A little back-story:
We moved my horse Arrow to a stable a few weeks ago where I was supposed to board him. The first day he was there, he seemed fine. The next day, I went to ride him. He was a complete monster. He had never offered a buck or a rear before this, but during this ride he took off with me, bucked twice, and reared. He even rolled with me on him. I'm not a confident rider, and he is usually dead quiet, so this scared the $!@# out of me. I chalked it up to a bad day. But then I tried again, every day that week. It just got progressively worse and he ended up throwing me. While he was there, his ground manners completely disappeared. At home he stands tied, for as long as you want. There he would paw and dance constantly and rear up in the aisle ways. He'd walk all over me and drag me around. I dreaded having to go see and handle him. After I was thrown, my dad made me bring him home (which I regretfully agreed too). He acted crazy, in the aisle ways, indoor and outdoor arenas, paddocks, the track....everywhere. While he was at the stable, his feed was the same, and his routine was kept as close to normal as possible (24/7 turnout, ect.)
Since he has come home, his ground manners are back about 70%. He's changed so much though. He wouldn't stand for the farrier, when he usually falls asleep during hoof trims. He's become a monster under saddle. He rears now, and I don't have the confidence or experience to even act like I can solve rearing problems. He now refuses to even move forward under saddle. It's not a pain issue and his tack fits.
I'm at a loss. I'm frustrated. I'm stressed. I feel like a failure.
I miss the old Arrow. But at the same time, I'm starting to realize that maybe he isn't the horse for me. I'm not enjoying my time with him. I used to, but I don't anymore. At the stable I would look around and see all these people enjoying time with their horses, and I was dreading being around mine....
What do I do? Do I sell him and find another horse? I dream of showing, and I just don't think Arrow's ever going to be the horse that will help me reach my goals. :sad:
tl;dr: started boarding my horse, he went psycho, brought him home, he's still psycho
We moved my horse Arrow to a stable a few weeks ago where I was supposed to board him. The first day he was there, he seemed fine. The next day, I went to ride him. He was a complete monster. He had never offered a buck or a rear before this, but during this ride he took off with me, bucked twice, and reared. He even rolled with me on him. I'm not a confident rider, and he is usually dead quiet, so this scared the $!@# out of me. I chalked it up to a bad day. But then I tried again, every day that week. It just got progressively worse and he ended up throwing me. While he was there, his ground manners completely disappeared. At home he stands tied, for as long as you want. There he would paw and dance constantly and rear up in the aisle ways. He'd walk all over me and drag me around. I dreaded having to go see and handle him. After I was thrown, my dad made me bring him home (which I regretfully agreed too). He acted crazy, in the aisle ways, indoor and outdoor arenas, paddocks, the track....everywhere. While he was at the stable, his feed was the same, and his routine was kept as close to normal as possible (24/7 turnout, ect.)
Since he has come home, his ground manners are back about 70%. He's changed so much though. He wouldn't stand for the farrier, when he usually falls asleep during hoof trims. He's become a monster under saddle. He rears now, and I don't have the confidence or experience to even act like I can solve rearing problems. He now refuses to even move forward under saddle. It's not a pain issue and his tack fits.
I'm at a loss. I'm frustrated. I'm stressed. I feel like a failure.
I miss the old Arrow. But at the same time, I'm starting to realize that maybe he isn't the horse for me. I'm not enjoying my time with him. I used to, but I don't anymore. At the stable I would look around and see all these people enjoying time with their horses, and I was dreading being around mine....
What do I do? Do I sell him and find another horse? I dream of showing, and I just don't think Arrow's ever going to be the horse that will help me reach my goals. :sad:
tl;dr: started boarding my horse, he went psycho, brought him home, he's still psycho