# Help! Loaning advise! What would you do?!



## Catherine Lawrence (Apr 28, 2017)

Hello! I'm new here and come seeking advise because I am stuck between a rock and a hard place!

I've come back to riding in the past couple of years and after a couple of shares I put feelers out in my local area for a horse to loan. I not looking to complete so was after something older, sane, loves hacking and fun rides etc.

Someone contacted me regarding a gorgeous welsh sec D mare, 10 yrs, advertised as a confidence giver, loves hacking a trekking etc. After chatting to the owner and going over the fine print, I was going there a few times a week and riding her to trial her. All was going well, horse was happy, sound, no vices. Looking good!

Here's the problem.

It's that time of year and I new she was in season, she wasn't expressing any outward signs of being difficult/ mare-ish. Wasn't pulling faces when being groomed, easy to catch etc. The owner says she's not a mareish type and ridden her despite her being in season or not. So we're tacked up happy to go.

Rode her in the school, ears forward, head up, listening to my voice and going off the leg - all fine. After about 20 mins warming up we start doing some canter work. She is stiffer on the left rein (like most I've experienced).

We go into canter down the longside, she slows down to trot in the corner and I kick her on (again no outward signs of pain at this point), as she can be a bit lazy, then coming round the corner again back in to canter she looses the plot completely.
We go into a broking rodeo, I managed to sit the first few but we went across the school heading for the fence and the last bronk all four feet came off the ground and I lost my seat and was catapulted out straight into the fence...

Everything was going really well and now I don't know what to think. She's been vetted and there are no outward signs of pain, so all I can think is this is just a massive strop on her part. But the owner is adamant this is not her personality. She got straight on after this happened and was a bit head-shaky but didn't buck again. The owner was obviously mortified and stressed that she's never done that, and she's only ever bucked a few times with someone once before, but didn't have them off.

I was going to move this horse to my yard and agree to a loan of a year to start with. But I have ridden several different horses, some that have been mareish and difficult. I've had them buck, bolt spin but I've NEVER had them all four feet off the ground in a bucking fit.

Part of me wants to write this off as she's in season and is/was sore / mareish/ didn't want to work - as I must stress she's been an absolute ANGEL until now, hacked her alone down a road, met dogs cars etc. And she's a nice ride!
The other part of me says this is just such unusual behaviour it's a bad idea and not what I need.

What would you think?
Would you write this off as a "mood swing"
Or is this more dangerous behaviour...

Thanks in advance!
Catherine


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## Rafa (Jun 18, 2012)

Personally, I wouldn't take her.

As I'm sure you know, that type of behaviour can be very dangerous. What if she had done it when you were hacking out, even on a road?

The problem is you don't know why she did it and neither does her Owner, assuming she's being truthful about the mare never having done that before, so it's a behaviour you can't predict.

If she did it because she's in season, then given that she will come into season regularly throughout the Summer, it would be too big a risk for me.

Also, you may find yourself uneasy whilst riding her, anticipating her beginning to buck, and she may very well pick up on that.


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## Wiz201 (Jun 13, 2012)

I don't expect horses to be 100% angels all the time but bucking and rearing for me is a no no particularly if there is no reason for it. I've ridden some very mareish horses in riding schools but apart from being nippy on the ground they were safe to ride. One I remember used to find a horse she liked the look of and would stick to that horse for her entire season like a mate.


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## Elles (Aug 15, 2011)

I would walk away. 

If she dropped back to trot at the corner and felt stiff on the left rein she was already struggling for some reason before she bucked. She may have then strongly objected to being kicked, especially if she was already sore. Her dropping back to trot and feeling stiff could be in response to your balance, or her own. If her, it could be saddle, or discomfort from being in season, or a multitude of other things. It doesn't sound as though you suit each other to be honest. 

My horse is very sharp and she'd put you in the next county if you kicked her, she's never been kicked in her life. She wouldn't be suitable as a confidence giver either, even though I trust her absolutely and she never puts a foot wrong, so it could be that the owner doesn't realise and her mare is more sensitive than she thinks and is overreacting to mistakes, especially if she doesn't feel 100%. 

Riding in straight lines and out and about, is different from being ridden through turns on a school surface, so she may never do it on the road at walk and trot, but if you want a confidence giver, that's not a horse who has bucked you off in the school.


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## Elles (Aug 15, 2011)

Just an extra point, Welsh D's quite often find canter a bit difficult, they're bred to have an extravagant trot, so it can take a while to get a nice balanced canter from them.


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## Laylah63 (Jan 18, 2017)

Welsh in ge


Catherine Lawrence said:


> Hello! I'm new here and come seeking advise because I am stuck between a rock and a hard place!
> 
> I've come back to riding in the past couple of years and after a couple of shares I put feelers out in my local area for a horse to loan. I not looking to complete so was after something older, sane, loves hacking and fun rides etc.
> 
> ...


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## Calvine (Aug 20, 2012)

I've known a couple of horses which have HATED school work, but were absolute angels out.



Sweety said:


> Also, you may find yourself uneasy whilst riding her, anticipating her beginning to buck, and she may very well pick up on that.


And I do agree with Sweety that if you are now not 100% confident, a horse will immediately sense your nervousness. I had a mare who would be an angel for the farrier (she had been in racing so knew what was expected of her); but when the farrier asked the apprentice to finish off, she would immediately play up, knowing, of course, that this boy was not as confident as his boss.


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## Elles (Aug 15, 2011)

So long as you're not saying she was waiting for the opportunity to play up and took advantage of the young apprentice. 

A nervous handler can make a horse less confident. The novice or nervous are unpredictable and an unsure horse can appear less cooperative. An experienced and confident handler can find they're adjusting and reading the horse much quicker and give the horse confidence from it. It's not that they're deliberately playing up because they can get away with it and some horses are more sensitive to mistakes and hesitation than others.


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