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Questions and Answers:
The following topics are frequently asked. I have just put the answers so it may be a little unclear, but you should see and hear a common theme. By reading the answers, if you understand horses, you should almost be able to fill in the questions and understand what is being said and why. Click on the question topic that most likely will answer your specific question:
Why I "DO NOT" answer questions about horse problems If you want to know why I don't answer questions click this link Why I stopped answering questions.
Here is a special page about Ms. Sarah L. Battles who proves me right again about Barn Witches can't go away or go elsewhere, they have to harass & cause drama.
Here is a link to a site that shows the Nasty Horseforum.com people.
Bucking:
You are causing this by being to easy on the horse. You have to understand horses better to understand this. Read my web site about herd behavior, you and this horse is a herd of two and you are either higher than her or lower than her. You have let her think you are lower by letting her get away with this. As she gets older, she will get bigger and stronger, then you will be in real trouble. Stop this behavior NOW or you will set this horse up to be abused later for being mean. If this horse turns her butt to you, have a rope or something and whack her butt HARD, this will scare her and she will run off, then she will learn that she cannot do that and will be a better horse. If she pins her ears, then back her away and make her move away from you, that will tell her you are higher and she has to show you respect.
Lots more going here than what you are seeing,you keep describing this horse as if he has the problems, he does not, it is you. All horses run, buck and do the same things that you are describing, learn ONE thing, a horse is a horse and that is all they know how to be. You say he is running off on you bucking, I say you going to fast and not giving enough direction to stop this from happening, "direction is better than correction". The horse does not want to run since it is not sure what will happen and its gets scared and nervous. BTW, your rope halter is tied wrong, this is "attention to detail", read my rope halter page on my site. Don’t try and get this horse to run, only walk in comfortable areas an ride in very familiar areas, just slow walks, nice easy stops, turns and back ups. YOU are teaching this horse to buck by letting it buck and causing it to buck since you are trying to go too fast. "the slow way is the fast way" don't rush it or the horse will get nervous and scared. Lots of round pen work, NOT just chasing the horse, send the horse out, trot, canter and walks then have it come to you and follow you, you want more time on following you then you pushing it and making it run. lunge the horse in the round pen with a rope and rope halter on, it the horse bucks, (this is when you want to try and make it buck) so you can take the head away and make it STOP bucking so the horse leans that you can stop him when he bucks. What you are showing him now by getting bucked off is that YOU can’t stop him, therefore you are not in charge, so you are not a good leader, so he should not trust you or listen to you. A horse will not listen unless and until he has too. Forget the love and thinking that this horse cares about you, it is a horse, it only cares if he is higher or lower than you, if is higher then he will push you and treat you like a lower herd member(not being mean but thinking he is protecting you), this is not good, many will see this as love, it is not, it is dangerous and sets you and the horse to fail. As for the horse facing you and side stepping when you round pen him, he is telling you, you cannot make me run, you are weak, you are not a strong leader, you cannot make me listen, you are not higher than me - I agree with the horse! And that is why he running off and bucking with you, the exact same reasons.You need to read my entire web site, invest the time so you understand horses better or you will make this horse worse, a better bucking, more disrespectful and will end up getting hurt and then the horse will get blamed.
Well this is definitely not a horse
problem. Being retired Air Force, I have had
my dealings with cocky fighter pilot types,
so that is a hard habit to break and I
suspect that is what attracted you to him in
the first place. If you can't convince him,
ain't no reason for me to try. I
would only suggest that he do his best to set
the horse up for success. I
normally don't promote
wearing a horse out to train them, but with
confirmed buckers, that need to be trained,
there are a few extreme techniques and I
would only do them if it means the difference
between a horse going to slaughter or having
a bad life if it is not fixed or maybe if a
some old fighter pilot refuses to admit he is
not as young as he once was.
Email me on my web
site so I can send you some ideas in private
so I don't have others reading this and
trying to use this to stop minor bucking that
is more often caused by rider error and not
by a life of abuse and years of training to
buck.
As for things to help this horse, hobble
train him and have he wear hobbles every day
so he learns to be restrained (the horse not
your husband). Also do lots of
tying this horse up where there is lots of
activity, tie him at the busy place, during
the busiest time. Expose him to
lots and lots of sensory from people,
machines, traffic, other horses, buildings,
etc.. Have him wear a saddle a
lot. Any time he out or tied or
walking, saddle him up, after he gets good at
that, tie things on the saddle, a sack of
grain, a tire, boots, water jugs with water,
anything that has weight, make him balance,
make him carry a saddle and other weight so
he will get desensitized to having weight and
saddle on him. Make sure you
prepare him for this and
don't just throw it on him
and make him buck and blow up, which he may
do, but try and set him up with good pressure
and release so he will accept this and not
fight it, but if he insist on fighting it,
let him. Tie him, put it on and
let him blow, when he gets tired, walk him,
round pen him, bring him back and tie him
some more, he has to learn that bucking gets
him nothing but tired. Over time,
if you do this everyday, he will soon figure
out, it is easier to not buck than to buck.
Then you will be on your way.
After he is good with hobbles,
tie him and hobble him, it needed and then
saddle and pile the weight on.
The trick is to figure a way to
secure thing to the saddle so it
won't come off if he
blows, he has to learn that blowing up does
not get things off him, then he will see no
point in doing it.
Like your hubby, I love challenges like this,
especially if someone tells me it
can't be done, if it is
too dangerous or I am too old. So
since you can't stop him,
help him, teach this horse bucking is hard
work, bucking gets you nothing, and it is
your choice. After you do all
this, the chances of him doing with a person
will be less and at least will be less
forceful. I would NOT try and
stop him from bucking, I would ignore it for
a while and just pet him when he stops, then
let him blow and pet when he stops, as he
gets better on his own, then you can start
correcting when he bucks and see if he
respects your command to stop, then once you
get him doing that, then your odds are better
when you get on him and try to command him to
stop. First you have to make sure
he knows what you want when tell him to stop
and at least know that he does know how to
stop and will stop when you ask.
The correction for bucking needs
to be jerking the head to his butt, so when
you are in the saddle and jerk or pull one
rein, he will know what you want.
Trying to teach this in the air
is not a good plan, even for a pilot.
There ain't no
HUD on the back of a horse and the ejection
seat tends to go out without much warning.
I guess you could get him to wear
a parachute but don't
think he will have time to deploy it, but it
might make you feel better.
:)
Good luck,
QUESTION: I am a 52 yr. old
grandmother. I have been around horses
all my life and have ridden almost
everything. I bought a little spotted
saddle horse, with the intentions of
her being my "retirement" horse. She
is a coming 6 yr.old. Had 30 days
training at 3 yr.s old. Not ridden a
whole lot. Was off for the last 20
months after foaling. She is very
sweet tempered and good on the
ground. I rode her several times
before purchasing her. I now ride her
indoors in an arena, as right now in
Wisconsin, it's too cold to be
outside. She has never been ridden
indoors. Last week, I tacked her up
and walked her around the arena.
After 10 minutes of walking, I
decided to get her to move out.
Supposedly she is gaited, and I
wanted to see what she has. About 4
strides into it, she started bucking,
and then reared. I was taken by
surprise, and I did get unseated. I
got up and got right back on and rode
some more, and put her into a trot
with no problem. But, then I had to
go to the ER, because I was spitting
up blood. I now have 3 broken ribs,
and a husband who wants me to sell
her because he is afraid I'll get
hurt again. I don't want to do that!
The previous owner told me she bucked
just one time; when she was coming
out of a creek. She was 3. Other than
that, no problems, other than she is
very rough around the edges when it
comes to reining, but she seems very
eager to please, and willing to
learn. I have put this mare through
all kinds of things on the
ground..walking over tarps and
boards, exposing her to balloons,
balls, opening an umbrella in front
of her, dogs barking, plastic bags,
all kinds of stuff, and she takes it
in stride. The day she bucked there
was nothing any different than it
ever is. Same place to ride, same
tack. 2 days before I had ridden her
in the arena with other horses, and
she did great. She never pins her
ears, or shows agressive behavior.
She is pastured with my other mare,
an wise old 25 yr. old quarterhorse.
She is never stalled. She is on very
good quality hay, and gets grained at
night.Other than just getting back on
her to ride, right after I was
bucked, I have not done anything with
her, because my doc ordered me to not
ride for 2 weeks. I am not afraid of
getting bucked off, it's not the
first time, but, at my age, it really
sucks!!! I think this horse has great
potential, and she has so many great
qualities that I think she is worth
another shot. When I go back to ride
her, I would like some frsh ideas, or
some tips on things I can do to show
her that bucking is unacceptable.
Thanks!!!!!
Geri Slow down, start over and set the horse up for success. "If you take the time it takes, It takes less time". |
Easy Sparky!, if you read your email you
said you had been around horses your entire
life and have ridden everything.
So please forgive me if I
misunderstood this. As you not
falling off a horse since you were 8 years
old, I guess that record is past tense now.
You now want to say the only mistake was
believing what someone told you.
Anyone that has been around horse
people for a day or a year would know, that
you put your life in your hands when you
believe what others tell you, as you did.
As for chewing your butt you see
things as you want to see them, I did not
call you names or even attempt to chew you
out. You still want to see this
as NOT your fault, you did nothing wrong but
believe someone else is to blame.
Sorry my dear, wrong again, you
got on a horse that was not ready or safe and
wanted to be "cowgirl or cowboy up" and like
many people have found out, you are not as
good as you think you are and a horse will
show you that anytime you think so.
There is not a horse in world
that I ride that can't throw me, I know this,
so I spend time and try and prevent it from
happening. NO one can make you
look like an idiot, but you. So
go ahead and keep believing that you did not
fall off and that you decided to jump or got
thrown. You hit the ground and
could have been killed. How you
got there is not real important.
Why you got there should be your
concern. And if you keep wanting
to believe you did not fall off, you were
thrown off, all you did was believe someone
or it is my fault for telling you what you
need to hear, so be it. I can not
help people with egos that want to make this
about them, their egos, whether they look
like an idiot or who don't want to hear what
they need to hear. Perhaps had
someone told you this before, you would not
have had to learn this lesson, I say that
with reservation, since I am not sure you
learned a lesson. The fact that
you got back on the horse after it bucked,
and were so proud of that fact, shows that
you still believe the old tough girl/cowboy
crap that gets people hurt and gets horses a
bad name.
Horses pay for people's mistakes.
Your husband's first thought was
get rid of the horse. Maybe he
knows you better and figures you won't get it
and will "get back on" "show the horse who is
boss" and get yourself killed.
You also said you had professional trainers
tell you the same thing I told you but nicer.
I ain't taking your money, you
are not paying me and I am not in this to
help people that don't want to listen, I do
this to try and help HORSES! I
don't think I can help your horse since he is
stuck with you. So you do what
you want, that has always been your option.
I gave you my take on the
situation from what you told me, if you don't
like the answer, don't do it and don't ask
the question. Your ranting
response shows that you think you know it
all, you will not accept that you caused this
and will always find others or the horse to
blame.
From what you told me the horse is smart
and is doing what horses do. He
is telling you that he does not care about
getting his ass run off chasing barrels or
chasing cows. You can send this
horse to 100 trainers, this problem has been
caused by you and you can fix or give him to
someone who wants a good horse just to ride
and run and compete all the time.
You call this his job, it is not
his job it is you goals and your wants and
you are using the horse get it.
No horse wants to be ran and
worked all the time. In earlier
years of horses a horse was ridden more,
spent more time with, cared for by the owner,
and taken care of better since the horseman's
life depended on it. A horseman would rarely
run their horse at full speed from concern of
hurting the horse and preventing it from
being ridden. Now in the world of
time, awards, medals and other prizes, all of
which mean nothing to a horse.
This horse may not like his job since it
hurts, just because we can't see it or a vet
can't find it, does not mean the horse is not
in pain. I walk around with pain
almost everyday, but not many know about
unless I tell them. The horse may
be telling you the only he can.
Or he may just be saying enough
is enough, I do not like getting kicked, ran,
spurred, having the reins pulled on, or
whatever it is that has made him sour to the
ring.
As I said at the start you owned the horse,
you caused this behavior and only you can fix
it. You can't expect your horse
to change if you continue to do the same
thing. By you not wanting to ride
the horse, the horse gets what he wants.
If the horse respected you and
saw you a good fair leader then he would not
buck.
It sounds like you have TRIED to give the horse what you think he needs, massages, training from stranger, medical check ups, I think the horse needs someone to see the world from his eyes, see how much fun it is living his life, some who thinks like a horse and if they were a horse would they want to be used or treated like he is being treated. People think giving a horse a good home, nice stall, blanket, good hay, good vet care and grain means they are being good to the horse. A horse would much rather be loved, spent time with relaxing and grazing like horses do in a herd. None of that other stuff means much to a horse.
Instead of continuing to send your horse
away for strangers to force their will on him
for months at a time, either change what you
do with him and how you spend time with him
or give him to a good home where a he can
relax, be a horse and not have so many
JOBS.
If you don't enjoy riding him, how or why
would expect him to enjoy having you ride
him. You like many horse owners want to make
this a horse problem. It is not,
your horse is horse and only a reflection of
you and what you do to him. The
more you understand horses the more you
understand yourself. I say it all
the , when people describe their horse, they
describe themselves.
Probably not the answer you wanted to hear,
but that is my take from what you have told
me.
Easy Sparky!, if you read your email you
said you had been around horses your entire
life and have ridden everything.
So please forgive me if I
misunderstood this. As you not
falling off a horse since you were 8 years
old, I guess that record is past tense now.
You now want to say the only mistake was
believing what someone told you.
Anyone that has been around horse
people for a day or a year or more would
know, that you put your life in your hands
when you believe what others tell you, as you
did. As for chewing your butt you
see things as you want to see them, I did not
call you names or even attempt to chew you
out. You still want to see this
as NOT your fault, you did nothing wrong but
believe someone else is to blame.
Sorry my dear, wrong again, you
got on a horse that was not ready or safe and
wanted to be "cowgirl or cowboy up" and like
many people have found out, you are not as
good as you think you are. There
is not a horse in world that I ride that
can't throw me, I know this, so I spend time
and try and prevent it from happening.
NO one can make you look like an
idiot, but you. So go ahead and
keep believing that you did not fall off.
You hit the ground and could have
been killed. How you got there is
not real important. Why you got
there should be your concern. And
if you keep wanting to believe you did not
fall off, you were thrown off, all you did
was believe someone or it is my fault for
telling you what you need to hear, so be it.
I can not help people with egos
that want to make this about them, their
egos, whether they look like an idiot, who
don't want to hear what they need to hear.
Perhaps had someone told you this
before, you would not have had to learn this
lesson, I say that with reservation, since I
am not sure you learned a lesson.
The fact that you got back on the
horse after it bucked, and were so proud of
that fact, shows that you still believe the
old tough girl/cowboy crap that gets people
hurt and gets horses a bad name.
Horses pay for people's mistakes.
Your husband's first thought was
get rid of the horse. Maybe he
knows you better and figures you won't get it
and will "get back on" "show the horse who is
boss" and get yourself killed.
You also said you had professional trainers
tell you the same thing I told you but nicer.
I ain't taking your money, you
are not paying me and I am not in this to
help people that don't want to listen, I do
this to try and help HORSES! I
don't think I can help your horse since he is
stuck with you. So you do what
you want, that has always been your option.
I gave you my take on the
situation from what you told me, if you don't
like the answer, don't do it and don't ask
the question. Your ranting
response shows that you think you know it
all, you will not accept that you caused this
and will always find others or the horse to
blame.
It sounds like you are doing ok.
Don't let her get release when
she bucks, she needs to get more pressure for
bucking. On my horseman tips page
I talk about Bucking strap and nightlatch,
put one on your saddle and it will help you
ride out the bucks until you can correct her
and put pressure on her to stop her.
If you have one hand on the
bucking strap, your other hand needs to work
the one rein. Pop it and get her
to tilt her head to it, that way she cannot
buck as hard and you will be making her think
bucking is not good and gets her more
work.
If you have a round pen, put her in it, ride
her at a canter, after a good warm up and get
her out of this habit, this has worked for
her in the past so she is trying it on you,
run her butt off a bit and it will stop.
If you don't have a round pen,
put her in the smallest arena or enclosed
area you have. Ask for a canter,
and as soon as she tucks her head, pull/hold
ONE rein only, that will cause her head to
tilt to the side so she cannot buck as good
or as hard, keep that one rein tight until
she gives and put her head up, all the while
keep asking for the canter and put pressure
to run, anytime her head goes towards the
ground or tucks to buck, ONE rein only pull
and tilt her head (pop it) until it comes
back up. After she runs a lap or
so, let her walk, then trot and into a canter
again, after a couple of canters with no
bucks or head tuck, let it go for the day and
do the same thing the next day in a few days
it will go away.
Question: i am 24 years
old, i have had my own horses since i was 9,
they have all been backed but i have enjoyed
schooling them to a higher standard. recently
i have been helping out with a lovely 5 year
old cob cross mare,she is in a feild with
others at night then brought in at night and
stabled. she has a lovely gentle nature and
is great to handle in the stable. she was
backed a year ago, by this i mean she was
lunged and long reigned with no problems. she
was great at first and took someone getting
on her back in her stride. however that is as
far as it went when asked to trot she shakes
her head and starts to buck and rear this can
be just from hearing a voice command to trot.
i lunge her in her saddle with no problems
but as soon as someone gets on her back and
she is asked to trot either by the person
riding or lunging she starts bucking. im at a
loss as to what i should do, do you have any
ideas?
Answer: It
sounds like the horse is either confused or
does not respect you. Either way
you need to spend more time confirming what
you want from the horse so you are sure the
horse is not confused. If you can
lunge on the ground then you should be able
to lunge with a rider on. If
this horse understands your commands and
instructions, then it should listen with or
without a rider. Make sure the
horse is good without a rider, make sure it
knows walk trot and canter cues well and does
them consistently then add a rider with no
reins, and no instructions from the rider,
just have the rider to be a passenger, then
lunge the horse as normal. Most
issues are fear or lack of respect, both
create the other so make sure what is the
real issue and help the horse find the right
answer. The horse is telling you
something, either you are not clear, it is
confused, it is scared, it does not respect
you, something, so listen to the horse and
help her find the right answer.
Q: We rescued a little 3 to 4
year old mare last year. She had been severly
starved and abused. After almost a year she
is a different horse but...
In training her, we have come to realize that
this mare was used as bucking stock and was
abused afterwards. The most probable reason
she was taken away from the bucking arena is
that she falls over if you don't get bucked
off.
Other than bucking her out with a mannequin
on top of her, which might not be good when
she falls over, or using a live person who
could get seriously hurt, do you know of any
other options?
A: You have to teach this
horse that bucking it the wrong answer and
bucking only get her tired. Do
lots of ground work with saddle and if she
bucks correct her, show her you can stop her,
teach her what you do to get her to stop, so
when you ride her she knows what you do to
stop her, she knows that you can stop her and
she knows bucking is not the right
answer.
If she is only 3 and was already used as
bucking horse, she was started way too young
and may be in pain from riding too early.
let her grow and heal until five.
In the mean time do lots of
ground work, handling, and teach her that you
are lead horse and leader, bucking is like
kicking or biting, it is a sign of disrespect
and resistance. The more show the
horse that you will not allow this, the less
likely he will buck when you start riding
him.
Read my web site so you really understand
horses differently.
First Horse - New Owner Question:
Hi Rick, I am writing to get your thoughts
and opinion. I've had several people at the
barn tell me that I should sell Tino and buy
an older and more trained horse because it is
their opinion that he is too much for me as I
don't have enough experience, and time to
train him, etc. What are your thoughts? You
have been around Tino and I wanted to know
what your thoughts are. Do you think Tino and
I are doing okay? Do you think I am capable
of handling him and training him? Should I
just ignore these people? I really want to do
what is best for Tino, and just selling him
off to someone because I'm a dumb-ass doesn't
seem right. It seems selfish to me. He didn't
ask me to buy him. I know you will be honest
with me and I would really appreciate knowing
what you think because I know how much you
care about horses. Answer: For some reason I
lost this email and just found it, sorry I
did not get back sooner. This is tough one.
Since it makes no difference to me and I have
nothing to gain or lose, I can say keep him
and forget what others say or I can say get
rid of him since he young and you are not
that experienced. But it is not that simple.
Both you and Tino have something to lose and
gain by your decision. As an experienced
horseman I think Tino is a great horse and
easy to work. Would I tell someone with
little experience to buy him, probably not.
Does that mean you should get rid of him,
probably not. Should you keep him since I
think he is good, probably not. You have to
make this decision based of what you know, I
can only give you information and what you do
with it, how you use it and what happens in
the future is all up to you. I rarely tell
someone to get rid of a horse no matter what,
I think if you buy a horse, you buy to entire
deal and if you went too fast, did not think
it through, did not do your homework or
suddenly now think you are over your head,
none of those reasons are good enough to make
a horse pay for what you did. Now if this
horse was attacking you, kicking you,
breaking bones and you could not even lead
him, then I might say it is better for the
horse and you to get rid of him. I do not
think you are in danger, unless you do
something that puts you in danger, like
taking Tino running down a busy hwy, that
would be stupid and dangerous and then I
would tell you that you are too stupid to own
any horse. :) That is not the case. You
called yourself a dumb-ass, all new horse
owners are ignorant about the many aspects of
horses, normal learning curve. If you jumped
into a class in college on advanced physics
and then called yourself a dumb ass, which
would be the same situation. You, or anyone
else can't expect to learn about horses in a
year or two, that is why so many people fail
with horses. Can you imagine going to Harvard
and saying I want to have a Doctor's Degree
in Space Travel in one year and then went
out, bought a space ship and then got
frustrated since you could not fly in your
space ship? Same thing with a horse. In some
way the space ship is easier since it is not
living, fearful, survival driven, emotional
and has a mind of it's own, like a horse
does. So, when people claim to know about
horses, give advice about how and what others
should do with horses, it is really easy to
pick out the ones that don't have a clue.
Anyone that really understands horses knows
it is not the horse that is dangerous. It is
not the horse that has problems. It is not
the horse that is the problem, it is the
owner/operator/handler. In the horse world
(of mostly women) the answer to problems is a
different horse, a different saddle,
different feed, different stalls, different
equipment and everything but, taking the time
to learn, grow and become a horseman. The
first options are easy and fast, becoming a
good horseman takes years of commitment,
dedication, time, maybe a few hard knocks and
investment. One way is easy and screws the
horse over, the other way makes you better,
teaches you many life lesson and makes you
appreciate your horse, your accomplishments
in horsemanship and teaches you more about
horses than all the know-it-alls in the
world. So it may sound like I am trying to
talk you into keeping your horse, I am not. I
don €™t want you to keep him
from what I say or what I believe. Just like
a don €™t want to MAKE a
horse do something. I want to make a horse
WANT to do something €“
very different than making him do it. If a
horse wants to do something it is a choice,
shows trust and understanding. If I make a
horse do something it only shows I
don €™t have the knowledge
or understanding to help the horse to
understand and to want to do it. When people
listen to trainers or barn experts, they
don €™t make educated
decisions with commitment and dedication.
Listening to others gets frustrated horses
and horse owners, You making an educated
decision gets people that want to learn, want
to grow, want to become better for themselves
and their horse. Another thing about people
that are quick to say, get rid of that horse
are the same people that send their horses to
trainers, they buy horses that are old with
lots of training, they search for bloodlines
that produce calm horses, so they can be lazy
and not take the time to learn. Then when
something goes wrong, they can blame the
trainer, blame the horse or the
horse €™s past. They accept
no responsibility for learning or investing
the time, so they pass blame to others or
then if they still fail they just sell their
horse and get a
€œbetter € one. I
have owned a car almost my entire life, yet I
could build one or fix one. Yet the first
thing from most Barn experts is
€œI have owned horses my
entire life €. So that statement
impresses others that
don €™t know. You can have
ten years experience or you have one year
experience ten times, a very big difference.
Owning a horse does not make a horseman
anymore than owning a college would make you
smart. I like most all horses and think they
are all good, so me saying Tino is a good
horse and I like him is not much a
endorsement. Your future with him is entirely
in your hands not mine, not his and damn sure
not the people who are telling you to sell
him. With that said, would you be safer with
an older horse, maybe. Would you enjoy an
older horse more, maybe. Could you get hurt
on an older horse, sure. But all of this
depends on you, what you do with the horses
(regardless of age or training), what
mistakes you make, what you do right or
wrong, what you rush and go to fast, or if
you took your time and invested time. It all
comes down to you. Hope this helps, Rick
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
No one has a clue about owning a horse until
they do it. Being a responsible horse owner
means you do things to prepare, learn and
increase your odds of success. Since a horse
suffers because of what you do or don't do,
when you take a horse, you should be somewhat
prepared. I know way too many horse owners
that want to save and love the idea of a
horse, they have never picked a hoof, they
don't own a horse trailer, they drive cars,
they own no horse gear, most of all they have
no understanding of the horse. To me that is
unfair to the horse and sets them both up for
failure. People think I am hard or too rough
and direct with my answers. A horse does not
have a voice, it is only a horse and that is
all it knows and far too often people who
mean well, who want to help and save a horse,
end up getting seriously hurt or killed
because they want to be nice and kind and
when they get hurt or killed, someone wants
to blame the horse and put the horse down. I
see it far too often and don't have much
patience for people that claim to love a
horse and send the horse down a road of
failure because they jump into something
without having a clue. Understanding horses
is not that difficult, but it does takes
time, discipline, work, consistency, trial
and error, money, and many other things, it
is not like buying fish and feeding them once
in a while. So my point is, being new and not
having a clue means nothing to the horse, he
does not care that you are new or the best
horseman in the world, he is only a horse and
that is all he knows how to be...it is your
responsibility to learn his way, to
understand him so you can help him. So
excuses, you meaning well, you trying, you
doing the best you can means nothing. This
horse is going to be a horse regardless of
what you do. The faster you get that, the
better you both will be.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question: I was really looking for someone
with medical knowledge who could help us. If
you can't help, I understand. We have an old
pony (about 20 years old) He is losing weight
and can't gain any weight no matter how much
we feed him. His coat hasn't shed in 2
seasons. His stomach is contracting all the
time and he has become so thin. There are not
many vets around here that do house calls and
we can't really afford the expense to pay one
to come to our home. We have read online
about cushings disease, but he is not showing
all of those symptoms. Could you advise us in
any way as to how to help our "gypsy". Thanks
for your time. Answer:20 years is not that
old. Lots of things can cause what you are
seeing. Lack of exercise, lack of grass hay,
bad teeth, not being wormed and many others.
As horses get older they do not shed or grow
hair as easy, so grooming is more important
to help them. If his feet are not done he
could be in pain so he walks less, which
means he eats less and things go down hill
from there. Answer: If this horse has all the
grass hay the can eat, a flake of alfalfa
once a day, some rolled or whole oats (2 - 3
cups a day) some rice bran maybe a little
sweet feed mixed in, this horse will put on
weight. If you can't afford a vet, then maybe
you are not providing enough of the right
feed often enough. Also maybe you should find
the horse a home where a vet is available.
Putting on weight is not an overnight thing,
it may take a few months, but just do it slow
and don't try and do too much too fast or you
can kill the horse. So do this: worm the
horse have the teeth checked give lots of
grass hay, 2 flakes morning and night (grass
being Oat, Rye, Orchard, etc) give alfalfa
hay a flake a day, half morning half at night
give 2 cups of oats in morning and 2 cups at
night give 1 cup of rice bran morning and
night This horse will gain weight if you do
what you need to do, you cannot just throw
some low quality hay out once or twice a day
and expect that to work. This horse should
have hay out all the time so she can eat when
she wants to and never be hungry and never
have to wait for food.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
QUESTION: I recently purchased a 5 year old
Belgian who came to me with poor ground
manners. We have been working on teaching her
that it is not ok to plow over humans on the
lead and to stand in the cross ties, etc.
These things are improving, although, she
will still test her limits. She has, however,
begun chasing children who come out to the
pasture to retrieve their horses. She does
not do this to me or other adults. She is
very large, weighing over 2000 pounds, and I
am concerned with the danger of this
situation. Is there anything I should focus
on in her handling to help alleviate this
problem. I am not in the pasture to do any
type of intervention when the chasing occurs.
ANSWER: Like most problems, this is a people
problem not a horse problem. A horse will not
chase something that does not run. It the
child cannot stop a horse from chasing it,
maybe it should not be in the pasture with
many horses. ONLY the person getting chased
can stop this, not you. If you are there and
do stop it, it means nothing to the horse. A
horse will only respect someone it has too
respect. You can tell the kid to keep a
plastic grocery bag in her pocket and when
your horse comes to shake it over her head at
the horse. The problem is this is just a
cheat and does not address the real problem,
which is the kid that is letting your horse
chase her, the kid is running from the horse,
the kid is not showing the horse it can't
chase her, the kid is causing the horse to
chase her. All horses are bigger than people,
it has nothing to do with size. Your horse
may also be protecting the herd or wanting to
play....it is obvious that you or the kid
being chased does not understand horses or
the way they think. This is perfectly normal
horse behavior and anyone who understands
horse would know this. If a horse kicked you
when you took his food, you might see this as
the horse is mean or the horse is possess of
his food or he has a bad habit............ I
would say it normal horse behavior.. A horse
is only a horse and that is all it knows how
to be, this is NOT a horse problem. Read my
site it will help you see horses as they are
and understand them better. ----------
FOLLOW-UP ---------- QUESTION: This is both a
people problem and a horse problem! I am
fully aware that this can be normal horse
behavior. I am also fully aware that it is
most likely occuring because the child is not
demonstrating to the horse that she is in
charge. However, acting disrespectful to any
human is not tolerated at our stable and this
horse needs to learn this. I was simply
looking for any suggestions you might have to
assist this h orse in learning that she is
always sub-ordinate to any human being. And
size does make a difference. This horse is
gigantic compared to the other horses in the
pasture and kids who are normally confident
in the pasture are intimidated by her, as are
the adults. Even other horses who would
normally be more dominant in the field are
intimidated by her. And she was the bottom
horse in the pecking order at her prior home.
I have lots of experience with abused animals
and have never identified an animal as mean.
Anyone who works with animals on any regular
basis would tell you that animals act
instincively and don't have "mean" in their
repertoire of behaviors. That is purely a
human behavior. And I could care less if this
is "normal" horse behavior. It is not
acceptable to chase people out of your
pasture - ever! I have reviewed your website.
And I have to tell you that you rip on people
who call their horses names but you do the
same thing to people! Telling people they
obviously don't know anything about horse
behavior is the same thing as calling their
horse stupid! It doesn't provide any
solutions to the problem. You didn't tell me
anything I didn't already know. But thanks
anyway. Answer: OK, you are right, if you
know so much and are so experienced, then why
are asking me questions. This is not a horse
problem, we can agree to disagree. I think
you are wrong and 99% of all horse problems,
including this one, is a people problem. This
horse WILL not chase someone that does not
run. And you are on such a high horse that
you want to get insulted by answer. If you
know all that you told me you, then why have
you not fixed this? If you fix this, write me
back and please explain how you can train a
horse not to chase someone when you are not
there and the other person runs and is scared
of the horses. This will be a new revelation
in horse training. You response reminds me of
an old saying: "It is hard to get down from
your high horse gracefully." And if you don't
like my answers or my web site, feel free not
to read or ask me questions and don't go to
my site. See that is the wonderful thing
about being a human, WE have choices and
horses do not, which is why "it is never the
horse's fault". Good Day!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
QUESTION: Hi, im hoping you might have some
advice for me about my mares lameness. About
4 years ago some 'fool' left the field gate
open and all the horses ran loose around the
surrounding fields.. my mare came back lame
on the front left with no obvious reason (no
cuts, swellings or heat etc) this went on for
a couple of weeks so got the vet out, she was
taken in for X-rays and all sorts of
injections in her legs and anything the vet
could think of (she was at the vets for
roughly 2week) eventually the vet just said
they had no idea why she was lame and that
its perminant. After 5months of lameness she
was sound again and fine to be ridden. I
continued to ride her fine mainly hacking
with some schooling or jumping for about 2
years. Since then i've put her on loan a few
times and shes gone lame from what i can
gather this is why - 1st time on loan the
loaner trotted her on roads for over an hour
and she was then lame for 2months - 2nd tome
on loan larger rider and constantly ridden in
school bending on hardish ground and was lame
for 4 months - 3rd time small rider ridden
ridden only in school again and was lame for
2/3months. Each time its the same leg shes
lame on, i find that running cold water on it
helps but as i said theres no heat or
swelling. I was wondering if you have any
idea as to what it could be or how i may be
able to prevent it so she can be used more,
at the moment shes hacked lightly and doing
fine though. Shes only ever had a problem
with being lame since the day she escaped 4
years ago, before that i use to compete every
weekend jumping showing xcountrys etc for 4
years with no problem, shes 14.2hh and 14 now
i got her when she was 5 she came from
american adventure originaly sold on at
4years to who i brought her off who broke her
lightly and i brought her on from there with
no problems. I know shes 3/4 quarter horse
not 100% what the other 1/4 is. Sorry to
ramble wanted to get everthing out. I
understand not many replies are now given but
any advice will be listened to and i will be
greatfull although i also understand i may
never get to the bottom of her lameness.
Thanks for reading. Regards, Gemma. P.s i've
uploaded a picture of her to show her weight
and leg build. Shes the bay. image:
Horses-702/2009/08/Tina.jpg ANSWER: There are
two types of horses: Those that are hurt and
those that will be hurt. My first thought is
stop giving her to others so they can hurt
her. She has a injury, jumping, running on
hard ground and shoes are the worst things
for this horse. You said when you left her
alone she got better, no shit, she was not
carrying an extra 150 lbs, she was not being
run, she was not being jumped.... I can't
imagine why she got better.... You asked for
my opinion and I almost always take the
horse's side. This horse can't tell you it
hurts, just because you can't see pain does
not mean she is better. I hurt a lot of the
time when I some things and I don't limp or
you would not know it. Just because she is
not limping does not mean she is not hurting.
Go do some jumping jack on the cement and I
bet your feet, ankles or knees will hurt and
you may not limp. I say stop jumping her
absolutely. That is the worst thing for a
healthy horse, it causing pounding,
concussions, pressure and puts all 1000
pounds on two small hooves with compounding
force. Think about it a horse walks on four
hooves to support their weight, you cut that
support in half when you jump since the horse
lands on two front feet.. if you don't think
that is a big deal, go stand on a chair and
you jump to the ground with only ONE foot for
support, cut you support in half and maybe
you will see how much pain it causes, once
again, people forget or don't want to think
like a horse. How often do you see horses
running in the wild, not often. How often do
you see them jumping, very rarely if ever. So
we do these things 100 times more often and
we add a saddle and the weight of a rider,
run horses in circles and then wonder why so
many horses have leg problems... it is pretty
clear to me. You did not say and I hope you
are not doing it, but a lot of people deal
with this by giving bute to "ease" the pain..
this is abuse in my book, you ride and work a
horse in pain, so you give them drugs to hide
the pain so the horse won't limp and then
later the horse has 5 times the pain and just
stands around hurting... So if you stop what
you do, the will stop re-inuring this leg.
What I say next is not the problem or will
not fix the problem, and pictures can be
deceiving, but the hoof looks trimmed too low
in heel or too long in toe, which might be
causing some discomfort and the front right
hoof looks too long in the heel, almost
club... but again some time pictures to not
show what is really there, just something to
look at.... not so you can give the horse to
someone to jump or run her, I say this to
maybe ease some of the discomfort for the
horse. Rick ---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Thanks for your reply, shes not
used for jumping or competing anymore hasnt
been for a couple of years since she went
lame again and i realised there could be a
weakness so no worries there, just ridden
once a week now if that on a hack which lasts
no longer than an hour baring in mind i only
walk with some trot. She loves being hacked
her ears are forward the whole time i wouldnt
want to stop doing that unless it really was
bad for her. Also it keeps abit of weight off
her as she gets really large and is prone to
lami. Shes on no drugs although i do think
the vet put her on some when she was at the
vets 4 years ago. She shows no sign of pain
or discomfort other than the lameness but as
u said she may not show it. As for the hoofs,
i have no idea what they should look like ive
always trusted my farrier so ill mention
that. Thanks again for your response.
Answer:You're welcome. Riding for weight
control and short non stressful rides are
great...Listen to the horse it will tell you
lots of things, most are to busy doing and
never listen. Exercise is good, no shoes are
good, and not over weight is good. If your
shoer, farrier or what you call him
understand barefoot horses and barefoot
mechanics then he will know how to trim. Some
farriers that mainly do shoes, do not
understand the difference between a barefoot
trim and a shoe trim, so they just trim the
same way. A good barefoot trimmer knows the
right way to barefoot trim. Not to say your
trimmer does not know, but ask questions,
educate yourself on the hoof and trims, so
you can ask good questions and know if you
are getting BS or good answers, ask other
farriers for their opinion..... two good
horse sayings are: **You don't as a barber if
you need a haircut and you don't ask a
farrier if your horse needs shoes.... The
second is: **No hoof, No horse...(take care
of the feet they are very important) Rick
Lots of people do clicker training with
horses, some videos on youtube about it you
can watch. I trained dogs in the military for
several years, so that understanding helps me
with horses. However, there are big
differences in horses and dogs. Dogs are
predators like us and horses are prey, they
flee and learn on release. Horses also push
and try to move up and only respect a higher
and stronger leader. Praise does not work on
horses like dogs. Praise to a horse is
RELEASE. Very important and hard to learn and
use. To tell a horse yes, or that something
is the right response I want, you need to
release, fast and timing, but release
teaches, release of pressure. EVERYTHING IS
PRESSURE to a horse, a look, a stance, facing
them, touching them, talking to them, all
pressure. That is why talking interferes with
training. Horses do not talk, they
communicate with body language, pressure and
release. Really do lots of research on Herd
Behavior so you understand horses. Food works
for tricks and to help a horse understand
what you want, but for riding and long term
food is not what makes good horses, strong,
consistent, fair and understand is what
teaches horse best. As for your horse racing
training. Assume the horse has none and start
from scratch. If you treat this horse like he
knows nothing you will ensure you identify
what he knows and that way you teach him the
right things so you can ensure a good
consistent foundation. You always want to a
good safe place to move back to, if you don't
start at the beginning you will not have a
place to take him when he gets lost or
confused. This horse may have been ridden but
only to run fast on an enclosed track where
it could not go anywhere but in a circle. If
you get on this horse and think that it knows
how to give to pressure, how to turn, stop or
look to you for direction, you will be hurt
and surprised. This horse knows nothing and
what ever it has been taught has been wrong
and only creates confusion to the horse.
Confusion makes fear, fear makes lack of
trust, that puts a horse in reaction mode,
fear, flight mode and then you get thrown,
hurt and scared and all your progress goes
back tenfold. The slow way is the fast way
with horses. Read my entire site so you
really understand a horse and see the world
as a horse sees it. The is not a dog and does
not care or need you, it wants to stay alive
and wants to know what is going to happen
next so it can feel safe. And no, do not ride
or work this horse 200 pounds underweight,
let it get some weight, muscle, feel out the
new home and surroundings.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As for you already "mothering" this horse,
you are on a road to failure. This horse does
not need you to protect it, to bring it food,
to keep the chickens, sheep, birds or wolves
off it, it has survived for millions of years
and has done well without you protecting it's
food. It will learn to push the chickens and
sheep on its own, just like it will learn to
push you..... don't be fooled that this horse
will love you or need you or want to protect
you or wants to be your friend..... it will
only like you and tolerate you if you push
it, show it you are boss and act and talk to
it like a horse. Watch my videos, you will
think my horses love me.... they do not, they
tolerate me and respect me so they allow me
to do what I want, not because of love, not
because I give them a carrot, but because
they know I am in charge, I can make them,
they have no choice, and they see me as the
strongest leader......... NOT LOVE sorry, I
know this is a shocker for most.. :) Good
luck and pay attention, I assure you, your
horse is paying attention and learning your
weakness. //END// Follow up: I am direct,
many say I wear my feelings on my sleeve, you
know what I thinking by looking at me, this
works very well with horse and very bad with
people. A horse does not want nice or mean,
that means nothing, they want specifics, they
want to clearly know who is in charge, who
the leader and who they have to respect. This
is how a horse finds security and safety. My
goal is not to make you feel bad, no more
than a horse is trying to hurt you when it
kicks you. It may be the end result, but I
call it like I see it and a horse kicks to
tell someone it means what it says. Neither
is mean or have ill intent, it just is. The
fact that you think I make you feel bad or
that a horse is mean or wants to hurt is what
YOU see. It does not make it so. A horse is
not stupid or smart, it is not mean or nice,
it is not aggressive or passive, it is a
horse. All horses kick, all bite, all groom
each other, all look for comfort. A horse is
only the reflection of who handles it. If a
horse does right, good or whatever you want
to call it, it is because the person
communicated good, and made it easy for the
horse to find the right answer (no right and
wrong in a horse's mind) People want to make
all these terms to help themselves and make
them seem smart and make it easier on them to
cope with what they see in a horse. It is all
misunderstanding of the horse. Calling a
horse names just gets my goat and pisses me
off. I always tell people that those who call
their horse names are really describing them
self. If you see someone call a horse stupid,
stubborn, crazy, hard-headed, mean, scared,
jumpy, insecure.....look at the person and I
assure all those terms will fit.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A whip is a cheat (see my article on cheats).
If you depend on it, have to have it, and use
it all the time, you don't understand what a
cheat is. Other common cheats are lead ropes,
halters, saddles, carrots, grain, hay and
many others. You should not be in a position
where you cannot do something with a horse if
you loose your cheat. People ride horses
bridleless, no head gear and bareback, no
saddle, there is not cheats there, unless the
person wears spurs and can't ride without
them. You are still looking at horse problems
as horse issues. It is not. A horse does
fine, makes no mistakes, and lives great when
no humans are around them or involved. A
horse does not ask or need your help, in
fact, most human contact is nothing more than
an annoyance and creates work for the horse,
so why would they like that, they are very
clam animals to survive, they conserve their
movement for eating, playing and learning and
running from predators. It is against all
instincts to run for no reason, so we humans
chase them to get them to move. A horse has
to know "what is in it for the horse" Stop
looking at horses as a pet, a tool or a dumb
animal that is here to amuse you or for you
to use as you see fit. Look at them as a
HORSE. That is what they know, that is what
they are, that is where they come from. Once
you know them, understand them, act like them
and become them, then you will stop fighting
with them, forcing them, blaming them and you
will both grow. The next time a person calls
a horse stupid, inform them that a horse as
the brain of a walnut and is much lower in
the evolutionary scale than humans. So if
humans are so much more advanced than horses,
who is the stupid one, the horse or the human
that can't even get a walnut brain to do what
he wants. Your question screams of confusing
and frustration, both terms I would use to
describe your horse and I have never met
either of you. You are confused and
frustrated since you don't understand or
think like a horse. Everything I have said
here is on my web site, so I tried of
re-typing it just to make it easier on
someone who does not want to make time to
read and study the site. Much like horses get
tired of people that confuse them, hit them
and don't understand them. I have spent
enough time telling you to read my site, your
next question needs to be directed to what
you read on my site and that you don't
understand what it says or what it means. If
being a good horseman was easy, everyone
would do it and be good at it.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q: I €™ve been around
€œcowboys € for
much of my life. This includes ropers, rodeo
folks, barrel racers, etc. NONE of them ever
does groundwork. I keep hearing more and more
about groundwork, but I find it mind numbing
and BORING. Do you do groundwork? If yes, how
often and how long? A: Not all cowboys
understand or know horses. That is how the
term €œCowboy
Up € came about. If you
don €™t what you are doing,
just cowboy up and hand on. As for ropers,
rodeo folks and barrel racers, I think you
are confusing horsemen with these people. You
will rarely see any horsemanship skills at
these events, what you see is people that
want to win, people that are competitive and
people that don €™t care
much for their horse, they just use their
horse for their needs. Now that I have pissed
off some people reading this, what and why is
ground work needed €¦. Read
some books on it to really understand it.
Basically, and very briefly, if you
understand horses, know the way they think,
then you understand the importance of ground
work. It is nothing more that spending time
with your horse, doing horse things, learning
your horse, showing and proving to your horse
that you know what you are doing, you
understand pressure and release, you know how
to talk horse, you show the horse you are a
strong and knowledgeable leader, you dominate
the horse in a non-threatening way, you move
the horse, you control his movement, you
control his direction, you can stop him, you
develop cues that the horse learns to
understand, you teach the horse how to read
you and what you want and how you ask for it.
You determine where the weaknesses are in you
and your horse, you see what happens when you
push too hard or the wrong way. All of this
improves you ability to read and understand
your horse, ground work helps you, it makes
you learn from your horse, if puts you in a
position of advantage and safety so your odds
of success is enhanced, which helps the horse
since when you fail your horse fails. So when
people tell you they don €™t
do it or see a need for it, you will know,
that they do not know or understand the way
of the horse.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ok, it sounds like you have done a lot of
things but look at this from the horses point
of view and change what you are doing. I am
not a fan and don't believe in People that
talk to horses and then tell owners what the
horse said. I think they are rip off people
and just take advantage of people looking for
answers in all the wrong places. You keep
making this a horse problem and I see it as a
You problem. I could be wrong but I think if
I took this horse out and worked it for about
30 mins you would see a different horse. Any
time you put inexperienced people on a horse
that don't know what they are doing, the
horse pays, he gets confused, he gets very
inconsistent cues, he pays for every mistake
each new person tries and learns, this gets
very old very fast, soon the horse stops
trying to look for the right answer, cannot
learn since every rider does something
different and the rules keep changing, so the
horse gives up, it stops trying to learn and
learns to stop trying, it gets called sour,
it gets called difficult, mean, stubborn and
other names. Horses are forced into their
lives with no say, they get no choice in who
owns them, who rides them, they can't talk so
when people don't know how to handle them
they just struggle every day not knowing what
to expect, what will happen next, and live in
constant confusion and fear, confusion
creates fear and uncertainty, this creates
anxiety, which eventually creates resentment
(sour), so the horse is always adjusting will
then try and resist all handling, all riding,
all people. It is a sad and horrible life for
a horse since they are so willing and really
just try and get along with the life they are
dealt. You think since you do good with four
other horses, then this problem must be this
horse's fault, I don't believe this. I think
the other four horses have accepted their
life with you for some reason, either you do
work with them as much, the same way, what
ever the reason, all horses are different,
all horses need to be handled within their
abilities. People want every horse to adjust
to their abilities and when they don't they
label the horse. Most horses called difficult
are really smarter, they have got smarter
from poor or bad handling by various people
that did not know what they were teaching but
taught many bad lessons and over time the
horse learns that they are stronger, they are
bigger, they can win and defeat people that
don't know, so they are actually making the
horse into what the horse becomes. There are
way too many horses with a past and then they
have no future. Their past is made for them
by people that don't know and their future is
doomed by more people that don't know.
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You say the horse does not do the same
problems when you ride, of course not. You
know how to ride so the horse knows this and
knows it gets consistent cues from you, so it
knows what you want and gives it to you, your
students do the opposite and the horse gets
tired of it. You have owned this horse since
it was three and then tell me it was very
immature, no shit, it is only a baby, a three
old is like a 7 year old kid, very young and
learning, a young horse needs to be handled
right so it can grow. The horse is 11 and you
had it since three, which means you have
eight years to screw this horse up or to make
it a great horse, you can judge yourself what
kind of job you did. But don't blame the
horse either way, if it is good you did good,
if it is bad, you did bad. I don't think of
horses are good and bad, they are just
products of their handling. You talk about
this horse shooting out of a box (a trailer),
that tells me this horse has your number, he
knows you are not the boss and he can do what
he wants, he has learned you for eight years
and knows what he can do, what you can't do
and what you can't stop him from doing, so he
does what he does because of what you do or
can't do. A horse is only a reflection of
it's owner and when you get a young horse at
three you only have you to blame if the horse
turns out bad (not listening, not respecting,
refusing to give in, etc). You need to stop
making this about the horse and make it about
you. Change what you are doing and your horse
will change. The horse is stressed and
depressed since he does not know the rules,
you are looking for answers in all the wrong
places and are constantly trying something
new and different/inconsistent to try and fix
the horse and the problem is you are not
being a strong leader and giving this horse
good clear direction so he knows you are in
charge and he has to listen to you. A horse
feels better when they have a leader that
TELLS them what to do. They do not do good
when they have a bad leader that loves them,
that tires to be nice, that keeps trying and
never succeeds, that thinks somehow by asking
and not making, the horse will somehow love
them back and suddenly become the horse they
dream about. This horse is in a bad place
with YOU. Stop making excuses for his
behavior and become a strong leader, give
specific direction and accept nothing less,
make the rules clear and don't change them
for the horse, push this horse so he knows
you will not give up, you will not stop and
be nice, but will be consistent, direct and
assertive. Once you change, your horse will
change. He could have already been what you
call trust worthy. You want to see this horse
as a horse with a past. This horse is a
horse, treat him like a horse and not like a
horse with a past. It sounds like you are
babying him. 30 to 45 days is more than
enough time to get a horse over these issues.
