My horse has got serious issues

Question

I need advice on teaching my horse not throw me off. She runs really fast then stops and kicks up her back feet! Im not quite sure what to do with her

Answer 1

try sending her away toa farm of lifestyle block where they can train her and make sure she knoes who the boss is!!

Answer 2

You have a horse & you don't know how to handle it??  Real nice.  Yet another horse in the hands of someone who should NOT own one.  It will be a screwed up mess if it isn't already & then it will be sold to someone else who then must retrain it to make it even worth keeping or it goes to slaughter because it is too screwed up to waste the time on.

Nice job!!!  Do you know how many horses end up at slaughter houses because of people like you who buy them & have not got a clue as to how to care, ride or work one?

Next time, take A LOT of lessons BEFORE buying a horse.

KIDS!!!!!

GET A TRAINER BEFORE GETTING THE BRIGHT IDEA THAT YOU THINK YOU CAN HANDLE A HORSE!!

By the way, the horse is NOT the one with issues, it is YOU...Your horse is smart enough to know that you don't know what you are doing.  What does that say about YOU?

Answer 3

pull on the reins the entire time. slow her down then whne you are pulling she cant buck

Answer 4

You need to work on the ground with her first so she knows almost all of her cues before you get on (including hip in and collection). This wil avoid any injury, usually, and result in a calmer more responsive horse. Try to avoid galloping off and doing thing just for fun until you can feel safe at any time any gait. Work in a round pen if you want to keep riding, no larger than 60 feet and it should keep her from getting enough momentum to do that to you.  

Answer 5

Ooh, this is a tough problem, and you have my sympathy, it's not easy trying to figure out what's happening with a horse.  Some of the other suggestions are pretty good. but!

We don't know how old she is or how much training either of you have had, but I know from personal experience if you lean/crouch forward on your horse,  you're going to throw her off balance.  Horses often regain their balance by:

1. going faster, and

2. bucking.  

You'll have to analyze yourself first, then you'll be able to determine what your mare needs to feel comfortable and not charge and buck. She's racing because she may think that's what you are telling her to do, and she is bucking because she isn't comfortable, either off balance or there's a tack fit issue.  

sit up, sit back, relax your hands, arms back and legs and try walking, as others have suggested.

If the things you try don't work, have someone who can give you some pointers come and evaluate the two of you, because riding your horse should be fun, and it sounds like it isn't so fun anymore.  

Answer 6

Hire a trainer.

No one is born knowing how to ride a horse.  No one is born knowing all there is to know about horse behavior.

You have to ask for help from experts.  Experts that can "put hands on" your horse, not just give random advise on the internet.

Answer 7

Do small exercises to bypass the problem.

Don't let her run.  Work her at just a walk to start with.

If she tries to bolt, pull hard to one side and make her do circles for a while, then try walking again.

When you stop, immediately have her back up a few steps so she can't try to kick, or do more circles.  

Lean your weight back in the saddle when you're slowing down to stop to help keep your balance and let her feel pressure on her lower back to help her not kick her back feet up.  

Work her on a lunge line to go through walk, trot, and canter so she can re-learn smooth transitions and stopping without kicking.

When you can get through all your exercises at a walk, let her do a trot and do it all again.  Then, when you're sure you're in control, try it at a canter.  Any time she sets off at a dead run, just yank to one side so she spins and then make her walk forward or back up and continue riding.

My horse threw tantrums for a while when we first started ring work, he never bucked, but he spun in circles, backed up, tossed his head, bolted across the ring, and did all sorts of other silly things.  I just kept pushing for it, if he spun I'd just wait for him to finish and make him walk again, if he bolted I pulled him around to one side, and so on.  Sooner or later he learned that none of his tricks would get me off him nor end the training session, and he'd give up and do what I told him to.  Right now, your horse knows how to get you off, and she's going to keep doing it until you show her that her trick won't work anymore.  Then she'll stop.

Answer 8

If she throws you off and you stay off, you have just taught her that she can get out of work by doing this. So, whatever you do, you absolutely must not let her end the ride like this. The ride ends when you say, not when she says.

When she runs fast, is it because you told her to run fast, or because she decided to run fast? If she decided, you must stop her either by trotting or circling to stop the chain of events.

I really think you need the help of a trainer that will work with you and your horse to stop this dangerous behaviour.

