Turning Challenging Horses into Willing Partners due for public release in 2010. Discounted bulk pre-publication orders now being taken.

Chapter Eight

Sometimes they’re just plain crazy

On occasion, you really do find yourself burdened with a nut. While preliminary bad breaking definitely exacerbates problems, when you strip it all down and finally get past the baggage, there are times you must admit that the horse you’re working with is simply just not right in the head. Interestingly, these critters can be very predictable in what sets them off, but how they react is never a given. Surprisingly, they can usually handle distractions and circumstances that should make a sane horse blow, but freak out with stuff that shouldn’t be a concern.

Crazy horses rarely give you an opportunity to completely relax. There will always be issues that make them occasionally frustrating and often dangerous. Horses that are totally governed by fear rarely consider their own welfare when reacting, and this is a common trait of equines who are nuts. Mean horses are always limited with what they will do by a self-preservation instinct, making them at least predictable in how far they will go. Not so with crazy horses. They’ll crash through fences, impale themselves, flip, run off on unsafe ground, and have occasions when they go deaf, blind, and oblivious to immovable objects that cross their panicked path, while reacting to ghosts in ways that make no sense.

Sometimes, you’ll encounter a psycho that has so much talent it seems worth the effort. Usually, it isn’t. Still, we’ve had some success with crazies, and some failures too. Most, ultimately, leave you shaking your head on the time and money spent to get them two strides forward and ten steps back, wondering if the sanity issue extends beyond your equine’s behavior and if there’s a white jacket in your size.

While it seems prudent to try to recover your investment, sometimes it’s best to cut your losses. Time and money gone is just plain lost — and putting good money after bad is rarely a good idea.

If you’re determined to proceed, the anecdotes below may help guide you in your quest.

Flash — hurdler extraordinaire

Flash was a narrow, five-year-old, 15.1-hand Thoroughbred that somehow wound up as a lesson horse at an area riding stable. He was a terror with students, running off at will and occasionally unseating the brave kids who dared to try to conquer him. One of our former riding instructors asked us to take a look at this horse. She was considering buying him. He was deemed unsuitable as a lesson horse (imagine that) and was on the block. We hopped on him in the arena, and after a brief flatwork primer, pointed him at a 2’6” line (there was something about this horse that squealed natural talent over fences). He cleared the fences easily, correctly, and with a ton of finesse. He had never jumped. We leapt off immediately and said “buy him.”

She didn’t, and we landed the prize for $500.

The next three years netted unimaginable nightmares. We figured he had just been mishandled, poorly started, and conditioned to react inappropriately. Certainly, with patient and skilled guidance, he’d transform into a cooperative steed. We were wrong.

We’d spend minutes or hours working with this horse one day, progressing to a new understanding, only to find those lessons not only lost but problems magnified by the next day.

Compounding the frustration was the fact that this horse would willingly clear jumps of any size placed before him, but was out of control after hurdling the fence, not to mention during flat exercises. We progressed to the point where we were competing in events, and if we didn’t get eliminated in dressage (this was a common occurrence — he had no qualms about hopping over the arena perimeter, particularly when the judges used a horse trailer for shelter), we were sure to go clean during cross-country and stadium, almost always finishing in the ribbons. Consequently,

we were thrilled if we were able to complete the first phase. We were also convinced his incredible talent over fences made it worth the temporary embarrassment and extreme frustration borne while we worked through his issues.

Sneak peak excerpt from Chapter Six of Turning Challenging Horses into Willing Partners (due for release in winter, 2010).

Timid horses are very different than those that have been
conditioned to be scared. Usually, they’ve been rushed and
overwhelmed. Consequently, a timid horse is generally insecure
about surroundings and new experiences but not terrified
about how their handler or rider will react when the horse responds
with a fearful instinct. While many of the strategies in
dealing with a scared horse apply to the timid mount, the process
for undoing the damage is often considerably easier and
less time-consuming. It’s critically important, however, not to
reinforce the learned fright by overfacing these horses. Slow
and patient introduction to lessons and challenges is essential,
as is being able to read the horse’s readiness to proceed, if your
intent is to turn your mount into a reliable and confident steed.

Exorcizing the crazies
Spook was a claimed four-year-old Thoroughbred filly immediately
deemed crazy by the new trainer. We were told she had
spent little training time on the track, instead logging most of
her exercise days in the pool, presumably due to behavioral and
resulting soundness problems. She was promptly sent to Halcyon
Acres for some reprogramming to settle her mind and enhance
her conditioning for sustained soundness. Obviously, the
endgame was to improve her racing performance.

When Spook arrived, we discovered that the perceived crazies were merely an expression of her insecurity, likely exacerbated by fearful riders who bolstered her concerns. We weretold later that exercise riders working for her former trainer were terrified of this gal, and proven right as her behavior deteriorated.

Sometimes, it’s amazing how much the humans handling a horse can unknowingly dictate the horse’s attitudes and reactions.

