Horse only lets kids ride
Today’s horse training question comes from CD: “I have a horse that only lets kids ride him, about 50 lbs. He won’t let me ride him, but I can do anything else with him: groom, bathe, lead, halter, clean feet, saddle, back with little presure, etc. The only thing he doesn’t like is the bit, but he will take it with some fuss. He lowers his head for his halter, and comes when called in the pastue. A trainer told me to gradually put bigger kids on him, but I can’t do this. I wan’t to know how I can ride him without being thrown. I can’t ride out his bucking. He use to let an adult ride him, but he threw her a lot and then he switched hands and wasn’t messed with for a few years. I was told she had a real attitude with him. He was real skittish when we got him, and he didn’t like men. He has calmed down a hole lot. I have tried round pen work, and as I said, I can do anything with him but ride. How can I ride him without getting thrown, and without being rough with him. I mess with him every day, and as soon as he sees me he nickers/neighs and comes to me. I do not want to break his trust. I want to fix this problem, but I do not want to hurt him or me. Hiring a trainer is out for now. Anyway the trainer I talked to said I could do it. Any info would be appreciated. Thanks”
My guess is that your horse has some physical problem, maybe a chiropractic problem with his back or something else that is causing him pain when someone heavier than a child tries to ride him. Reading your question, it sounds like your horse loves you and trusts you. And since he doesn’t ever buck with kids on him, that makes me think he is dealing with some physical discomfort when a heavier rider gets on. I would start with an exam by a veterinarian you trust to determine if the problem is physical. Then, if the vet finds no problems, I would check the fit of your saddle (I assume you’re using a different saddle than the kids are) to see if it is pinching him and causing the bucking. Let us know the results of these exams, and if there are no physical problems causing this we’ll address it from a training perspective.
