Welsh Pony and my daughter

Question
QUESTION: We have an 11 year old welsh A pony - he apparently has been perfectly trained and broken etc.. We have only had him for a few weeks and when we bought him he was perfectly behaved. Lately the last couple of times my daughter has ridden him every time she has been on him going up a hill and asked him to "trot-on" he has bucked her off. She is only a very small 8 year old and is now afraid of him. We are worried that he is too lazy and doesn't want to trot up the hill and so sees bucking my daughter off as an way out of having to do it.

I don't know how to discipline him whilst she is on him being afraid of a more violent reaction. And once he has bucked her off - isn't it too late to chastise him?

ANSWER: When you say "A" pony, is this pony a show pony?  If so, what has he been doing, and what age child was riding him then?

Is your daughter showing, or just riding around the area on him?  And when she is trying to get him to trot on?  Is he already in the trot, balking, or walking and she wants him to go faster?

Were the people you got him from reliable, or did you just find this pony and buy it?

I will do toss out some general things here, while waiting for more information from you.


Have you changed his feed, maybe he is getting too much "energy" now if you have.

It also could be if your daughter is walking and then trying to speed him up, that she is bumping this mouth with her hands, or bouncing too much and aggravating him with her legs and seat.

Is she riding him by herself, or are they following you while you are on another horse?

Could also be that the saddle is slipping, and she is pulling on the reins too hard, and he is registering his displeasure.


Will he move forward at a walk without doing this when going uphill?  That is, if she is walking, and then just keeps him moving forward at a walk, does he try anything, or keep going?


Another possibility, is that this pony has had some issues, many do, and the previous owners either had a child strong enough to deal with it, or they had the pony drugged.

Also could have ridden the tar out of him before you arrived, so he was more subdued.

He may also be testing the waters, so to speak, and finding out just how far he can go towards getting out of work.

Trying to correct this while she is on, is not, to me, a good idea.  Too many possibilities for trouble.

Another, stronger child might be able to stay on, but might also come off.

Correcting him after the fact, may or may not sink in, just depends on him, and whether he picks up your attitude.

And how often is he getting ridden, daily, weekly, and for how long?


Please think over the questions I listed and answer, and include anything else you might think of, also are you feeding him treats, or babying him any?  And how does he do when child is on ground, or you are working around him?  Has his attitude changed there as well?

Will be pondering this, and waiting to hear from you.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I will try to answer all your questions

1) He is not a show pony but has done a great deal of pony club and "shows" the girl who was riding him was 11 years old - our daughter is only 8 and is a small 8 year old

2) The problems have been riding him around in our paddock - he is fine at POny club - well behaved. However, in our paddock, he walks, then when is is prompted to trot on by all means - it seems when he is kicked - he just stops - then if he is pushed harder by either my wife or I - then he starts to buck.

3) The people we bought him from were very good, he was perfectly kept and we checked him and them out thoroughly and we had a comprehensive vet check.
4) we haven't changed his feed at all
5)My daughter is so small that I doubt he feels any movement from her at all ! they are not following another horse  - I or my wife are walking in the paddock either near or beside.
6) He may start walking but then if prompted just stops - he may also be walking either up hill or not and just decides to stop and getting him going again was difficult for my daughter - even before the bucking - it now seems he has figured out that instaed of obeying the command to move he can busk her off and he doesn't have to walk or trott.
7)The Pony wasn't drugged - however, yes, I beleve that the child who had ridden him before was more expereienced, larger and stronger and either he felt he couldn;t buck her off - or she had the size and experience to exert her authority over him and he did what he was supposed to.
8)He wasn't ridden before we saw him as we were there way before the owners showed up and he was in his stable.
9)I think this one is the proverbial nail on the head. I think he is being very naughty and is seeing how far he can go to get out of having to work and he has figured out my daughter is small and light and he can get away with things that he otherwise would not have.
10) We try to ride him at least 2 or 3 times a week and lunge him at least daily depending on weather - he is ridden for about an hour.

