# Horse bucks when excited?



## stacey92 (Sep 25, 2015)

I may be completely wrong in writing this but have you had his back checked etc , as you ask him to work more forward he has to use himself more he may be kicking out at pain however if he is genuinely excitable id be inclined to lunge him more before u ride to where he is tired and doesn't have the energy to buck , again if you ask him to canter and he starts bucking try bring him back to trot ask him for canter again until he realises he doesn't need to buck , what do you do to not let him get away with bucking on the lunge ? Is it something you can do whilst riding him to?
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## gssw5 (Jul 30, 2013)

Provided the bucking is not caused by pain, I suggest you slow down and stop putting him situations that you know will cause him to buck. Since you know his triggers you can avoid them for the time being until you get it fixed. He has a lot of practice bucking it would seem, so the more you times you put him the situations that trigger the bucking the more practice gets perfecting the behavior.

Lunging should not be used as a method to get the bucks out or wear them out, by the time a horse is getting ridden lunging should be used as a tool to gauge where their brain is, get them thinking about you and maybe a little warm up.  A lot of horses just get more excited on the end of the line hence defeating the purpose.

As for the bucking when under saddle your trying to fix the problem by yelling a him and doing circles after he bucks, when what you need to do is prevent him from bucking in the first place. 

Start out by practicing at slower speeds work on exercises that keep his mind on you. Lots of half-halts, transitions, lateral work ect, all these things require hind end engagement, and his brain thinking about what your asking for. Work at halt, walk and trot until he is solid with those skills, trot ground poles, do serpentines ect. Once he is solid at stopping, walking and trotting then add a canter but only two or three strides, then transition to a trot, and mix up the transitions so he never knows what your going to ask for. All these exercises will add up building his confidence and your confidence giving you tools to help him in situations where he would normally explode. By avoiding the triggers while your working with him it helps keep his mind on you, and avoids putting him in situations he clearly cannot handle.

Once you and he are confident with the tools, get other riders to help you with the triggers. Set it up as a training session by asking them stop, go past you at different gaits, pass you on different sides and work on getting your horse comfortable with other horses passing him. As they are passing you need to doing something, a transition, a half halt something to keep your horses mind tuned in to you. 

Do not add more speed or more triggers until he is solid at slower speeds and is able to remain calm at slower speeds.


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## Saddlebag (Jan 17, 2011)

TBs are very sensitive to diet. Is he on pasture or contained in a stall with a rich diet? If he's stalled and getting supplemental feeding besides hay, he needs somewhere to blow off his energy. It sounds like racing was in his past and he knows he's to get ahead of the horse that is passing him. He wants to go and you hold him back. He is confused.


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## CrossCountry (May 18, 2013)

I'd be worried about ulcers. Cantering/jumping can cause the acid in the stomach to bounce up and hit the ulcers which is very painful. That pain could cause him to buck.

I'd definitely get a full check up done on your boy.
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## ChitChatChet (Sep 9, 2013)

From my limited experience with both donkeys and horses.

I wonder about feed? To much energy?

What I have done is put the miles avoiding what caused the bucking and riding to prevent bucking again.

On our bucker I have 205 miles on him this year. Buck free. He tried once when he didn't like what I asked but keeping his head up prevented him from following through and then I got his feet busy so he didn't have time to think about it anymore.

Couple of weeks ago he went on a difficult and miserable ride. He had every opportunity to show me his displeasure and he didn't. I pushed hard and he did what I asked. The only thing he asked was I walk down steep hills. LOL And I did.


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## Dustbunny (Oct 22, 2012)

Do you ever get out on a trail or do you only ride in an arena?
You knew he did this and bought him anyway? Me thinks you have a project.
Don't feed a hot diet, plenty of pasture time and lots of slow work. And some help from a professional wouldn't hurt either.
Good luck and keep us posted.


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## 4horses (Nov 26, 2012)

This has been discussed before. See cherie's post.

http://www.horseforum.com/horse-training/bucking-transition-into-canter-396281/

I tried that no bucking device with my last training horse. He never bucked again. Of course he was just green and was not an experienced bucker! Since you know this horse has a problem I would always lunge and ride him in it. I would still expect him to buck when excited as that is his go to response. At least it keeps his head up. The problem is they know they can pull the reins right out of your hands or pull you off balance.


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## sunshade (Jul 23, 2014)

Dustbunny said:


> Do you ever get out on a trail or do you only ride in an arena?
> You knew he did this and bought him anyway? Me thinks you have a project.
> Don't feed a hot diet, plenty of pasture time and lots of slow work. And some help from a professional wouldn't hurt either.
> Good luck and keep us posted.


Thank you.  And yeah, I take him on trails sometimes, it's not all arena work. Also when I was trying him out last year, and bought him, he did buck. But not as big and as powerful. He was emaciated and weak. It took a lot for him just to canter. But I liked him as a horse and thought whatever about the bucks, we'll work through it. 
He's had quite a history. He started off as a race horse, then became a track pony, went to a new barn, and then was sold to an abusive owner. He was rotting and starving in a pasture for a year prior to me getting him. 
Now he's fat and muscly, gets turned out 24/7 in the summer, and goes in a stall at night in the winter. He's fed a very good grain, same feed that we give all my family's other horses, and it does not make them hot.


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## sunshade (Jul 23, 2014)

CrossCountry said:


> I'd be worried about ulcers. Cantering/jumping can cause the acid in the stomach to bounce up and hit the ulcers which is very painful. That pain could cause him to buck.
> 
> I'd definitely get a full check up done on your boy.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_


Thank you, that is a very good point. I should get that checked. I forgot to mention, he is a cribber, so that might put him more at risk for stomach problems.


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