Problem with breaking my mare

Question
"I started riding my two year old mare (quarter horse) in July of this
year. This is the first horse I have ever broke to ride.  I started out
riding her four times per week for about two weeks, then three times a
week for about three weeks, and I am currently riding her about two
times per week due to some time contstraints.  I spend an hour outside
with her each time.  Approx. 30 minutes for saddling, fly spraying, and
round penning, and 30 minutes for riding. I always round pen her before
riding.  She does great in the round pen, and I always wait for the
ques of respect (licking her lips, head held low) before letting her stop
in the round pen.  The first month I rode her she did excellent.  I
could do forward motion, turn and stop great.  I could even open and shut
gates with her.  She would ride away from the house with no problems,
(wasn't herd soured at all) and could ride her without anyone else
present with no worries.  However, about three or four weeks ago I had her
in a trot and she started running sideways on me which I know is a sign
of a soon to be blow up.  I lifted my left leg to put pressure on her
side to move her back over and was in the process of doing that when she
bucked and threw me off.  I was already slightly unseated anyways from
the sideways trot.  I caught her and took her back to the round pen
for several minutes then got back on her again and trotted her in the
same spot for the same amount of time until she didn't try to buck.  That
day the problem was solved.  I decided at that point that maybe I
needed to slow back down (i.e., I was moving her training too fast) and I
have not trotted or loped her since then.  However, now she tests me
every time I ride her.  For the most part she just tries to either bolt
forwards or sideways a couple of times at the beginning of our ride.  My
solution has been to stop her and flex her and let her stand for a few
seconds to get her attention and focus back.  That was working until
yesterday.  Yesterday she tested me with every lap we took up and down the
pasture.  She tried to bolt or run sideways I don't know how many
times.  Finally I decided some punishment was in order.  When she tried to
bolt, I would stop her and apply repeated pressure with the bit in her
mouth for a few seconds to let her know if she did that, she was going
to feel that pressure from the bit.  Then, I would flex her and get her
going again.  Her behavior never improved.  I am stuck and desperately
need an answer or my husband is going to insist that I stop riding her
and let someone else take over.  I am not against this, but really
want to finish what I have started.  Please let me know how I can
effectively get my horse to stop this behavior.  I also wanted to let you know
she is not spooking at anything and there are no other reasons for her
to be trying to run off with me other than she is trying to buck me
off.  I have ruled out every other possibility such as bit/saddle
problems, spooky objects, etc.
Thanks for your help."


Answer
Hi Kathy!

What you are experiencing is a normal aspect of breaking a horse.  Never forget you are dealing with something with a mind and that little mind is sometimes working against you!
Nothing personal.   They just can't help themselves.  They are hardwired to a dominance based hierarchy.

So, what to do?  I have to agree with your husband and say it is time to have a pro in for a little help.  Ask your vet, farrier or tack shop to recommend a local trainer that has experience in QH's and breaking babies.  Have them out to evaluate your situation and give you some options.

I feel you cannot fix this yourself for several reasons.  She is 2 steps ahead of you and you do not see it coming.  You have never done this before so that is just the way it is.  A pro can see what the horse is going to do 3 steps before the horse knows it's even going there...we can anticipate and correct before the baby even knows that we just changed their minds.  This is vital in training a horse or let's say the medical field...."Why, Kathy, I'm sorry I did not see that disease coming!" is something you never want to hear your doctor say!  LOL!!

Also, the first time a human riding partner falls off a horse it changes them forever, if it is not quickly and completely trained out of them.  A little switch flips in their head and they start to rely on unseating a rider to get their way.
Very, very bad in a baby.  She needs a fresh rider with a different style that can outwit her and prevail quickly.  Then, she will start to understand her place in the scheme of things...that there are other humans in the world other than easy-touch Mommy and they are not fun, so I had just better settle my butt down and behave.  Like a sadder but wiser 5 yr old in his second week of Kindergarten!

Your filly didn't do anything "wrong" and most likely, neither did you.  Don't put any human feelings on her like "I gave her 2 years of loving care and this is how she repays me?!?" cause that's just not true.  You just need a push in the right direction and a few secrets of the trade to get her hooves back on the right path!

Good luck and remember to always wear an ASTM/SEI approved helmet!

Solange