What do you do when...

Ave Sodalis

Today I was going on a hack with a fairly nervous horse, me and a friend on a very quiet horse. All was going ok up until we came to a house with a horse in the field beside it. We stopped as the horse started to gallop but then my horse turned on her heel and took off at flat out gallop up the road. She wouldn't turn and half halt didnt work either. If I used my leg to try, she would speed up. I talked and tried to sooth her the whole time but it didn't seem to have any effect. I eventually got her into a garden of an empty house where she stopped, panting and exhausted. At this stage, we were only a small distance from our starting point.

Does anyone have any idea of what to do other than what I did already when something like this happens? If a car or anything came, I know I would of been seriously injured.

finbarrk

Maybe you shouldn't have stopped. If the quiet horse had kept trotting on ahead of you your lad would have followed him. Don't worry about the lad in the field, he will be ok at his own thing.
He sounds like a dangerous lad for going on the road anyway. Reduce the hard feeding I'd say.

shanagarry

Yeah, I think the question I would be asking is what you can do to prevent it happening again and making sure you can control her in a contained environment, even if that means recreating scary events so that you can get used to getting her back under control. If you are struggling still, then you need to look further at things like her schooling and bitting, your seat and aids.

You are very limited with what you can do on a tar road really as there is such a risk of them slipping and falling. You could try the 'emergency brake', where you take one hand and bring it slightly to the opposite side of the neck and set your knuckles against the neck. That gives you a brace and helps support your seat. Then pull hard on and off with the other hand. A half halt isn't sufficient - that means 'collect yourself' not 'stop'. You need to pull quite hard in an emergency situation, just not continuously.

convert

There's nothing worse than the feeling of being run away with, especially on a public road...

Is your horse normally like this at home - i.e. - if he spooks will he take flight? or whip around with you? If so, then at least you know that he wasn't been extra bold on the road, that he was just doing what's natural to him, and you can begin to work on it. If not, then you need to look at it a bit more. Did he just do it because he was somewhere new? Or saw a loose horse for the first time?

Had he been for a hack before? If not, then how about trying a few short hacks (even just a few hundred metres up the road either side of the gate into the yard) to help him adjust to going on the road and gaining confidence with new and strange surroundings, as well as learning how to deal with cattle, sheep, loose horses, dogs, as well as traffic, that he'll meet on a hack.

When passing something 'strange' that he's likely to spook at, you could cross to the other side of the road, and ask your friend to walk on your outside, thus shielding your horse from whatever he's likely to spook at. Also, as mentioned by the other posters, trying to keep him moving is always a good idea. It keeps him distracted and doesn't give him the same amount of time to weigh up the situation and consider taking flight. Try and keep your horse about half a length behind the lead horse (i.e. your horse's head should be no further forward than the other horse's withers) - that way he's a little more enclosed and doesn't have an open space in which to whip around or take flight.

Also, if both horses were quiet enough and riders felt comfortable enough, you could try leading the other horse, like you would a young child on a pony. It may help to stop the horse taking flight (obvioulsy, you'd need experienced riders and a quiet and reliable lead horse, but it is something that could work).

You say that the horse galloped towards home when he saw the loose horse. Most horses will react when they see a loose horse (even my point-to-pointer, who's seen lots of loose horses racing, doesn't like to see them coming towards him either at home or at shows). Perhaps if you had the facilities to allow your horse see other horses galloping loose out in paddocks while you're riding him might help?

I know I've mentioned a lot of things in the post, but maybe if you worked on things one at a time, starting with what you feel is most appropriate for your horse, they may help settle him while out hacking.

Ave Sodalis

convert wrote: »

There's nothing worse than the feeling of being run away with, especially on a public road...

Is your horse normally like this at home - i.e. - if he spooks will he take flight? or whip around with you? If so, then at least you know that he wasn't been extra bold on the road, that he was just doing what's natural to him, and you can begin to work on it. If not, then you need to look at it a bit more. Did he just do it because he was somewhere new? Or saw a loose horse for the first time?

Had he been for a hack before? If not, then how about trying a few short hacks (even just a few hundred metres up the road either side of the gate into the yard) to help him adjust to going on the road and gaining confidence with new and strange surroundings, as well as learning how to deal with cattle, sheep, loose horses, dogs, as well as traffic, that he'll meet on a hack.

