Worried Irish horse

[Pink Gorilla]

Hi. I have a horse that was imported from Ireland a few months ago as a 5yr old. He has hunted in the past and now we’re taking it steady, as he gets panicked and worried easily through the canter transition. Anyway he’s great in the way that he hacks alone, in company, never bucks or rears etc. But he can get worried very easily. Sometimes spooking sharply when ridden and also sometimes spooks and pulls back occasionally when tied up. He now has blocker tie ring which has been amazing! We have gone through groundwork fundamentals taught to me by a natural horseman which he has really clicked with and he is also great to do traditional lunging, despite being a little chaotic with it when I first got him. However he can’t cope very well with long lining, which I love to do with younger ones. He doesn’t mind the lines rubbed against him, but spooks more at me holding two lines at once.

Anyway....we’ll work at this little and often. My question is, have you ever had horses imported that have been very worried about life in general and did they come out the other side a relatively confident individual?

 

[paddi22]

Not saying this is a similar scenario but im Irish and I live beside people who breed and break these kind of horses. they are great horse people but they are very practical and black and white, they don't baby the horses and the horses are started by having a rider who is 100% the boss and very confident. they produce gorgeous horses who go on to be brave successful hunters.


I have seen some friends buy horses from them and have the same issues you are having. It seems to stem from a horse switching from feeling like they have no choice when ridden 'I am told to do this' to going to a softer rider who might'nt be as rigid. so the horse feels like it has some input for the first time, but this is confusing and unsettling for them. like I see my neighbours with their horses and the horses know 100% that person is in charge and they don't have to worry about things. and then they go to a new situation where the person isn't as rigid or consistent or is a bit more 'touchy-feely' and the horse just isn't sure who is in charge. so the spooking and stuff is the horse not knowing if IT has to deal with the situation, or figuring out who does, if that makes sense.

 

[Michen]

Yes. Imported a connemara a year ago and he was completely traumatised to be honest. He was very nervous the days after and seemed to settle quickly, I took things really slow but it still wasn't slow enough, he internalised it all and the wheels completely fell off about 6 weeks later so I restarted him as if he'd never been sat on. I realised how bad things actually were when I took him in the roundpen to do some halter work and he just stood there shaking. This was despite being very friendly, affectionate and seemingly relaxed and over his upheaval.

I was committed to making him come good because he was a project to buy and sell on, but I never thought he'd ended up as reliable as he has. I thought he'd always be a bit "wet". He's not! We spent about 2 months long reining before I got back on. I did loads of groundwork, tying bottles filled with stones to the saddle, tarps, big bouncy balls, bikes, whatever I could think of. It wasn't to make him not spooky with those things as I don't believe "de sensitising" to objects like that truly works, he will still look at an odd shaped leaf like most horses, but it was teaching him to trust me, not run and how best to react when something scared him as his ingrained reaction was to run (a fair enough response for a prey animal but not one we want in our riding horses!).

He's now a confident, cheeky and happy chap whose very level headed and laid back but I always remember that he internalises things so never to take any of that for granted and to remember that underneath the cheeky exterior, he is very sensitive.

You'd never have thought he would have ended up the way he did if you saw him at his most nervous. He is the polar opposite of my other connemara that I imported 4 years ago who arrived off the lorry with all the confidence in the world and a whole lot of arrogant attitude. I'm not sure which one was the harder to deal with to be honest as they were both complete extremes!

Just to add... he now hunts, hacks, ignores my other connemara when hes cantering sideways down a road (because he's a complete tit), leads and rides, moves yards to go on holidays/trips... he's the horse I ride when I want to switch off and relax and he is worth his weight in gold.

 

[Pippity]

Yep. Mine was imported as a 5yo, passed around dealers for a year or so, and then I got her. She was very shut down and had no opinions about anything for a while, but when she did open up she showed she's quite a sensitive soul who does get anxious about things. Thankfully, she's very sensible with it and doesn't really react much, but I'm always aware there's that worry underneath the surface.

I think it's quite common for this type of horse. As Paddi says, they're broken in by a certain kind of rider, shipped over here and often sold to a very different type of home.