You said it took 3 months to stop him from
trying to kick you when you went in the
stall, it should have took about 15 or 20
mins. Somethings you don't want to rush and
take your time, but there comes a point that
if you continue to take your time the horse
knows and thinks you are a weak leader. Turn
up the heat on this horse and stop being so
easy. You think this horse trust you, I think
this horse tolerates you. If he respected
you, he would not still be doing these
things.
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Like I tell 99% of the people, most horse
problems are people problems, they are caused
by people, then continued by people, or make
worse by people. In the same way, they can be
fixed by people, they can be prevented by
people, and can be improved by people, but
only if the person really understands horses.
Everyone wants to use "natural horsemanship"
techniques (love, caring and easy training)
the problem is natural horsemanship does not
work if you don't understand a horse and if
you are not willing to treat a horse like
another horses treats them. Horse kick each
other and bite each other and chase each
other, that is what they do. That is how they
learn who is higher and who they should trust
and follow. Only then will they groom each
other, rub on each other and be friends. The
problem is most horse owners what the love,
rub and friends part and are not willing to
do the kick, bite and chase part....IT JUST
DOES NOT WORK. No I am saying to kick a horse
or bite a horse, but you can accomplish the
same thing by moving a horse, putting
pressure, making a horse respect you and your
space when you tell him to, but will only do
that if you are willing to enforce it. Most
just threaten to enforce it and the horse
knows this and learns this and then slowly
starts treating you like a lower horse. A
never ending cycle of confusion for the
horse. Make yourself better and this horse
will get better, this horse is only a
reflection of you and what you require of
him.
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Question: Our horse is so badly bitten by the
others in the paddock that we've stopped
riding him because the saddle rubs the wounds
raw. Any suggestions? Answer: You did not
provide the requested information. With what
you told me, build a wall around your
paddock, put up hot wire, move the horse out
of the paddock, make sure it is big enough so
the horse can move away from the horses, sit
in the paddock and stop the other horses,
wrap the horse is foam, move the
horse............ you ask this like I can fix
this over an email, not sure how you see this
as a behavior issue, sounds like a people
issue where the horse pays.
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Question: I am 49 years old and have owned
horses all my life. I have however never
raise a colt. I have a new appaloosa stud
colt, I was with him when he was born and he
just turned 4 weeks old. I have made it part
of my daily routine to pet him and scratch
him, in an attempt to gain his confidence.
Today, I rubbed a foal halter on his mother
and then on him. He stood quietly while I
slid it up over his nose. When I started to
fasten it he started jumping and struggling.
I instinctively held on and let him fight it
out for 30 seconds or so and he settled down
and let me handle him any way I wanted to.
Did I do this right or is he too young?
Should I repeat this or should I leave the
halter on him awhile. The mare and colt run
freely from barn to pasture. I believe it is
relatively snag proof. Your advice would be
greatly appreciated. Answer: It sounds ok to
me, I would not have tried to put it on all
the way, the horse let you put put in on, you
should have taken that as a try and removed
it so the horse could get release. By holding
and trying to too fast you crated fear and
got in a situation where the horse had to
struggle. Had you touched the nose with it
and then removed it and then touched it
higher and removed it and then put it on and
removed it, several times, the colt would
never have struggled, it would have known
what to expect and would have gotten used to
it and not feared it.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question: I am 38 years old and have been
riding weekly for 2 months. I had a lot of
fear when I started from bad experiences as a
child when riding. I fell off a horse last
week and my teacher, knowing my background,
decided to put me on the horse that I am most
comfortable and bonded with when riding.
Yesterday my horse sat down when me on her
three times during the trail ride. This was
upsetting to me since having my experience
with falling off a different horse the week
prior. This was the first time this horse has
ever showed this behavior. Why did the horse
do that? This horse is in a herd of 15 other
horses and spends time in a stall and a
pasture. My teacher said that she spent more
time in the stall this past week than in the
pasture. Please help me understand. Answer:
lol, could be lot so things, but what is was
not was he was not being mean, he was not
trying to hurt you, the was not being bad.
There are so many reasons this could have
happened, but my guess would be it was hurt,
out of shape or weak from not being ridden or
it was confused was getting conflicting cues
and signals from you so it did not know what
to do or it knew that you were nervous and
scared and felt that you were tense and not
relaxed so maybe in this horse's past he sat
down one time and the rider got him, so he
remembered and decided to try it with you...
my guess is you got off him like you were
running from a burning building and a little
light went in on his head, and bell went
"Ding" and he said holy cow, I just figured
out how to get this girl off me, so he did it
again, and my guess is you got off again and
so the lesson goes, he trained you to get off
when he laid down.... They don't call horses
"professional people trainers" for nothing...
:) If you want to teach a horse to do
something make it comfortable for them, if
you want to teach them NOT to do something
make it uncomfortable for them. So when you
get off, you make him comfortable. When a
horse sits of TRIES to lay down with me, I
make him very uncomfortable, I squeeze, I
yell, I raise my hands, I wiggle in the
saddle, shake my legs, I act like I just won
the lottery and the horse goes holy crap, I
better not lay down my rider just went
crazy... and then we walk off for a nice
ride... :)
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Question: I am 43 years old and have been
riding since I was 11. I worked and trained
for a couple of facilities in my 20's mostly
in the Arab world. I showed in reining and
working cow classes myself but then went on
to just being a horse enthusiast and enjoying
my horses out on the trails and doing some
penning with friends. My horses are now 21
and 24 years old and have been in pasture the
past 7-10 years. They are sound and healthy
and was wondering now that my daughter is 12,
is it wrong to pull my 21 year old gelding in
from pasture and spend some time with him in
the saddle again so my daughter can enjoy
him? What are the pro's and cons? My daughter
is a beginner rider having taken lessons and
been out on the trails. She would just be
doing some basic arena work learning to walk,
jog, lope and learn some basic fundamentals.
I would love to pull him in for the summer
for her so she has her own horse instead of
always using someone else's. Please give me
some advice and direction on doing something
like this and if it is advisable. Answer:
Lots of options and lots of unknown. The 21
year old would be better since the 24 is
getting up there, but it would depend on
temperament, ability, attitude of horses, how
much time you spend re-teaching, how much
resistance the horse shows when ridden again,
how willing your daughter is (your idea or
hers) does she want to just run and jump or
does she realize that the horse is old and is
just an easy ride. You know the horse, you
know a whole lot more info than I do. The old
saying, "young troopers need old horses" this
has been around years since older horses tend
to be lazy, less likely to run off, buck or
hurt a young inexperienced rider. Older
horses tend to be less flighty and less
likely to want to fight. However, this old
horse has not been ridden every day and has
not been exposed to the same things that
older horses that are ridden everyday have.
You could bring this horse out and it could
allow you ride, be soft and show no
resistance since it knows you and then may
change with your daughter. I would teach your
daughter to work it on the ground, spend time
with it, develop a relationship, see how they
act together, you will see if problems like
pushiness, aggressive, biting or kicking
happens. Or if they bond like each other and
become friends. Too often people think you
can pick a path with a horse and then they
get stuck since they are unwilling to change
as the horse or situation changes. Too many
variables, each next step will depend on what
happens at each step. So to try and guess at
the results at the end is impossible, since
the will be determined by what is done with
the horse at each step of the way. Go slow,
start like the horse has never been ridden,
don't over work or push too hard, build a
good foundation and decided what to do after
you do this... You did what many do, you did
not break it down to little steps with lots
of release and repetition so the horse would
know what to expect and never would have
become confused and scared. You created fear
instead of removing it. Not a great lesson,
but no one got hurt so not a bad day.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It €™s funny, I would think
more women would be more compassionate about
this topic. If my wife was pregnant I would
have the attitude €œExercise
if good for you so go cut the
grass €. It probably would not
hurt her to cut the grass but most women I
know, who are or have been pregnant,
don €™t feel good, have
swelling in the joints, pain in the internal
organs, pressure in parts of the body they
did not know they had and not to mention you
have emotions and hormones in play more. I
try and look at horse €™s
like it was me. If I was a horse, what would
I want? I agree light riding will not
necessarily hurt a pregnant mare. However,
when a mare if pregnant they gain weight,
this puts more pressure on joints, legs and
body. So even when a horse can carries a
rider normally it is putting pressure on the
back, legs and joints. Now you add the weight
of being pregnant and you increase the chance
of causing lameness. Pregnant mares have a
higher chance of lameness just by being
pregnant, now you throw the weight of a rider
and you increase the chance of causing
lameness. If you end up causing lameness then
the mare could be confined to a stall which
is not good for her the baby and could cause
her to abort if the lameness was serious
enough. If the horse gets started, trips, or
spooks or falls it could cause or increase
the chance of a miscarriage. Pregnant mares
sometime get cinchy due to their girth is
sensitive and it is uncomfortable. Since this
sounds like your first pregnant mare, make
sure you check the wormer you are using, some
are good for pregnant mares and can harm the
foal. I will agree that exercise is good,
nice long walks, good pasture turn out and
not stalled is all good for the mare. A
general rule is if you ride at all, make it
light, slow and non-stressful. And only ride
for the first two trimesters and no riding in
the third. In horses, the baby stays
relatively small until the third trimester
when the foal really grows. If I was
pregnant, I know I have no experience in
this, but if, I would not think I would want
to be ridden that much, but would enjoy
walks, grazing and maybe light short rides.
Here is a good link to review about pregnant
mares.
http://www.equinecare.50megs.com/catalog.html
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A tom bit is the worst bit out there, it is
very painful and confusing to a horse. Head
tossing is normally caused by a horse looking
for release or hard hands on the reins. (I
have an article on a TThumb bit on my article
page, it will explain why this bit is so bad)
Ride the horse with just a halter I bet it
stops. A tie down is another cheat for trying
to fix the horse and not fixing yourself.
When you get better your horse gets better.
Have a good experienced rider try and ride
the horse if the head tossing stops then that
will confirm it is you. I have ridden many
head tossers and then I ride them and it
stops. I am soft on the reins and pay close
attention to any pressure I give on a rein.
This is also caused by insecure riders who
are scared and tend to ride tight reined and
want to hold the horse back since they think
it will run off, this will get a horse to
toss as well. First a light tom thumb is like
saying I saw a light elephant. The TT bit is
one of the worst pain producing bits out
there. Many people think it is a snaffle and
it is not. It is a leverage bit with a break
in the mouth piece, but most people think
since it has a break that it is a snaffle. If
I could get rid of the worst bits the TT
would be one of them. A twisted wire snaffle
is a snaffle but one of the worst snaffles
for pain. It causes it pain. I don't blame
this horse for running, he wants the rider
off and wants the pain to stop. So it makes
perfect sense what he is doing. I always tell
people that if you can't ride your horse in a
halter, then you should not be riding it in a
bit. A halter ensures you know how to control
the horse without pain, it makes you learn to
communicate with the horse verses make him do
things with pain. I don't use bits, don't
promote them and whenever I work with a horse
the first thing that goes is the bit and then
I get to the other issues, which normally
immediately become less as the bit goes away.
Now I know that any bit can be soft or hard,
depending on who is hold the reins, so the
other rider you talk of may be scared or
nervous of the horse, so her fear causes her
to hang on and pull the bit harder thinking
that is how she can control him, this is a
mistake of many riders, new and old. A bit
does not control a horse, never did and never
will, a horse will run with a broken jaw and
bloody lips and will ignore pain if they
think their life is in danger. Pain = fear =
reaction = run that is the way of the horse.
This is not a horse problem. I have a great
article, by someone else on the TT bit on my
articles page of my web site:
http://www.thinklikeahorse.org/horsearticles.htm
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ANSWER: Ok, don't take this wrong, but you
are very young, so when you say you have been
around horses your whole life, that really is
not very long. Even if you were around horses
when you 2, 5, 9, you are not learning
horses, you are just being around them, maybe
sitting on them. I tell people what I am
about to tell you and they 40, 50 or 60, so I
will tell and it is even more so. You don't
know much about horses and the fact that you
think you have all this experience only gets
in the way of you learning more. I can
guarantee you this is you causing all this.
You have look at this horse like a horse, not
your possession, not you property, not your
thing to order around and control and make it
do what you want. This is hard for younger
people. Everything you do with this horse,
you look at it as if you were a horse, would
like it? Just running around an arena is very
boring and most horses hate it. Jumping is
very hard on horses, it hurts their feet and
legs and they don't like it. Horses hardly
ever jump in the wild, they run around
things, by jumping they risk falling and
hurting a leg and they know that means death
in the wild, so horse don't jump, are not
made for jumping and it hurts them now and
later in life. You say you put leg on the
horse when it does not want to go and it
kicks, I forgot to ask if you wear spurs or
use a whip, this just makes the problem
worse. You are not looking at this horse as a
partner or friend and working buddy, you are
trying to show him who is boss, force him to
do things and make him listen, this is
probably what you have been taught. I would
suggest you work on being a horsewoman, learn
the horse, learn how it thinks and lives in
the wild, without people, try and connect
with your horse as another horse, not as an
owner or master. These problems can go away
overnight and it is up to you. If you read
and learn more about horses, then you will
understand how to treat them better so they
will give you what you want without you
making them or forcing them. As I said
earlier, you are young and lots of time to
learn, but this horse is being a teacher, a
horse is the best teacher of the horse, try
and listen more to what he is trying to say
and stop trying to make her listen and make
her do things, then you will see a big
change. If you want your horse to change, you
have to change. After all, you said you ride
the horse, and the problems started and
happen when you handle or ride the horse, so
you are causing the reactions and actions of
the horse, when you get better, your horse
will get better.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
lol, you sound like you are doing a lot and
it sounds like maybe too much. Your free
choice hay idea is good, but I would just put
two or three flakes in the morning and see
how long that last, then at night, if it is
all gone then put four flakes, when a horse
gets enough food they will get picky and will
only eat the good stuff and leave stems, so
if he is picking and leaving food then too
much, if he is almost eating everything, then
you are good. As for NEEDING to put on
weight, ease up, it takes a long time for a
horse to get really thin, then people, mainly
women, get this horse feel sorry for them and
try and feed the crap out of them and can
shock the system, it is worse to go from no
food and then excess fat food to quickly. The
US found this out when we sent too much milk
to a deprived country and all the kids were
dying from the mild since it shocked their
system to fast. Horses put on weight slowly,
let it take it's time, with feed and just
about everything else with horses, "THE SLOW
WAY IS THE FAST WAY" The horse is under
weight from neglect, with just getting fed
normal and good hay, he will put his weight
back on in time, DON'T TRY AND FIX THIS IN A
MONTH, you will cause other problems with
this horse. Too much grain and fatty food is
not good, so a few "cups" in the morning and
few at night (no more than 3 each feeding)
will be more than enough for this horse.
"Less is more with horses" Make sure he has
been wormed, make sure he has a salt block,
and get him some exercise, people want to
feed horse and then lock them up with no
exercise, he needs exercise to build muscle
and grow slowly, if you just make him fat
with no exercise, he will have bone and other
issues when he can't carry his weight.
Alfalfa is known to be good for putting on
weight, so the mix will be fine, the runny
poop is probably from all the grain and
weight gain, and other crap, back on that,
grass hay is what horse eat and do best on,
stick with that and he will be fine. Yes some
alfalfa can cause the runs, but that is when
it is too rich, normally first or second
cutting and if the horse is only being fed
alfalfa. I know you mean well, but you got
the horse from his neglected home and he is
getting good food, let it go slow and in six
months of just having food, you will see big
change, but exercise is needed too, that will
make him want to eat and will build muscle
and well help him heal emotionally.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Holy Crap, I don't have enough time or space
to give you the cons. If you are getting it
as a pet to just feed and brush, not a big
deal, if you plan on starting it under saddle
and riding it, the short list is you can get
killed or hurt, you screw up the young horse
so bad you can't sell it or give it away, you
get hurt and get out of horses all together,
you can't ride for at least four years and
then for the 3 years it is still in training,
you never can relax and enjoy riding with a
young horse, it is such a bad idea. Green
owners should NOT own green horses...Green on
green = black and blue. I tell people this
all the time and they don't listen and I have
yet to have one person I told this that did
not agree with a year later, but then it is
too late and you own a spoiled,
uncontrollable horse that no one wants and
you end up either getting out of horses from
frustration or get out from getting hurt and
you can longer ride. Read my horsemanship and
bad horsemanship page for more examples.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First I would say get rid of the chain, no
horse needs a stud chain, it hurts, it does
not create trust, it does create fear and
pain, I agree you do need a refresher, horses
do not respond to fear and pain, they get
more fearful and learn not to trust the one
that hurts them. You said the horse does not
have the skills to realize you walk around
people and not over them, I say it all the
when you blame your horse, you describe
yourself. I think you do not the skills to
teach him how to not be fearful of you, no
skills to teach him to trust you, and no
skills to communicate with him unless you use
a chain to hurt him. I try and be the voice
of the horse. You horse is trying to tell you
this and you are not understanding this. If
you give him better direction you will not
have to call him names like he has no skills.
Your horse is only a horse and that is all he
knows. Any bad habits he has came from
people, any bad habits he keeps comes from
you, any new bad habits he gets comes from
you and anything he learn good comes from
you. Don't blame your horse, look to yourself
for the answers. Fix yourself and your horse
will get better.All horses can be fixed after
people have screwed them up, it will just
take horse time. Horse time is as long it
takes a horse to get it. Some take longer,
some take shorter, but they all get it if it
is done right. I am not a bit person, so I
would try and to a bosal and get rid of the
mech hack. However, not sure you can show in
that. She has to learn that the bit will not
hurt her or cause pain. So I would get a
snaffle and one piece leather head stall
(hanger) and let the wear the bit, no reins,
no pulling, just let her learn to carry the
bit. After a few days of this, then do some
attach small light reins, maybe even sting,
then let her carry it and just use the sting
lightly to show her she can get pressure on
the bit without it hurting. After a while of
that, you use reins, make sure you can flex
her and she knows how to give to pressure
from the ground before you try and use the
bit in the saddle.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question: Hi I have a year old colt which has
briefly been handled - he comes up to me in
his own time and licks my hand - i can then
gently stroke is neck and then move to his
shoulder. He then sometimes walks off and
then comes back again for some more. My
difficulty is that i cannot get a head collar
on him - if he sees the head collar he is off
and wont even come near me. If i do managed
to get it near him and stroke him with it he
will then walk off. If i tried to do it up
around his neck he just darts off. Any
suggestions please. Answer: Horses know what
is going to happen before it happens, so you
are changing your body and behavior and maybe
sneaking or trying to be too easy and too
careful, this tells the horse you are up to
something and makes them want to flee. Carry
a collar with you and DON'T try and catch
him, just do your the same thing you do when
you don't have the collar, no matter how much
you think you can catch him don't, just carry
the collar, rub him with it and let him get
use to you having it and not being caught,
after a few successes then try and feed him
in a small pen or stall or small fenced in
area so he cannot run away too easy and then
try and put the collar on. Every time he runs
off from you, he tells you you are lower, he
is higher, you can't stop him, he is in
charge, he is smarter than you and he should
not trust you. All bad lessons, it is better
if you walk away first, you leave him, make
him want to follow you, make him think you
are higher, you leave first and you are
smarter. The slow way is the fast way, so
just hang out with him, spend lots of time
just hanging out, not petting chasing or any
pressure things, just handing and being part
of his herd, trust will follow and things
will get easier. All horses are dangerous if
pushed too fast, if handled wrong, if abused,
if cornered or if put into a situation where
they think their life is in danger. If the
only advice you "trainer" can give you is he
is dangerous, then that trainer is just as
dangerous for calling himself a trainer.
First you terminology bugs me, good horsemen
or horsewomen do not "break" horses, this
implies rough handling, breaking the spirit
and forcing a horse with fear, pain and
intimidation. Good natural horseman "start"
horses, by using natural instincts of a horse
to help a horse learn and deal with their
fear, using time, patience and understanding.
I know it is just a word, but wanted to make
sure you knew what I meant when I used the
word "start" This horse is telling you
something, you have figure out what. You have
to be a horse and try and see this from a
horse's point of view. Why he is doing this,
what is causing this (you?), how can you help
the horse understand what you want, how can
you work with him to get him to work with you
and deal with his fear. I do not think this
horse is doing this just to get out of work,
that is what humans would do. A horse accepts
his life when he understands he has no other
options and he is not in danger. This sounds
like a combo of issues but the two that
scream out to me is lack of respect and
improper starting (foundation, training from
this trainer) and previous mishandling. The
fact that you got on this horse and rode him
does not impress me and I think you are
gambling with luck. Each time he runs off,
stops you from mounting, pushes you away or
gets away from you, he thinks he is smarter,
he is higher and you are weak, not a good
leader and he should not trust you. This is
key to getting a horse to respond to your
request. You have to change what you are
doing so the horse will change what it is
doing. If you keep doing the same thing, the
horse will keep doing the same thing. This
horse does not trust you or respect you, that
is the bottom line, fix that and most all
other problems will go away. You are taking
the easy way if you continue to allow this
and then ride him and think he is safe, trust
you or respects you, then you are making a
bad decision and setting yourself and this
horse up for failure. Deal with this respect
and trust issue on the ground and go back to
riding, if you take the time it takes, it
will take less time. The slow way is the fast
way with horses. Read my horsemanship page on
my web site, really understand herd behavior
and sacking out, if you do this you will grow
and help this horse, if you decide to rush it
and not put in the time, then you cheat
yourself and the horse. good luck,
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Most of my advice deals with what we do as
riders that cause the problems. Since you are
the only one handling this horse, you have
taught him to do what he does. Soft hands
make soft horses, a horse will not pull
against nothing??? So first work on your
hands, really learn and practice holding and
NOT pulling and giving back as soon as the
horse gives. Do some riding with a rope
halter and ONE rein riding, this teaches you
to use one rein independently, to control the
softly since you cannot cheat and use two
reins, then after a few rides with just one
rein, you will learn how to pay attention and
really concentrate on one hand, one rein, one
cue, and one answer. This also teaches you
how to communicate with your horse since you
have to be easy, since you only have one
rein.
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The problem is in the paddock and in the
stall. We moved him to a new barn a few
months ago, and he became uncontrollably
psychotic. When he wasn't
bucking&bolting, he was very nervous
about being away from other horses. The barn
is set up so that he only consistently sees 2
other horses and occasionally sees 7 others,
but has no interaction with them. He has
gotten better about the paddock, but the
owner of the barn tells me that he is still
pacing back and forth, even when there is hay
in the paddock. She cut the paddock in half
to try to get him to stop, but he needs the
bigger paddock because of arthritic stifles.
I haven't seen him pace much as of late. When
i or my mom is there, he is quiet. He is
still bad in the barn for me when all the
other horses are outside. He is also bad if
the two other horses are being worked at the
same time and he can't see them. I'm at my
whit's end and i have no idea what to do. The
barn owner told us that me that we should
start looking at a new place for him as he is
"very unhappy there." This is true but we are
unable to move to another barn at this time.
Please help!
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ANSWER: The worst thing you can do is make
his paddock smaller, he needs horses to feel
safe, you are abusing this horse by keeping
him locked up in a small area. If you cannot
provide better care then you should not have
him. Find him a pasture with other horses
even if means you can't see him as often or
as much, you are killing this horse mentally
and his behavior will only get worse and then
he will end up hurting you when you ride him
and then he will get blamed for being a bad
horse.
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Horses are made to be locked up alone, it is
the worst thing for a horse. I discuss this
on my Bad Horsemanship page of my website.
Don't be selfish and keep this horse so you
have a horse, you will end up getting hurt by
this poor horse that is going crazy since he
is being caged and jailed.
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Answer: Well you are very detailed in your
information and I wonder if you are the same
way with your horse. Too much information may
over load this horse. Try and do less, with
horses less is more. Try and ride this horse
nice and slow NOT in arena or jumps, just
have a nice calm ride with him, get to know
him as a horse and let him get to know you
without all the yields, leg pressure, bit
controls, commands, lead, hip in and out,
hindquarter control, transitions, jumps,
trots, canters, diagonals, etc.... Just be
his friend and see what he tells you when you
just hang out with him. It sounds like he is
trying to tell lots, but maybe you are not
able to him since you are so focused on all
the specifics and riding rules.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question: I am a forty year old female with a
12 year old gelding. He was given as a gift.
He is fine with my husband as the herd leader
but not so with me. When feeding in the field
he has run around me, blocked me and turned
his but to me. I am fearful of what he might
do next. I tried to lunge him - worked for
that day only. I thought the bag idea was a
really good for the young ones but don't want
to cause spookiness in this older one.
Help!!! Answer: Don't worry about spooky,
teach this horse not to mess with you, he is
testing you and if you do not respond with
making him move he will see you as weak, a
lower horse and his behavior will get worse.
Any act of disrespect from him to you should
be dealt with hard and seriously, so he will
respect and will know the right answer is not
to mess with people, I don't think you will
make him spooky and even if you do, at least
you will be safe.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Answer: I agree, Ray would not agree with
that. You said you want the horse back that
you had, which implies he was good when you
got him and now he is not, which means you
make him the way he is. If he was already
this way when you got him, then whatever you
have done has not worked and you have failed
to help him, so either way you need to change
what you are doing if you want your horse to
change. Most catching problems are from bad
catches, people problems. I catch my horses
some time to just them a carrot, some time
just to walk them to fresh grass to let them
eat, some time to bring them in for grain,
some time to just groom them, and some time
to ride them.... so they never know what will
happen when I catch them, but they do know
that it will not always be bad or work.....
So I have kept the curiosity alive the horse.
Too many people only catch a horse to lock
them in a stall, to saddle them up, to take
them to a round pen, to pull them away from
their herd, to work them, to show them who is
boss, etc... I am surprised on how many
horses allow them self to be caught... Change
what you are doing and your horse will
change, hang out with your horse without
trying to catch him, spend time with your
horse being a good pasture mate, make it
worth something to the horse so he will want
to be with you rather than worry when he see
you... The horse is never wrong and it is
never the horse's fault.
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Answer: lol, not sure what I said, but you
are right, I do not listen to people as well
as horses. However, each of your emails tend
to be about YOU telling me what I should be
listening too, what I should be seeing and
what I should be telling you. This is email,
and since 75% or more of communication is
NON-Verbal, you are only getting maybe 25% of
my message. So words and ideas tend to get
lost or blurred. So perhaps, you could maybe
take what you can from my answer, even thou
it is not perfect, like you and your horse,
and maybe accept what little help you get and
be happy with small victories, then maybe you
would grow to listen to your horse and hear
more than what you want, what you think or
what other tell you. My answers are the best
I can from a short email on complex subject
hearing only YOUR side!!! I do not get to
talk or see the horse's view, I do not get to
see you and get your non verbals and you do
not get to see mine. So another observation I
get from your email is, you want more, you
want perfection, you want it your way and
cannot accept small help, small tries and
small victories. If I helped your horse just
a little bit, I really don't care if I helped
you, make you feel valued, made you feel
special, or whatever else you are looking
for. I DO THIS TO HELP HORSES! So, if you
FEEL better telling me how I don't listen,
how I did not help, how I did not
whatever................ Sleep on this, YOU
asked me, I do this for free, I don't ask for
anything in return and 75% of the people I
try and help, blame me or their horse so I
have become very uncaring about what people
say, since I know, I do this for the horse
not for people. It is never the horse's
fault, the horse is never wrong, and people
cause most all problems with horses! A good
horseman can hear a horse talk, a great
horseman can hear a horse whisper and a bad
horseman will not hear a horse even if it
screams.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Answer: Well, a lot of errors on your part.
Most are common rookie mistakes, but like I
always say, a horse has to pay for our
mistakes and have no choice in the matter.
The hot wire is dumb, hot should not be on
gate or where horses walk through a lot,
every time a horse get hit with hot wire and
you are holding or leading or with the horse,
the horse thinks you did it, does not know
why and it destroys trust and makes a horse
not want to be with you.... I agree with the
horse, if I got shocked for no reason when
you were around, I would not want to be
around you. Horse know how to run and protect
them self if we humans stay out of it. So you
need to pay more attention and be more aware.
You suckered your horse into an area with
another horse and then cornered him (held on
to lead rope) and prevented him from running
or protecting himself. A whip may help for a
while, but you need to make sure EVERY horse
knows you are high horse and don't mess with
you don't approach you and don't come near
you unless you invite them in. And the time
to teach this is not when your poor horse is
stuck in the middle or forced to be there. As
for when you said the herd or horses make you
chase, that is absolutely bullcrap a horse
does not make you chase them you choose to
chase them and you do it, Since you do not
know what else to do, since you decide to
chase, since you failed to learn how to be
part of a herd and how to enter a herd as
leader, you force the horses to run. This is
another rookie move and only inexperienced
horse people do this, since they fail to grow
and learn better more effective ways of
dealing and communicating with horses. Work
on your self and your horse horse will get
better. Listen to others who do not know and
you will continue to repeat their mistakes.
Learn for yourself, read, study the horse,
spend time hanging out and being with horses,
listen to horses and stop always trying to
teach them and show them, learn from them,
they are the best teacher of the horse.
Knowledge of the horse is the best gift you
can give to a horse.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question: Now, per your advice, I'm regularly
ponying both problem mares and they love it!
The first time I ponied the bucking mare, she
pulled her lead out of my hands. She galloped
all over with the lead slamming her rear
until she figured out to gallop back to my
old gelding and me and beg forgiveness. She
never tried it again. Now she makes those
happy blowing sounds as we ride and keeps the
lead loose even though I insist on keeping
her nose within 3 feet of my knee. As for the
Paso Fino mare, today I took her on her first
serious bush whacking expedition, to a peak
of Monte Largo. I'd call it just a steep hill
with sliding rocks and cactus and junipers,
but back East people might call it a
mountain. She was worried at first when we
turned to go down as she had to just about
sit on her rump it was so steep, but after
just two or three minutes she gathered up her
courage. I'm also trying out longing the
bucking mare the donkey training way, walking
with her in small circles as she circles just
eight feet away from me, and then doing the
pivot on hind feet, then pivot on front feet
the way you do it with donkeys. Interestingly
enough, she has been making those happy
blowing sounds when we do these exercises,
which she never did before with Parelli-style
"games". Answer: Thanks for kind words. Being
right is not my goal, helping horses get a
better deal is why I do this. I really did
nothing, I tell people all the time, it is
never the horse's fault. So if it is always
our fault then when a horse does good, it is
because we did good, we listened, we set the
horse up for success, we gave good directions
and helped the horse find the right answer.
You changed what you were doing so the horse
changed. Glad to hear your are enjoying your
horses more and it seems your horses are
enjoying you more. Don't forget the lesson,
horses are just a reflection of us and what
we do. Happy trails,
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ANSWER: First I would stop caring or worrying
about what she does in pasture, who cares if
she plays runs, gets exercise, spooks, you
said she was under weight and now getting
good hay, beet pulp and other good food, now
she has energy she never had before since she
was starving, now she is learning how to use
her feet, body, turn and play and be a horse.
This barn manager that wants to pull her out
of field is an idiot, if a horse in a field
is bothering someone getting a lesson, then
the instructor and person getting the lesson
needs to worry about what they are doing and
now what a horse in pasture is doing. That is
just a bunch of crazy horse women who want to
try and control the world instead of
controlling their horse. I also think you are
reacting too much to this horse and it is
causing confusion. Ignore anything the horse
does and stay focused on what you want, no
matter what she does, do not react, do not
try and stop it, do not try and correct it,
just stay focused on what you want. This
horse is could have eye sight issues and if
she is losing her sight, that is very scary
for a horse. It could be that she knows
everyone around her gives her attention and
stops trying to make her work when she
spooks, so she could be training you and
others that she is crazy so she does not have
to work. When I say give direction, I mean
stop reacting to her, just keep showing what
you want, stay focused on the task, don't let
her distract you or get you to stop or change
what you are doing. By not reacting to her,
you show her you are smart, you are strong
and a good leader. 1: All horses drop gran,
in the wild they do not get grain, they chew,
grass, long and they even drop grass some
time, so dropping grain is not that rare, in
fact,very normal. Feed him in a bucket, if it
drop he can still pick up and eat again.
Horses kept in pasture and graze have better
teeth then horses stalled and fed grain and
hay. A horse does not need to be put down to
float teeth, many years ago, it was very rare
for a horse to get meds to get teeth floated,
if the horse is sacked out and handled
enough, not need for meds. 2: This horse is
old and may have immunities or may be old and
have a lower defense, personal choice, if it
aint hurting him, I would get them but spread
them out every two or three months and don't
shock and over power the system with all of
them at once. 3: Coughing is a Vet questions,
your horse is old, in the wild not to many
horses make it past 10 or 12, not worming, no
vit, no grain, no feet care, no fresh water
in winter, colic, no teeth work, no shots, so
we have made it to where we keep horses alive
longer, but they legs, muscles, joints, body
starts deteriorating, so riding a horse in
later years is very very hard on a horse. You
like it and feel safe, but it can be really
hard on an older horse. If this horse has
given you many years of good rides, lesson
and love, you may want to get another horse
(not a young 3 year old) so you and this
horse can still go out, maybe pony and let
the horse get exercise walking with you and
not being ridden. I see and hear people
riding horses 28 and 30, I just think this is
not good for a horse.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Answer: Its sounds like you rode her too much
and too hard too fast. You said she had not
been ridden and then you said I rode her
alot. It would be like you sitting on the
couch all winter and then I drag you out and
make you 20 miles, you would sore, hurting,
not happy and may sit down yourself. What you
did is a good way to get a horse sour to
riding, sour to being with you, sour to
getting saddled, makes them sore so when you
ride them the next day she will buck from
pain and soreness. Treat a horse the way you
would want to be treated. The slow way is the
fast way with horses. I would give her a week
or so off and then SLOWLY get her back in
shape, take short easy rides. It may have
only been a test, but since you did what you
did there is no way of knowing. It could also
be a back injury, it would a pulled muscle or
tendon that was aggravated from a lot of
riding. Approach things from a horse's point
of view. It is not fun him either. You are
looking at this as a horse problem. I see
this as a YOU problem. I see this as you are
not giving clear cues, the horse is confuse,
the horse is not ready, you have not taught
the horse what you want, you have prepared
the horse so he knows what you want, you are
going too fast, you are asking what the horse
cannot give yet, you are pushing too hard or
not pushing hard enough...... as you see, I
think most all horse problems are people
problems. I think this since if a trainer, or
experience horseman or someone can get on a
horse and make the horse better and do things
that another can't, then it always tells me
that the horse can do anything if it is asked
right, taught right and showed right. A horse
knows how to be a horse, too many people try
to fix a horse, try to make a horse better,
try to teach a horse..... if people listened
to a horse and learned from a horse, then
there would be less horse problems. No matter
what you are doing, it is either not working,
the horse is confused, or the horse does not
know what you want or what the right answer
is. It always comes back to you or me or
anyone. Until you see this as a you problem,
YOU can't fix it. Try going back to basic,
get your horse to stop and go when you tell
him, forget where he goes.... once you get
him good at stopping and moving when you tell
him, then work on moving and changing
directions, left and right, stop and starts,
then when he gets good at that, then have him
go to one point and stop. Then go to another
point and stop. If you take a few weeks and
some time, you will get better with your cues
and he will get better understanding what you
want. It is a partnership, not a horse that
you have to constantly correct...???
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Answer: Well from your question you sound
like you think a bit stops a horse and you
say the horse runs or walks thru it. This
tells me you are pulling on the bit to try
and stop the horse, this will not work and
will only teach the horse pull, which is what
your horse is doing. Never ever pull on two
reins when stopping a horse, only one rein,
your goal is to get the horse to circle and
bend his head one way, that will slow him,
make him uncomfortable and he will want to
stop, you are trying to use the bit, pain
from the bit to make him stop, that will not
work. Read my horsemanship page so you can
understand how horses think. As for bits, I
don't use any bit and believe that if you
cannot stop a horse in a halter, then you
should not be riding them. A snaffle bit is a
NON leverage bit, when you pull one pound the
horse feels one pound this is better for the
horse, helps you develop feel. A curb bit is
a Leverage bit, it give 3 to 5 pounds of
pressure for every one pound you pull, it is
more painful, it can hurt more with less
pull. A curb bit is for a horse that is neck
reined and is softer. A snaffle is a training
bit that is more forgiving of hard or
inexperienced hands. You are blaming the
horse and the bit for the horse not stopping
or running through a bit..... I say YOU are
the reason this is happening. I assure you I
could ride this horse in a halter and this
horse would stop within 10 to 20 mins. I
would say ride this horse in a halter in a
round pen or small enclosed area so he cannot
run off, teach him to stop with body cues and
not from pain of a bit, then you will not
need a bit to stop him and your confidence
will grow and so will the horse.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question: I have been working with my stud
and his ground manners are very good. But
when it comes to the saddle pad and the
saddle he freaks out. What can I do to make
this an easier experience for the both of us.
Answer: When you say he freaks out that tells
me you have not prepared him properly. You
need to work on sacking out, that will build
trust and teach you to read him and teach him
that you can put pressure and remove
pressure. Read my horsemanship page and it
will help you understand why your horse does
it does.
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QUESTION: We have a herd of 3 mares and 3
geldings. The last horse on the place is my
14 yr. old Buckskin gelding. At first he
seemed fine at the bottom of the pecking
order but once the alpha mare went onto heat,
he started acting differently. Out of the
blue he attacked my 20 yr. old paint gelding.
He kept biting him and ran him through an
electric fence. My paint ended up in the
middle of a 2 lane highway and thank God he
wasn't hit. Now I have to keep my paint in a
box stall or the outdoor arena or the
Buckskin attacks him. The alpha mare isn't
doing much to protect the paint but she kind
of tries to "boss" the Buckskin around. Can I
ever put the two geldings out together again?
I am concerned for the paint because he is 20
and I don't want him bullied or badly hurt.
What should I do? ANSWER: I say stop trying
to protect horses from horse, this is the
natural order, the older gelding is getting
slower and weaker, so instincts tell the
other horses they have to move. The 20 yr old
tries to hang on and has to make sure the 14
yr old is ready. Once the 20 yr old accepts
this they will stop fighting, you are trying
to prevent something and all you are doing is
making it worse and prolonging it. You do not
have to keep the horse in a box stall you
think you have to. This is nothing but horses
being horses, if the fence was not there,
like in the wild, the horse would have worked
this out and all would be fine, since the
fence was there and since you locked the
horse up, you think you helped and I think
you made it worse. Put the two in a round pen
with no corners and no fence and they will
run, kick, bite and rear and will work it out
and the winner will be higher and the loser
will be lower.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Answer: When something is not working stop
and look at what you are doing. If the horse
is playing with the halter, then it is not
scared of it, so that tells me that you are
trying too hard and not the right way. You
have to get the horse used to you rubbing and
being around his face before you move to
trying to put something on his face. So lots
of rubs, scratches, give carrots with one
hand while the other hand is rubbing ears and
eyes, very short rubs and touches with lots
of RELEASE. You have to stop doing something
before the horse moves or makes you stop,
then slowly do it longer and longer so the
horse learns to expect it, after you do this
a while then add just a rope, do not catch or
try and hold, just rub the rope around the
head, ears and eyes, mouth etc... then after
lots of that then maybe put the rope around
his nose and around his head, then take off
(release) after the horse tells you he is
good with those little steps, then rub the
halter around and let him get used to that,
don't try and put it on, just let him learn
that it will not hurt him, then when the
horse tells you he is ready, you can put it
on...once you get it one don't try and drag
him around and pull him or go too fast.. this
horse needs lots of time to learn and figure
out he is safe with you and with things you
put on him.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Answer: Like most horse problems, people
normally cause them. When you get better your
horse gets better. The horse is seven and you
got him at two, that means he has had almost
5 years to figure you out. Horses know what
is going to happen before it happens. This
horse knows you and feels safe with you but
does not see you a strong leader or he would
not do the things he is doing. You need to
look at this as your problem, don't try and
fix the horse, improve yourself, learn and
work on what you are doing wrong, fix that
and the horse issues will go away. This may
sound strange, but I assure it, I have seen a
thousand times. The sooner people fix them
self, their horse gets better. You need to
work on your communication, you leadership
role, your higher position, work on
understand and listening to this horse,
understand why he is doing what he doing and
how you are contributing to what he is doing,
once you find that then you can change what
you are doing and your horse will change. If
you do the same thing, you horse will do the
same thing. People always want their horse to
change but they are not will to accept their
part and change to make it better and easier
for the horse. Read my horsemanship and it
will help you see horses different. I put my
site together so people that wanted to read
and take the time to learn and improve their
knowledge, they could do it for free. So read
my entire site and you will learn things you
never knew about horses and you will them
different, then you will change how you deal
with them and you will see as your grow your
horse gets better.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Answer: I am a big anti Tom Thumb bit, here
is a link to a good article on that bit the
explains how bad it is.
http://www.markrashid.com/trouble_with_tom_thumb.htm
The bit is not the issue, you, your hands and
ability is the issue. Since you have been
riding in a TT, you have been relying on the
pain and pressure of the bit so you have not
been concentrating on your hands, you
softness, your horse's responses, so you have
trained yourself to be hard hands,
unconsciously, and you have trained your
horse to ignore you, not pay attention to you
and to only listen if you are rough, cause
pain and hurt him. Bad lessons all around. So
a snaffle or hackamore is a direct rein
device, so you will have less strength, less
pain and less control AT FIRST. But this will
force you to work with your horse, pay
attention to your horse and have better
communication with your horse. People that
use TT tend to be poor horsepeople since they
have relied on this pain device, so they
normally lack confidence and the ability to
control and ride a horse without the cheat of
a pain device. So you will have to commit to
learn and change your old ways of riding and
learn and grow and work with your horse as a
partner and not as you being a ruler. The
fact is you should not be riding any horse
with any bit unless you can ride them in a
halter. Read my site, on my horsemanship page
on riding with one rein and learning to ride
with just a halter, this will make you better
able to change and feel like you have
control, so start in a round pen or small
enclosed area so you can learn to talk to
your horse without pain. Soft hands make soft
horses; hard hands make hard horses
absolutely think this is an handling issue
and human issue. If this person does not like
QH and your horse is a QH, I would say that
is your answer. Anyone that claims to be a
trainer or expert and then groups horses into
breeds is an idiot in my book. A horse is a
horse, period. Some breeds have different
pros and cons, but they are all horses, they
are all prey animals and they are all fear
based and have strong survival instincts. I
can make a horse head shy in about two
minutes, if I hit the horse in the face, hit
with a rope in the face, punch it or do
anything painful to the face, the horse will
learn fast and will move his head anytime
something moves to his face. You can test
this. Give your horse a treat, if it takes it
without shying then give this "expert
trainer" a treat and ask him to give it to
your horse, the horse will tell you if he is
the one making him head shy. Food is a blamed
for many of horse problems, it can have some
influence but rarely enough to create
dramatic changes. Rolled oats are fine for a
horse and they have been eating them for
years, I feed my horse oats. It may give more
energy, it may make them feel stronger, it
may increase their alertness, but so will
just about anything you feed a horse. We feed
good grown, good fertilized and high quality
hay, then we grain them with high energy
grain, then we give vitamin supplements,
maybe some corn oil, beet pulp, rice bran,
corn sweet feed, sugar treats, alfalfa hay
and then lock a horse up in a stall and
wonder why they get excited when we handle
them. Like most horse problems they are
really people problems. Moderation is the
key, not too much of any one thing. More
exercise and turn out time, more ride time,
more handling time will make better horses.
You can make a horse listen no matter what he
eats if the horse sees you as his leader and
you understand horses. So anyone that starts
trying to address horse issues with food,
stalls, equipment, surroundings, just don't
get it. I am in California so not too to
Ohio, sorry. This can be fixed easy with
proper handling and keeping Yahoo's away from
your horse. Don't try and address this head
shy problem and try and fix it. Just be
normal and lots of rubs to head and face so
the horse will learn to enjoy it and will not
associate it with slaps, yanks or hits. This
is based on the facts you provided. If you
see a head shy problem as a head shy problem
and it really is a disrespect issue and the
horse is just showing you that you are not
the boss and that she is not going to let you
touch her head, then this is a different
issue.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All horses are a dream until you ask them to
do something or put pressure on them. Forget
what happen as a colt, it is not important.
Keeping him in a paddock and locked up is the
biggest problem. A horse needs other horses
to feel safe, to learn, to play, to get
scared, to be able to run and play,
especially Geldings. As for him running off
when you get on, you should not be getting on
until you are sure he wont run off. Small
steps, a little at a time, hobble train him
and teach him to tie well with a ROPE HALTER.
Do your first mounts when tied and then when
hobbled in an enclosed area, so if he runs
off he can only go in a circle. You should
not get on until you are sure he will not run
off. So just put a foot in and get off, put
weight on stirrup and get off, stand in
stirrup and get off, lean over saddle and get
off, put a leg over and get off immediately.
You have to show him that he is not trapped
when you get on teach him that you get off
every time you get on, so he learns the right
response is to stand still. Yes, absolutely
put him with the other horses all the time.
They will teach him more in a day than you
can in a year. He needs to learn manners,
respect, move from pressure, pecking order
and many other things. He is going crazy from
being alone. He will get meaner and more
uncontrollable the more you keep him alone.
Let them do the hard lesson so you will not
have to. He will still bite you and
disrespect you if you do not show him you are
higher, but the other horses will make it
clear how he treats higher horses, which will
be you when you two are together. First a
light tom thumb is like saying I saw a light
elephant. The TT bit is one of the worst pain
producing bits out there. Many people think
it is a snaffle and it is not. It is a
leverage bit with a break in the mouth piece,
but most people think since it has a break
that it is a snaffle. If I could get rid of
the worst bits the TT would be one of them. A
twisted wire snaffle is a snaffle but one of
the worst snaffles for pain. It causes it
pain. I don't blame this horse for running,
he wants the rider off and wants the pain to
stop. So it makes perfect sense what he is
doing. I always tell people that if you can't
ride your horse in a halter, then you should
not be riding it in a bit. A halter ensures
you know how to control the horse without
pain, it makes you learn to communicate with
the horse verses make him do things with
pain. I don't use bits, don't promote them
and whenever I work with a horse the first
thing that goes is the bit and then I get to
the other issues, which normally immediately
become less as the bit goes away. Now I know
that any bit can be soft or hard, depending
on who is hold the reins, so the other rider
you talk of may be scared or nervous of the
horse, so her fear causes her to hang on and
pull the bit harder thinking that is how she
can control him, this is a mistake of many
riders, new and old. A bit does not control a
horse, never did and never will, a horse will
run with a broken jaw and bloody lips and
will ignore pain if they think their life is
in danger. Pain = fear = reaction = run that
is the way of the horse.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I am 46 years old, and have very little horse
experience. I haven't done anything to fix
problem, but try to scold the older horse.
Both horses are male and in a pasture with a
barn.I have a 20 ish year old Tennessee
Walker, have had him 4 or so months. I put in
a 2 year old quarter horse. The Tn Walker
bites and runs the quarter horse, especially
while I am there feeding them, ( in different
troughs ). The quarter ran through a barbed
wire fence that was near a pond and cut up
his face area. His eyes are ok, no major cuts
or damage. Should I not worry or think of
separating them? ANSWER: How long have they
been together? How big is the area? Feed in
the middle of the pasture with different
piles, at least three and at least 20 feet
apart. This is normal herd behavior, the
older one is teaching the young one manners.
Don't separate them, in a few days or a week
they will be buddies. Read my horsemanship
page, it will help you understand what is
going on. You need to educate your self about
horses more so you will understand what and
why they do what they do. This totally
normal. Rick ---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: They have only been together for 4
or 5 days. They are in a several acre
pasture. Why 3 piles and not just 2 piles?
Answer: lol, see there you go wanting a quick
answer and a fast fix, I explain this in
detail on my site. If you understood horses
you would know this. Food is competition, the
lead horse gets to eat first, gets to eat the
best food, gets to drink first, this is how
horses live, if you understood this you would
know how to prevent problems and then would
not have to ask others how to fix problems.
Prevention is better than treatment,
direction is better than correction, knowing
is better than asking. Well for 16 you show
more character than a lot of adults. You need
to be honest and let the buyer know what you
think, if they make a choice to buy the horse
then they accept that this, like any horse,
may or not be prefect and will make mistakes.
