A mare who hates the school
QMy mare’s started behaving strangely in the school. As soon as I ask her to do anything, she bucks and pins her ears back. She’s fine to be ridden outside the school, but can nap occasionaly on hacks. I’ve only had her six months and this has only started in the past few weeks. What can I do? Gabriela Adamo, by email
AHorses can only communicate how they’re feeling through their body language and behaviour, so we need to pay close attention to how they behave in different situations. If your horse is only doing this in the arena, it may be that she’s struggling physically to perform a specific movement, so you need to pinpoint what you’re asking her to do that’s causing this behaviour. Take a break from riding and ask your vet to give her a thorough check-up, explaining precisely what she’s doing. How your saddle fits should be checked every six months – ask a qualified saddle fitter to assess your tack. If your horse was napping on hacks already, this would indicate to me there was
already an existing problem. Horses may nap or be reluctant to leave the yard for a variety reasons – for example, they may have separation anxiety and are anxious about leaving home, or they may have had a traumatic experience when ridden previously and be anticipating it will happen again. They may also have an undiagnosed physical problem or have been asked to do too much, too soon. These are complex issues and can take time and patience to resolve. Continuing to ask your horse to hack out when she’s regularly napping may make matters worse as the underlying problem isn’t addressed. There’s a risk your horse’s behaviour may escalate and become dangerous, so I’d recommend asking a qualified behaviourist to help you.