Rearing horse - help greatly appreciated?

Question

ok - Ive just taken a 2 year old gelding under my wing - he hasnt had much interaction with people and is a bit flighty, but my big problem is a habit he has of refusing to walk when being led - and then this leads to rearing and quickly turning which is impossible to keep a hold of him. Because hes young I dont want to resort to slapping him etc but I do want to get him out of this habit. I have tried to have someone walk behind with a lunge whip and just touch his bum with it - NOT HIT - when he stops dead, but he just bolts off then - its a problem Im not happy with and would be very glad of help!

Thank you

xx

Answer 1

I know you don't want to spank him, you want to be "nice", but I'm fairly sure that you can not spank or kick him nearly as hard as another horse could or would.  But that is how they treat each other in the pasture or in the wild when one is being unruly or disrespectful.  You have to establish your place in his "herd", you need to be in charge.  As long as he is allowed to run off and rear and generally be disrespectful then one day he will probably hurt you or someone.  Sounds like he needs basics of leading, do you have a round pen you can get him to safely?  That is usually the best place to work, but you may have to start in his pen to keep yourselves safe.  You may need the help of an experienced person to get you started in the right direction.  You can also try some of the books available, be patient, reward even the smallest of positive movements.  Timing is everything.

If you are at a boarding facility many of them have trainers available.  Be cautious about who you let handle him, be sure it is someone with credible experience, these early experiences can often result in a lifetime of bad behavior. Good luck -

Answer 2

the best thing you could do is go find a "be nice halter"it is a rope halter that i use to train horses that pull or toss their head.then get a lead rope that is 8-10 feet long with a quick release on the end.if you have an arena and a good bombproof horse that you can pony him around and this also helps or have someone lead a calm horse with him so he has another horse to calm him.lead him around for around 20-30 min then take him back to his stall and release him ,this will teach him that he is not getting punnished but rewarded for being civil.small trusting steps go a lot further than harsh heavy handed training.

Answer 3

I have a 2 1/2 yr. old gelding. when i got him he would stop for no reason too. then EVERY time he stopped i stopped. then after like a second or two, i started to walk when he didnt walk with me i pulled A LITTLE on the lead rope. if he didnt walk then i went beside him and made him walk in a circle.. like lunging, but in a smaller circle and just walking. . . i took the rope and TAPPED him on the butt and he walked then i made him go in a circle..... then after a while he stopped doing it...... it worked for me I HOPE IT WORKS FOR YOU!!! but do that every time he stops...

Answer 4

A rearing horse is a dangerous horse.

I know this is not what you want to hear, but this horse needs someone more experienced than you are.  Get a trainer to get him handling safely, then you can take over again.

If you're not willing to apply the level of correction he needs, you'll create a truly dangerous situation.  You'll end up in the hospital; he'll end up...  you know where.

Answer 5

I had a similar problem with a mare.  She used to stop for no reason.  She, too, was not real accustomed to people.  The way I dealt with it was: every time she stopped, I would take a few steps back so I was behind her shoulder, then start walking forward again.  Sometimes it took a few tries, but eventually, she would begin walking forward again.  After a few weeks of consistently correcting her, she has no problems leading now.

Answer 6

have you tried walking a bit further in front of him.

also maybe spend a little time with him before leading on.

does he tend to turn away left or right this may be a clue as to what irritates him, check his mouth and teeth.

Answer 7

Most important - make sure you are wearing good safety gear, especially a hat.

I agree with someone else that a 'be nice' might help with the rearing in itself. But like all equipment it's only as good as the user so try and enlist someone experienced to show you how to use it - as there are downsides too.

This doesn't solve the underlying behaviour though and you need to try and work out whether it is fear, young hijinks or something a bit worse that is causing it. Keep a note of when it happens or if there is one particular spot which is particularly bad and try and work around it.

You could try playing him at his own game and when he stops, instead of having a battle just wait until he's ready to go again - usually horses are too impatient to stand around for too long, and not being coerced into something will take him by surprise. If he stops for 10 minutes then ask him to move after 8 tomorrow and so on.

I also think you should ask someone to watch you handling him, in case you are inadvertently doing something to make him stop - not being firm enough or losing his attention etc.

Mostly, these things pass and slow and steady work with an unhandled animal will pay off. You might also consider doing join-up which is often helpful. Again, you will need a trainer with these skills to show you how.

Good Luck - but remember your own safety comes first.

