Horse bucked me off

Everyone gave excellent advice. This horse showed every sign of needing groundwork. Sometimes even letting them out to "play" will fix a problem like this.

My mare Selena is a hot horse sometimes when she's fresh. She does the same thing. She'll tell me when she's having a frisky day. She won't hold still, she'll move when I try to get on, snort or paw and look anxious. I could, in theory, get on and ride it out of her immediately but that's the less safe option of the two. When she shows this behavior, I choose to just take her immediately to the round pen and turn her out and leave her. Fifteen minutes or so later I come back, she's run around and played, we're ready to go.

When you got off and let this horse run, he ran on his own accord, right? He was hot, he wanted to play, you let him have what he wanted. I would of gotten back on it I were you after that playtime was over.

Now, playtime isn't an option to miss groundwork either. Often after I turn a horse out I will reclip the lead and just move their hindquarters, sidepass them down the fence, back them up, just kind of a "Hey, you ready now?" type deal.

With a horse like this if it continues, just starting out with groundwork is good as well. I just prefer to turn my mare out because she's a finished horse and doesn't always need that extra constant mental work before a ride to be focused. This horse, however, sounds like he might.

The fact that this horse would not stand for mounting is your first clue he is not ready to be ridden.......when my trainer helps me with my horses one of the skills he works on is positioning at a mounting block.....the horse must learn how to stand beside the mounting block....not in front, not out to the side, not back of the mounting block and not too close to the mounting block.....but beside the mounting block....and he must stand quietly while being fussed over...... etc.....he must stand like a block beside the block.......the trainer does this all while standing on the mounting block.....he uses a halter with a lead rope and a long dressage or buggy whip and directs the horse into position with pressure from the lead and taps from the whip on both the inside hip and outside hip.....once they learn this lesson mounting is easy.

I think you need to go back to the beginning and start over.......your horse sounds like it is suddenly feeling overwhelmed with the amount of information you have given him and maybe he has not had enough time to process it all.

When my trainer backs young horses they all know how to give to the bit, can do shoulder in, haunches out, turn on the forehand, they know how to steer......all of this is done in hand.....so once the rider gets on its a non issue.

Super Nova

I just want to say that you should not HAVE to lunge a horse before getting on. If you do, there are serious gaps in your training. Some easy yielding exercises from the ground can be a good way to gauge your horse's mood and get him in a work mindset. He should listen without having to run laps first. Lunging before every ride will just increase his stamina, not to mention let him think that he always gets to run around before doing slower work under saddle.
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I agree with riccil0ve, I generally don't lunge prior to riding. My horses understand that saddle=work. Once tacked they're on my time, period. I do flex either way from the ground, disengage hindquarters, prior to getting on, but that's it. In your case, with the horse acting that out of character, I would have untacked & retacked to check for any problems there. If he was still being a turkey I prob would have done some more ground work (not lunge) until I fully had his attention & then go back to the mounting block.

I think it is ok to lunge the green horse for the first 10-20 rides...after that I would consider it a training deficiency if I "had" to lunge my horses before a ride. That said, if I get a feeling a horse isn't acting correctly, I will lunge them to ensure I have their respect and they aren't hurt.

Well, be lunge I don't think all of us mean to get them running and exercise them out. My lunge after awhile would consist of asking them to walk in both directions and see how she responds to my commands and whoa. It's just to gauge their mood, not exert extra energy.

I lunge any horse before I ride it for 5 minutes or so to help them warm up. Not to the point of exhaustion or anything else, just to warm them up some before asking them to carry a rider. Especially young horses.

There is something wrong with lunging in the traditional sense. Circle burning is not okay.

Groundwork, focus training IS okay though. Getting a horse's respect and attention. The training gap if you can't ride out your problems is lack of focus. Some horses are naturally hot headed and stronger, some are more laid back. You have to know your horse and find what works for you to get their mind working.

Despite the horse's age and prior cooperation, he's going to be green for a long while yet. You should certainly do groundwork before you ride him each time (we all have our routines, but your goal should be to make sure he's responding well to your cues, and also give yourself a chance to read him).

You might even find you do a lot more groundwork than riding during each session for a while, and that's okay.

Be prepared for more bucks in the future. He's green, he's turfed you once, and he's green. If you think he's going to buck, take his head away. If he gets one jump in, take his head away as soon as his feet hit the ground again and give him hell. If you find you can't stick to him, you'll be better off getting a different horse.

Your best strategy is always being able to read your horse and prepare yourself for whatever he's about to throw at you (or put a stop to it before he actually gets going).

Personally, I would find it very difficult to stick to a bucking horse in an English saddle. It's hard enough in a Western saddle.

And one more thing regarding groundwork - though you don't want to have to tire out a horse every time your ride it for the rest of that horse's life, fatigue is a really useful tool for a green horse! Not only does it make them easier to handle, but they learn to conserve their energy for actual work instead of jerking around.

I've been riding a green mare through snow, and she's really learned to pace herself. A few months ago I was constantly shutting her down as she tried to break into a trot or lope without being cued to do so. Now I can ride her on a loose rein, and she's very well-behaved.

You don't want to work a horse to the point of injury, but fatigue can be your friend!

And I also agree that you should check your tack, etc...