 

[Annagain]

Yup. I've had Charlie nearly 8 months. He came over from Ireland not long before I bought him. He's generally very good, particularly under saddle but has moments on the ground. If he thinks he's been naughty, he's petrified. He was snaffling for treats in my pocket the other day - he doesn't get them normally but I had one left in my pocket from making a fuss of my old boy and I didn't realise - and he accidentally nipped my wrist. He shot to the back of the stable and cowered. He was also terrified of anything stick-like. The other day it took 45 minutes of desensitisation to get the measuring stick on him and I can't carry a whip while riding - he bananas away from it and turns his head slightly so he can keep an eye on the stick at all times. He will now lunge ok with a lunge whip but it's only in the last week I've managed a whole session without having to drop the whip once or twice until he stops worrying about it. I can't let it touch him though, I just waggle it towards him but far enough away from him that he doesn't think I'm going to hit him.

He's not great on personal space so we've been working hard on that on the ground but I have to be very careful about correcting him without frightening him. Lots of gently pushing him out of my space without reacting too suddenly. He's basically a very sweet horse so we're getting there.

 

[atropa]

Agree with everything everyone else has said.
Mine was imported from Ireland at 6ish, and tries soo hard to please but is a massive worrier and takes an ENORMOUS amount of confidence from a confident rider and handler.
As a few people have mentioned above, she is terrified of things like brooms etc and gets very upset if she thinks she's in trouble. Make of that what you will.

 

[Pink Gorilla]

Not saying this is a similar scenario but im Irish and I live beside people who breed and break these kind of horses. they are great horse people but they are very practical and black and white, they don't baby the horses and the horses are started by having a rider who is 100% the boss and very confident. they produce gorgeous horses who go on to be brave successful hunters.


I have seen some friends buy horses from them and have the same issues you are having. It seems to stem from a horse switching from feeling like they have no choice when ridden 'I am told to do this' to going to a softer rider who might'nt be as rigid. so the horse feels like it has some input for the first time, but this is confusing and unsettling for them. like I see my neighbours with their horses and the horses know 100% that person is in charge and they don't have to worry about things. and then they go to a new situation where the person isn't as rigid or consistent or is a bit more 'touchy-feely' and the horse just isn't sure who is in charge. so the spooking and stuff is the horse not knowing if IT has to deal with the situation, or figuring out who does, if that makes sense.

That’s a really interesting way of thinking about it. It totally makes sense though. I certainly don’t think he was abused in any way, but I wondered if he had been sort of made to get on with things at a certain pace that wasn’t suitable for his sensitive personality, or if he was overfaced on the hunt field and then lost trust in humans. But your point has made me realise that it could in fact be that he felt safer with a very authoritative rider and now he’s with me, he’s maybe feeling a little insecure over if I’ll keep him safe or not. I’m assertive, but In a quieter way. I like to think I am as gentle as possible, but as firm as necessary and because he tends to get worried, I try to keep quiet and reassuring which maybe isn’t what he’s used to?

 

[Pink Gorilla]

Thanks everyone. These horses all sound so much like my boy. He’s sooo well mannered, but being a young horse he will occasionally get cheeky. However I have to be careful with how much I correct him as he becomes petrified if I do it too suddenly or firmly. Hopefully he’ll get there soon. I’ve only had him 3 months, so it’s still very early days x

 

[Pippity]

He was also terrified of anything stick-like. The other day it took 45 minutes of desensitisation to get the measuring stick on him and I can't carry a whip while riding - he bananas away from it and turns his head slightly so he can keep an eye on the stick at all times. He will now lunge ok with a lunge whip but it's only in the last week I've managed a whole session without having to drop the whip once or twice until he stops worrying about it. I can't let it touch him though, I just waggle it towards him but far enough away from him that he doesn't think I'm going to hit him.

Blue was like that, too. Now she likes to chew on whips, wave them around and threaten to wallop me!

 

[McGrools]

Hi, i’ve seen quite a few worried ones. Most come right but I’ve currently got one that came over 4 years ago and he is still a nervous wreck. He is very worried about people on the ground especially when they are holding something in their hand. He is petrified of the farrier so is barefoot and lets me rasp his feet and i can now clip him with quiet clippers after a lot of practice.
its such a shame as he is a fabulous mover and jumper but he still thinks he’s going to get a thrashing whenever someone approaches him. He seems to have a long memory and i dont think he is ever going to get over it. I do think he is the exception rather than the norm though.

 

[Annagain]

Blue was like that, too. Now she likes to chew on whips, wave them around and threaten to wallop me!

I look forward to it . I can imagine Charlie doing that, everything goes in his mouth. He’s like a three year old in that sense.