Tell people what her good points are, what
her problems are and let them make the
decision. You are not forcing anyone to buy
the horse, so as long as you are honest,
don't worry about what the horse does after
you sell it. Now for the making money part,
this gets my goat, a horse that is a loyal
friend and companion, as given you years of
enjoyment, pleasure and many good rides, for
you to worry about money is offense to me. If
I got rid of my horse, I would much rather
give him away to a good home where I know he
would not be abused or neglect then sell him
for $10,000 to someone that did not care
about him. Selling a horse should not be
about money, it should be about finding a
home for an animal that you own and have
accepted responsibility for many years ago,
just because you sell a horse does not mean
you are released of the responsibility for
the good safe care of the horse. It would be
like if the slaughter house gave me the best
price for my horse I should sell it to
them.... that is not being a good
horseperson. Find your horse a good home and
even if you take a loss, you owe it to your
friend who have given you much over the
years. That is my take,
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
First, your dream means nothing to the horse.
Your horse wants understanding. You need to
understand horses better. Just from what you
told me your story has been told a 1000
times. Your horse should not be showing any
teeth, this is a severe show of lack of
respect, you need to do ground work, round
penning and teach this horse that you are the
leader, head horse and she must not treat you
like a lower horse. You have not defined the
pecking order she has. Not good. Don't ride
her anymore, you are teaching her to throw
you, every time she does it she finds and
thinks that is the right answer and that is
how she gets release. Read my web site, every
page, you start to see horses different and
it will help get you in a better starting
point. All young horses bite or nip, they are
just testing to see if it ok, don't lecture
him, just bop, swap, smack on the mouth the
second he does it, you can let him nuzzle,
and rub and explore with his nose, but the
second he puts teeth, whack him and move on
forget it, don't carry on and make a bid deal
about it, the correction should never be
longer than the act. As for the other horses,
I would put him in with them immediately, if
may make it harder for you to catch or get
close, but it will be better for him. He will
feel safer and will have a herd to protect
him, then the more time you spend with your
other two, he will see this and will want to
hang out with you since you hang out with his
herd. Keeping him apart is only raising his
insecurity and is confusing him. A lone horse
is the worst thing for a horse........ I
know, I know, but Rick they can sniff each
other and visit over the fence, it is not the
same, it is bad any way you look at it....
get him with his own kind and his herd ASAP.
You will a big change in his confidence, his
sleep, his stress, all good.... yes they may
bite him or chase at first, let it happen and
stay out of it, make sure you feed like a
recommend on my site. Sounds like you are
wearing her out. She is telling you she is
scared, she may have had a bad experience
with ditches or may never have seen one or
crossed one before. For only 3 trail rides
and already at 14 miles, you appear to be
going way too fast. Give this horse a chance
to learn, teach her, don't scare her or fear
her over, start with small ditches, get off
and walk her over them so she can see you
cross first, try and understand her fear and
not just put more pressure on her when she is
scared. If you keep this up she will soon
stop trusting you and only see you as someone
that scares her or does not understand her,
either way you will not have a partnership,
you will be a forceful master and she will be
nothing more than a slave.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q: Hi Rick. My sister is 12 going on her 5th
year of riding. She recently recieved a
arab/welsh 10 y.o. pony. he is a very willing
partner but he is green. He doesnt stop very
easily when she asks nicely (half halts,
stops with seat). My mother says that the
only way that these two will learn together
is by getting on and just riding. I am afraid
that she will be to harsh on his mouth, (I
recently looked in his mouth and found
minimal gum brusing. So i asume that he has a
realitively strong mouth.) Do you think that
my mother is taking the right route with the
new partnership? (learning by doing?) or
should she be under consistant professional
training? Thank you for your time! A: I can't
help but laugh when I read this. You
obviously are concerned about your sister.
However, no matter what I say will change
anything. You may be right, your concerns
maybe valid, but your sister and your mother
appear to have the decision authority here.
So even if I advise you, what can you do with
it? Your sister is young and does not know
much at 12, your mom is right and wrong, you
mean well and the horse is stuck where it is.
You say that the horse has gum bruising and
you assume he has a strong mouth.... I say
the bit is causing the bruising and your
sister is too rough, does not know how to be
soft and should not be riding with a bit. If
you remove your sister and the bit, I assure
you the horse would not have gum
bruising..... so how can anyone come to the
conclusion that the horse has a strong mouth
and that is what causes the bruising? All
horses are strong, but they can only get gum
bruising from someone pulling the reins and
bit. So your conclusion tells me you don't
really understand horses very well, not to
say you are not trying and you have valid
concerns, but back to the horse, he is stuck
where he is. I guess the short answer is,
your mom is right and wrong and you are right
and wrong and the horse is just a horse. I
would put your sister in a round pen with a
rope halter and lead rope and make her ride
the horse with only a halter and lead rope
(NO bit). This will force her to learn to
communicate with the horse without the
leverage, pain and bit. By teaching her this,
you will help her and the horse and your mom
will be right. The more she rides the better
she will get and the horse will "teach her".
This cannot happen with pain, gum bruising
and bits, it will only happen with time spent
with the horse without pain. In a round pen
the horse can't run off and if it does it
can't go too fast or too far and your sister
will learn how to stop, slow and control a
horse without a pain bit and will will gain
confidence in her riding, seat and
controlling a horse with communication not
pain from a bit. This is a win win for
everyone, you make your sister safer, your
mom gets your sister on the horse riding, and
the horse gets rid of a pain bit... I have a
video on riding with one rein and halter on
youtube and on my site.
Kicking:
Well one thing you can do is tie a ribbon to her tail, I think a red ribbon means a kicking horse, that way it will warn other riders that your horse kicks, don't get too close and for those who don't know it, they will ask what is the red ribbon for and then you tell them. This is not that uncommon of a problem. Spurs will not help and will make it worse, that is just ignorance. If I was teaching you math and gave you question that you had no idea of the answer and I kick you every time you got it wrong, that is what you are doing to a horse with spurs, it does not work, don't let anyone spur your horse. Once you get to be a better rider you will sense the kicks before they happen and will be able to pull her in or disengage her rear end, she cannot kick if you butt if moving away and her head if moving to the gelding. For her perspective, she is only of two mares and is tired of every male sticking their nose up her butt, so she is just defending her honor. Keeping her in a stall is contributing to the problem, put her in pasture with all the geldings, she will get tired of kicking and will learn to deal with them in a herd and not only when you put a saddle on her and make her deal with it. This will make a big difference. Well that would depend on what you did to get her to start this. It is very easy to tell when a horse starts a new behavior when the same owner has had the horse, then it is easy to see that the owner or handler caused it. A horse should not be kicking and obviously your hand smack is not working, so the horse will not stop. The horse is doing this because something caused it to start doing it, whatever that was needs to be known before you can figure out how to fix this, otherwise any fix will only be defeated since the same thing will be done again to cause this, unless you figure out what is causing this. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ANSWER: If a horse is a herd never hit (kicked) another horse and if this horse just left when ever another horse kicked at him, that horse would be the lowest horse in the herd. That horse is you. Praise means nothing, leaving means you are weak, not a strong leader and you tell the horse you are higher, and you can move me or make me leave so you are in charge and I will listen to you. Very bad lesson for a horse. You should treating him like he is treating you. You should moving him and making him run or move away. Since you can't bite him or kick him, you have to hit him, either with a rope or your hand. By not smacking him in mouth when he bites you, he is telling you he is higher and you are lower and by you not doing anything you are telling him that you are lower and he is higher. Your other horse will do the same thing in time if you never disciple her. A horse needs a leader and you are not being one. You can get rid of him, but if you care about him then you need to learn how to disciple him and knock the crap out of him if he bites you. A bite is a sign of lack of respect, then comes kicks, then comes rearing and striking out and then comes you get hurt and the horse gets put to sleep for being dangerous. The horse pays for you kindness. It is not fair to the horse. And this is normal horse behavior, all horses do it and it is the way they are. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As always my opinion is based only on what you tell. The trainer that worked with him should be better qualified to give an opinion since she has first hand knowledge. Without seeing the horse, since I would see things different than you, maybe, from your description, I have to say you are pushing too hard and expecting too much. You said the horse make a lot of improvement, that tells me you were doing the right things, now you say he is regressing and going back, that tells me you are not doing the things. The horse is the sole judge of what works and what does not work. I think horse only get sour when people push too hard, too often and too much. It sounds like the horse knows that the ring is work, no fun, does not want to be there and is getting tired of being just pushed in the ring. The horse was not this way before, according to you, so you had to do something to make him this way. You need to figure out what you did to create the problem and then figure out what to do to fix the problem. Your choices seem OK, but I can't see the horse and tell what works and what does not, only you can do that. I would not give up, I would not keep doing what you are doing and I would not be more assertive if the horse is scared. You can take it easy, not work so hard, just spend time with the horse as a herd member/leader and just get to know the horse without asking something from him. You can slow down and do things he is good at and go slower on what you want him to do. Listen to your horse, he will tell you if you listen. Horses are not brats, mean or stubborn. Those are human terms that people want to put on horses. You questions is unclear, you say you have had her for 5 years, did she do this before, when did it start, did you ever ride her in these areas before, you said she did not used to be this bad, does that mean she has always had the problem and got worse. A horse is a reflection of the person handling it. Most people that blame the horse never look at what they are doing to cause the problems. She may not want to go up hills since she feels your fear or she has not done with you. You can try to do ground work in all the areas that appear to be a problem with her, do things she is good at and knows well, build her confidence on the ground in the those areas before you try to ride her. The fact that you told me, you had to get off, tells me that this horse has your number and knows how to work you until you get off. As for the ear infection, you would know better than me it that made it worse or changed things. I always look at the person for the problem first, since that is normally the right answer. Maybe one half percent of all horse problems are from something other than the person.
QUESTION: 47 No horse experience I tied him up this morning, but when tried to untie him he tried to kick, i refused to untie him until he stopped, he stopped and then when i untied him like to ran me over to get to the feed kicking. He is alone right now, he is pasture kept. I want to stop this behavior and I was told he was just hungry and when he gets enough food he will stop this behavior, i really don't believe that. I also have a gelding in the next pasture that charges the fence, ears pinned back and very aggressive to the yearling. I want them to get along, what do I do to stop this behavior without anyone getting hurt. The gelding is 19 years old and was pastured alone for several years. last year i bought two miniature jennys and they are pastured with him. I would like them all to be able to roam both pastures together. ANSWER: When a lower horse kicks a higher horse, the higher horses attacks him and makes him run off. Since your horse is running you over and kicking at you, he thinks you are lower in the pecking order. I agree with the horse. You have told him that you are lower since you allowed him to treat you that way without disciplining him. You have little horse experience and your horse knows it. Not good for you. You better learn fast, since when horses teach lessons to humans they are very costly. Read my horsemanship page twice! Some things will not make sense until you read the entire page. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- As for someone telling you the horse is just hungry!....... you have to be crazy to believe that or have no clue of how horses think or live. I could not feed my horses for a week and they would not kick me, your horse kicks since it can, since you allow it, since you do not stop it, since you do not make the horse wish he never kicked you..... that is why your horse kicks, if someone thinks it is for food, then it will be for carrots, then will be to be with friends, then it will be not to get ridden, then it will be because you did not pet it right, then it will for ...................get the message... a horse needs to know it kicks for no reason or it knows it kicks for any reason, if you let it. You are in danger. This horse will hurt you if you do not get smart fast. He will not hurt you because he is mean, or dangerous, or aggressive, or untrainable, or because of his past, or because he is hungry..... he will do since he can and you have not taught him that he should not and can not! As for the horses charging each other, this is being done since they are kept alone, they have been taught, by keeping them isolated that is where they are safe and do not want anything new. Too bad, put the horses together and let them work it out.....DONT SAVE THEM, DON'T TRY AND STOP THEM, STAY OUT OF IT... I talk about this on my site about putting lots of food out in many different piles so they will not pay attention to the new member of herd. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question: I have this horse it is a gelding its 15 hands tall and probably about 1300 pounds its big.i want my dad to ride but were afraid he is to big he is 6'4" tall and 325 pounds my question is would he break the horse down or hurt it if he kept it in a walk? or should he not ride it?
Answer: Yes I agree, he is too big, a horse should only carry about 20% of its weight, if in shape, that does not mean add a few hundred pounds to get a higher 20%. Most horses today are over weight, 15 hands at 1300 sounds like the horse is over weight. Once you add saddle and other stuff most horses carry 20 to 50 pounds more than what a person weighs. You did not say how old, a horse's back is not fully grown or developed until about 5 years old. Your questions is really way too simple. Way too many factors to consider, but I say no he is too heavy.
Herd Behavior:
|
Put them in the herd, it will do everybody good, the herd will be bigger and feel safer, everyone will have a job and you will notice a change and see that they are all better for it. It may take a week or two as much as a month, but stay out of it and let the herd work it out. Hi Jill, I got this questions in the questions pool. This could be from many reasons, but I think it is a simple herd response. Any new herd member will affect the herd and behavior of all members. First there are pecking order issues. since the donkey is smaller and may appear as a young colt, the geldings could be taking it under their wings and protecting it, this would bring out a much stronger leadership role from them. Before the donkey, the herd was set and not major issues so leadership was not that important, now they have a mission, they have a job and they are doing it well. As time goes on it may settle down, but anytime a new baby is introduced to a herd new stronger leaders emerge and they step up to the job of being protectors and leaders... All horses are leaders and all are followers, it all depends who else is around as to which one the horse becomes. |
I noticed in the picture you have nylon
halter, when means you have buckles and metal
and probably a metal snap on your lead rope.
I always suggest getting rid of
all that and get a nice rope halter with a
lead rope with NO snap. This
always seems to calm horses and give much
better control. Even thou control
does not seem to be an issue, it will mean
more and not scare the horse as much when you
correct or say NO.
As for the lips and mouthiness, this could be
from lots of things. Took from
mom early, left on mom too long, insecure,
curiosity, exploring, boredom and
others. My guess is boredom.
I think most mouthy horses are
smarter, they have been handled in a way that
has not discouraged this and now they explore
and are always learning. Some say
the tail chewing is a mineral or vitamin
deficiency, not sure it that is true but make
sure horse has a salt and mineral block
available. If a horse wants it to
stop they will stop him from chewing, however
in a stall or confined area, a horse would
rather let it happen just to have horse
contact so this tends to happen much more in
stall environments.
I did an article on this topic (nipping) and
here is a link to it.
http://thinklikeahorse.org/index-13.html#16
I always see more so called problems and
issues when horses are not kept in pasture
with a herd. Putting horses in at
night, separating them create anxiety, which
creates stress, which turns into vices
(chewing, kicking, swaying, cribbing, wind
sucking, etc.) Putting a horse out more,
leaving them with friends and herds, and not
locking them up always seem to help in most
any situation. It is almost like
the cure all and it works more time than not.
If you leave this horse out in in
pasture with a herd for for two weeks, I
would bet you a chewed lead rope that the
behavior would stop are at least get a lot
better.
This horse is still a baby at 3, this will go
away and get less as the horse gets closer to
five. I would not make a big deal
about it.
Let the horse spend time being a horse and
not in a stall and the problem will fix it
self.
Answer: Without seeing the horse no way to tell, but if he is not rolling I would think it is more than just saddle sore. Rolling aligns the spine and helps stretch the back, if he is not rolling, it sounds more than saddle issues. Riding is tough on the back, riding with a bad saddle is even worse, and jumping is the worst, so you are doing just about everything you could to put pressure and hurt the back. I would not do anything until a vet or laser checks out. As for bute, that can be bad since it hides pain and the horse will do things it should not do since it does not feel pain. If you leave horse alone and no bute, it will not do anything that hurts, so you will see how bad it is, if you bute, you may think he is getting better, but he may not be..............................
Well first you say he was neglected by the
last owner and you are trying to get on him
way too fast. You are being a
strong leader, you are not seen as the leader
since the horse will telling you this by
kicking and biting. Just because
this horse is gelded, it does not mean that
he suddenly forgets how to be a
stallion. It can take months or a
year for this change to take
place. You need to treat him like
a horse, it does not matter if he is a stud
or gelding, he gets treated as a lower
horse. You cannot be friends or
nice to this horse until he knows you are the
boss and decides not to push you or test you
or move up over you.
You do this by moving his feet, changing his
direction, stopping him movement and making
sure he knows you move him he does not move
you, he does not bite your kick at you unless
he wants a whole mess of trouble.
Trouble like you attacking his butt, you
making him move that butt away from you to
avoid getting hit with a rope, teaching him
that anytime his butts gets near you, you are
going to hit and get it, then he will not
have time to think about kicking
you. When and if he
tries to bite you, you drive your elbow into
his mouth like you are trying to knock out
his teeth. It will only take once
or twice and the biting will be
done.
The only way you can help this horse is to
push him like a crazy man and make him think
you going to eat him if he messes with you,
once that point is clear then you can slowly
get nicer and kinder and start to build a
relationship, but this horse has to know that
you can and will get busy if he messes with
you. Threats and lite hits or
slaps will only tell this horse you are weak,
you have to let this horse know you are the
boss, you are higher, you can move his feet,
you can make him uncomfortable, you can make
him run and if he wants to be comfortable, he
has to play by your rules. Tough
love is what horses understand, it makes it
clear to them and that is what they do and
that is what they want. He is
being clear with you, he thinks you are
lower, he thinks you are weak, he thinks he
can take you, he thinks he can kick you, he
thinks he can bite you.....he thinks this
since you have not make it clear that he
can't do any of those things.
Young horses always get more bites (lessons) than older ones. Young horses are immature, do not pay attention, want to explore and get into things and have not learned to respect higher horses. This mare is teaching the youngster lessons in paying attention, respecting elders, pay attention to where you are and what I (a higher horse) is telling you. If you don't pay attention this is what you get. This will make it easier for you to train this horse later. It may look worse than it really is. The older he gets the less he get those hard lessons since he will learn to pay attention and listen.
Ok you say you have 11 years of experience and you are 16. I am going to tell you that your horse experience when you were 5, 7, or 10, is not what I call horse experience. You have horse exposure, but most people don't let kids on horses that will will hurt them, so the horses you have ridden or been with have probably not been problem or difficult horses. I am 48 years old and have many years of experience and there is still more about a horses that I don't know than I do know. To fully understand horses would take a life time of study. Most people who own horses never study them, they feed them, ride them and spend small amounts of time with them. You said your horse is not scared? How do you know? It sounds to me that it is scared. So who is right, the horse is. Only the horse knows what it is feeling, but we can sometime know what they are telling us. I think your horse is scared and does not see you as a strong leader that it trust. So it gets insecure when she is only with you. I always say it is the human's fault and NEVER the horse's fault. Your horse is feeling something and it is up to you to figure it out. The could be scared since it does not see you as a strong leader that it trust, so it wants to take over in order to keep herself safe. |
ANSWER: Well, first I would say get her
with another horse. Just because
she can see a horse, that does not give her a
sense of security. She needs to
be with another horse so she can learn not to
rear, learn some horse manners and be able to
replace the loss of her mom. She
is nervous, scared and alone. You
say you have horse experience, but you are
trying to use pain and control on a young
horse that does not know anything.
First I would say read more about
horses so you understand their fear response
and action. You are going to
spoil this nice filly, not on purpose, but
from not dealing with this horse as a horse.
You are still thinking like a
person and not like a horse.
This horse needs to learn that when something
is on her nose or head, it will NOT hurt her.
You are trying to over power and
control this horse. You should be
trying to talk to her in horse so she can
understand you and trying to communicate and
convince her to cooperate with you and that
you will not hurt. You have
failed to do this and now the little one is
scared and does not trust you and is more
worried about being hurt and trapped than in
seeing you as a herd member and leader.
Read my horsemanship page on my site about
herd behavior, if you read the entire page
you will start to see horses different than
you do now. As I tell most
people, this is not a horse problem it is a
people (you) problem. So you are
asking for help, but you have to take the
time to educate yourself about the horse, how
they think, and how they react and why they
react. They are prey animals and
we are predators, this is the most
unnaturally combination that could
exist.
The best gift you can give a horse is
knowledge and understanding about the
horse.
Your welcome, not blaming the
horse is the first step in accepting
responsibility. It is a
mindset that makes you improve
yourself and then your horse gets
better. So your horse did
not knock you down, you were in his
way, you did not give him a better
escape path, you did teach him to
know run into or over you, you did
see that he was getting scared and
was not able to move out of his way,
you were not paying close enough
attention, you allowed the situation
to develop with that outcome,.......
:) get it...
The was was just where
you put him, when you put him there
and was only there because of you, it
was never his choice.
|
ANSWER: You are trying to treat him as if you feel sorry for him and as if you can make up for the bad that has happened to him. Forget that, treat him like a horse. You are causing this behavior. Accept that. You can change it and help this horse, but you have to understand horses and understand herd behavior. Horses see the world as horses and herds, you and this horse is a herd of two. In a herd you are either higher or lower. You are lower, you have told this horse you are lower, you act like you are lower and you let the horse treat you as if you are lower. So you are causing this behavior. Read my horsemanship page, you will see horses differently and will understand them better. This horse is lost and is asking for a leader, be that leader. A horse feels safer and better if he has a strong leader that gives him good direction and makes the rules clear. That don't mean you have to be mean or aggressive, but you do have to understand horses so you can talk to this horse in his language. You are talking human and the horse is confused. The stress you are feeling the horse is feeling 10 times worse. You have to be confident and aware, not strong as 40 year old. If you do it right you will not need much strength or power, you need to use your brain to learn so you can talk horse and communicate with this horse in a way he can understand and feel safe.
ANSWER: Well there are always things you
can do, it is if you are willing or able to.
This horse has a troubled past,
all race horses and most sport horses don't
have very good lives. They are
not owned or cared about for anything other
then to win and or make money. It
sounds like he found a great home and you
given him a much better life than he would
have had. If he kept alone, then
I would get him a buddy. A horse
needs other horses to feel safe, they all get
very insecure when alone. So all
horses are what people call Buddy sour or
herd bound, it is their instinct so they can
stay alive and feel safe. If he
does not have another horse to play with, to
sleep with, to graze with, to feel safe with,
this only increases his drive to get to
another horse. So that is one
thing. Another option is to get a
pony horse, take a second horse with you so
he will have a buddy with him, once he gets
good at that, then you slowly wean him off
slowly.
I think too many people try and prevent or
stop too much. Horses are smart
and they can figure things out if people let
them and help them. The more you
try and stop him and prevent him the more he
feels trapped, restricted, and unable to
move. Horses rarely rear unless
someone is restricting their movement,
pulling on their mouth or head.
Horses normally always pick to
run if they can.
Look at this not has you have to try and
prevent this. If he wants to see
horses, lets go see them, let him release
that energy, let him satisfy his strong
instinctual drive and go see the horses, then
once he gets there he goes to work, not mean
or mad, just work, he has to back up, flex,
go in circles, change directions, anything to
keep him busy and paying attention to you.
Every time he is with other
horse, no problem but you and him get to do
lots of training and work, he may get to trot
around the horses, he may get to follow them
in reverse, he walks backwards to be with
them while they walk forward, you want him to
think, damn when I am with other horses, I
get my butt worked off, soon he will think,
it is easier to be away from horse so I can
relax and not work so hard. This
will not happen after once or twice, it will
take consistency on your part.
Doing the same thing all the time
so the horse Knows what to expect and has a
choice.
I think you, like many others, are so caught
up in controlling him, making him listen,
showing him who is boss, that you are making
this a fight in stead of using the horse's
natural drive and figuring out a way to use
that drive to help train the horse.
You have a natural draw that you
horse wants, figure out ways to use that to
work your horse and make you both better and
stop focusing on how to stop that drive.
He is just being a horse, work
with this as your problem and not the
horse's. You are smarter, this
horse has already taught you many lessons
about horses and you have learned well, but
don't stop. He is making you try
and learn different ways to handle a
problems, embrace this as he is helping you
get better, The horse is always the teacher,
too many forget that and they thing they are
the teacher or trainer.
Hope this helps,
Read my site, and remember when you walk to
pasture, don't just focus on the gate or your
destination, don't walk a straight line, play
with your horse on the way, give a treat,
have him backup, spin him, disengage his
hindquarters, give him something to think
about it instead of the gate, have him paying
attention to you and not the gate, show him
you are a strong and confident leader and he
will not want to get to the gate so fast, he
will feel safe and will want to be with you.
You cannot feel safe if you are
scared or intimidated. You feel
this since you don't know and don't
understand, read and learn, this will go
away. Knowledge is power.
This sounds like an
adjustment period. He has
lost an old friend and now a new
younger herd member is there.
He will snap out of it and
will soon be with the herd.
You can try and stimulate
the herd by driving a car, tractor of
other vehicle around them and just move
them a bit, they will think they are
being chased and will run as a herd and
will all get closer. All
herd gets closer when there are
threats. So scaring them a
bit will cause them to run together,
but letting them work it out is best.
They will come together
once the pecking order is defined and
set, this may take a few weeks. Don't separate them, horses always do better as a herd and are much worse off when alone or separated. Let the herd work it out, in a few months you will see one herd with new relationships. Hang in there. |
ANSWER: As usual, this is a people created
problem and not a horse issue.
These horses are doing what
horses do, they push lower horses, they try
and establish dominance so they can be higher
in the pecking order. The herd
has to have a strict pecking order to ensure
the survival of the herd. Only
the strongest horse can be leader, so horse
have to test each other to see who is higher
and who is longer. Totally
normal. However, when people put
up fences, hot wires, gates, and dividers,
trying to protect the horse and to feel like
they are keeping their horse safe, they make
it worse. A horse does best and
feels best when he is in a herd.
All horses bite and all get bit,
all kick and all get kicked, it is the way of
the horse.
Understanding herd behavior will help you and
your horse, since a horse does the same
things to people since the horse sees their
world as a herd and you are either higher or
lower in the herd.
I go into this subject in more detail on my
horsemanship page of my site.
I still think the aggression is caused by
us getting involved. I never
rescue a horse from a herd. The
horse needs to learn to show respect and to
treat the higher horses correctly, per the
herd. This gelding is probably
more aggressive since the he thinks this mare
is his and all horse get more aggressive when
new horses are introduced since they do not
want to move down in the pecking order and
there are benefits to being higher.
The fact that this gelding cannot
correct the other gelding and cannot push
him, make his show respect and since the
other gelding feels safe and does not run
away, he is showing disrespect to the higher
caged horse, so this increases the
aggression. One horse feels safe
and show disrespect and the other horses
can't correct him and is trapped so once
again I say "we, people cause this to be a
bigger deal and make it worse by trying to
protect or help" Horses have
survived for thousands of years without your
help or my help, but then we, being the know
it all humans, want to think we can do it
better and we need to help and we need to
protect, and we need to get involved.
We don't and when we do, the
horse has to pay for our meddling and it is
worse on the horse, so what do we (you) do,
you get more involved and try to help more by
putting up hot wires and bigger fences, so
the aggression gets worse and more intense
and continues because it is never settled, it
is never worked out and somehow, we want to
blame the horse for being "mean or really
aggressive". IT IS NEVER THE HORSES FAULT.
So put up hot wires, put up
bigger fences and protect this horse and when
one day the two horses meet or one gets out
and one or both horses get hurt or has to be
put down, know that it will be your fault for
trying to protect them.
Somehow I think you are going to do what you
want to do and no matter what I say is going
to change things. So I am somehow
confused as to what you are looking for.
I gave you my advice and opinion,
I gave a reference page and told you what I
think is the problem.
I am trying to be the voice of the horse and
you want to tell me you have never seen such
an aggressive horse. I know
horses pretty well and I think these horses
are the way they are because of people
sticking their nose in the natural order of
herds and trying to protect things that do
much better without human interference.
I stand by my take on this
situation and my suggestion stands, put the
horses out in a pasture, let them work it out
and it will be done and over in a few days
and they will all be buds and will be one
structured safe, close herd.
ANSWER: You need to be careful walking
this pony, if he is nipping at your knees he
is showing you dominance. He will
get away from you and run away and may get
hit by a car. This horse knows
that you do not know anything horses so he is
testing you and figuring out. I
keep a safe distance from him, ever time he
gets away with a bite, a head toss, a pull,
buck or rear, he will shortly be kicking and
he will kick you hard and could hurt you very
badly even if he is small.
If you really want to understand horses, read
my site, it will help.
Well you have a few options.
You can ring a bell every time
you feed and the horses will learn to come
running when they hear the bell or feed pan
banging or whatever else you want to use.
Then you can either put some food
in one stall and then lock the lead mare in
while the others eat.
I would just teach them not to fight.
They only fight for competition
over the food. If the herd is
established, been together for more than a
month or two, then just put out food near the
stalls in different piles at least two horse
lengths apart. If you have 3
horses, put out five or six piles, if you
have 4 horse put our 7 or 8 piles.
This will get less over time, but
at first you want to have lots of piles so
they can all get pushed off and will have
another pile to go to. That way
there is no reason to fight for only one or
two piles. So after a week or so
of this they will get tired of chasing each
other off and will know that all piles are
the same so no reason to push. As
time goes by, each week, go down one pile
until you have the same number of piles as
horses. The fewer piles the more
apart they need to be, after they adjust to
one pile each, then you can slowly move them
closer and soon you will see them share.
The more secure the horse is with
their position, the less they will need to
push each other off to prove their pecking
order. It will take time, but
don't RUSH it or it will take longer and will
get worse.
Food is the number one reason horses fight,
so as long as they become secure with the
herd, they will not see the need to fight.
If two horses don't get along,
they will stay away from each other as long
as they know they have a pile to go to.
If you put food in both stalls,
they should learn to eat in one stall, maybe
the head mare will push at first but it will
get easier as they get to know each
other.
Give them time to herd up and become buddies
before you try and get them to share food.
The slow way is the fast way with
horses.Well you want a horse and a horse
wants other horses. Keeping this
horse by itself will make her act out,
develop bad habits and can make her mean to
people.
If you can afford one horse then you should
not have a horse or keep it with
other horses. You will have
continued problems with her keeping her
alone. You have already seen this
develop in just four months, in a year it
will be much worse.
You say the horses are mean at the other
place, this tells me you do not understand
horses very well. Horses are not
mean, people are mean and make horses mean.
Horses are herd animals not
solitary pets. If you really
understand horses you would never have got a
baby and planned on keeping it alone.
Some may tell you to get a goat, get a cat or
some other animal, a horse needs another
horse, they need a herd to feel safe or it
creates many problems, you are seeing just a
few.
The problem is you, since you ride her
then you are causing this. Horses
only have problems when people create them.
You need to pay more attention to
what you are doing. What is
happening when she does this. Are
you pulling on the bit are you trying to make
do something she does not want to do, is it
the same thing, is the same area.
This sounds like she is sour about you riding
her too hear or too fast, a common problem
with show or competing horses.
Ground work may help but only if you change,
you can't expect your horse to change if you
keep doing the same thing.
Read my site about round penning and sacking
out, both will increase your horse's respect,
if you do it right.
Well I like your last
questions "what am I doing wrong".
I am a firm believer that most
horse problems are our problems and not the
horse. Here is what you said,
recently bought, working with horse, have him
step out of my space, move his hindquarters,
step to side, consistently backing him out of
my space, he gives ugly face, hard to buddy
up, he has lousy attitude "towards me", I
drive him away..... This is from
a one paragraph email and if I was this horse
I would not want to be around you either.
I see and hear a lot of things
here and mostly with you.
You appear to be good at being a pushy
leader, you know how to push a horse around
good, you know how to show a horse you won't
be weak, but I don't think you know how to
listen to horse. Anyone can push
a horse around it does not take much
horsemanship, but it takes work and
understanding to be flexible enough to
listen, to try and help the horse find the
right answer and not force or make the horse
obey and be a slave. A horse pins
his ears for other reasons than to be
disrespectful, they can do it when scared or
backed in a corner or feel they are about to
pushed or bullied.
This horse is only four, he is still a baby
in my book, even thought he is big strong and
can kill you, he is still a baby mentally.
You don't know his entire
history, how he was treated, mistreated or
abandoned. So from the horse's
view here is what I think he sees.
Great another human that wants to
push me around, I get taken to a new place
with new and unfamiliar surroundings, I get
taken from my friends and comfort, I am
ripped away from where I felt safe and now in
the strange place with strange surroundings,
I get this human that acts like she wants to
be my friend but all she does is come in push
me around, tell me I have a lousy attitude
and acts like a leader that is not confident
or secure since she is always SHOWING me she
can push me around???? So why
should I trust her, why should I believe her,
why should I follow her and put my like in
her hands?
There is a saying that goes "A good horseman
can hear a horse talk, a great horseman can
hear a horse whisper, but a bad horseman
can't hear a horse even if it screams."
Not saying you are bad, just think you need
to back away from all the DVDs, clinics,
books and people that say, "Show them who is
boss", "make him respect your space"... and
all the other advice from those who don't
know or really understand a horse.
A horse is a reflection of the owner, look at
the way you act around this horse and see if
you are type of person you would want to be
around if you were a horse. Try
listening and understanding where this horse
is coming from, why he does what he does,
what are you doing to cause him to do what he
is doing, what you can do to help find the
right answer. You are old enough
to advance and grow in your horsemanship past
the beginner stage of pushing a horse
around.
This horse is giving you an opportunity to
grow, he is trying to teach the way of the
horse, he will help understand better and
grow, if you step back and listen and become
the student and not the teacher.
Cut him some slack and you might be surprised
how fast he comes around. Spend
time with him, show him that you can be
around him and with him without pushing or
requiring things from him, build a
relationship of trust and partnership and not
of owner or boss and employee.
Only you can change what you are
doing, if you do the horse will as
well.
Rick
All the issues you talked about are
normal, she is used to be ridden in open
lands without all this scary stuff going on.
I think you are trying to handle
it wrong with MAKING HER STAND, this shows me
that you do not understand a horse.
A horse's worst fear is to be
trapped and unable to run since running is
how they stay alive, so this horse is being
normal. She is bucking since you
are probably hurting her when you MAKE her
stand and stop her feet from moving.
You are getting scared and
insecure since you are seeing her fear
increase, because of you. Forget that you
rode many years ago that means nothing to me
or the horse. The horse does not
care how good you are, how many medals you
may have won, a horse wants to feel safe with
you and see you as a strong and capable
leader. If you are pulling on the
reins, MAKING the horse stand when she is
scared only makes her not trust you, makes
her think you do not know much about a horse
and makes her not want to be with you.
You don't want her to run since
you are scared. Stop trying to
MAKE her deal with her fear and start helping
her deal with it. Show her it is
ok to be scared and you will help her and not
hurt her, and not force her or
MAKE her do anything. I would say
you are more scared than you were in your
younger years and are more careful and are
more nervous about getting hurt, your horse
reads all this and reacts to it.
When you deal with your fear
better, your horse will deal with her's
better.
As for you comment about if you return the
horse it will end up at the abattoir, this
sounds very selfish and is does show a
favorable side of you. You say
you have come attached to the horse and then
say you know it will be killed if you give it
back and then say YOU WANT a pony you can
ride and not just a pet. So let
me get this right, as long as the horse lets
you scare the crap out of it by forcing next
to fast and dangerous traffic, then you will
keep it, otherwise you send back to someone
you know will kill it.
Welcome to the world of horses, people use
them, take from them and when they don't do
everything just how we want, we get rid of
them. I would rather see you take
the horse to open land and let her free and
let it take her chances with the wild animals
than sentence her to a sure death by
returning her. Who knows, by setting her free
maybe someone will find her who loves horses,
loves their beauty and will take care of her
just for joy of sharing with them and having
them in their life.
Well, you got me. I have never
seen this or heard of this.
Without knowing more about the
herd dynamics it is hard to say.
I have seen stallions kill babies
or another stallion, I have seen mares
severely discipline young horses, but not
seen a young mare try and take out a gelding.
I was not there but are you sure
it was not playful? Another thing
could be she thought he was in pain and
dying, so she was trying to end it for him.
No one knows for sure how deep
horses think. Horses in the wild
will sometime towards a pack of wolves if
they are injured or dying almost as it to say
end it fast.
Not knowing the condition of your gelding,
the relationship with the herd, maybe this
mare was not trying to kill him and was just
trying to move up in the pecking order.
We can only guess, but I would have to go
with my gut and say that keeping them apart
and them together is a factor.
This messes up the herd dynamics
and don't allow things to get settled, worked
out and established. I find it
hard to believe that by the time you saw
this, reacted, ran out to pasture and got to
your gelding that if she wanted him dead, he
would be dead, but I was not there.
So that is my take, sorry I could not be more
specific.
Without seeing you I can't be for sure.
But your horse is telling you
that you are not communicating right, that
you are not sending clear signals, that he
does not understand what you want, that he
does not see you as his leader.
Round penning does not make friends, it
teaches a horse to hear you, to learn what
you are asking, to understand that you can
move his feet, you can stop his feet and you
and control his direction and speed.
It seems the horse has taught you
these lessons.
Release is the key to teaching horses.
I discuss this in my round
penning section on my horsemanship page of my
web site. Read that and it should
clear things up, if you still don't
understand after you read that, write me
back.
ANSWER: Horses are very protective of their herd. She sees you as her herd member and is protecting you and telling other horses that you belong to her. This can be bad, since if she sees you as lower than her she will start telling you what to do and if you don't listen she will treat you as her herd member.
Well it depends. Right with
horses is very subjective. Most
people, including me, keep their horses a
little more padded. Too much
weight is bad for the horse, bad for legs and
feet, but unfed horses are not good either.
I would say it is a lot like
people, being a little thin is better than
being a little over weight. I do not like
seeing ribs, I like to be able to at least
feel and find ribs, some horse are so fat I
can't find a rib. So there is a
happy medium.
As for this guy, I think he if full of horse
pucky. Unless she is being worked
very hard she should not be losing weight
unless she is not getting good food.
I know lots of jerks that will
take good hay and feed crap hay to cut their
cost. So if you provide hay, she
may be fed other junk. That is
why I don't letter people feed or handle my
horses. Your horse is your
responsibility. You put the horse
there, you allowed someone else to care for
it and you let your horse be neglected, since
I think this horse is definitely being
neglected. I know all the
reasons, you are busy, you are unable, you
could not help it, you have kids, you have a
job, none that mean crap to your horse that
is not being fed. Horses will eat
their own crap if they are not fed.
So the sniffing means she is
probably already doing this since she is so
hungry and unfed.
Get your horse out, report this guy to the
local law enforcement for abuse, and post to
note at the local feed stores that this guy
is a cheat and does not feed horses at his
place.
Back to your horse, if you don't let other
care for your horse, you would not have any
of these problems, but problems for you is
not my concern, your horse has to pay for
your mistakes. Make it right.
I get a lot of this questions.
I can't fix a horse over the
email and don't want you to think I can, only
your or your daughter or someone handling the
horse can show it what it can and cannot do.
Beating the horse after it
happens does nothing. Prevention
is better than treatment. If you
are there when something happens, and can
correct the horse within 3 seconds of it
happening then correct away, anything after 3
seconds the horse just learns to dislike
people and may get mean. This
horse is just being a horse. I
just answered another questions about this so
I am going to paste the answer so you can
read it.
Previous answer. You are doing
ground work and making the horse respect you
may or may not help your daughter.
I would lean more to
will not help enough. If horses
are handled more by good leaders and by
people that understand horses, then they
become less resistance to all people.
However, if they are handled more
by kids, not strong leaders or people that
don't understand horses, then they tend to
not respect all people and will test and push
people more.
I get questions from parents a lot and I tell
them mostly the same, since you are asked the
question and you are doing research and you
are trying to improve your knowledge, that
means nothing to the horse when the child is
handling her.
So anytime you can get a horse more in tune
to respect you, then he MAY be less likely to
test your daughter. But, since he
already knows your daughter is weak (to her)
I think she will continue to disrespect her
and push her.
I am reluctant to tell parents to make their
kid learn. Horses are something
that should be fun, when medals, awards,
ribbons and speed or time is involved, the
horse and child loses.
You can make your daughter read books about
horses, try and educate her about horses.
You can make up some test to give
her from what you have learned. I
see too many kids being mean to horses
because their parents told me to "show the
horse who is boss". The horse
knows she is stronger and can push your D
around. You can only change this
if you handle the horse more, are with your
daughter all the time (hard to do) so you can
correct the horse if is disrespectful to your
daughter. Older horses will
protect and keep higher horses away from the
weak or younger horses in a herd, but they
are there all the time so it works.
I have seen kids that get it, they understand
horses without being mean, they simply push
and move the horse every time the horse
pushes them, but they are consistent and do
it all the time so the horse stops testing
and stops pushing so much.
Consistency with kids is not
always easy, they get distracted easy, they
just want to relax, have fun and not be so
worried, like adults.
I would have your daughter read books while
sitting with the horse, spend time with the
horse, the more time she spends with the
horse, since this horse is the lead mare, she
may take her under her wing and see her as
her herd and not want to push her so much,
the flip side to this is the horse will
expect your D to listen to her so she may
correct her like another horses, with a bite
or kick.
This can be a dangerous situation, since your
D knows this horse will kick she needs to be
away and make sure she always has an escape
and distance from the horse. If
she acts too scared the horse will see this
as weakness and will exploit it.
Any time the horse shows any
signs of ear pinning, kicks, or bites with
you there, you need to make this horse think
it just committed suicide, any disrespect to
your child needs to be addressed immediately,
not 5 mins later or not after your child
leaves, tells you and then you go out and
give it a lesson, if you can't correct it
within 3 seconds, it is too late and will not
train the horse and will only make the horse
fear you and people and may make the horse
more aggressive towards people.
So your situation is not unique, but there is
not an easy answer either. Read
my site and try to really understand horses
better and then see if you can come up with
ways pass this on to your D, have her do
exercises with the horse, in order to teach
her, you must first know the
subject.
Don't blame the horse for anything, it is only being a horse, it lives in your world and is trying to figure out the rules and when it doubt it will do what horses do. In your photo I think I see that you are using a leverage bit. This is painful and hurts the horse, it will not teach respect and will teach the horse pain and more resistance. If your daughter can't ride this horse in a halter, then she should not be riding it. No spurs and no leverage bits for kids, it only pisses the horse off and gets kids hurt.
So I would keep your daughter away from
the horse's feet. You did not
tell how old your daughter is so that would
matter. Just because you say your
daughter is a competent rider does not mean
she understands horses, does not mean she
understand around respect, fear, pressure,
release, advance, retreat, pushing back, what
a horse test is, why horses test, what to do
to get the horse's trust and respect...
I know lots and lots of people,
older adults, that have "ridden their entire
life" and "owned horses their entire life"
and they can no more answer these or know
this either, but they will be the first to
tell you how to fix things and how to handler
things.
Knowledge and understanding of the horse will
help you and keep you safer than than $10,000
worth of the best and fanciest equipment and
all the advice in the world from the best so
called trainers, clinicians or "life long
horse owners".
Read and study the horse so you have the
knowledge to fix this. Selling
and buying horses cost more than the expense
and time. It is bad for horses,
it is bad for you and you will NEVER get what
you are told, since all you get is a horse,
after that, you teach the horse bad or good.
So I could give you the best
horse in world and in a few weeks or a month,
you or your daughter could teach it to kick,
be disrespectful, buck, run off, pull, or you
could teach it to continue to be the best
horse in world. The horse you buy
is not the issue, what you do with a horse
teaches and trains a horse.
It sounds like you are doing some right things. The answer to your question yes and no. You doing ground work and making the horse respect you may or may not help your daughter. I would lean more to will not help enough. If horses are handled more by good leaders and by people that understand horses, then they become less resistance to all people. However, if they are handled more by kids, not strong leaders or people that don't understand horses, then they tend to not respect all people and will test and push people more.
I get questions from parents a lot and I tell
them mostly the same, since you are asked the
question and you are doing research and you
are trying to improve your knowledge, that
means nothing to the horse when the child is
handling her.
So anytime you can get a horse more in tune
to respect you, then he MAY be less likely to
test your daughter. But, since he
already knows your daughter is weak (to her)
I think she will continue to disrespect her
and push her.
I am reluctant to tell parents to make their
kid learn. Horses are something
that should be fun, when medals, awards,
ribbons and speed or time is involved, the
horse and child loses.
You can make your daughter read books about
horses, try and educate her about horses.
You can make up some test to give
her from what you have learned. I
see too many kids being mean to horses
because their parents told me to "show the
horse who is boss". The horse
knows she is stronger and can push your D
around. You can only change this
if you handle the horse more, are with your
daughter all the time (hard to do) so you can
correct the horse if is disrespectful to your
daughter. Older horses will
protect and keep higher horses away from the
weak or younger horses in a herd, but they
are there all the time so it works.
I have seen kids that get it, they understand
horses without being mean, they simply push
and move the horse every time the horse
pushes them, but they are consistent and do
it all the time so the horse stops testing
and stops pushing so much.
Consistency with kids is not
always easy, they get distracted easy, they
just want to relax, have fun and not be so
worried, like adults.
I would have your D read books while sitting
with the horse, spend time with the horse,
the more time she spends with the horse,
since this horse is the lead mare, she may
take her under her wing and see her as her
herd and not want to push her so much, the
flip side to this is the horse will expect
your D to listen to her so she may correct
her like another horses, with a bite or
kick.
This can be a dangerous situation, since your
D knows this horse will kick she needs to be
away and make sure she always has an escape
and distance from the horse. If
she acts too scared the horse will see this
as weakness and will exploit it.
Any time the horse shows any
signs of ear pinning, kicks, or bites with
you there, you need to make this horse think
it just committed suicide, any disrespect to
your child needs to be addressed immediately,
not 5 mins later or not after your child
leaves, tells you and then you go out and
give it a lesson, if you can't correct it
within 3 seconds, it is too late and will not
train the horse and will only make the horse
fear you and people and may make the horse
more aggressive towards people.
So your situation is not unique, but there is
not an easy answer either. Read
my site and try to really understand horses
better and then see if you can come up with
ways pass this on to your D, have her do
exercises with the horse, in order to teach
her, you must first know the
subject.
Don't blame the horse for anything, it is only being a horse, it lives in your world and is trying to figure out the rules and when it doubt it will do what horses do. In your photo I think I see that you are using a leverage bit. This is painful and hurts the horse, it will not teach respect and will teach the horse pain and more resistance. If your daughter can't ride this horse in a halter, then she should not be riding it. No spurs and no leverage bits for kids, it only pisses the horse off and gets kids hurt.
Horses normally don't trust sexes, they
either trust or don't trust people.
I have worked with many horses
that I have been told they do not like men,
but they had no problem with me.
A horse has a keen sense for
reading people, so they size people up.
Men tend to be a little more
direct and aggressive or assertive.
Women tend to be more passive,
soft and slow, a fearful horse will normally
be more fearful of direct or assertive
people. A good horseman can tone
this down or turn it up. It is
not a horse problem, it is a people
problem.
If you just feed a horse he will not respect
you or see you as his leader. You
have to require things from a horse to get
them to respect you. So move
them, make them move, make them see you as a
leader who can move them, otherwise they move
you, they run from you, they learn you cannot
stop them, you cannot control their
direction, speed, or stop them, so they think
they are smarter and they should be leader
and they should not submit to your leadership
or direction.
I have a section on my web site about horses that have not been handled. Lots of pressure and release (advance and retreat) you can keep him enclosed for a week or so, but if he was with other horses he will be nervous and it may be better to let him in the herd for a couple of weeks so he can feel safe at his new place. Don't baby him and try to be too slow and careful. Be normal and lots of pressure and release. The most important thing for new young ones are sacking out, get him to handle his fear. You said he is colt, if he is not gelded that should happen by three or so, I like to wait longer some do early, the longer you wait the better I think. Reading my site will help you understand horses better, lots of handling will help later, don't baby him and let him push you, pin his ears, kick or bite, he has to be taught that any behavior like that is bad and will get him pushed hard so he better not do it.
Well without seeing this first hand, it is
hard to tell for sure. It may be
a slight resistance showing in the ears, she
may not like to trot and shows this with her
ears. If it not progressing to
anything more serious, it may go away with
time. Not sure if she does this
while on a lunge line, but you could try and
round pen her, change her speed and direction
until she really looks to you for relief.
She will look and ask if she will
ask to stop and when she does her ears will
go forward to you, timing is important, so
stop and release immediately the second her
ears go forward, no pressure, once you get
her to associate ears forward with release,
then you can work on how long her ears are
forward before she gets release.
Again not knowing everything, ears back is
common sign of being sour and not enjoying
her job. Too much work and not
enough play and relaxing time together can
cause this, and I always get defensive
responses when I say this, but if you are not
doing this then don't worry about, but
remember just because you or someone else
thinks it is not too much, the horse is the
one that determines this, not people.
Just something else to
consider.
The other thing is maybe joint pain, other
pain or saddle issues. I always
try and provoke the response so I can see if
I can create it so then I can figure out how
to stop it. When I am told,
something happens and I don't know why, I
don't believe this. Something
causes this response, you, the trot, pain,
sourness, respect issues, something, until
you determine what causes it, it is hard to
fix.
