Any experience welcome...

[lfd]

Hi Everyone...

Just after other peoples experiences with nervous youngsters..

So im in the process of breaking a beautiful 4yr old native coloured, hes been away 2 weeks to be backed which has done him the world of good as he had never been of the yard since he was a foal, he was still on his dam at the time too.

He has come back much quieter and a little braver but he is still quite tense and nervous.

Anyway his reaction when he panicks it to bolt, this is usually when you first get on board, and he has a blo0dy strong head on him! He soon settles and eventually accepts the leg and even a smack on the backside to keep him moving and relaxes quite nicely & tires quickly..

Im just worried it may become habit for him to take off for a few laps of the arena when i first get on board, any ideas how to try and stop this so it doesnt become the norm for him? It would be dangerous if we were to take him to a show and he did it..

He is taken into the arena, lunged for a few circles, brought back out of the arena whilst i get on board, he then walks back to the school fine, then as i ask him to move on into trot (with my voice at first) he goes like a motorbike! He is hard to pull onto a tight circle as he is a wobbly 4yr old and has a super strong neck..

Any tips on what i could do to distract from this happening? Im hoping it will become less and less and he will eventually accept that im on board and thats where im staying (fingers x'd haha!) and there really is no need to belt round as fast as he can for a few seconds..

[sarahp]

Have you tried getting on him in the arena while still held by whoever was lunging and lunged for a bit with you on board? And only go loose when he's as good with you on board on the lunge as he is without you - I'm assuming he is quiet and obedient on the lunge and has all his transitions in place? Otherwise don't ask him to trot yet, just walk and halt, lots of changes of direction and use of different school figures to keep him thinking and instill obedience and calmness.

[hunter]

i think i would go the other way and get him out of the school ,get him hacking out with another horse just at walk to begin with then once he is going confidently let the trot just happen he should stay up sides his companion and be trotting without even realizing its happened ,sorry to say but carrying on as you are its going to become an issue and the last thing u should be doing is pulling him in tight circles in order to stop him that will just cause him to panic and resist you through his neck because what else can he do and its only a matter of time before he comes down with you then you will have a real problem (as well as a few bruises !!)he is strong because he hasn't got a mouth that's why he is using his neck ( how many weeks long reining did he have ?)so my advice is get out of the school .

[lfd]

thanks for the advice!

He has had plenty of long reining and ground work before we began to break him at home. He then went on his holidays for 2 weeks and hasnt been back long so everything is still very new to him and he really hasnt done anything but be a feild ornament since he was bred, so a big shock to the system...

He does get taken out riding on the road when he has settled down, but if he was to panick and take off on the road it could be potentially really dangerous. Maybe a couple of farm rides could do him good, atleast we would be in a safe environment if he were to panick himself and go..

He is just a nervy chap but soon settles, its just good to get an outside opinion and try a few other methods , as i dont really want this to become a big issue and get too hung up on it.

Cheers guys x

[flo1]

Taking him out of the school is fine so long as there is a safe place to hack out. It would be no fun at all to have him bolt along a main road! At least a school is a safe place, where he can gain confidence and learn in a more controlled environment. I personally wouldn't venture out until the pony has gained confidence in the rider and his brakes are in place.
We have pony who would take off whenever he was asked to do something he found difficult, scary or just something he plain didn't want to do. He was 10 when he came to us, still very green and was used to getting his own way but often scared himself silly when his novice owner allowed him to take charge.
We took him back to basics, walking with lots of changes of direction and square halts. Gradually introducing trot but any silliness meant back to walking and changes of direction (I think he was bored into submission ).
Once his confidence was gained it made all the difference, his mad laps around the arena stopped and he listened to what his rider was asking.

[gilly]

our last youngster had a great flight button any thing different and off he went. leg on , leg off any movement from rider it was any thing. i think we just tried to take no notice . we would have kept on moving the leg the reins and did not keep still. they have to learn. i think even now if you confuse him he would still rather run.

[hunter]

his brakes should be in place and his left and right should be in place before you even get on wich is why i asked as to his long rein training !

[lfd]

Thanks again! I do feel its something he will get past, just wondered other peoples opinions of how to go about it without it becoming a 'problem'

Its like a switch in his little baby brain switches after 60seconds and turns all the scary stuff off and the running stops!

