Practical Horseman

Re: Spooking

Stacey-mod — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 16:04:13 GMT

I was just talking to Jane Savoie the other day, and she told me she has a new book coming out on 101 Ways to Get Your Horse On the Bit ... And Keep Him There. You might want to keep an eye on her Web site at www.janesavoie.com or follow her on Facebook for more info. Can't remember if she said it was going to be an eBook or an actual book.

Re: Spooking

874019 — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 16:56:52 GMT

Yesterday I rode my horse at an arena and then drove him. The arena was next to a very large grandstand with metal bleachers. When we arrived no one was there except us and I handwalked my horse around the arena several times picking up odds and ends of wire and rock to make it safer. Then saddled and after a light longe mounted to ride. i was working on relaxation to prepare him for his first drive away from home. Our ride went well until some workers arrvied and begain making noise and then some children wh began running in the bleachers. My horse would react to these noises and was very unwilling to be on the side of the arena where they were comming from. When I got him busy on the bit doing shoulder ins leg yeilds and turns on the forehand in motion he seemed to not even notice the noises or people. Wehn we bagan to harness he stood quietly but did flinch occasonally as the children ran and screamed on the bleachers. Of course I asked them nicely to stop and they did for a short period of time. Through out his harness session they would begin to run and then as we asked them to stop they would settle down. My horse was so focused on his harness work and listening to my voice he did not one time spook of even appear to hear the kids. ..From this I again learn that when my horse is fully engaged with me the outside world does not interfere with his work or scare him in the least. When I let his attention wonder even the slightest he looses that focus on can get spooked by his surroundings. The difficult part is to do the free walk with him still focused. In all othe gaits he is usually totally with me. I also must be totally with him and not get distracted by the environment.

Re: Spooking

Lorrainel — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 01:03:56 GMT

That is exactly what I'm dealing with , the speed at which it happens sometimes all you have time to do is to try to stay on. If any one gives you any good ideas let me know. Sounds like my guy and your guy both react the same way. Now if I could just convince him to trust me like my mare. She'd stop, look , then look back at me to see what I wanted to do. I wish I still had her. Both were resessive types in the herd to.

Re: Spooking

amberp11703 — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 14:22:46 GMT

I am not sure how much this will help in your situation but I teach all my horses the touch command and how to flex. When they spook at something I walk them up to it and tell them to Touch it, then ask them to flex three times to each side. So ever time they spook at something scary they have to go to it instead of running away and then they have to flex which makes them feel submissive to you, reassuring them that you are their leader. This helps with spook that are them trying to get out of work and some of the scared spooks but if they are truely scared there is still the possibility.

Re: Spooking

walkinthewalk — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 14:48:29 GMT

I have been riding, then breaking & training<--albeit not professionally, for 60 of my 62 years, so my reply is based on the mental makeup of the horse.

Horses are just born possessing varying degrees of "spook". You can see how much spook is probably going to be in them if you are privileged to have watched them from their earliest moments in life; including how much they choose to cling to their mama even as they mature into the weanling stage.

The best, all-time, absolutely bomb-proof/spook-proof horse I've ever owned is the horse in my avatar, who is now 22. He exudes self-confidence and it's no surprise that he is the alpha dominant horse in my herd of four; another indicator of how spooky a horse may be if facing the evils of life alone; where is he/she in the pecking order.

This 22 yo and my 23 yo Arab that is the passive leader, both get high marks for being spook-less.

The horse in my avatar has only ever spooked one time in his life; he was four years old.

We were riding beside some thick underbrush and a deer literally jumped out of there almost on top of his head. Duke gave a quick spook five feet to the left, leaving me on the ground, because I didn't have a saddle on - lol lol

I don't know of any horse that wouldn't reacted to that situation.

This horse has had semi's let their jake brakes off right beside him, he's walked straight up to heavy equipment that is running and digging, he's literally gone nose-to-nose with an irate male llama and won. He eats up all the noise and commotion in a parade -- even with my costumes that wrap around his hind legs when the wind blows.

Duke is unflappable because he was BORN that way.

