How do i get comfortable with riding my horse?

ok, my horse, Daisy is a frisky, stubborn brat, but i love her. her gate is walk, trot and prance. she is used to being ridden western which is what my granma who bought her rides. i learned english. when i ride her english with the english saddle she lowers her head like she is going to buck, she does that with my grandma too. when she rides her western, with the western saddle, she is way better. should i lear to ride western which i don't like as much, or should i fix this problem, and if so, how do i do that?

How do i get comfortable with riding my horse?
It might be what bit you are using with english. She is prob. used to something with a curb chain. Perhaps use a kimberwick when you ride her english.



Another possiblitly is when you ride english you have more contact. The western horses you have to ride english without contact for a while and gradually pick up your contact.



I agree english is MUCH better, it's also easier on horses joints.
Reply:mabe lunge line her in the english saddle un til shes use to it mabe 15-20 mins aday dont work her so hard then hwen you think shes ok get on her !!!!
Reply:Because she is used to being ridden western, riding English is different to her and she is not used to it. If you don't like western continue to ride her in the English manner until she gets used to it.

However, I ride bareback 99% of my time and English 1%. I have an Arabian horse named Moon. He's solid white. I also have around 70 quarter horses.The reason I ride bareback is that I can tell what my horse is going to do by the shift of weight and tension in the muscles. It makes you one with the horse. I know one must ride with a saddle. I trained myself to ride from books and I started at 6 years old, riding first with a halter and a hay string to graduating to a bridle when I mastered riding the horse. This is unusual, yes. But it's the best way to learn horse language. Blowing in the horse's nose is the way to greet your horse. This is how other horse's greet each other. Being patient when you're teaching new things teaches both you and the horse how to depend on each other. Give her time to accept the English saddle.



OK, Stormy needs to go some place where she can't see her just for a little while. You might not have picked up on this but I think it is part of the problem. It's very subtle. You could easily miss the cue that Daisy is distracted by Stormy.
Reply:Are you sure she puts her head down like she is going to buck or she is just putting her head down the way she should for an english please horse? normally u do like the horse to lower their head but if they are threatening to buck you off or something of that sort then you should not let her.

if you ride her western she is good? have you thought about maybe its the saddle? maybe it doesn't fit her right so every time u ask her to do something it hurts and she wants the pain to go away. my horse was like that until i bought him the new bate saddle with the changeable gullets. it was like a miracle! check if the saddle fits her correctly. next maybe try riding her bareback? she may like that. you are closer to her so u can feel what she is going to do. you can also try a different bit. it could be hurting her also. if you have tried these things and nothing works ask your trainer or a trainer to ride her and see whats going on in her head.

Good Luck
Reply:Since western horses keep their heads low a lot, its probably not that she's going to buck as much as she's just comfortable with her head at the heigth. If you want her to pick it up, every time she lowers it pull up on the reigns, but dont pull back like you want her to stop. Just up. I hope this works for you and good luck.
Reply:learn western even if you dont like it and once you and ur horse know each other better then try training her on lunge line with english saddle and see what she does. get her used to that. then put a little weight on and if she acts ok then try ridin her again but take it slow. baby steps are always good.
Reply:I'm surprised nobody has mentioned this to you yet, but 80% of bucking problems are related to back pain. The mere fact that it occurs only using a different saddle means it's nothing in the bit (what a dumb idea-bit problems produce chomping/head-tossing problems). Most likely the length and width of a western saddle distrubutes weight in a way that doesn't irritate a sore spot that the compact size of an english saddle does.

1. Try a different, more supportive pad. Nowadays there are a myriad of theraputic pads from neoprene to gel to foam. If she's got high withers get an extra riser, if she's long backed get something through the spine.

If that dosn't work...

2. Try getting a different style saddle. If you're using an all-purpose of jumping style english saddle, try a dressage or endurance saddle which have more surface area.

3. Get a horse chiropractor, I've seen them work miracles on otherwise "problem horses". It might cost you, but not as much as getting a dependable english-accepting mount. Horses were not biologically designed to have over 100 pounds of bouncy weight carried on their SPINES but that's exactly what they're used for. They have things go out on them just like people and they need the same kind of adjustments we do.



There's nothing wrong with you or your horse, I'm almost positive she just needs some tack adjustments and she'll be fine.
Reply:well that is a hard to answer question, but teaching her some discipline would be good, otherwise she will , if she hasn't already , learn to walk all over you (not literally). she needs to know that you re the boss and she does what you want!! so if you teach her English that will gain you some respect from her. i also don't think that her sister is a big part of the problem, but it probably has some kind of effect, like maby she feels she has to show off in front of her.
Reply:i would have a horse trainer train her for a little bit in English
Reply:I would suggest taking riding lessons on her
Reply:get to know your horse spend time with it
Reply:My Standardbred was a big bucker as well.



I didn't feel comfortable having to use a stronger bit than a D Ring on him (even though everyone said to) so I would lunge him for about half an hour before riding.



He could get all his bucks out there and would behave wonderfully under saddle for me. It might be something you can try for your mare.
Reply:The most likely answer I can think of is that the saddle doesn't fit. The English saddle could be pinching her withers or be putting too much pressure on her lower back. Did you know that about 80% of America's saddles don't fit their horse? It's really worthwhile to make sure that the saddle fits and if it doesn't, find a new one. If you don't know how to tell if it fits or not, call a vet or a saddle fitter.



If this does not make a difference, check yourself when you're riding. Tensing up, jerking on the reins, keeping pressure on the reins, or kicking her sides will definitely make her buck. If you feel you get nervous when you ride her because you're anticipating her buck, gain your confidence back on another horse. If you aren't already, take lessons on a calm, trustworthy horse until you are comfortable with your seat and balance while riding.



How old is Daisy? If she is young, she probably wasn't broke efficiently. If you and your grandma are confident and experienced riders, than you have a relationship problem with your horse. Most likely, she considers herself dominant over you. Have a trainer help you with achieving alpha status with your horse. On the other hand, she may be scared when you ride her, especially if she's young. In this case, start from the ground up, gaining her trust.



It's up to you to identify the problem with your horse, and your responsibility to fix it. I hope this helped get off your feet. Like I said, I highly suspect that the English saddle you are using doesn't fit, since you mentioned she does better with the Western saddle. This problem can then simply be fixed by getting an English saddle that does fit, but make sure she isn't sore when you start riding her again. Good luck