Where he was taken for his backing, they would walk and trot him up and down the track before taking him into the school, the difference is their farm track was plenty long enough to do this and not heading straight for a main road. Its not ideal to have a baby in the school alot i know but saftey is priority.

Hopefully he will settle more into a routine and having a jockey on board daily becomes the norm for him and not frightening.

Thanks again x

[lfd]

Jul 23, 2013 14:42:15 GMT hunter said:

his brakes should be in place and his left and right should be in place before you even get on wich is why i asked as to his long rein training !

He has had extra time taken with him on the ground hunter as we always knew he may not be the easiest as he is a sharp pony. He was always fine from the ground, never once took off, he would have the odd worried moment but he was always okay and came back quite quickly.

We would never of sat on him if we thought he wasnt ready. As i say, after a few minutes he settles right down and has a lovely soft mouth and steering is as good as you would expect a 4yr old to be.

[hunter]

that's all good then ifd ,have u tried him in arena with another horse before venturing out? ,its not an easy one but they do often take confidence from another ,even ride and lead if necessary (without jockey )until confident ,i do usually find it out hacking easier ,just must try not to let it become an issue

[lfd]

Jul 23, 2013 15:01:58 GMT hunter said:

that's all good then ifd ,have u tried him in arena with another horse before venturing out? ,its not an easy one but they do often take confidence from another ,even ride and lead if necessary (without jockey )until confident ,i do usually find it out hacking easier ,just must try not to let it become an issue

Thanks hunter, hopefully soon we will start introducing other ponies as he is ridden, maybe this will distract from the 'issue' too. Hopefully he will take some confidence from another pony and we can start to take him out and about and let him see things!

Appriciate the advice everyone x

[hunter]

good luck with him I'm sure all will be fine and as consolation the quirky ones are all ways the best in the long run xxx

[robrocks]

Sorry if said before but I always have someone lead me round in walk and trot until they are totally chilled

[lfd]

Thanks again for the help.

We got on tonight and had a successful ride! He had the 2 'moments' where he scooted off quickly, I think he panics hisself when he looses balance and his reaction is to run. Although I was able to steady him up and settle him a lot quicker tonight than previous!

It's baby steps but in made up he didn't panic and run straight away, hopefully it won't become habit and he will get better with confidence!

Thanks everyone x

[lfd]

Hello Everyone,

just thought id write a quick update about how we have been getting on because im made up! ;D

Since i posted this, the young coloured pony hasnt bolted! He still gets a little tense now and again but his reaction to 'scary' things is alot more controlled which im thrilled about! Last night he was ridden for the first time without his usual routine of a 5 minute lunge before getting aboard and he favoured a blackpool donkey! Another small step in the right direction though!

He Also went out to his very first show on sunday, only a local riding club, and he won both classes (inhand)! Made up with his behaviour and how he reacted to the environment of a show and everything that comes with it.

Touch wood hes heading in the right direction and im thrilled with him!

Sorry to bore you all but i am made up! ;D

[gillwales]

Glad that things are progressing well.

If you have problems when braking do not worry about going back and re-establishing a previous step
ALWAYS put YOUR and other peoples safety first and then your horse or pony.

good luck

[lfd]

Just another little update..

Pony is going from strength to strength now, so much more relaxed when being sat on and coming on lovely! Hes been getting ridden in the feilds and hacking around the quiet lanes now and taking it all in his stride and seems to trust me alot more when he does get worried about certain things, instead of taking it upon hisself to run away from anything he is unsure of.

Next step is to maybe hire somewhere and have a ride in a new environment. He has been to two shows now and i think thats helped his confidence alot, considering hed never left the yard since he was born!

Have got a great bond with this pony now and i really think the saying 'the difficult ones are always the best' is very true ;D

Thanks for all the comments posted, really pleased with how he is getting on

[sarahp]

"Difficult" often means sensitive and intelligent, I don't believe any are just difficult on purpose, so it's up to us humans to work out how to work with them rather than the other way round. so pleased to hear all this, sounds as if you've cracked it! Steady and with baby steps is the way to go, best to keep moving slowly forward than to have a setback and have to sort out a problem. What about doing the odd walk and trot dressage test?