dangerously spooky

Question
  I was just given a 19 year old TB gelding. He came from a stable I worked and rode at during high school. I have about 3 years experience with horses but haven't been around them for two years. Calvin was given to me because he wasn't making the stable any money. He didn't seem to have a job and would sometimes (not very often) spook when being led back and forth to his stall and paddock (only about a 50ft distance). My old boss/trainer said Calvin would be good for me just to pleasure ride around my house and that he had the vice of holding his head to high.
  I've had him for about two weeks. When he first arrived he seem attentive to his surroundings but calm. I knew he could be a bully (most stable hands had used a chain over his nose) while being led so I decided I should fine tune his ground manners before getting on him. He was doing fine with picking up his feet, leading, blanketing, and grooming. I started lounging him a few days ago. I attached the lounge line to the side of his halter and asked him to walk on. Then slowly bent down to pick up the lounging whip. As I stood up I kept the point of the whip down with the other end in my hand. Calvin let out a squeal and started bucking and jumping. I told him calmly whoa several times but he continued at a fast trot. I was trying to get him to just walk. I never raised the whip and just dropped in and kept my hand down. Eventually he walked after he wore himself out. Then I could successfully ask for a trot just by asking him and raising the hand I would have had the whip in.
    After about 7 minuets of walk trot transitions I slowed him to a halt and switched sides. He repeated the bucking and rearing again at first then a quick trot and when finally tired did walk trot transitions correctly.
    Seemingly overnight everything has changed. Calvin spooks when nothing but the ordinary is around. When he spooks he jumps straight in the air with all four feet. He will usually land away from the person leading him but sometimes will come towards that person. He gets really grumpy if you don't let him graze when being led. We don't let him graze because we think of the leading as training time and if he is grazing he is not paying attention to us leading him.
    With this recent behavior I'm afraid to ride him. Its a long fall from his 17 hands height. If you have any ideas for addressing these issues I would really appreciate it.
  His diet is 2 quarts of sweet feed in the morning and at night. He is given as much hay as he is willing to eat with very little grazing in his pasture (due to drought). He is in his pasture 24/7. He seems the perfect weight (can't see or feel ribs) but not fat (still looks like a nice leggy TB). Let me know if changing his feed might help.


Answer
Hello Jessica,

NO SWEET FEED!!! Take it all away.  The sugar and grain is making him too high.  Keep him on a diet of good quality GRASS hay, all he wants, and a supplement of vitamins only. No alfalfa hay at all.  Not even 20 %.  Keep him on this diet until he is working more than 2 hours a day and may be losing weight.

Turn him out as often as you can and yes, he will play on the lunge.  That is normal.  Use the lunge line hooked to a lunge cavesson instead of a halter and after he stops playing, put the side reins on loosely.  But until you bring him "down" from the sweet feed, you can't expect much from him in the way of calmness. When you turn him out put boots on, front and back, so he won't hurt himself.

Let me know in two weeks how he is doing.  Meanwhile, do not ride him or allow anyone else to ride him.  

Good luck,
Dorothy