How do i stop this it is getting annoying?

Question

Hi everyone, i just want to know how i stop the horse i lease from ~

1. Throwing its head up, i don't want to have to buy something to stop it though. Do you have any idea's on how i can do it without spending money?

2. How do i get the horse to stop biting me when i put the saddle on? Any idea's?

3. How can i get the horse to listen to me more when i am riding it? I have a great trainer and she helps but, i dont know how i can stop it, because she gets the horse angry and to tell her that she is the boss. But i dont think i can control amber (the horse) when she reres and bucks. What can i do?

4. How can i stop amber from taking off on me? She is very hard to control, i am an experienced rider, and i know how i can stop her, and i can stay on ( i love going fast). But it would just be better if i didnt need to think every day when i go there, what will amber be like today/ will she take off on me?

i ride with a girl my age (13) and it is her horse and she does not know what to do really, she has ridden for 6 years ( i have ridden for 4) and she does not know what to do?

you dont need to answer all the questions, if you can help me with one that would be great( but try and answer as many as possible)

please and thank you xoxoxo

Answer 1

Sneaky little devil!

1. Some people would tell you to use a martingale to keep her head down, and honestly, I don't believe in martingales. I've only once ridden with one. If you can't control the horse without a martingale, you shouldn't be on that horse.

Now, if she's throwing her head up and yanking the reins out of your hand, it's plain disrespectful. Haha, I was going through this today with a horse, funny I should have to answer this. Every time she throws her head up, stop, back her up a step. Next time, back her up two steps. Next time, back her up three steps, etc. It works, believe me, if you're consistent. It took the numb skull I was on today a couple times before the light bulb clicked. She seems a bit wacko, though, so be ready to argue back.

2. If she bites you when you put on the saddle, you SMACK her good. That's rude.

3. You said it yourself-- your trainer shows her who's boss, and then she's fine. Don't let that horse win. If she's bucking, take a good feel of your outside rein and drive her foreword. She can't rear if she's moving foreword. It's scary at first, but you need to learn how to argue back and to win, other wise she will always be awful, no matter how experienced you are.

4. How do you stop her when she runs away on you? What you want to do is sit deep, and supple on the reins. Do not pull, make sure of that! Squeeze, give, squeeze, give. You might have to do it quite hard. A normal squeeze give is with your fingers, if she's awful, you might have to use your entire elbow. Try and get her to a normal pace, and maintain this pace.

She seems like she's a bit too much for you at this point, and there's no point in riding her, really. You don't need to go to war every time you ride this horse. Maybe it's worth getting some experience first with someone else, until you're confident enough to handle this.

Answer 2

she bites when you put the saddle on, because her back is sore. You need to put it on very slowly and brush b4 you ride.

and no-offense i dont think you can be experienced from 4 years. The woman at the college i ride at who win champion at ihsa, are experienced, your intermediate...

and she throws her head up because of your connection to her mouth.

i dont think you or your friend should be riding this horse... def no-offense your prolly a very good rider, just she needs some one who does know what to do.

edit: well i didnt mean to be mean, its just no one is "expirienced" after 4 years... just saying. You might be an awesome rider but theres always more to learn in the horse world!!

have fun with the new horse though!! and i hope she isnt so stubborn!!

Answer 3

Normally I would at temp to answer all those questions. But in all honesty I don't think you should be leasing that horse.

Answer 4

OH geez, you're going to BUY something to have him stop throwing his head up? That is not a genuine solution! The problem is the relationship of you with your horse.

OK he bites you when you put the saddle on. That tells you EVERYTHING you need to know right there. This horse does not respect you at all. A horse that does not respect you is not a horse you want to ride. Horse life amongst horses, is all about respect. Horses also test the people around them to see who is worthy of respect and who isn't (in the eyes of the horse). I am not putting anyone down, maybe the horse doesn't respect you now but you can change the situation so that he respects you like the best stallion you could ever find.

I know you are 13, but its not too early for you to learn about getting a horse to respect you. Respect is communicated to a horse on the ground. So you need to do some ground work to teach the horse that you are his leader. I know riding is a lot more fun, but to have good relationships with horses you need to do groundwork with them.

Start by reading these articles:

http://www.train-horses.com/horse-articl...