 

[HollyWoozle]

I bought my Irish-bred mare as a 7yr old, although from a private seller here who had had her a year or two after she'd been imported, but she was also very nervous and especially on the ground. She would spook at all sorts, was very head-shy, often pulled back and broke free when tied etc. I retired her young in our case (for various reasons) but she is coming up for 19 now and is of course a lot more trusting, but still has the occasional odd moment. She has always been polite and responsive but definitely had been handled very differently before I had her.

 

[Upthecreek]

Everything Irish and young that I’ve had has been sensitive to varying degrees. Every one without exception has been respectful and polite to handle. Some have been quite nervous (flinching if you move too quickly near them until they get to know you etc), and the first few times with the farrier and being clipped have been quite hair raising with some.

They are usually very green in their ridden education and I think this is because the Irish tend to do everything very quickly and move on to the next stage in the process before the horse is fully accepting and happy. They sell horses saying the horse can do x,y,z and they usually can, but not always in the way we would like. If you buy something young from Ireland, particularly unseen, you’ve got to be prepared to go back to basics and put a lot of work in. That said, I find them to have some of the most amazing temperaments once issues have been worked through. A nice mix of willing and affectionate, with a bit of spirit and cheekiness thrown in.

 

[honetpot]

It's a long time ago, but as a teenager I used to ride for a small dealer who would buy unseen, 'broken' ponies from Ireland. They were always basically OK, but the idea of broken was to put a saddle on it and jobs a good'un. We were young we had lots of time and low expectations, so doing the same thing every day, until things clicked was not a problem.
I had some Connemara brood mares, and they all had issues, one had been as a yearling, 'swung', so tying up was interesting, and she was worried about everything you did. Routine and consist handling, is just about the only thing that really works, avoiding stress points, because you are probably not going to want to use force to 'make' them do something.
Like someone else has said once they see they may have to rely on themselves they become anxious, because they have been held together, and had a very regimented regime.

 

[Pink Gorilla]

This is all very interesting and explains a lot. Thanks everyone!

 

[Christmascinnamoncookie]

Mine was imported as a 5 year old. He’d been hunted for a season and a girl I know is a horse agent (finds horses) in Ireland. She says-tho I’m not saying mine had this-that blue pipe is employed, horses are made to do as told. She says often horses are backed by being hunted and asked to jump big ditches.

Mine was very headshy when I got him, touch him with a whip and you need a solid wall to stop him, he cow kicked if I touched his hinds. Over the years, we mostly overcame all this, but tying up, hosing, basic things, were best taken slowly.

 

[Griffin]

Yep. Mine was imported as a 5yo, passed around dealers for a year or so, and then I got her. She was very shut down and had no opinions about anything for a while, but when she did open up she showed she's quite a sensitive soul who does get anxious about things. Thankfully, she's very sensible with it and doesn't really react much, but I'm always aware there's that worry underneath the surface.

I think it's quite common for this type of horse. As Paddi says, they're broken in by a certain kind of rider, shipped over here and often sold to a very different type of home.

Mine was almost exactly the same, imported as a 5yo and passed around dealers and riding schools for a year. She just used have such a wary look in her eyes when I first got her, it was really sad.

I will never sell her (I never would have done, even when she was very tricky to ride due to being so anxious) and she has turned into a very happy and (98% time) sensible horse. She has always been very good to hack thankfully but she can react in a 'fight or flight' way to vets and some other situations.

Mine really likes routine, she doesn't have to have things happen at the same time but she likes things in the same order if that makes sense? Also, I found that in the early days, grooming her and doing groundwork with her was really helpful to develop her trust.

 

[Antw23uk]

I've not long been back from a hack. Lovely as usual. Popped him in the stable to untack and when i went to put his headcollar on, rather than tell him to move back i thought i would 'try' and put the headcollar on where he was standing over the bar across the door.

I touched the tip of his nose and made him jump and out of frustration (and him making me jump) I tutted and said 'oh for gods sake' ... at which point my fairly new, Irish imported late last year, horse was standing in the back corner of the stable looking at me totally terrified
It wouldn't be the first time I have noticed it wouldn't take much to scare the life out of him! He melts my heart but he breaks my heart when i look at him sometimes as well

 

[Wishfilly]

Some of these things very much apply to my pony- and he's never been to Ireland (born in Wales, backed in England). So I wouldn't say it is just Irish horses that are like this! Fortunately, mine is good with the farrier now, and fine with the vet- but he was very scared of being hosed to start with and can be anxious and spooky when faced with something new. He definitely doesn't like to be making the decisions, but also overreacts if told off in any way.