Two of my other three have spook issues that range from "I can't do this alone", to "Oh Geez, I know that's the neighbor's mailbox but the boogie-man's in there waiting to eat me alive." The Arab can get spooky but it's generally driven by his laziness and trying to get out of work - lol

My point to all this is that SOME horses will never be spook free in their entire life. Some will NEVER be comfortable with all that construction work going on across the way, nor will they ever learn to like the smell of the cattle, pigs and chickens over there. Pig odor, by the way, seems to be the odor that horses despise the most.

I once had a mare that was fine passing by the beef cow fields, but was scared to death to pass by the dairy cow fields. Evidently those cows give off a different odor that scared her. She never did get over that, no matter how many wet blanket rides we took down that road.

My horses that spook are excellent in the woods where they have a trail and natural obstacles they have to focus on. While the deer don't bother them much, the rude dirt bikers do.

Like people, some horses can make adjustments and deal with what scares them. Others may never make the adjustment; then the rider has to decide if they want to live with that or not.

I hope that made sense. Essentially I said, some horses you can "get the spook out of" others you can't, no matter what you do. It's just how they were born.

Understanding each horse's mental make-up will go a long way in helping the rider understand how best to deal with the spooks or not deal with them at all and find another horse

Re: Spooking

874019 — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 19:27:15 GMT

I agree that spooking sep that big jump sideways it a pain. I think there are a lot of good ideas listed by others and i do use most of them myself. Another thing I have done that seems to help is give my horses selenium and vit E. I notice when I don't all his nervous reactions are more exagerated tahn when i do. My vet said his blood level was adequate but toward the low side and encouraged my to use the supplement.

Re: Spooking

Lorrainel — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:03:46 GMT

I haven't had his eyes checked though I have been wondering about it after reading the practical horseman article. We also noticed that he tends to do it 20 minutes or so into my schooling session, sometimes no noise or movement is obvious. The thought now being that he is having to work more and is using it as a way to get out of work. The first few times he whirled so fast he dumped me so I guess it worked so I've been working on my legs and positiohn to correct that so I stay one and can head it off without getting unseated.

Yesterday we worked wtih some cross rails, canter, leg yeilds , many transitions, changing things but also making sure he was moving forward off his hind end more (he tends to get lazy). I had a wonderful session with no spook. The trainer commented she thought maybe he was getting bored and was trying to make things exciting so if I vary the work a lot he has to stay in tune and can't get distracted as much. Course the steer next door still becomes an issue if it moves around much. Equines sure keep it exciting, its funny how some kick in the flee instinct so fast and others think it through. My mare, lord I wish I still had her, would always look at the problem , stop, study it then look to me. This one reacts quickly and he's fast.

Re: Spooking

Stacey-mod — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 14:05:38 GMT

I HATE when they do that! I feel for you! I don't have an answer to your question, but a question for you: Have you had his eyes checked? Has he always done this, or did it come on gradually?

In the meantime, I can only suggest finding ways of keeping him occupied in the dressage arena. Do lots of lateral work: leg-yield, shoulder-in, etc., turns, circles, etc. The key is probably going to be just not giving him a chance to focus on other things. Good luck and keep us posted! I'm sure we'd ALL like to know if you figure out something that works!

Re: Spooking

FocusCalmPatience — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 15:28:11 GMT

How do you keep them on the bit through a spook? Im working an Arabian gelding right now who, depending on his mood, will spook at everything. I mean everything. Dressage letters, ground poles, jump standards, trees blowing in the wind, the house, the shed, whatever. We will be going nicely, doing collected work, then, faster than you would believe, he's slammed onthe breaks and leapt sideways, head in the air. Very little warning. Trail rides fine, this seems to be dressage ring oriented. But that's my issue, keeping him on the bit, its all I can do to stay on when he does it, much less keep a consistent connection with my legs on him.

Re: Spooking

Stacey-mod — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 14:11:59 GMT

Funny, Solaris. ;-) As we all know, it's definitely not failsafe, but if you think about it, a horse doesn't generally spook until he lifts his head up. Also, if you think about how horses see, a horse who is on the bit has a very small range of binocular vision: They can only see the ground directly in front of them. Therefore, when they're on the bit, they're not using their 350 degree monocular vision to see predetors to the sides and behind them.

