How do you handle "naughty" bucks

[dalpal]

I need some tools in my belt for those naughty bucks...the ones that say..."Screw you, I do not want to do this" :lol:


I have to say, I rode my first 8 second ride today and held on. :lol: Once the theatrics was over, I made the horse canter again, and there wasn't any more drama.....but I'm not sure if the Naughty bucker will re-emerge tomorrow. :lol: Really don't want to clear out the indoor ring as it is supposed to be pouring rain all day.

This horse was giving me the softest, lightest canter...I was using my half halts..."Half halt, relase, Half halt release"....On the third Release....the booger got me..and I admit, I wasn't expecting it and wasn't prepared as I probably should have been.

I didn't do anything really proactive during this theatrical event, just did my best to stay in the saddle....I kept thinking, looking at the dirt..."Oh man this is going to hurt" :lol: And decided it was in my best interest to ride it out...which I did (it probably lasted more like 5 seconds...but I made it..whew)

If a horse starts to throw naughty bucks while you are riding...how do you handle them....any tricks to stop the theatrics. On the front end, we had the headshaking and on the rearend, the bucks.

[jetsmom]

Look up, sit up, kick and pull up on inside rein to get the head up, then kick them forward on a circle, and keep cantering after they quit bucking.

Jet will buck when he is feeling good, or if you screw up a jump he will go airborne on the landing side in a series of bucks. Doing the above keeps me in the saddle, and limits the bucking. Stopping after they buck will teach them that bucking gets them out of work. Looking up seems vital to staying on. Also make sure you ride with your weight in your heels on horses that buck.

[Aubreyyy]

Sit up, and try to hold that head up! When you feel them start to coil up, hold on and put your leg on and push forward and out, not down and then UP! lol :)

[sublimequine]

If you get well-practiced in riding a bucking horse (I know I am.. and that's not something I'm real proud of.. :lol: ), you can ALMOST always diffuse the situation after the first buck, so you don't have it turn into a bronc show.

The second the horse's back feet hit the ground after the buck, move them FORWARD FORWARD FORWARD, and into a small circle. I've yet to meet a horse who can really throw a hardcore buck while doing a fast canter on a small circle, they'll lose their balance if they try.

Just make sure the horse knows bucking = MORE work, not less! :)

[Ambrey]

Er, pick the arena dirt out of my teeth and walk down the hill to see who finally caught him?

Just kidding. I am thanking whatever stars aligned to cause my big guy to forget his love of the naughty buck after my accident. Oh, and my trainer who might have had something to do with it ;) I will tell you I've seen him ride some doozies (none from my horse in a while) and he rides them out calmly and quietly and puts them right back to work.

[cnvh]

Circlecirclecirclecirclecircle and circle some more, a small-enough one where he won't be able to get a good buck in but large enough that he has to be purposefully moving FORWARD and not just pivoting around.

Sometimes with my guy it only takes one or two circles, sometimes we're circling for a few minutes. We do trot circles regardless of what gait he acts up in; cantering is too easy and fun for him.

[lcw579]

Sit up, pull that head up, kick or smack them forward and trot, trot, trot until horse is most certainly not having fun anymore!

[caradino]

feet forward, body back, hands up, stick on! and circles if it's totally out of hand.

[wendy]

I always wonder why exactly the horse got pissed off? were you doing something irritating or possibly wrong?

[LR1976]

Er, pick the arena dirt out of my teeth and walk down the hill to see who finally caught him?

.

:lol::lol::lol:

[CatOnLap]

err..after doing what everyone else suggests and ride them out, I try and figure out just what I did to piss them off so much. And then try to forget it happened until we come to the same spot again and have to push through pro-actively.

'Cos, it's hardly ever the horse's original idea. That said, I have rehabbed one who just was really distrustful and hated riders...and for a solid year, every single time I rode him, tried to get me off. Kept pulling new tricks from his bag too- amazing what a smart horse learns from professionals in those 100 day tests. The best advice I got- from the only pro rider that hadn't ended up around his neck, was this:

"If you possibly can, ride it forward and as soon as it calms down, act as if it never happened. And don't let him do it again!"

Haha. Easier said than done. But that horse is now beginner safe and only ever bucks with me when I've made some sort of mistake, like too much or inadvertant spur.

[findeight]

Maybe one too many half halt/releases? Sometimes they will only give you so much and it's best to go with less then try for more. Maybe next ride, just do one or two of these and quit on a good note? Before he develops an opinion. That's true of anything new or anything that is hard for a particular horse.

Anyway, just stick your feet out, sit back on your pockets and keep his head up...and do not let him stop, you must keep going. Then ask for something you know he can and will do easily, get that done and quit.

[KitKat987]

I just usually ride it out, or push through it and make them work. Both my horses tend to kick up their heels and have a little pout if I dare give them any sort of smack with the crop. They're young, usually just having a mild temper tantrum. I usually just pretend it didn't happen (assuming it isn't a full blown hissy fit) and make them work even harder than I initially asked.

