Hi everyone, so I’ve been riding for a little over a year and can W,T,C and do some jumping. I’ve been half leasing a new horse for a month, and I feel like we’re just not clicking at all. He is still learning the canter aid and how to jump. He is just an overall kind of anxious, and only food motivated horse. No matter how much love, pats, and treats I give him he doesn’t seem to care much. He also bucks and is a bit lazy. He just doesn’t have much of a personality it seems like. Today I came in hoping for a nice ride, and he got pissed I came to ride him around dinner time and bucked 3 times today. Maybe I feel like I need more of a schoolmaster to ride on? I loved my last lease horse so much, and this horse just doesn’t reciprocate. Any advice?
Have you talked to your trainer about this?
Your horse is acting in ways that tell us he is confused and in pain. Of course he doesn’t have a happy personality. He’s too miserable.
It’s not your job to spend hundreds of dollars for a vet diagnosing him. As a beginner you should be riding a horse that knows his job since you are not competent yet to teach him
- This horse is too much for you. One year of lessons is not enough to bring along a horse that does not have an established canter, or teaching him to jump. You should not be jumping him at all
I sincerely hope that the trainer or HO who leased you this horse is not using you as a crash test dummy .
As HO I would not my young green horse to be ridden by a rider with only one year of lessons
I would also have serious misgivings about a trainer who thought this was a good idea.
This is not meant to be a put down of your abilities of you OP.
As riding students we put our faith in the experience, knowledge and the ability of our teachers. We are dependent on them to know what we can do, and know what we cannot do.
And also I don’t expect my instructor to be my best friend . I do expect them not to put me in dangerous situations because they neither know or care about me and just want my money.
In this case, I feel that you are being cheated and being pushed too far too fast.
I may do doing your instructor a disservice but this sort of thing happens way too much.
- Horses are herd animals and they want to please but they are not dogs or cats that seek out human affection and will reciprocate in kind.
Horses and humans can form very strong bonds, but most horses merely tolerate petting. They like being touched but they for the most part , don’t want petting or hugs
They show their affection for each other by mutual grooming, so they will much more enjoy a good grooming than they would be by you hugging him and kissing him and squeezing them.
So , while your horse will like your treats he won’t necessarily "like " you more for giving them to him, and he certainly won’t stop bucking because you gave him carrots.
Don’t we wish!
I would start looking at another trainer at another lesson barn and find an instructor who will be able to pair you with the right horse for your skills and abilities
But don’t give up. And remember to respect the horses nature. A horse is not a dog or a cat. And don’t demand or expect what they can’t give .
Good luck
I do agree with your first point, I feel I need a horse with his own developed skills so I can develop mine. Also I understand horses don’t care for the hugs/kisses and stuff, he doesn’t care for grooming either. Trust me I’ve tried! He’s enjoyed good scratches sometimes, but I understand they’re not like dogs or cats and I don’t expect that from him. It’s just a general disinterest in him as a whole. When I had a good relationship with my last lease horse it was a good respect and understanding between us that I enjoyed.
She’s seen it in person, he’s bucked in my lessons before. He also bolts to the middle when it’s near the end of his lesson. He’s 12 years old so he’s not super young, but my barn got him from a trail place so he’s not used to this kind of work. And I’m no expert to teach him this! I handle is antics ok, but I want a horse to gain confidence on.
End the lease and consider another trainer. This us not a horse you match to a novice rider. At one year in, you are still a novice. You do not have the instinctual tools needed to train
I agree that this does not sound like a good match for you. If you’ve only been riding for a year, you need something that is steady and knows its job so that you can be learning and working on your own skills. It also sounds like you want more of a pocket pony on the ground, while this horse has a more aloof personality. If you can get out of the lease, I would go back to the drawing board and consider other horses and possibly other trainers.
I agree, and there’s nothing wrong with him being aloof, maybe it’s just not for me. I also think we just don’t have a mutual trust/confidence in each other yet.
Walk away OP.
With some patience, you can find a horse to teach you, and also have some fun with .
I’ve come across some horses that don’t like interacting with people.
“It’s not you. It’s him. He’s just not into you.”
Good luck
OP:
You’ve been riding for a year & are already leasing for the 2nd time?
Seems a bit unusual for a standard lease.
Am I correct thinking these “leases” are from the barn that owns the school horses, or from your trainer & not from a private owner?
If so, does the lease mean you pay for more than lessons?
I assume you pay board, but what about shoer, vet care?
Can you not just ride school horses - owned by the barn or trainer - without committing to a lease?
For you, at a mere year in, you would benefit from riding a variety of horses before committing to leasing one.
For the horse, especially coming from a trail string, a single month is hardly enough time for him to.understand his new role or your way of riding.
Nevermind “bonding”.
Even a dog - by nature seeking a pack/pack leader - will not look to you that quickly.
Red flags.
The first lesson I ever took was August 2020. Sorry if it’s confusing, it’s a half lease not a full lease. I don’t have to pay vet, farrier, grain, or anything like that. I pay for a certain amount of rides I get a month, and my trainer allows me to ride different horses when I take lessons. Also he has been with my barn longer than a month learning arena work. I’m not sure exactly when they got him.
