bucking

[Deleted]

My horse sultan, bucks when I canter.
Its not his back, or his saddle, Ive had both checked...trotting, no probs but canter hell throw a buck or two or five at some point.
I usually stop him quickly when he does it then walk on or just trot.
He does it randomly, even if weve had a good long ride and hes getting tired, hell still do it.
I have been told to ride through it lots of leg, but Im not sure if I want to get into a battle with him when hes behaving like this and what that would achieve. Maybe its the only way forward?
I would be interested to hear if anyone has dealt with this sort of behavoir successfully, what have you done the moment bucking happens.
PerhapsIf I was to work through this with clicker what would i do?
By stopping and slowing am I making things worse?
I have stopped cantering him now altogether to aviod conflict. Im just doing the stuff hes good at and playing some fun games with him on the ground using clicker perhaps thatll take his mind off bucking...?

[SuzieP]

Bea used to do this - but his bucks have now tamed to a bit of "humping" when he's in company.

My instructor suggested a Cheltenham gag because this keeps the head up. At the time I was riding in a pelham, which, of course, had poll action and made it easier for him to get his head down and pop in a few bucks.

My feeling would be try and school him out of it, but maybe use a gag occasionally if you're out company or something.

Good luck .....

[maggie]

A lot of ponies and horses do this because they're not properly balanced going into canter and it lessens as the pace becomes established, but my mare is well established in all paces and still does it, just for fun!

I know it can be really scarey, but if you bring him back to walk or trot, you're rewarding the bucking and therefore reinforcing the behaviour, so it will become established. You need to be able to ride through it and push him up into maintaining the canter. That can be easier said than done, I know! Suzie's suggestion of a gag is a good one, if he can't get his head down, he won't buck (or not properly), you will need a strong leg aid at the same time, maybe reinforced by a stick behind the leg.

It may help to fit a sort of daisy rein (I've used this successfully on small ponies who have found that a buck gets their small child rider off) if you don't think you can react quickly enough and some can throw a buck in without warning! Other than that, I would suggest lots and lots of schooling with lots and lots of transitions, both up and down, including canter. Sometimes walk to canter transitions can help. A session or two with an instructor would be useful, as would you watching someone else ride Sultan. You can see an awful lot from the ground, it can help you look for signals.

Lots of luck, let us know how you get on.

[lancslass]

totally agree with everything already said.
just have a look in his mouth, check for wolf teeth and check the bit you are using isn't uncomfortable in any way....what happens at the front end DOES affect the back end!

[Deleted]

thanks very much everyone. I shall look into the gag idea and Ive not heard of a daisy rein either, so ill see what I can find out and give it a go. something to stop him putting his head down would be good to try out until he improves through schooling.
I will just get on with doing more schooling, Im determined to get through this, I think Ive encouraged him by rewarding him as you suggested Maggie, so its just got worse and worse. Hes found a new and highly effective form of resistance, I bet hes having a right good laugh about it whilst hes out in his fields. It used to be stopping and planting and zoning me out, now its bucking and occasionally he even manages both.
Ive had sultan for 7 years and all the work I put into keeping him, I just wish he'd behave himself a bit more! Now ive got two tiny kids its quite hard to regularly ride him, which Im sure adds to the bucking problem..
ho humm...

[Deleted]

oh yes ill check those wolf teeth...good thinking.

[olivia]

I do agree with everything that has been said, but I also think it's well worth checking back, saddle, teeth, bridle fit again (and again) by a different professional - it's not unknown for things to get missed by even the most competent person (and sadly there are a lot of very incompetent people out there pretending to know what they are doing....)

Good luck

Olivia

[Deleted]

ok thanks for that Olivia. Am going to go back to basics and take it slowly. Had a very good session yesterday in the school, but didnt push me luck with canter. I actually think it could possibly be stiffness because Ive not been doing much schooling, just riding once a week his shoulders do seem a bit stiff.
Anyway will post back any results after Ive done more work.