As is the case with most tentative horses, this filly needed
some basic groundwork to build her confidence and learn to
trust people. We started in the round pen with tack for a day or
two. She almost immediately relaxed and settled into a comfortable
routine that asked no more of her than she was ready
to handle. We were able to hop on her back pretty quickly. Of
course, consistent focus on praising her for quiet and responsive
reactions to our requests was an important step in gaining
her trust and confidence. Once she was calmly walking the
perimeter of the arena, stopping and proceeding to walk when
asked, we brought her to the center of the round pen and lowered
a stirrup to climb up on her back. Interestingly, after a couple
of days of discouraging her penchant for ripping around the
round pen’s perimeter, while encouraging a calm and slow approach
to training requests, Spook didn’t blow when asked to
stand and bear weight on a stirrup, likely for the first time in
her life. (Few Thoroughbred racehorses ever learn to stand
on their own and bear weight on their left side prior to a rider
landing in the saddle as they are generally held by a handler
who “legs up” a rider by tossing him into the saddle.) Still, we
took our time and watched her eye, bellying over her first before
slowly and gently swinging the right leg over her back, after ensuring she was relaxed and ready. The first two days under saddle were spent walking and stopping. Sessions lasted less than
fifteen minutes.

Once we were convinced that this filly trusted her rider and
was ready to proceed in a slow and composed manner, we
hit the trails. The first few days, we only walked. Interestingly,
she tackled challenging terrain and the steep hills with relish,
gaining confidence from her rider and blossoming from the
praise she received for handling requests boldly and artfully. Of
course, Gatsby, our canine assistant trainer, helped her tackle
the goblins along the way by forging ahead to prove scary-looking
objects wouldn’t attack. It was critical to never react anxiously
to her fear. She had already had enough of that. Instead,
calm, patient, and insistent reactions to encourage her to proceed,
while giving her time to assess and accept the sights and
sounds that unnerved her, was a necessary approach.

Whether you’re buying or adopting (and if you’re looking for a suitable riding horse, don’t let the heartstring reflex color your decision to be smart and cost-effective with your investment – bad horses cost as much to feed as the good ones and often those donated are discarded for good reason), you can hedge your bet on finding a likely safe, sound and solid mount by understanding a bit about the racehorse life.

Look at the racing record

If you have a horse’s name, you can easily contact the Jockey Club (www.jockeyclub.com). They’ll send you to (www.equineline.com). Some of these reports are free, others they charge for, but most of the gals at the Jockey Club are wonderful to deal with and will do what they can to help you find what you need if you call them at (800) 333-1778. With the horse’s tattoo number (look under the top lip) use The Jockey Club’s free Tattoo Identification Services at the Registry homepage (registry.jockeyclub.com). With the horse’s name go to www.pedigreequery.com and get a free pedigree report going back five generations.

Was the horse a dog (having run for bottom claimers and never managed to log a win)? This usually bodes well for soundness (he doesn’t try too hard to hurt himself), but not so well on the heart or talent front – at least as far as racing is concerned (if you’re looking for a high level competitor, this may not be a good horse for you).

Does the race record indicate a lightly raced horse at the allowance level? Could be good, or bad. If you see major gaps in his racing appearances and/or a very short career, you’re likely dealing with a horse that has had major soundness issues (or bleeding problems).

Look at the breeding

With the horse’s name you can go to www.pedigreequery.com and get a free pedigree report going back five generations. Even if you don’t know progeny lines, you can look for black type (indicating stakes placed) and earnings. This usually translates to heart in the line, which bodes well for intended performance horses. We’ve had great success crossing TB mares from the Northern Dancer and Key To The Mint lines with Irish Draughts for anticipated standout jumpers.

Ask around and find out what studs tend to carry the crazy gene through to their foals. Since he’s dead now, I’ll freely mention Scarlet Ibis as a notorious NY producer of nuts. Many TB studs are very consistent on this front and it’s worth learning which ones to avoid. Trying to reach a horse that has trouble in their blood is extremely difficult, and often not worth the futile effort.

Learn to read the horse

Eyes are so telling. Watch a horse’s eye and see how he reacts to you, requests and new situations. Fear is something more experienced equestrians can resolve, but not a good match for a novice (you need to me unflappable and extremely confident with such horses as a tentative or insecure handler/rider will escalate the horse’s concern). Mean horses can be dangerous and the challenges are often compounded by a sour nature. If you’ve seen a mean eye once, you’ll never forget the look. It’s best to try to find a horse with a calm and quiet eye that tells you he’s willing to work with you.

Look at the legs

For the A level shows, ankles, tendons and other eyesore issues will cost you (particularly on the selling price). If you’re a fun-loving amateur, though, ocelots are ugly but fine once they are set. Some of the nastiest looking tendons are a non-issue (see if you can find out when he bowed and what happened after that with his racing performance to help you determine how much of a factor this may be) and the slightest looking ones can be career ending. Crooked horses tend to have bigger issues than those that are correct. Knees and hocks are often forgotten areas that can have a huge impact on your intended career with a horse. Watch the horse move. See if there are areas, particularly on the lower legs, where rubbing has occurred. If you don’t understand conformation ideals, bring someone along who does to comment on how problems may undermine your goals.

OK, this is getting rather long for a quick tips feature, and there’s so much more to consider in assessing an off-the-track Thoroughbred, but hopefully, this has given you some resources and ideas to get started in formulating a savvy approach to assessing your possible future partner.