Hi Dominika,
Maybe review Monty's "Walter won't go forward" lessons, and try the pacifier and giddy-up rope?
Good luck!
Ruth

I would also recommend the Georgia's phobia lessons, as it might be that the hole in the ground is very scary to him and he needs lot of patience and practice to walk by it without help from the ground.
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I realize the problem of practicing in a busy street, but maybe there is a time in the day when there is less traffic?
How far away from it do you have to be to make him pass? Can you start from there and inch closer so he gradually gets comfortable with the idea of the hole being friendly? Maybe approach and back away repeatedly.
Or send him forward from the ground with the Dually halter on, so that he works around you in circles with the manhole on the outside.
Best of luck and do let us know what happens!

I had the same experience. The horse can trust you when you walk but does not trust you when you are in the saddle. I had the same situation as you three times. I put he horse in a position acceptable for him and went off as soon he stood still. Then we passed without any problem. The first time I tried it immediatly afterwards in the saddle and failed. The other two times I passed the next day without problems.
(By the way, I wonder how we could train the horses to trust us as also in the saddle.)

Hi
Something for you to consider. Horses see dark objects on the ground as a hole with no bottom. That is why horses spooks at things like manhole covers, blue tarps, various other objects. One way to give them confidence that the manhole is OK is to lead him up to it, let him sniff and explore the situation. You will want him to put his nose on the cover and do so in a relaxed fashion.

I have had the same issue with my horse only it was a blue chalk line that was on the ground as a start finish line in a game with our horses. You would have though that it was the biggest threat to his safety but keeping calm and nudging him forward until he toughed the line is convinced him it was OK. Actually after he touched it he just ignored it completely. As Monty has said many times horses are flight animals and they spook at the strangest stuff

Good luck and I hope this helps
Cheers

Hey Guys.
Thank u very much for your answers. In the lane are no cars at all. It's a quite lane leading to a farm way. He won't even pass wide. As soon as he sees we are going to turn this way, the drama starts. But when I lead him from the ground, there is no problem at all. He passes, and he stands next to it, sniffing and looking. Calm and nice. The problem is, that he doesn't even let me come close to it when I am in the saddle! He backs up in high speed! I can't imagine that the giddy up rope would work. :-(
But this is a good question Rudi: how can we make them trust us from the saddle?

Here is my idea point him toward the manhole cover but dont focus on it when he is standing still get off and give him a rub then retreat a few feet farther away, give him a rub and remount. proceed a little closer when he is standing quietly get off and give him a rub and retreat again, just continue this until you can get up to it, also something to try is when you get off pick up all four feet before you go away from the scary object, in order for them to pick up their feet and bend at the knee/hock they have to let the tension out of their body.
Hope this helps a little or at least gives you a new approach to try.

Hello Guys!
New day new update in process. Soooooo, today I joined him up again. All went well and it took blink of an eye. :-)
Then we went for a hack. Same old, same old. No chance. Buuuuut, I discovert something new today! It is not actually the manhole itself, it is the pattern on it! Little squers. Like a net. I found out, cause we went afterwards in a road with loads of manholes. All different kinds and sizes, but he only went mad in front of the pattern ones! I know this sounds weird.
Anyway, on our way back, we had to pass the lane with THE manhole again. First he went mad. I told my friend to ride a few inches in front of us, then stop. He followed her, but then something unusual happened. He put his Head low and sniffed like a dog the ground. Reins where loose. I didn't move in the saddle. He sniffed head down, but past it!!! I turned him back at the end of the lane, and he past nicely. Tried to go back again. After a little fight, he did slowly the same thing! Head very low, and sniff. But he passed!
After this I didn't want to push my luck so I rode back to the yard.
Little big success today :-)
But it seems still not possible to do the beginning without a other horse. But hey,we working on it!

That is so great, dominika!!!
Congratulations! All journeys start with small steps, so you are on your way.
Funny with the "pattern-phobia", but it seems he will overcome it in his own time.