I would trot her on line, off line, towards
me, with a tight rein, loose rein, no leg,
lots of leg, small circles, large circles,
straight, slow trot, fast trot, leaning back,
leaning forward, do everything you can to
change the trot, NOT all at once or in one
day, just explore ways to see if you cause
this response, then it may give you a better
way to deal with it.
As I said before this is about the horse feeling safe and secure with you and seeing you as a strong leader. Only you change this. You need to really understand a horse to change it. You can guess at it, you can't try, you can't have someone else do it, you have study horses, understand them, know how they think, how they act, what they respond to and what they fear. Once you understand all that you can show the horse you understand them, you can talk to the horse in their language, they will know you understand them and that you are the leader and they will trust you and see you as the leader. When all this happens most all other problems go away. But all of this is about you. Your horse is only a horse. But until you really understand what a horse is all about, you cannot address any problem. So read my horsemanship page and my horseman tips page, it will help you see horses differently and that will be the first step in fixing what you are doing so the problem will go away. That is the problem of her behavior when you are handling her. As for the being alone part, let her be with other horses as much as you can. The more she is with other horses, the less she will be acting out to get to other horses.
I get this question a
hundred times a year. Only
you can fix this with you and only your
son can fix it with him. A
horse needs a strong leader, he needs
to know his boundaries and know who is
alpha, this is a very strong instinct
with horses. Your trainer
is right in one way, but I don't agree
with him completely. The
herd dynamic has little to do with you
or your son. When your
horse is with you, you and your horse
is a herd of two. So no
matter how horses are in a herd of
horses, when you take him out, it is
now just you and him. So
you are the problem, you need to give
this horse better direction, you need
to understand horses better so you can
help this horse. This is
NOT bad or acting out, or being mean,
he is being a totally normal horse.
You are causing this
behavior by confusing your horse, not
making the rules clear, not being a
strong and clear leader and not giving
this horse good, consistent, clear
direction, so he gets confused and
thinks he has to take over, so he does.
He treats you like a lower
horse in his herd since you act like a
lower horse. He is only
being a horse with strong instincts to
either be led or to follow.
If you lead he will follow,
if you allow him to lead he will lead.
I tell people this all the
time. Read my web site,
maybe it will take you a while, maybe 4
or 5 hours, not in one day but read it,
you will see horses differently after
you read it. You will
understand them better.
Read other books, learn and
study the horse, they are complex and
very unique animals that most horse
owners never see. This
horse is looking for a leader and you
are not it and he knows it, so he
thinks he has to move up and pick up
the slack since when he is with you,
you are unsure, not specific, not clear
with you directions, not clear with
when you ask something there is only
one right answer. You are
trying to be nice and loving and
caring, horses don't care about that,
they want a good strong leader, that is
whey makes them feel safe, that is what
makes them want to be with you,
anything else is weak and confusing to
a horse. As for your herd situation, I would absolutely put your mare back in a herd. Horses play, correct, train, release stress and many others things in a herd. Without a herd, horses act out and get confused and question their position and existence. Put horses together every chance you get. All geldings just want to play, with a mare they have purpose, they will push and fight to be better, to be a leader to be the one that impresses the mare and will want to be seen as a leader, as strong, it makes them better. |
What you are describing does not make
sense. I don't know you or the
horse, but I never assume it is the horse's
fault, so I normally address the problem as
it is owner created. This sounds
like dominant and fear related behavior.
So without seeing it, it is hard
to diagnose. I would make sure
his ears and eyes are good, lots of strange
behavior happens when a horse start losing
sight since they are confused and scared, so
they can get more aggressive.
Since you say he is doing this to
other horses as well as people, it leads me
to believe it is physical and not handling.
However, even if it is physical,
if he felt safe and secure with a strong
human handler, and received good, fair
handling, he would not do what he is doing.
Having a nine year old (without much
experience) ride and handle the horse would
be my next guess and I would say it 85
percent that this is the issue.
Kids don't understand release,
pressure, fear instincts and how a horse
thinks. Horses only put up with
pressure from higher horses, period.
A small child is training a horse
that is larger and stronger and they are
smaller, less experience, can't control a
horse and teach many other bad lessons.
Even very experience small
children have a hard time convincing a horse
that they are alpha and they are higher.
Normally kids resort to pain,
fear, bit bits, stud chains and bully
techniques. This can make a horse
sour. The other side
is they are too nice and just feed and baby
and pamper the horse and the horse see this
as weakness, does not respect them so the
horse pushes a little, tests a lot and learns
that they are really stronger and smarter, so
the horse becomes alpha. I would
try and find a good horse person.
This term is very subjective.
A good horse person is not just
someone who says they are good or someone who
says they are a trainer, or someone who has
owned horses forever, I mean a horseman,
someone who is quite, soft, yet very
effective with horses. Find one
of these if you can and have them take a look
and handle the horse, if the behavior is
stopped and or prevented then the answer is
clear, it is you, your daughter or others who
handle the horse, that is the problem.
Most times when people ask me a questions it
is always what is wrong with my horse he does
x y z, when all the problems are looked at
from it is the horse's problem, it normally
means it is NOT the horse. Anyone
who truly understands horses, knows it is
never the horse's fault and people cause
every problem a horse has. So
when someone asked me to help their horse, I
know they don't understand horses, when
someone ask me to help them, then I know I
have a willing person.
This horse has been shown at shows, been
trailered out a lot, been put in strange
stalls, been forced into to scary situations
at new arenas, new horses, unfamiliar
environments, taken away from his friends and
herd and handled and WORKED for ribbons and
prizes. Although you may blanket
him, feed him good grain, brush him and give
him find stables, NONE of this is what a
horse really needs.
A horse needs love, quality time, time with a
herd, time with people WHEN THEY ARE NOT
REQUIRING THINGS OF HIM, just time being with
him and enjoying him. People
never want to hear that they are the problem
and they are causing a horse to do bad
behavior. From my experience, I
think this horse is soured and has had
enough. He wants to be left
alone, he does not want to be someone's
pretty pony to win medals and ribbons, he
only wants to be a horse, since that is what
he born to be. So he has finally
said enough is enough. He has
figured out that the only way to get people
from using him, pushing him is to act out, to
take charge and to be aggressive.
This happens to race horses all
the time. If you find another a
good horseman in your area and they handle
this horse with no problem then it will
confirm my assessment. Fixing
this is whole new issue. First
you have to accept that you caused it and
want to fix it or you can keep looking for
other reasons, spending vet bills, trying
different food, get bigger bits, try a stud
chain or some other crazy ideas that people
use to "fix" horses since they can't accept
that they (or their child) are problem.
The only thing you have said that makes me
slightly questions this is he has become
disruptive in the herd. This does
not make sense, but what some see as
disruptive, I see as normal herd behavior, so
not sure on this one without more
details.
Without seeing and working the horse, and
only getting your view of the situation, it
is hard to give any other specific course of
action.
Question: We have three mares two of which want to be the dominate one. We have them separated at home, but one day they got in together and had a kick fest, needless to say one had to be taken to the vet but was ok. We still have them separated but we are moving to Oregon and want to put them in together when we get there. Does anyone have any suggestions for us on a way to do this so they don't hurt each other? We have talked to several people who train and they say to put them in together at our now home and run them and then put them into the pasture together. My thought is since it will be a new place that they might not be so dominant towards each other if they get put in together at a new place, since one won't be there first. I am afraid of bringing them one after the other because then one will think it was their home first. Our new pasture will be two acres that is wide open so they will have plenty of room to get away from each other. Our third mare can be in with either one of them, so she's not a problem
A: lol, sorry, but I know you are not a guy and mean well but you are not €˜thinking like a horse €™. Most guys would say they will work it out and they will get tired of kicking. Most women want to protect, save and get way too involved. All horses kick and all bite and all want to be higher. The pecking order keeps order in the herd. These horses are training each other, learning from each other, both wanting to be lead horse to get the mare and both are making each other better and stronger, which makes the herd stronger, which makes them better survivors, which means they will have more lessons and knowledge to pass on to their off spring, which makes the herd stronger and the cycle continues. All normal horse behavior that most humans do not understand. Working the horses before you put them together will take some of the freshness off them, also putting out several small piles of hay (maybe 20 or 30) will keep them busy, make sure the piles are far enough apart that they have to move to get them and they cannot reach each other while eating. This will keep them focused on food and not each other. Removing corners from fences will help so they don €™t get trapped in the corner when they fight. And they will fight, it is their nature to move up and test leaders. Once you put them out, LEAVE, don €™t stand by the gate, ohh €™in and awhhh €™in which will create a draw and they may come to you which will bring them to the fence of gate and increase the chance of them getting trapped, cornered or hurt. It looks worse than it is, so don €™t watch. People that watch tend to want to stop it or help and then they end up making it worse and getting a horse hurt or separate the horses (which you did) and then create more aggression between the horses and increase the drive to fight. Once they are together, DON €™T feed them in one pile or you will cause them to fight, throw hay in several piles to they can pick, move, get pushed off and move without thinking there is only one pile of food and they have to fight to eat. There are two types of horses, those who are hurt and those who will be hurt. You can read my horsemanship page and it will explain herd behavior a little better.
Question: Since getting my prison trained mustang home (Adopted August 2009), he has been separate from our other horses. They can smell and touch through the panels. One day, he reared up and tried to mount our broodmare through the panels. We pulled her apart and put her into pasture for safety purposes. He and our paint mare have become such good friends. They are with each other now, and he has never been aggressive towards her. We are mixing him with our others slowly. Question is: Now he can't stop mounting her. I know he is gelded, but you wouldn't know it. It is literally, "eat, mount up and sleep." I have heard of this happening in the past with some geldings. Has anyone else experienced this with their horses? I know he hasn't seen a mare in a long time, but wow. :)
A: Read the other answer about keeping horses together. He could be proud cut or have a Cryptorchid (I explain this on my horseman tips page: www.thinklikeahorse.org) He could have been cut late so is still showing stud behavior. The mare will stop him when she wants. He is being a horse, if you don €™t understand horses, you tend to want to try and protect them and save them and then end up hurting them or setting them up to fail. Put them together and let horses be horse and work things out like horses. I guess my question is so what if he mounts her? What is he hurting? And don €™t tell me about tearing down the fence, if you put them together and did not separate them the fence would not be an issue. Let them be horses, that is what they know and that is what they are best at.
Introducing New Horse to Herd:
I am a firm believer that a
horse needs a herd. A lone horse
is miserable and develops emotional, mental
and stress related problems. I
would put them both with the herd.
Even a bottom horse plays a role
and had a job in a herd. Every
herd member is needed and valued in a herd.
Even if you think the low horse
only get pushed away, they are needed to keep
the herd strong and always have a challenger.
I say you are never doing a horse a favor by
isolating him and thinking you are protecting
or helping him.
Put them in the herd, it will do everybody
good, the herd will be bigger and feel safer,
everyone will have a job and you will notice
a change and see that they are all better for
it. It may take a week or two as
much as a month, but stay out of it and let
the herd work it out.
Read my horsemanship page on my site I have a
section on Herd behavior and it may make it
clearer.
He is being a horse that is trying to test other horses and see if he can move up in the pecking order. The other horses could run away or chase him or make him stop if they wanted or could stay away from him. If you don't know is age, he may be younger, this it normally behavior of a younger horse around 4 or 5ish, but this horse could have been in a stall him entire life and does not know how to be a horse, how to be in a herd and is trying to figure it out. The herd will teach him in time, just let them work it out. A bite here and there and a kick here and there, is all normal horse stuff. They are just being horses.
Deep mud is not good for them. When you say a herd I think open area and pasture, not a paddock. If you have 7 or 8 horses in a small paddock area that can cause problems. This little guy is going to have a hard time at first. A herd is tough and does not cut slack and does not think emotional, everything is done for a reason. You see the strong ones attacking a new horse, I see the herd pecking being established and reinforced. As long as a horse has a way to get away and run, then they will work it out. Normally when horse get get they get trapped in a fence corner, they have no where to run or it is over food.
A good way to introduce new herd members it to build a temp round pen in the middle of the pasture. That way the new guy and be inside and safe and the rest of the herd can come over, visit, push and squeal and they can get to know each other a little bit before being released. Two or three days in the middle will make the transition much easier.
The key is feeding time, no fence corners and room to run. Horse shoes in pasture is very dangerous and a leg can get broke so that is always a risk. Another option is to take the lead horse in the herd and put them together, they will bond in a week or so and then when the lead horse goes back to herd, he will have bonded with the new horse and will protect or at least help keep the herd from being to hard on him.
Walk the new baby by the fence a lot, let the other horse come up and sniff and squeal and even bite him, he will learn to move and show submission, this exposure will help his not be such an outsider when you put him in. You can even feed him near the fence or tie him by the fence and work with him, the more exposure the herd sees him and is allowed to interact, even through a fence, it will be better for him later.
Question: I have a 17 yr
old mustang horse and a 3 yr old donkey
(owned both for 2 yrs) we just last week got
a 20 yr old pony, we would like advice on how
to introduce pony into herd? Pony is in their
pasture but in barn stall, we have taken the
pony out in evenings into a small paddock we
put up for him so we can watch interaction
through fence with each other. My horse being
the boss in the field has sniffed and left
for the most part, but today he made 2 (what
i call bluff charges) at the paddock where
pony is. The donkey stays at paddock smelling
and trying to poke his head through fence.
The pony doesn't react much at all to any of
this...not even to my horse charging towards
the fence (my horse did stop charge right at
fence (bluff charge or showing dominance? )
Any advice on a safe way to put together and
how to go about it. Thank you
Answer: feed the pony so
he is not hungry, then put out 5 or 10 piles
of hay (half flakes or so each) put these at
least 20 to 30 feet apart so your two will
have lots to think about, then let the pony
in the pasture and you leave and stay out of
it. They will work it out.
Anytime you put a new horse in, there is
always a chance of a kick, cut, bite or fence
crash, but if you put the hay far apart and
not close to any fence, the dominant one will
chase pony off each pile and there will be
enough piles so no one has to defend any
food.
they should be fine, don't try and help or
save, you will make it worse, just give the
herd something to do (check out all the piles
of food) and let the pony out that is not
hungry and they should work it out.
Horse pucky! Horses don't have
to big to be in a herd, think about it, that
would be pretty rough in the wild, if this
was true all baby horses would be beat up or
killed, not real good for species.
The people you ask don't know
what they are talking about and don't
understand herd behavior. If they
understood they would know that the head
horse does not care since he knows he is
lead, he is secure in his position and he
knows the little guy is no threat.
The two other young ones are
fighting for their position and do not want
to be last, the new guy will be last in the
pecking order and they have to show him
that.
I discuss this more on my horsemanship page
under herd behavior. Read that
and if you have more questions, let me
know.You have learned well, no advice should
replace your good judgment or your safety.
I tend to speak for the horse and
that upsets many people. This
colt wants to be part of a herd.
He is afraid and cannot sleep
well and has no friends. He needs
to be chased to develop his muscles, he needs
to be pushed to learn respect and that he
must yield to a higher horse, which will be
you later. The herd has to teach
him herd manners so you can use that
knowledge later to train him. I
am not there, very rarely will a horse beat
or kill another horse, it can happen, it can
happen more with stallions. You
are correct in the wild the mother will
protect a colt, but, if a stallion wants the
horse dead, the mom will be helpless.
We, humans, cause these problems since we buy
sell, move horses from herd to herd, put up
fences where horses can get hurt.
7 acres is pretty good size.
If this colt gets trapped in a
corner of a fence (that would not be in the
wild) he can get hurt. If he
panics and runs blindly in fear, he can run
into or through a fence. So he
can get hurt. In open land he
would just run and the other would get tired
of chasing. The chasing horses
are just showing dominance and teaching him
manners, it is not personal, it is not mean,
it is just horses being horse.
You can do a couple of things to ease the
situation, but I hesitate telling people to
much since they will do what they think they
hear or will do it in a vacuum without the
hundred considerations and variables that
come into play. Every thing you
do depends on several if not a hundred
different options and variables.
Each choice changes with many
factors, the horse €™s
reaction, the other horses reactions, your
reactions, the environmental changes, the
location, etc. Every
factor changes what you can do, what you
should do, what you should not do, how you
should do, how hard to push, how much to
release, when to release, when to stop
releasing, when to stop, when not to stop and
so on and so on. So if I say you
need to do €œX €
and you do without any consideration for all
the other factors then it may not work, if
may backfire and get you or the horse hurt,
or you may get lucky and nothing bad happens.
So when I tell people things,
they miss all the other stuff and then get
mad at me when I tell them, It is them that
causes good or bad, they are the one thing
that makes a situation work or fail, people
don €™t want to hear that,
it is easier to blame the horse for being
stupid, dumb, or crazy.
You can put up some temporary panels in the
middle of the pasture and make a round pen or
box so the colt can hang in there and get to
sniff and get to know the other guys, they
can push and have little fights through the
fence for a day or so and this will make it
easier when you let him out.
You can take out the most aggressive horse
and lock him up for a few days and let the
colt just hang with the leader and one other
horse, then they can accept him and then let
the other out, that way the colt will have
time to learn the fences, learn where he can
run, learn manners and how to run from the
other two and then be better prepared to deal
with the most aggressive horse, when you let
him back in. (I say aggressive,
but I just use that term, this horse is only
being a horse and making sure his spot in the
pecking order is maintained, especially if he
is last, now he is thinking, Yippieeee, now I
have someone lower to push around).
Another option is lock up the lower horses,
let the little guy bond and get to know the
leader and he may take him under his wing and
protect him from the other two.
Just use imagination and come of with ways to
set the horses up for success.
Remember the goal is to get this
little guy with another horse so he can feel
safe and start growing and learning herd
behavior.
I could on and on, but you are there, you
need to work it out and
don €™t set the horse (any
horse) up to fail, help them find the right
answer. It will take time and
effort, but if you rush it, try and take
short cuts you will make the horse pay for
your mistakes.
Well you story is too often heard.
You are why the statistics say
80% of all new horse owners get out of horses
in the first year. You have set
yourself and your horse up for failure.
You think since you rode as a kid
when you had no fear and did not care so much
that you can do the same thing.
You can't, you changed and horses
know it. You need to learn about
horse and stop thinking just because you rode
as a kid that you know horses.
You don't. Read books, read my
web site, I bet you will learn many things
that you never knew as a kid.
This horse is not dangerous, but
it may kill you. That may sound
silly but it is true. The horse
is only a reflection of you. You
do not know what you are doing and the horse
knows it so he is taking advantage of
you.
I am sure you don't want to hear this, but I
am telling you like it is. So
either admit you don't know what you are
doing and fix it, learn and study or get out
of horses before you get hurt and end up
getting your horse hurt.
If you understood herd behavior you would
know that ALL horses bite each other and that
is no reason to keep this horse alone. Put
the horse out with other horses, stay out of
it and let the horses be horses.
They DON'T need you to save them
or protect them from each other.
Believe me horse need much more
protection from people than they do other
horses.
If you don't believe me, put your horses
together and leave them alone in 5 days or
less they will all be buddies and grazing and
peacefully being a herd. Try it,
if you are about to give up anyway what the
hell. After you see that I am
right, then maybe you will listen to what I
said and finally realize and admit, you do
not have a horse problem, you have a you
problem, you are causing your horse to do
what it is doing, the fact that you do not
realize this is part of the problem.
Let the horse be a horse and leave him alone
for a week, read and study everything you can
get your hands on and then start over.
ANSWER: A buddy is the best answer, and if the only reason you are not doing it is so she won't get attached sounds pretty selfish. She is a horse that needs a buddy to feel safe and secure. She is in the pasture much more time than she is with you and for you short periods with her you want to deprive her of feeling safe and having a friend that understands her. People keep horses alone since it is easier on them. I would never keep my horse alone. So what if she gets attached, deal with it, it will make you better at understanding how to deal with and fix problems and keep her focused on you. It may be more work, but it is best for the horse.
ANSWER: I do not believe in using
supplements for behavior problems.
I am a firm believer that horse
problems, as people call them, are caused by
people. Caused by people that
don't understand horses. I say so
what if she gets attached, because if you
understood horses you would know that it does
not matter if a horse is attached, when a
horse is with a strong leader, it will follow
that leader and nothing else matters.
You say you do not have the time
for another horse, time is the number one
problem with all horse owners. To
me it is an excuse not to put in the effort
and time to learn and understand horses.
I have two horses that are
connected all the time, some would say they
are buddy sour, it does not matter when I
take one away they listen to me, since they
see me a strong and their leader.
Depriving a horse of a friend is
selfish, that is my opinion, why should your
horse be destined to a life of being alone
because of your lack of time or to prevent
you from dealing with a normal instinctive
behavior, being part of a herd.
Why? For the same
reason that most do it, it is easier for
YOU.
So as your, I would be thinking, lets see, my
owner wants me to listen to her when she
decides to come out, but every night I am
alone, fearful and without a herd, I spend
all most of my time alone and insecure since
I do not have a buddy help me stay safe, I
don't sleep good and I don't rest good, since
I am alone most of time, then when I am not
alone, I have this human come out, rush to
saddle me, ride me, tell me what to do and
then she leaves me alone, by myself most of
the time. Why should I like this
human, why does she abandon me every night,
why does she just spend time with me when she
wants ride me and then leaves me and then she
expects me to be grateful for some hay and
treats.
As for trying to fix what you call problems,
what I call normal horse behavior, with
supplements, that would be like me telling
you if someone is hitting you and abusing
you, you should take some vitamin C.
This is not about what you feed
your horse, this is about you having a
relationship and understanding of your so
your horse will trust you and see you a fair
leader that it can trust. I am
sure in your mind that you think you treat
your horse good with good food and give it a
good home, that is not want a horse wants or
needs, a horse wants safety and security,
they only get that from other horse or people
that understanding and act like other horses.
Being nice and feeling good about
yourself means absolutely nothing to a horse.
I am pretty sure I could work your horse for
about 15 minutes, take it for a ride and it
would not do what it does to you.
The horse would know I know
horses and would see me as a safe and
dependable leader and would act totally
different with me. As I always
say this is not a horse problem, not a
supplement problem, not a weather problem,
not a traffic problem, not a barn
problem...... which leaves People, more
specifically you. Fix yourself
and your horse will get better.
Stop blaming the horse or looking
for other solutions, you only have to look in
the mirror to find the answer.
Helen, like many people who ask me
questions, the last thing they want to hear
is they are problem and the want me to tell
them how to fix the horse. Anyone
reading this and if you read again, I never
said you hit or abuse you horse.
You hear what you want to hear,
you see what you want to see. You
are still telling me your is stubborn!
As I say a lot, people that use
negative terms to describe their horse are
really describing themselves. So
I would from your response that you are
stubborn and you horse is only a reflection
of you. So you are more than
willing to keep coming up with excuses about
the poor horse's past, the lack of
supplements, your horse is sensitive, your
horse is clever and any other reason.
You asked for my opinion and I
gave it to you, nothing you have said has
changed my opinion and if anything it has
confirmed it. You see your horse
as stubborn, you respond to this by being
stubborn and then your prediction is proven.
If I think a horse is mean, I
treat it mean, it will be mean.
It I think a horse is abused, I
spoil it and soon it becomes more spoiled and
then I use the excuse that it was abused.
Horses are reflections of the
people handling them. A calm
horse is handled by a calm person, a nervous
horse is handled by a nervous person, a
stubborn horse is handled by a stubborn
person.
You want to talk about how you saved this
horse from meat, that is great and good, but
your horse does not care, does not know it,
does not appreciate it, does not owe you for
it or anything else. A horse does
not care if you feed it, give it treats or
keep it warm. People do get that
and that is why there so many people blaming
horses for problems that they create.
Stop looking for the problem,
look at yourself, make yourself better and I
assure you your horse will get better, it is
really that simple.
So disagree with me, disagree with your
horse, and keep searching for someone who
will tell you what you want to hear and maybe
you will FEEL better, but it will not help
your horse.
Hobbles:
Hi Sue, hobbles are great tool for
teaching many things. In the days
where your horse was your only means of
transportation, while traveling long
distances you would have to sleep where you
could, many times there were no trees and no
way to secure your horse. Hobbles
allowed you to let your horse graze through
the night while keeping him close so in the
morning your horse would not be several miles
away. Some horseman use bells on
a rope tied on their horse to help find them
after a night of grazing. By
putting a bell on the lead horse, you can
find the herd easier in the morning.
Hobbles allow a horse to still
use his back legs for protection and even to
run if needed, but help minimize his speed of
travel.
As for hobble being an advance sack out
technique, it teaches a horse to trust you
not to hurt him. It teaches a
horse to learn to deal with being trapped or
restricted without panic. A
hobble trained horse will fight less if ever
trapped in a fence, wire or things that could
hurt him. Hobbles, if done right,
remove fear and teach a horse
confidence.
I explain this in more detail on my web site,
read my sacking out section on my
horsemanship page.
This sounds like a exception
rather than a rule. You sound
like you are doing some good things, but they
are not working. So looking at
this from the horse's point of view, why is
not working? You have to be
willing to change if you want to see change
in your horse. The horse is
telling you something, it may be something
hurts, I am in pain, I don't understand, I am
confused, I don't know what is going to
happen.... something is going on
and the horse is telling trying to tell you.
Are you listening or you so
focused on fixing the problem you see that
you are missing what the horse is saying.
You say the horse does not like
to move, you say the horse stands around a
lot and does not play, then you say the
sweats and gets wild when you make her move,
lunge or ride her, so I would look for pain
or physical issues and make sure her sweating
and reactions are not from pain.
Then I would try and change what I doing, do
different things to see if I can get
different responses. This horse
is not a horse anymore since it has been
ruined, reprogrammed and taught bad lessons
from bad people. Sometime this
can take years to undo, sometime it will
never get undone and you will only see small
changes.
Now to contradict what I just said, it sounds
like you have changed bits, pulleys, gear,
hacks, and other things. So maybe
you did not stick to something long enough to
get her to adjust and accept
it.
What seem to work best with horses are
calmness, consistency, routine and lack of
restraint. Horses that want to
run off always do worst when people try and
hold or force them to stop. Try
and stop trying to force her to walk, or to
stop her from running, focus more on
redirecting her fear and outburst.
She has to learn to look to you
for calmness and security. When
she goes off on her instinctual reactions,
your goal has to be able to pull her back to
you. Pull not by force, but by
understanding. Not sure how much
time you are spending with her, but that is
important, the more time you spend with her,
not asking or making her do something, the
more she will not fear or be concerned with
you, which will make it easier for her to
look to you when scared or to seek your
direction.
Not sure I like you keeping her away from
other horse, if she did good with stud, when
not in heat I would keep her with him, she
obviously still understands horses since,
according to you, he has gotten through to
her. Neglected and abused horses
need recovery time with horses, they need
time away from humans that just require
things of them. I believe this is
the best healing they can have.
You said she likes being ponied and does
well, I do as much of that as you can, if you
do it enough you can probably pony her with
no lead. You can teach her to
follow you and stay with you over time.
I like to pony out a horse and
then let off lead on the way home, most
horses will just follow the other horse home
and at worst will run home and leave the
other horse, if it is safe, let her figure it
out and after a while she will just figure
out to follow you and you can pony her on all
rides. Then you can observe her
responses with not human interference, no
reins, no pulling, no rider.. this will help
confirm that she is not in pain and you can
get a better indicator on what the horse is
about, let her grow and experience things
without being told, forced, pulled,
pressured. Over time she will
figure it out. The slow way is
the fast way. Lots of time, lots
of small progress, lots of release on all
tries, all of this seems to work best.
When you lunge or round pen her, don't ask
for movement, just be with her, let her
decide to stand or walk, let her decide to
run or trot, you just see how little you can
to get her to do something other than stand,
but standing is OK too. So change
what you know, change what has not worked,
ask less. When she decides to
turn up the heat, disengage from her, not
pressure, release of pressure, start walking
away, relax and move slowly away, she will be
confused and will follow and will likely calm
down, since she is expecting you to put
pressure by slowing her, speeding her,
stopping her, since she expects this, don't
do it, confuse her and make her think, what
is going on, why is this happening, this has
never happened before, then you move her out
of reaction, expectation and get her to think
and be curious, then she will be thinking and
not reacting.
This sounds like one of the horses you have
to think out of the box, she is teaching you.
She is going to make you better
and make you use different mental tools in
your tool box. The old screw
driver and pliers will not here, so you have
to find the new and right tool for her.
I would be she is used to
fighting humans, don't fight with her.
However with that said, how did
the stud get her to listen or respond.
If it worked for him, use his
technique. Just keep putting
yourself in your horses position, but
remember horses don't bribe with carrots and
treats to get respect, they don't feel sorry
for a lower horse.
More turn out time is great and that is one
thing that you did that has probably helped
more than you know, so keep her out of that
stall as much as possible.
hope this helps,
Comment: The hobble is probably the most dangerous and most disrespectful act you can ask a horse to engage in. 9 out of 10 horses will be seriously injured their first time. Think about it...would Monty Roberts or Pat Parelli hoble a horse? I think not. This is my personal opinion. I've owned horses for 25 years and only know one guy who talked about hobling a horse many, many years ago. If you resort to hobling a horse, hoble yourself first. Horses are fight or flight animals. Hobling a horse is abuse!
Answer: You don't understand horses or hobbles, hobbles are better than a bit/tie down/nails in a hoof. A bit causes pain. OMG, horses are flight animals, No shit, If you read my site you might truly understand this concept and not just repeating what you have heard. Anyone/Monty/Pat knows that hobbles are a great way to let your horse roam, eat & relax. The stats you used that 9 out of 10 only shows the 9 idiots that hurt the horse did it wrong. Horses are hurt everyday & some blame the bit, the horse, the saddle, the fence & YOU blame the hobbles, don't preach ignorance using good horseman names to try and impress or give the impression that your lack of knowledge is somehow improved since you use well know horseman's names.
Hoof and Feet:
I am not a farrier but
I do my horses feet myself.
So I can only give try and
answer this but there are two or three
good farriers here on allexperts and
they could give you better and more
detailed advice. If you
take pictures of the feet they will
look at them and give you good
tips. The long wet season can make feet soft and can cause some mud scald. My thoughts on trimming feet is LESS is always better. It sounds like you may be taking off a little much, but without seeing the hoof it is hard to tell. Also during wet times, move hoof comes off with each rasp since the hoof is normally moister and softer so it is easy to take off too much on a soft hoof verses a horse dry hoof. Not trimming them for a month or so will not hurt and may give time to grow and heal. I often have a farrier take a look at my horse's feet to ensure they look balanced and even and to make sure I am not missing anything. You may consider have a good farrier come out and do a trim after a month or so and see what they say. I really recommend that you re-ask this question to a farrier expert and get their take. |
Your horse looks very sad. He had a good friend and now is alone. Horses need another horse to relax and to play and so they can rest and relax. Your horse is nervous and scared and without another horse to spend time with he will get worse. He is also 18 years old so he is set in his ways and if he has had bad handling then it will take longer to work on those. I would not ride this guy until he was better adjusted to his new home and you understand horses more.
Hoof cracks could be bad, but I would have a farrier take a look at next time one is out. I am pretty anti shoe, but a crack that goes all the way to cornet band is not good. This is something that needs to be checked out in person, you can take a couple of pics and send them I will take a look, but depending on how deep is the issue, a minor superficial crack may not be that bad, but if it is deep through the hoof wall, then the hoof strength is definitely compromised. If she is running and being active in pasture, then it can't be that bad, but remember round penning is very tough on horses since it puts lots of weight on the outside, too much running a round pen does lots of long term damage, I think. I use round pens more for control, pressure and release to teach a horse I can put pressure and release if it the come or follow, it should not be an exercise pen, very unnatural and can do more damage than the extra weight.
Horse Behavior:
QUESTION: I'm 52, been around horses much
of my life, horse has been out on pasture
with one youger gelding. I bought a big
quarter horse I would guess he was about 5-6
when I got him. Very
disrespectful, I have had him two
years. He got better but not completely was
treated like a dog not a horse.
I'm a big guy 6'6" 250 not used
to loosing in these type of contests.
He decided he was NOT going ot be
shod that last time by the farrier.
I have had back problems and
can't ride like I used to, can't bend over to
work on his feet. No round pen although that
may change. All the common
disrespect kind of issues. Not standing still
while mounting until I have a couple miles on
him... I read all your comments that I could
before sending this one and I like your
responses. I did send him to the
Amish to try to get the attitude off him once
and for all. I read the opener on
one you had recommending not to do this but
was unable to read further. Now I
have some concerns about having sent him.
It's kind of a thing where if I can't get
this fixed. He's going to be in a lot of
trouble because I don't sell my problems to
others and I can't justify keeping him if I
can't work with him.
ANSWER: Well lots going on here.
It sounds like this horse has
been trained well to learn that he is in
charge, he is bigger, he is stronger and he
gets his way... all bad lessons to teach a
horse. So now the horse has
become the teacher and he is teaching well.
It sounds like he has taught you
that you can't win, not true, but if you
believe it, then it is so. It you
believe you can or believe you can't, you are
probably right!
Older Men horse owners tend to be too
aggressive, much like most women tend to be
too nice and think love will make a horse
better. All discipline and no
love is just as bad as all love and no
discipline. Both confuse the
horse.
In my younger days, growing up in Texas, it
was all about showing the horse who is boss,
and that worked, when you are young, strong
and in good health, but later in life, it
does not work so well as you are finding out.
I hear a lot about this horse,
but not too much about you. Being
around horses and owning horses does not mean
you understand horses. I say this
since I was around horses for years and did
not have a clue. Natural
Horsemanship works, it works better and is
easier on horse and human.
However, unless you think like a
horse, understand a horse's mind,
understanding a horse's instincts,
understanding that Release teaches, know
about feel and timing, know about pressure
and release, advance and retreat, knowing
about herd behavior, knowing how horses talk
and communicate with each other, know what
you are saying with your body and actions,
all these things make you successful or
unsuccessful with horses.
You are still seeing this as a horse problem,
I tell you and just about everybody,
including myself, whatever a horse does you
cause it, you either cause good behavior or
bad behavior, to a horse it is just behavior.
Read my horsemanship page, it will make you
see there is a lot about a horse you do not
know. Once you accept that you
are the problem and if you change your horse
will change, then you will see progress.
A horse is give and take, if you just take
the horse will stop giving, if you just give
the horse will take more and more.
It has to be a partnership.
The Amish do not believe this,
they normally believe that pain, meanness,
threats and intimidation all bad since they
do not understand release, or having a
relationship with a horse, they only
understand dominance and fear.
Maybe not all, but most that I
know of.
Work on yourself and your horse will get
better. This horse is teaching
you, this horse is forcing you to learn, it
is not going to let you get away with the old
brute force training methods, this horse is
going to make you understand horses and learn
their language if you want to Win......
Calm seas never made a good
sailor and easy horses never made a good
horseman.
As for you not wanting to pass on your
problems, you are the problem not the horse,
in another hands, this horse could be a gem..
don't make this a horse problem, this horse
needs change, either change in you, change to
someone else or change in how it is
treated.
Horses are masters of change.. they adapt
almost too well, whenever something changes
they know it and they change and they adapt.
You have a great horse here that
is tying to force you to be better, don't
sell him short or yourself, read, try
different things and grow with this horse
instead of fighting and allowing him to lead
you down the path of failure.
The short answer is, move a horses feet to
show him you are higher. Stop
him, move him, change his direction, change
is speed, make him back up, all of this tells
him you are higher and he should not
challenge you.
Hope this helps,
Rick
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: You are correct sir, an old dog can
learn new tricks if the old dog doesn't let
old pride interfere. Thank You for your
prompt response
Answer: Thank
you.. I must say it is refreshing to have
someone listen to my suggestions and not take
personal and tell me how rude I am to even
suggest that it may be their fault.
Horses make us better, they challenge us,
they force us to be on our A game or they
take over, it is their way. They
are always trying to find weakness in their
leader since their life depends on it.
They are always on their A game
or they are dead. Horses are not
mean they are direct, they are not ego driven
they are staying alive driven.
Their entire life is about being
a part of a social herd where numbers mean
safety and having only the strongest and
smartest leader keeps them alive.
Success to a horse is not about
impressing others, being right or other petty
human traits, it is about staying alive.
They are the purest form of
survival of the fittest. All too
often people want to make them better,
improve them, or help them......
they do not need our help or
improvement, they are pretty prefect as they
are... but as humans, with our egos and self
importance, we always want to make it their
problem... It just ain't so and
once people get that, they are on their way
to true horsemanship.
Best to both of you,
Question: | QUESTION: I acquired
an 8 year old Arabian Gelding that has
been previously ridden only in arena
and paddock or small field settings. He
is very "Arabian" in that he is
sensitive and reactive but also
wonderfully responsive. He is sound,
healthy, on daily turnout with 2 other
horses and close to many others. He is
stalled for 4 to 8 hours each day with
pelleted feed and hay. He has had some
professional training for the show ring
but when I bought him, I was told he
wasn't happy in the show ring. I am a
trail rider. I have moderate experience
riding trail and have done some long
distance rides. I cannot get this horse
desensitized to the trails. He spooks
dangerously at anything that he cannot
see. I can lead him and he's fine.
Mounted he is dangerous. He rears,
spins, bolts and hops. I have had
broken bones as a result. He might be
fine and confident one day with a quiet
horse companion then the next day be
frantically nervous. He will cross
water one day and the next act like
he's never seen the same creek. He is
responsive, respectful and confident in
an arena setting or in hand. I have
gone so very very slow with his trail
training but cannot get him accustomed
to it. It has been nearly a year. He
will, without warning, spook at a sound
or site that is something he's seen or
heard before without warning and he's
very light on his front end. I once
enjoyed his challenges, he's a dream to
ride and I like animated horses but
this feels like he becomes unhinged and
there's no way to ground him and
reassure him once he is anxious. Any
tips beyond the "you need to
desensitize him" or "give it time"
would be appreciated. I am surrounded
by experienced riders who have not been
able to tell me how to handle him. I
don't want to give up on him. image: Horses-702/2009/07/Bay-Arab.jpg ANSWER: I always look to people for the problem and not the horse. You may be too nice and too easy and he knows it. This is a smart horse, you think he is not learning, I think is learning too well. He knows your weakness and is using them. Sacking out is different than just desensitizing him. Read my sacking out section on my horsemanship page. Show and teach this horse you can create fear and remove it, you can make him nervous and uncomfortable and can make him feel safe, this horse will get his confidence from you, but you must first have it. If he is so good on ground then find things that scare him and stop his fear and put him to work and make his attention go away from fear and back to you. Time will teach you, a horse knows how to be a horse. My guess is that this horse does not run around the pasture scared all the time when you are not riding him or with him, that is a good sign that you are doing something to cause this or not doing enough to prevent it. Read my site so you understand horses better and turn up the heat on this horse and show him you are a strong leader that will not allow him to be fearful. ---------- FOLLOW-UP ---------- QUESTION: I've read a number of your articles on your site including the sacking out part. I watched the video. As I said before he does not react in a bad way to stimulus in hand and is calm when being led, tied and handled. It's only under saddle and on the trail that he becomes fearful. I ride other horses, some young and learning and I don't have a problem with them even when they are fearful or spooky. I agree that his is a confidence problem and that he'll get confidence from me but when he becomes unhinged, exactly HOW do I "stop his fear"? When he is experiencing snorting, shaking, head up, heart pounding fear reaction do you think he is "using my weaknesses"? I wish I knew more about all the skeletons in his closet. I think I know that time is my answer, I just hope he doesn't hurt me in the meantime. Thanks for your help, this is a really valuable service! |
Answer: |
You cannot stop his fear, part of the
problem is you think you can, you try
and you fail. All horses
identify weaknesses in people and
other horses. He is found
many in you. He knows he
can get you off, he knows you get
scared when he gets scared, he knows
you will not correct or discipline
him for reacting the way he does to
his fear, he knows you do not help
him with his fear with strong
direction and instead try and talk
and calm him. YOU DO NOT
UNDERSTAND HORSES. You
think since you can ride other horses
with no problems then this must be a
horse problem. You want
to worry about his skeletons and
think that somehow you can fix or
make it better by knowing what he has
been through. I think you
are wrong. YOU hope he
does not hurt you, he does not care
what you hope, he does not care if he
hurts you and he does not care that
love him and take care of him, he is
a horse and that is all he knows how
to be. YOU can't admit
that you are the problem, you can't
help this horse since you don't
understand horses, you don't want to
get hurt, but you don't know how to
increase your chances of not getting
hurt. You are looking at
this from your emotions and not for
logic. This horse does not want to hurt you, he does not want to hurt himself, but he will do both to try and stay alive. You see his fear as a problem, he sees it as a way to stay alive, since you look at this from a you and human side and he looks at this as a horse and stay alive side, your chances of succeeding are less and your chances of getting you or the horse hurt is more. Reading a few articles, watching a few videos, riding a few horses, do not teach you about horses. Horses are the best teacher of horses. You don't know it but this horse is making you better, he is making you more aware, he is making you have a better seat, he is building your confidence, he is forcing you to grow and try and learn different ways, but with horses the lessons are dangerous and unforgiving. Stop thinking the horse has a problem and work on yourself, then your horse will get better. Stop thinking you got have this figured out, you don't, you don't understand horse fear, you don't understand how to remove fear, you don't understand how to teach a horse to respond differently to his fear. I know this since the horse is telling you this. The horse will tell you when you are right and when you are wrong. Problem is most people are too busy being right to listen, they are too busy helping, they are too busy trying to fix the horse. I work with horses all the time where people tell me how special their horse is, how different their horse is, how what a troubled past their horse has had and each and every time the horse does fine when I work with it. So you would think the people would get that they are the problem and not the horse............Nope, they end up wanting to give me the horse or tell me what a gift I have, or how I have a special way with horses or their horse must be a Man's horse. None of what is true, I understand horses, I know horses, I listen to horse and I know that a horse is only the reflection of who is handling it and that I cause all things that happen when I handle a horse. If a horse does good, I cause it, if it does bad, gives me the wrong answer, get hurts or confused, I CAUSED IT. Most people never get this and that is why horse traders, trainers and others make lots of money off lots of people. Work on yourself and your horse will get better. |
Question: |
I'm 52 and a average
rider. I've worked on desensitizing. My
horse is kept at a ranch stalled next to other horses which she is GREATLY attached to and I hate it! My horse bolts for the "sole" purpose of running back to the hitching rail and not spooking and it is REALLY obvious this is her goal. She dumped me yesterday and I really hurt my back badly. I'm too old to get hurt like this and want to break this bad habit of hers. Desensitizing is a must but when the bolting is for the specific reason to run home what would the training consist of? |
Answer: |
Well, I don't think you are going
to like my answer, but I have gotten
used to it, so here I go.
:) This is
not a horse problem. You
are looking at this like the horse
planned to hurt you or planned to run
back or is so smart that it knows
what it is doing, all wrong in my
book. This horse is being
a horse and part of the problem is
you don't see this or understand it.
This horse telling you,
screw off, you are not a good leader,
you don't have my respect, you can't
stop me, you can't make me not want
to do this and the big pay off for
the horse is, IT GETS RELEASE!
-- I just did
an article on release and the link is
below.
I have a 17.2hh TB gelding who is
11yrs old who was normally very quiet
but I had a bad accident while
jumping one of my old horses and am
just trying to get back into riding
and over my fear. I have only had
darcy for just over a week and have
not been able to ride due to weather
conditions and the fact he has
recently thrown a shoe. I had him
cleared of any problems or drugs by a
vet and when i rode him pre purchase
he was perfect but he is now becoming
very aggressive and piggish when i
handle him on the ground and it is
making me uneasy about riding him.
his feed is all cool mixes and low
energy as he is not work at the
moment what could be causing this
change in temperament and what can i
do to regain control and respect. I
love him very much and he is just so
beautiful he is a stunning mover and
i want to be able to have a good
partnership with my boy. First I would say you need to not call your horse names. Your horse is only a horse and any bad habits or negative behaviors have been taught to him by PEOPLE. If you came off a race track you would not be happy either, handled every day by people that care about you, all they do is take you out of a stall run the crap out of you, put you on a hot walker, put you back in the stall and feed you high rich energy food and then keep you locked up until they want to run the crap out of you the next day.... not much a life for anyone, especially a horse, so cut him some slack.
ANSWER: It may be
teeth, but I don't think so.
I think this horse like
most horses do not like barrel
racing. Running barrels
is hard on a horse, they normally get
kicked to go faster, they get their
mouth yanked on to make them turn
faster and they learn very quick to
associate barrels with pain and work.
When people say My horse
loves, that normally means they love
it and then want to see their horse
love it. I have never met
a horse that loved barrel racing.
What they love is to do
as fast as they can so the rider will
get off and leave them alone.
Question: I am 35
yrs old with very little experience
with horses however my friend has
experience with them and is teaching
me how to train my horse which is 3
yrs old. I keep her at my
friends place and she brought home 2
Morgans mid winter this year...until
then my horse had been by
herself....now she is what my friend
calls herd bound...she cannot bear to
be away from the 2 which do not like
her at all...she lost her baby at 5
months due to the gelding kicking
her. so we have to keep
them separated now since they tried
to run her through the barbed
fence...inside the small barn they
are kept tied in straight stall
fashion (we are working on getting
the bigger barn built which will have
separate stalls) opk the
problems are - herd bound how do we
fix this?, acts up and strikes out
when my friend goes to take her out
of the barn after the other 2 were
let out...from what we can tell she
was led around with kids on her back
...she leads ok but when you get in
the saddle and try to get her to step
out she "explodes" according to my
friend...I have yet to see it happen
though so I am not sure....I have
seen the others and when I have
handled her also she has acted up
occasionally but I noticed
not as much
as when my friend is
around....I understand that she is
young and will try to get away with
things but we have to get her over
the herd bound thing and striking out
to get her own way...that can be
dangerous...I don't want her spirit
broke but at the same time I need a
horse that isn't dangerous....I have
worked with her myself and haven't
had much of a problem, every chance I
get I work with her so I don't think
I am the problem because she responds
to me and I don't use whips
and such....please let me
know what you think ...I would
appreciate it greatly. ANSWER: Of course she is fixable. She is not broke, she is just a horse. All horse bite and all get bit, that is how they show dominance and try and move up in the herd. You took her out, stopper her from eating, she did not know you much less respect you, so she told you so the only way she know how. You continued to make this about the horse, you say you couldn't catch her, I say you did not know how to catch her and now you have learned how to catch her. You say she is difficult, she is just a horse looking for answers. You say the training techniques that you learn at clinics don't seem to apply to her. MAYBE, you are not doing the techniques rights, maybe your timing is off, maybe your feel is not developed, maybe you don't have the experience of working with 100's or 1000's of horses that the people that taught the clinics did. I worked with lots of people and horses and 99% of the time it is the person causing the problems. They read books, watch dvds, go to clinics and then never work with tough or difficult horses. They always seek and want the easy horses, the ones that listen and require less work, so they never really understand a horse, they never work through the problems and just quit or move on or sell the horse and mostly just blame the for being stubborn, stupid, crazy or some other name. I have encountered lots of horses that nothing seems to work but I have to keep trying, I have to try and see what I doing wrong, if what I am doing is not working then I am doing it wrong. A good horseperson will always look to what they are doing and never blame the horse. You don't know it, but his horse is being a great teacher, she is not going to work for just anyone, she is not going to allow just anyone to follow, she is going to make sure you really want it, you are really dedicated and will not give up on her. She is where she is since many people have quit on her, blamed her, and make it all her fault. So she has learned well from all the people that left her. ANSWER: OK Carol, this horse's
behavior is caused by you.
Until you accept this as
fact you can not fix it.
If you think it is the
horse, the new area, the age, the
prior handling, the breed, the long
walk, then YOU cannot fix this.
You have to acknowledge
that you are causing this since you
are not stopping or preventing it.
This horse is convinced
that you can't control her, you don't
trust her, you are not secure or safe
when you are with her.
She knows this and I know
this, so until you accept this, her
behavior will continue.
Hi Tricia, this is odd. I would
not sell the horse, if anything give
him away to a great home, but not
yet. This horse may be
very connected to you and see's these
others as competition to his herd of
you and him. Regardless
of the reason, he should not be doing
this. You said you have
not been spending much time as you
did, horses know this and get sour
for being abandoned and left on his
on. I would guess these
other people do not spend time with
the horse either so he has no reason
to accept them other then his respect
for you. If you are
really seen as the leader, then he
should not do this if you correct him
or tell him to stop, however, if you
two are pretty equal and he thinks
you are not the clear leader, then he
will want to protect you and keep you
for him, that tells me he sees you as
his herd and not as you being the
leader. Ignore her resistance.