Then try watching these videos. I know they barely touch on what groundwork a person should do with a horse, but its a start:

http://www.youtube.com/user/dmmcmah1

David

http://gentlenaturalhorseman.blogspot.co...

Answer 5

1. If the horse is throwing its head up there could be a # of causes: pain in mouth, heavy hands, harsh bit, pain from saddle, or just plain resistance. Make sure there is nothing in her mouth or on her back that is causing her pain. make sure you aren't pulling her around. Use your legs to direct her and do some half halts and inside rein holds to help bring her head down. Also try a long warm up before you ride and get her really relaxed. If she is tense or your are tense it could be causing her to hold her head up

2. I dont' know how a horse could bite you if it is tied up when you are putting the saddle on. Once again make sure the saddle isn't causing her pain..is it fitted correctly to her back? have somone hold her while you put it on or hold a whip in one hand and bump her on the nose if she tries to bite

3. I don't know if you ride western ro english but if you ride english try half halts where you squeeze your inside hand and then release. Instead of just going in circles around the arena try cahnging it up. Do some smaller circles and then go diagonaly across the arena or serphentine up and down the arena so she has to pay attention to see what is next

4. As soon as you feel like she might take off, sit deep in the saddle and tighten your core but dont let anything else get tense. Don't puul with your hands this just encourages her to take off. Instead half halt and walk her in smaller circles until she calms down

Answer 6

Get a gelding, lol.

As for the biting, keep your elbow sticking out when you're putting the  saddle on. That will put some protection between you and the mouth. If she whips back to bite you, move the pointy part of your elbow so it's in the way and she hits that instead of your side or any other part of your body. Most horses, after ramming their heads into your elbow, learn quickly not to bite.

Answer 7

1. use a martingale. ask if anyone at your stables has one you could borrow. it attaches to the girth and the reins.

2. always grrom the horse first, as the dirt can rub. also, tie the horse up on a short lead rope when you put he saddle on.

Answer 8

ok i will answer number2.

the was you describe your horse bites you when u do its girth up i am asuming you mean you horse is girth shy and bites you every time u do it up. my tb has the same problem. what i do is every time he moves his head tawards me i raise my voice at him. if he persists i what him on the neck and raise my voice. but some times if he already has his bridle on his just crunches at the bit. but if he doesnt have his bridle on he bites the lead rope. you need to show the horse that you are the boss and it cant bite you on knock you around so be over ruling tawards the horse.

also a way to get your horse to listen to you is by doing some ground work with you horse. so you on the ground in the areana or round pen with a unge whip. stand in the middle and flik the lunge whip up in the air or untill the horse breaks away in a trot or canter.  keepe the horse going for 2 minutes or so then place the whip on the ground and say "woooo" in a calm loud but steady and not angry voice.wait and turn to the opposite sind on the areana and walk. if ur horse doesnt follow go over and pat it then repeat the process again from the start. that will help build a trusting bond between you and the horse. then after that if done do some flat work training on the horse without the instuctor there and just reward you horse if it is being good and just ride nice and gently then in time the horse will come to tust you and want to listen to you.

Answer 9

Are you sure you should be leasing this horse if you find her so hard to control/have so many problems? Maybe you should find a calmer horse?

Answer 10

All of these problems sound like they stem from the same root cause. Your horse doesn't respect you. Understand that animals like horses or dogs have a pecking order, and if you're not at the top of that, you're going to be bit, or kicked, or run away with, etc. Try this. Put your horse in a round pen, and chase it around some. (No tack, you on foot) Make it fun. However, make sure YOU decide which way you're going. After you run out the horse a couple times, turn your back on her, and walk to the other side. Let her come to you. Watch her body language - she's talking to you all the time and you need to learn to read what she's saying to you. If she's being rude, she's probably letting you know in advance that it's coming. Above all - don't let this horse get the upper hand with you. Be firm, be assertive, DON'T take her c**p. Being firm and assertive doesn't mean to be mean to her. Don't beat her, or hit her overly hard, etc. Get her attention and let her know that you won't tolerate her bad behavior. Run her around the round pen a bit so she sees you as the dominant one. When she goes to bite, push her head away and jerk on her lead. Give her a firm "NO!" Let her know being rude is not cool. When she's being good, love her. A lot. Reward that behavior, and that's what you'll get.