Answer 8

if you are leading him with a cotton lead rope try one with a chain on it so you cam put it over his nose and encourage him to keep his head down and his feet on the ground and you can give it a little tug when he goes to rear

for the stopping maybe you could get those bags of baby carrots or some other small horse treats and offer him one and ask him to come forward and when he does give him the treat and tell him he is a good boy but keep him walking while you are doing this

that it very brave of you to take on such a challenging  project but just think how much your horseman ship skills will improve

hope this helps

Answer 9

This is a big problem, the honest truth is this horse and you need a professional help that specializes in resistant-free corrective behavior, because the rearing has been confirmed with him. This also has nothing to do with you, he has been doing this behavior for a while now. I bet he pulls back when he is tied up too. It's more a pressure issue that should have been addressed  A LONG time ago when he was a Weanling. Don't try and fix this by yourself, as it is apparent you don't have alot of background with this type of thing and attempting to tackle it on your own could end up making it much worse or someone getting injured.  And ignoring it will only make any attempt of putting this horse undersaddle impossible for yourself or the next person down the line. I'm sure this is why you were given this horse in the first place, the owner before you couldn't handle it.

Answer 10

He is just taking the michael.  Is he guelded?  Young stallions tend to display this kind of behaviour.  Try using a control halter or an anti-rearing bit.  This can go in the mouth attached to the head collar.  Try leading him as normal and if he goes up put pressure on the bit.  Do not yank, but firm pressure.  It works because it is concave and when in use its bend puts pressure on the tongue and the only way the horse can relieve that pressure is to come down and walk forward in an orderly fashion.

You are right to want to nip this one in the bud.  As he gets bigger he will become stronger and more wiley in his ways.

Another way to lead him is in a lunge cavesson with the line on his nose.  I would be wary of looping any rope over his nose at this stage because he might become head shy, but if he carries on, he will possibly need this.

I had a pony who would rear up and jump on top of you if he did not want to go somewhere.  Two taller men took him for a walk, he tried it on with them and they rushed him.   he fell over, but I would not recommend this anywhere except in a sand school.

he is old enough and big enough to stand a sharp slap on the chest.  It is when done in temper or around painful areas that it is not good to smack a younger horse.  He will learn.

Answer 11

First of all try swapping him into a pressure halter which should give you a bit more control of him.  I always tie a knot in the end of the leadrope as well so if he pulls the rope through your hands you have something to stop it and wear gloves so you don't burn your hands.  It is also wise to wear a hat with a rearer just incase.  

Where are you leading him from? Is it by his shoulder or infront of him?  I find with horses that do not want to move, going beside them is better and stand close to him.  Make sure you hold the leadrope in both hands to give you the best grip possible.  When he stops, move yourself back to his shoulder and ask again.  If he tries to rear and spin tug him back towards you and down in one quick movement.  Do not let his shoulder get infront of you or he will be able to us his weight to turn you.  Use your voice to ask him to walk on each time and when he gives in and goes forwards give him a scratch to say well done.  If he gets stuck and plants his feet then turn him in a circle to get his feet moving again, do it as many time as you need before he moves forwards or just change direction slightly.  

If none of this works, then carry a whip and smack it against your leg so it makes a noise to encourage him to go forwards without touching him.  If that works then you can go to making the clicking noise with your mouth so he knows that means go forward.  Make sure you lead him everyday over and over again and be consistent.  

Good luck!

Answer 12

I was trained in the "old school" of breaking horses.  In 28 days we took a horse untouched by man and gave you a horse that a reasonable 12 year old could ride.  In order to do this we had to use the tools we had.  A tree chunk of around 250-400 lbs tied to a hepm breaking hackamore and three days of the horse pulling it around meant we could hold the horse with a lenght of hay string.  The first step is to teach the horse to "hold" at the slightest pressure on the halter or head stall.  This may seem cruel, but to do this you get a long cotton rope (1.2 in or better--the old well ropes work well) and attach it to a strong halter or breaking hackamore.  

Tie the standing end of the line to a tree--walk the horse out to the end of the line and then walk him toward the tree.  If he balks or rears--SCARE the bejesus out of him and let him run.  He will hit the end of the line and get jerked off his feet.  DON'T WORRY...I never lost a horse in this manner or injured one.  Two things will happen--First, it will SCARE him.  Second, it will teach him that he can't out run or BEAT the rope.  Smart horses will only run once.  Most not so smart horses will do it twice.  To test the effectivness.  Keep walking him to the tree and if he balks, etc.- repeat the lesson.  Most horses will run but when they feel the line tighten they will stop and turn to face the rope.  An hour or so of this type of work and he should be no problem holding under normal conditions.

I also train under the belief that the more ground time you spend with a horse the more he understands what you want and the better trust.  I have never hit a horse--although I have laid down a few to get their attention. (Pulling the head up into the saddle--shifting your weight to the off side and laying down the horse down on the ground).

Dr. Tommy Skelton