Kate: We have a 4 year old Quarter Horse named Danny. He is stubborn and bull-headed as soon as you get on him...but until then he is sweet as can be; he just HATES to be ridden. We like to go ride with several groups of people and he usually does OK after he is tired out. But if you get him out near the house it is almost guaranteed you will be thrown off. We have tried about everything we can think of, and nothing has worked. We even put him in a round pen a few times a week and started back at ground work, but nothing seems to help. What do you suggest? -Che

Dear Che: Danny has learned to avoid being ridden by making riding him uncomfortable and dangerous. He needs to be shown that you are in charge. You mention working him in the round pen and that is a great place to start, but you will need to follow that up with lots of ground work exercise to show him that you can control his feet and his movement outside of the round pen, too.

Before you get back on Danny, he needs to be soft laterally, giving to the halter and the bridle. You must also be able to get him to yield his hindquarters readily from the ground. Put in the time to do this thoroughly, it will be well worth it. Both of these skills will be vital once you are back in the saddle because every time he thinks about bucking, you are going to put him to work.

When you feel Danny is very comfortable and willing giving his head and yielding his quarters you can go back to the saddle. At first I would recommend that you ride him in the round pen.

When you mount, ask Danny to give to the bit several times to both sides. Be sure he doesn’t cheat. Don’t give him the release until he has actually touched the girth, your boot, or the stirrup. Once he is giving to the bit quietly, move him forward a few feet at the walk, ask him to yield his hindquarters and then ask for a one rein stop. (To go from a yield the hindquarters to a one rein stop, simply take your leg off of him, but hold his head to the side.)  Repeat this many times to both sides, letting him walk a greater distance between each exercise.

If at any time you feel Danny start to hump his back or exhibit any other behavior that makes you suspect he is even thinking about bucking, ask him to yield his hindquarters immediately. Be firm and keep him working to one side and then the other. Once he has stopped thinking about bucking, take your leg off of him but keep his head turned and let him come to a one reign stop. Praise him when he is calm and compliant, and move him off again. Once you can ride him around the pen at a walk without his offering to buck, pick up the trot. Remember: behaviors typically get worse the faster you go, so if he has given up trying to buck at the walk, it may reappear at the trot. When he is working calmly at the trot, ask him to canter.

Once you can ride him in the pen or arena without any trouble, take him out onto the trail. If he begins to give you any trouble, simply go back to the yield the quarters exercise. It should not take him long to figure out that his bad behavior simply gets him put to work. While working he won’t have time to think about bad behavior.

Kate