# Bucking on the Trail - What to do?



## Oreos Girl (May 24, 2011)

Sorry, but it sounds like it doesn't matter what we suggest, she doesn't want you to work with the horses. Let her handle it her way.


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## franknbeans (Jun 7, 2007)

Anyone who works a horse until its mouth is bloody is not all that knowledgable. And to get OFF and work-counterproductive, IMO. But, doesn't sound like she will listen to you anyway. I would find a better friend.


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## Dustbunny (Oct 22, 2012)

Sounds like your friend had a temper tantrum and should be ashamed of herself.
I would find another riding buddy.


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## DancingArabian (Jul 15, 2011)

Riding experience does not equal good horsemanship. Your friend does not have good horsemanship.


If my horse bucks on the trail, I first make him stop bucking (circling or disengaging his hindquarters) and then I make him work a little harder so he realizes he made a bad choice. Then I try to see if I can find out why he bucked. Was he spooked by something? Is he doing anything else that may indicate his tack is fitting funny? I try not to get off my horse unless I HAVE to. For example, if he's scared of something that we can interact with (like a parked machine), I will get down and let him see me interact with it and let him interact with it, mount up and go. I will also get down if there's a big obstacle that I don't feel comfortable jumping safely, or if there's something that has tricky footing (because I wouldn't want him to slip or jump into a bad spot trying to listen to me).


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## trailpaints (May 30, 2014)

I recently experienced this myself last weekend, in fact I was not able to stay on during all the bucking, Did not discipline her (even though I really wanted to punch her - haha) because by the time it I got up and walked over to her, it was too late for correction. I just got back on. She tried several more little bucks, but I just pushed her forward on the trail and wouldn't let her win. She's still young and needs more miles on her.


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## Midnite711 (May 30, 2014)

That is completely inappropriate for her to do that. There are many reason a horse could buck on trail to the simplest reason that the horse had a biting fly on it. By the time you actually "punish" a horse for bucking the horse has no idea why it is being punished. What she should of done is simply got back on the horse and continued the ride with perhaps stronger attention to the horses body to figure out why it happened in the first place.


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