train to not rear up ....

Hi,
I'm not an expert in rearing, but I ground break and train most of my own horses, and I don't get this problem. But buying a horse you don't know can sometimes find you with a rearing horse.

First, rule out any physical problems, this is one big cause of rearing. Get the vet to do a thorough neck, and back and leg/hoof check for you. Be sure there are no old breaks/fractures, discs out of alignment, or other painful joints. Even a stone bruise or bad trimming/shoeing can cause a horse to rear, but a skeletal problem is more likely. The horse rears to alleviate PAIN.

Second, what kind of bit are you using? And what level is the horse at? Start young ones with a training bit (I personally do NOT like Tom Thumbs, but rather use a simple snaffle bit.) Is the bit wide enough for your horses mouth? If you don't know, place something flat and about a foot long inside the "bars" of the horses mouth and actually measure how wide the mouth is. Many folks use a bit too big or too small and it wreaks havoc with the mouth.

And how about teeth/mouth problems other than a bad bit? Is the horse in need of a teeth floating, or perhaps there is an abscess in the mouth?

Lastly, do you know the horse's history? One of my mares I bought a few years ago and still have, is a beautiful horse named Honey. Honey is smart, funny, athletic, loving and loves to go. But, occasionally she'd rear when she did not want to go where I wanted her to go. It made no sense to me, as she was otherwise well trained.

I finally called her original owner. He said that when he first sold her, she was sold to a nine year old girl, who would ride Honey double, with her sister. They liked to ride down the country road, in front of their friends' houses, and kick Honey to get her riled up to go, then pull her back with the reins, and UP, to force her to rear.

Honey got so good at it, that she began to dump the girls off, which was very effective to get them to quit making her rear, kicking her, and otherwise abusing her. The girls became afraid of her, and she was sold as a broodmare. I bought her from that farm, and have put her back into use.

Honey has NO problems with rearing now. She trusts me, I checked out any potential physical problems, checked her teeth and put her into a softer bit. Then, the three times she tried rearing, I simply didn't have ANY "big reaction" to it. I like to ignore things like that, and not react. What I do is to lean way forward in the saddle, and reach up and put my hand on her poll, between the ears, talk to her gently, and keep working her sides with my legs, slowly encouraging her to do what I want and go in the direction she does NOT want to go. Three times was all it took so that SHE KNEW NO BIG REPERCUSSIONS would happen, AND, that she was not going to get rid of me. She found out it was easier just to go have a nice ride.

Hope this helps!

Susieque