[NFK Dumpling]

You have my sympathy; James has bucked ever since he came to me as a 10yr old. I asked when I bought him if he bucked and was assured that he didn't - his previous owner let it slip 6 months later that he'd once bucked 8 times before setting off on a hunt

In his case there is nothing physically wrong but he is very opinionated about what he will and will not do - for example if we are out with our friend and her mare he can walk, trot or canter quite happily for several miles. If we are out on our own he will object to being asked to canter further than he wants to by bucking. He detests schoolling and has been known to buck from one end of a 60m school to the other and back again!

If you are absolutely sure that Sultan has no physical problem then from my own experience a variety of work is the best thing that I find helps ie different routes out hacking, a bit of flatwork, a bit of jumping (very small in my case ) setting up Trec type obstacles, going out with different horses/ponies. It just gives him something to think about apart from being naughty.

[greydales]

My Cherry nearly always bucks into canter, I feel it is due to the fact she finds it hard to balance in canter, especially in the school. She's much better outside on a hack but can still put in the odd buck! When I ask her for canter in the school I ask from a rising trot which puts less pressure on her, and I ask with the lightest aids possible (as she can be very sensitive to the leg). This has helped, and it is just a question of further schooling.

[merlinalison]

Lot of good advice here - one other possibility is that the saddle is a fraction too far forward - you should be able to fit at least a fingerwidth between the point of shoulder nad the front of saddle. If not then it could be that as he stretches forward into the canter his shoulder will also come futher back each time and may be hitting the front edge of the saddle. Merlin used to do that when I first had him before I got a new saddle with Flair and part of the trouble was simply that the saddle was going on a little too far forward.

[katiejane1]

nothing more to add really, Nancy used to buck in canter if she felt herself getting a bit unbalanced, It somehow seemed to help her rebalance, she grew out of in as she got fitter and more established in canter. Am sure Ru will throw in a few bucks as he goes along the way as well.

[Deleted]

We had terrible problems with bucking when we first got Gem, we had everyone out, physio, dentist, vet, saddler, you name it we tried it.
We eventually realised Gem was very clever and if Gem bucked, people either got off or brought her back to walk, which meant she didn't have to work. So after making sure there was nothing physically wrong, we had to take a stance, which first involved riding her through it,which did lessen the bucking slightly (we are talking get off of me bucks), we then had to get firm, and some may not agree with this, but each buck if it was for no reason, ended with her getting a smack and kick to push her on, and voila the bucking stopped, and we ended up with our lovely mare, who was never a novice ride, but she had, had a awful life going from home to home, so we were just pleased the bucking stopped, and we had our lovely horse, who we adored, and who we miss dreadfully!

[Deleted]

Hi, I'm back , and thanks for all the replies. I,ve come to the conclusion after going through al the checks that it is most probably him resisting as he has learned over years of this behavior it mosty results in him getting rewarded by slowing down,or the rider being thrown off or dismounting. Schooling and lots of different kinds of work as someone suggested does definately help, it occupies his mind and he forgets about bucking.
Heathera hit the nail on the head, with one ride a week hes not in enough work to canter anyway or to be balanced
Somedays he is great and doesnt buck I dont know, but I've come to the very difficult decision to find him a home where he will be worked properly.
I am struggling more than I imagined I would be with a young baby son, a 4 year old daughter and a fantastic horse but a horse that needs loads more work and an old pony, not to mention the 2 sheep and the ragwort and the fences........Crazyeeeeeee!!!!
im hoping to find a long term loan but I might just have to advertise....anyone fancy a go?
xx

[Deleted]

well I just had sultans back checked again this time by an EMRT practicioner, and he does seem to have some issues that will be causing the bucking. So Im not totally to blame for bad training. I will hopefully be able to report positive news at some point in the coming weeks as Ruth seems to think she can make a difference, as long as the problem isnt arthritus and only muscular.