De-Spooking Your Horse


Surely you've experienced the feeling of sitting on a four-legged whirlwind when your horse abruptly stops moving forward, then grabs the ground with stiffened legs and suddenly, whoosh! You're headed at breakneck speed in the opposite direction. There's nothing like a violent spook to ruin an otherwise perfect ride. Whether it happens in the showring or on the trail, a spooky horse must be handled in a safe manner which restores the horse's confidence yet emphasizes that you, the rider, are in control.

Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!
Because feral horses and their ancestors were prey for wolves and mountain lions, today's domesticated horse, regardless of training, still reverts to a 'flight' response when it feels threatened. A barking dog, a rustling tree or the dreaded plastic trash can might be perceived as possible carnivores to the uninitiated horse. Young or green horses are particularly prone to spooking. Everything looks strange to them because they lack a frame of reference to help them identify unusual objects.
Punishing the green horse for spooking is always a bad idea. First, the frightened horse tends to ossociate the trauma of the punishment with the scary object. Second, you may create a further escalation of the problem: not wanting to move past the scary thing, the green horse may respond to your punishment by rearing or bolting off. Instead, aim to acquaint your green horse with whatever is frightening him, so that at the next encounter he can proceed with confidence.
Let's say you're on the trail with you green horse when he suddenly spooks at a sign on a fence post. Fixated on the sign, he refuses to go forward, yet you can feel his muscels getting tense. Keep your horse pointing ahead, down the trail. If you allow your horse to whirl and end up with the scary sign behind him, this will only increase his urge to flee from the 'predator'. Instead, without losing conact with your horse's mouth, soften your feel on the reins to be sure you aren't restraining him from going forward. Next, reassure your horse with a soothing tone and perhaps a pat on the neck. Now exude confidence as you lean back with you upper body and gently urge your horse forward with a cluck and a squeeze of your heel. Never fall forward and clutch on to the reins or saddle for security. You must communicate to your horse that it's okay to be brave and move along. By remaining tall in your upper body, you can strive to keep your horse's motor, or momentum in front of you.
With each tiny step forward, reward your horse with a "good boy" or a pat. Let him investigate the sign if he wants to sniff it, but be prepared! Any sudden tweak of the sign and your horse could whirl and take off, so keep your heels down and your seat secure. Don't be dismayed if your horse hesitates and backs up momentarily. Tell him that's not an option by coaxing him forward: keep your reins slightly loose and your leg pressure urging him ahead. If he tries to escape the situation by diving to the left or right, correct him by using one rein at a time to turn him back in the proper direction.
At the last instant, just when you thought your trail ride had come to a premature end, your green horse will lurch forward, past the sign and on down the trail. When this happens, reward your horse profusely. He is beginning to trust you instead of responding to his insticts.
Another way to help your green horse is to get over his spookiness is to ride with a friend on an older, more sedate horse - one who has a 'ho-hum' attitude about life. This ploy makes use of the green horse's instict to stick with the herd. Green, young and nervous horses are quite willing to follow a dominant leader. Chances are, when the older horse plods past the sign on the fence post, your green horse will take the cue. Again, reward his good behavior. By introducing hew sights to your horse in a positive manner, you will develop his self-confindence.

Cures for the Common Spook
Green horses aren't the only equines that spook. A horse of any age or level of training is more prone to spooking when he is high (has lots of pent-up energy). Horses are able to store energy, so a supply of good food combined with a lack of regular exercise makes a frisky horse. A high horse is ready to burst at the seams, dying to kick up his heels and play. He's simply too rambunctious to concentrate on mundane matters such as walking or cantering slowly. The rattle of a noisy car or the sight of another horse in the distance is enough to set off the fireworks. Your normally quiet horse begins to spook at everything that moves!
The only cure for the high, spooky horse is to dismount and either longe the horse or turn him loose in an enclosed arena or round pen and force him to exercise. Allow your horse the freedom to run and play, goofing off. Once the edge is off, your trusty horse should be better able to focus on his job.
A horse with a naturally hot, sensitive tempermant can also be a talented spooker. Regardless of how much he's longed or exercised, a hot horse continues to find things to shy from. Dealing with these horses can be frustrating. On the one hand, their sensitivity is part of what makes them appealing as competition mounts, because they tend to be responsive to their riders. However, these horses can also be acutely aware of any changes in their enviroment: If a picnic benches, chairs or jumps are reaaraged, the keen horse notices and spooks at each newly-placed object as if he's never seen it before.
Rely on your horse's training and response to your riding aids to solve this type of spooking problem. For example, if your horse is shying from a chair outside the arena railing, your goal is to encourage him to continue moving forward along the rail, past the chair. Several strides before the chair, use your inside rein to tip his nose slightly to the inside of the arena. Add some pressure from your inside leg to reinforce the slight bend in his body.
Use outside leg pressure to keep your horse's momentum going forward. Lean back with your upper body and add a cluck to maintain your horse's pace. This slight legyield will distract your horse's gaze from the offending chair, and keep him focused on your cues. Continue this for several trips past the chair, until your horse accepts the routine of listening to your requests rather than being engrossed in his surroundings.
Because even the most well-trained horse can give in to his instincts and spook when frightened, you should always wear proper safety gear when riding. Boots plus a helmet can help protect you from severe injury if your spooking horse should unseat you, and that's enough to scare anyone!
When Spooking Becomes a Habit
Do you dread each trail ride, apprehensive of where your horse will spook? Are you choosing which shows to compete in based on the scariness of the arena? Then your horse's spooking is becoming a chronic behavior that may require some investigation.
Have your vet examine your horse's eyes. Rule out vision-impairing problems such as cataracts or detached retinas. Both can distort your horse's eyesight, making him more likely to spook as objects move in and out of his shadowy vision.
Re-evaluate your horse's level of training. Any horse pushed beyond his level of comfort becomes tense. A tense horse is wary of his enviroment; the entire situation, in the horse's estimation, is fraught with danger. This translates into a climate of spookiness. If, for example, your show horse is a habitual spooker among a crowd of horses, slow down in your pursuit of ribbons and gradually reintroduce him to the idea of working with his peers. Take a few group lessons. Or go on a trail ride with several other horses.
Be firmer in your commands to preceed forward. While a horse that is genuinely frightened should be permitted to investigate the scary object, he must also understand your command to then move along. If you are always giving in to your horse's wariness by allowing him to avoid anything remotely spooky, you may create a horse that uses spooking as a vice. Your game plan should always be: Allow your horse time to investigate the scary objec; reassure your horse; then demand that he move forward. If you are not secure eough to accomplish this, seek help from a more experienced rider.
This article is from Horse Illustrated of August 1999.

Back to Riding School
Back to Let's Ride