How do i get him calm again?

Question

I was out riding in my riding ring today my horse is pretty quite but times when he sees or maybe hears something he can be a handful i was riding for about 20 mins when he spooks i really don't know at what but from that point on i had my hands full he did not want to go back to that end of the ring and that is his end thats were the gate is it took me 30 mins just to get him half way there what do you do in this situation? iallmost came off 3 times because of his quick movements

Answer 1

Hey my name is Emma too lol. Well try and get him to go back to the place he is spooking at.... otherwise he thinks he can get away with stuff like that. If you are nervous about falling off or can't handle him, get off and lead him over there. It might be a good idea, if you are riding him in an arena, to lead him around the whole arena once or twice. If he seems iffy about 1 spot, be prepared if he spooks.

Answer 2

No no no, you do NOT dismount and lead him to the scary place.  This will teach him to not trust you as a rider.  You have to get him through it while you are riding.

You aren't supposed to try to calm him OR just ignore it. Patting him and using soft words is just like telling him he's a good boy in his language. He can't distinguish between if you are saying "good boy" or "easy" or whatever. He listens to that tone of voice and that tells him he was a good boy for spooking.

If you ignore it and turn his back, he will think you are running away from it. The best thing to do is to make him face what scared him (in this case the end of the arena with the gate), and make him work while he faces it. Put him in his comfort zone whether that's 10 feet away from the object or 50 feet away. Then work him back and forth, making him move his feet, but always face the object. When you turn him, turn toward the object, never away, and slowly get closer and closer with each movement. Soon you'll be right up next to it. He will learn that when he spooks he has to work harder, and that he has to work harder when his is far away from the scary thing.  But also you will have taken his mind of the object, shown him it's not scary, but even more importantly, made him feel brave about it.  Let him stop and rest when he finally makes it up next to the object so he learns that that is where his release is, so it will turn into something he enjoys being around instead of being scared around it.

Answer 3

Try leading him up to the spot on foot, and then getting on his back and holding him there. Just sit there, talk to him. Show him that your not afraid of it at all, and that its no different from any where else in the arena.

I think he might need some training with things that spook him. Like for instance, standing next to a barking dog, etc. There could've been something at that end of the arena that was scaring him. Even if it was only there once, I saw a horse once who shied on the second barrel no matter where they were competing because the place they practiced had cattle behind the fence near the second barrel.

Answer 4

You should take him back to that spot. If you can't stay on him while doing it, lead him there. You should probably circle him there until he doesn't spook at it anymore. Hopefully he won't spook at that spot again.

Answer 5

when he spooks, stay calm, but try to push him thru.  visualize him going thru.  when you get past there, bring him into smaller circles, to bring his mind back.  don't move from that spot until he's fully paying attention to you.

hope this helps.

Answer 6

Try to stay calm yourself. You need to teach him that there is nothing to be afraid of over there. You may want to start out on foot, lead him to that part of the ring. Walk him over there and past it a few times. Try to find out what he is afraid of. Maybe he is afraid of a tree branch hanging down or a dog or anything. Once you feel that you have enough confidence, climb up on his back and walk him to that part of the ring. It may take a while and it may be very hard, but if you don't do it then you will have more problems later on. I hope I helped!

Answer 7

yes, everyone said what I was going to say. You can also lunge him before you get on in the end he is spooking at. It will get him used to that area as well as waste some of his energy to get some of the spook out. Overall try not to make a big deal of the spook. He can feel your unsurity and anxiety, if any, and reacts to it accordingly. Good luck!  

Answer 8

If you're confident enough to stay on, then do so, as it's better for him to learn to trust your judgment when your on his back, as that's the goal, but if you really think you'll get tossed off, then better to ride him to an area where he's calm, dismount and gradually walk him through the "scary" area.

If you're  going to stay on, make sure your irons are dropped long enough (eg, not jumping length), and sit deeply (lean back a little) so he has less of a chance of spooking out from under you,  and you can start making big circles, as close to the area as he'll go without freaking.  So, walk the perimeter of the arena, but turn BEFORE you get so far into the end where he thinks the monster is residing, and turn and continue around the arena.  If the arena is huge, you can just make large circles near that end, to save some time. Do this in both directions and gradually  go further into the area he's afraid of.  It's very important that you dismiss the thought from your own mind that he may spook.  Assume he won't.  Don't let him gawk at the scary place, either.  Overbend him a bit to the inside, keeping your inside leg on to keep him from drifting in.

Doing it this way will do two things: first, he'll realize that you're not going to force him into the "dreaded space," as you'll keep turning him away from it, removing the pressure. Secondly, it will establish your control as you'll be keeping him moving in your chosen direction and (hopefully) speed.

Good luck!  Been through this hundreds if not thousands of times!!