With your added info, it sounds like what you have is a lesson package, not a lease.
Which is a better fit for a true novice rider.
Riding different horses is going to make you a better educated rider.
And you aren’t locked into riding a difficult horse as your only choice.
For the horse you mention, even several months really aren’t anywhere near long enough to see if he can adjust to being in a riding program.
Which is a totally different job from being part of a trail operation.
In my own case (now near 50yrs riding 
) I rode school horses as a kid-teen.
Took a 20yr vacay from riding, then returned in my early 30s.
I rode school horses, then shareboarded a privately owned horse whose owner allowed me to show him as a Hunter.
I bought my first horse at 39, by then I had a good idea of what I wanted from a horse. And the skills to find that horse.
And I had him for 20yrs.
I owned 3 more horses after losing him & took up Driving at 66.
I now have a riding (Dressage) horse & a mini I drive, along with a companion pony.
Don’t feel.pressured to ride a horse you are not comfortable with so early in your riding Life.
Ride a variety, but all should have in common safe behavior for a very green rider.
Good luck in your future with horses 
Thank you for the advice, the only difference all my rides aren’t lessons. I’m able to ride on my own. Thanks again to everyone who replied. 
Did your trainer recommend this horse as a lease horse? If so, I would start there……I don’t think a horse that is learning to canter and jump is a suitable match for someone with a years riding experience.
As far as his attitude, it could be pain related or he could be confused….I would consider someone riding for a year to be green and a horse that’s learning to canter to be green so that can be like the blind leading the blind a little. (Please don’t take offense to that)
I think you should approach your trainer and tell her how you feel about said horse and see if there is something more appropriate for you to lease……a horse with a miserable personality that bucks because it’s meal time sounds like no fun at all….and let’s face it, horses are expensive and they should be fun for you as an amateur that’s learning…trainers don’t even like riding buckers, why should you PAY for the experience?
Yes, she did. No offense taken, I get it! I agree with you. And no, riding a horse that bucks isn’t much fun, I can sit the bucks but like you said it’s not a pleasant experience or one I want to handle as a green rider.
Exactly. This is a terrible horse for a beginner rider to lease in any way (doesn’t matter how the lease package is constructed).
At this stage if you’re going to be on a horse without a trainer present, it should be on a horse that definitely knows what it is doing, because it’s likely you will make mistakes, give wrong cues, lose your balance, etc. If you’re riding a horse that also is a novice, it will be difficult for both of you.
Is there a reason that this is the horse you are leasing? (E.g. is it the only one available?) Is there another option?
If not - I would probably end the lease and go back to only lessons - assuming there is a better lesson horse available. If not - I’d be looking for a new barn and trainer.
This situation is likely to result in either you getting hurt, or you and/or the horse being very frustrated and losing confidence.
Remember your trainer pays her bills by leasing you that horse. She has incentive to keep it going even if it’s not perfect for you… If you don’t think its a good fit don’t lease it and ask her to lease something else. If she doesn’t have what you’re looking for maybe go horse/lease shopping. But first you need to speak up…
Also sometimes that opens up another can of worms becauae maybe that’s the only horse she has available and then maybe you would have to move to a different barn.
Or just learn how to get better and ride the bucks. Choice is yours.
I totally get it that you need to provide more money in order to take the horse out on trails…that by doing trails you need to make more of a financial commitment to the horse owners. Because it’s your desire to trailride, i can see where you were charged with a lease agreement. And i also see where the owner would naturally assume that this horse, directly from a trailriding string, and 12 years old (the ‘perfect’ age) might look like a great match for someone who has been in lessons and wants to hack out alone. I don’t necessarily see a red flag here.
The bucking thing though…that is something a good rider needs to sort0ut for this horse. Don’t think you have it in you yet. I would have a serious chat with owner/trainer (is it one and the same here??) and make them get that under control. Shouldn’t take that much work, maybe a month or two of daily re-training. And if it were me as owner, i wouldn’t want anyone else on that horse until i got it fixed… And if i were you, i would understand that i would impede progress and be willing to wait until said-horse was adjusted.
I find that there are some horses that genuinely LIKE humans. Have ‘personality’ etc. But the vast majority of them require much more time/experience with a person before they find that human relevant to their life.
Horse is testing not just you, but the freedom of it all. Think his effort to dislodge you are halfhearted at best, but the inclination is there. Not too tough of a thing to adjust for a trainer. He’s maybe not ever had the freedom to express himself, being nose-to-tail string horse, and being out there on a trail alone might make him feel like it might be nice to be shed of that weight on his back and just go out on his own and graze a little. I wouldn’t take it personally.
If you persist/persevere with this lease, i would not go out alone for a good long time…until this horse and you have things sorted out. I would ONLY hack with a couple other riders and good, calm horses.
I see your point. I can sit his bucks, but I don’t know if I can correct him as well as a more experience rider could. My trainer tells me when he does, circle him then take buck out to the rail and push him forward which usually works. But still I don’t know how much a novice rider would be able to correct these things.
