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New Gelding thinks everything is out to get him

5K views 49 replies 18 participants last post by  Wimpy 
#1 ·
I purchased a new gelding in June, he is approx. 7-8 yrs old 15h QH gelding... I am a bit unsure of his past other than he was lightly introduced to barrels, did some arena work and trails...

He seems to be scared of every darn thing...he rides with his head high and seems to be on the lookout for any and everything that's going to just up and jump out and get him.. usually he just quickly puts the breaks on and head up...alert like and snorts...but sometimes he will sort of jump off to the side snorting .... but has never bucked, bolted, or reared .... he is afraid of water, wind, wind blowing the trees LOL , leaves blowing around... any funky lookin trees in the woods...etc.... I was in a bad accident years ago riding a horse...in which I was almost killed, I had to have my bottom lip reattached and reconstructive surgery on my face... but was determined to get back in the saddle...so I'm just now getting back into riding..and trying to build my confidence back.....and I know that's not helping the situation any... Im wondering if he and I are just not a good match as he is so green / inexperienced...and I'm needing to regain confidence... I wonder if I don't need an older more seasoned trail mount .....but not ready to give up on us just yet..... any advice is much appreciated....I have been working to desensitize him to things...but not having much luck yet.
 
#2 ·
I feel that this horse is one you have to completely win the respect of, which will be challenging.

My boy was the same, except instead of spooking he'd bolt off at a dead gallop or insane discombobulated trot that I had fun keeping up with.

Keep his focus on you. He's only scared because he's not sure he can trust you yet.

If you aren't comfortable with that, maybe it's best to find a more seasoned horse, but even then if you don't keep their focus they can also escalate like this.

Good luck
 
#3 ·
I knew a horse like that he was "afraid of life"as someone put it. Now he's fine! doesn't spook more than the average horse and has even had his rider fire a gun from his back without flinching! so there is hope you just gotta work at it! sadly he was sold to someone who had the time to help him get over his (irrational) fears so I'm not sure how he got to the point of not minding a loud bang from above his head from sniffing papers and spooking when his breath moved them but my guess it involved a ton of patience.
 
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#4 ·
I think of it as the horse is having too much time to look at things. And I have a couple of horses who act like that as play, so I tend to treat it all as a game. I send them out quick, trot, trot, trot and more trot. Up hills over obstacles, through gates, across meadows, you name it. We go long and we go hard. They don't get to walk and look around until they've tired themselves out enough to be relaxed. With my Arabians that can take several hours. With the QH? Not nearly so much. Pretty soon, they get the picture that if they want to spook and act scared they get to work. If they want to be sensible, they get to walk and relax.
 
#5 ·
Do you any ground work with this horse? Get his respect on the ground, then start desensitizing to anything that you can think of. Then I would ride him in a controlled area until he understands that you are the boss. I like setting obstacles up in the arena to ride through. If you want to trail ride now, probably need a different horse
 
#6 ·
yes I do...he is great on the ground..has great ground manners...respects my space ...he often comes to me when something scares him almost like looking for reassurance...and when he does spook under saddle I give him a little reassurance let him take a good look at what is spooking him ..it doesn't take too long to get him to continue on ...occasionally he will stop and try to turn around on certain parts of my property but I make him trot circles a bit then try to head out again and usually that fixes that problem....
 
#7 ·
Is that him in your avatar???? Beautiful.
Gaining confidence on a challenging horse will be work, but I would not necessarily try to discourage you as long as you are not dealing with more dangerous activities (bucking, rearing, etc.). It sounds like he needs a lot of confidence too.
There is an excellent post (a sticky) on training the trail horse.
Do you have someone to ride with? Maybe an experienced buddy might help him, plus give you a sense of safety. And if you are tense and nervous he will pick up on that. If you have trails close I would not hesitate to go for walks with him.
Good luck to you both.
 
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#8 ·
I have a "Confidence Course" I built (everything is either stuff I had, stuff found, or great things at Dollar Stores) to help a horse gain confidence and desensitizing.

I have 5-8 obstacles and I'm always changing things around to keep things fresh and to ask the horse new questions. I start with an easy obstacles gradually build up to tougher, then end with the last 2 being easy. I use a flat halter and normal lead, my OTTBs may get a chain over the nose (wrapped in vet wrap or latex), and a driving whip (only 15 at bigdweb.com) The whip is only to help with keeping the hindend from drifting and for gentle encouragement.

