My gut feeling is....

[lor]

My youngish (51/2) exmoor mare has just realized she can buck whilst cantering. She pops into the canter well and after a few strides starts sort of Yipee ing. I have owned her since 8months, backed her etc, done distance riding, a little hunting and all other normal stuff. She started with a few little ones and is gradually getting stronger bigger bucks, nearly came off today :eek: I previously owned a thoroughbred from 2 1/2 until 8yrs, i can remember him at this age getting stronger and starting to buck in enjoyment, he grew out of it after about 1 year. I didnt ever tell him off coz i could tell it wasnt nastyness or evasion. With Honey, I can tell its exitement/feeling good. She doesnt feel in pain, saddle is a good fit, she doesnt seem to have a back prob but will obviously check this. Her teeth are done reguarly and havnt changed anything else, infact reducing food. My gut feeling and experience tells me to just ride through it, coz if i make a thing about it i will prob create another prob. Just wondered if any of you folk have owned a youngster that has gone through this stage and if you handled it the same:confused:

[notpoodle]

oh dear :D

well done for staying on though, a little pony doing big bucks is enough to unseat anyone (there's nothing at front!!!). if her back and stuff is fine, it probably just a yipeeee high spirited thing.

(but then i dont know much at all about training baby horses ...)

Julia
x

[baxter]

Oooo yes, know all about this.

Aurran was backed this year (he's 7) and has taken to bucking in canter, fine out on a hack and in a straight line, but in the school he'll buck, where does your pony buck?

I've put this down to Aurran's difficulty with balance in the school, and he'll happily go off in canter of his own accord, but when asking him this can on occasions spurn a bucking frenzy.

Tips for cantering a youngster in the school are to never ask for canter on anything other than a corner, BUT not going into a corner, ask coming out of a corner, preferably into a straight line.

If like Aurran cantering towards a corner creates a buck, shallow loop before you hit the end of the arena, ride lightly but postively.

If out on a hack ask for canter gently and adopt a forward seat, and just go with it, no better way to strengthen youngster or teach them HOW to canter than on a hack.

Good luck, happy rodeo riding, you are not alone.
:D

[palmerlover52]

Just high spirits I guess?

I'd ditto others, ride through it, does she do this on the lunge/free schooling too?

[lor]

I dont ride in a school as dont have one, also dont lunge or free school. i have ridden from time to time in a friends school and she is balanced enough for that not to be an issue. She does this out hacking, mainly when at the back and out with a few, so it all leads to high spirits. Its just funny that she has recently started, but it all links in with having loads of energy. I really think its where she is feeling stronger + at the age of trying things out ?? I just wanted to reassure myself that i was doing the right thing by doing nothing, other than having a slightly shocked expression on my face, which fortunatly she cannot see:D

[BeachRiding]

lunge before you ride. See if she will buck on the lunge. If not it might be back problems .

[fatponee]

Don't worry about it, you're right in thinking that it's just baby excitement. Keep cantering and ignoring the bucks. She'lll soon stop :)

[colettybetty]

yep, my baby has done that too. seems ok now,like you, just rode her through it. I try to ensure that she is nicely balanced before I ask for canter. Learnt my lesson, was out on a hack and forgotthat I wasn't riding my old mare, simply asked for canter from walk.... several mammoth rodeo bucks later picked myself up from the dirt, got back on and asked nicely for walk, trot and canter... and she obiliged, nicely. :o

[Bay Mare]

lunge before you ride. See if she will buck on the lunge. If not it might be back problems .


I'm with you. The very first thing that I'd do would be to do a back and saddle check. If you've been upping her work load she will have changed shape so it's a good bet that the saddle doesn't fit correctly any more.

Just because they're youngsters doesn't necessarily mean that they're going to buck although some, obviously, do buck out of exhuberance. I would be concerned that she hadn't bucked and now she's bucking and getting 'stronger' with them. Much better to check out the physicals and the tack than to have a pony with a back problem in 6 months time!