Answer 9

She needs some respect for you!!! try round pen exercises! Once she respects you on the ground, she mite respect you more when your riding her... If she still has the lack of respect or is just being lazy, try a different bit (stronger), and carry a crop( magic wands as I call them)... when she kicks up her back feet pull her head up and tap her with the crop... She kant buck if her head is up..... Idk what else to say to you.... Maybe try a week or two of training?

Answer 10

OK FOR 1 ITS NOT ABOUT RESPECT AT ALL-!

FOR TWO THINK ABOUT HOW YOU ARE RIDING AND IF YOU TENSE UP IT MIGHT SCARE HER.

3: WORK HER IN A ROUND PEN BEFORE RIDING HER SOMETIMES THEY ARE FEELING REALLY GOOD SO WORK HER FIRST.

4:LEARN YOUR HORSE BEFORE HAVING FUN THE MOST IMPORTANT THING ABOUT OWNING A HORSE IS LEARNING HOW IT REACTS TO EVERYTHING ITS YOU THAT HAS TO FIGURE THAT OUT!

Answer 11

Well, first, don't let her run. When you feel her start to gain speed turn her in a tight circle, then stop her. Then start walking again. Keep doing that until she learns that it's going to be more work running when she's not told to.

To keep her from bucking[kicking up her back feet] always keep her head up. It may not stop all her bucks, but it will sure make them a lot easier to ride and control!

Answer 12

I think your horse is testing you to see what she can get away with, and trying to find out if you're afraid of her.

First of all do not pull back on the reins. If you see someone pulling back on the reins that is not a good rider. First I suggest incorporating breathing into your horse training to make your horse more relaxed and in tune with you. First start by training your horse to slow down and stop on your breath on the ground:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfRVibymP...

Then learn how to flex if you don't know how already. If you do know, start a routine of practicing it on the ground and in the saddle at a stand still:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91xp3gMYI...

When you have flexing down so its automatic, you can always use that to stop your horse and or circle them. I agree with the other poster who said you should circle her.

Also why not keep her moving when she stops? That is going to be scary but I would start asking her (very FIRMLY to show her I was not intimidated) to move forward when she is doing this behavior. A horse that is moving forward can't buck you off! They have to stop to do that, even if its momentarily. I suggest this because I think she is testing you to see if you're afraid.

Second I might use some reverse psychology here. I've found this approach helps solve a lot of behavior problems with horses. But its going to depend on how comfortable you are riding. If I had a horse that started going fast in an effort to intimidate me, I would ask him to go faster every time he did that! Then you ask him to stop when you want him to. What I am suggesting here is you make every thing your idea and not the idea of your horse. Because right now, the horse is deciding to go faster and deciding to stop, and then playing this game like she is going to toss you off.

On the ground, if a horse is dragging on the lead line, he is putting energy backwards. So what do I do? I don't pull on the lead line trying to force him to go forward. I turn around and start shaking the lead line really vigorously so he has to back up like crazy. I'm telling him hey you want to put energy into going the opposite direction? OK then you're going to put lots of energy into doing that. When I do this pretty soon I find the horse is leading light as a feather. Its the same concept-I am stealing an idea from the horse and making it my own. The reverse psychology approach. Pretty soon the horse is like OK I am going to stop behaving badly.

Also just like I recommend for everyone else, you might find the solution to your problem is by doing some groundwork to get this horse to respect you. Do that first before you go on your next ride.

David

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

Answer 13

i think ur the one with serious issues...its NEVER  a horses fault for doing something it always the rider/horsemans...if you dont know how to fix this then u shouldnt hav a horse...things like thins happen to everyone who owns horses so going into ownership without the preperation on how to fix it is ur fault...she is in pain in some way wether it b something ur doing or a medical issue of a peice of ill-fitting tack...thts up to u to figure out tho.

EDIT:wtf?!?! why is everyone talking about respect...if ur horse is letting u sit on HER back then that is respect enough...she isnt a person and she would only b this way cuz of something UR doing wrong not cuz she FEELS like being a brat =P

Answer 14

pull the reins and hold on, if she keeps doin it she knows that if she does it u will get off, and if u try to hold on and get thrown off get back on,  if u pull the reins hard enof she will stop

Answer 15

First you might want to get a vet to check out her back. She might have some problems due to pulling a muscle or anything is possible. Or you can check the top of your horses withers and along his/her back and see if there is hair turning white/gray. This would mean that your saddle is rubbing your horse, which means you need to get a new saddle, or get a wither relief pad to help take your saddle off of his/her back. Or ask your trainer if you have one and see what she thinks. Hope this helps.