He's very much a sensitive soul, but can appear bolshy, and I wouldn't be surprised if he's been aggressively told off in the past.

He will very much "jump" at things which are unexpected, especially loud noises- but the other day I scratched his back end over the stable door and he properly flinched.

 

[spotty_pony]

Hi. I have a horse that was imported from Ireland a few months ago as a 5yr old. He has hunted in the past and now we’re taking it steady, as he gets panicked and worried easily through the canter transition. Anyway he’s great in the way that he hacks alone, in company, never bucks or rears etc. But he can get worried very easily. Sometimes spooking sharply when ridden and also sometimes spooks and pulls back occasionally when tied up. He now has blocker tie ring which has been amazing! We have gone through groundwork fundamentals taught to me by a natural horseman which he has really clicked with and he is also great to do traditional lunging, despite being a little chaotic with it when I first got him. However he can’t cope very well with long lining, which I love to do with younger ones. He doesn’t mind the lines rubbed against him, but spooks more at me holding two lines at once.

Anyway....we’ll work at this little and often. My question is, have you ever had horses imported that have been very worried about life in general and did they come out the other side a relatively confident individual?

This could have been one of mine by description. When I got him, also from Ireland as a 5 year old he was very sharp, twrrified of doing anything wrong and petrified of whips. Again, like tours he hacked alone and jumped absolutely everything but was nervous of things such as putting your leg forward to do the girth up, wasn't used to mounting blocks and you couldn't move at all when on board - had to sit completely still. He did get better with time and patience (and age) but was always a quirky sort and you had to be on the ball with him as he was very clever. Sadly he was put to sleep a few weeks ago aged 17 but he was a true diamond. Not a nasty bone in him. How is yours bred out of interest?

 

[spotty_pony]

It's a long time ago, but as a teenager I used to ride for a small dealer who would buy unseen, 'broken' ponies from Ireland. They were always basically OK, but the idea of broken was to put a saddle on it and jobs a good'un. We were young we had lots of time and low expectations, so doing the same thing every day, until things clicked was not a problem.
I had some Connemara brood mares, and they all had issues, one had been as a yearling, 'swung', so tying up was interesting, and she was worried about everything you did. Routine and consist handling, is just about the only thing that really works, avoiding stress points, because you are probably not going to want to use force to 'make' them do something.
Like someone else has said once they see they may have to rely on themselves they become anxious, because they have been held together, and had a very regimented regime.

Slightly off topic but what do you mean by 'swung'? Not come across that term before!

 

[M1lbie]

My last horse was Irish draught/thoroughbred bought as an 8 year old, no details if he was Irish bred but fairly sure he was, always had a ‘panic button’ and I had him for the rest of his life to the age of 28, when I first had him he was terrified of a whip and took many years before I could carry one, never did manage to lunge him successfully as he would take off in panic, he was very well mannered to handle but you couldn’t raise your voice at him or he was a quivering wreck at the back of the box, was always slightly tricky when first mounted but only for a few strides, was spooky all his life but trusted me as time went on and would always pass things with a wary eye, he was the soundest kindest horse ever but never lost that slightly anxious outlook on life. My present Connemara is Irish bred that I bought as an 8 year old, he had a history of being difficult to shoe and could be handy with his hind legs, he is fine to ride and is bold and independent under saddle. Has odd little quirks, still doesn’t like his ears being touched, putting a rug on you have to watch the hind legs, is now ok to clip but took a while and is still not keen on you carrying a whip but will tolerate it when schooling, he is now 13 and we know each other quite well so he is much more trustworthy than when he arrived and shoeing is no problem with a good quiet farrier. I’m sure he had a hurried start to life

 

[RHM]

Reading these stories is really interesting. My mare came from Ireland over a year ago and then was promptly passed around. She had a very similar disposition to what you describe. Obedient to ride but completely shut down and so anxious. She is really starting to come out of her shell..7 months later! Out of interest what is everyone else doing with their horses to help them build confidence?

 

[Sossigpoker]

Yes mine was a nervous wreck. Now 6 months later we have a great bond on the ground and I can do pretty much anything with him as he trusts me but it breaks my heart than when the saddler came to measure him for a saddle he reacted like he was going to be beaten.
Riding wise he needs a confident rider as he can panic, which I'm not , so my pro rider coach still does much of the riding while i Try and work on my confidence and position. Any tipping forward or gripping makes him panic.