Ideas?

My three year old mustang is afraid of cars. Well to be more specific, he is scared of the noise they make going down the road (think tires on pavement). Right when the car gets past him, he turns and bolts (thats how we discovered his fear at least - plowed fields make for a soft landing!). He has never spooked like that before. Because of that reaction, I've been taking him out to eat grass by the side of the road and watch cars go by (its not constant). I can tell he would run if the halter and lead rope weren't there (he really respects the lead rope and hardly puts tension on it). But I am not sure what else to do.

He never shows the whites of his eyes, he just puts his head in the air and dances. And it just started. He wasn't afraid of cars a couple of weeks ago.

Does anyone have any ideas?

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Comment by Cindy Toth on May 26, 2009 at 9:44pm: Thanks everyone!

Comment by Sarah at HorseJobs.ca on May 26, 2009 at 3:31pm: All you can do is keep trying to expose him to these vehicle sights and sounds. If he respects the lead rope it might be worth having someone lead you down the road. thats what we did with our youngster - i remember wearing a yellow vest that read "caution. nervous horse" most drivers actaully respected that and gave us lots of room.

Comment by Geoffrey Pannell on May 25, 2009 at 5:54pm: sounds like a normal reaction for a 3yo to me. You are doing the right thing Cindy , keep taking him out on the lead and desensitize him to the car and truck noise. I wouldn't make a big deal of it. Get him happy to stand as the cars go past and he will improve under saddle. Cheers Geoffrey