Crazy head!!! Help for a horse with 'head raising probs'????

Ok for the past 7-8 months I have been battling with the same problem.... my horses head problem., in these past months I have been able to work his head down... thing is it will only stay there for a good 30 secs then it creeps back up again..i try to niggle it down again but he just chucks it up in refusal..he is a very touchy horse and if he dosnt like something then he will let you know by throwing his head up.. now he isnt on any hard feed and he is very fit so it works for about 1 hour. Help would be loved coz this is becoming rediculous..

Hi hve you thought of trying a tie-down they don't have to be permanent I used one on my moms horse for about 6 months and her headset is lovely now. But I know all horses are not the same, You could try draw reigns, you could actually make a pair of those yourself fairly easy and cheap, get some rope about 14-16' long, attatch clips to the ends, run the clips on the reigns through the rings on the side of the bit (simple O-rings work great) then attatch the clips to your D-ring on you girth (either the ones on each side that the girth attatches to or both where your breastcollar would clip to) now when his head goes up you can pull it down quicker and more efficently than before. Hope this helps

I should have said before.. I have tried both of those and didnt work.. im really at my wits end

Maybe try vienna draw reins (sp?). They have worked wonders for my horse. He hated them at first, but now he is sooooo much better about keeping his head down. Instead of pulling on me like regular draw reins, he is pulling only on himself if he throws his head up

Ill ave a look at those..how do they work differently to the normal draw reins?????

One strap attaches to the girth between the legs (like a martingale) then it brance into two straps that through the ring on the bit to the sides of the girth. This isn't the best picture, but it sort of gives you an idea

Is his head just up high, of is he sticking it up in the air, etc?
If he's not keeping it down sounds to me like a pain issue! How does the saddle fit? Are you bouncing alot on his back? Any sensitivity on his back?

Some horses necks are built to stay up more than stay down.

A video of your riding would help also.

I don't suggest a tie-down at all though, why use it to cover the problem? He has a reason for keeping his head up higher, so try to find that reason and solve the problem. Once you figure out why he's keeping it up, you can solve the problem, and he'll keep his head where you'd like it

Yeah, a video of this would be great help but...

Is he moving forward freely, can he bend comfortably to both sides? Doe he drop his neck when he is down for that 30 seconds or just tuck his nose in?

Something you can try if he isn't moving forward enough to use his hind end is lots of bending, spirals, serpentine's, 5m circles off a 20 metre circle, etc Keep a steady contact, drive him forward with your legs but keep him controlled with your seat. Sometimes my pony will refuse to go forward at the trot and up comes the head but once I start small circles and serpentine he drops his neck and starts listening more, I drive him forward into the bridle, make him use his hind legs to push forward, not drag himself forward with his front legs. Straight lines can sometimes be hard for a horse who isn't balanced and bending both ways and they will toss their head up, a circle can be so much easier, even a smaller circle. So maybe if this sounds like it will help, give it a try :)

I will get a new video for you all... he has been this way for many years and has had his teeth dine he has sen the ciro and the vet... the saddle got fitted by horseland and to me it look ok...
Now for my riding... I don't bounce at all as in my line of work (horse trainer) you need to be able to 'ride' .. the thing is... I can train any other horse to go quite nicely..he is just so different..hes so hard in fact that no one will even sit on him...( he is very difficult and can make the best riders look bad). I don't want to 'cover' the problem im more for solutions...

Just because the saddle is costum fit doesn't mean it properly fits. I've seen lots of costum fit that put pressure points on places. A horse, even one full grown, can still grow in muscles, or roundness, making the costum fit saddle not fit anymore.
I'd check for any saddle problems and eliminate that....you said teeth were fine.
What bit are you using? Coud it possibly be too harsh for his mouth....some horses are more sensitive in the mouth than others. Have you tried a hackamore, bosal, or halter?
How old is this horse? Pictures of him would help to see if his neck stands naturally errect....if it does it will be harder for him to lower his neck until he's built the proper neck muscles.

This to me sounds like he's sensitive about you around his mouth, which might suggest the bit. Doesn't have to be the teeth, but the bit can be causing problems.
How is your hold on the reins? Are you riding with lots of contact, contact, slight contact, or no contact? If your not doing it already try riding with no contact what-so-ever. That there would help eliminate the bit problem, but might not solve it.

Does he do it in all 3 gaits? Or one more so than the other?