11) We probbaly do baby him a bit - he doesn;t get treats at all. One positive aspect is that when not ridden he is the perfect pony, my daughter can catch him, go up to him and play with him - he takes the halter without moving a bit - my daughter can lead him around and he just follows her like a puppy. Saddling him and putting on the bridle is as easy as I have ever experienced. He also lunges without fuss either walk, trot or canter - although the firat time we tried to get him to canter on the lunge he has a bit of a episode but I quickly and very forcefully soted that out and it hasn;t been an issue since. So his attitude on the ground hasn't chnaged a bit.

It has been suggested that I lunge him hard at canter before she rides him to really ware him out? not sure?

I hope this helps.

Answer
Are either of you sized so that you can ride this pony?  Or do you know a young teen that can, who is a good rider and strong willed?  Those are two things I can think that MIGHT work...although I have a feeling this pony has your daughter's number.

Working him hard before hand might work, at least a couple of times, however it might also bring out the pony in him faster too, as in he could buck right away when she goes up.

I didn't think to ask about the hay?  Is it from the same place as theirs was, or is he on grass, and when you say the feed is same, is it same bag, mill and all?  Or a 12% sweet, or 10% pellet, but of a different brand?  Didn't think to inquire about that too.  

You might try switching him to a lower percent of protein, if possible.  Maybe oats?  Or to a pellet from a grain, don't know if that is a possibility or not.

And is this pony at your house, where you have constant eyeballs on him and his pasture?  Or is he at a boarding barn?  Is there any possibility that someone else is riding him, when you aren't around and they are encouraging this bucking and acting up?  I know of horses, even though they are kept close to home, but are pastured, who have been ridden, or tormented.  Also if pony is somewhere there are others, could someone be giving him treats, or more feed?

I would also check the hay, have it tested by your vet to see if the protein level is high, maybe a different hay would help.

And is the tack comfortable on him?  No pinching, rubbing.  Turn the saddle upside down, and press with your hands, with all your weight on it, (don't know whether your daughter rides English or Western) and feel around on the saddle underside.  I have seen saddles, (even a new one) that had a nail, burr, or even a broken tree that was causing discomfort.

Also, you might look into whether his sheath needs cleaning, I know of some geldings that have had beans that caused pain at faster than a walk...although I don't really think this is what is going on, still worth a thought.  And maybe a CBC too, to check hormone levels?  And teeth may need work.

Hit Youtube, and look for "Ed being very naughty" a Shetland and his owner Ross, and the being naughty one shows all of the tricks the pony pulled in the ring with Ross.  There are also many videos of Ed doing fine, his mother just put together several of the years antics in one video.  Clearly shows though, just all the ways a pony, (or horse for that matter) can find to get out of work.  Ross however, was a very determined little boy, and kept at it.  Be prepared to laugh though.

The real trouble here, is that your daughter will possibly get scared of the pony, and transfer that to all horses if a handle isn't gotten on this.

To that end, I would either ride the pony myself, beforehand, and work him hard, and see if some feed changes/hay changes might help too.  And you might see if the previous owner would let their child ride too, to get him going.

There is always the possibility too, that they also had the same problem with the pony, and didn't disclose that.  

Lessons for her might help too, if possible.  That would maybe give her more strength in her body and more determination to stick with him.  And a refresher course of training for the pony might help too.  

Strengthening her skills might make her a stronger willed rider, and give her the mindset to make this pony mind.

I would also ask around and see if anyone was familiar with this pony, as in they had seen it ridden, and shown, as they might be able to let you know if this is common for him.  It could also be they drugged the pony when the 11 year old was riding him, just enough to chill him out.

Failing feed, training, your riding, lessons, vet workup...it may be this is a pony that is going to keep trying her.  At that point, you will need to decide whether or not you want to battle with the pony, or find another one that is not so determined.

And I laughed when I read about how nice the pony acts with her on the ground, as he is getting exactly what he wants, no riding.  I have seen this before and it is so frustrating, because the nice attitude is what pulls you in, thinking it will transfer to riding.