Re: Spooking

Solaris — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 22:31:52 GMT

Am I reading that right?? Putting a horse on the bit will make him never spook again??? Wow, someone needs to let horses in on this little secret...

Re: Spooking

xrde2lve_lve2rdex — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 13:54:06 GMT

That's just how horses are. They have some days when they are more fresh and more reactive to outside stimlui.

You are doing good already by doing circles and trying to get him focusing on you but there is one thing that just might help...

Put him on the bit. When he is on the bit his hind quarters are engaged. This is what that means:

On the bit = impulsion (which is the strength of the hind quarters)

Flat = speed

When a horse has impulsion they can't actually take off without coming off the bit. They can only extend their stride. Their hind quarters are swinging under them freely and they can't bolt.

When they come off what is correctly considered the bit their strides are flat and they can just quicken their stride. In fact impulsion is impossible to create when a horse isn't correctly on the bit.

Plus when you put a horse on the bit they are more focused on the aids you are using to keep them on the bit then the livestock.

I wish I could explain the whys but I don't know quote yet, for now it's just one of those things that just is and works.

EDIT: Sorry I worded that wrong...I fixed it.

Re: Spooking

flakemusic — Fri, 08 May 2009 23:49:03 GMT

Sandy Oliynyk:
— Hand-walk your horse by the spooky area a few times before you get on. My horse takes comfort if I'm between him and the "scary" thing at first. I've found it's OK to let him look at spooky things when I'm not on him. It seems to give him time to figure out that it really isn't so scary. Also, it gives me time to figure out how he's going to be on a particular day--reactive to things or more ho-hum.

I agree 100% with this. When I am mounted, spooks are not so okay although, of course, they will happen. I've learned that the gelding I ride gets scared of what's out the window sometimes (there are neighbors with scary tools and junk cars) so I hand walk him down there, let him stop for maybe 5 seconds, talk to him quietly, and then it's time to keep going. Once we're under saddle, spooking = work and things to keep his mind busy.

It's amazing how once they respect you as the leader they will not spook as much, especially when you are calm and unfazed. Breathing is key!

Re: Spooking

Equestrian1990 — Fri, 08 May 2009 23:26:00 GMT

What my trainer has taught me was to prepare the horse BEFORE you get to a sppoky corner or part of the arena. She always told me to have halt right before I get to the spooky part, so that I am releasing him when I am going by the sppokiness. This way not only it will keep his mind busy, it will also relax him. You don't want them thinking "Oh, no this is the scarry corner where there are monsters and work!!!!!"

Repeating it will probably be a good idea. Whenever I go trail riding out on the ditch banks here, horses get sppoked by the bucks that fly out of the ditch. The first couple of ducks they go sideways really fast, by the 10th duck they could care less.

Re: Spooking

Sandy Oliynyk — Wed, 06 May 2009 13:43:08 GMT

It's amazing how much spooking--even if it's occasional--can put a damper on a ride.

When I moved my horse to a new barn a few years ago that had a line of trees/brush along one side of the arena, he started spooking at all the little noises coming from the area. Here are a couple of things that worked for me:

— Hand-walk your horse by the spooky area a few times before you get on. My horse takes comfort if I'm between him and the "scary" thing at first. I've found it's OK to let him look at spooky things when I'm not on him. It seems to give him time to figure out that it really isn't so scary. Also, it gives me time to figure out how he's going to be on a particular day--reactive to things or more ho-hum.

— As Nicole and BayHorseGirl suggest, take it slow. When you're mounted, start working in the area where he is comfortable. Once he's warmed up, gradually move into the scary area--make a circle bigger to include some of the area or leg yield into the area for several steps. After being in the area for a circle or two, go back to his comfort zone to work for a little bit. Then move into the scary area again. Each time you move into the scary area, don't make a big deal out of it.

— My trainer suggested that if my horse feels as if he's going to spook or he does spook to say something to him like: "It's OK, you're with me," in a low, calm voice. It's comforting to him and it keeps me from holding my breath, which only makes him more nervous. After I say that, I focus on exhaling and relaxing my seat into the saddle. (I find that when I get anxious, I start to perch, which doesn't make me—and probably him—feel very secure.)

I hope these help. Good luck!

Sandy