Horses who respond to rider type...

Mr Ed

Mr Ed

Active Member
Mar 1, 2009
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Now, there is no way I believe any horse is sitting there thinking... 'this person seems a little nervous and young, or lacking confidence, so I will be careful and behave myself' etc.

But, what I want to know is why they react to different riders in different ways? Daft question, because a key component is riding skill I guess.

Ed, is a very different ride for different people - this has been more obvious when jumping a small course of jumps. For my daughter he's quite lazy, steady and clears them all (which is great at the moment, as she really needs this). For me he takes it up a notch, god knows why as I;m cr*p :bounce: but he takes me into the jump a little more. My more experienced friend hops on and he starts to get strong .....

What does he know or feel ??? What makes him react differently?


Out on a sponsored ride (only when cantering) I can guarantee he'd bomb off with you however you rode and your level of experience would be irrelevant :giggle::giggle::giggle:
 
I feel LL feeds off the confidence of the rider and the handler, with the kids she is chilled and plods, if Im having an iffy day she seems flighty and fidigty or If Im having a good day she seems a dream.

Sometimes I wish she wasnt so intune with me :banghead:
 
Some do seem to know - Alfie wouldn't think twice about putting in a little buck if I put my leg a bit too far back on a canter strike off, or when teaching him lateral work, or touch him with the stick etc. However my novice, nervous mum could hit him with a broom shank (obv not that she would!) and he would just stand there!!
Rocky will forgive being kicked in the ribs or caught in the mouth by an unbalanced novice and plod along - but if someone who can ride gets on and rides him roughly - he takes no prisoners!!
 
Now, there is no way I believe any horse is sitting there thinking... 'this person seems a little nervous and young, or lacking confidence, so I will be careful and behave myself' etc.
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I've got one that does :)

I think all sorts of things influence how they respond to a rider. Their relationship with them if they have one, their immediate interactions with them, their confidence and attitude to work, and maybe even previous experiences with that type of person if they don't know them. Some people do seem to click with some horses in particular, it's fascinating.
 
I disagree Mr Ed some of my RS saints do exactly that and I have difficulty persuading them that the slightly wobbly person in trot may be allowed to try canter!!!

Equally over jumps they will virtually walk with the nervous/novice and leap with the overbrave.

I suspect they are a lot more sensitive to our feelings/balance/general confidence than you give them credit for. Even a very competent rider having an off day is treated with 'kid gloves'

More scary are the few that are so in tune with me that while teaching I only have to mentally plan the next exercise for them to do an appropriate transition to the bewilderment of the rider!!
 
I found that Harley tends to know when he can get away with stuff.
For example his owner gets on him, he starts acting like a right pain in the neck, he throws his head about (not in pain, just to be awkward) doesn't listen to her, she boots him, hits him with the reins, hits him with a rake handle :( but he is a completely different horse.
When I get on him and i am feeling nervous he is very well behaved, if I get unbalanced he slows down etc he pops quietly over jumps- when I am more excited lol he has little 'yeehaa' moments when asking for canter, bombs over jumps, generally gets very wound up but not in a scared/hurting way just in a 'lets go and have some fun way'

and yet his owner's tiny little daughter can ride him bareback and he is a saint :p
 
Yeah, Silver will follow like a saint if she doesnt know you. After two rides youve had it.

Anyone "fragile" (small kids, elderly) she meanders along and nuzzles - rude onbnoxious children she bites!

I dont really let anyone ride her as such, but she is a saint shoulders-bum when on the lead, and a nightmare nose-shoulders when Im leading her :p:D
 
Puzzle really reacts to different people - if she doesn't know you she is a monkey to ride unless I've warmed her up first and even then she has to REALLY like you to remotely behave, I've only ever let a handful of people ride her and not for very long either.

If I'm having a pants day she's really snuggly - I think they must just really read our body language. The more you become aware of how tuned horses are to it, the more you realise how much humans totally ignore each other's body language until it becomes an obvious show of emotion
 
Sounds like I'm probably underestimating the boy :unsure::giggle: But, as most of you know, I'm really quite novicey too and Ed is my first horse :skip:

I shall give him more credit (and treats :spin:)

However, I would not say he's never been naughty with my daughter, as for some strange reason he put in three big bucks in canter and catapulted her off two months ago. That was odd. He can put in a little protest buck (usually to the schooling whip) or a tiny buck of exuberance out across the country side when he first hits canter. This bucking escapade has damaged her confidence, but it seems he's doing his best to restore it
 
I'm another one who totally believes they can and do adapt to the rider. Skippy was all things to all people. He was a sensible plod for beginners and nervous riders and awesome with kids (all 16.3 of him:D) yet if you put a game rider on him he would give them a real run for their money.

If he at any time felt the rider was unsure he simply looked round to make sure they were holding on and toddled along at a slower speed till everyone was happy again - but if you made the mistake of trying to tell him you knew better then you had to hold onto your hat because he would quite happily show you you were wrong:eek:
 
Mr Ed said:
Now, there is no way I believe any horse is sitting there thinking... 'this person seems a little nervous and young, or lacking confidence, so I will be careful and behave myself' etc.
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My mare did. It's easy to anthropomorphise, but she behaved and reacted very diferently to the same situation with either myself (world's worst rider) or daughter, so the extent that instructors would comment on the change in her attitude. She most definitely 'looked afer me', even moving her body to stop me falling off on one occasion...I fell regardless, she stood there with a look of disgust :)
 
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Another here who has one that reacts to the rider. Rhia talks to me, she knows I will do anything, but she has this built in thing where she will never up the pace unless she is asked, or asks and is allowed. I always think this is from her being broken to be a working horse. I could walk her all day, no issue, no ask to go faster. Then one day I could ask for a canter and she asks for a gallop, I could say no canter and she says ok fine. Others I'm like ok go on then and let her go. I know she will stop when I say, and I can gallop with a loose rein and just sit back and she will slow.

