Cantering/Bucking

[HorsieLuver]

Hi all! I haven't been on in ages, my computer crashed and was down for like, 4 months!

Anyways, Dante and I have been coming along really well. Well, until recently. He's been a trail horse his entire life, and I threw him into the arena, and he started to get a little ring sour. So I began riding him out on the trails. I stayed strictly on the trails for like, 3 weeks, and then a few rides inside, and a few rides out.

Anyways, during this period, we started cantering. I've put it off for a while as he's unbalanced in the arena, but we were outside, so I figured, why not? So he was horrible at first...refused to pick it up...but 4 days later it was great! He was picking it up perfectly!

Now, when I'm outside, I do everything like I would in the arena, except for that I'm in a field. So we do walk, trot and canter warmups. And he loves it! But lately, he's been really...upset at canter. Flishing his tail, Pinning his ears. And the other day...he bucked. Everytime I asked. :confused: I'm unhappy....we were doing so great and then all of a sudden this comes out?? Does anyone have any advice? Thanks!

PS - even when I suspected he was ring sour it was not from bucking...he was never happy, his ears were always pinned and he was very araby(sticky movement, head in the air). Hes soo much more relaxed in the field.

Please help!

Lissa

[Iron Maiden]

Three things spring immediately to mind...

1. Saddle/back/teeth etc - it could be a physical problem, are you sure the saddle isn't hurting him, or his back giving him grief? Definitely worth checking.

2. Could he be ticklish? I don't know how you ask for canter, but of you put your outside leg quite far back & he's one of those horses that's ticklish around his flank/stifle, it could cause him to buck. You could try asking with a voice aid & see if he still bucks.

3. Horse taking control! What happens when he bucks? Do you stop asking for canter? If he's being a bit mule-ish, by backing off when he bucks you are rewarding the behaviour & it can become second nature to the horse. My old cob was a classic case of this, if he didn't want to canter when you asked he would bomb off for a few strides, throw in a buck then pull himself up (often with his rider hanging round his neck in a state of mild shock). This was usually sufficient to deter his rider from asking him to canter again. I used to reverse the roles & when he ran off & bucked, I'd push him on and ask him to go even faster - he obviously wasn't expecting this & he very rarely bucked with me, he still did it with other people though the cheeky monkey.

Good luck!

[charliejonny]

Hi there we are having the same problem with our standard bred mare,when out in the field or out on the track she is gr8(apart from when she gets to excited then we have to hold on and enjoy the ride) but when in the menage shes ok trotting but trying to get her into a canter the ears are pinned back and she wants to buck you off,we had her teeth,saddle and back checked out and there ok,we have just started using a martingale so it may be that,have you started using a new bit of tack?
What we find helps is when she goes to buck and you can see her ears going back just try and sit through it and get her going forward and faster,i know its a bit scary at first but it seems to be doing the trick with are moody mare.
Charlotte.x :D :D :D

[HorsieLuver]

When he bucks, I keep on him til he canters. The saddle is perfect, his previous owner was a saddle fitter, and I got a free fit when I bought him. His teeth are fine, vet was out last week. Only thing left is his back... :(. Any other suggestions? Please? I'm desperate....

[coss]

could just be getting cheeky as he gets fitter. My arab is like that :rolleyes:
Another possibility, is the horse cold backed at all, even slightly? I have found a severe change in Harry's way of going as the cold starts to set in, like flicking a switch. Is it the sort of buck where the front end disappears? the buck that soars through the air? How old is the horse? if its young then age should help, i don't get the whole taking off to gallop to halt to rein back with head on the ground as often now although it has taken 6 years of training :(.

To check if cold back is a possibility then you should try lunging the horse in walk, trot and canter before getting on. give a longer warm up with lots of turns a circles until the tail starts to swing (this shows relaxation in the back) and then do some transitions between walk and trot, then move into canter much later in the riding session. this will test if the horse is feeling tired, stiff etc.
Keep us posted :)

[Sparkie]

If theres nothing physically wrong, he might be just playing up. I had a problem with this with Ellie, but she was confused, and if he's been doing it perfectly before he shouldn't be confused, unless you're asking him a different way to usual. Try being very, very clear and deliberate with your aids.

[Iron Maiden]

If you've exhausted every other possibility & you're sure he's being naughty, a smack on the bum when he bucks might convince him it's a bad idea. Also, make sure you don't let him get his head too low, keep your hands up & ride him strongly into them so he can't get his head down & really bronc with you.

[coss]

make sure you continue to ride forwards, it is very tempting when you feel the hind quarters sink (ready to go in the air) to pull up but this can encourage the horse to sit on the back end more and hence give a more substantial fly through the air. keep the horse moving, bending poles are good as this helps to get the mind back on the job but it is difficult if you are going fast with no horse infront of you!

[galadriel]

I find that horses who buck AS they go into canter have something going on in their backs. A lot of the time it's a sacroiliac issue. I have one client whose horse begins to buck in canter transitions when his back has changed enough for his saddle to start hurting. (Very convenient, and nice of him to tell us.)

[coss]

silly question coming up, :o what does AS stand for?
and yes i agree, they normally do have a back problem or sometime stifle

[galadriel]

Emphasis on the word as (as they go into canter); compared to while cantering throwing in a buck or two.

[coss]

:o:o:o:o:o:o
sorry!!!

[Afellpony]

Sometimes youngsters buck because they're unbalanced. Cantering in a straight line is usually better for a youngster's balance than on a circle which is usually difficult for them. Even a large circle can be difficult for a youngster.