Horse question

[T99]

I have a horse that has been perfect, practically a "anybody can ride him" type of horse til now. He's nine years old and he'd never bucked in his life til one day last winter and I still don't know why he did it. It wasn't bad but I won't put up with it. Now he's starting to get really hot around cattle. I was trying to hold him back the other night because some of our cows are a little on the spooky side and I wanted to walk, not run and chase. He got really nervous and it was pretty hard to control him. I know I did the wrong thing by getting off but I watched him and he just stood there and shook, watching the cows and another horse and rider. Any ideas? The bucking that came out of the blue has me concerned too. Thanks for any advice.

[RoperAB]

You just didnt give near enough info.
So how many years have you yourself been riding him?
Whats different <enviroment, routine>between when he was good and now?
What yah feeding him?

[T99]

I've had him about two years and I knew the previous owner well enough to know this horse hadn't bucked or given anyone any trouble. He's out on grass, gets a little oats just to get him caught. No major changes since I've had him and not even much different from when the previous owner had him. A woman I know is going through something similar with her horse that's around the same age. She says he's going through his "teenage years."

[RoperAB]

Im going to PM you

[Faster horses]

If he never has bucked and does now, there has to be a reason.
That reason is most likely linked to pain somehow.

Have you checked your saddle to see if a nail is coming through?
That's the first place I would start. Then check your bit, your saddle
blanket. If you don't find anything, then start checking out your horse.

Good luck!!

[Heel Fly]

Have you checked for wolf teeth?? The pain they cause is terrible. Otherwise i would say that there is something that has just happened to cause all of this. A good horse doesn't just wake up and decied to be bad. Run your hand down his spine thumb on one side index on the other with 4 oz pressure and see if he moves away in pain. Loins esp.

[T99]

Thanks for the advice FH & HF. The first thing I did was check my saddle, blanket, bit and anything else I could think of. I didn't find anything wrong. When I got him home that day I rode him some more in the round pen and he was just fine. HF, as far as the wolf teeth, I'll have to check. He's never seemed to have any soreness down his back or anywhere else and I've never seen him take a lame step ever. What really surprised me was his attitude the other night and how nervous he seemed when those cows took off on us. Most of the cows in this bunch were some we bought recently and they are spooky when it comes to horses. Anybody got any hints to calm him down in this type of situation? He didn't used to react this way. He's always been cowy but he's also understood when it's time to NOT chase them. Thanks again.

[ranch hand]

When he wants to charge just circle him in small circles until you feel him relax, do this every time you feel him shift a gear. Soon he will learn to wait for his cue as the other option is too much work. Make him stand until he is relaxed and start out slow again. Has anyone new rode him lately?

[T99]

Thanks RH. Normally that's what I would do with any horse in that situation, ride him in circles, etc... I wasn't in a very good spot the other night to do that...it was pretty rough country that I was in. You might have just hit the nail on the head with your question about someone else riding him. Yes there has been and it's been by someone way more experienced than I am, that usually wants to go along at a fairly good clip no matter what the terrain or the situation. Maybe I'm just too afraid of heights and maybe I shouldn't loan my horse out anymore.

[Faster horses]

I'd sure say not to loan him out. The other person riding him has had a negative effect on his confidence, that's for sure.

We don't loan our good horses and don't really like to loan the others. You just don't know what goes on, as you are finding out.

As for gettting him over being nervous around cattle, if you have some cattle penned up somewhere, just turn him loose with them. That's the very best way to get him re-accostomed to them. This is also the best way with the least amount of work to get a young horse over being scared of cattle as well. And that was told to me years ago from a good horseman.

[Denny]

[T99]

FH: I'd sure say not to loan him out. The other person riding him has had a negative effect on his confidence, that's for sure.

We don't loan our good horses and don't really like to loan the others. You just don't know what goes on, as you are finding out.

Even if that person that's been riding him is my husband??????

I think you're right though. He goes top speed all the time and my horse has now learned that he's gotta go go go, especially when he sees cows on the run in front of him. Denny I think you have a good idea too about wintering them together. We've got some "new" cows that obviously haven't been handled horseback before and they scatter every time they see us coming over the hill, which in turn excites my horse now. A winter together should help that.