[Beasmom]

CatOnLap: "If you possibly can, ride it forward and as soon as it calms down, act as if it never happened. And don't let him do it again!"

Yup! Ride through it with as little reaction as possible and keep on working. My gelding pulled this stunt at a show last weekend -- he kept pushing against my inside leg with his ribs, so I bent him & demanded he move those ribs the other way. WELL! He let fly with a few leaps to express his displeasure -- but he moved those ribs and all was well.

Yes, much easier said than done. My coach is forever reminding me to keep my hands low and just ride him forward. I guess in the warmup on Sunday, the reminders paid off.

[lcw579]

OP in your case I agree with findeight it could have been too many half halts.

Other reasons for truly naughty bucks? I've known some schoolies who...just...can't....take...it...anymore!!!! And they let whatever poor rider was on them know that this going around in circles crap was driving them crazy. Strong correction from instructor followed by either some time off and some fun trail riding adjusted the attitude. If it didn't it was time to find them a new home where life would be more varied.

I've also known a few horses who would try to buck someone off just because they could. These usually tended to be rude on the ground too and had big gaps in their basic training. Teaching manners and starting over with them worked in the long run but it can be a long time coming depending on how lacking in respect they are. A few of these were really stupid horses too - well, maybe I'm just thinking of one particularly ugly and rude one I worked with for a while. :lol:

Anyway, I'll take a "happy" buck over a "I'm going to get you off my back now" buck any day!

[RegentLion]

My gelding will buck when he's lazy and realllyyyy doesn't want to work (his are cranky bucks). OR if I ask-ask-ask and keep nagging him to do something he isn't physically ready for.

If it is because I've been asking for more than he can give, then I stop him using my spurs (he's a spur stop style western horse). For him the abrupt STOP is his refocus "uh-oh" moment (because bucking is unacceptable no matter what), and then I go forward and try again, being more mindful of what I have asked for that he can't do. If then I ASK for something he CAN do and he BUCKS instead, (or is being lazy) it is KICK GO FORWARD. Or I grab a dressage whip and FORWARD!

I just have to be really aware of why he bucked. If it is my fault, I can do a small something mild to remind him "bucking isn't the answer, buddy, even when I'm a little bad."

If he bucked because he's being lazy/naughty/taking advantage, then I reprimand by doing what he would prefer NOT to do--GO FORWARD.

[JSwan]

Don't let 'em get their head down.

Now, if you can keep my 17h monsterous draft cross with a gigantic T-rex head from getting his head down -well - you deserve to have him.

By the way... he eats. A LOT.

[easyrider]

Not saying this is the case here, but the problem could be too lengthy half halts rather than too many half halts. A half halt takes a fraction of a second -- much shorter than the time it takes to say, "half halt." Some horses can get righteously pissed off if you're asking them to go and stop at the same time. Others get pissed off if your weight shifts or you stiffen or your leg tightens or taps, etc., etc., which are common problems people have before perfecting their half halts. If you want them to be sensitive to all of that, you don't want to teach them to ignore it. If you just want a good soldier, that's a different story.

In terms of correction, I generally agree with what others are saying about the appropriate response to a buck. But for some horses, especially if it's just a protest buck and not an "I'm going to get you off my back now" buck, the right correction is simply to ignore them, when they'd rather have a discussion about their disobedience than learn what you're trying to teach them.

You mention headshaking at the front end, though, in addition to bucking. Sounds like it could be more than protest to me. Could it be that there's some discomfort rather than simply disobedience? Teeth, saddle, etc.?

[Tilly]

I've ridden quite a few naughty buckers, and it's my pony's favorite form of disagreement. If it's just a happy buck then I ignore it. If not, this is what I do:
Keep the head up [yank it up if you have to, and don't feel bad about it], look UP! Smack on the butt with the crop, or a kick, and then drive them forward. After that, pretend nothing happened.
If your horse is like my pony, and can bronc with her head still up, then just look up, stay balanced, and smack/kick. Repeat as necessary [sometimes with Ruby I do this 5-10 times before she stops bucking]

[mroades]

I have one that can buck with his head up...no lie! He is soooo smart he figured out that you were going to get his head up, so now he just skips the lowering of the head part.
And if you smack him, he just jumps higher...fun stuff. I let the younguns ride that one, I am too old for that stuff naymore...lol

[dalpal]

Okay, okay since we have to analyze WHY we had the naughty bucks...:lol: Horse had had a week off of work and had a lot of pentup energy. Probably should have lunged first...but didn't and had to deal with the consequences.

And thanks to all the wonderful suggestions on how to ride through the bucks..that definitely gives me more confidence.

Why so many half halts? Because the horse was like a freight train in my hands.