Bolting horse

[Hank]

I have an 18 hh warmblood who, whenever I try to take him away from the barn on his own will rear and spin around and run. I used to be able to ride him out on his own but ever since he discovered that cows exist, I get the feeling that that's what he's worried about. I'm a very experienced rider but have never had a horse that has made me feel so unsettled. I've had little horses do the same thing before but they don't scare me and usually I can force them to do most things without too much trouble until they build their confidence up. But my horse is huge and athletic and if he doesn't want to do something, it's like dealing with a fire breathing mountain. I sometimes bite the bullet and force myself to take him out on the trails but my heart is often in my throat despite trying to think happy thoughts the whole way. He's never actually managed to get away on me but he'll try to do whatever it takes to get back home. In the ring, though, he's a superstar and just lovely to work with. I can't figure out if he's a bully, genuinely fearful or a combination of both. I've tried getting after him when he does it, I've tried ignoring it and just turning him around and proceeding on. I haven't tried tougher bits because I feel like I can stop his head, it's his body I'm worried about. I may try draw reins or finding a cowboy to take him out for me for a while but I just don't want anyone to get hurt. I would love to have a safe place to just make him keep running when he pulls this trick but forest interspersed with roads is what I have and it's just not safe to let him go--not to mention the bucking and kicking he likes to do while running really fast. Should I just stick to the ring? Help!

[slc2]

Well, if you are a very experienced and educated rider, then you are doing everything perfectly, and there is nothing you can do to make it better, clearly, this is the horse's problem and nothing can be done.

Ride him in the ring, then.

[slc2]

To be honest, I think all the round pen, join up and etc is worthless for this sort of problem. I don't think this problem has anything to do with the horse 'not recognizing you as a leader'. I don't think horses even in the most remotest and tangential sense, think in any way, shape or form how those folks say they do.

I've been around for far, far too long and after many, many years of seeing how abysmally the 'join up' and round penning ground work fails to do anything for most problems other than tire horses out and lame them up, I have absolutely zero faith in those methods. The cleverest sounding explanation usually accompanies the most worthless technique.

[Hank]

Ouch! Well there's me told!

[Sandy]

hee heeh. i don't know how these round pen methods turn out so I don't want to pass too much judgement, but personally, i think that it may work better for the western horses, such as the QH breed, because they have the type of temperament that it works on. They respond so differently than the TB, drafts, warmbloods etc.

[LaShauna Galvin]

trail....

every horse has issues with trail. Croup I hate saying because I have never used one on my horses but sometimes that might be what it takes.

Ring good? Are you more confident in showing? Pretend the trail is just a trail class make him think you are showing. He should perk down and behave a little.

[LaShauna Galvin]

He is picking up on you. Cows may not be the problem completely. Never give up. Make him turn when he starts to rearing. Spins pull him the other way. I know what you are going through. I take in rescues so they are fun to work with.

I suggest getting a calf (I know crazy) and introducing him to it in HIS area which sounds like the barn. I know crazy but it works. I have turned a problem gelding into a champion. The calf will be curious and slowly he will be to. When they go to be curious stand back! Let them work it out. Although if he tries to hurt the calf grab down on his nose where the nostrils are (above them). He will stop look at you and understand that isn't what you want him to do.

[Hank]

Funny enough the owners of the farm where he lives have been talking about getting a cow which I agree would be great. As long as I can show it to him in a safe enough area. There's a little quarterhorse mare that he's friends with who has cutting in her blood and she loves cows so maybe she can help convey to him that cows are ok.

As for the roundpenning, I'm not a big gimmicky person and I find a lot of what the natural horsemanship "gurus" have to say is very geared towards selling a bunch of unnecessary crap to gullible people. But some of it is really great and I incorporate it in certain areas of my training.

If I had the money and a trailer I would take my horse to lots and lots of different places because I really think that would do wonders for his confidence. But I can't so I'll definitely plug away at home.

I did try draw reins on him a little while ago when I took him out and they seemed to really help. I kept them loose and I only used them when he tried his antics and at that time I gave him a good spanking with the whip, a few good boots to the ribs and growled at him to make him go forward. He seemed to get the picture but I was concerned that he might find a way around the draw reins eventually. I won't use them at any other time though, so no one has to freak out about them. I know they make horses stiff in the back and can produce an incorrect flexion in the neck etc. etc. if used improperly. Plus he doesn't need them at any other time.

[Barbara F.]

I don't know if anyone has suggested this, but will your horse go head to tail behind a really quiet horse? That's a great way to build their confidence.

[Hank]

Yes and I have only been trail riding him with other quiet horses in the past year. The only problem with that is that he's kind of the boss of the whole herd and I feel sorry for the horses who have to be in front of him because he treats them like they're his playthings. I'm always fighting to keep him from giving them a playful nip if they're not walking as fast as he would like. He also likes to get other horses going so I have to be really careful who I take him out with. He'll try spooking and if they spook too, he just feeds off of that. But at least with other horses there I'm pretty sure he's just being naughty and can treat him accordingly. Maybe he needs a set of blinkers and some cotton in his ears for when he goes out alone.