse plays up the more nervous the rider gets which in turn makes the horse even worse.

 

[Pearlsasinger]

Do you feed a glucosamine supplement? If so STOP!
I started giving my horse the same supplement that we, very successfully, give our oldie, after her windgalls came up following a sponsored ride. A few weeks after that she started to get spookier and spookier, until she bucked me off onto the road as a diesel car passed us. It took us ages to work out that the glucosamine could be the cause and take her off it. She became much less anxious when hacked after that.

 

[Tammytoo]

Does seem odd that he only spooks with you, so I doubt that it is his eyes or a health issue. Something must have started this issue and such a shame as it will knock your confidence and ruin your rides. Could there be a possibility that it is made or getting worse as you may be unknowingly displaying signs of anxiety, one fueling the other so to speak.

Perhaps as another member said here, you could ride in company for a few times and see if he is any better as you may be more relaxed and not just waiting for him to spook. If this is not possible, then perhaps begin with short hacks, hum to yourself as you ride, think happy things and try not to think about him spooking. If on short rides he is better, make them a little longer each time, if/or/when he improves, you may find you relax more and so get back to how he was.

In a nut, he may be picking up on you. This is only a thought, I could be completely wrong, but worth a try I imagine.

Good luck, I do hope he improves for you, please let us know how you go.

Agree!

However, speaking from past experience it's not always easy to relax in these situations! I would thoroughly recommend Bach Rescue Remedy - it worked for me and also for my son when he was doing his finals at Uni. It puts you in a relaxed frame of mind. Try Boots or your localhealth shop.

 

[michnb]

Thank you so, so much everyone! I'm going to go out today and get some calming stuff for him - and me!!! See whether that does anything. Also meant to be having the vet up soon anyway so will ask him to check him over. I really can't thank everyone enough!
The two girls who take him out are a lot taller then me (I'm only just 5ft, and one of them is 5'10"!) So I've always just told myself it's because they have longer legs then me, its only recently that I've begun thinking that maybe that's not the case... Hacking out with other people has also become a bit strange. He used to be perfect when we went out with some friends, but once again recently that's changed as well. Now he's just as bad in company as he is alone, another reason why I thought maybe its related to his confidence in me?
I hadn't actually thought about having lessons; will have to get some booked! Thank you so, so, so much everyone!! I really am so grateful!

 

[muddypony]

haven't read all the replies properly but have you thought that maybe what you might consider being 'spooky' is something different to what these other people think it is? so there could have been a misunderstanding and he may actually be exactly the same for them as he is for you.
i've ridden a few horses out whose owners thought they were really spooky, but i didn't actually find them that bad and they were still enjoyable to ride so i wouldn't get back to the yard and tell the owner they were spooky because in my opinion, they weren't. not having a dig, it's just something to consider so you can be on the same page as the other people who ride your horse and find a solution for his behaviour.

 

[djedgley]

Poor you - I know exactly how you feel!! My dear old Irish boy was awful to hack out but 10 times worse with me. A friend used to hack him out on the buckle and never had a problem but as soon as I got on, for some reason I made him spook. I owned him for 20 years and evented and dressaged him and it was the hacking that was the worrying thing for me. Sadly he was PTS this year and I now ride a friends horse who has led a very sheltered life (he is 7) and was quite nervous of EVERYTHING out hacking so I had a friend show me the Intelligent Horsemanship method and we had everything in the school you could think of - flags, plastic, bollards, signs - the more the merrier. In a very short space of time he gained confidence enough to check out these "spooky" things and now I ride him on the buckle. Out hacking now if he sees something he is not sure about, I give him time to check it out. He is so much more chilled. Good luck