Make her move, stay
focused on what you want, move her
feet, and don't get distracted by her
test (tail, squeal, threats)
any threats to kick, bite
or strike, needs to be corrected with
harsh discipline. That is
a no no and she needs to know it hard
and fast. A minor kick
out and buck is not bad, but if she
tries to kick or spins her butt and
backs to you, hit her with a rope,
stick or anything you can on the butt
"as hard as you can", do not be easy,
do not be soft, it needs to scare the
S*#*# out of her and she will not do
it again. First, you need to be with your
horse more during this time so you
can see it for your self.
If my horse is "going
crazy" I would be there
to see it. You call it
tantrums, maybe your horse is scared,
maybe she is going night blindness,
maybe someone is doing something to
cause this, maybe she is in pain from
an internal issue. What
ever it is, if it was my horse I
would be there. Since the problem just started either you caused it or others are lying to you and not telling you problem. Since I cannot see you ride and did not see the ridden before you, there is no way for me to know. Circling a horse is always the best response and most times will only agitate and make the horse more nervous. People who circle a horse are normally nervous, insecure and don't know any better. It will slow a horse, it will help a horse from running away, but is not a real training method, it is a stall or pause so you can get the horse to come back to you. The horse has to learn that doing this is more work than not doing it, so he will not want to do it. This behavior is either fear based or lack of respect based. You need to determine this in order to know how to address it. Fear based can not be handled with more pressure. See my sacking out section on my site. Ground work and making the horse
respect you may or may not help your
daughter. I
would lean more to will not help
enough. If horses are
handled more by good leaders and by
people that understand horses, then
they become less resistance to all
people. However, if they
are handled more by kids, not strong
leaders or people that don't
understand horses, then they tend to
not respect all people and will test
and push people more.
|
First I would say you need to
not call your horse names. Your
horse is only a horse and any bad habits or
negative behaviors have been taught to him by
PEOPLE. If you came off a race
track you would not be happy either, handled
every day by people that care about you, all
they do is take you out of a stall run the
crap out of you, put you on a hot walker, put
you back in the stall and feed you high rich
energy food and then keep you locked up until
they want to run the crap out of you the next
day.... not much a life for anyone,
especially a horse, so cut him some
slack.
You said your self that he does better when
left in pasture with his buddies.
Of course he does, horses hate
stalls, they hate being locked up, and they
have lots of energy that needs to be let off
and they can't do it in a stall.
That will fix most of this.
The other thing is he is biting and pinning
and kicking all are dominance issues that
should not be allowed. You have
to impress this horse that you are a leader
and you will not allow that. You
do that by first not locking him up, then
being a good leader, spending time with him
not working him, take him for walks and
grazing, and if he shows any disrespect you
have to let him know that you can move his
feet, back him up, make him move, disengage
his hips and other things that make him
submit and tells him you are boss and he does
not do those things.
Read my horsemanship page on my site it will
give you a better idea on where this horse is
coming from.
ANSWER: Since you have owned the horse for the 17 years, you have to try and figure out what is casing this. It could be something you are doing or some type of pain the horse is feeling. Something changed to cause this new behavior. Without more information, I can't really help. How much handling does the horse get, do you only feed and groom or is the horse worked or ridden, when does this happen, is it consistent, what else is happening around the horse when this happens, when does it stop, is the other horse around, is just doing this to you or others, does it stop doing this when you do something, is there always food present or involved, is there treats involved, does this happen in the same location all the time, what do you do when this happens, what do others do when this happens, how long as this been going on..... as you can tell there more questions than answers, so trying to give you an answer on this without more info is not going to be helpful.
No I did not misread or skip the part,
lots of people say they know it is there
fault. Saying this is not the
same are really understanding Why it is your
fault, not understanding this horse is just
doing what you are allowing it to do.
Being mean is relative.
I will attack a horse that
charges me, tries to strike or kick me, that
is not mean, that is being aggressively
assertive, so there is not confusion that
these actions bring immediately and negative
responses from me. That is not
being mean or mad, it is teaching the horse
not to do things that can hurt me.
It also makes the horse better,
gives him boundaries and keeps him clear that
he is lower and I am higher, he is not being
mean when he kicks at me, I have let him down
for not showing him that he cannot do that,
showing him that is unacceptable and showing
him that lower horses (him) do not kick
higher horses (me) or they are moved and
attacked, just like any other higher horse
would do. So being mean (to me)
is more when someone tries to be nice to a
horse, tries not to hurt the horse, tries to
talk human to the horse and then sets the
horse up for failure, sets the horse up to
hurt someone and then the horse gets put to
sleep for being a mean or dangerous.
That is mean to me.
So don't set this horse up,
knowing it is your fault is only part of the
solution, the other part is taking the right
corrective action or taking the right
proactive/preventative action to stop the bad
behavior from ever happening. If
you keep this horse focused on you, make it
circle you, make it back up a few steps, stop
if every few steps, make it walk and then
stop, make it walk backwards, stop and pet
and rub it, all of this keeps the horse
focused on you and not the gate or pasture.
This shows the horse you control
the feet and you control the horse's
movement, so you are higher. It
does not have to be done mean or aggressive,
just consistent and clear.
Good luck, tell the horse thanks for letting
you know that you have not been a good leader
and that you were not clear on your position
and the horse's position.
:)
Give the old girl a hug for me.
:)
Hi Becky, training a horse is like
building a house. Can you imaging
emailing me and asking, I am building a house
can you tell how to do it. This
is a really broad question. There
are about a 1000 things that can get you hurt
and another 1000 that may get you hurt and
another 1000 that might get you hurt a little
bit. The point I am making is
training a horse involves a whole lot, so you
need to try and educate yourself as best you
can. I could tell you what to do,
but I can't explain timing, I can't explain
feel, I can't tell how to read every horse.
I make my web site to help people
understand horse horses and to help horses
get a better deal. My advice is
to read my web site completely, you can skip
the cowboy weather, but read it from start to
finish, I touch on lots of things that get
people in trouble and get horse and people
hurt. At least with this little
knowledge it will help you, but by no means
will it make you a expert trainer.
Remember these things:
The horse is best teacher of the horse.
Listen
It is never the horse's fault.
You cause good and bad,
YOU.
The slow way is the fast way with horses.
Don't rush or try fast
Never get mean or mad. Be
assertive, firm and fair
Learn to speak horse. Herd
behavior is key to working with horses
Actually, from your email, you seem to blame the horse for pulling you and ending up on the ground. Had you not hung on to the rope or not been in his way, the horse would not have knocked you down. You, like most horse problems, are really the problem (people problems). This horse is running and scared since he does not trust you and feel that you can keep him safe and he thinks you don't know what you are doing. He may be right since you are ending up on the ground. This horse needs a strong leader, and it he does not see you as that person he will run you down and be scared with you.
ANSWER: Like most people that don't understand horses, they always look to the horse for the problem. I know that it is never the horse's fault. I would say it is you daughters issue or others if others ride or handle the pony. All ponies tend to get bad reputations, they are bought and sold, they are owned by people that think they are a cute pet and know little about horses, then after the newness wears off, they are sold and they cycle starts over, I have never known a pony that did not have at least 3 or 4 previous owners. It is a bad cycle for a horse and they get bitter and resentful and then to start biting, kicking and rearing. This is from years of abuse and neglect by people that don't understand horses. Oats probably have nothing to do with this, lack of exercise, lack of proper handling, lack of consistent handling, rough and inexperience riders and hands are more likely the cause of these problems and it will get worse.
The following question was rather long, but it has some good points that some of you may get from it.
I have had for horses for around 13 years
and have our 2 girls in OJRA (Ohio Junior
Rodeo Assoc.)they run barrels, poles, dummy
rope and the oldest breakaways and goat ties.
My wife also runs NBHA and I am an inspired
team roper in the OTR (Ohio team roper) most
are #8 or # 12 ropers. I currently use other
members horses to rope as I try to finish out
a QH to rope on. I put the training on hold
and purchased a finished head/heal that Chuck
Holloway use to pasture rope on, and did
pickup on. The horse once owned by Walt
Woodward I was told at one time as well or at
least hauled by him. I have done all research
on the horse and talked with Chuck and the
breeder of the horse numerous times before
purchasing.
Horse-9 year old QH gelding (ranch/cow bred
out of Eagle Butte, SD) 15.1 1250# very
thick, big boned. He is stalled next to a 6
year old QH mare, and kept with 3 other QH's
(5 total horses). They do get turn out about
every other day.
My experience--team and calf roper (only for
2 years), ranch work (cutting, penning,
pasture roping 5 years) starting yearlings on
the ground and in the saddle for numerous
years.
Problem-horse was abused by high school girl
and trainer before I purchased him and now
you can't mount him safely.
I really do not have details what they did to
him, but am trying to find that out. I have
only owned the horse for 3 days (picked him
up on Saturday 1/17/2009), but he has settled
in nicely and has bonded with our kids bay QH
barrel mare. We are very slow with our
training and believe you get a better horse
in the end if you take your time. We make
sure the bond is established first with the
horse and that they understand we are the
leader and protector.
On to the issues with him:
A. abused-we are trying to gain his trust and
show him we are not going to beat, harm or
neglect him in anyway. He is coming around
and trusts us on the ground, but not when it
comes to mounting. I was able to mount and
ride him just fine on the day I picked him up
(Saturday). I was also able to mount him in
our barn and sit on him with no issues
(Sunday night). Monday I took him over to the
indoor while we roped and he was eager to
haze, but would not let you mount. He dances
around, and backs up violently. This all
stems from the high school girl and the
trainer obviously abusing him (for 3 months).
I know this because he was not like this
according to the owners before he left for
the 3 month lease. So the problem I am facing
is this is all fresh in his mind still and he
thinks we are going to do they same thing
they did. Last night (Tuesday) he finally let
us get 1 leg up while his head was disengaged
but upon trying to step down he went into a
violent buck, with his head still disengaged.
I was quick enough to get down before he
tossed me but when my wife tried she hit the
ground. We have giving Dusty (the horse) one
on one time and worked with him together. I
can see in his eyes the one on one he prefers
and does not feel that much pressure versus
two of us. So we are going to continue the
one on one. I also realize 3 days is not
enough time to fully gain his trust and
respect, but he sees and understands us as
his leader. His join up is excellent, he will
lunge and listen perfectly. I am going to go
back to the round pen with him and see if
that makes a difference but the Ex-owners
said it won't. I really do not want to hobble
a 9 year old horse that already has trust
issues if you know what I mean. We have done
everything we have known to do in the past
that has worked, but looking for other ideas.
One more thing it is funny because he will
let you mount the right side but not the
left. I have no problem mounting from that
side to confuse him for a while but would
really like to mount the left. I have
disengaged the head fully to the withers both
climbing up and down but he still seems to
have enough power to get us off. I am going
to give him more time obviously and maybe
even revisit foundation training steps and
rebuild if I have to. This horse has a
tremendous handle once you get on him (roll
backs, slides, side pass etc.) Any ideas will
help.
It also just dawned on me this has been a tie
down horse almost all his life. And I should
try to mount and dismount the right side. I
will try that tonight but any other ideas I
can use.
ANSWER: Well, not sure what
caused this, but it does not really matter,
he cannot do this and has to be shown that
doing this gets him work and movement.
On the hobble issues, all horses should be
hobble trained and it is never too old to do
it, if you do it right and set the horse up
for success. I have a hobble page
and I would this anyway, not to deal with
blow up issue.
As for this behavior when mounting, I would
be a little more aggressive on this issue.
If he respects a lead rope and
someone on the ground, one thing would be
have someone on ground hold him and have
someone mount and dismount while he knows he
is being handled and held by person on
ground. Do this in round pen or
with long rope secured in case he breaks
free.
Get a nightlatch/bucking strap (on my
horsemanship page) put on your saddle to help
stay in the saddle.
Another thing is make sure he ties well and
tie him and get on and off him bare back no
saddle and don't stay on long, get on and
slide off, lots of release for not moving,
tie him short about a foot of rope so he
can't move too much. After some
bareback mounts and dismounts, put the saddle
on and do the same thing, set the horse up so
he knows what to expect, after a few of
success with this, put him in round pen and
do the same thing, mount and dismounts, no
riding, then start slow.
If you can't get his head around to stop
bucking you might try a war-bridle to help
with leverage, but be careful this can hurt
if you are hard, so just use it for
leverage.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Thanks for all the advice but the
only thing I have not tried is the bucking
strap, and the war bridle.
On the aggressive mounting I tried numerous
times to flex him and just mount, but that
scares him even more. You have to be slow for
him even to consider letting you up on the
left side. He is the type that he must trust
you completely. I have tried the bareback
already sorry for not sharing this, and get
the same result as well as tieing him. He
gets so nervous he breaks the clip off the
lead rope.
I am going to try the right side tonight and
see what happens. If you think about it which
I did not (after 2 years of calf roping) he
is a finished calf roping horse and 95% of
the time you dismount to tie the calf on the
right side of the horse if you are right
handed and also mount back on that side. I am
not saying this is the answer but the trainer
in PA said the high school girl brought the
horse to him because she could not mount the
horse. And he described his training to me
and it's sounds rough, not natural
horsemanship by any means. He is old school
and sounds like he beats them.
Once I am able to mount the left side if ever
I do plan on doing the old pressure, release
trick. To many people around him scares him
even worse, he is a one on one horse, but my
wife has tried to hold him while I mount and
we get the same result. He does respect a
lead and person on the ground but as soon as
you go to the left side (past his shoulder)
of him that all changes. I plan on playing
the old pressure release game with him as
well regarding approaching the left side. I
will approach him on the left and keep
approaching him until he stops moving and go
one step at a time. He knows what we are
doing and knows what to expect when we
approach that side. We have tried just
lifting the stirup, touching his belly etc.
when he does let us approach from the left to
let him know we are not just approaching from
that side to mount.
Once you are and walk off with him he is fine
and has one of the best handles I have ever
witnessed. He is very light and if you can
ride, you do not even need to cue him (rein,
foot etc.) He will totally move off your body
position in the saddle. If you sit back hard
and continue to do so he will move into the
trot, lope etc. If you look and lean (or
shift your weight) to the right he goes
right.
I did work him hard last night after he
tossed me on the lunge line, and even
attempted to get back up after but got the
same result.
ANSWER: He is your horse so it is up to you
on what you want to accept. He
may not like the left side, but bucking,
throwing and doing dangerous behavior is not
acceptable to me. However, if he
is gold everywhere else, what is wrong with
mounting on the right side, who cares.
If you are OK with that, then I
would just mount on right side and over time
he will bond and then maybe work of left
side.
I find it hard to believe that a horse that
is doing all this is good on everything else.
Most problems appear to be
symptoms of lack of respect, fear or
confusion.
As for the horse breaking the snap, that is
why I have an entire page on Rope Halters and
tell people to get rid of snaps.
You put this horse in a good rope
halter with a good rope and NO snap and he
will not break free and will learn to accept
this. Every time you try
something and fail you teach the horse to win
and to resist. You have done way
too much already and have not set the horse
up so he can only find one right answer.
You used a snap and allowed him
to break it, so you taught him to pull and
fight and then he can get free.
You have got and your wife has
been tossed off so now you taught him that if
he bucks he gets release and gets you off, so
now he thinks that is the right answer.
You had your wife hold him on a
lunge line and he got away, so now he does
not respect a lunge line. My point is stop
trying things that you cannot win and stop
teaching the horse that resistance is the
right answer. You need to look at
this from your horse's point of view.
He gets sent to someone who hurts
him, he has been mounted on the right side
his entire life and now you have him and
before you establish enough trust, respect or
whatever it will take to deal with this, you
try a bunch of things that set the horse up
to fail (find the wrong answer).
You said you plan on doing the old pressure
and release trick??? It is not a
trick, it is the main thing a horse
understands and you have already done the
"trick" several times and now the horse knows
that you don't know. Your horse
is confused, scared or disrespectful and is
looking for help and the right answer, so far
you have taught him to pull when tied and you
get away, buck when mounted and you get the
rider off, pull when someone "tries" to hold
you and you will get away. This
is common mistake, you are ALWAYS teaching a
horse, even if you don't know it.
If you are going to deal with a
problem you have to set the horse up for
success, that means knowing the outcome and
making sure the outcome will be positive, if
you just try things and then it goes bad you
teach the horse bad and make the problem
worse.
Every time you email me you tell me you
something else and it did not work.
Sorry, but it did not not work
because you did it wrong or you did not
prepare the horse properly or you went too
fast or you were not consistent or you used
poor equipment or you did not understand what
could happen and did not prepare for it.
It is never the horses fault!
And I know you are not blaming
the horse, but knowing it is not his fault
and then setting him up to fail is just as
bad and blaming him. You have to
approach horse training in a mind set of the
horse, not from being nice, not for feeling
sorry for past treatment, not from let me try
this and see if it works, all of this sets
the horse up for failure, then the horse gets
worse, then it has to be dealt with harsher
by the next person and then the horse suffers
and has to pay for all yours (and others)
good intentions. Intentions means
nothing to a horse. A horse
always pays for our mistakes.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: OK this will be how I sum this up
from what I am reading you are saying. I have
done everything wrong, but upon talking to
Montie Roberts training camp last night he
said we are doing everything right and it is
completely a horse trusting us issue. He has
learned and did all this previous to us
owning him and we have not taught him any of
this, nor have we done the right things to
fix it as to date. That is why I was asking
your advice what is the right thing to do,
and you have only told me what I have been
doing is wrong. You can't put a rope halter
on the horse he knows the difference and
rears when he feels the pressure of it. This
was demonstrated to me when I picked him up.
I am not calling myself a certified trainer
by any means, but have broke yearlings,
trained roping horses etc. Everything I have
learned from Clinton Anderson who only lived
1 hour from me here in ohio, has not worked
with this horse and I am seeking advise on
what would be the right things to do. All you
say is set the horse up for success, but
don't state in this particular case how to do
that (besides the bucking strap, war bridle
etc.). Please be specific and tell me what to
do or try next. I borrowed a bucking strap
last night and that did not work he still ran
off when trying to mount. He is completely
terrified of us and everyone else for that
matter. Do you think it is just a time issue
for him to trust us??
Answer: It
could be a trust issue? It could be numerous
things and there is no way for me to tell.
Monty is a great horseman,
Clinton is a great horseman, I am sure both
would tell you something different and they
both could be right or could be wrong.
You, Monty, Clinton and me have
varied and difference experiences, we all
have our own beliefs. Each of us
could take this horse and get different
results, some good, some better, and maybe
some bad, horsemanship is not about right or
wrong, if it does not work, I think it was
done wrong, it does not mean that you are
bad, dumb, stupid or whatever name you want
to put on it, it simple means the horse is
telling you whatever you are doing is not
working. As a horseman you need
to recognize this and try and figure out what
will help the horse find the right answer
(the right answer is what you want) right and
wrong is nothing to a horse, they react to
save their life and have no concept of right
or wrong, they are just a horse, we want to
teach them what we think right and wrong is.
A person that wants a horse rear
thinks his horse is right to rear, another
person who does not want their horse to rear
thinks this is wrong. The only
does what it thinks it has to do, the horse
looks for the easy way, the safe way, the way
his instincts tell him to survive.
You still want to make this about You did
nothing wrong and you did not teach this
horse anything. This is just talk
and you see it your way, I see it mine.
If you use a buckle and tie a
horse and then do something that scares that
you know scares the horse and you expect the
horse to pull, and then the horse pulls and
breaks the snap that you used, then I say you
just taught the horse to pull and get
release, you just taught the horse that he is
stronger than where you tie him, you just
taught the horse that when scared and if you
pull you can get free (release).
You send this to Clint, Monty,
Parelli, Lyons or anyone other experienced
horseman and I bet you $1,000 they will all
agree. You, like most of us
humans, want this to be about ego, knowledge,
experience, right, wrong, it's not me, it has
to be the horse or something else.
I am not saying you intended to
teach the horse to pull, I am not saying that
you don't know anything about horses since
you did this, I am only saying the end result
of your actions taught this horse to continue
his bad habit of pulling, you did not help
the horse, you did not teach the horse that
pulling is wrong answer and gets you
nothing.
Please don't make this about me, you, Monty,
right or wrong. I am telling what
I see from what you have told me and what the
horse has told you.
As for the horse not wanting or taking the
pressure of a rope halter, I have to
disagree. I bet you a plane
ticket and expenses that I can put a rope
halter on this horse, tie this horse and
mount this horse on the left, within a few
hours at the most within a day.
Does that help you, NO.
I am confident that I could do
this, and if you were close I would be happy
to swing by and do it, but it would still not
help you. I do things to horses
all the time that others say, can't be done.
There are exceptions and maybe
this horse is one, but from my experience, it
is not the horse.
Your comment that the bucking strap did not
work, he still ran off. A bucking
strap will not stop him from running off, it
is designed to help you from falling off or
being thrown, so when he runs off he does not
learn to get release (you falling off).
You want specifics like many
people do, I could write a book with a 1000
pages and would not even begin to cover what
little I know about horses. On a
scale of one to ten, with ten being the most
knowledgeable person in the world on horses,
I would say I am maybe a four.
Many people think they are a
nine. It is all relative. 15
years ago I may said I was a seven.
The more I learn the more I
realize how little I know. Talk
to any life long horseman and they will tell
you every horse teaches you something new, it
does not matter if you worked 1000 or 20,000,
each horse is different, so when someone
wants a answer to a question, you cannot just
say do this and it will work. Too
many variables.
I can say that I will show someone how to do
something, I will do what I tell them, it
will work and they will do it and say they
did the same thing and it does not work.
Then I do it again and it works
and then they do and it does not work.
They will still blame the horse.
So for you to expect me to tell
you over email how to fix a problem with a
horse that I have never seen, never seen you
work, never seen and then tell me about
Clinton and living next door to someone or a
training camp telling you that you are doing
everything right, IT IS NOT WORKING.
So you tell me, if you are doing
everything right, why is not working?
It is very hard to read emails without
hearing a voice or seeing body or facial
language, I get it all the time that I seem
rude, but I try to stick to what I know in
the shortest I can. Tough horses
teach us more. The ones that
stump us makes us better, it makes use our
head to think outside the box, they force us
to grow and make us better
horseman. The old saying Calm
seas never made a good sailor, perfect or
easy horses never made a horseman.
You sound like you tried to take a short cut,
thinking it would work and this horse said no
way. The slow way is the fast way
with horses. So you though to
going back to the basic is good, but here is
thought, sometime we get so focused on the
problem that we make it a bigger deal than it
is. A good rule is stick to what
you are start on. Too often we
start on one thing, the horse deflects us and
before you know we are working on three
different issues. Not good for
the horse, then they get confused and they
have to guess what we want, but since we got
diverted and changed what we were working on
we made the problem worse. Stay
focused on one issue not all the
issues. Fix one part of the
issues first, like getting off on the left
side. If he lets you mount on
right, work him, do what he knows best and
then start to get off (don't) shift your
weight and make him think you are getting off
on the left, be ready for his response or
change, then sit back down or get off on the
right. Keep tricking him into
thinking you are getting off on the left and
then don't. You should be able to
get further and further each time, first
shift weight to left, then take right foot
out of stirrup, then stand on left stirrup,
then swing right leg half over, do all this
smooth but quick and then sit back down, he
should react less and less, don't get off on
left, this will teach YOU to read him, to
know what to watch for, to know when not to
go further, then after 5 or 10 rides he will
learn that you fake getting off on the left
and don't, he will start to ignore it and
then one day, you get off before he knows it
and bingo, you are off before he can react,
and then work from there.
You seem to really be caught up in his
fear, this does not make sense since he
allows you to rope, run, control him, get on
and off on right, it he allows
all this, then he knows respect, he knows you
are higher, so his actions seem more respect
(lack of) related. I can't see
him, so you have to read this, but you said
you did not want him to buffalo you, I think
you are on to something. I would
get on him, grab that bucking strap, lean
back and try and get him to blow, and every
time he thought about it I would redirect his
attention to flexing, back up or circles then
let him stop and fake a left dismount ready
for a blow up, teach him that you know what
he is thinking, you make him work when he
thinks it and he can't just be blowing up
when he wants.
The rope burns on back leg could be from him
pulling and running away with lead rope
dragging or it could be they tried tot tie up
a back leg. If you can talk to
trainer, ask him what was tried and what was
results.
Some horses do not get the soft easy
approach, especially if they have learned not
to trust, so some require a little tougher
methods. I will not be beat by a
horse, I will not give up on him even if I
have to get what some would say is
mean. I know I have to make a
horse safe or he will hurt someone and then
they will want to kill him, so when I get
tough, I know I do it to save a horse from a
worst end. If nothing else works,
I would hobble and maybe sideline or cross
hobble and get on this horse if that did not
work then I go as far as tying up one leg and
doing, but this horse would learn to accept
me getting on and off him. I do
not recommend this to often and not saying do
this, but if nothing else works, then I think
you have to try every thing to save this
horse so you can keep him and give him a good
safe home. I would also lay this
horse down to help him deal with his
fear. This does not always word
either. My Mustang was so abused,
I can't imagine, I know they cuts his nuts
off with no anesthesia by tying his legs
together, taking a knife and cutting them off
and then setting lose in pasture.
This horse is so more anti-people than me, he
will run off on you, he will disrespect you,
he will challenge you everyday, he is the
strongest willed horse I have ever worked
with and he has taught me the most and never
lets me get away with anything or he takes
advantage of it. Many times I
think he needs a little lead to make him
better, but I know it is not his
fault. He will dump me in a
second and run off wildly if I am not paying
attention, but he has a heart as big as Texas
and the will of 10 stallions. He
was given to me since he was "crazy and
dangerous", this horse will chase cattle, run
up hills, swim a river and never get tired,
but if you relax, if you don't pay attention,
if you think he will not dump you, run off on
you, drag you or let your guard down, he will
exploit it and teach you a new
lesson. It is a love hate
relationship, but every time he gets me, I
know it is my fault for not paying attention,
it is my fault for not setting him up for
success, I feel I let him down and then I
make it right, I move him and reinforce my
position as leader, I work him until he
decides to drop his head and show me
submissive behavior and then we are good for
a maybe a day or so, but if I don't work him
for just two days, he his back in my face and
challenging me to see if I am still in charge
or if he can move up. He is a
tough horse and a lot of work and not much
fun, but he is pure horse and I love him for
him for that.
So this horse is going to take you on a new
journey, he is going to force you to try new
things, he is going to test your skills and
make you prove you are smarter and you
deserve to be his leader, he will not roll
over and just give in and he will make you a
better horseman and a better person, if he
does not kill you.
:(
With your past experiences you know how try
different things or do the same things in
different ways, you have to keep tying to
figure this one out, out think him, out
predict him, out smart him and teach him he
can't win with you and his only option is to
submit to you as his leader. A
million ways to do this, many that I don't
know, but that is what makes tough horses so
rewarding, they challenge you and just when
we think we have horses figured out, one
comes along and shows up we don't know
crap. :)
As a horseman I don't think you should say a
horse will not accept a rope halter, it is
your job to show him that he can accept it,
that he has to accept it, and that you are
doing this for his own good and you will not
allow him to fail or settle for
less. You will not allow him to
submit to his fear, you will not let him
think that he can't and will show him he
can. Put a freaking rope halter
on him and tie him and do some sacking out
and show this horse he can get scared and it
is ok and you will not hurt him if he gets
scared. Teach him it is OK to be
scared but you can't blow up and run away.
Teach this horse and he will soon learn you
are smarter, you are a good leader and then
he will trust you!
Hope this helps,
Rick
It is not fun him either. You are looking at this as a horse problem. I see this as a YOU problem. I see this as you are not giving clear cues, the horse is confuse, the horse is not ready, you have not taught the horse what you want, you have prepared the horse so he knows what you want, you are going too fast, you are asking what the horse cannot give yet, you are pushing too hard or not pushing hard enough...... as you see, I think most all horse problems are people problems. I think this since if a trainer, or experience horseman or someone can get on a horse and make the horse better and do things that another can't, then it always tells me that the horse can do anything if it is asked right, taught right and showed right. A horse knows how to be a horse, too many people try to fix a horse, try to make a horse better, try to teach a horse..... if people listened to a horse and learned from a horse, then there would be less horse problems.
No matter what you are doing, it is either not working, the horse is confused, or the horse does not know what you want or what the right answer is. It always comes back to you or me or anyone. Until you see this as a you problem, YOU can't fix it.
Try going back to basic, get your horse to stop and go when you tell him, forget where he goes.... once you get him good at stopping and moving when you tell him, then work on moving and changing directions, left and right, stop and starts, then when he gets good at that, then have him go to one point and stop. Then go to another point and stop. If you take a few weeks and some time, you will get better with your cues and he will get better understanding what you want. It is a partnership, not a horse that you have to constantly correct...???
Question: Hi,
I have an 8 year old mare, TWH named Bella.
She is a beautiful mare and is
very sweet. We purchased her for my 11 year
old daughter, however, not everything was
mentioned about her behavior.
When you place the saddle pad on her back
while she is tied, she starts to pace back
and forth. She does the same when
you place the saddle on her back and you have
to move out of the way, holding onto the
stirrup so that it does not fall with her
pacing. Once I get her to stand
and accept the weight, I attempt to cinch her
girth up. At each time that I
tighten the cinch, she does a little rear and
a little more pace away from me.
When I attempt to place the bit
in her mouth while she is tied, she will rear
away from the bit being placed in her
mouth.
Now, if I remove her from the tie and tack
her while she is ground tied, she will stand
almost normal. She still does a
little rear on the first tightening of the
cinch, but only once. I can put the bit in
her mouth without any issues.
While riding, she is lazy. I have
been told that this is just a facade and that
she is just waiting to explode. I have taken
her out on more than a dozen trails and she
does not do anything that would make me think
she is out to hurt me or anyone else for that
matter. She does not rear, buck, kick or
bite. She just does not want to
move out unless all the other horses are
moving out. When I ride her
alone, she just stands there and waits for me
to kick her hard enough to get her to move
out.
I can work with the riding part of this
senero, but I am unsure what to do about the
tacking up part of her behavior.
This horse was to be for my
daughter, and she will not ride her because
of the way she acts when tacking up. I just
need some guidance in how to work with her.
I have tried tacking her up and
just letting her stand at the tie for 30
minutes. She does not seem to
mind standing. She only acts up when I
attempt to tack her up.
Now, don't get me wrong, she has no ground
manners. She will try to out walk
you everytime, but she is coming along with
that training. That is one thing
I am good at working with on horses.
I run a horse rescue, so funds are limited.
I have had one person state that
I need to hire a trainer. I have
been working with horses with behavior
problems for many years, and only need a
little guidance on how to handle this one
thing. Can you help?
Thanks,
Answer: Sounds
like your daughter is smarter than you.
I absolutely think you should not
be riding this horse, from what you said.
Your first sentence said she is
very sweet, later you say she has not done
anything that would make you think she would
hurt you.
Are you kidding me? This horse
has screamed it does not trust you, it is
confused, it does not respect you, it is just
letting you do some things some of the time
and tried to threaten you with rearing.
This horse does not love you. It
does not want to kill you, but it will.
Your question tells me you may
have no fear, but you do not understand
horses either.
This horse is has no ground manners according
to you, what in the world makes you think
that if you can't control it on the ground or
if it does not respect you on the ground, why
would that change once you were in the
saddle? You give up 50% of your
control when you mount a horse.
So what every problem you have on
the ground only gets twice as bad in the
saddle.
This horse is not mean, it is not bad and it
can be fixed, but you need to either get help
or really invest some time in learning horses
better.
I think you have been very lucky so far and I
think you will get hurt if you continue with
your way of thinking. That is
your choice, but this horse does not have a
choice, it is being forced into situations
that it cannot succeed, you are putting your
safety and this horses safety in jeopardy.
This horse will have to pay for
the mistakes you force on to it.
I don't have much pity for people
who get hurt by horses since they have a
choice, but I really hate to see a horse get
put down, hurt or abused because people don't
understand them and set them up to
fail.
Read my horsemanship page, my bad
horsemanship page and horseman tips page, it
may give you better insight to horse and help
you see what you are doing to this horse.
Answer: Well, I agree
with you about the dancing crap that is just
another form of abuse. I still
believe that most all horses can be helped.
Since she does good on a lunge
line, then I would lunge line her in a round
pen, that way you can have better control and
help support her with something she knows and
is familiar with. Another option
is to bring a chair and some hay to the
center of round pen, have a seat, set her
free and let her figure it out, don't ask for
anything, just let her run or come in and eat
or wonder why you are sitting in the middle
of the pen, another option is you don't go to
middle and walk her to rail, take her halter
off and let her get with you standing by the
rail, I don't think she will run you over,
but have not seen her, but normally they see
you as pressure and will avoid you and if
they can't run in a circle, they are forced
to slow and think. You could also
put a temp panel in the round pen, creating a
block so she cannot run in a circle and when
he ran to temp panel, she would have to stop,
turn around or slow and go around it, all
making her slow and think and stop reacting
(running) Each thing you unteach
her about her prior abuse or bad training
will make it easier for her to learn
more.
It sounds like you have to teach her to deal
with her fear. Sacking out is the
key here. I have a section about
this on my horsemanship page of my site,
check it out and it will really help this
horse if done right. She has to
be taught that it is OK to be scared.
I would not put out to pasture, it sounds
like this horse needs to be around people so
it can learn not to be so nervous around them
and learn that not all people are going to
abuse her. I would suggest having
a good rider pony her on some trails, let her
get exposure without a rider telling her what
to do and let her figure out things and
experience things from the end of a lead
rope. If you take her out 10 or
more times you can, if the area and safety
permits, take off her halter on the way back
to the barn and let her follow the herd
(horses and riders) and other horses on her
own since she will want to head home (back to
barn) and then can explore and figure things
out without human interference.
Time, proper handling and helping this horse
learn to be scared but not react
instinctively to her fear and teach her to
think or look for direction when scared is
the key.
Question: I am a 16 year
old, who has had a cob on lone before ,and
now has a 19 5month old dartmoor hill pony. I
have had him for up to 4 weeks and some of
his training is going ok ,but there is still
some thing that worrys me about him ..... e.g
he is fine when on the yard but when i walk
him up the lane he starts to rear up and miss
behaves. And all so when i try to clean his
hoofs out he tries to bit me, also when i
groom him he sometimes backs away from me.
Please could you find a way to help me out in
his first lot of training.
Answer: Jodie
this horse is just being a normal horse.
Since it is 19 it has been taught
by a lot of people and has learned how to
watch people and figure out who is going to
make him listen and who is going to just ask
for him to listen. You have show
him that you will accept that behavior.
If you read my website,
especially my horsemanship page, you will see
that all horses see the world as a herd and
this horse is treating you like a lower horse
in the herd. You need to show him
you are a higher horse and that he is the
lower horse. Treat him the way he
is treating you.
Read my site it will help you understand
horses better and if you still have questions
write me back.
Answer: My first thought
when I was reading was what your trainer said
about you are irritating or picking or giving
too much leg with no release and the horse
has leaned to ignore your legs and to react
negatively to your legs. Then the
arena issue came up and the horse can hate
the arena and riding since it has become sour
to feeling like it just gets ridden, worked,
kicked, and has no fun. Then the
rearing issue led me to think that you are
too tight on the reins and pulling and
holding back too much so the horse is not
looking for release, you may be trying to
stop him from turning his head to bite but it
is still pressure and he is looking for
release. You said your other
trainer did not agree with your current
trainer, what does he think the issue
is.
It does not matter what the issue is, it all
comes back to you. What you are
doing is not working and making the horse do
what it is doing. It could not
not enough time with the horse not working,
no relationship with the horse, hard hands,
too much leg, working the horse too much in
the arena, not giving enough release, lack of
consistency, lack of understanding, lack of
communication, like most horse problems, it
always comes back to us. If we
get the wrong answer we are asking the
question wrong. If you get better
your horse will get better. A lot
of people get mad at me for always saying the
problem is you, but it is. A lot
of issues you are saying happens a lot to
older riders who have not ridden a lot, get
back into horse and are more nervous around
getting hurt, more careful, more fearful so
they tend to be tight reined, always pulling
on the reins for security and tight seated
and not relaxed, this tends to cause exactly
what you are describing.
This is a you issue and not a horse issue, so
if you change what you are doing, your horse
will change what it is doing, too often
people continue to do the same thing and then
expect the horse to change, it will not work.
The did not do this before you
rode it, so it a pretty good bet you caused
it, so you need to fix what you doing to get
the horse to stop what it is doing.
Answer: It is too late to
show him there is nothing to fear since you
went too fast and in his mind, jumped off,
fell off or abandoned him, then tried to grab
is his legs and scared the crap out of him.
He is scared now more than ever
and does not want to let you back on him.
Since you TRIED and he has
prevented you three times, you have now
taught him that he does not have to let you
and you can make him, so every you try
something with a horse and fail, you teach
him you are weak and not a strong smart
leader. So now that he has
learned all this, your work will be ten times
harder and take ten times as long.
Hence the saying "if you take the
time it takes, it takes less time" and "the
slow way is the fast way with horses.
I have a feeling the way you see things is
not the way the horse sees them or you would
not be where you are.
You have made some really bad choices, set
the horse up to fail, not prepared the horse
and now the horse has learned some bad
lessons. It is much harder to
un-teach bad lessons than to go slow and do
it right. So any advice now would
not work until you start over.
First read my horsemanship page
so you understand a horse and horse behavior
better. You need to see this like
a horse sees it and approach this as your
problem and not the horse. And
stop trying things that you cannot win, every
time you do you make this horse smarter and
more resistant.
I think from your you may already be over
your head and may need someone who is more
familiar and more comfortable with horses so
they can teach you what not to do and teach
the horse the right way so you can learn.
This is an easy fix and can be fixed pretty
fast, but it needs to be done by someone who
knows how to do, who will not try and do, who
understands horses better and will set this
horse up for success and not up to
fail.
Read my web site and if you have questions
write me back. Whatever you are
doing is not working, so stop and learn a
better way before you try again.
You cannot expect a horse to
change if you do not change.
QUESTION: This is a question that I'm
pretty sure I know the answer to, so mainly I
need confirmation. I have a 5 year old
mustang mare that I picked up from the BLM 2
years ago, she is 16.5-17 hands(I'm really
not kidding.) For two years she and I have
done ground work, mainly because she has been
very unsure of her surroundings. It took Gig
a year to relax within ten foot of me (she
does not strike out but would spend an hour
in constant motion.) Also, nervous sweat and
snorts were huge features.
She has had the winter off and we resumed
round pen, leading and ground work and as
such is relaxed enough to eat while I'm
standing 2 feet away. She and I haven't done
feet or belly work. Oh, and this is my second
mustang (the other is six and I personally
have greenbroke) and I have quarter horses
and appys. Just never one quite like
this.
So here is the part where I need advise: my
assumption is that she is just barely
starting to understand that I am not a threat
and that mentally has just started her
training. I should keep going slow to avoid
her having 'issues'. Is this correct?
ANSWER: No, I disagree with you, you are
going too slow and this horse is training
you. You are taking this long
because of you not the horse. My
mustang is pretty large and very herd savvy
and very careful, alert, flighty, spooky,
aware or whatever you want to call it.
I can not baby him, I cannot go
slower for fear of going too fast.
You are putting your limitations on this
horse. You are staying in your
comfort zone, you are unsure, you are being
safe, you are worried about having issues,
all of this tell me that your confidence is
not where it should be and this smart mustang
knows it, sees it and has your number.
Don't make excuses for this horse
which are really for you. Push
this horse and push yourself, stop babying
her, show her you know what you are doing,
you are the lead horse, you are in control,
you are confident, if you don't believe it, I
assure you a mustang won't believe it.
:), so did you know the answer?
Rick
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Okay, wow. That is really
accusatory. I'm sorry but geez, I'm not doing
the extreme mustang makeover or have only one
horse to deal with. And... do you have to
answer a lot of question from people that are
afraid of hurting their horses or being hurt
by their horses?
I didn't mention anything about babying the
Gig, not pushing her, or mean to imply that
I, at any point, stop a training session
because I'm scared of her.
One thing I didn't mention was that her rope
(tied to the halter) came off the 1st at my
place. Which you may find significant. And I
did not mention where she is at in ground
work. She worms, stands for the vet, shots
and teeth, bathes without being tied, walks
over logs, takes a rope around the belly (not
tight enough to mimic a cinch), lunges
correctly in the arena, yields hind and
forequarters, side passes from the ground
and, what oddly too longer than all of these
things: walks through gates normally (instead
of backing away then bolting thru. That was
fun to fix, sarcasm). I mentioned feet and
belly (which is specifically under the flank)
as her problem areas, as she dances away and
towards me when we get to that area.
My question was apparently lost in the
explanation: I should assume that anything we
worked of while she was in a panic/flight/I'm
gonna flip over trying to get away' mode is
not trained, yes?
I should discount the initial year as her
'getting to you' period?
Her relaxed point is where the brain actually
starts registering what is going on. i.e.
just because she stops fighting being snubbed
to a fence does not mean that she knows how
to tie (just as an example).
With other horses I'd sack them out and start
lunging them in a snaffle and introducing the
saddle and really go after the feet but with
her I'm thinking slowly get her used to it by
'burning' her with the rope. (for anyone
reading this: 'burning' is holding both ends
of a rope and running it up and down the leg
no actual burn damage done to horse.)
And just so we're clear: my 4 mo old weanling
is starting in a halter, the yearling stands,
clips, ties, lunges and loads. My 2yo stud
knows not to act like a snot with me. Plus 8
other broke horses, none of have made me stop
and say "I'm not sure where we're at and
where to go next."
But Gig is the only one who ran wild for
three years. And I'm kinda stuck with what I
should focus on.
And, do you have any feet suggestions? The
only other thing I know is to rope a foot and
'take it away' but I really don't want rope
burned hands and I'm not sure I could hold
her. Which, if she got loose would teach her
the wrong lesson.
Answer: lol,
you are killing me... what you
call accusatory I call giving you a guess
with the information you gave me.
If you don't tell all the
information, how do you expect me to come up
with a usable and productive answer.
It would be like trying to figure
out a math equation with only some of the
numbers. So I tell you I have 10
numbers and they add up to 10,254 and I say
one of the numbers are 3, so would you please
tell me what the other 9 numbers are?????
I can only guess. You
are not specific with what you want, what the
horse knows, what you know, so I guess.
Your first question was 9 lines
and your follow up to tell me I was wrong was
25 lines.
You want to tell me "this horse is
different". All horses are
different. This horse is making
you better and teaching you more and forcing
you to try something different.
You are doing the same thing and
expecting different results. I
still believe the horse, over people, every
time!
This horse is telling you that you don't know
how to get past his belly, his feet, or
whatever else you want to think the issue it.
This, like most all horse issues,
is a you issue. You want to think
since you have done this with other horses
and they are good, therefore, it must be this
horse, Wrong! This horse has
identified a weakness in you, he has figured
out how to prevent you from doing what you
are trying to do, I don't care how he does
it, he does it. You can change
this and teach him he can't stop you or you
can continue to teach him he can stop you.
You being human want to make this
about the horse being wild, others want to
make it about the horse being abused, others
want to make it about something else, in my
book, it does not matter a horse is a horse,
they have a walnut brain and we are smarter
(in theory) because of our brain and ability.
I don't know you, don't know the horse, never
have seen either of you work and if I did, it
would still be somewhat of a guess or opinion
on how or what to do next. You,
and others, want me to be right, specific and
have an answer from only a "short" email from
a person who sees the problem from their
eyes, their filters, there knowledge or lack
of knowledge and then want to tell me that I
am wrong and the horse is wrong.
I can be wrong, the horse cannot.
The has no choices, the horse is
stuck with you and your limitations, you can
choose all actions and the horse either pays,
learns good or learns bad.
You don't put a rope on a horses foot (hoof)
to stop it from running, therefore it cannot
burn the horse. If the horse
knows how to tie, then you just expose the
rope and teach the horse, via pressure and
release to accept the rope, anywhere, and
give release. A horse can only
fail if you fail, a horse can only learn if
you learn. Stop thinking that
just because you got lucky with a few horses
that you know! This horse is telling you and
me, that you don't know. Learn
from him, show him that you are a smart
leader that even when you don't know, you can
figure it out, you can come up with a way to
help him learn, you can think outside the box
to teach him.
Every horse I work with that has a
"so-called" problem, the owners give me a
list of reasons why the horse has this
problem. And then when the horse
does not have the problem with me, the light
still does not come on. They still do not get
that the problem is not the horse it is them.
That is when I get the grand
mystical explanations about how this horse
likes me, or how I have a gift, or how the
horse must trust men, or some other
foolishness. The answers are
ALWAYS the same:
A horse is a horse
A horse is a reflection of you
A horse knows if you know
It is never the horse's fault
It is almost always the human's
fault............... which leads me back to
you
Bottom line, what you are doing is NOT
working. Change what you do and
the horse will change what it does.
Listen to the horse, it will tell
you what works and what does not work, you
may have find 20 things that do not work
before you find what does... it
is up to you, not me, not the horse, you are
the only one with all the choices.
Or of course you can always blame me for
being rude and not knowing what I am talking
about and email other people for advice until
you hear what you like.... this seems to work
for a lot of people..
(sarcasm)...
I have tons of stuff on my site, read it,
something may click, something will hit home
and you will get something from it, but only
if you make a choice to read it with an open
mind and forget those silly human emotions
like pride, ego, arrogance, and many others
that get in the way of "thinking like a
horse"...
:)
Question: hi and thanks for
reading this. and i have read your web page
and its helped me alot.
two questions first one.
1)can you wash your horse to much? i have
never had a problem with this but i wash my
horse about once a week in the
summer i thing its good for the horse and me.
lol. i turn her loose and she just roles in
the dirt when im done but some one told me it
was unhealthy to wash your horse this much.
(my brothers wife said that, been eating on
me, they dont like how i train or
even ride my horse because i am way into
natural horsemanship and they do things
cowboy way but hay you never no she might be
right so thought id ask. dont want to hurt my
horse)
2) i got my horse very soft but for some
reason i am having trouble teaching her to
yeild her front hind quarters she know how to
move her back in and out of saddle. heres
what ive been doing so please tell me whats
going wrong, ok i always start training out
of saddle before i exspect it to happen in
saddle so i have been standing on the ground
putting pressure on her shoulder tring to get
her to yeild her front legs but all she keeps
doing is moving her back legs in a circle
like i was pushing on her hind quarters but
im not. i dont no what to do im stumped. so
please help? shes a very fast learner so i no
i have to be doing it wrong.
Answer: Well, washing a horse
too much depends? Are you using
soap? If you are then that is too
much. If you just hosing the
horse off with water and removing some dirt
and sweat, then it is fine. Soap
is not good for horses since it removes oils
and leaves detergents and chemicals behind.
It may make them look cleaner or
shiny but not natural or helpful.
In the summer I hose my horse off
every time I work them into a sweat, it helps
remove salt and makes them cooler and then
they roll in the dirt which helps scratch
their skin, distributes oils and removes dead
hair, all natural.
As for your other issue, it sounds like the
horse is confused. Try backing
your horses into a corner of a fence, facing
out away from the corner. Then
move her front end/shoulders left and right,
since you remove the ability for her to back
up, since her butt is in the corner of the
fence, then she will know what you want, once
she does this good, then try it with her butt
against a wall or fence, she will tell you
when she gets what you want. This
does not sound like a reisitant issue, but
more of a confusion issue, so that tells me
your cues are good enough, you are not
helping her find the right answer by prevent
the wrong answers.
If she is hobble trained, you could hobble
the rear feet and then only her front feet
would be able to move. This would not be my
first choice, but the you teach the wrong
answer (allowing her back up) the more harder
it will be to re-teach her the right
answer.
Question: I recently adopted a 6 year old mustang that was on its way to slaughter. She was very underweight, but has recovered well. We have no history on her but she appears to be worked with, broke to lead and tie, you can touch everything on her, she does not spook BUT SHE HATES having her back feet messed with, which causes a problem with hoof care. I have been trying to work on clicker training and approach and retreat technique with her, but she still stamps her feet when I try to touch the back...Any suggestions or good articles to read?
Answer: Read my sacking out section and my
horsemanship page on my site.
This is not a horse issue, you
are not doing something right since the horse
is not getting better. The horse
is telling you that you are doing it wrong,
if you keep doing the same thing, you will
not get different results.
This sounds like the horse is just being
resistant and knows the worst thing you will
do is click. Clicker training may
be good in something, carrots may be good in
some things, showing a horse who is boss for
some things, having calm patience for some
things, being aggressive for some things,
many ways to train a horse, and the only
right way, is when you get the results you
want.
This is simple and easy fix for someone who
understands pressure release, sacking out and
talking to a horse so they can understand.
This is not happening, not
because I say so, because the horse is
telling you so.
