Rearing

["Joan Dowis" <jrd@foothill.net>]

I also had the fun experience of rearing with my 17 hand saddlebred early on
in his youth.  One problem he had was a too-severe bit.  I backed off from
the severity, and that solved a lot of the problem.  Patience and training
also were valuable.  Periodically he would rear over the years, but usually
only with a lot of provocation.  Use of a tie down will go a long way toward
retraining the horse; you just have to bear in mind that when the tie down
is on, you don't do stupid tie-down things, like fording a river or grazing
on the trail.  The tie down is a training device, and should be used under
training circumstances, not for a trail ride where you will find obstacles
that could be a safety hazard to your horse.  Sounds as if your horse needs
a lot of training work before trail riding with friends.  All of the posts
I've read have had good tips for you.

Good luck

Joan Dowis