If she's running away with you, do you let her? You mention that you like to go fast. Is that what you mostly do, and when she breaks for it, do you let her? If so, there's your problem. Next time you go out, don't let her get out of a walk. Keep her in that walk, and if she gives you trouble, back her up. A lot. She'll get tired of that quick.

For your homework now, Google some articles on horse body language and read all you can on it. You'll learn an awful lot, and understand a lot more when you watch your horse move.

Also - for the head thing, could be she needs a different bit, or maybe her headstall is a little tight. Go with the lightest bit you can and still maintain control. When her headstall is on, you should just make the corners of her mouth "smile" a little. If it's up high and stretching her mouth out, she could be hurting. Check the fit, and if it's OK, try different bits. Still could be that she's just being bossy throwing her head, though. She's showing you disrespect that way.

Above all, don't be anxious or out of control excited or angry around your horse. Stay calm and let her see she can trust you to be in charge. But BE in charge. Get your trainer to watch you with your horse and give you pointers on what you could do differently to put a stop to her bad behavior. Watch the trainer and learn what they do. Spend lots and lots of ground time with your horse. Brush and groom a lot. Lead her around a lot. Get that horse to bond with you. Good Luck!

Answer 11

1.Try find the reason why she throws her head up, does she do it when you ride? then maybe she is trying to get away from the bit or her back hurts or something is irritating her on her face. Does she do it when you brush her , maybe its because she is in pain in that certain spot .

2.When you put the saddle on have your elbow sticking out where she is about to bite you , and then when she trys to bite you push your elbow close to her face so she can hurt herself . or another option is to put a nose chain on and when she trys , grab the chain and pull hard twice. do it agressivly so that she knows thatyour not playing around with her.

3. In order to get your horse to listen to you , it has to respect you. Therefore you need to bond with her , spend your free time playing games , brushing her , go for walks (alone if possable) .

4.Everything has to do with respect . You expecially have to be patient with a horse like this. Once your horse respects you , she will trust you , therefore she wont be spooky about anything . Before you ride take the time to massage her face and hum a slow soothing song to her , rub your hands slowly around her ears down to her cheek to her mouth , then up to her forehead and repeat once or twice.When you ride and you can feel her getting a bit fast just start talking to her , calm her down , pat her. She will eventually stop taking off , once she trusts and respects you . you HAVE to be patient though , it will not work if you are not patient. If she does somthing bad (when not being ridden) use body movements not your voice. When she takes off pull her head to the inside , throwing her off balance and she will stop. :)

Answer 12

The reason she is throwing her head around is most likely because of the bit you are using or because you are pulling o her mouth to much. I used to ride a horse who threw his head up and took off with riders but i figured that if u dont pull on him and if you talk to him calmly or maybe do some slow circles when she gets fast she will calm down. As for the rearing it could as well be because you are pulling on her mouth and gripping tightly with your heels to stay on which could confuse her and because horses move away from pressure thenn the oly direction for her is to go up. I also think it would be best if you were the one that rode her so you would be able to figure her out sice you lease her. Hopefully this info was useful!

Answer 13

Sorry but I don't think you should be leasing her. If it is behavioral, you should have a very experience rider that can help Amber understand. I sort of doubt it is just Amber... have you looked at saddle fit? Bridle/bit? Also make sure your aid are not confusing her and she has no physical pain or anything to make her annoyed. It sounds like something is bugging her... a lot. Good luck though, maybe have a vet or a farrier out to check her. Get her teeth checked though, that's important. Hope this helps!

Answer 14

1.  He might have a wolf tooth.  google this and its care, they just take them out

    He has gotten away with it for a long time.

    Running martingale, adjusted correctly,  you can make one for a few dollars.

    google this also.

2.  Run your fingers down each side of his spine.  If he winces, you need to check your saddle and blanket for defects.  His back is sore.  If he doesn't wince try this:  When you start to put the saddle on, and he reaches for you, pop him with your open hand on his nose.  A few times usually stops this behavior.  

This a spoiled horse, and your trainer needs to get him under control before you get on him.  There are too many nice, gentle horses out there to spend time on a mean one.

3.  You should not be riding a horse that rears, this is one of the most dangerous things that a horse does to get a rider off of their back.

This horse needs to be ridden and evaluated by a professional to see if

he can be rehabilitated.

good luck, and find a good horse,  like my daddy says"  It costs just as much to feed a mean horse as a nice one."