My horse spooking because she is truly scared or because she is just being bad?

Question

I have a warmblood named Glory. She is a mre. Now I know that warmbloods are known for being a little spooky, but she spooks quite a bit when she's fresh. I hate when it happens and it really catches me off guard. Since it only happens when she's fresh or it's cold out I want to know is she just being bad or is she truly scared? Also the times at which she spooks are really random. She can go by the same chair over and over yet for some reason after passing it many times she'll randomly act terrified of it. Also how do I deal with this. I've always patted her after because i've assumed she's been scared. Some of my trainers have told me to be assertive and get after her while others have told me to talk to her and pat her. What do you think?

Answer 1

Okay it's important to understand that this is completely natural for a horse. I'm sure you know this, but it helps to refresh your mind. Horses are "run first, figure out what it was later" animals. In the wild, if they weren't quick on their feet, they were some cougar's lunch. So this is completely normal and some horses spook more than others, but either way you're going to have to get her focus. The randomness doesn't mean she's trying to be bad..If she wants to be 'bad' she would have her ears back and be kicking, etc. There's no such thing as a horse pretend spooking.

So let's take it from the top. We know she easily gets scared. And her spooking also means she's not focusing on YOU. If she was, she wouldn't have time to notice the big scary chair. So the best thing is to keep her mind occupied. You need to be alert, but not tense, at all times. It's extremely important you remain relaxed. If she feels you the slightest bit nervous, it will make her anxious thus provoking her to spook.

So do a few stretches before you get on and breathe deeply. If you're walking, trotting, or cantering in a circle, keep her nose slightly tilted to the inside. This way her attention is on what she's doing and she doesn't have time to look around at scary things. But also make sure you're focused. If you're glancing at the chair you think she might spook at, that's going to turn her focus to it.

Now if she does so happen to spook, here's what you do. Do not punish her or get assertive. That would be like me slapping you for flinching at something scary lol. (Just so you know, you shouldn't ever ever strike your horse) You do not 'get after her' either. Think about this: after three seconds of punishment, your horse has no idea why you are disciplining him. Okay but even more important than this, you do not pat her and say "oh, poor baby" Do not make a big deal out of it. How can she calm down if she's totally focused on something else? Also, if she senses that you are also focusing on the chair, then she assumes that she did the RIGHT THING TO SPOOK. If the leader of the herd spooks, the herd spooks. So you have to tell her there's nothing to be afraid of IN HER OWN LANGUAGE.

How do you do that? Simple. If the leader isn't afraid, the herd isnt afraid. The best thing to do is not make a big deal out of her spooking, and put her to work to get her attention back. If she spooks, you back her up. Disengage her hind quarters, side pass, etc. Get her working and she'll completely forget about it. I usually just laugh at my horse if he spooks and call him a big baby. And challenging their mind will make them focus.

But what really's going to stop her from spooking, nearly permanantly, is building up your relationship with her. And no sadly this does not mean giving her extra treats and hugs and kisses. It means ground work, round pen work, making her soft and supple, achieving alpha status, and communicating with her efficiently. Eventually she won't ever have time to think about what's going on around her. She'll always be looking to you, asking what's next.

Good luck with her I hope this helps. :)

Answer 2

Be careful buying a spooky horse. No matter how much work you do with them, they will at some point be scared by something; having a horse the reacts in a manner that makes you hesitant should be a red flag. You should not be afraid when you are on a horse. (IMO) My dad had a horse once that rode excellent, but was just spooky at the stupidest of things. He worked with her for months on all the issues that she was having. Eventually she was as calm appearing as any other horse we had. We were out riding on the trails with our riding group and she got a leaf stuck in her bridle. My dad went to pull it off and the motion of him leaning over her neck spooked her and she went into a panic. In short, he head butted my dad, breaking his nose and causing him to fall off of her. It happened so fast and she was down the rode shortly after. One thing I have noticed when working with horses, if they have 2 cowlicks and/or they show a lot of white in their eyes, they are more spooky and (IMO) harder to work with. However, it is all a matter of personal opinion and this is just my experience.

Answer 3

I had the same problem with my last horse. He seemed rather reliable, but then turned out to have some serious problems. He was scared of almost everything. But he seemed to pick his troubles randomly, i.e. rain, moskitos, chairs, trees etc. It was horrible. I mean, we were working quietly, and out of the blue he decided (and it took me ages to figure out that he actually decided!) to freak out. I tried so many ways to get rid of this, but he just wouldn't cooperate. I asked my vet, and even a specialist for traumatized horses - just in case there was anything - but nothing worked! I had to give up eventually.

But here are the tips they gave me:
1) Always try it the nice way first. If she is scared, try to figure out what scares her. Show her that it's nothing to be afraid of. (If necessary, get off her back for this.)
2) If that doesn't work, try the consequent way. Don't let her break out because of some reason whatsoever. You're the boss, and you're telling her to go there. If she doesn't obey, maybe she doesn't trust you for some reason. Try to build up trust, so she doesn't have to be scared anymore. Don't force her, though, but don't let her scare you either.
3) If all other things fail, go for a change. Some horses are just bored and try to challenge you. Try something fun - whatever you like, the options are endless.

If all of the above doesn't work, seek qualified advice - there must be a way! (In my case that way was realizing - after a long struggle with myself - that we weren't made for each other. But that's the exception, so please don't worry!)