04/26/2025
Hi friends! I’m hoping it’s OK to post a question like this in this group. I got an eight year-old grade quarter horse gelding 14.3 hands about four months ago. It took about two or three months to build up his top line and get some muscle on him and I really started working him more in the last couple of months. With the diet change and engaging him and building him up, he has turned into a total jigger when we ride. He gets himself really worked up and just wants to go go go all the time now. He works himself into a sweat just walking because he prances and jigs and basically thinks he’s a little racehorse.. 🤦🏼♀️. He also gets very upset if other horses go ahead of him on a trail. (He does great in the arena for me and he used to be calmer on the trails. This behavior started about eight weeks ago). I’m just wondering if anyone has any tips? It’s like he suddenly feels the best he’s ever felt and he just can’t contain himself. He had not been ridden for at least a year before I got him and he had had five owners before me. Twice in the last week, when I released him back in the pasture, he was still “high“ And just runs all around the other horses and rears up and paws at them, and I’m now considering changing his name to co***ne. Lol I don’t feel unsafe on him, but I’m 55 years old and it’s a lot of work just trying to get him to calm down once he gets worked up. Today we went on a trail ride and it was walking only but at some point, he just decided he really needed to go and I spent the second half of a ride trying to make him walk like a normal being. I did try adding magnesium maleate from Kentucky equine research, but that did not do a thing. He had a month of it. He currently eats a mix of triple crown senior, and triple crown low starch. We are in North Carolina and he is stalled overnight in the winter but stays out in a pasture this time of year with a run in. I did try alfalfa pellets, but oddly, he did not like them. I love his personality and his crazy little antics, but the energy levels are out the roof and I don’t want this to become habit if I don’t get it square. TYIA for any help. I don’t do any showing or need him to be perfect I just want him to bring it down a notch when I’m asking him to. I do love to run and there are times when it’s fun to let go and have a good romp, but I’d like it to be when I want to, not every single time. lol 
