Got thrown

[vaquerotraditions]

Im glad you found some usable info in my posts. Just to let you know I didnt watch the video as Im on dial up and just dont take the time usually, so my comments are based only on your given info and the pics. From Karens post I gather the video didnt show too much action but thats ok, we know its not the whole story. I do see quite a bit of value in what she is saying about not asking much of your horse however and so even without seeing the video I'll comment on that as it is a good thing to think about.

Riding a green horse but not really working them, or asking for much, or exposing them to anything new is a lot more detrimental than you might think. It is known as stealing a ride and if it becomes a habit it is actually dangerous as the horse never really learns to deal with the real world. If they see/hear/smell something that bothers or scares them, they still react totally naurally, as in listening to all their natural self preservation and will not look to you as a sense of security because they do not know that they can. It seems simple but if nothing in their training deals with control under pressure, then you will likely have no control under pressure. No matter how much you like them and they love you; they will still do whatever comes natural when the fit hits the shan if they have not been taught an alternative.

Your job as a colt starter is to teach a horse that even tho something scares them, they are to overrule their reactive modes and listen to you when you pick up the reins. In other words, you have to teach them that instead of reacting fast in a crisis, they are to trust you to keep them from danger and to react to you instead. No small feat but you have to do it as best you can.

[dunbnwild]

I feel your pain on finding the right people to work with--but now that I have, it seems like I'm finding more and more of the good trainers. Unfortunately it is easier and cheaper to find the bad ones.

So here are some places to start in looking for the right trainer--and I've always asked to come and watch a potential trainer work a horse, so I can meet them in person, see their facilities, etc... just so you can get a feel for the person. Of course, knowing they are being checked out keeps a person on their best behavior, and you may not ever see the reality. But it's a start, and you might pick up a few things about what works and what doesn't, just from your free observation session.

This is the BLM's listing of trainers who work with mustangs:

www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/wild_horse_and_burro/wh_b_information_center/other_wild_horse_and/trainers.html

The BLM doesn't check them out or anything, but it's a start at finding some trainers who are at least open to the idea of mustangs.

For some reason not all of the links are working (they might be working on them, because they did work a few weeks ago), but you can also find vets, farriers, and mentors (which might be your best bet, seeing as how they are probably free):

www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/prog/wild_horse_and_burro/wh_b_information_center/other_wild_horse_and.html

Also with so many Extreme Mustang Makeover events going on, you could probably find someone training an EMM horses to talk to about your problems and they may be able to help or point you in the right direction--they are listed here:

www.extrememustangmakeover.com/trainerapp/trainers/lookup

Just click on your state-many are professional trainers and I would guess most would be responsive to a fellow mustang enthusiast in need.

There is also the video rental service I posted about before www.giddyupflix.com where you can rent just about any horse training video--and I find that just going back over the basics will resolve more complicated issues. My fave is Chris Cox--he explains everything and why, and I find him to be a very effective trainer. Little things like how to carry a lead rope and halter a horse are things I've always taken for granted since my horses are easy to catch, etc...--but following his tips, I now feel much more in control. And that's just with haltering! Anyway--I'm really enjoying his series and so glad I didn't have to pay the full course price.

[kigerfan]

Firefly doesn't generally spook at anything, I've ridden her over railroad ties, down a street with traffic going in both directions, over tarps, around other spooky horses, etc. I've had little fights with her as far as what she wanted as compared to what I wanted and I've always won the little battles and they've always been little. Even around an arabian that was spooking at absolutely everything, Firefly spooked a couple of times lightly and then not at all after that. I've asked her to go through and over things and she's done it for me. She's not afraid of paper bags, plastic bags or styrofoam things blowing around even around her feet. I really thing the problem was the bosal and my lack of experience with. I'm not afraid of her, though I am respectful of the power she posesses. I don't let her push me around. When she started bucking was right after we went up a short, steep incline. I really think the whole problem is my inexperience with the bosal. She's never given me any problems otherwise and I've been out on two hour trail rides with her on multiple surfaces and conditions and she's never even really flinched at things.

[stormyranch]

Cindy, that is some great advise on finding a trainer. I didn't even know BLM had a web page of trainers.

Kigerfan, are you feeling better? Able to get up and around some?
Lisa

[kigerfan]

Lisa, I'm still hurting a whole lot, I can drive now as long as I take the automatic, but it still hurts a good bit to do it. Getting in and out of bed is a painful experience, I'm resisting pain pills as I really don't like taking them and have taken very little since the accident. Everything is still messed up, just not as bad as it was. I couldn't lift my arm before at all, now I can lift it though it hurts to do so. My ribs are still a good bit unhappy and my hip is also. I have bruises where I can't even come close to figuring out how I got them there but is related to the fall. I have a bad back already so this dump just didn't help things much. I'll get better though. I still think I'm going to have to have professional training done. My body won't take this type of falling very well for very long. I've got enough physical problems, I don't want to add to them.

[angelsdream]

Sounds like you are pretty bruised and beaten up You definately don't fall like you used to when you were younger - altho we still try to stay young at heart and mind, but our bodies always remind us! I hope you get better - professional help is always a great thing!! You'll be surprised at how much you can learn and build your confidence back up, plus its great for your horse...

