Rearing is one of the most dangerous behaviors a horse can demonstrate, and it is especially dangerous when the horse is being ridden.  For many horses, rearing takes a lot of effort.  Other horses seem to find it easy to do and will rise up either a little or straight up into the air on a frequent basis.  Something to always bear in mind when a horse rears is that horses often overestimate their ability to balance on their hind legs.  Almost any horse can easily lift their front legs a few inches off the ground and remain balanced, but with the added weight of a rider, they can quickly become unbalanced and flip over backwards.

There are, unfortunately, a few horses that rear habitually.  Rearing should never be allowed to become a habit, but some horses have rearing at the forefront of their mind as an early solution when presented with something that induces anxiety.  As with all things related to horses, we first must understand why the horse rears.

Here are some cases I’ve seen:

1) A non-reactive type of Thoroughbred reared straight up when the rider sat down on a saddle that didn’t fit.  This was the first time the owner had known the horse to rear while being handled, and since this particular saddle was not used with the horse again, the horse did not ever rear again.  There was no training done with the horse, it was purely a tack/pain issue.

2) A reactive, excitable Appendix Quarter Horse reared on several occasions when she wished to go forward and the rider held her back too strongly.  No training was done, the horse needed more of an outlet for her energy with more exercise, needed more rides in the same type of situation, and the rider had to release more energy than was being held back so the horse didn’t feel trapped or claustrophobic.

3) A young mustang reared on one of her first several rides due to a sudden fright.  This was a very small horse and the rider was very experienced so she pulled the horse off balance to one side while quickly dismounting.  The ground was soft and the horse rolled onto her side.  Being a very intelligent mustang, she learned from that one experience that rearing was a dangerous maneuver and did not try it again (this technique is not recommended for most horses and riders).

4) An exciteable Appendix Quarter Horse would turn to face the handler when being lunged and rear straight up.  It was reported that this would frighten the previous owner and the owner would then put the horse away.  This was a learned behavior and the horse did not threaten the handler physically, but rather had an expectant expression as she waited for her reward of rest and food after her exhibition.  Since the horse’s motivation was to get out of work, it took a few sessions of making the horse get down and back to work before the behavior went away.  She simply had to learn that there was no reward for her behavior and then it was not worth the effort to keep it up.

5) An Arabian mare in heat reared up while tied in the barn at a horse show.  She had become very excited upon seeing the other horses at the show grounds; no training was done since she had never reared before and she has not reared while being handled since.

6) An abused and neglected Appendix Quarter Horse mare came to a new owner at age 20.  She was frightened of being ridden outside an arena and a habitual rearer and bolter due to her fears from past mistreatment.  Her owner accepted the fact that she reared and continued taking the mare out on rides, spending an hour to go a quarter mile while the horse stopped and reared each time she grew frightened.  Over time, the horse grew more accustomed to her environment and reared less often.  After several years, the horse would only rear if very agitated.  The horse did not wish to rear any more than she wished to be severely afraid.  Once she did not feel the need to escape, the rearing became a rare event.  Due to her experience with rearing, this horse was very balanced and stable on her hind feet and could rise up and down without falling over, even with a rider.

As you can see, there are different reasons for a horse to rear; some of them are behavioral issues and some are not.  Some are deep rooted and some are one-time events.  If the horse with the poorly fitting saddle had been ridden multiple times in that saddle, he would have developed more deeply rooted fears and behaviors relating to being ridden.

Many horses rear in play, especially male horses.  Most horses that rear frequently in the field do not have any issues with rearing under saddle.

If a horse rears with you, you must instantly give the horse complete control of his head and lean forward onto the horse’s neck, keeping your weight forward.  Leaning back may unbalance the horse and cause him to flip over. Whenever a horse rears you must be prepared to instantly throw yourself clear to one side if the horse goes too high.  This can be a life or death situation.  Do not ever, ever have a tight rein on a rearing horse.  Many horses that go over backward are pulled over by the rider.

Here is an excellent video that demonstrates what to do if your horse should rear.

Remember that if your horse comes over onto the saddle, chances are that he has broken the saddle tree and/or has injured his back.  You MUST check the saddle tree before using it on a horse again, and you must check your horse’s back for pain as well.

If your horse reacts by flinching or dipping the back such as the mare in this video when you check the back, you will need to give the horse time to heal before going to work again.  Hopefully you checked the horse’s back and the saddle fit before riding.  Otherwise you have no way of knowing whether the horse’s landing caused the pain or if it was the reason the horse reared in the first place.

If a horse does rear with you, evaluate the following reasons.

1) Is the horse in pain?  If a horse reacts strongly to the bridle assume there is tooth or facial nerve pain.  Back pain is another common cause of rearing.

2) Was the horse over-faced or did he receive a sudden fright?  “Square” horses might panic with only 1/10th of the pressure you are used to putting on other horses, whether that pressure is from your body language, the physical environment, or tack issues. Even if you feel there is “no way” you are over facing the horse, try backing off and see if the horse’s behavior improves.

3) Are you creating a build-up of energy by keeping more energy in than you are letting out?  This is common with exciteable horses.

4) See the blog post titled: “First, Find the Baseline.”