When passing something 'strange' that he's likely to spook at, you could cross to the other side of the road, and ask your friend to walk on your outside, thus shielding your horse from whatever he's likely to spook at. Also, as mentioned by the other posters, trying to keep him moving is always a good idea. It keeps him distracted and doesn't give him the same amount of time to weigh up the situation and consider taking flight. Try and keep your horse about half a length behind the lead horse (i.e. your horse's head should be no further forward than the other horse's withers) - that way he's a little more enclosed and doesn't have an open space in which to whip around or take flight.

Also, if both horses were quiet enough and riders felt comfortable enough, you could try leading the other horse, like you would a young child on a pony. It may help to stop the horse taking flight (obvioulsy, you'd need experienced riders and a quiet and reliable lead horse, but it is something that could work).

You say that the horse galloped towards home when he saw the loose horse. Most horses will react when they see a loose horse (even my point-to-pointer, who's seen lots of loose horses racing, doesn't like to see them coming towards him either at home or at shows). Perhaps if you had the facilities to allow your horse see other horses galloping loose out in paddocks while you're riding him might help?

I know I've mentioned a lot of things in the post, but maybe if you worked on things one at a time, starting with what you feel is most appropriate for your horse, they may help settle him while out hacking.

Hi. Yeah she usually spooks at just about everything and takes of. She had seen everything before, sometimes she spooks, sometimes she doesn't. It seems that it really depends on her mood. I took her out anyway as something different.

She wasn't going home until I finally her turned up. I knew she would stop there but I barely got her turned.

Cheers guys, I'll try ta introduce her to things more often to see how it goes. It's a bit difficult to find a safe place. We are quite close to the main road on one side, and the sea on the other, partially with a drop.:o
Thanks though. Il try to get her more used to it.

Jen Pigs Fly

Your story is identicle to my last hack fiasco!

my mare loves foals, and I mean absolutly loves foals, so unfortunatly on the last stretch of our 2 hour long hack (she's bred for endurance) a foal decided 'Oh I'm going to go for a gallop' so of course my flighty arab gets mad excited and starts to hop, like a rabbit or something was absolutly horrible and impossible to sit, so I was here on a horse who changed her hooves into pogo sticks trying to control her (Ie, slow her down and stop her) when my friend who was with me, her horse decided 'oh I'll join in too' And takes off.

That horse galloped the whole way home, around half a kilometer, at a full gallop, my friend was pratically lying flat back on the horse trying to stop (he was in a kimberwick as well) and he just wouldn't.

Moral of this story I suppose is, expect it to happen, I know that Hasna (My mare) get's excited when she sees foals or horses galloping, I knew that both combined could probably mean an early grave for me (she almost had me through a car windscreen with her bounching). So what we do is, we try to keep them going forward while also trying to maintain what sliver of control we still have. next time you encounter a situation where you know the horse may spook or take off, be aware of it and keep his attention to you, he may get skittish and may start to trot or even toss his head or snort, try to keep his attention.

I would also suggest not to hack this horse out alone, but what you can do (and what I do with my mare to get her used to vans and such) is lead her on a hack, perhaps in the horse's bridle, you don't have to be riding to take the horse out onto the roads! Just remember to do your hand signals and walk on the horse's right hand side and not the left (so that you are closer to the traffick) and you'll be fine.

He will gain confidence and will give you the added confidence that you are on the ground with him and that you might have a bit of an advantage! Walk him past galloping horses and if he gets excited remind him that he is to walk with you and not take off. he will soon get it! Just like my mare and bikes or as she likes to think of them 'The evil contraptions of doom!'

otwb

sup_dude wrote: »

She wouldn't turn and half halt didnt work either. If I used my leg to try, she would speed up. I talked and tried to sooth her the whole time but it didn't seem to have any effect.

shanagarry wrote: »

You are very limited with what you can do on a tar road really as there is such a risk of them slipping and falling. You could try the 'emergency brake', where you take one hand and bring it slightly to the opposite side of the neck and set your knuckles against the neck. That gives you a brace and helps support your seat. Then pull hard on and off with the other hand. A half halt isn't sufficient - that means 'collect yourself' not 'stop'. You need to pull quite hard in an emergency situation, just not continuously.

Heya,

Obviously trying to train the horse to avoid the situation is important, but dealing with a bolt on the road is frightening. Agree that in an emergency (like a dead bolt on a road) forget your leg aids - your legs are now just for keeping you on the horse. Have a modified version of the above 'emergency brake' lock your hands against the withers with the inside rein radically shorter than the outside, forcing the neck to the side. Have found that horses that I have ridden tend to find it hard to run fast with their heads sideways, they get tired trying and you can then regain control.