Youngster reared for the first time, help :-(

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Corona

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Hello all, I'm posting for a friend so any and all thoughts appreciated. We both bought baby horses at the same time and have planned to do all sorts with them together, although yesterday has just really knocked her :-(

Her little warmblood has just turned 4, and after about 2 weeks off being ridden (still went out in the pen everyday for a good blitz!) she rode her yesterday. I suggested she lunged her or something first, but she chose not to, so hopped on in the school. The mare was rather on her toes, and there was another lady jumping a fence in there. As the ladies horse took off, landed and came to canter past my friends horse, she just had a paddy. She went up, and I mean up, bucked and spun away, resulting in my friend coming off quite nastily. The horse looked as shocked as my friend and just stood as she was caught. Friend quietly got straight back on, and went and worked her at one end of the school and I must say she did go beautifully, very calm!??? Ended on a good note with mare going around nicely, not one hint of what had just happened. She's never ever reared before, she's good as gold!

Friend is now really really upset though. Does this mean her horse is a rearer, or would you just put it down to sheer babyness, her being spooked by the other horse, and friend maybe jabbing her in the mouth as she went to spook, bit fresh, ready to go out????? It wasn't done as an evasion. I think she's just getting hung up on it and is scared that that's it now, she'll do it all the time.

Any thoughts please, i've just tried reassuring her that it was a baby blip and didn't look malicious (not much consolation) but still.

I'm glad my boy wasn't looking!! x
 
The first time I took my youngster out to a "do" with stable companions he reared when they both (thoughtlessly) went off in seperate directions to speak to pals. I managed to stay on and he has never done it again. It is scary but you are probably right it is likely to a baby thing. They all have to learn to deal with life! Good on her for remounting and working the horse.
 
I personally would say it’s the joy of babies. I backed my coloured (in my sig), and all went really well, then about 3 weeks into it he had a rodeo-ing fit, no reason for it. It was more luck then anything else that I didn’t fall off. But he never ever did it again (about from the odd little buck learning to canter, but that was just balance).

So fingers crossed, it’s just a one off.
 
Considering how calm she was afterwards and how she didn't seem to do anything naughty after, i'd say its a once off. She's young, and hadn't worked for a while which can really make a huge difference. Hopefully she'll be fine from now on :)
 
Your friend may have done well to take your advice and lunge the horse before she got on. The horse would be very fresh, having been off for a couple of weeks. She should have lunged the horse and got it listening to her and responsive before riding, especially with another horse in the school.

Horses don't rear for no reason. Perhaps this one reared in response to the rider's hands when the other horse went by at the canter.

It's amazing how many people look for answers from the horse, when it's their own actions/reactions/lack of understanding which cause the problems.
 
I would suggest going back a few steps, and taking things very calmly - and try to spend time in the school alone, with no one else in there. You need to read the horse, and I would humbly suggest that if she was on her toes and excitable, being in a school when someone else was jumping was too much for her ? sm xx
 
Corona said:
would you just put it down to sheer babyness, her being spooked by the other horse, and friend maybe jabbing her in the mouth as she went to spook, bit fresh, ready to go out????? It wasn't done as an evasion.
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Exactly that- babyness. It can take some horses years to accept others cantering and jumping around them. TBH i think it was a bit silly taking such a young inexperienced horse in a school with someone jumping when it hadnt been ridden for 2 weeks. A baby horse needs to be trained that other horses working around it are ok, just as it needs to be trained to do anything else. And being next to a jumping horse is being thrown in at the deep end.
 
Lil is now working beautifully in the school on her own but had a rearing tantrum when I tried taking her in there with another horse and that was just walking, nothing as exciting as jumping. I would say, as other have, that you need to gradually introduce your horse to working in the same school as others.
 
I'm another who would say it was a baby reaction to the other person jumping. The best thing she could have done is what she did do and get back on and basically act like it didn't happen. The horse behaved afterwards so it doesn't sound lie it was naughtiness. My sister's friend bought a youngster the end of last year. One of her first times in the school having a lesson it went up as spooked at a 'scary corner in the school' (we all know about the eh!), it lost its balance and went over landing on the rider, Not nice but she was ok and think the horse scared itself.

It hasn't done it since and she's just got back on with it and contined with the schooling and generally bringing it on.

I think it's just one of those things that youngsters do. You have to be ready for extreme reactions although also not ride as if you're expecting them - if you get what I mean?

My advice would be for her to just carry on as normal - it's sounds like the horse was as shocked as she was.
 
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