YOU say "she hates it", I say she knows she
does not have to listen, she knows you are
not a strong leader, she does not respect
you, she sees you as a lower horse, you are
doing it right. Big difference in
what most people see with horse problems and
what I see.
You say this is causing hoof problems.
I say you are failing the horse,
you are fixing this so the horse cannot get
proper foot care. You did not
work with her feet enough, you did see this
problem and work on it enough before it
became this big problem.
Read my website from start to finish and you
will see horses differently and then you see
this problem differently and then you change
what you do and then the horse will change
what it does.
Question: I was wondering if you had any
advice on how to get my horses to drink from
their water tub again. I had a
water de-icer in their tub, but I noticed
they quit drinking from it. When
I put my hand in the water, I felt a tingle,
not a major shock or anything, but a tingle.
I took that de-icer out
altogether and just broke the ice for them
for a while, they wouldn't drink. Then I
bought a new de-icer-it's working perfectly
fine, however the horses still will not drink
from it. Is there a way I can get
them to trust it again?
Answer: Try throwing a few apples on top,
they will float, maybe give them a bite and
then drop the rest in the water, pour a
teaspoon of salt in your hand and see if the
lick it and then they might take a
drink.
This like most problems is not a horse
problem. You failed to check it,
you taught them they get shocked (tingled as
you say) when they drink and now they
learned. Had you been more
prudent, checked, made sure the think worked
you would not have this issue, as I am sure
you know, but this is a common problem with
horse owners who love their horse and then do
what I call, "set them up to fail".
You may have to get a different bucket for a
while, you may have to bring them warm water
from the house for a while, you have to put
out several different water buckets and let
them choose.
Horses are one the most sensitive creatures
on the earth, they can shake a fly from the
hip when it lands, what you call a tingle was
not a tingle to a horse, it was an electrical
wave that they felt and it was more than just
a little uncomfortable or they would not be
avoiding it so much that they wont
drink.
In the mean time fill up their grain buckets
with water or put a hose in on and let it run
slowly so it will not freeze so at least they
get some moisture. Impaction
colic is more common in the winter.
This is another case of people
wanting to help so much that they end up
hurting the horse more. Much like
blankets, stalls, shoes and other things
people do to horses in the name of loving
them.
Question: I hope you may offer
me some insight into the behavior of my 14ish
blue-eyed QH gelding. I brought him home from
the trail stable where I used to work after
he developed an ulcer in his right eye. (More
common bc of the blue eyes? Not sure, if it
matters.) Stable couldn't pay the vet bill,
and so I did, "buying" myself the horse. It
was a pretty terrible looking thing, but
healed fairly quickly, considering. Now he
has no visible scaring in the eye, and rides
as good as ever (at least for someone who
requires respect from him, but he has never
done well with riders without leadership
skills :) I am sure you understand.).
I recently moved, and my new neighbor has a
round pen he lets me use. I have no way to
tell if this horse had ever been in one
before I got him, but he took to it
wonderfully. His transitions are beautiful.
Locks on quickly. Smart boy, despite his
years of over work and confusing
tourist-riders... All that, until I try to
work him with his right side turned to me.
Going this way he tenses up (practically
screaming at me with his body language), cuts
in drastically- not on top of me, but as
quick as he can until he has turned himself
around so he can see me with the left
(healthy) eye.
The more I tried to get him going, the more
scared and tense he became. So I quit. Maybe
the wrong thing to do, but I didn't want to
do more damage than good by sending the wrong
signals. Not too proud to admit when I don't
know what I'm doing ;).
So all that background, and now the question:
The vet says the horse has no loss of sight,
but could he be wrong, based on this
behavior? Or is my boy just testing me? Edgar
has a bit of a dominant personality that I am
used to dealing with, but this seemed like
more than that. If he IS actually partially
blind in this eye, should I worry about the
roundpen at all? We still trail ride with no
problems, and were long before i suspected a
problem. If I should continue to roundpen and
he is inhibited, do you have any tips on how
to get him to trust me on that side? Let me
also mention that otherwise he shows no
particular spookiness on the right side, and
blinks normally at motion as well (waving my
hand there, etc.)
I would appreciate your honest advice. I
realize you are not a vet, but what does it
sound like to you?
Answer: As usual I can only guess by what
you tell me and like most questions I get, I
have more questions. Do you
lunge the horse on line, when lunging do
you have the horse go both ways, does he show
any problems with on line being lunged, this
would be my first few questions.
I tend not to believe much of
what I am told so even if the vet said the
horse has no sight loss, I would cover the
good eye and see how the horse handled things
with only the possible bad eye open.
Then cover the other eye and see
if the horse changes, that would tell me
better if the horse has eye issues.
Just because the horse did not
lose any sight, there are other things that
could be going on, loss of night vision, near
sighted, far sighted, impaired depth
perception, clouding, loss of focus... just
like our eyes, we can have many varied
issues.
The horse is telling you something, what that
is, I am not sure. I would force
the issue without doing smaller steps to set
the horse up for success. Before
I push a horse and come to conclusion that
the horse is being resistant or dominant, I
want to make sure I have ruled out all other
possible causes.
So I would do the eye cover thing on each eye
and do lunging on line both ways, and do
circles while riding both ways and make sure
the horse is equal on both sides.
Once I am convinced the horse is
capable then I would go back to round pen and
try and work calm and slow, both ways, as
soon as the horse looks to get tense in a
direction, help him and change direction to
the other way, take him back to where he is
comfortable, slow him down and try and slow
direction change to the uneasy side and try
and keep him slow and controlled, if he gets
upward or nervous then take control, slow,
stop him and change direction to calm him.
He may just be nervous from lack
of work on that side, he may have eye issues,
he may have shoulder or back issue, hoof
pain, uneasy or just feel insecure that way
so he compensates by trying to take charge
and be strong, so it may not be he is pushing
you, but may be dealing with what is going on
in his own way, help him, understand that you
do not know and build him comfort level, but
still be a strong leader and control him
direction, speed, stops and turns.
There should be no running until
he is Responding, not reacting, and tells you
he is ready for faster speeds.
Horses need understanding and just fast
results and total acceptance of everything
new or different. It takes time,
exposure, repetition, consistency, confidence
and lack of pain or fear all coupled with a
firm fair and strong leader.
And I would be remiss if I did not say you
are causing this, making it worse, not
preventing it, not helping it and teaching
this in some way. If you get
better, the horse always gets better.
Just maybe you are not that good
in a round pen and you need to figure out how
and what you are doing to contribute to this
behavior.
Rick
Question: I have a dyer old warmblood
gelding, He has been a great horse, he has
been very patient with his green rider, and
has taught me many a valuable lesson.
I bought him as a just broken 5 year old, the
person i bought him from also started him, he
was wonderful throughout the whole "starting
process".
I had lessons with this person for the first
five years of our training, being personally
connected to the horse, she kept things very
basic for the whole time, we did lots of
lateral work and walk trot, lunging and in
hand work she did not want me to
canter as, i quote "it was such a good canter
she did not want me to stuff it up". so i
never did.
she left us three years ago, i had to find
someone to keep us moving forward and
cantering had become a problem, my guess is i
was worried about stuffing it up and was
sending him mixed messages so after a few
weeks of trying i would ask %26 he would just
stop. I should mention, perfect on voice
command on the lunge.
We had several lessons with a great female
instructor who is a great dressage rider. she
has us cantering and doing simple changes
willingly in the first lesson but she was not
available to give us any more lessons as she
was getting ready to compete overseas.
Then 18months ago i got very ill and had to
undergo treatment, i was not allowed to ride
%26 although it almost killed me i was very
rarely even allowed to go visit him.
i didn't want to just put him in
a paddock somewhere so i sent him to an
instructor who was a student of the previous
instructor. within the first two weeks he was
rearing on every step, full rears straight up
with no going forward, i explained he had
never done that before even dealing with a
green rider, she told me he had been lazy for
too long and needed to be snapped out of it
and was acting out.
it went on for a month before i was able to
get clearance to go visit, after seeing it
myself i called in a stock horse rider the
next day who jumped on with no extra gear
just simple bridle and saddle and after two
rears straight off the bat Jonti went
forward, he on occasion tried to trow one in
but really he was quite forward and
responsive.
My suspicion was that he may have injured
himself or at the very least had been working
so hard that he was stiff and sore and that
he was in uncomfortable or in pain. i
insisted they at least give him some time
off. i had a chiropractor go out and work
with him. it was confirmed Jonti was very
stiff and sore and after two weeks of time
off and treatment, she put him back into
work.
Within a couple of months he was back to
rearing again.
The day i was given the all clear i put my
gear and went out to ride, within a few
minutes i knew something was up, he was not
moving as his usual loose fit self he was
stiff and not supple or accepting at all, he
did not rear but i felt i could not push him
either. i loaded him straight on the trailer
and we went to the vet, he did not pass the
flexion test and x-rays showed bone changes
to the areas around the coffin joint. the vet
told me to get rid of him and find myself
another horse... I found another vet, we
found that Jonti had a soft tissue injury to
the back of the left fore foot (possibly a
tear in the DFT) we decided to give him some
time off to see how he looked. six months
later he is in a paddock and spends his days
terrorizing everyone. He is not showing any
signs of the lameness he once showed even in
the walk. so after discussing it with the vet
i am going to start him back into work in a
few weeks... Very slowly.
i am worried about the rearing... after
reading a few other e-mail you have written i
realise that it is the rider and to be honest
i always thought it was, but can horses learn
it as behavior? if he is sore will he rear on
me or will he show me little signs? The woman
who had him told me he was dangerous and that
he would kill someone. She has put the doubt
in my mind and i will admit although i know
the Jonti i knew would never do it is it
likely she has changed him?
your opinion and any advice would be greatly
appreciated. Many thanks in advance.
Answer: First I don't see any bad manners
by this horse. All so called bad
behavior is taught to horses by people, so
anything a horse does, is the fault of people
around them. Bad horses are never
born, they are made.
You, like many women in horses, want to look
for things that cause behavior, like pain,
abuse, neglect, bad fitting saddles, lack of
vitamins, hormone imbalance and many others.
And some of these may be the case
in some horse. But normally,
horse behavior is created by the people
handling the horse.
The problem is once a horse learns that by
doing these things (refusing to go forward
and rearing) then it becomes habit and the
horse learns to do to get out of work.
And each time someone new 'tries'
to fix it and fails the horse gets better and
better at it, so it is harder to fix and more
dangerous to horse and rider.
The horse could have been injured by someone
not knowing what they were doing and caused
the horse to flip over and hurt itself, now
the horse is scared and confusion, of course
most people that do this do not tell the
owner since they don't want to be blamed or
billed for vet expenses, which is why I don't
let people handle my horses unless I am there
and even then I am quick to intervene if I
see bad lessons being taught.
So not sure if I covered your questions or if
I answered what you were looking for, but
that is my take from what you told me.
Question: I just recently
rescued a 2yo Tennessee walker mare who has
one eye, she is very uncontrollable.
I have been trying to train her 4
times a week using pat parelli methods but
nothing is working she is still just as bad.
she kicks in her stall, kicks at people, she
kicks at me when I touch her legs, just kicks
at every thing. Also my farrier will not trim
her feet,he says she is to badly behaved, she
rears in the cross ties and kicks out.
I don't blame this on her, it is
from lack of training and socialization from
when she was a yearling and having one eye
doesn't help. Also recently she
ran right through 3 lines of electric fence.
I don't want anyone to get hurt
around her. I think inside all horses are
good horses and she is not out to kill anyone
but my BO wants me to give her away or put
her to sleep. Now I don't know
where to start should I try a different
training method? which one? I really don't
want to give up on her. Please help me
Answer: This horse is a baby and has had bad
handling by people that dont understand
horses. The horse kicks since no
has taught it not to kick. You
need put the horse out with other horses so
they can teach it how to behave.
Keeping a horse in a stall causes
a lot of this since a horse hates to be
locked up. So this young baby
horse has been set up to fail and what you
call rescue, is not what I call it.
You are talking and getting
advice to kill this horse because you don't
know what you are doing. I do not
think that is what rescuing is about.
Just because you think you are doing Pat
parelli method, you don't understand horses
at all. The one eye thing is an
excuse by people that can't accept
responsibility for not knowing and screwing
up horses.
I have seen blind horses that are ridden and
are calm and fine. Killing a
horse is never justified, it is an excuse and
a bad one. Give the horse to
someone who really wants to rescue the horse
and who understands horses. You
say you don't blame her, I would rather you
blame her and not be talking about putting
her to sleep.
Why dont you try learning more about horses,
do research, read, go visit other good
horsemen, find someone local who can help you
or at least find the horse a good home.
When people write me about loving
horses, rescuing horses, not wanting to be
mean to horses and other crap and then in the
same questions talk about putting a horse to
sleep, my response is I would like to the
them what they do to horses.
Anyone that suggest putting a horse to sleep
for kicking is an idiot and deserves to be
kicked. You say you are worried
about others getting hurt around the horse, I
am worried the horse is going to be killed
being around you and others that don't
understand horses.
Question: What is your philosophy the use of horse shoes? I am collecting perspectives on the topic without judgement. My experience is that they are 100% not necessary and in fact detrimental to the whole system. This can be considered a complicated question when considering all the factors, which I understand as I have examined this issue extensively for several years. what is your experience with the use of shoes? Do you use them? When/Why? Can you see how they may cause harm to the physical/biological makeup of the horse? Thanks, from one tuff gal- i'm not afraid of anything you may say- I've heard alot already!
Answer: I did an article on pros and cons
of shoes, here is a link:
http://thinklikeahorse.org/index-13.html#12
Short answer, it is an archaic tradition that
bad for the horse and just another way for a
lot of unethical Farriers to convince the
unknowing that they are needed.
If you read my horseman tips
page, I have some very good photos of the
hoof and how it should work naturally.
A metal horses shoe stops all
flexing and natural action of the hoof.
The nails compromise the hoof
wall and let in bacteria which can cause
issues. Horse shoes and jumping
are two very popular things that people like
to think horses like or it helps horses, they
both do lots of damage to the horse's legs
and hoofs and horses were designed for
either.
If you review some of my other answers about
horse shoes I am sure you will get more info,
I also discuss this in different areas on my
site. I am not a fan, don't like
them, if I was a horse, I would not want
them, and if you think they are good, then
put a metal plate in your shoe and walk
around for a few hours and then tell me how
it does not hurt the horse.
Question: Hi Rick,I really enjoy reading the answers you have given to people,finding it funny how those folks don't like what you suggest for them to do to fix the problem.Most of them just don't like new ideas,they think that there is nothing wrong with them.Oh well! I hope you read this and do answer my dilemma!I own a saddlebred gelding that is 10 years old. He is with one to four other horses all the time. He always paces the fence line,for hour at a time,back and forth with his head hung over the fence lifting his head up and over each post as he passes by them.I know his keeps him in good shape,but I can hardly keep weight on him due to his constant walking.He walks for 6 to 8 hour a day.It doesn't matter if he is in the pasture with grass or in the corral with food.He only eats a little bit and then off to the pacing,stopping occasionally for a nibble then back to it.Thanks for your time,hope you answer.Thank you Larry
Answer: Pacing is a coping behavior for a
horse that was either locked up alone or
locked away from other horses. He is doing to
since he has learned to find comfort and
safety and probably has used this to occupy
his time from going stir crazy and getting
cabin fever. I would definitely
stop it somehow. Where ever he is
looking is causing some draw, either a stall,
the barn, food, some place he wants to be.
I would make it hard for him to
do it.
First if you take him and put him I would
stop that and leave him out 24 7 with other
horses, not alone. Then I would
put obstacles in his pace path, lay down some
railroad ties, lay down some old gate, some
round fence post, some tires, water buckets,
cones bricks, plastic tarp, wooden crates,
anything that makes it hard for him to walk a
straight line or path along that fence.
I would put up extensions or long
poles so he can't get his head over them when
he walks, then maybe run some hot wire to
keep him off that fence, then tie some
plastic bags to the fence at different levels
and spacing.... basically make
that fence hard work to pace. Have that fence
become very busy, make him have to walk over
and around things in order to pace that
fence, you can put up some temp panels at
ever other post to make him hit a corner at
each post so he has to change direction or
walk about the panel (like a T at
post).
If you find the draw (whatever the horse is
looking at or where he wants to go (his
attention)) then if you remove that draw.
If it is the barn, then he only
works at the barn and never gets to relax
there, if it is a horse, then put the horse
with him, if it his stall, then don't put him
in the stall for a while.
This is a habit and once you break it he will
forget and move on.
Good luck, use your imagination, make the
wrong thing hard and right thing easy.
Pacing wrong, make it
hard.
Question: Hi, I'm having a problem with this one horse I've been trying to buy. The man who broke him used what I think you call the old "macho tough cowboy" style, and now, this horse is so frightened of people, you can't get near him. At least, most people can't. I've been trying patiently to get him to relax, and he's started to let me walk up to him. Good, right? The problem is that his owner says that she needs to get rid of him NOW and if I'm not going to buy, then I can't come out to see him any more. And my trainer has only ever seen him at his worst, so she's pretty much dead against me spending time with him, since she thinks he's super dangerous. (I know- all horses are dangerous. But this one just needs some understanding!) Can you either give me a suggestion of what to tell her, or a way to make the horse calm down enough around someone else that she can see that he isn't some sort of wild beast. I know this is sort of an "out-there" question, and I understand if you can't help answer it, but could you please think about it and try to help me?
Answer: This sounds more of a people issue
(owner) than a horse issue and my way of
handling people normally pisses them off. I
would tell the owner, you know the risk, you
are an adult and want to take the risk and
will not hold him or the horse responsible
for what happens. If you can't
get back the ignorance of people you can't
help the horse. I see horses
every day that need help very badly, but
their owners are so ignorant and ego driven
that they would don't care what their horse
needs they care what they need, how they feel
and what they want. The most
selfish and mean spirited people I have ever
met are into horses at barns. So
not sure if that helps on that.
As for the horse, all horses are scared,
especially wild Mustangs, I realize this fear
may be from abuse and a wild horse's fear is
from instinct, but I don't think it matters.
Horses are herd animals that look
for leaders. Leaders (higher
horses) push lower horses. By
pushing this horse, requiring it to move,
controlling his direction, speed and movement
all tell the horse you are stronger smarter
and a good leader, that is what removes fear
from horses. Not bribes, not
love, not trying, not understanding their
past abuse, none of that matters to a horse.
If you do this the horse will
start to trust you, will understand that you
understand, will want to be with you, will
follow you and will forget his past.
If you just try and be nice and
try and convince him to trust you and try and
show him that you won't hurt him, his fear
will get worse since he will see you weak, he
will not trust you and will not want to be
around you and all ignorant people will see
this as calculating, mean, dangerous, crazy
and other crap.
Question: We recently bought what we thought was a gelding. He is 4 and looks gelded. However, when my mare came in heat, he actually bred her and acted very "stud-crazy". He went through a fence and she kept encougaging him. We had to pen them both up and he about broke down the barn. We do not want or have facilities for a stud.
Answer: I discuss this on my horse heath
page and my horseman tips page. A
would would have to check him to be sure.
Time after gelding is a factor
too, so depending when he was gelded, it may
take a few months or so for this behavior to
go away.
If he is gelded and he is breeding the mare,
so what. Let them hang out, they
will be horses and when she wants him to stop
she will let him know. Keeping
them locked up apart only increases the drive
and causes more problems and stress.
Question: My daughter bought a 15 year old
mare in September, We were told the mare was
not pregnant but in October she miscarriaged,
since then we have not been able to put
weight on her. The vet flushed her and gave
her antibitics for 10 days and he said all
the infection was gone. He said just feed her
well and give her a few months and she would
be ok. We feed her rice bran for about a
month and didn't see any results. Now we are
feeding her crimped oats with alfla cubes,and
she has hay available all the time. She is
still underweight and it breaks my heart and
my daughters. What can we feed her to get her
on the road to recovery?? Please help us and
our horse.
Answer: Sounds like you are doing OK.
Oat hay or Rye hay is also good.
It takes time to put on weight as
long as she is eating, keep her moving, take
her for walks to stimulate her eating, put
her with another horses, she may be depressed
from the loss or have some hormone issues,
but none of that should matter, if she is
eating, she should recover. Lots
of hay available all the time so she can eat
when she wants. Some rolled oats
and rice bran is good. The
alfalfa cubes, are OK, I don't like them
since they are easy to choke on but if you
get some bailed alfalfa and give a flake or
so a day with the grass hay, I think that
would be better.
Exercise and playing with other horses will
help her grow muscle and eat more, but let
her put her weight on over a few months don't
rush it or you may cause colic.
After four months or so, then I
would have the vet do more test, but it takes
a while for a horse to lose weight and it
takes a while to put it back on.
Keeping her locked up, alone and over feeding
is much worse than her being skinny, so don't
do that.
Question: Hello, I bought a buckskin gelding who is approx 7 yo about 9 mo ago. The lady we got him from was selling him for a friend and knew nothing of his history or training other than he had not been ridden in > 1yr. Initially he was very anxious, he pawed and dug in his pen x 2 days and would stand in one corner of his pen all day (I watched him- literally stood there all day). He was hesitant to be pet or groomed and would stiffin up or even walk back to his corner. These issues have resolved. His ground behavior is still slightly hesitant, but he halters, saddles, and takes a bit beautifully. When I initially rode him he would not whoa or even walk. Once on his back he wanted to go (completely out of control) irregardless of commands. He whoas when I am on the ground to just verbal command (so he knows whoa), and he has since learned to walk with constant queing. This horse has been rein trained, turns on a dime, and is VERY sensitive to leg pressure (even just leg movement). The problem is his bad attitude is coming out. He will not drop his head even after being lunged for 30 min, and is even giving me a hard time going into the round pin. When he is commanded to whoa (asking and/or pulling back on the reins)he either shakes his head and/or pulls it down in attempts to pull the reins out of the riders hands while continuing to move. He wants to go fast all the time, but not in a controlled way. I ride him with neck reining, leg cues, and I have a light hand. When asked to turn he turns fast and takes off, even a slight movement (no cuing) to my foot he takes off. He has improved since I initially rode him as far as walking, but he runs through every bit I have tried from a less severe bit to a high port straight bit even a hackamore, a twisted snaffle, a regular snaffle, a copper roller, a reining bit... it's all the same to him. He is so high strung and pretty much a wild card when we ride. I would say 1/6 times when asked he stops momentarily. I have pulled the reins hard to 1 side and touched his nose to his back... he will cont to walk in circle or even lean hard to the other side as if he is going to fall over. I know he has some kind of cutting training, he is real cowy. Once saddled he will follow me, like I said he is great on the ground. I don't know how to make him just stop, listen, and relax. Am I doing something wrong? What can I do to change this behavior? I know he has potential, but I have just about had it. How do I get his attention when ridding?
Answer: You appear to be blaming the horse. Most all horse problems are people problems. Read my horsemanship page on my site, it will help you understand horses better.
Question: Hello Rick! There was a photo I saw on YouTube, where two mounted policemen where crossing an open grassy area in something like a park. One horse had stopped, spread its back legs wide, lifted its tail high, and was relieving his bladder. The rider had leaned forward bit, and had moved his lower legs up along his mount's flanks. Would the policeman have needed to move his legs so as not to get splashed?? I once saw a mounted NYC officer whose horse was voiding on the street; in that case would the officer have his legs splashed? Also, in the photo the other horse seemed to be looking over at his companion; might he have been noticing what the first horse was doing? Does one horse ever decide to open the waterworks when a horse nearby relieves itself? Thanks!
Answer: Where a rider sits on a horse is
where the horse's kidneys are at.
So it is considered good
horsemanship to lean forward with a horse is
voiding his bladder. By leaning
forward it takes pressure on the horse's back
and kidneys which is said to make it more
comfortable for the horse. A good
horseman will always try and and make his
horse as comfortable as he can.
The legs could have moved to
prevent splashing, but by leaning forward the
legs naturally go back in order to shift the
weight to the front of the horse and hold
yourself off the horses back.
Horses do not like to pee on themselves so
they spread out (also called parking) in
order to avoid splashes.
As for the other horses keying on this, it
depends. Sometime a lower horse
will go if the the higher horse goes and
sometime they key off each other and others
times they don't, it depends on the
situation, comfort level of the horses and
the surroundings. Normally horse
being ridden together do not want to fall
back or get separated so they stay close and
will not pee as to not get left, so if they
both have been holding for a while and one
goes, the other will seize the opportunity
and go as well.
Question: hello sir. may i know how does bareback riding gives a good balance to the rider?
Answer: Riding bareback is just one way to
get better balance. If you ride
in a saddle with stirrups you tend to use
your legs more and not use your hips,
stomach, shoulders and arms for balance, so
you get lazy and only use your legs in the
stirrups. By riding bareback you
don't have stirrups so you can't just use
your legs and this forces you to use your
entire body, which builds those muscles and
the stronger they get they better your
balance becomes.
As I said this is one way, being in shape and
not over weight helps, riding more helps,
doing other things like riding bides, walking
on boards, climbing ladders, playing sports
that require balance all help.
Like most things with the body,
the more you use it the better you get and
the less you use it, the worse it gets.
Question: Hello, I have had this mare a
few months now she is only 4 and as yet
unbroken. She was imported from
Holland before I came to own her and was kept
in full time due to lack of grazing for a
week at the dealers I bought her from, but
was allegedly living out before.
I let her chill out for the first day and
take everything in, on the second
day I turned her out in a 2 acre paddock next
to my second horse, expecting her to let off
some steam and have a chat with her new
buddy. She trotted into the field
up to Cruise had a chat and seemed relatively
ok, until she turned around, from this field
you can see the whole of the yard and all the
other fields. I think she was a
little overwhelmed by this as she stood very
tense and snorting loudly twice then pacing
along the fence to a different spot to do
this again. Obviously she was
relatively stressed but due to her not
galloping around I didnt gather how
stressed.
I watched her for 20 mins and figured she
should settle, so I popped to get some
haylage to take her mind off things, but she
was too stressed to eat, and was sweating
alot, so I clipped on the leadrope and spoke
softly to lead her back through the gate to
chill in her comfort zone the stable.
Whilst walking across the field
as she wouldnt leave the level of the field
she was on, she spent most of it on her hind
legs, but as soon as we went through the gate
onto the enclosed drive she calmed down and
walked as normal as you expect a 4yr who is
panicking to walk.
I put her into the stable and sponged her
with warm water and put on a thermatex type
rug to avoid a chill and dry her quickly, but
through the stress she experienced in the
field for 30mins she brought about spasmodic
colic and understandably became dangerous to
herself and everyone involved.
After the vet had sedated her and
given her painkillers etc she improved
quickly and was lovely and relaxed when she
came around properly. The vet
told me to give her a small dosage of
sedaline before turnout the following day so
I followed the instructions and she behaved
the same in the field, even though I have now
reduced it to a 3/4 acre plot and she can no
longer see as far, due to her sedation she
was not able to work herself up into a sweat,
but she isnt happy out, she doesnt seem to
understand grazing, could she be agraphobic?
It just seems a bizarre problem as it isnt a
natural reaction for a horse to hate turn out
to the point of self destruct is it?
I have been putting her in a tiny paddock
just next to the stables since for 5 mins a
day but she wont graze and gets very wound up
even in this short time. The poor girly just
stares and snorts and I cant pin point what
at, how can I help her through this? She isnt
great in the areana either but not as bad at
all. I would hate to give up and just keep
her in full time as it doesnt seem fair on
her even though she is docile and chilled
when in.
Final note she wont graze in hand either,
sorry for the essay.
Answer:I think you are making more out of
this. The horse may have been locked up so
much that it feels fearful and insecure when
not locked up, this is common when horses are
neglected and abused, in my opinion, by
people who want to love and protect a horse
or by people that don't have time to catch a
horse or train a horse so it easy to keep
them locked up.
This horse is born a grazing animal, it will
go back to it. If let this horse
go, it would run, it may panic for a while,
but it would eventually stop and want to eat
and drink. You say you let out
for 5 mins, that is just making the problem
worse. A horse sleeps maybe 2
hours a day, that leaves 22 hours of boredom,
a horses system is made for constant eating
and grazing small amounts of food, so the
colic was caused by the stress with a full
belly, would be my guess. Don't
feed the horse for a day before you turn her
out, she will less food in her belly, she
will be hungry. Your first
instinct was to give her hay after 20
mins.
All horses stress when let out in a new
place, they snot and run to test the area for
danger and to warn any predators.
You stood there for "20 mims" and
made this into a big deal and felt the need
to save this horse.
You, like a lot of women, have this mother
instinct to save and protect the horse.
Horses always do better when
people stay out of it. After 20
mins you say you put a blanket on the horse
to prevent a chill. I have seen horses run
for hours and sweat and they make it.
If you want to make this horse so dependent
on you that you have watch and save it every
five mins or 20 mins, then nothing I can say
will change that.
This horse is a horse, it is doing horse
things and you are seeing what you want to
see since you are not thinking like a
horse.
If you want to try and put this horse with a
buddy horse in a stall or other small area,
leave the two horses together for a week or
so ALL THE TIME, NOT JUST 20 OR 30 MINS,
after a week with another horse, 24 hours a
day they will buddy and herd up, then put
them out together and let them be horse.
After you let them out, LEAVE,
and go have a cup and coffee and worry by
yourself, so you won't have the urge to save
them and interfere.
And like anything you do with a horse, the
horse may get hurt or it may not.
YOU CANNOT stop this no matter
how hard you try and normally only make it
worse by trying.
Question: I have a young Qh who is 2 1/2 years old and has been real mean bites,runs at us kicks just about anything he could ever do to us he has tried now. this is our first year with horses, we got a 4 year old gelding with this horse in May of '09 and at first he wouldn't mind us touching and everything but just recently he started being Mean.... how can we fix this issue?
Answer: This horse is NOT being mean.
You are making him act this way
since you do not understand horses.
Read my horsemanship page on my
web site and it will explain why this horse
is treating you like a lower horse.
This horse is being a perfectly
normal horse and doing exactly what every
horse will do when handled by people that
just want to pet it, love it and treat it
like a dog. Big difference in
Predator pets like dogs and cats verses Prey
pets likes horses.
The short answer is how do you fix this, fix
yourself, learn about horses, study them so
you understand them and then you will stop
calling them "mean" since you do not know
what is happening so you put a label on the
poor horse.
My website has over 400 pages of information
about horses if you take the time to read it
you can fix this, if you just look for fast
answers or short cuts of tricks, then you
will never understand this horse or any
horse.
QUESTION: I have a 7 year old Arab (I've
had him for 2 years.) He is amazing in the
ring, wonderful when being led, and loves to
work. We can do a gazillion desensitizing
courses and he won't get spooked, but the
second we go into a show ring or out on a
trail, he goes nuts. I am not scared when he
flips out, so therefore I don't think he is
getting scared because I am - I can lead him
on a trail and go through the exact same
situation and he'll do great, then get on him
and do the EXACT thing again and he flips. I
started on a trail ride once and he freaked
over a phone pole, I ended up sliding down a
hill on his back while he was rearing.
I didn't get off him when that happened, we
went back to the corral and worked for about
two hours, but I did not go on the trail
ride. We have 200 acres of trails and I'd
love to be able to use them - please help me,
any advice would be appreciated and I will
not get mad if you say it's my fault...after
all there isn't a problem horse, just problem
people.
ANSWER: Well, you are right on the last part,
I do think you are either causing this or not
being a good strong leader so the horse will
not do it, you are not giving good clear and
understandable directions, you are making the
horse confident, you are not aware of what
you are doing, you are not aware of what you
should be doing, you may expect this and then
that ends up causing it.... it could one of
these or a combination of two or more.
This horse is telling you something.
It is screaming at you and you
need to find out why and what you can to to
help this horse. This horse does
not want fight you and does not want to do
anything you are explaining, it shows that
since it does fine when you off him.
You are doing the same thing and
getting the same results. You do not see this
as the horse is confused, the horse is
insecure, the horse is not respecting you,
the horse does not think you are a good
leader. You have to see this as
if you were the horse, what is going on, how
can you help, how can show him what you
want.
I can't believe that if walked a horse over a
log both directions 2 or 3 times, and then
sent the horse over the log 2 or 3 times and
then got on the horse that the horse would
not walk over the log. Most
horses like to go back home, back to the
barn, back to their friends and other horses
where they feel safe. So if you
want a horse to do some thing that is hard,
then have the horse do it in a direction it
wants to do. So walk the over the
log a few times both directions and then get
on the horse and have it walk over the log,
facing and going back to barn, not going away
from barn.
I think you are trying to fix all this and
that is why nothing seems to work.
Break it down to each little
thing. Each problem needs to be
dealt with so the horse learns to win, learns
to learn, learns that it is ok to be scared
but you will help him, "not make him".
Each time you help him, the next
time will be easier. You have
accept small little victories and not try and
make a "perfect horse". All
horses are scared, the ones that don't act
scared are being handled right and by people
that understand them, the horses that are
scared and "flipping out" as you say are
being handled by people that can't help the
horse, that can't change what they do, that
can't admit they are causing the horse to be
that way. You have had this horse
for 2 years, no telling what the first 5
years were for this horse, two years is
nothing to undo 5 years. This is
just normal horse stuff, this horse is
teaching you, so learn from him.
He will make you learn new ways
to help him, he will make you better, if you
grow, if you think you are not scared, not
doing anything to cause this and this is a
horse problems, then you will not grow and
you will do what most people that don't know
do. Sell the horse, send it to
trainers, fight with, keep doing the same
thing and expect different results.
This needs to be a challenge, you need to try
and out smart this horse, you need to help
the horse learn, find a way to work through
each of these problems. This
really sounds like a leadership and
confidence issue from you. You
may think you know and think you are
confident, but you can't fool a horse, a does
not care how much you think you know, the
only knows what you do. Either
you can help him learn and make him safe and
better or you can't. A horse
knows, this horse knows and now you need to
know. Fix yourself, when you get
better a horse gets better. This
horse would not do this if I rode it, I can
almost guarantee it. But every if I rode this
horse and it did not do any of this, it would
not change anything, except maybe to prove
you to that the problem is you.
And even then I have had many
come up with other reasons, so even seeing it
does not convince those who are sure it is
not them.
As for the rearing down the hill, I assure
you that was your fault. The
horse was being forced by you, you were using
the bit and reins, you were putting pressure
and the horse could not handle it, it was
confused, it felt trapped or fearful and that
is what normally causes rearing.
You made a point of saying you
don't get off the horse when he does this,
this is this belief that not getting off a
horse is somehow always good. I
don't believe that. Sometime
getting off, putting the horse to work while
you are on the ground helps the horse feel
more confident and understand better, then
get back on and try it in the saddle.
I hear this all the time, my
horse bucked me off and I got back on, that
is not smart and is just a good way to get
bucked off again and each time a horse bucks
you off he learns how to buck you off
better.
So look to yourself for the answer and the
problem and if you work on it from a horse's
point of view you guys will grow
together.
Question: I have an 8 year old thoroughbred gelding. I got him from a thoroughbred rescue a few years ago, he was trained for racing but only ever had one start. I am doing lower level dressage and eventing with him. I board at a stable with about fifteen other horses and he is pastured with about five other geldings, and is alpha among them. He is not herd bound, in that he does not mind being ridden alone or separated from his group at all. He's a really nice, well behaved horse, and is progressing through his training well and always impresses me. I normally school him alone in the ring at home. His 'issue' presents itself when we ride with other horses. In schooling, or warm ups at shows, when another horse approaches us from the opposite direction, or passes closely, he spooks, kinda big. I have had him outside of a ring, just standing still, and he spooked when another horse walked over to us. He will usually do this three to five times each outing before he gets with the program and can pass like a normal horse. I just feel as though this behavior/reaction is kind of odd (not normal horse reaction) and was wondering if you had any insight as to what would cause this type of reaction. It's easily dealt with, just annoying, and sometimes the other horse will spook too because my horse spooked, and I don't want to ruin anyone's ride. Maybe if I knew why he was doing it I would be able to find a way for him to stop. Your insight is appreciated.
Answer: Sounds a little odd, since I
always look to what people do to cause horse
issues, my response would be you may be
expecting it, you may be reacting internally
and the horse knows it, so he reacts.
You may be gathering up the
reins, making sure you have a good seat, or
just thinking, here it comes, get ready.
So that is my first guess.
Next, I think sometime people
make a big deal out of things that are not so
it becomes a big deal. I am sure
it is not fun and may be a little annoying,
but out of all the other bad things he could
be doing, this is pretty minor.
Also horse people (mainly women
since that is most horse owners) tend to
always be concerned about why?
why this is happening is not as
important how you can help the horse get
better. So try and focus on that.
I get tired of hearing, my horse
was abused, my was treated bad by men, my
horse was a rescue, my horse was screwed up
by .....bla bla bla...... I can
work with a horse and never know a thing
about his past and do just fine.
In fact, I think that is better
so there are no preconceived expectations or
negative opinions.
You got a good horse, no one has a prefect
horse and when this goes away there will be
something else showing up if you change your
routine or expose the horse to something
new.
I would ride and sit on this horse by every
gate where horses come and go, I would sit on
him by every arena where horses are being
worked or jogging by or moving. I
would sit in the middle of arena while other
horses worked. What ever this is,
"ride time" "exposure" will fix it.
The more the horse is exposed to
it, the more it will become normal, the more
it will become routine, the more the horse
will know what is going to happen before it
happens since it happens all the time.
Also don't worry about ruining others ride,
if you get on a horse, worry about your
horse, not others, I did an article on
"control your horse, not the world".
The more you focus on your horse,
the more your horse will focus on you.
Another thing to do is when a
horse approaches put your guy to work, have
him flex both ways, have him take a step
back, move his rear or move his front, this
will put his focus on you and listening to
you and then he may not have so much time on
his hands to just worry about other horses
approaching.
I don't think this is a horse issue and if I
rode this horse, I don't think he would do
this. When I get on a horse, I
make sure the horse knows, his job is pay
attention to me, not other things.
Horses pick up on this and adapt
very quickly.
QUESTION: Hello Rick, I read your response
to the girl with the abused draft.
I have the exact same problem
with the exact same circumstance although I
believe mine to be worse. I have
been working with horses since I was a little
girl and never had one I could not get right.
This horse is now 9, I have owned
him for 4 years. whe I first got
him you could not even get near him without
him lunging to bit or double barrel you.
I was able to ride him, he was
magnificent, he picks up his changes
wonderful, very light on the mouth but after
2 weeks he just went bazerk. I
put all of my ground work in, sacked him out,
desencitized and also did alot of round pen
work. He is wonderful in there
but the second the saddle goes on, he is
nuts. If I put 2 people in there
he gets worse like he is ready for the fight
but he is ok with just me. I
mount and get off a hundred times, I bend him
left to right, right to left over and over
but I asked him to walk forward and up and
over we went. I tried it again
and now he just rears every time you go to
mount so he learned yet another bad habit.
He has not been ridden or messed
with all summer because I was told by my
husband if I go out there again to ride him
he will be on the next trailer out.
I feel he is out of my expertise
at this time and do not know what else to do.
Part of me says let him go but I
am afraid of what will happen to him if I do
and the other part of me does not want to
fail this horse. What are your
thought?
ANSWER: I answer many questions so I don't
know what you referring to when you refer to
another questions. It sounds like
this horse is flipping over when you ride him
and since he has done this and it gets him
release, he has been taught to do it more and
better. This happens all the time
when people want to try with a horse and then
teach bad lessons. You said you
owned him for four years and now this
problem, that tells me you or whoever else
worked the horse caused it and taught it.
Moot point now the horse knows it
and is now dangerous. I am with
your husband, don't ride him.
This can be fixed but not by you
or by me over email.
My thoughts are you have a few choices.
My first option is you taught it,
your problem, your responsibility, so getting
rid of the horse is BS in my book since that
is what most people do after they teach a
horse to be dangerous and then the horse
suffers or is killed, but the person who
caused it gets a free pass since they get rid
of the horse.
So, you can make this horse a good pasture
buddy and ground horse, you can try and teach
it to pull and make it a pulling or carriage
horse. You can pay someone who is
willing to take the risk and re-train it,
this can be fixed but if someone tries and
does not know what they are doing, they will
get hurt, not your problem, just make sure
you tell them so they know what they are
getting into and can't come back on you and
say "she did not tell me". I
would have them sign an agreement so you have
proof they know.
You can find the horse a good pasture home
where he can retire or be a pasture mate for
some other horse if you don't want to keep
him.
Emails like yours get old, since I see them
everyday. I got a horse now it is
dangerous, what do I do? Horses are never
born bad or mean - they are made.
The fact that people don't mean
to do what they do does not help a horse that
is sentenced to life of misery, beatings or
bad homes until he is killed. I
don't have much sympathy for people that do
this to horses and want some nice kind answer
from me. In the end "the horse"
always pays and that gets me fired up.
So I don't know you, sure you mean well, may
be a great sweet person that everyone loves.
You have a horse that is now
doing something that jeopardizes HIS life and
he was not doing this before or you did not
know it until 4 years. Yes I know
the horse was abuse, I am sure he may have
taught this before, you may believe you did
not teach this or contribute to this in any
way, none of which changes anything for this
horse.
So you can do what I think is the right thing
and keep the horse or find it a good pasture
home. Or invest time and money to
try and fix it.
That is my thoughts.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Rick, I think you got my story
correct but also wrong. This
horse was purchased from a sale by a horse
trader friend of mine. He was
very mean, no one wanted him. The
guy called me because I had turned some
horses out for him in the past and thought I
could handle him. I got on him
and rode him and decided that he was
something that I could work with, he was
about 4 or 5. I thought Frank had
had him for a few months, turned out he just
got him 2 days ago. I did not
want to see him go back to a sale.
The next time I got on him he was
worse, so I put in the ground work in.
I gave him the time he needed to
trust me. I went to get on him
after ground work was finished then he came
up and over. I did not cause the
problem, I found it. I have kept
him for 4 years afraid to give him to someone
else. Sorry if you misunderstood
me. I am not an expert but know
enough not to start something that I cannot
finish or to teach a horse a bad behavior.
When you get a horse from a sale,
the true personality takes a week or so to
come out I think mostly because they are
scared and nervous. He is a 17hh
TB who hates men and only likes me.
I earned his trust and deserve
it. I have had trainers come out
who will not get on him. I hear
there are no untrainable horses but i beg to
differ on this one. If I could find someone
willing to help him be a horse again I would
give him to them because he is an athlete.
10 mover! He is a
beautiful black and white paint who just
needs more than I know how to do. Thanks for
the input though.
ANSWER: I am still confused, if you kept him
for four years, why NOW? It
sounds like you rode him twice and then let
him sit for 4 years, why the new need to fix
this.
As for you saying you did not cause it, I
still don't believe that. My
guess is this horse has never flipped back
when no one was on him. Therefore
by you getting on him, you did cause it.
You did not prevent it. You did
not teach the horse not to do it.
All of this means you
caused. I know self protection
comes in and sometime you have to forget the
lesson and just survive.
You statement about hating men, in my opinion
is bs, I have worked with many horses who
"don't like men" and they liked me fine and
worked great for me.
I am not sure where you are located or what
your funds are like, but I would bet if I
worked this horse he would so called "like
me". I don't believe horses
associate sex with learning. They
like other horses or people who understand or
work with horse like a horse. My
guess is the men that have been around this
horse do not know or understand horses well
and this horse knew it. I have
never had a horse not work with me.
It may take some time but every
horse comes around if they know you
know.
If I worked with this horse I would try and
make him not want to flip over, that would
probably force me to have him try and maybe
actually flip over, at the point I would make
this horse dislike flipping over.
I did now see you ride, but MOST
EVERYONE on a horse that rears, pulls on the
reins for balance and safety and end up
pulling a horse over on them.
Horses do not like flipping over,
it hurts them and they are not able to run
and defend themselves. I would
make sure the horse realized this and make
him NOT want to flip over. You
don't have to be on him to do this.
You strap a couple of tires on
the saddle, you can tie a feed bad that is
heavy on the saddle, you can lots of things
to get this horse to learn that flipping over
only gets him grief and bad times, but it can
be dangerous for the horse, but he has to
learn that flipping is not acceptable and if
you make him scared to do it, great, if you
make him worried about doing, so what.
You can tie him high with a good
rope halter where he can't flip over if he
ties, you can have him so controlled on the
ground and so responsive to the lunge rope,
that you can pressure him to rear and then
make him run, make him learn that when he
front feet leave the ground he gets hard fast
pressure. If he lets you get on
and off "100 times" as you say, it makes me
think he does not know the forward command or
forward cue, so he rears out of confusion.
Your explanation is less that
specific, is he rearing from fear, from
resistance, from confusion, does he warn,
does he rear a few times before going over,
does he back up first, does he know how to
back up, did he have a bit, were you wearing
spurs, what did you do, did you pull on one
rein or one rein, did he fall straight back
or to the side, did you pull his head to the
side, did you jump off, did you stay on, did
he land on you, where were when he hit, what
did you do after wards, only about a 100
questions that I don't know and each one
could change the answer. If I
emailed my doctor and said I was in a wreck
and got hurt can you help me, my doctor would
not have a clue. The fact that
you don't realize this, tells me you don't
know as much about horses as you tell me you
know. Another factor is I see
things differently than other people, you
could have ten good horsemen watch a horse
wreck and probably each one would describe it
differently and would see different things
and see different causes and see different
fixes. Some or all may be right
or wrong. Just another reason
that not a lot of people do this and try and
help, it is frustrating to the questioner and
the person trying to help.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: ok, maybe I did not explain myself
right because you are saying things that I
already know. When I acquired the
horse, he was a wreck, he allowed me to ride
him and he was ok but strong and very spooky,
he did seem as though he had been cowboy
broke to me. He did some bucking
and then did some rearing so I took him back
to basics. If he heard a man's
voice or a man or another woman came near me
while I was working with him, he would
strike. I am sure you could work
with him, he will trust anyone I think that
puts the time in. I am just the
only one who has given him the time so far.
As far as me pulling on the reins
when he goes up, that did not happen.
I gave him his head completely.
He started to twist and I knew we
were in trouble. I let him sit
and figured he needed a little more play time
and ground work. Started back to
the beginning with sacking him out, then
lunging with the saddle, then the saddle and
bridle, let him put himself on the bit,
desensitizing with the saddle, I did some
liberty work with him as well, got him to
change directions on cue with just moving my
hands. He is great with all of
that. I then mount and dismount
without having him move at all, took my time
then tried to get him to move forward with
just a click and light leg and up he went.
I have a very light hand.
I then say to myself well maybe
he just needs more time. I give
him a break then start over again.
I have restarted this horse every
spring since I got him and am getting no
where. I have 3 other horses that
I rescued and they are all fine.
(by the way, that is what I do, I
rescue horse, I have rescued 13 in the past 2
yrs and got them healthy then gave them to
suitable homes) Maybe it is me...
but I have trained x race horses
from the track, problem horses in the past
and started 2 yr olds with no problem that
did not even so much as buck after my ground
work. I dont understand this guy.
I am not saying I am an expert, I
sure made my share of mistakes but not on
this guy. I gave him a chance
that no one else would. I have
had trainers come out here and tell me that
he is completly right handed, scared of his
own shadow and that I should get not ride him
or let anyone else. I should send
him out to Perelli or Anderson. I
have kept him because of the way he is and
was afraid of what someone else might do to
him. I do not need you to respond to this, I
just wanted to explain the situation in full
because I obviously did not explain it
correctly the first two times. Answer:OK,
first this is not about you or me being an
expert. This is about a horse
that has been screwed up by people and needs
help. As far as other horses,
that does not matter either. I
have worked lots of horses and could get
killed tomorrow by a horse. I
tell people all the time, the horse will tell
you if you know what you are doing.
This horse is telling you, that
you don't know. It is not
personal, it just is. You say maybe it is
your fault, I assure you something is your
fault, when something goes wrong when I am
handling a horse, I assure you it is my
fault. Knowing and accepting that
is first step to growing and progressing your
horsemanship. Looking for others
to blame or horses to blame is a sure way
never to grow, plenty of those types out
there. So, I still this as part
you. You say you rode him, he allowed you to
ride him and he appeared cowboy broke.
So that tells me the horse did
not rear and flip over until you started your
training program. Since I assume
that you said he let you ride him, which
means he did go forward and move, without
flipping back. Each time you tell
me he did something, you said you stopped and
went back to ground work, that tells me that
the horse learned by rearing, you would not
ride him. You also said when you
rode him he would strike at other people that
came up to you, again this tells me you were
riding him and he was not flipping over,
which brings me back to this was taught and
learned, since he did not do in your first
rides. If you are too worried
about this not being you, you did not do it,
it is not your fault, you cannot change what
you, you do not know what you do, therefore
you do the same thing and the horse does the
same thing. If you want change
from your horse, YOU need to change, if you
are so convinced that you do nothing wrong,
then how can you change, in your mind there
is nothing to change. I can't
help people that are dead set on being right
or set on nothing they did ever causes
anything bad. From your three
emails, you continue to take that position.
