Dear All,
This is long-I apologize! And has sort of two problems-spooking and bucking after jumps. I sincerely appreciate any help or ideas any of you can give me.
So the last time I posted I had just been spooked off of my little horse, totally uncharacteristic of him. I took the horse to another vet, that I do think is good, he checked his eyes and ears, and just generally poked around, eyes and ears were fine. At my suggestion he tested him for Lymes and EPM. Well they both came back positive-the EPM barely had significant titers and like many of you, most of our horses are positive for EPM to some degree.
I gave him the medicine for Lymes and EPM. He seems better under saddle-though I’ve not ridden much- and on the ground. Until 3 weeks ago, I was lunging him, and when I say lunge, I just mean walk around me twice and trot around twice in both directions, more like a custom than a real lunge. I was having him step over a pole on the ground. In the second direction at the trot, he suddenly stopped and ran backwards. I sent him forward again and he stopped at the pole this time, like he was refusing a fence, like planted, and then ran backwards. I got him going again (I did do a snake check, cause you never know-nothing) and he went on over the pole but just seemed “weird”. I did get on and rode very briefly and he was ok. So I had more blood drawn but the results did not concern my long time vet-he said it was indicative of past Lymes and not high enough to give him concern and the titers were significantly lower than before.
I took him for a lesson a couple of weeks ago and he was great, first time in an indoor, first time with mirrors, totally laid back. Took him the next week for over fences with the trainer riding-wind blowing, the warm up was great, but when she asked him to jump a very wee jump he bucked afterwards. She did it again like 4 times and had warmed up over poles on the ground and just on the flat, but still bucked after the fence. She stopped and said something’s wrong. Then she went back in and put on her saddle and hopped over-he was fine. I have had this horse buck after fences almost since I’ve had him.
The trainer was going to test different saddles on him yesterday, she’s a saddle rep, and has just started learning how to fit saddles. But y’all he acted like such an idiot it was impossible to really do anything. We were in a new ring, outdoors with horses over the fence and the ring has mirrors. This was apparently totally unlike the mirrors in the indoor and he was majorly freaked out. He even, with her, came up off the ground and whirled around, only like 2 feet but still! He has never ever done that. However being super wound up occasionally isn’t unheard of.
She thinks the current saddle is too big, it’s a 30 and she thinks he needs a 27 gullet. I do have a saddle fitter that is supposed to be good, tho he never has asked me to get on to see how the saddle looks with me in it on the horse. He restuffed the saddle a bit about a year ago, checked it in May and said it was fine.
At this point I don’t know whether to scratch my watch or wind my ass so to speak. Is it the lack of a pasture buddy? Is it the Lymes? Is it his saddle? All of the above? He’s 11, I’ve had him since he was 4, drat it all I thought this would be the easy good time and it’s totally fraught!!!
Any help appreciated and sorry re: the long post.
Regards,
Huntin’Fool
