Behavoir / Pain

Question
Hi Solange,

I am clutching at straws here!  I have been experiencing some very bad issues with my 16.1hh tb x 14 yo gelding.  I have had him (Kyle) for 10 years, brought him on myself (I am 25), he had a head shaking problem when I got him which I managed to sort, he knew nothing and we have gone from strength to strength doing very well in showing & eventing.  I am a very experienced rider and also am surrounded by a lot of other very knowledable people but Kyle has us dumbfounded!  When he was 9 he started being a bit naughty not wanting to load, he (to our knowledge and we have always been with him) has never had a bad experience travelling but took a very drastic dislike to loading and travelling - this has escalted over the years and we have tried eveything with him, time & patience seem to be the only thing that works.  We moved stable yards 2 & a half years ago and his behavior has got gradually worse.  He is difficult ot handle and it has now resulted in me being unable to even sit on him without him rearing & bucking me off.  He has always been a spooky high strung horse but that goes with his breeding - he has always been impecably well mannered, regularly has teeth, saddle checked, a physio comes to him twice yearly so he is very well looked after.  The last time the physio came he thought he was stiff through his back end so we got the vet who could see nothing.  I have recently had an expert to come ride him and she said that there seems to be no connection between us anymore, he seems to have no respect for me and she thinks is is too dangerous for me too ride him!  His field behavior has also changed.  He is not catching for the stable hand (but is for me) and is bullying the other horses which he has never ever done, he would never have kicked or bitten another horse in the past but has now turned quite vicious sometimes.  He is not friendly like he used to be anymore in the stable, choosing to pace and ignore me, not letting me anywhere near his face to brush it - he used to stand & give me cuddles and enjoy being groomed.  My calm, capable attitude towards him has not changed in the slightest. On the ground I am confident with whatever he throws at me but under saddle I have lost all confidence - which is not surprising after being thrown off as many times completely out of the blue!  I have arranged for him to go into our vets to have xrays next week to eliminate any internal pain - which although this sounds terrible & I obviously don't want him to be in pain - at least if its pain it can hopefully be sorted, otherwise I am at a loss as to why my lovely horse has changed so much.  No-one I have spoken to seems to have experienced this in a horse before, my question is having detailed some of what has been going on - have you ever encountered this with any of the horses you have dealt with?  Bearing in mind he has been all checked out (barr internal examination which is away to take place)and that he is in very capable hands.  He has been to some very large county shows this year & has chosen to behave impeccably but won't go round our school at home without throwing a wobbly - it is all very strange!  As you can probably tell I am very upset by all this & am totally at a loss!  Does any of this sound familier to you?
Any help would be much appreciated!
Many Thanks
Lisa

Answer
Hi Lisa!

Because you have owned him for 10 years and have personally seen the deterioration of his attitude and abilities, I'd have to say this may very well be organic and not a training issue.

Anything with a brain can go off it's bean.  Yes, I have seen horses go round the bend and it's not pretty.  Without spending tons of $$$$ on vets and tests you can try to re-purpose him to something he can handle safely and keep the humans around him safe too.

I recommend not riding him anymore.  If you cannot get his attention from the ground and keep him sane and focused, how can you get it from the saddle?  Stop counting on luck and chance to get you through riding him.  You know what a horse responding to solid training feels like underneath you.  Does he feel like that anymore?

You need to step back, look at his positives and possibilities and think "What can he do?  What is he still good and confident at?"

Maybe a pasture buddy/babysitter for young ones, old ones or difficult ones?  Maybe a pasture full of horses overloads his mind but, put him out with just one and he is calm and makes them calm.

The 2 things you should definitely not do are to sell/give him away and pass this on or to send him to slaughter...that is just too cruel.  If he must be put down at some point, humane euthanasia is the only route.

In the end, fix your mind on this....no one failed here.  Not you and certainly not him.  Things that no one can explain happen all the time and it's not the origin that matters so much in this case as it is the resolution.

Keeping him, the humans and other animals in his space safe are your number one concern.  Injuries to you or others followed by lawsuits are not worth it.  Because of your prior knowledge to his bad issues, you would be held legally responsible if he acted out and injured someone or something.  It sounds like his riding career is over.  Move on and find another career for him.  And if nothing works, do not beat yourself up and be humane to him in the end.

Solange