You say you don't understand this
guy, he is a horse, he is saying the same
thing about you, he does not understand you,
he says it the only way he can, you say it
with words. You are not seeing
this as a YOU issue, you keeping wanting to
make this a horse that was abused, a horse
that hates men, a horse that can't learn
since you did everything right and did not
cause any of this. You are not
seeing this as this horse sees it, you see as
you see it. That is not
horsemanship.
Nothing you have told me is new, nothing you
said is unique, all horses will do and have
done what you are explaining.
This horse is trying to tell you
something and you are too busy, being good at
ground work, good at breaking other horses,
good at starting 2 yr olds, good at rescuing
other horses, and this horse is screaming
that you are not that good, you need to try
something different, he needs your help in
other ways than you have tried, so you, being
human, with pride ego and knowledge, want to
look everywhere for an answer except to
yourself and this horse. This
horse will teach you if you stop and listen.
You may be too busy, you may not
have the time or patience, whatever the
reason, it does not sound like you are
committed to helping this horse fix this, you
may be good at giving him a home, food and
good ground work, but that is not what this
horse needs. He sounds like a
project and if you don't have the time then
fighting it or trying something every six
month or every year is not fair.
You say the horse is scared of of
his own shadow, that tells me the horse feels
insecure, he does not have a leader, he is
not being given direction, he is not being
taught to deal with his fear. You
say you were told he is right handed (I think
you are referring to right
brained/reactionary) and not left brained
logic and thinking. So what, all
horses are right brained that is how they are
born and survive in the wild, they have to be
taught how to think and use their left brain,
they have to be shown how to not react
instinctively so they can learn.
Once again when people want to
point and tell me all the problems with a
horse it tells me that they do not understand
horses and they do not know as much as they
think.
There is much more about horses that I don't
know than I know. I say that and
other good horsemen understand that and know
what I mean. Others, who don't know horses,
hear that and think well why are you giving
advice, why are you passing yourself off as
an expert, you must not know much.
I often ask people to rate them
self between one and ten, with ten being the
highest, as to their knowledge of horses.
Most everyone I ask, rate them
self as a 8 or 9. Then they ask
me, what do you rate yourself at and I say a
3 or 4. Then I get the look like
I have two heads.
Horsemanship is about the horse, not you or
me. So you say you should send
this horse to Parelli or Clint, I would guess
they get offers of untrainable horses every
day. Since you find homes for
other horses, let this horse be a horse and
find him a good home. You gave me
some information but you did not answer one
important question. Why the long
break, why four years and now this needs to
be fixed, what else is going on and why would
you expect some new change after your four
year ownership?
Misc Answers on Varied Topics:
Question: I read your last answer about using a bosal instead of a snaffle and found it very informative. I am not a horse trainer. I understand why you don't answer many questions anymore and respect that, and won't get nasty if you decide not to answer this one. I know someone who has a young filly who is not trained, a three 1/2 year old that is very strong willed and throwing her head when she tries to lead and teach her ground manners. She has hired a trainer that is using a metal bosal on her which she says helps. But, she also mentioned that the filly responded to bathing and grooming very positively by the trainer as well. Other than your article, I saw several blogs and comments of people that said that metal bosals can damage and scar a horse if not used with care and in experienced hands. Is a metal bosal necessary at all? Thanks regardless of the answer.
Answer: Absolutely no reason to use a
metal bosal and anyone that does is not a
horseman. If I wrap barbed wire about a
horse's head I could control most any horse,
that does make anything but an A**.
What is being described as strong
willed is nothing more than a young horse
that has not been taught or handled properly.
On my bad horsemanship page of my site I
discuss many stupid practices such as this
and they are all cruel in my book.
Not sure how you can help this situation, but
your instinct are right to me. Anything can
scar or damage a horse, the old saying, any
bit is only as painful or aggressive as the
hands that hold it. The problem with this is
people think they are soft and not hurting,
they are wrong. If I have rely on any pain
device to control a horse I should not be
riding that horse.
This so called trainer is someone who does
not understand this and knows that when all
else fails you can hurt and pain a horse into
submission, so those who don't know or
understand horses use these stupid
devices.
I have taken many horses out of bits, shanks
and all kind of crazy things and the horses
do just fine and much better in just a simple
rope halter. Horses are fear
animals, so when you add pain you justify the
fear and only make learning impossible for
the horse.
Would a dancer have any beauty if you had to
use a whip or spurs to get them to dance?
The problem is this trainer does
not know, the owner does not know and now the
horse has to pay.
"In the land of the blind, the man with one
eye is king". Many horse people are blind of
knowledge, so anyone that comes long with one
eye is suddenly king.
Not sure if this helps, unless you can take
this horse from it's current situation.
Question: I recently acquired a 13yrold
pony, who was once broke but was left for
pasture for 2yrs. I have been
working with him for 2 months. I am sure the
past owners never lunged him because he was
scared of it. I put away the
whip, he was also scared of it. I
have him lunging for about 1/2 both ways and
he is starting to respond with walk, trot, ho
only a occasionally he tries to take me for a
run which he does not get away with.
I have a 7yr old that rides him.
He rides well when I am by him
but as soon as I back away he runs as fast as
he can back to his barn. Now she
is scared, he is scared. She tried to stop
him but could not. Is a riding
pasture or circle my only option? or should I
just have him follow me around the yard as I
am doing now?? Thank you for your help.
ANSWER: You should learn more about horses
before this horse hurts your child and you.
You say the horse was broke? says who? the
person that wanted you to buy it? A pony is
the most neglected horse out there. Read my
website, I have lot of examples on many
things that you don't see right now.
A child on a pony is normally an accident
looking for a place to happen. Take the time
and read my site completely, it will help you
see things differently.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: This pony I have been around for
10yrs. He was ridden by 3 girls all the time
and then they grew up and left him in his
pasture until I took him.
I have read and will keep reading. Your
answer certainly doesn't give me any advice
to proceed forward, reading which I continue
to do and paitently trying to spend time with
this pony. My daughter wears a helmet an we
try to spend 1-2hrs a day with him with
caring paitence with discipline.
I was only looking for advice on
riding arena maybe a better option but all
you seem to wanna do is discourage us.
Answer: I do not want to discourage you, I
don't want to try and give you advice when I
don't know what is going on. You, like
others, always want to fire back with
additional info that I somehow should have
know. I am not a mind reader.
From what you wrote(that is all I
have to go on) I gave you my advice. From
that you want to blame me for discouraging
you. This proves my point and is
probably exactly why you are having problems
with this pony.
You write me a 6 sentence question and expect
me to come up with some fix for problems that
you have,your child has,this pony has and
since I don't tell you some feel good answer,
NOW, I am discouraging you.
Whatever, here you go, here is my new answer
and should have been my first answer.
Without seeing the horse or you,
I cannot properly give you reasonable advise.
I suggest you hire a local trainer who more
qualified to help.
Ok, feel better, I hope that is more
'encouraging'.
Question: Hi- I have a 5 yr old qh gelding. He is very social, and yet when getting him out in the open, he gets testy. I roundpen him first trying to get the energy out-he does not do much in the paddock. He is alone, but has neighboring buddies, occassionally they will run, but my horse is on the lazy side. In the round pen he does quite well, knowing walk,trot, canter(sometimes hard to get into-and may buck) and whoa. When I get him out in the open, including out in the 40 acre field, he gets some energy bursts, and will get testy. He may put his head down as far as possible, and you have to pull to get it up, then he gets fiesty. If you try to get him to canter, he may buck. A trainer can push him right out of it, is firm, but she says he is a good horse-not mean-just playful and testy. His health, teeth, and equipment have been checked, and are good. He was ridden in a full cheek snaffle-even with curb chain, and I needed more control out in the open. Now we are going to try a mild curb, with shanks that move around. I cannot figure him out. WE have taken him out thru the heavy woods, and he goes over, branches, small logs etc, fine. I have had tree branches with leaves I put all over his body, while he trys to eat the leaves, have had a colorful large umbrella over him-no problem-he justs lowers his head, and rests, has gone over tarps fine, etc. But he frustrates me with his antics. The trainer says when you make him work, he gets ticky, and you have to make him do it. I ordered him smart calm ultra in hopes of leveling out his moods. He may just act up-prancy at times-for no apparent good reason. To trainer also, and she is firm, and has no fear. He gets mainly hay, and 1/2# safechoice morning and night. I am getting frustrated, as I want a solid level headed horse I can trust. He seems to have 2 different personalities. I know he likes variety, and he gets it. I hope he will out grow, what I think is immaturity, and I hope with this supplement he will focus on us better. I only had him about 7 months, and I couldn't do much with him at all, at our old stable-as the pasture buddies were very agressive, and he came to the new stable in June with many marks. We had to wait on a waiting list to move. His body has recovered from that per checkup, but it has only been since the summer he has really been worked. He is a very social horse always comes to meet me, great in stall, curious, but the other personality, gets me frustrated. I am told he is smart, but as I said he even is alittle testy to the trainer. thankyou.
Answer: ......I am just
shaking my head reading your question. Partly
for the horse and partly for you. Obviously
you have not read my web site or any of my
other answers. If I had to explain what most
people think, that do not have a clue about
horses, it would be this email. You addressed
everything from food, location, other horses,
trainers, stalls, supplements, called the
horse names like testy/has different
personalities/lazy/feisty/antics/immature,
you are blaming the horse for most all the
issues and now you are going to a more
painful bit that hurts the horse more with
less pressure from you and your hands.
If I did not know better I would swear that
your email is from someone that knows me and
it was written as a joke to get me riled
up.
Tact is not my strong suit, so I call it like
I see. You are not paying me and you asked.
You do not have a clue about a horse. You are
doing just about everything in the world that
I think is wrong. You are paying a trainer to
try and train your horse when you should be
training yourself. You are the problem not
this horse. You and this horse are destined
to fail if you do not accept this.
You admitted that your trainer is firm and
fearless, that tells me that you are NOT firm
and you are scared, both teach a horse to be
dangerous. Your trainer is using nice words
and making it sound nice as to not hurt your
feelings. I think she is doing you and the
horse a disservice. I see this all too often.
People like me who are more
direct, rude, mean, up front, or whatever you
or others want to call it, do not make
friends or have lots of people that want to
pay someone to tell them they are doing
stupid dangerous things that will likely get
them hurt, or of more concern to me, get a
horse hurt. I make it clear I do what I do
for the horse, not money and not for people.
Most trainers I see, mainly
women, will be their clients friend, will
talk and spend time laughing and handing out
all the time taking money for months and
years from people that don't have a clue
about horses.
There is one lady at a previous barn that
bought a horse that she was scared of, the
horse was broke and was ridden before, yet
this person paid for lessons every week for
over two years and never rode or got on this
horse. But her and her trainer "liked" each
other, they went slow, they hugged after each
lesson, laughed and cried together.
Meanwhile the horse never
respected either and was confused and
frustrated all the time.
Read my site, read my articles, what the
training videos and learn "the horse". Once
you figure out you are the problem, then you
will start to grow with this horse and stop
trying to fix this horse. Your horse is just
a horse and that is all he knows how to be. I
cannot teach a life time of horse knowledge
in one email. My site is long and it only
scratches the surface of a horse. I really
hope you read my site for your horse's
sake.
QUESTION: I have been training
an Arabian gelding for about a year now. He
will be 4 in Feb. The very first time I got
on, I was over confident and got bucked off.
He did not try it again for several rides,
but when he did, I came off a second time. I
have ridden him several more times, (without
coming off again, yet) but I am concerned
about pushing him too fast, and causing
another blow-up (next time, I might get
hurt!)At the same time, I wonder if I am
being too soft on him, and going too
slowly.
so here are the particulars:
the first ride, I used a mounting block. I
had my (in-experienced) boyfriend holding the
lead rope. (my first mistake) Once in the
saddle, I realized I was wearing my tennis
shoes instead of boots (second mistake) I
decided not to put my feet in the stirrups
(third mistake) then changed my mind (fourth
mistake) and bent forward- while the
boyfriend was leading the horse at a walk- to
adjust the stirrups. Couldn't quite find the
stirrup, and kicked the horse in the process,
and of course, he bucked. Tipped forward like
that, I never had a chance. My boyfriend
dislocated a finger trying to hold on.
Before you get the wrong impression of me, I
have been riding for nearly 30 years and even
have a degree in Horsemanship. In all those
years, I can only count the number of times I
have been bucked off on one hand, and I have
never been bucked off a green horse in
training before! I knew I was making all of
the mistakes above, as I made them- as I
said, I was over confident.
OK, second incident: Everything was going
smooth as silk. I had ridden the horse
several times in the round pen, and once or
twice in the pasture. I was in the pasture,
and was able to encourage him gently into the
trot for the first time. Made a smooth
transition back down to the walk, and decided
that was a good note to end on. As I turned
back to the barn, the horse's sister called
out to him. He picked the trot back up, and I
gently used my hand and seat to say "no
trotting towards the barn". He didn't like
that, and bucked. I hung on for several
bucks, and attempted to pull his head up with
one rein. But he was so strong, I was unable
to bend his neck, and finally came off.
(Wound up with serious rope burn!)
So the (above) second incident was about 3
months ago, and we are still just walking.
Part of the reason for this is my own
apprehension- I don't want to get hurt. But
part of it is the horse does tend to have an
emotional outburst if he feels I am pushing
him. We do lots of ground work: round pen
where he will follow me like a puppy,
lunging, some ground driving as well as just
walking around on the lead line and working
on lateral movements as well as backing. He
will back, turn on the forehand and leg yield
with me in the saddle, as well. I have been
making sure that his sister is visible when
ever I ride, for fear of her calling to him
again. It is my gut belief that his bond with
his half sister (they are only 4 days apart)
is my underlying problem. Even though he
seems to accept my dominance, he has what I
see as an unhealthy bond with her, always
checking to see where she is. I do not have
the facilities to completely separate them,
nor do I want to "get rid" of either
animal.
So there are a couple of questions here: am I
taking it too slow? How could I decrease his
separation anxiety? The bridle I am using is
a bitless nylon "side-pull" (he has carried a
bit, but does not do well with it). Is there
another piece of equipment (a bosal, perhaps)
which may give me more leverage when trying
to bend his neck during a buck?
Feel free to take your time answering- I am
not opposed to just walking and lunging for
the next several weeks! And if you want more
info, I promise to not be so wordy in my next
communication to you! Thank You!!
ANSWER: lol, not at your bucking but at your
explanation. I think I am the Gordon Ramsey
or Simon Cowell of the horse world. If you
know these people you know they piss people
off with their honesty and no pulling punches
style of giving feedback. So grab a chair and
hang on.
OK, first incident, you could not have done
more wrong if tried (maybe?). You did not
think it out, you got in a hurry, you were
lazy and you took shortcuts instead of taking
the time it takes and you set the horse up to
fail and he went right were you led him. So
admitting this if great, but the damage you
did was so huge that I don't think you get
it. Your actions taught this horse he can get
you off, now you make him smarter, you taught
him something that he did not know before you
did what you did. So fine and dandy that you
know what you did, and fine that you know it
was your fault, and fine that you are not
blaming the horse, but NOT fine that you
taught this horse a dangerous lesson and now
your have to go so far back and try and
un-teach this. Much harder than
just doing it right the first time. Having
your inexperienced boyfriend hold the rope
was the least of your problems.
So knowing you were wrong is not
near as good as not doing something that you
know is wrong. BTW, giving me
your resume means nothing to me or the horse,
if you were as good and have as much good
experience as you say, you would not have
done what you did and would not be in the
situation you are in now. A good
horseman/horsewoman will not tell you what
they know, they can show you. You showed this
horse, and maybe yourself, that you are not
as good as you may have thought.
Second incident: This has nothing to do with
his sister. Let me say that
again, it had nothing to do with her, or the
wind, or the pasture, or the barn, or the
grass blowing......it is YOU. It sounds like
you want to explain away what happens so it
does not have to be you. Sorry, it is you.
You did bad so the horse did bad, you set the
horse up to fail and he did.
If you have read any of my answers or my
site, you would know blaming the other horse
or making excuses on why this happen means
nothing. What matters is what the
horse learned and what you taught the horse.
On the first "incident" (your
training session) you taught the horse you
were not a good leader, you let someone
without confidence try and lead and control
him, you taught him that he did not have to
let you ride or sit on him, you taught him
that he is stronger than you and the guy
holding him, you taught him that he can get
you off when he wants, you taught him not to
trust you, you taught him that you are not a
smarter or strong leader and that he should
not put his life in your hands.
And that is just some of what
this horse learned by your hand. In the
second "incident" (bad training lesson) you
taught the horse that it does not have to
listen to you, it can run when it wants to
and you can't stop him, you taught him (in
case he did not learn it the first time) that
he can get you off when he wants, that you
can't control him when you are on his back
and that you are not a strong leader that he
should trust. (no boyfriend factor in this
incident - tell him that since I am pretty
sure he got some of the blame in the first
incident) :)
NOW to what you learned, since I think I made
it clear what the horse learned. If you think
this is bits, barns, sisters, boyfriends,
shoes, separation anxiety or whatever else,
then you learned nothing. What you should
have learned is you did not do many things
right, you did things wrong, you did not set
this horse up to succeed and that this horse
is not going to let someone, that does not
know, lead him (you). He is a smart boy that
will teach you more than all the other horses
put together, if you don't let him kill you
first.
It seems by your questions that you are NOW,
worried about getting hurt( and your actions
have made it more likely that you will be
hurt). A little late and now the
horse knows it, not good. It
sounds like you are going too slow now and
being over cautious and the horse knows. You
need to understand horses better. I say this
since your explanation tells me that you
don't understand horses.
Read my horsemanship page and a few of my
articles and review the answers (on the
question and answer page about bucking) so
you have some foundation on where I come from
and where horses come from.
If you are still confused on what to do next,
write me back and I give you a few things.
Unless you understand how me and the horse
see things, you cannot apply what I would
tell you, effectively.
Go do some reading and get back to me. (go
give your horse a carrot and tell him thanks
for the lesson, he just made you better, in
case you did not know it)
Rick
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Rick,
I have read the site (before I wrote the
first question) so yes: I am unsure of what
to do next and would appreciate some
suggestions.
(I don't blame the horse, I don't blame the
boyfriend not then, not now: he is still
perfect, I blame me, just as you do. Sorry if
I did not make that clear in the first
place... so how can I save/fix the
relationship with the horse?)
Answer: I don't know, I only know what I
read in your question. I do not think you
have read my site or your question would not
say what it does. But if I am wrong, then you
did not get what I say in my site so not
worth explaining it again.
Good luck,
Question: Hi, my question is a simple question. I went to the website and i couldn't find it. I've been trying to figure out what kind of horse do I have. He is grey and has like little dots (can't explain it they're like light brown/yellowish little dots) Any little help that you can give me will be greatly appreciated.
Answer: Yea, you won't find much on breeds
on my site. I would say you have an official
horse and that is about as close as I can
get. It could be part anything, I don't see
any strong specific breed jumping out at me,
but I am not into breeds, bloodline and stuff
so not the best person to ask on this. I am
firm believer that a good never comes in a
bad color or bad breed. His head could be
little mustang, the spots could be the start
of what some call flee bitten and may be more
as he gets older. Horses commonly change
coat, color, spots, so no telling, younger
horses change more that older.
I did notice the web halter (yuck) and the
buckle on the lead rope (not good), but the
horse looks great to me. A little shorter
back than some like, I like short backs. Even
Mustangs caught and branded are not really a
breed since many let many different types of
horses go so cross breeding is common.
My comments about the halter and rope will
make sense if you read my rope halter
page.
sorry can't be more help,
Rick
Question: I have a question about my horse
Chief. I have been riding for a very long
time so I am pretty knowledgeable about
horses, but he confuses me. He will not turn!
He will turn at the walk, but at the trot or
canter he will just plow on, and no matter
how much I use leg aids, kick, and pull on
the reins, he won't listen. He also has
issues with respect. Every time I try to wash
him, he walks into me instead of backing up
like most horses I have worked with, which is
dangerous to me and everyone else that tries
to work with him. I have done numerous
exercises on him but am at a dead end. Please
help? Thanks,
Magenta
Answer: You did not tell me how long you
owned this horse and how long have you been
riding him. What ever you are doing is either
causing it, not preventing it and allowing
the horse to do this is only teaching him
that he can do it. Do some One
rein riding so you learn to control the horse
without a bit, pain or fear, then ride the
horse in a small area, best if you have a
round pen. You have to teach the
horse what you want and then show the horse
how to give it to you.
I have a video on one rein riding.
Read my horsemanship page on my
web site.
Rick
Question: My daughter has a 16 year old thorobred mare that is the love of her life. She does high school rodeo with her. we have had her for 3 yrs now and she still wants to run past the end pole when she does this event. We have been to clinics, changed tack and most recent I sent her to horsemanship training for 3 days. She works with this mare religously 3-5 days a week. She has made the changes that the trainer showed her and works on them daily. We spend hours working on this and have yet to come up with the right formula to make this work. Slow work is fine the problem is when she lets her run. The horse is very well behaved and is a easy keeper her disposition is outstanding and she is very smart. She is also used to barrel race too. Any help here would be greatly appreciated.
Answer: You answered this question by
asking it. There is a saying that goes
"practice does not make perfect, only perfect
practice makes perfect". All the
work in the world will not work if it is done
incorrectly. You explain this as
if you think I can explain it to you and you
can explain it to your daughter. That does
not work with horses. They are
too observant and smart and they know if you
know so if you try and trick or try some
gimmick or some special thing, a horse will
always know, if you know if you don't.
This horse knows your daughter does not know.
How can you think I could somehow tell you
something over an email, when people who can
see the horse and your daughter and know 100
times more info than me, cannot fix this.
I understand you are lost, I know
you are looking and trying, but a horse does
not care about any of that.
Your daughter is not a horseman/horsewoman,
she in it to win. She uses her horse to go
faster and win. There is never much
horsemanship in most horse sports and time
and awards is a horse's worst enemy.
This horse has learned what it does since it
was taught this by your daughter for the past
three years. You will not find anyone who can
fix what you are seeing as a problem.
I see a poor horse that is being
used, confused and pushed by a young child
that has no idea about understanding a horse
and enjoying the partnership and relationship
of a horse. I am not saying your
daughter is mean or bad, just that she is
where most kids are at, at that age and
sometimes this is caused by over zealous
parents who push competitiveness too much and
then the child is forced to do what they do
and then the horse is forced to do what it
does.
If I had a race horse that raced every few
days on a track for three years and all this
horse knows is to run as fast as it can
around a track with a jockey on top hitting
him and yelling to make it go faster, and
then I suddenly wanted to teach that horse to
go slow, stop, turn and pay attention to me,
this would not happen overnight, it would
happen if I continued to do the same thing
and it would happen if I did not understand
horses.
This could be fixed but it would require more
work and time working on what you want and
less time doing what it has been doing.
And I can't control either one of
those, so I don't think I can help this
horse.
Question:QUESTION: Hi Rick,
I hope you can help us with this.
We rescued a saddlebred mare who
was destined to slaughter. She is
22 years old but in great shape for age.
She had been a show horse and
then sold to the Amish. She seems
petrified most of the time. She clacks her
teeth in submission when we put her halter
on. She literally shakes in fear
when the farrier and vet come out and seems
to shut down with a glazed look in her eyes.
Is there anything we can do to
help her overcome whatever must have happened
to her. She is a pasture companion we don't
intend to use her for anything else but we'd
like for her to enjoy the rest of her life at
least.
ANSWER: Unfortunately this story is told too
often. The more I work with horse from Amish
the more I am convinced they are the cruelest
and worst horseman in the world.
Glad you are going to give this horse a good
home. Time will heal and fix
this. This horse has learned to
fear and submit to humans in a slave and
master relationship. It will take time but it
will happen. Spend time with this
horse, reading a book, sitting in with her,
grooming, giving carrots and treats. Don't
require much of her until she begins to
trust, but be aware that if she starts to get
bossy, pushy or threatening, you will have to
be firm and make her move her feet, but don't
over do it.
The more time you spend just hanging out and
not requiring anything, she will start to
relax and trust. So pick her
feet, rub her, give her treats, stand next to
her and be near her, she will forgive.
Horses are really good at
forgiving and trusting, that is why they are
abused so often.
That glazed look you describe is fear,
nervousness and insecurity caused by stupid
a** people that think the only way to train
or handle a horse is with brute force and
fear (AKA Amish).
When you say pasture companion, I hope you
have a second horse, this horse really needs
to be with another horse, to bond, trust,
herd up and feel safe.
Hope this helps,
QUESTION: Hey Rick- I just wrote to you
about my yearling kicking. I was just now
looking around the internet again and found
your response to the person with the kicking
feeding problem. It would have been
entertaining if I didn't know that I was the
dumdum in this senario. Well, I'm thinking
while I read it, oooh, that's me going to get
my fool head kicked off and I don't mind
admitting I am an idiot when it comes to
this. I have no experience training a young
horse- obviously- but I do know a few things.
One is that she doesn't respect me, another
is that I don't think beating her with a
stick is a very good option, but you are
right, it is a very dangerous situation.
Please do tell me what would you do- a young
horse is frightened and wants back in the
pasture with mama and tries to whirl around
and kick you? It is very scary to me-
although I did hold on, twice, and for
discipline, had no stick but snapped her
halter and backed her up- not so much but
didn't know what else to do as the storm was
literally coming in. How would you go about
getting a yearling to respect and admire you?
My dogs are very well trained, the mare
responds to me well, this is a totally new
area for me. Thanks again!
ANSWER: Well, you got me on this one, most
people ignore what I tell them and tell me
how it is not them and it is the horse after
they read my answer. You are asking me
another question before I answer your first
question.
Please allow me to answer your questions
first so then you can ignore it.
lol :)
only kidding, but some truth in it.
As I just answered your first questions, read
it, try and understand it and read my site,
articles and other info so you can better
understand horses, so you can get better.
If you stop concentrating on how
good your dogs are and how you had horses
before and how...bla bla bla....
None of that matters to a horse. As soon as
you admit that you are the problem, you don't
know as much as you think you know,
especially about horses, then you can be open
to learn from the horse. The
horse is best teacher of the horse.
I often ask people I work with to rate their
horse knowledge from a one to ten, one
knowing very little and 10 knowing a lot and
most everything. Most people rate
themselves at a 7 or 8. Some of these people,
the smarter ones, ask me where do I rate
myself on the that scale. And my answer
always gets me looks like I have two heads.
I rate myself at a 3 or 4.
Some say well shit I am higher
than that, why am I asking you for help.
Others realize that if I am as
good as I am with horses and I am only a 3 or
4, there must be a whole lot to know and
learn. Those people I can work
with, the first group, most people who think
they are eights, will get hurt, will buy and
sell horses, will blame horses, will get
horses hurt, will pay trainers, will end up
getting out of horse or will have nothing but
a frustrating life always fighting, training,
trying and failing with horses.
You have a choices on every path, a horse
does not. They are stuck where they are and
who they are with. Which is why, "it is never
the horse's fault".
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Hey Rick- Thank you so much for
answering. I should have waited for a
response the first time- you're right, but I
honestly didn't think you would write back
since you were a little peeved at people's
questions. I did read off your website and
learned a ton. Listen, I have no problem
knowing I'm like a zero or one with training
a young horse. I've probably graduated to a
one. I do watch my ego and try to not let it
get in the way- I am frustrated because I
want to do a good job and not get hurt and I
feel like I should know what to do, but I
don't. That first kick was bad, I had owned
her for 5 minutes at that point and I almost
got sent to the hospital. I guess I had hoped
that she forgot, but no such luck. I think I
can learn and I think I can do it. The mom
horse is not such a good teacher because the
baby actually pushes her out of the way. I
spend a lot of time pushing the baby out of
my way. No more carrots. No more in my space
at all. Hips away from me. Feet moving.
Trying to get the baby in with a different
mare who will be more bossy. Okay, yes, I
wish there was a magic potion, and you could
tell me exactly what to do, but mostly I
wanted to thank you for taking your time to
answer me.
Answer: No need to thank me,
do right by your horse. Read you last
response you wrote again. Horses are a
mindset. All the answers and problems come
from us and what we do. Your last
response still is seeing this as the mom is
not a good leader since she lets her horse
push (I assure you no human is better at
being a horse, than a horse), it does not
matter how mom treats the young one, it only
matters what YOU do. You say you are
frustrated, I assure you that your horse is
more frustrated. You say that you are looking
for a more bossy mare for the young one, it
does not matter what another horse does with
that colt, it only matters what YOU do. YOU
YOU YOU, this is why horses make us better.
They challenge us, they identify
our weakness and force us to work on them,
they test us, they make sure we are on our A
game all the time and if we are not they let
us know. STOP looking for other reasons for
this horse's behavior, it is not the mom, it
is not another horse, it is not what someone
else did, it is not from
neglect........
It is you and when you get better, your horse
will get better. If I or another good
horseman handled this horse, you would see a
different horse. All horses are
just horses, since the day they are born.
A bad horse is never born it is
made... by people that don't know.
You don't know it yet but this horse is going
to teach you more about horses (and yourself)
than any person every could, but you have to
listen and be willing and stop trying to make
it about something else. It is just you and
this horse, and if the horse fails you
failed, if the horse is good then you are
good, a horse is only the reflection of the
person handling it. It is not
easy and it is not fast, it is hard work with
NO short cuts. Once you accept this the
frustration will turn into joy of learning
and being taught and in the presence of one a
the greatest animals on the earth.
If it was easy everyone would be good at
it.
QUESTION: Hi Rick- I have a Hanov./Tb 11
yr old mare. We've been spending the past 2
years I've owned her undoing her previous
owner's damage. She's a very sensitive mare
and has no problem moving forward and was
basically rushed through her training to jump
as high as she could as fast as possible. She
was trained as a jumper/dressage horse. I am
currently eventing with her and with time and
patience, she's become an excellent partner.
She has solid 2nd level dressage training.
But her previous owner skipped a lot of steps
in her training. She is very good on the
lunge but I have one problem that I need help
figuring out. First off she is petrified of
the dressage whip. Since she is very
sensitive I can do most everything with just
a slight movement of my hand and slight
movements of the end of the lunge line to cue
her to move forward, but if I ever try to use
a lunge whip, or even have one in my hand
while lunging, she takes off thinking she's
supposed to run as fast as she can in a
circle. The minute I drop it, she settles. As
you can guess, not being able to use the whip
is limiting my lunging. One problem I have is
getting her to move out on the circle. She
tends to fall in from time to time creating
slack in the lunge line. But if I point at
her shoulder with even my hand to move out,
she thinks I'm asking her to go and she
speeds up. I can't even get to that point
with a whip in hand. So I guess what I'm
asking is, how do I get her over her fear of
the whip, and how do I teach her to move out
on the circle and that the whip doesn't
always mean speed up?
ANSWER: First, I do not use a whip to lunge
a horse, I don't promote it, think it is
needed and think too many people use since
they do not know what they are doing. Your
horse has these issues for that very reason.
She was chased with a whip (called it
lunging) and now has learned that a whip
means I run or I get hit, chased or
whipped.
This is not a whip issue, not a horse issue,
-- yep you guessed it, it is a you issue. You
using the fear of the whip as an excuse since
you don't understand what your horse is
telling you. Your horse is screaming to you
and since you don't hear her, are not
listening, don't understand her,
you are seeing this as an abuse
issue issue, prior bad training issue.
I could get this horse to ignore
the whip in about 20 mins. So you are
thinking, then just tell me what to do so I
can do it. It is not that simple and can't be
done. YOU have learn to think and
understand horses in order to be able to fix
this. I can teach you that in an email.
The fact that you and others
write me questions and expect and think that
I can someone how tell you a "fix" tells me
that you don't understand horses.
I can only try and get you to
admit this so you can decide and accept that
you are the problem and when you fix you,
your horse gets better.
Read my horsemanship page, it is a bit long,
but it will help you help yourself and your
horse.
"a horse is only a reflection of you, if you
do good your horse will do good"
Rick
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Well, I guess thanks, but first of
all, if you read my question, I clearly
stated I didn't use the whip since I did
recognize her fear and chose not to use it.
Second of all, in using the whip I simply
wanted to use it as most dressage riders do,
as an extension of my arm to ask her to move
away from me and teach her that it will not
be used to hurt her or chase her, not to
strike some kind of fear into her. I have
never once hit my horse with anything, chased
her with it, or even threatened to do so, so
I am frankly quite shocked you would accuse
me of that especially since I clearly stated
that the instant I saw her fear I stopped
even holding it in my hand. I don't use one
when I ride either. So, I think I listen to
what my horse tells me very well. If you read
my last sentence, I was asking you if you
could help me with some techniques to help me
help her understand that it won't be used for
that purpose, and how I can train her to move
away from me on the lunge, with or without
the lunge whip. I wasn't asking for some kind
of "FIX", or accusing my horse of
having a problem, and if you get so irritated
with people asking for help
training/retraining their horses, then I
suggest you not be a part of this website.
So, obviously you completely misunderstood my
entire question. Maybe I wasn't clear in my
question, but I hope you understand my
intention was never to use the whip in any
malicious way.I don't even care if I never
use it. I'm quite happy not using it. I just
know from previous experiences, it can be
helpful in a way as an extension of your arm
to cue the horse for what you want them to do
ie: move away from you, make a circle bigger.
So I apologize if this is all a
misunderstanding, but I think you should read
more closely to what the question is before
jumping to conclusions.
ANSWER: OK you're right, the horse is not
telling you anything, I misunderstood your
question, I did not listen, you are doing
absolutely everything right and this must be
a horse issue, after all YOU have working
with this horse for two years and it just
can't learn, so it must be the horse.
Silly me, jumping to conclusions.
Good day!
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Wow Rick, I was shocked when I read
your response to this horse owner's question
as I was doing a search for some information.
It was incredibly obvious this
was a conscientious, caring owner trying to
get some direction about how to communicate
with her horse. If you read her
questions, she never once blamed her horse,
only the way people handled the horse before
her. How mature of her to
recognize that. What a shame
professionals belittle and judge people with
such honest intentions instead of encouraging
them and leading on the right path.
I'm sure Liz would benefit from
some one on one training from an expert.
You'd certainly benefit from the
same on how to communicate with people in a
constructive way. Answer:Thanks for your
input and not to put too fine a point on it,
I don't care about your opinion either. I do
this to help horses and people are the main
problem with horses. I can't help a horse
when a owner whats to make excuses, blame
others, come up with a hundred and one
reasons on why it is not them. There are
plenty of other people who will give feel
good advice. 95% of all horse issues are
owner issues, until a person accepts that
fact - I can't help them and I don't want to
waste my time. So if I offend someone who is
making a mistake with a 1000 pound animal
that can kill them, others or cause the horse
to kill himself, frankly I care. I volunteer
my time and experience, I know what I am
doing and I give the best advice I can. I
have a web site with over 400 pages of FREE
information and that only scratches the
surface of horses, so when people rush out
buy a horse and then want to write someone on
the internet to solve all their horse
problems in an email, I don't have time to
give them a lifetime of education. I direct
them to my site, I make information available
and do what I can. What I won't do is get
into an discussion about excuse, blame, how
it is not them or other things. I assure you
no one hurts me by not asking me a
question.
What you and others don't see is the nice
letters I get from people that take my
advice, read my site, educate themselves and
then write me on how my information changed
their relationship with their horse and they
finally realize that they were causing all
the problems and now they have just a great
understanding relationship with their horse.
Then I know I have helped "a horse" have a
better life. The fact that a human benefited
is of less concern to me.
So feel free to add yourself to the list of
people that don't like my advice. Funny thing
about life, there are normally two sides to a
fence and most people choose what side they
stand on.
Question: After many years away from horses, I have recently inherited a 16 month old filly and a ten yr old mare- her mother, both arabs of good descent. I grew up on arabs and am very confident upon the horse, in any situation I can think of, including shying, running, rearing, bucking....but have little experience on the ground. I have been working with the filly, using natural horsemanship techniques I have learned from reading and from friends, and we seem to be getting a good relationship going. The very first day she came, she had never been out of her birth pasture, was sent over night on a semi with the mom, came out and freaked out- she ended up catching me off guard and spinning around and kicking me- a shoulder hit and I flew to the ground. That was 3 months ago. We have gained confidence and trust until last night, when I was working her a bit outside of her pasture, in the round pen- just learning how to lead out off a hand cue, to eventually lunge. She is a smart one, and learns quickly. Anyway, the weather was changing and she was freaking out and wanted back in the pasture, rearing up, then twice trying to spin around and kick me. Not the get you in the knee kick, but high in the air, get you in the head kick. In all the years I was on the farm with our 5 arabs, I had never, ever experienced or heard of one of them kicking at a person. I can't really afford a trainer, but want the best for both of us. I also thin kthis is a potentially very dangerous situation. I can try to sell the mare to pay for some help. She is a good filly, but I am losing confidence in my long term commitment and would like to know if you think this is a normal reaction to a perceived scary situation? and do you think that we can overcome this. On the positive side, I didn't get kicked as I was holding her properly, and we were successful on getting across the compound back to the pasture while she was nervous. I am not petty and I promise not to complain about your answer. My dream has been to get back into horses and I love how smart she is. I am worried that I will be afraid of her and that will impair my ability to train her. Thank you, I really appreciate any help.
Answer: This horse is being a
normal horse. Anytime you handle a horse it
is dangerous, a lot of people just don't know
the danger. This little on is
teaching you, so learn well. A
does not care how much you know, how
experienced you are or how many other horses
you have owned. They are all about survival,
fear, safety and a leader. You are right she
kicked you since she caught you off guard,
you were not paying attention, you were not
ready, you did not set her up for success,
you did not help her succeed, she kicked you,
it was your fault and now the horse has to
pay. The pays by learning a bad habit, by
learning she can kick a human now, by
learning that you don't know what you are
doing. Everything you do with a horse you
have to look at what you teaching and what
the horse is learning. You teach good habits
or bad habits. Kicking you is a bad habit,
you taught it, you did not prevent it, you
did allowed it happen and now the horse
knows.
The horse does not need a trainer, you do. I
always tell people work on yourself and your
horse will get better. You are thinking since
you have experience that this horse cares, it
does not. A horse evaluates you every time
you handle it or are around it. So
experience, knowledge, ego, ribbons, awards,
won prizes mean nothing to a horse. It cares
if you can control its feet, if you are in
charge, if you are a good leader and if you
can keep it safe. A horse will test you and
if you fail (you failed when you got kicked)
then they get smarter and lose confidence in
you.
Please don't try and justify this as a horse
issue, as a mom issue, as a buddy sour issue,
as a poor abused neglected horse issue, not
matter what anyone tells you or what you
think, I assure you, this is a YOU issue. So
you either learn and get better or you buy,
sell, find a trainer, take bad advice, listen
to anyone that will talk to you or get out of
horses.
This horse is being a normal horse doing
normal horse things and unfortunately you are
being a human, smart, experienced human doing
normal human things. Until you
become more horse, learn to think, act,
understand and talk to horse, it will not
work, the horse will win, you will get hurt,
the horse will pay.
There many more people that have gotten out
of horses than are into to horses. That does
not happen by chance.
So read my site, read books, spend time the
horse learning and not just teaching, watch
the mom talk to the horse and learn their
language. I have lots of info on my site, if
you make the time to learn so you can help
these horses and in the end you will get more
than you give.
Rick
Question:Hi Rick,
I rescued an OTTB gelding about a year ago.
He is the son of Holy Bull -
grandson of Storm Cat. He is a
beautiful, strong and the smartest horse I've
ever had. The problem is my
leadership skills with him. He is
very different than my other horses in that
he is aloof and dominate. Can you
tell me the best way to improve on my skills
so I can help him learn to trust people and
be happy just being a horse? He
is turned out 24/7 and has the best of
nutrition and vet care I just can't seem to
bond with him. Right now I am
doing Parelli natural horsemanship with him
which has helped a bit but he still wants to
bite, strike and just be generally cranky at
times. Will he ever be able to
bond with a person? I could not
love him more so I want to do what's best for
him.
Thank you
Answer: Bloodlines, moms and dads don't
mean anything to a horse or me, only people
want to add some value to that.
All horses are strong, smart and
beautiful. So this tells me that you have not
had many horses and really don't understand
them. Parelli should help, but
the problem is you. You think this horse
cares that you love him, he does not.
A horse wants a strong leader so
it can relax. You are more worried about
being this horse's friend, so you are being
nice and think you are being kind. You are
confusing the horse, you are not giving good
direction, you are not being a strong leader,
you are not showing this horse that you are
someone the he should listen to or respect,
so he treats you like a lower horse.
Read my horsemanship page, treat this horse
like a lower horse, you need to be the strong
higher horse or this horse will never love,
like or respect you.
------------Follow up ----------
Question: reply:
You are right. I just spent the
day with my horse concentrating on thinking
like a lead horse. I think I was
pitying him. All the horror stories I had
heard about the lives of racehorses and what
they endure made me feel sorry for him.
He doesn't need that.
The other horses in our herd
don't feel sorry for him,he's just another
horse. They see him as a leader and their
security. So I have to let the past go and be
his leader so that he can feel secure.
Thanks
BTW- Taking my sunglasses off helped too.
Good advise on your website.
Answer: Good, glad I can help. Keep reading and learning, understanding these guys is a life long journey and they are always teaching us, so don't forget. The best teacher of the horse, is the horse.
Question: What is your stance on the slaughter of horses.
Answer: I discuss this on my site. I have
a slaughter video link on my bad horsemanship
page. The short answer is people cause it,
people do it and horses pay for it. I would
rather see a horse starve in the wild than
killed in a cruel, mean and fearful
manner.
Read my site and you will understand why I
say what I say and why I believe what I
believe.
And the old story about can't feed them and
too many, I say the same thing applies to
many children and we don't slaughter them
after they are born anyway.
As always, horses pay for people's mistakes.
It is never the horse's fault.
Rick
Question: I have a very sweet mare that I am starting. She is just 3 years old. She is very respectful and is very responsive to verbal commands and ground training. The problem is that she has an aweful buck. I have only saddled her and have not mounted her yet, but once I cinch her up she is fine until she starts moving at a trot or faster. Then she bucks so big and so hard that she is dangerous. I cannot stay in the round-pen or indoor arena with her because she doesn't respect my space the way she normally does on the ground without a saddle. Do you have any suggestions?
Answer: Read my site and learn to
understand a horse. You do not understand
horses or you would not use sweet mare and
that you can't stay in the round pen with
this horse since she does not respect
you.
You are right, she may be very sweet and she
does not respect you, but this is not a horse
problem. You need to educate
yourself so you can think like a horse,
understand a horse, learn how to talk to a
horse in horse language and understand why
horses do what they do.
Your horse is being normal.
Question: I went to your sight and read what you said about turning horses out together, which is great and the way you should do it, but where I am the problem is I'm afraid if I put them together they will kick and break a leg or something else will happen to them. I have 4 horses on 1/2 acre. I turn them out 2 at a time, the ones that get along. I recently got a horse that I put in a pen next to another horse and he pawed the fence until the next morning he was three legged. Vet said it was like smashing your hand in a car door. When it is his turn to go out in the horse trap, he stands at the gates of the other horses and shows his teeth and tosses his head up and down and he hit the gate and got a big knee from it. He is well now, but I guess my question is will he hurt my other horses if I turn him loose with them? I know is silly, but I really want to get him happy! Thank You
Answer: All horses fight, kick and bite,
it is what they do. The fence causes more
aggressiveness and increases their will to
fight and dominate. feed them
well, throw 8 to 10 piles of hay in the area,
not too close and not by fence on in corners
and then let them go. Yes one may
get a broke leg, one may get bit, and they
will fight, but if you have gotten rid of
corners and taken away the will to fight for
food, then the initial fights will be less.
You can alos round pen and
exercise the aggressive horse until it is
very tired and then it will be less worried
about fighting if it is tired.
Your horses, your choice, I have done and
seen it done 1000 times, maybe once a horse
got hurt and it was because of fence and
corner. What ever you do STAY OUT
IT, and don't try and save or help or get
involved, put in the area and leave so they
will not run to you or pay attention to you,
they need to pay attention to the other
horses.
Rick
Question: Have a horse here older(16) unbroke mustang. Taught him to lead and do groundwork pick up feet etc. He is the most questioning and fearful horse of the mustangs and others I have ever worked. Trailer loading came so I could get him to my place. I do reward for forward and keep them focused on the trailer. I spent 8 hours just easing this horse into the trailer(ramp) which I don't care much for anyway. Goes in now but backs out immediately. I am practicing tying skills outside now and working behind him but he never pulls or spooks outside. Thought I might put him in a box stall and make that his trailer to practice with. He stays in longer with me than when I ask him to load in the trailer by himself. He is tall and I don't want him to smack his head as his ears almost touch anyway. The trailer is a nice open 3-horse slant. I have opened all the windows and tried first and second hole but the reaction is the same. I spend literally hours trying to get another second of stay time and I always try to back him out before he comes out by himself. I have to work by myself. Any suggestions. I feel he is just so fearful and possibly claustrophobic. The owner loaded him years ago in a fire emergency by having two people one pulling and one beating behind. I hate that. But he goes in fine now just won't stay. Any other ideas very appreciated. I load him twice a day regular halter and lead-no chains or knots or sticks, to try to get him more comfortable with time. Thanks
Answer: All horses are claustrophobic. If
I put you in a trailer, locked you up and
drove around you would not like it either.
Horses don't like to be ridden,
don't like saddle, don't like nails in their
feet, don't like to be tied up, but they do
it.
Stop trying to get him to stay in.
Load him half way and then YOU
decide to back him out, load him two steps in
and YOU decide to back him out, let him leave
the trailer 50 times and he will learn he
will get out if he goes in. 8
hours is way too long and You are sending
messages that you are worried about the
trailer, you are fearful of what can happen,
you are making him more nervous by worrying
about his nervousness.
Load and unload him 15 times and make it your
idea to back him out, on the 16th time just
relax and ignore him for 5 secs, then back
him out and then SLOWLY move up a few seconds
from there. Don't go from 5 secs
and then ask for 30 secs or the horse will
leave when he wants, any time he wants to
leave the trailer, make him leave and make it
your idea, soon he will like not having to
leave.
This is a you issue and not a horse
issue.
QUESTION: We loaded the horses in our 4
horse stock trailer today and headed to the
mountains to trail ride. This is the second
time these horses have been in this trailer.
We put the smaller horse in the front and the
larger behind. About 5 miles into our trip
the smaller horse broke loose and flipped out
causing the larger horse behind to get
spooked and flip out as well. Anyway, by the
time we got stopped and to the trailer both
horses were on the floor. Large one on the
bottom wedged sideways with her neck bent and
smaller horse across her backend on the
floor. We quickly got the lead ropes loose
and the small horse jumped up while the
larger horse laided there for a few seconds
until we jumped in there and got her to her
feet. Everyone was ok with a few scrapes and
bumps. We tied small horse to the back with
little slack in the rope and larger horse in
the front. Another mile down the road I see
large horse going down. She pulled back until
she passed out. She has done this in the past
being tied to a tube/post. It ruined our day
and we ended up turning around before
anything else happened and to get a better
look at the larger horse as we weren't quite
sure why she went down the second time. When
we got home...they both were fine and have
been roaming their pasture just as they
normally do. The little horse also has a
problem with standing tied and will rear up
if there is any resistance or if she doesn't
want to go in the direction you want her to.
I've only had her for a short time. I'm
thinking about a "BE NICE HALTER' or
something of the sort. But the freaking out
in the trailer has me worried and I'm afraid
to load them up to go again. I was planning
on taking them on a 10 mile trail ride to a
forest service cabin for a couple of days (an
hour drive) next weekend and now I'm afraid.
I have never been so scared in my life and
really thought the larger horse was dying and
had a broken leg the way she was down in the
trailer. Thank God it wasn't...things could
have been a lot worse than what they were and
I never want that to happen again. Any adice
would be greatly appreciated.
ANSWER: OK, I always take the horse's side,
so here is where I tell you what you did
wrong and how you caused all of this. Your
horses do not have a problem, they were set
up to fail by you, yes I know not
intentionally but intentions do not matter to
horses. You did not teach these
horses how to tie properly, you did not use
good halters and ropes or they would not have
got away, you did not tie them properly or
they would not have got away, you did not tie
them to a strong enough tie point or they
would not have got away. No
matter how you look at it, you caused what
happened.
Had you done it right this would not have
happened. Had you taken more time this would
not have happened, had you understood horses
better this would not have happened.... all
horse problems are people problems.
Your horse could not have been
hurt or put in this situation without
you...