A child can jump straight on her after and she will walk, and even in if asked to trot seems to have a flatter movement. I love her for this, so much. However, if someone rode her who didn't listen too her, she would be a sod (I don't let anyone like this ride her anymore). I have seen people get on and fight with her. It just makes her fight back. A girl that sometimes rode her once said, Rhia took off with me, and after I watched them together and thought, I can see why she did that. The girl insisted on having a tight rein, riding bent forward and was overly confident. It just doesn't work with her! She had been doing trot to canter transitions in the middle of a field for 40 minutes, it isn't Rhias cup of tea!
 
I'm drunk so going to say this as well. Horses have a sixth sense, we as humans have lost this, some still have it a bit but horses are way on top. We really must give them more credit. Horses are so spiritual, and so giving.
 
Im going to say 'look after the nervous/frail/wobbly?' not a bloody chance mate. Rosie wil take advantage of any weakness and if you're having a bad day dont ride! I am often envious of these people who say their horse looks after them, is really sweet when they are down etc but not in our field.

I work with adults with learning disabilities and have had to stop them coming to the field or chase Rosie away as she spots them a mile off and will run them over, lean, headbutt etc. Any sign of weakness and she's on it. If Im not up to being leader, she'll take straight over - she takes no prisoners!

If you're having a bad day, too bad, you'd better step up to the plate anyway. It took me a long time to learn this and beleive my lack of leadership was what caused all our problems the first 18 months.

I do however have the sweetest, gentlest, slightly nervous mini shetland who as long as you approach carefully and dont look aggressive or assertive, will stand and be hugged and nuzzle your ear while you have a good cry and she's a very good listener :wink:.

As for riding etc I often think Rosie must be psychic as she responds to my thoughts very often - the amount of times Ive thought 'I might trot from that tree' and shes started a pace before. She is incredibly in tune with me - good times and bad. She often has my mood sussed before I get to the gate. Its all in the walk you know....
 
I think they do know when they have someone on board that they need to look after.

Before her retirement, Dolly was my main ride. For me she was forward going, whizzy, always up for a gallop and loved jumping.

But I could trust her with the smallest child. A lady from my office brought her 5 year old daughter up to pet the ponies and she ended up going for a walk on the lead rein. Dolly plodded like a beach donkey, slowing even more whenever the kid lost her balance. She was angelic.

Another time I was out hacking with an 11 year old on her pony who was misbehaving. We'd just had a good gallop and both ponies were razzed up. We swapped as hers was just being too dangerous, trying to overtake us on a main road and Dolly went straight from razzed up to sane and sensible and walked home very politely for the youngster.
 
i think some horses have a great sense of who is on top and act accordingly. My wizzy welsh pony was a nutter for everyone, but get a small child on her and she turned into a dream plod. My cousin rode her from about the age of 2 until 8 and bonnie never put a foot wrong with her. When we lost bonnie and toby took over the mantle of family pony rides, he really showed he'd little consideration for who was on top and charged about like a loon. Toby pretty much behaves the same for everyone. He's slightly better for me as i know every trick in his book and can anticipate his reactions.
 
Mr Ed said:
Now, there is no way I believe any horse is sitting there thinking... 'this person seems a little nervous and young, or lacking confidence, so I will be careful and behave myself' etc.
Click to expand...

Sorry, but I disagree entirely. I think horses do exactly that, they're very smart animals.

My old pony used to fly over little jumps with me and then my novice brother got on and she trotted up to this jump in slow motion, stopped and slowly stepped over it (it was very small). It was the funniest thing ever.
 
angel does - someone referred to her as a 'benevolent dictator' once! and for good reason!

i am an experienced rider (not particularly great but have been riding for over 20 years) so (once we sorted out the law!) can just get on and enjoy myself and angel will pretty much do as is asked.

the OH had a few lessons years ago so is a pretty much a complete novice - wobbly seat, gripping with knee, heels pulled up, hands up high ... you name it. he is good at staying on though and will merrily canter on hacks, somehow!

in the school, angel wont do anything but walk for him ... i suspect she senses the wobbliness and deems it best not to shake him up any further. she basically mostly wont move or turns in the middle to see what i am up to but will trot if i race her on foot ... NOT a schoolmaster (but she WILL teach you to 'think pony'!)

now, if an accomplished rider gets on her, she can actually go very nicely (much to my dismay! i'll never get points for style, have no 'talent' to speak of and will happily bumble along), too!

and when a teenager went to demonstrate how to get her 'on the bit' by see-sawing away at poor angel, she did an entire lap of the school backwards to make a point ....

Julia
x

ps: as for small kids, apparently angel can be rather reckless with these (have heard several tales of a younger angel tanking off with 8 year olds, lying down on the leadrein and refusing to get up/threatening to roll ....) so I dont think they always think 'ah! child! must be careful!'
 
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Maddie had always ran backwards and moved around when mounting, but the day I got on her again after I broke my collarbone she stood like a rock at the mounting block with no one holding her and loose reins whilst my mum helped me get on. She looked after me so well, bless my dear old girl.

If Murphy likes someone he can be as good as gold and just plod along, if he doesn't like them he tends to play them up by pulling them over to the grass, not walking forwards and diving into any bush he can find. :unsure:
 
The horse I used to ride at the riding school would brace himself when I got on, then when he realised I knew what I was doing, he'd relax and go very nicely!
 
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