[DianneC]

Pain meds are good, you heal faster when you don't hurt so much, so I've been told by more than one doctor. When you break a blood vessel and it bleeds it forms a bruise there, but it also seeps to other areas depending on gravity and shows up in other places. Have you seen a doctor? Sorry, my mothering instinct just came to the surface.

[kigerfan]

You're cute Dianne
I haven't gone to the doctor, I don't have the money available currently. I've been out of work for a long while now and I'm doing contract writing jobs just to keep my bills paid and my animals taken care of. I'm pinching pennies so hard Lincoln's beard is rubbing off. I know things will get better, but right now, I have to deal with things the way I am. I'm fortunate to be able to keep Firefly here on the property, otherwise I'd not be able to even keep her.

[kigermamma]

I HATE getting thrown! I'm sorry you are still banged up. I've only been tossed by Missy once so far, but I got a good concussion and a little scraped up from it. I learned a good lesson that day though. We were going down a steep incline and my saddle slipped forward onto her neck. Being green broke and inexperienced, she blew up. I tried to abandon ship but didn't turn out the way I planned LoL. My head hit the only rock on the hillside! Of course I should have gotten off and walked her down the hill, or taken the advice of my riding partner and checked my cinch before we started our descent. Another lesson learned the hard way

[kigerfan]

I really appreciate you all telling me the things that have happened to you. I feel a bit dumb for what happened

[pepper]

I've resisted replying to your posts since I don't have any answers but it sounds like you've broken at least one rib.That's what happened to me when Amigo bucked me off.My lung also collasped. I know how bad you're feeling & advise you to take the pain pills or at the least,an anti-inflamatory.If your horse were hurting that badly..you'd be giving her something to help her...so why not you? There isn't anything you can do for broken ribs but give it time to heal.
Amigo had only bucked once before that day & that was the second day I rode him when he'd just come back from 2 months at the trainer's and he broke into a canter & I tried to slow him.The trainer had even told me "he's got no buck in him" but any young horse will buck so I didn't think much about it & got back on & rode him another 3 miles home that day.
So I was surprized when he bucked again out of the blue 2 years later,after extensive dressage training as well as endurance & group trail ride experience .I got really hurt & really scared and at the age of 62 decided he was too much horse for me.
Long story short,I still have him,haven't ridden him since the accident but have started working him on the ground and hope I'll get to the place where I can swing my leg up over his 16'2 hand back & ride off into the sunset once again.
Oh,didn't stop me from riding..I was on my arab 3 weeks later & have over 5000 miles of endurance & counting.Off to the National Championships in September.
Get well & hope it all works out for you & your mare.

[kigerfan]

What scares me most of all is that if I get thrown by her again, my hubby is going to want to sell her. At the very least he won't even come close to me getting on her back again. I don't want that to happen because I truly do love her and I know she's a good horse. I am going to take things real carefully from now on and try to set things up so I have a better chance of winning. I do have two saddles. I'm going to put my other saddle on her and work her from the ground with it. I want to get her good and sweaty working. The next bridle she wears is going to be one she spends a lot of time wearing and getting used to before I climb up on her back. I still intend to send her for professional training when I can but as I said before, money is a big issue for me right now. I wish it wasn't.
Pepper, I'm pretty sure I at least fractured one rib. I'm doing much better though. It still hurts like heck to sneeze or cough but I'm getting around almost like normal. I even drove my stick shift car last night. I've missed it a lot. It's a mustang also. Getting out of bed is still a breathtaking experience and I'm much stiffer and much sorer in the morning. I feel better once I'm up and moving around doing things. I'm so glad that Firefly had no adverse affects from the mishap. I'd be very upset if she'd gotten hurt as well.

I'm so glad you all put up with my stories of the animal farm here. I really enjoy telling them.

[kigerfan]

Update on recovery, I'm doing much better. Sneezing and coughing is bearable and I'm mostly back into the swing of things. I still can't sleep on my left side at all, because of my shoulder and partly because of my hip. My ribs are feeling much better, my chest is still giving me some issues, but not near what it started out as. To look at me, you'd never guess that these problems are going on. I can move around normally for the most part. I still have a hard time lifting things of any weight at all with my left shoulder, but my arm travel is pretty much back to normal. The difference being the higher I lift it right now, the more it hurts but I can bring it all the way up verticle. I'm much more stiff and sore in the morning and as I move around and do things I loosen up. I'm pretty sure I'm well on my way to recovery.

Firefly knows absolutely that I'm feeling better because she's normalizing her interaction with me again. She loves to come up behind me and plant her nose in my back and give me a little push, or if I'm bending over, she'll plant her nose on my behind and push. She's not done that since I got hurt, but yesterday when I was filling her extra water bucket, she gave my rump a push.

Day before yesterday, I went to mover her extra water bucket and beneath it was a baby rattlesnake. Now I generally don't like killing things, but having a baby rattlesnake there was a safety issue, so I got my flat head shovel and brought the edge down as hard as I could right behind the head. This way I created as painless a kill as possible but still got the job done. We have a lot of rattlesnakes around here but we also have alot of king snakes. I'm hoping the king snakes do a wonderful job of keeping the rattlesnake population in check.

[stormyranch]

Good to hear you're feeling better!

[kimk]

Jeanne,
Good to see you here. I do know some really neat horse people looking for a large mustang for the 6'5" husband for endurance. they ride their horses a lot and are a great home. Didn't know if you were still remotely interested in selling Amigo, but thought of him when they told me to keep an eye out for them.
Kim