1) 4-5 poles on the ground to walk over - This is easy and it just start to bring their attentionon to you
2) 5 poles set up in a star pattern - This gets the horse learning to bend in a circle and to know where their feet is. Use the driving whip to help encourage the hindend from swinging out. Don't expect perfection first few times, they got to stretch those muscles.
3) The Dreaded Pool Noodles - I start with these laying on the ground for them to step over, then we stand them up (I use small stakes and slip the noodles over those) and the horse has to walk through/around/by them. Eventually they will weave a pattern and have the noodles touch them etc.
4) Flags - (I get these from car lots) and I set up an alley for them to walk through.
5) Plywood - The horse walks over the plywood, sound and feel is like a bridge so helps a lot with trail horses and driving horses.
6) Blue Tarp of Death - Again start them walking by it, then on it, then eventually let them pull/drag it and our goal is for the tarp to touch the horse.
7) I like to end with the same poles on the ground they start with so they know they can end on a good note.

I'm always finding unique things to make things interesting (or annoy the horses) to challenge them with. I've never spent much money on anything so you don't have to invest more than a driving whip (They are longer so you don't have to change your body position to reach the hindend).

Good luck!
 
#10 ·
He's likely picking up on your nerves when you're in the saddle so can't recognize you as a leader he can trust to keep him safe once he moves out of his comfort zone
Can you find someone with a really solid horse to ride out with you for a while?
Be careful when he spooks and you reassure him that you're not actually confirming to him that there was something very scary - I often find it best to ignore the spooking altogether, not make a big deal of it and just keep pushing on like it never happened.
 
#11 ·
lbw0912 I feel for you. I too was badly injured(not as severely as you though) trying a horse after not having one for 26 years. I still bought a horse two months later and spent the next 4 years getting over my fears that the running/bucking idiot horse caused.

My first horse was gentle and non spooky but I was anything but. Everything spooked ME and that was very upsetting as I used to ride bareback as a teenager all over the place on my mare - at all kinds of speeds :lol:

I was trail riding with large groups of people with all kinds of horses - some well behaved - some not. Up and down hills, through creeks, over trees and a lot of time with my heart up in my throat.

I no longer have my first horse, Red. I now have Biscuit and Biscuit isn't spooky either. I don't know if I could have regained my confidence on a horse that was spooking and looking for boogers because I saw enough of them all by myself. I really wish that I had not bought a horse when I did and had taken some riding lessons til my confidence came back and I felt ready and confident like I did when I was a teenager.

I am so sorry you are having these issues. I can't see Jet's picture and I am sure he is a lovely boy but he may not be the horse for you at this moment. Even though Red wasn't spooky he wasn't an old seasoned trail horse either. He was actually an off the track quarter horse but I can say those ottqh's have seen dang near everything that clangs, makes noise, blows up, moves fast or unexpectedly. It was me that had the problem but had I been on a horse that had a problem too, would have been my downfall, as far as becoming a confident rider.

I am not the most confident rider now but hogs have exploded out from under Biscuit's feet and we have weathered that just fine. Other horses having hissy fits are not a problem. Biscuit acting like a goober and I am fine. Biscuit will shy a little at logs on the ground occasionally (I believe he thinks they are alligators that will surely bite off his little legs!) and I am ok with that too.

I hope you gain your confidence back soon. I know how that feels - it is pretty dang frustrating. :)
 
#12 ·
Thank you all again for all the kind words of encouragement, and advice.. unfortunately I haven't been able to ride Jet in a little over two weeks due to health issues..but will be back in the saddle this weekend. I have plans for a new obstacle course to work him on the ground to desensitize him...and am going to try walking him on ground down one of the trails first then riding....I unfortunately don't have the ability to ride with others often at this time...I am trying to plan a group ride with some friends soon!!! I think it would be good for us to ride with others.
 
#15 ·
so went for a ride this past weekend after a few weeks off due to health reasons...he did great on ground work ...so decided to continue on for a ride and he spooked at everything....things he's seen a million times!!!!! so I had him WORK WORK WORK and when he had worked hard and felt like I could end the session on a good note..I was dismounting and the air condition came on way down at the house and flipped out..idk why cause its something he hears every dang day...anyway I really didn't get too hurt...somehow my bra got stuck on the saddle horn..and my shoulder got yanked pretty hard.... I ended up making him work hard on the ground after.....until I was satisfied that he had got the point... spooking gets me more work.....my shoulder is still pretty sore...and my wound from having an absess removed two weeks ago from my pelvic region opened back up and bleeding some...OUCH... I wonder about this guys past...he is so fearful of everything!!! I think I have about come to the conclusion that no matter how much Love I have for Jet we aren't good for eachother and would both benefit from another pairing...I had been going back and forth on that for a while...but I think its time we both get paired with a better suited partner for our needs....
 
#17 ·
As part of this hard work you have to keep his feet and mind busy. Ride circles around everything you can find on the trail, rocks trees, downed logs, backing up. This can be done at the walk or trot, just busy. If he's thinking about where he's putting his feet he's not thinking about what's out there. Before you dismount do plenty of one rein neck bends whereby he brings his nose to your leg or almost. This relaxes his poll and gets his mind off moving forward. When you dismount, have his head drawn around. This gets it out of alert mode. BTW his diet may have something to do with this. If he's getting supplemental feeding, other than hay, wean him off the extras as he may be looking for places to get rid of excess energy.
 
