Head Yanking at Walk
Hello all,
I'm hoping to get some advice on a new behavior that my horse has developed (over the past month or so). She had a few months mostly off (from ~June - ~August) with just lunging/ light rides because I had to have knee surgery. My roommate, who co-owns her, couldn't ride because of a move. She's fully back in work now, and over the past month or two has started attempting to rip the reins out of our hands when we are walking. She jerks her head down and forward really forcefully every few strides, then she will stop for a few times around the ring. She has never had this problem before, and she does it to both of us and a girl who sometimes rides her, so I don't think it's bad hands on my part. We've had her teeth looked at, and they are fine. She has a very light bit (a double jointed loose ring happy mouth snaffle), and she does it even if you have a loose rein. We haven't changed the bit; it's the same as the one she wore when we bought her almost 3 years ago. Any thoughts about why she would be doing this all of the sudden or how to curb this behavior? We've tried using the whip to give her a tap when she does and making her trot or do something else to keep her mind busy as soon as she pulls, but it does not seem to help.
Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!
Here's a picture of the beastie in question.
I'm hoping to get some advice on a new behavior that my horse has developed (over the past month or so). She had a few months mostly off (from ~June - ~August) with just lunging/ light rides because I had to have knee surgery. My roommate, who co-owns her, couldn't ride because of a move. She's fully back in work now, and over the past month or two has started attempting to rip the reins out of our hands when we are walking. She jerks her head down and forward really forcefully every few strides, then she will stop for a few times around the ring. She has never had this problem before, and she does it to both of us and a girl who sometimes rides her, so I don't think it's bad hands on my part. We've had her teeth looked at, and they are fine. She has a very light bit (a double jointed loose ring happy mouth snaffle), and she does it even if you have a loose rein. We haven't changed the bit; it's the same as the one she wore when we bought her almost 3 years ago. Any thoughts about why she would be doing this all of the sudden or how to curb this behavior? We've tried using the whip to give her a tap when she does and making her trot or do something else to keep her mind busy as soon as she pulls, but it does not seem to help.
Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!
Here's a picture of the beastie in question.
