How do I stop my horse from throwing me off?

Question

Lately, my horse has been kicking and trying to get me off his back. He had a cyst and I first blamed it on that, but the cyst is notw gone and he is still being wild. I have a feeling that he sometimes gets scared and reacts by trying to get me off his back. Can you help me? I cannot fall again as he measures 1,83m

Answer 1

Wow....every answer was either from someone insulting you or obviously knowing nothing about horses.

Basically- he knows that bucking WILL get you off his back. If he is bored, scared, etc- getting you off probably solves the problem.
You may be tense on him, which I wouldn't blame you for, but that can also cause him to want to throw you as well.

My suggestions: either get a cowboy or a good trainer to work with him for a couple months (someone he can't throw off) and you get lessons on a saft horse to gain your confidence back.

Or if you are braver (or what the trainer would probably do)- If he puts his head down to buck- yank it up, give him a kick/ whip and tell him to get moving and knock it off (in a mean authoritative voice). If he rears- give him a kick/crack from the whip- and tell him to get going. If it would make you feel better, have someone lead/ lunge you so you will have some help from the ground. Once he quits though- relax and pretend nothing ever happened. If you do fall off- you need to get back on again.

Or three: go back to basic training. Start at ground zero and work your way up.

It is a hard problem to get over, esp when it is behavioral. If you have ruled out all other problems (new cysts, poor fitting saddle, etc), really only those methods will work.

Answer 2

Most cyst start from a pinched nerve so you may want to consult your veterinarian and have him run X-Rays all over your horse. You said lately, so I assume that you have been able to ride your horse in the past with no problems of crow hopping or kicking.
You should probably go back to the basics with your horse- IE: sacking out, ground work, and re-starting. Either hire a trainer or approach your horse as if he's never had a person on his back before. Many horses that go through a short term illness such as laminitis, cyst, abscesses, or anything treatable often display behaviors that weren't normal for them before. Your horse just needs to be retrained- when he had the cyst it was painful for him to be ridden and he found relief from getting you off. Now its a learned behavior where he expects pain every time you are on his back and in doing so will keep trying to get you off until you target if he is still in pain or retrain him to have no fear.

Have your vet check him over- if the health check is all clear, start checking yourself. Does the saddle fit properly? Is he properly shod? Is he gaining enough nutrition from his feed regime? Often horses that have bad saddle fit, improper shod, or improper nutrition will get aggravated and easily bothered. If all of that is clear- start retraining him. Be patient with him as he is probably just relating you at this point with the pain he had from the cyst.

I hope this helped and good luck.

Answer 3

This problem your having- is a learned behavioral problem which developed when he had the cyst. At this point you may have to hire a professional trainer to work with your horse and you for a short time . to get him past this , before you get injured.
Also be sure the effected area where the cyst was is not still tender, this could also be part of the problem.

Answer 4

don't listen to the stupid people that say you should kill him or stop riding.. that would be a bad idea as you've probably already figured out for yourself.

like some other people above me said, i would suggest warming him up for a long time, and the dummy idea sounds awesome as well...

it could be because he senses that you're afraid of being thrown off.. one thing I've heard is that if you eat a peppermint while you ride your horse can't tell if you're nervous.. i don't know whether or not it's true but it's worth a try..

another thing you can try is when you feel like he's going to buck or take off while you're on him you turn him in very tight circles very fast, that way he can't buck, run, or rear.

hope this helped..

Answer 5

Have you made sure that he is in no pain for sure, if you haven't you should get a vet to check him out just to be sure. After that if he is fine you should try to lunge him before you hop on and if he is ok with that add some weight onto his back, start out with the saddle, then you can use feed bags to add more and more weight. Once you have it so that he can be successfully lunged both ways with feed bags that weigh about 5 pounds over what you do then you can get on make sure that you take everything slow and go back to basics if you have to. If nothing you seem to do works then you should try some professional training, it may be pricey but its worth it to get the help you need without getting hurt.

Answer 6

like previously said, check the saddle, some horses (i used to ride one) have problems with saddles. when i rode the horse she would buck and try to get me off her back, eventually when i rode her bareback once she was the best horse, she listened and she loved it!

also find a good trainer to help you with this, and try to get him to relax by being relaxed yourself. i know it sounds weird but horses sense when your scared, nervous. so when you relax and maybe just take him for a walk he will start to relax and that way you can build things up again.

dont force him into doing things he is not comfterable doing, and when he is scared, dont let him run away from it but let him face the problem. for instance what i did is put a bright orange cone and some plastic bags in the arena and i would let my horse face the object and let him inspect it and then walk him past it. however some horses have fears (like my friesian: he is scared to death of plastic bags)

hope this helps a bit and good luck!

Answer 7

Ok, this is how I do it. First kinda drape yourself over the horses' back so he feels some weigh but keep your feet on the ground. Gradually keep walking and trotting like that and each time get a little bit higher until he gains your trust.

Answer 8

I would suggest longing him before you ride him. Then he will get all his bucks out and behave himself. I've also heard of people strapping dummies on a horses back so they learn no matter how much they buck, the thing on their back isn't going anywhere. Hope this helps!

Answer 9

Does his saddle fit OK? Is his back painful or tender anywhere. Other than that, it is probably a training problem. Do you know how to lunge the horse after he is tacked up? You may need to get a good trainer to help you.

Answer 10

just give him about a week break and then put someone else on his back first then switch and put you on his back and keep reassuring him that its going to be ok if that doesnt work give him a total spa day(you not someone else) like pet him and brush him and bathe him and stuff like that and the next day ride him.