From: Jessica
Hello, I am sending my question this way: I'm 13 and I don't have my own horse yet. I have a been riding for almost 4 years on the school horses at the barn where I ride. Last winter we got a 13yr old 14hh paint gelding. He used to pony at race tracks. When he first came, is was very nice and lovely to ride. But over the past year he has been developing bad habits. He started biting, then bucking, and became horrible at lunging (he would charge at you). Now when you are preparing to mount, he half rears and throws his front legs every where. My trainer and owner of him told me last week that she will most likely get rid of him because he is dangerous. My trainer is having a baby so for the next 2 weeks she asked me to ride him almost every day, because he is usually good with me. Well, he hasn't been. I think he is getting so bad because he is bored and wants to be the alpha horse. My question: what can I do over these 2 weeks that will show him I'm the alpha "horse" and to listen to me? Or to at least stop rearing, and biting. Thanks a lot. -Jessica
Biting, bucking, charging at humans, and rearing are unacceptable horse behaviours. They are also behaviours that horses exhibit for a reason. I would not ride this horse, or even handle it, if I were you. It needs to be turned over to a vet for a very thorough checkup, and then to a good professional trainer for retraining, but only when the physical problems have been found and solved.
You're thirteen years old and brave - now let's see if you can be thirteen years old and sensible. I'll bet you can. You have a lot of years of riding ahead of you, and there will be a lot of cheerful and enjoyable horses in your future. Don't take a chance on losing all of that; don't take silly chances and risk a major accident. Rearing is extremely dangerous, and so are biting, striking, and charging. You shouldn't involve yourself with this horse, and neither should anyone else until his major problems have been dealt with. Horses are very tolerant of pain and discomfort; by the time a horse is exhibiting this sort of behaviour, whatever is wrong is likely to be very seriously wrong. A horse that's in a lot of pain will not be able to listen to the rider and will not be a safe ride under any circumstances.
Think about your own safety, think about the horse itself, think about your parents, who would be devastated if anything happened to you, and think about your trainer, too. It's a sad reality that IF you were to get hurt riding this horse, your trainer would be at the wrong end of a big lawsuit. Your parents would probably sue, with reason since the horse is known to have such serious problems. Now, if you're reading this and shaking your head, saying "My parents LOVE my trainer and they would NEVER sue her", here's what you may not know. If you got badly damaged, your parents' insurance would probably pay for your medical care (or your funeral). But even if they absolutely refused to sue your trainer, their insurance companies would almost certainly sue her - because they would have paid out money that they would want to get back. It wouldn't have anything to do with anyone's friendships or relationships or personalities - yours, your trainer's, your parents', or even the horse's!
Please stop riding this horse immediately, tell your trainer what's been going on, and get the horse to a good equine veterinarian as soon as possible for a thorough checkup. That, at least, will be a reasonable starting point. Trying to establish yourself as "alpha horse" is pointless - this isn't a herd situation, it's almost certainly a pain situation. The horse is not acting out of boredom - those are reactions to pain and fear, not to boredom. This is not a horse that should even BE a school horse, and it's completely inappropriate for you to be riding him. For your own safety and the security of your family and your trainer, stop right now. I'm sure that your trainer will agree - she's already admitted that the horse is dangerous, and, with that on the record and litigation being what it is, she could easily lose her business if anyone got hurt by the horse while she still owns him. My answer to "What can I do?" is simple: get off and stay off, and that means you and anyone else who might be tempted to get on that horse. Get the vet involved as soon as possible, and stay safe while the professionals diagnose the horse's problems.
Jessica
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