At 16:57:49 on 01.05.11, Horselover21 wrote:
Well I am riding this pony and at the moment he seems too much for me to handle, except I don't want to give up! I only get to ride him once a week so I don't see him that often, but when I do as soon as I get on he just canters off and has a bronking fit and i fall off every time and it really reduces my confidence and I really don't want to get back on again :/ I keep putting off riding him because he scares me, any ideas what to do?

At 22:13:00 on 03.05.11, Maria100 wrote:
Hi There, sounds like you have your hands full alright. You don't say if you are the only person riding this pony? Does he do this to others also or are you the only person riding him? It can be difficult once you loose your confidence with a particular horse/pony to start again. If this were happening to me I think I would began at the beginning & start with lunging him before I get on. If you are the only person riding then perhaps he isn't getting enough exercise to keep his manners in check or perhaps he is getting too much feed or not enough turn out & gets over excited once the time comes to be ridden. As I am not the most confident rider myself I am a firm believer in ground work. If I have any doubts as to how one of my horses may behave, I will lunge them first to see what their demeanour is on a particular day. If the pony is not behaving on the lunge then it usually follows on that he will misbehave once you are in the saddle. So I would suggest that you lunge him for say 10 to 15 mins before you get on. If he appears quite enough & listening to you from the ground then you may wish to try riding him again. Also it can be useful to have someone hold the lunge while you ride for the first part of your ride to help build your confidence. Also, are you happy the pony has no pain & is just acting up? Many times when a pony consistently acts up, it can be because of badly fitted tack or back pain for example. If you are satisfied that there are no there physical issues then take your time & build up a relationship from the ground, use your voice & establish some aids that you can use once in the saddle to give you more control such as having him slow down from your voice alone. Good luck

At 22:18:16 on 03.05.11, Horselover21 wrote:
Other people ride him occasionally but it's mostly just me and yes we tried that and he was very good on the lunge but as soon as I got on he was just off. And since I don't own him I am not completely sure but the owners would have noticed if his tack was causing him pain and thank you

At 02:59:47 on 04.05.11, kibby wrote:
change pony! to a quiet pony who will not do anything. there is no point learning to ride on a horse who is dangerous or scares you!

At 06:52:40 on 04.05.11, Horselover21 wrote:
Yeah I could do, but then that would be giving up but I might have to.

At 03:49:02 on 10.05.11, PawPaw2010 wrote:
Giving up? your still going to ride aren't you? that is not giving up at all!!!! I think your confusing "giving up" for "being safe" the most important thing in riding!!!!! Especially if you are still learning, a little monster is worth coming back to once you know and believe in your skills!!! you will be amazed how much easier to handle him after some confidence building on something easier!!!!

At 07:02:24 on 10.05.11, Horselover21 wrote:
Mmm yeah I might do and then come back to him later. Thanks!

At 22:21:54 on 17.05.11, Maria100 wrote:
I'm with the others on this, change pony. It's one thing to put work into an animal that you have committed to & know alot about but seeing as it is early days for you with this pony I'd say you should put your effort into a more rewarding pony & enjoy your riding & builing your confidence - the difficult ones will always be there....

At 20:40:36 on 14.06.11, NoraPieterse wrote:
I know how you feel. I know problems with a difficult horse can get you down and make you feel like your not good enough, therefore you feel you need to carry on to kind of 'prove' yourself to yourself. It's a hard situation and if you were having different problems I would tell you to carry on but you really are taking a big risk. Either try to just bond with him and do groundwork with him everytime you see him until you feel more confident, or find a horse more fitted to you.

At 09:25:06 on 15.06.11, Em28 wrote:
I would question why his owners don't ride him, it is surprising how many people own horses/ponies but are scared to ride them, then get others to ride them or sell them on as something they are not. The only problem is that the horse/pony is already established in their little routine of knowing they can bolt/buck/bronc and get the rider off. As you said you are scared of riding the pony, I would say cut your losses and seriously think about the fact that this is not a great match! There could be so many things making him behave in such a way, feeding/tack/amount of exercise/training/behavioural/physical as in teeth/back/feet etc. Without owning him, you are limited to exploring all the reasons. Also, it doesn't sound like you have the right support either. If you really wanted to keep riding this pony, can you book a lesson with him, from an unbiased person? Although, I have to say I agree with others.