#18 ·
I have done all of that... that is what I mean by making him work...we trot circles...I make him trot around trees....he spooked at parked bikes on the edge of our property...that has always been there since we 've had him in June...I made him trot circles at a safe distance at first and worked our way up closer and closer ....( I do this everytime....and he will act fine during that session...then the next time I take him out he spooks at it again) ....it seems like nothing I do helps long term....he still continues to be spooky which is why I think I need a horse that isn't this spooky..and Jet needs a rider that can help him overcome this..because it clearly is not me ..... the pasture he is in has little grass ...he has round bale of hay in there and is fed one scoop of pelleted feed once a day only.... otherwise he doesn't keep weight on..so there really isn't any feed I can take him off of ...he used to have a tub of equi pride equilix also ....but he hasn't had that since late July...
 
#19 ·
have you checked for ulcers and joint issues? If he has either, combined with a timid rider it could be BAD news. Get him checked out and then ignore ignore ignore. everytime he spooks, whether legit or not. DO NOT react. Dont coddle him dont work him. Ignore it. Keep on doing what you were doing in a relaxed manner (easier said than done-I know)
 
#20 ·
hes been vet checked and all is good ...I'm at the point in my life I need a good solid seasoned trail horse that I can hop on and mosey the trails and not have to worry that every other step he's gonna jump to the side all of a sudden ...something I found out he's done with the last two owners as well... which is why he was passed off..but was supposed to have been beginner friendly and that he is not.... I have children I want to be able to let ride him and this is NOT the horse I can really put my children on...
 
#21 ·
I want to make a suggestion to change your approach slightly when he reacts. Instead of making him work around the object of his spook, try making him face it and walk towards it. Every time he turns in a different direction then make him work tight circles and release him in the direction of the object. Ask him to move forward towards it again and keep this up until you can walk up to it to the point he is touching it with his legs. Even have him step over it if possible until he is completely relaxed while doing it. I will add that you must be absolutely calm during this, because if there is an ounce of nervousness in your hands or body, it will transfer to him immediately. Don't have the mindset of "what is he going to spook at today", instead have your mind made up that it is going to be a good ride and if something comes up then we will work on it UNTIL IT IS CORRECTED. If you start and do not finish then they learn the boundary they have to reach to outlast you.

Do that exercise with several different things he spooks at and see if it will calm him, but remember this will only work if you stay calm, confident and in control. I had to do this with a couple of mine that spooked at simple things like a high chair someone had out by the road to be picked up. Another time was square bales of hay at the end of the road where the county worked on the drainage.

Pointed him at the high chair and asked him to walk towards it and as soon as he wanted to turn away from it we did about 6 tight circles then came to rest facing the high chair again. We did this until he walked forward and had the high chair actually rub his side as we went past it. Then walked back and forth past it until he didn't even look at it.

Same thing with the hay bale until he was stepping over it. I do not usually work this way as I try to spend enough time on ground work to get them to trust my directions so they are focused on me instead of their surroundings. I hadn't had him long and this was our second ride outside of the yard so I decided to use that technique since I was there and didn't want him to win at not going forward. We would have been there all night before I allowed that to happen.
 
#24 ·
I had a spooky horse that I rode two hours a day for two years. She was still spooky. I traded her for a different horse that I was much happier with. The new owner rode her several hours a day for another year and she finally calmed down. If you want a nice, gentle horse to ride on trails, you might be wise to trade horses. This horse can most likely eventually be fixed, but he is not going to be very fun to ride meanwhile. There is also the very real possibility that you could be injured. He is a nice horse, and somebody will enjoy him. I would try to find a different horse.
 
#25 ·
IBW0912 - I think you would be much better suited with a older or just more experienced trail horse. Biscuit has always been a calm boy - I think he was born calm for the most part but when I first got him he would toss his head up and toss it around if asked to do something he didn't want to do. He'd walk all over me at first. He actually knew better but had been allowed to do what he wanted - he was never ever mean or pissy - he just was careless. After a while of just me handling him he turned into just a doll - no more head tossing, nor more walking all over me. As he put on weight and got used to me, he finally developed his personality too! What a doll!

I hope you find the right horse for you - one that you will enjoy and not have to worry about spooking. I want to have a good time on the trails - not worry that my horse is going to shy/spook at every single thing that can go on in the woods!!!
 
#26 ·
thank you all.... I have officially listed Jet for sale or trade for a well seasoned trail horse...and have a few horses lined up to try...so I am hopeful Jet will find a rider better suited for him..and I will fine a horse better suited for me...and in listing Jet I have been very up front with potential buyers about his issues...unlike the seller I got him from...I need for him to go to the right home..with someone who understands fully what they are getting into and that is qualified to help him overcome the issues...or improve them at least.
 
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