So you can stop with the feel bad, worried,
ruined my day or however else you want to see
this.. you caused it, you did not prevent it,
you did not prepare the horse properly and
like always the horse had to pay for your
mistakes.
I have no idea what a "be nice halter" is but
by the name someone created it so it would
sound nice and appeal to people that don't
know any better. See, you want to see this as
a horse issues and you are looking for an
easy fast fix. Which is why you will
continued to put your horses in danger.
The fix is YOU. When
you do right your horse will do right.
When understand horses you will
be able to predict things like this, when you
take the time it takes you will know that it
takes less time.
This is a you problem so fix yourself and
your horse will get better. Read my
horsemanship page, my rope halter page and my
tying a horse page. Then if you
can't figure out what you need to do write me
back.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Thank you for your answer. I agree
that it is my fault and that I led my horses
to failure due to ignorance and not
understanding horses better. I'm not looking
for an easy fix. I'm trying to evaluate the
situation and prevent this from ever
happening again. Many things (standing tied
for one) that we need to work on. I've also
started to feed them out of this new trailer
to get them use to it a little more. Hoping
it will decrease the fear of the trailer.
The "be nice halters" or "anti-pull halters"
are the type of halters that apply pressure
when a horse pulls back. They are not halters
that you throw on a horse and think your
problems are solved...I understand that! The
horse will need to be taught to move forward
to release pressure and so on. I'm not sure
if these will work with my little Arab as
when she feels any threat she will back up,
rear and fight until she feels release then
she stops. Especially if she does not want to
do something (i.e. cross bridge when being
led). She has never reared when I'm on
her...only when leading her. She will do the
backing up and spinning around bit when I'm
on her which I don't like and have been
working hard to correct with her. I've
noticed it is when she doesn't want to go in
the direction (away from home (herd) usually)
when we ride out from our home. We usually go
in circles to stop the backing up and
redirect until she goes in the direction I
want her to. As I said before, I haven't had
her for very long and am learning quickly
about her.
I will read your entire site and search for
answers to help our situation and to
especially improve my horsemanship!!! I'm in
no way shape or form an expert at this...but
working at it. Thanks so much for making the
info available and for answering e-mail. Your
service, even if it's not entirely what a
person wants to hear is more valuable than
you'll ever know.
Answer: Well, glad to hear that you are
accepting responsibility and not blaming the
horse. You have just taken a big step to
improve your horsemanship. Your horse does
not see you as a strong leader, all the
things you are seeing is a lack of respect,
maybe some fear, from the lack of
trust/respect. If this horse saw you as a
fair firm leader, she would not be testing
you by stopping, pulling back, rearing and
other non-sense. I could take this horse and
that behavior would stop in about less than 5
mins. Not tooting my horn, just
that I would show the horse, I am leader, I
can make you move and feel uncomfortable, I
can stop your movement, I can make you stop,
I can control where you move, as soon as the
horse saw that, all this resistance would go
away. My guess is you are being
too nice, too easy, not consistent and giving
bad direction. All of this tells
a horse, don't trust this person, this person
is not a good leader, I better test this
person every time to make sure she really
knows what she wants and to make her prove to
me that she really is the leader.
Every test you fail, you tell the
horse it was right, every test you pass, you
tell the horse you are leader.
A horse that rears only does so when someone
is pulling on their head, only people that
pull on a horse and make them rear, don't
know what they are doing, so they don't know
how to change what they do. No human can out
pull a horse, but a small child can attack
the butt of a horse and make a horse move
away and in a circle or back up.
If this horse rears, she needs to
be backing up fast and fearful and you need
to be chasing her backwards for 5 feet or so.
A few of those lessons and this
horse will quickly figure out that rearing is
NOT the right answer and rearing only makes
me get chased backwards and that is not fun
and I don't want to do that. You
need to understand a horse to know how a
horse thinks so you can "think like a horse"
and then you will see big changes.
Read the site, read the articles, watch the
training vids, visit the links I suggest, "as
you get better, your horse will get
better".
Rick
Question:Hi,
I have read the site, its brilliant and I am
totally prepared for you to tell me I am
stupid and have made some major mistakes but
I really need some honest advice so here we
go...
I have a yearling, QH cross,which is pretty
unusual since I am in England...love her to
bits but she started weaving last summer when
she was weaned. We have american barn type
stables, so a weave grate isnt really
possible and I know thats not the real
solution but I really dont want her to ruin
her joints, or form more of a habit, so this
weaving lark has to stop.
I kept a horse in the block with her, but she
still weaves over any fence/door when she
wants "something". She will weave if she is
not near her mother, my riding horse and she
will weave if you walk away from the
fence/gate after leting her go. She will
weave when she runs out of hay, or in
anticipation of food in at meal times. I
thought a summer on the grass with other
youngsters might help but I have recently
brought her home to try and heal the sunburn
scabs on her heels (not easy) and the problem
has errupted again. I have not got a mirror,
someone said I should try this, but because
she doesnt weave when she doesnt think you're
looking (I have spied on her) or if there is
no "temptation" the other side of a fence, I
have been loath to pay so much for a
stainless steel mirror.
I do not want to tell her off for weaving, I
do not want to get a weave grate and ignore
the problem, but I do not want a horse with
joint problems and one that will be weaving
for the next 20+ years (it grates on my
nerves to see her, especially since she does
it so fast it makes me feel sea-sick!). So
you see, I really dont want to conrinue doing
things wrong...but I dont know what to
actually do?!
Oh, dont know if this is useful info but she
is super pushy, I try to be firm but when I
walk away in the field she will do that
stroppy face, rearing, trotty thing she used
to do when her mother would walk away when
she wanted milk...I am not her mother but I
have a hard time making her believe it, which
is sweet but also I can see the potential
danger. I need to set boundaries, but she
seems to ignore my efforts.
Answer: My guess is you weaned her..why do
people do this, who cares if a horse is with
their mom. I just don't get it and this is a
woman thing since guys could care less if a
baby hangs out with mom. You did
this too soon and now you have created this
habit since you felt the need to take a young
horse from it's mom. The mirror
thing and other tricks would not be needed if
you let horses be horses. Put the
horse with it's mom and let it be a horse.
This really pisses me off to hear
this. This poor horse is being
kept alone and has now developed a bad habit
that will hurt it for the rest of it's life,
all because People, you or others have this
crazy obsessive need to wean a baby.
When people stay out of it,
horses do fine. I really don't want to hear
all your good reasons for weaning this horse,
you caused this problem and now you want to
"feel" bad or be annoyed. What
about this poor horse, maybe it was not ready
to be ripped away from mom, maybe it was
scared and insecure and felt abandoned and it
had to do something to adjust to this
loneliness-- all caused by people wanting to
wean.
Put the horse in pasture, put the horse with
its mom and stay out of horse saving. Other
horses will fix this it PEOPLE stay out of
it. Your comment about worrying
about joints later is irritating to me.
What about what this horse is
going through and feeling and living every
day, you are worried about joints.. it just
amazes me how people can claim to care about
horses and then do what they do to
horses.
YOU have done enough, put the horse with
horses and stay out of it. That
is my take. I always take the
horse €™s side, so forget
how you feel and think like a horse.
Question: I have a 4 year old paint
gelding who won't give me his head in the
round pen. He will transitions
wonderfully, stops and looks, but I can't get
him to yield his head once he is stopped.
I walk up, then back-up hoping he
will turn his head my way, but nope.
He is very calm, not at all mean,
and generally very mellow. I was
in the round pen with him for almost 2 hours,
I tried making him move out at an extended
trot or canter hoping he would realize it
requires a whole lot less energy to submit,
but once again nope. Any
suggestions?
Thanks
Answer: what ever you are doing you are
doing it wrong. The horse is
telling you this since he is not giving you
the right answer. You are
probably not releasing correctly with proper
timing. Two hours is way too long
to round pen, you are going to cause leg and
joint problems for the horse, horses are not
made to run in circles. You are
chasing and not teaching or training the
horse.
Read my horsemanship page, I go into round
penning, but without seeing what you are
doing I cant be specific, but I assure you if
you do it right the horse will do it
right.
Question: My horse is 5 years old and very calm and easy to ride. She is so unreactive that she totally ignores the electric fencing and just pushes right thru it to get to the grass or cornfield.I am afraid she will wander too far to the road and/or get hurt as sometimes it takes me over an hour to find her. Can you recommend any training or other options on fencing to keep her in? She is a little dense and just doesn't get it. Now a second horse has picked up the trick and I have two to find. Helpl. I don't want to have to get rid of her as the kids can ride her safely, but I also can't keep tracking her down.
Answer: This is not a horse issue.
Someone, maybe you, did not put
up a good enough fence to make sure the horse
did not learn this behavior, so now that the
horse has been allowed to learn it, you want
to blame the horse for being dense. Had you
put up a proper fence or stronger shocking
fence you would not have set this horse up to
fail.
Your hot wire is probably intermittent, which
means it is not hot all the time. Run it so
it is hot all the time, also run a pipe or
wooded fence so it can not just break the hot
wire easy. I am only guessing but
I bet you tired to take the easy way, not put
up real fence and decided to cheat and just
put up a hot wire thinking it would work.
All bad decision on your part and
the horse has to pay now. Which
is why it is never the horse's fault.
So invest the time and money you should have
and put up a good sturdy fence and then run a
hot wire on it, so the horse will learn
proper behavior to keep it safe.
Question: Hi Rick, I have a retired
standardbred mare who sometimes turns her
head (her left eye and ear facing the
ground)when I'm riding her. It is usually
when I am pushing her away from the other
horses though she has done it when following
her best paddock companion when trotting up a
fairly steep hill towards home.
She does have a hunters bump though the vet
said she is in no pain. On the
lunge she bucks and kicks out if pushed hard,
though no head turning.
In the paddock she does a sort of loop head
shake only occassionally and usually when the
horses are moving to another area or if she
is waiting to get through a gate.
I am wondering if you think I'm doing
someting that is troubling her?
thanks for your time
Answer: Not sure, couuld be a kink in
neck, could be a dominate eye things, could
be that is her good and her other eye is
going bad, could be an inner ear
issue/infection, could be neck or top line
imbalance, without more info can't say.
Studs will shake head back and
forth to gain attention or to show dominance,
so could be take off of that behavior.
If it is not medical, then you
are probably causing it, but you have to try
and get her do it under the same
circumstances and then you can tell if it is
learned or pain or medical or habit or
reisitance. bucking when pushed
could be direspect/lack of respect or pain,
so not sure on that or if they are
connected.
Try and isolate the behavior and then isolate
the varibles so you can pin it down better
then figure how to deal with it.
Rick
QUESTION: What is your opinion about when
it is OK to ride a horse with pain issues.
I have been riding a 9 yo TB that
was started on the track and then moved to
intensive jumper training only to "lose his
mind" and become "dangerous". He
had some time off in pasture and then I began
riding him. He has not been
dangerous at all, but perhaps a bit
distrustful and I sense is stiff in all the
leg joints and neck, as well as having a
little back pain (though the back seems to be
his least issue) I have been
riding him about two months now, three times
per week, about 30 minutes each time, some
trail, some arena. He has become
my buddy, more mentally relaxed, but his back
pain has increased some, and I don't know how
to evaluate joint pain. I will be
meeting with his vet soon to ask.
I know that ground work and
befriending him have been good for him, and
he is much more willing and relaxed under
saddle already, but because his back pain has
increased (the saddle was custom, and really
seems to fit), I just don't know if it's more
good than bad or more bad than good to ride
him? I ride a few other horses as
well and wonder in general if a horse has
even a little back pain, would you say not to
ride him at all?
ANSWER: If your back hurt would you want or
like to give piggyback rides?
Probably not. Jumping
the most painful and damaging thing you can
do to a horse. It is very
unnatural, it puts enormous about pressure on
the front legs and back and a does not do it
in the unless it gets caught where it has
too, so then you add the weight of the a
rider, saddle and landing on only two legs
and you do damage every jump.
Get on top of a table and jump off, you will
land on two feet now get back on and jump off
and only land on one foot, do not use the
other foot, it hurts. You put a
1000 pound horse who normally supports their
weight on four feet, then you add a riders
weight and then you make them land on only
half their feet and can't wonder why the
horse is in pain.
You did not say how much you weigh so that is
a factor, how thick is you saddle pad, what
type of saddle (eng or west), is the horse
shod or bare foot..all factors relating to
the pain.
Bottom like, treat a horse the way you would
want to be treated, if you sprained you ankle
and made you run, the pain may not be that
bad, but I am sure you would not like it,
would be happy with me making you run and
would enjoy or think it was fun.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: The TB is not being jumped anymore
and I dismount on the trail on long
downhills. My relationship with
him is strictly one of learning and
companionship. We just do short
trail rides and or flat work exercises in the
arena. In total: about 30 min per
session 3x per week. The thing
is, his attitude is improving but my guess
(just based on the way he moves and by
palpating his back) is that his physical pain
is not reducing. I sometimes
think he really enjoys feeling like he's
doing something and other times I worry that
he is physically vulnerable and
uncomfortable. So I am torn about
whether he should be retired from riding
altogether or whether the "work" has some
value. He is shod on the front
only. His saddle is english/
all-purpose and I use a pad with 3/4" foam
inserts. I am 150 lbs. Answer:For
as much are you ride I would get rid of front
shoes. Think about putting a
metal plate in your shoe and walk around.
Your joints and shins would hurt.
At 9, for as much as you ride,
going barefoot will help a lot.
It may take a while for the horse
to adjust and grow out but in the long run it
will be better for horse.
An english saddle puts more weight on horse
than western. A western spreads
out weight more across back, where an english
spreads it out only across the two side pads.
Maybe an inch pad would
help.
Just because you do not jump now, the damage
was done long ago, you also may not know when
the horse was started. If it was
started at 2 that does damage before a horse
fully grows, if it came from track, that is
probably the case. For your
weight with a good pad and saddle I would not
think it would be an issue, but you never
know, it could have a fracture in the spine
or on any of it over 200 bones.
Could have a swelling, cartilage
build up or other things.
You have decide. Exercise is good
and will help build muscle and work muscles,
but if the horse is in pain then I would not
do it, but I can't see horse so I can't tell.
Just do everything you can to
help and don't do anymore damage.
What that means depends on what
you see or learn from vet.
QUESTION: I have a filly just weaned at 6
months she has neo natal maladjustment
syndrome. Signs were not sucking and grinding
teeth. I am finding it difficult
to introduce the lead to her I will attach it
to her headstall in a large round yard and
stall but she will only stand in the corner
of the stall if in the yard she is panicking.
Lead was placed on in the morning I removed
it in the evening as she was not progressing.
Help please
ANSWER: What the hell is this syndrome.
It sounds like a fancy way of
saying this young filly was abused, handled
wrong, kept caged up, not allowed to mental
grow with other horses and people have ruin
her and made her a horse with a past and no
future.
Forget the stupid headstall, help the horse.
Put the horse with other horses
and let it be for 6 months, they will fix
what people have screwed up.
And forget the mumbo jumbo fancy talk
describing what is wrong with the horse and
let the horse be a horse with other horses.
Read my horsemanship page on my
site so you understand horses better.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: The syndrome used to be called
Dummy foal or Wandering Syndrome.
The foal was born that way.
In simple terms they lack oxygen
to the brain whilst being born.
The filly has another horse with
her whilst she is being weaned.
Answer: I am sure there are medical things
that can go wrong with foals. In breeding can
cause some issues as well. No
matter what the cause and no matter what the
problem. Being with other horses,
roaming in open area and not caged or stalled
is the best thing for any and all problems.
Horses take care of horses, in the wild the
stallion may have killed this baby if would
not make it or hold the herd back, medical
issues are hard to know for sure with horses
since they can't talk, explain or tell us
specifics so all we can do is guess.
My advice is keep the horse with horses so it
can be a horse and let it learn grow and get
better with other horses.
Whatever you are doing does not
appear to working and people tend to mess up
more horses than they help and I have NEVER
seen other horses mess us being horses
without humans. Turn it out with
horses and see what happens in a few months.
Then if you don't see
improvement, maybe get back involved, but try
that first.
Question: sorry i ask you so many
questions. ever since i found this sight your
advice has been very helpful. so thanks for
reading this.
i have been breaking this mare and she is
afraid to cross creeks or any water for that
matter.she wont even follow another horse
through it. so this is what i have been
doing. we have a small creek behind are house
about 3 feet deep in the deepest spots on are
land i have been walking her through it like
repeatedly then i would ride her through it a
couple of times it wasn't as easy as it sound
it took a lot of patients and each time i
would have her stand in the middle were it
was deepest and i would feed her an apple
wafer. i did this for about 1-1 1/2 hours.
is this the right way to handle
this problem will she eventually get over her
water fears if i keep doing this. or is there
another way i should be handling it? we also
have a huge pond should i wade her through
it?
Answer: Sounds pretty good to me.
If it is warm, I would go out
there during hottest part of day and get off
her and maybe send her, lunge her a bit,
just to get her listening and paying
attention to you, not to get her tired or
scared. Then after you get her
really paying attention to you and listening,
then you walk in the creek and lunge her
there. Make her walk and trot
both directions, stopping, coming into to
you, and sending you out a few times.
This is build her confidence,
this will get her paying more attention to
you than the water.
Don't make the focus the water.
Just like too many people make
the trailer the focus when they trailer load,
that makes a horse nervous.
Always make the focus on you and
to listen to you, so always have the horse do
things you know the horse will do.
Pretty soon the horse will not
care what it is, it will always know, to
listen you and you will not hurt it.... so
don't ever put a horse in position to get
hurt, but always make a horse pay attention
to you.
Another thing is work the horse next to the
creek, have it back up, turn, flex, ride it
up a few feet turn back a few feet, and then
only let it rest and relax in the water, soon
the horse will learn, I get to relax in the
water... so the water is where I want to
be... then it will be the horses idea to WANT
to be in the water and you will not have to
MAKE it go in the water. Always
better when it is the horse's idea, you just
have to figure how to make it the horse's
idea.
If you do this twice a day, it will be good
in a week, if you do it once a day it may not
be good in 3 weeks and if you do only all day
on a weekend, it will not be good for
months.....
Everyday, twice a day builds routine, horse
like routine since they like to know what is
going to happen, they find comfort in routing
and knowing and that builds trust and
confidence and that is always better than
fixing something fast....for the horse
Rick
Question: I have an x race horse who is a wonderful horse and you would never guess he was a racehorse. I have been gaming on him and he is doing awesome except one thing. He really stops on his front feet really hard when we stop. I always back him up after to try and get him to use his hind end, but still does it. Is there any other ways to get him to stop on hind and not on front? Or am I out of luck. Answer:Sounds like the horse might be out of luck. A horse will do anything it is taught to do or required to. Just because you see this as a horse issue, does not make it so. This horse was never taught this and you need to learn how to teach so you can help him understand what you want. Him not doing it as nothing to do with what he wants. Without seeing this, I can tell if this a rider issue, maybe you are setting up the stop right, not in the right position, not with the right timing, then it could be an old injury or the horse has never been taught how to stop, race horses run and trot after a race and then walk after a trot and then are only stopped on a walk. Since you never want a race horse wanting to or thinking about stopping it is never taught or worked on. So you want to undo all his training to run run run by having him back up, it will not work. I always take the horse's side. This is not a horse issue, the horse does not know what you want, does not know how to give it to you and is confused and frustrated. Only you can change this. There is no fast way or short answer. If it is important enough for you to want it, then you will do what YOU need to do to fix it, read, study, learn, and make yourself better and your horse will get better.
Question: hi, my pony Chino runs at me
with his ears back most of the time after i
let him off his headcollar/halter and lead
rope. i get scared but i kind of realise now
that since he is a stallion he will try to
fight me because he wants to be leader of the
pack like they do in the wild, which is me
& him only i am$ the leader. i no that i
have to be the leader of the pack and i have
to tell him off for doing so. i try but he is
really strong and sometimes i get really
scared.
please help me as soon as possible.
thank you very much
Answer: The only way the horse knows you are a leader is if you show him and act like one. You have to act BIG, sound loud, raise your hands, throw a rock, or swing a stick at him and make him run off. If you move away or act scared he thinks he is the leader. So before you take collar off, make him back up, make him move away from you, pull his head to his butt and show him that you are in charge. It sounds like you need an adult with you to help you. This horse may hurt you so doing this can get you hurt, make sure you ask your parents before you try anything and have them watch in case he tries to bite you.. This cannot be fixed by an email so you need an adult to help you.
Question: I was really looking for someone
with medical knowledge who could help us.
If you can't help, I
understand.
We have an old pony (about 20 years old)
He is losing weight and can't
gain any weight no matter how much we feed
him. His coat hasn't shed in 2
seasons. His stomach is
contracting all the time and he has become so
thin. There are not many vets
around here that do house calls and we can't
really afford the expense to pay one to come
to our home.
We have read online about cushings disease,
but he is not showing all of those symptoms.
Could you advise us in any way as
to how to help our "gypsy".
Thanks for your time.
Answer: 20 years is not that old.
Lots of things can cause what you
are seeing. Lack of exercise,
lack of grass hay, bad teeth, not being
wormed and many others. As horses
get older they do not shed or grow hair as
easy, so grooming is more important to help
them. If his feet are not done he
could be in pain so he walks less, which
means he eats less and things go down hill
from there.
If this horse has all the grass hay the can
eat, a flake of alfalfa once a day, some
rolled or whole oats (2 - 3 cups a day) some
rice bran maybe a little sweet feed mixed in,
this horse will put on weight. If
you can't afford a vet, then maybe you are
not providing enough of the right feed often
enough. Also maybe you should
find the horse a home where a vet is
available. Putting on weight is
not an overnight thing, it may take a few
months, but just do it slow and don't try and
do too much too fast or you can kill the
horse.
So do this:
worm the horse
have the teeth checked
give lots of grass hay, 2 flakes morning and
night (grass being Oat, Rye, Orchard,
etc)
give alfalfa hay a flake a day, half morning
half at night
give 2 cups of oats in morning and 2 cups at
night
give 1 cup of rice bran morning and
night
This horse will gain weight if you do what
you need to do, you cannot just throw some
low quality hay out once or twice a day and
expect that to work. This horse
should have hay out all the time so she can
eat when she wants to and never be hungry and
never have to wait for food.
QUESTION: I recently purchased a 5 year
old Belgian who came to me with poor ground
manners. We have been working on
teaching her that it is not ok to plow over
humans on the lead and to stand in the cross
ties, etc. These things are
improving, although, she will still test her
limits. She has, however, begun
chasing children who come out to the pasture
to retrieve their horses. She
does not do this to me or other adults.
She is very large, weighing over
2000 pounds, and I am concerned with the
danger of this situation. Is
there anything I should focus on in her
handling to help alleviate this problem.
I am not in the pasture to do any
type of intervention when the chasing
occurs.
ANSWER: Like most problems, this is a people
problem not a horse problem. A
horse will not chase something that does not
run. It the child cannot stop a
horse from chasing it, maybe it should not be
in the pasture with many horses.
ONLY the person getting chased
can stop this, not you. If you
are there and do stop it, it means nothing to
the horse. A horse will only
respect someone it has too respect.
You can tell the kid to keep a plastic
grocery bag in her pocket and when your horse
comes to shake it over her head at the horse.
The problem is this is just a
cheat and does not address the real problem,
which is the kid that is letting your horse
chase her, the kid is running from the horse,
the kid is not showing the horse it can't
chase her, the kid is causing the horse to
chase her. All horses are bigger
than people, it has nothing to do with size.
Your horse may also be protecting
the herd or wanting to play....it is obvious
that you or the kid being chased does not
understand horses or the way they think.
This is perfectly normal horse
behavior and anyone who understands horse
would know this. If a horse
kicked you when you took his food, you might
see this as the horse is mean or the horse is
possess of his food or he has a bad
habit............ I would say it
normal horse behavior.. A horse
is only a horse and that is all it knows how
to be, this is NOT a horse problem.
Read my site it will help you see horses as
they are and understand them better.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: This is both a people problem and a
horse problem! I am fully aware
that this can be normal horse behavior.
I am also fully aware that it is
most likely occuring because the child is not
demonstrating to the horse that she is in
charge. However, acting
disrespectful to any human is not tolerated
at our stable and this horse needs to learn
this. I was simply looking for
any suggestions you might have to assist this
h orse in learning that she is always
sub-ordinate to any human being.
And size does make a difference.
This horse is gigantic compared
to the other horses in the pasture and kids
who are normally confident in the pasture are
intimidated by her, as are the adults.
Even other horses who would
normally be more dominant in the field are
intimidated by her. And she was
the bottom horse in the pecking order at her
prior home. I have lots of
experience with abused animals and have never
identified an animal as mean.
Anyone who works with animals on
any regular basis would tell you that animals
act instincively and don't have "mean" in
their repertoire of behaviors.
That is purely a human behavior.
And I could care less if this is "normal"
horse behavior. It is not acceptable to chase
people out of your pasture - ever! I have
reviewed your website. And I have
to tell you that you rip on people who call
their horses names but you do the same thing
to people! Telling people they
obviously don't know anything about horse
behavior is the same thing as calling their
horse stupid! It doesn't provide
any solutions to the problem. You
didn't tell me anything I didn't already
know. But thanks anyway.
Answer: OK, you are right, if you know so
much and are so experienced, then why are
asking me questions.
This is not a horse problem, we can agree to
disagree. I think you are wrong
and 99% of all horse problems, including this
one, is a people problem. This
horse WILL not chase someone that does not
run. And you are on such a high
horse that you want to get insulted by
answer. If you know all that you
told me you, then why have you not fixed
this? If you fix this, write me
back and please explain how you can train a
horse not to chase someone when you are not
there and the other person runs and is scared
of the horses. This will be a new
revelation in horse training.
You response reminds me of an old
saying:
"It is hard to get down from your high horse
gracefully."
And if you don't like my answers or my web
site, feel free not to read or ask me
questions and don't go to my site.
See that is the wonderful thing
about being a human, WE have choices and
horses do not, which is why "it is never the
horse's fault".
Good Day!
QUESTION: Hi, im hoping you might have
some advice for me about my mares lameness.
About 4 years ago some 'fool' left the field
gate open and all the horses ran loose around
the surrounding fields.. my mare came back
lame on the front left with no obvious reason
(no cuts, swellings or heat etc) this went on
for a couple of weeks so got the vet out, she
was taken in for X-rays and all sorts of
injections in her legs and anything the vet
could think of (she was at the vets for
roughly 2week) eventually the vet just said
they had no idea why she was lame and that
its perminant. After 5months of lameness she
was sound again and fine to be ridden. I
continued to ride her fine mainly hacking
with some schooling or jumping for about 2
years. Since then i've put her on loan a few
times and shes gone lame from what i can
gather this is why - 1st time on loan the
loaner trotted her on roads for over an hour
and she was then lame for 2months - 2nd tome
on loan larger rider and constantly ridden in
school bending on hardish ground and was lame
for 4 months - 3rd time small rider ridden
ridden only in school again and was lame for
2/3months. Each time its the same leg shes
lame on, i find that running cold water on it
helps but as i said theres no heat or
swelling. I was wondering if you have any
idea as to what it could be or how i may be
able to prevent it so she can be used more,
at the moment shes hacked lightly and doing
fine though. Shes only ever had a problem
with being lame since the day she escaped 4
years ago, before that i use to compete every
weekend jumping showing xcountrys etc for 4
years with no problem, shes 14.2hh and 14 now
i got her when she was 5 she came from
american adventure originaly sold on at
4years to who i brought her off who broke her
lightly and i brought her on from there with
no problems. I know shes 3/4 quarter horse
not 100% what the other 1/4 is. Sorry to
ramble wanted to get everthing out. I
understand not many replies are now given but
any advice will be listened to and i will be
greatfull although i also understand i may
never get to the bottom of her lameness.
Thanks for reading.
Regards, Gemma.
P.s i've uploaded a picture of her to show
her weight and leg build. Shes the bay.
ANSWER: There are two types of horses:
Those that are hurt and those
that will be hurt.
My first thought is stop giving her to others
so they can hurt her. She has a
injury, jumping, running on hard ground and
shoes are the worst things for this horse.
You said when you left her alone
she got better, no shit, she was not carrying
an extra 150 lbs, she was not being run, she
was not being jumped.... I can't imagine why
she got better....
You asked for my opinion and I almost always
take the horse's side. This horse
can't tell you it hurts, just because you
can't see pain does not mean she is better.
I hurt a lot of the time when I
some things and I don't limp or you would not
know it. Just because she is not
limping does not mean she is not hurting.
Go do some jumping jack on the
cement and I bet your feet, ankles or knees
will hurt and you may not limp.
I say stop jumping her absolutely.
That is the worst thing for a
healthy horse, it causing pounding,
concussions, pressure and puts all 1000
pounds on two small hooves with compounding
force. Think about it a horse
walks on four hooves to support their weight,
you cut that support in half when you jump
since the horse lands on two front feet.. if
you don't think that is a big deal, go stand
on a chair and you jump to the ground with
only ONE foot for support, cut you support in
half and maybe you will see how much pain it
causes, once again, people forget or don't
want to think like a horse.
How often do you see horses running in the
wild, not often. How often do you
see them jumping, very rarely if ever.
So we do these things 100 times
more often and we add a saddle and the weight
of a rider, run horses in circles and then
wonder why so many horses have leg
problems... it is pretty clear to
me. You did not say and I hope
you are not doing it, but a lot of people
deal with this by giving bute to "ease" the
pain.. this is abuse in my book, you ride and
work a horse in pain, so you give them drugs
to hide the pain so the horse won't limp and
then later the horse has 5 times the pain and
just stands around hurting...
So if you stop what you do, the will stop
re-inuring this leg.
What I say next is not the problem or will
not fix the problem, and pictures can be
deceiving, but the hoof looks trimmed too low
in heel or too long in toe, which might be
causing some discomfort and the front right
hoof looks too long in the heel, almost
club... but again some time pictures to not
show what is really there, just something to
look at.... not so you can give the horse to
someone to jump or run her, I say this to
maybe ease some of the discomfort for the
horse.
Rick
Question: I am working with a 14 yr old
half arab mare that has apparently an issue
with refusal and flipping over. I say
apparently, as she has not flipped on me YET,
but I have known her since she was foaled,
and am familiar with her training history. I
have worked with her for 2 weeks now, and in
that time she has been coming along
beautifully. I rode her the second day, walk,
trot, and canter, very green, but did
everything I asked, although without a
headset. Twenty minutes on the third day and
she stands while mounting, and
doesn't walk through the bit. I work her in a
full cheek snaffle in the round pen, with a
martingale, and she settles in to the lesson
nicely. The other day while riding her in the
arena, she heard the voice of her former
trainer and almost immediately refused going
forward and got very light in front. I got
off, remounted and quit her for the day. The
next day, after our regular round pen lesson,
I mounted in the arena, walked her
uneventfully for about five minutes when she
again refused and got light in front.
I am attracted to her intelligence and
sensitivity to the point that I want to give
her a chance, but this is the one area I am
afraid of. I know the hands that broke her
were inexperienced and very heavy. Under a
trainers advice, she was pulled over in long
lines when she reared. Since then she has
flipped numerous times in the long lines and
under saddle, and I understand her reluctancy
to trust anyone aboard.
Please, if there are any methods that DON'T
involve popping her on the pole, tying her
head between her knees, or any other
man-handling ridiculousness, I would love to
hear them. I need to break INTO her mind,
without breaking both our bodies!
Thank you
Answer: Most flipping over, like most issues,
are caused by people that don't know what
they are doing. I have seen so
called clinicians flip horses during demos
and then blame the horse.
I have never seen a horse flip over if only
one rein is pulled and the horse is able to
find release. When a horse flips
they are normally pulled over by a scared
rider that pulled on both reins, leaned back
and pulled the horse over, or a stupid tie
down or things are used to hold the horse's
head down and then the horse cannot find
release so it panics and flips. A
"trainer" at UC Davis killed a horse by doing
this stupid stunt.
I would push this horse hard on the ground,
make it speed up slow down stop and turn lots
and with energy. Really make sure
this horse knows what go means, what stop
means, what turn means and try and push this
horse stress level up so it will get scared
and nervous and confused, then give good
direction and help the horse deal with this.
That way when you are on the back
you will know what the horse knows and how to
get it to do what you want and if the horse
gets stuck, you can help it move out.
When a horse stalls, you have to
put it to work and not let sit there and
build up a blow up. So back up,
flex, turn, move out, something that the
horse knows well. Ride time will
fix this. Getting off the horse
when nervous will only teach the horse how to
get you off. If the horse rears
always only pull ONE rein and lean forward,
if you get off balance and fall backwards
then you end up pulling the horse on top of
you or making the fall back on top of
you.
Question: Hi, I have a bucking question
that is a bit different than those I found on
your website. I have a ten year
old gelding who hasn't been ridden a lot.
He was trained as a three year
old by a professional natural horsemanship
trainer, who had a hard time getting him to
relax - he was very tense when ridden and
felt like a 'powder keg'. Over
the years, he has become relaxed and willing.
The problem is if something
spooks him, he doesn't shy, but just explodes
into bucking with no warning.
Last time this happened because a
dog who was on the ride jumped out of the
bushes right beside him. I was on
the ground before I even realized he was
going to buck. He isn't generally
spooky, but I feel really unsafe riding him
because of the lack of warning signs and the
power behind his bucking when it does happen
(he's dumped me twice in four years, but I am
experienced and generally would be able to
get control before the buck happens).
Any suggestions?
Thanks for your help (I'm getting too old to
be hitting the ground)
Answer: This sounds like a different one.
As he gets older it should get less, but you
said he is not ridden much, so that is my
clue, "ride time" will help, I would do lot
of sacking out while he is saddled and try
and get him to buck and when he does do not
stop sacking out, keep pressure until he
stops bucking. So tie him good,
saddle up, sack out and try and get bucks,
the more he bucks and you do not stop
pressure, the more he will learn that bucking
gets him nothing but tired, a lot of work and
does not get release from pressure.
So far, his bucks have gotten him
release since you end up on ground.
He has to be taught that dealing
with fear with bucking is not good so he can
learn that he can be scared and not have to
buck.
If you can find a young guy who thinks
bucking is fun, have him ride the horse in a
round pen and you go spook or sack out and
see if the horse bucks and let the young guy
ride it out, and that will help the horse
learn bucking gets him nothing, it will also
allow the rider to correct the bucking by
taking the head away and stopping the horse
from bucking so the horse learns not to
buck.
Time is the key, if you don't have to ride
the horse enough, then you will not have time
to work with the horse enough, and the horse
will not get better.
Question: Have a Tennessee Walker, 8 yr old with an incredible gait, very smooth, but is getting where he starts stepping away when i start to get if the saddle, and his eyes get large and he sometimes rears up a little or dances about until i get him moving, after we go a few steps he smooths out, got any ideas how to calm him down?
Answer: You see this differently than I
do. All of this tells me the
horse is telling you, he does not respect
you, he does not trust you, he does not think
you are a good leader, you are not giving him
enough direction, he is doing this since you
have not stopped him and he is testing you
and you are failing the test.
Read my horsemanship page on my site about
test, rearing, herd behavior and pecking
order, it will help make this clearer.
Rick
Question: Hi, I have had my filly, "Shilo"
for about two months now. She is 15 months
old, and honestly has come a long way
considering she was never weaned or even
haltered before I picked her up.
I have now gotten her into some good habits
with leading, haltering, allowing me to catch
her etc, but now I am having issues with her
biting me.
When I went to go look at her during
purchasing, she did grab my shirt and bit my
boot while I was paying attention to another
horse. I thought maybe this was for
attention. Now I have been bitten in the
butt, pretty badly while bathing her, and she
is sneaky about it. I shmucked her in the
butt as soon as she did it, and she hasn't
bitten badly since, but she will try and I
catch her slowly lifting her lip to grab me.
She will do it if you are not watching, and
now sometimes slyly looking face to face. I
don't understand why?
I try to listen to her, and it's not an
aggressive bite (anymore) as the last bite
was a scrape of the teeth on my shoulder, but
bad manners nonetheless.
I need to know why she is doing this and how
to correct it, as it seems not to be a test
of authority. She backs up when she is told,
she eases up out of my space when told, I
have her trotting on command, and she will
stay out of my territory on command while we
are beginning to learn to lunge. She's saucy,
she is and sometimes needs re-direction or
correction but never more than a nudge, push,
hard word, or a tap of the leg to pick
up.
I just don't get it, it's as though she just
can't help herself to put her teeth on your
skin. If I say EH! loudly she stops, but
thats when I catch her. I want her to
stop!
I can't imagine people would taste good
:)
Answer:I did an article on Nip, bite or
nuzzle, you can read it on my Articles page
of my web site. This does not
sound right the way you explain it.
You see this through your filters
so I may see this different than you.
If this horse bites you, you need
to smack it hard in the mouth not tap it on
the butt. I let my horses nuzzle
me and lip me, but they know if teeth touch
me, the get smacked. If this
horse bites you hard, it is disrespect or a
test and either is unacceptable.
You have allowed this, you have
not corrected it hard enough, so the horse
thinks it is ok. With that said,
all young horses are mouthy and they explore
with their lips, I do not like to discourage
this, so you have to weigh this and decide
how to deal with it.
Rick
Question: I read a one of your recent responses to someones query about dealing with their horse which spooked on the road and you advsied not to make the horse stand still but to help it know that you understood its fear but you didn't really give any advice on how you do that......what should I do if my horse spooks at something in the hedge when I am riding and turns its bottom out into the middle of the road or refuses to go forward past the object. Generally I stop and pat her and then push her on but what do you advise, what is teh correct way to deal with it to give the horse confidence yet stay safe to avoid any clashes with traffic?
Answer: I often give advice that seems
many don't understand since I "think like a
horse". If you read my website
and study the horse you would understand my
answers better. My web site has
over 400 pages of Free information.
Yet most people want me to write
that much on each of their questions.
Your horse's safety and your
safety depends on YOU, not the horse.
The horse is doing what you tell
her and being where you make her be.
Your horse is telling you she is
nervous, scared, that she does not trust you
enough to ignore or control her fear, she is
telling you that you have not prepared her
right, that you have demonstrated that you
are a good leader she should follow and
listen too. You are not hearing
this since you don't understand her, much
like you will not get this answer since you
don't understand where I am coming from.
Stopping and petting her may be ok, it could
be right if it works, but the horse is saying
it does not work so you need to change what
you do. You want me to tell you
what to change, I can't do that since
depending on the horse does, each time you
change what you do, will depend on what you
do next, you have know, you have to adjust,
you have to understand, so I could tell you
anything and it may or may not work, but if
you really understand horses, you would know
what to do, how to adjust, how to set the
horse up for success and to take the time it
takes so it will take less time.
Taking a horse to traffic and trying to stay
safe is not very smart or safe. You don't
know the danger you are putting your horse
and you in and as always, the horse will pay
for your mistakes. A horse does
not know a car will kill him, but he will run
blindly to avoid it if you put him in a
situation too fast where you cause his fear
to turn into survival flight.
Read my site, invest time in your horse and
yourself by reading it, it will help you more
you will know. Then if you have
questions about what you read, let me
know.
Question: Good afternoon, I recently
bought a freisian yongest 2.5 year old colt.
I had this horse vetted before I made the
purchase but sadly it wasn't disclosed that
this horse wind sucked. I only
discovered this nasty habit a few days later.
He has come to a loving home where he roams
freely on our small holding and has access to
lots of good hay and lovely feed.
We have tried to establish a pattern of when
the wind sucking occurs and it seems to be
after he has eaten, almost like a smoker who
likes to light up after a meal.
The advice we have had has been very divided
and the collar route for us doesn't seem to
be an option.
Any further help would be much appreciated,
apart from this nasty vice he is a
beautifully chilled relaxed horse.
Many thanks
Answer:Other horses and free roaming will
stop this, most horses do this from habit and
from being locked up and bored to death.
They make a cribbing paint or you
can wrap hot wire or hot tape (electric
shock)around everything he cribs on, so every
time he tries he gets shocked. It
sounds mean, but this habit is not only
annoying it is bad for his health.
It can cause colic and other
issues. Turn this horse out in a
herd and it will go away. This is
a cruel habit created by cruel people who
want to lock a horse up in stall, and keep a
horse as a pet like a caged dog so they can
visit the horse an hour a day.
Now the horse has to live with it
for life while the jerks who caused it get to
move on. If you keep this horse
locked up in a stall, I don't think you can
stop it, a horse is a herd animal that needs
other horses, they only sleep maybe 2 hours a
day that means they have 22 hours to be
caged, not a good life and that is why all
these horrible stall vices occur such as
pacing, swaying, cribbing, wind sucking,
stomping, kicking walls, being aggressive and
protective of their stall.....all caused by
humans that claim to love their horse.
The reason you compare this to a smoker is
the wind sucking is said to cause a release
of endorphins that give the horse a high, and
in fact it is an addiction to these
endorphins, which is why once it starts it is
hard, if not impossible to break.
Question: I recently bought 3 horses from a family who couldn't afford to keep them, the horses were all but neglected. Anyways, two of the three are great horses, awesome personalities, gentle et... but the 9 yr. old is extremely skittish, its a chore to catch him, and often scary to do so, but once caught he seems to do ok...until you tie him, he leads great and is very gentle, however once tied he freaks! Almost ripping the hitchin post out of the ground, he will stand untied and be saddled, but dont try to tie him! He will be used for Trail riding and hunting, How do I break him of this as he will need to be tied in the mountains. Also he freaks when coming near the trailer, he acts as though he was beat with a lead or tied up for extremely long periods of time? In both situations he takes it to the point of almost hurting himself, He has tons of potential if we can get past this, anything you have that could help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Answer: All horses will tie and all will
not tie......the difference is who is tying
them.. I have a page on my web site Tying a
horse, make sure and use a good rope halter
and NO snaps on lead rope. If you
have a big tree, tie him to it and let him
pull away. He will get tired and
figure out that pulling only gets him tired
and gets his neck sore, he will stop pulling.
Just don't let him get free once
you tie him or he will learn to fight, which
is probable what has happened or when he
freaked out someone untied him so he learned
that freaking out gets him untied.
You may be right about beating at the
trailer, but you have to start over, I also
have a page on trailer loading on my
site.
Since you are asking these questions, I think
you will find lots of info on my site, try
reading it often, it is pretty big what if
you read it all, you will know more about
horses than most people.
Question:QUESTION: Our 4-H and sheriffs
dept rescued several neglected horses of
which one was about a 2-3 month old filly
(nearly dead) and the mare had to be put down
because she was to far gone.
Anyway, about 2 weeks of 4-H
nursing her back, we adopted her.
She is coming along
so wonderfully. She
took to a halter right away without any
hesitation, she walks and leads
and of course now and then puts up a little
fuss while walking but it is only for a
second or two. When walking, on a bad day she
will try to walk against us but we are
working on that. We also starting
picking up her feet in the beginning and a
week ago started picking them. No
fuss with that either. Every day
gets better with her.
I don't know if I am
trying to teach her to much at one time.
What
are your thoughts on this.
Thank You in
Advance.
ANSWER: No, I think you are fine, young
horses are like sponges, they take in a lot.
You cannot teach this horse how
to be a horse, only another horse can do
that, so let it be with horses as much as
possible. Horses that are raised
by people and no other horses, make really
bad horses and end up hurting people and
themselves. So make sure she has
a horse buddy, is turned out with other
horses and spends more time with horses than
people.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Thank you so much for your answer.
I just wanted you to know that today we tied
her up for about 15 mins. and just sat there
and watched her just in case of a problem.
She did so well.
Didnt put up a fuss either.
What is your feeling
about tying this young and for what duration
of time. Also you stated she
should have a horse buddy, I also have a 25
yr old mare and my mare's 6 yr old gelding.
My filly is actually
in the pen next to my mare and every morning
we turn the three of them out for about 20
mins. while we clean their pens.
Is it okay that I
have her in a separate pen next to my mare or
should I open up her pen to my mare's for
closer contact.
Thanks in
advance.
Answer: I would put them together if you can, close contact is not the same as a herd, by keeping them apart she cannot make mistakes and the older horse cannot teach or correct her.. Horses only sleep about 2 hours per day, that leaves 22 hours to get bored, that time needs to be spent with other horses teaching, grazing, socializing, playing and growing and moving. Just make sure you are tying her with a good rope halter so she can't break any buckles or snaps, she is going to get bored or scared and try and pull away, she has to learn that pulling does not get her free, if she gets free, she will pull more and more, so make sure when you tie her, she cannot get away. Trying is good, do things to her while tied. Groom her, give her grain, pick her feet, sit and read a book with her, even have her move so she will have to give to pressure and know she is tied.
Question:I grew up on a horse farm, albeit
many years ago, in KY. I am now in Oklahoma
and have been for the past 30 years. My
neighbors have a small tract of land, and a 3
horses. There really isn't enough room for
these horses, but in general, they seem to be
tended to, exercised and they have an overall
good appearance. My concern is, that I just
noticed a lady chasing one of the horses with
a canvas looking cloth. Later that evening
while driving by, I notice the horse was
wearing this canvas type cloth over his
eyes.
I understand how blinders work, to keep the
horse from being distracted by side views,
but I have never seen a horse completely
blinded. The horse is walking around and
eating today, but still with the blinder on.
It has been a day and a half now, and though,
I don't know the people, I have never
suspected neglect or abuse, but I am very
curious as to what purpose the blindfold
serves.
I don't remember ever seeing this in KY,
however, it has been alot of years ago.
Perhaps I missed something.
I have searched for the answer to this
question, but they all go back to the
winker/blinkers. Again, I know the purpose of
those, but this is different.
If you could put my mind to rest about this,
I won't worry about the horse and mind my own
business.
Thanks for any information you can give.
Answer: Are you sure it is not a fly mask.
If it is a burlap bag, these people may not
be able to afford a fly mask and they are
using the bad to keep flies out of the eyes
or an open cut. There is an old
cowboy thing of blindfolding a horse to
train. Not a great concept but it
can be used to teach a horse some things.
Not good if they are just letting
it run lose.
It sounds like you care about these horses,
so I would suggest you go introduce yourself,
say you like horses and have not been around
them in many years, and ask if it would be OK
for you to bring them an apple or carrots
once in a while. Then you get a
closer look, maybe you will see that they are
hurting for money and then you could buy a
bail of hay or a bag of oats and help these
horses out. Maybe they don't
know, maybe they are not taking care of them
and this way you can get a closer look and
then report them if need be.
I would do it for the horses and who knows it
may work out good for everyone, especially
the horses..... :)
QUESTION: I have a quarter horse that only
pulls back when I try to saddle him. I can
high line him and I can tie him up once the
saddle is on. He only does this
when trying to saddle him. What
can I do. He has broken a few
lead ropes. I have to back him up
to a fence or have someone hold him to saddle
him. He has to be held to do so.
It is difficult for me to throw
the saddle up with one hand and hold with the
other if I am saddling him by my self. Any
help would be appreciated.
ANSWER: This is a you issue not a horse
issue. I always take the horse's side since
it is never the horse's fault.
You say he broke a lead rope, I
say you did not have him tied right with a
good lead rope and halter, so you set the
horse up to fail by doing this and he pulled
and got away, so you taught the horse that
you cannot tie him, so now he will pull more,
had he not got away, he would not pull now,
but you taught him to pull and get release by
pulling since you used a cheap or incorrect
lead rope. So now you want to
think this is a horse issue, this is a you
issue. This horse pulls and moves
and tries to prevent you saddling him since
he knows he is smarter than you, he knows you
are not smart enough to stop him, he gets
away with it so he thinks it is the right
answer, you let him get away with it and
teach him it is the right answer.
A does what it does because we do what we do.
If you change the horse will change.
I could spend 10 mins with this horse and he
would stand still, let me saddle him and he
would do it without being tied.... why,
because I would show him I am the high horse,
he has to listen to me and I am the lead
horse. I could get a horse to
understand this in 10 mins, it would take me
years to teach you. Only you can
learn to think like a horse.
If you read my web site, it will help you
understand horse better and then this problem
will go away. You are looking at
this problem and I see this is only a symptom
of you not understanding horses.
QUESTION: hi. i watched a video of yours
on how to teach a horse to back up under
saddle. well your training worked but my
horse backs up really really slow. its not
even as fast as her regular walk. is this
normal will she improve i have only been
doing it like for two weeks or do i need to
watch your video one more time to make sure i
am doing it right.
ANSWER: My video was very short and just was
an example. You have to make sure your horse
knows a cue to speed up, if you go slow and
help the horse understand you get she will
get faster, not sure why you need her to go
faster. But you may want to teach
her on the ground and have her back up faster
when you click and say back and put more
pressure so she learns how to back faster.
I would not get too caught up on a fast back
up, if you do it right, over time your horse
will get better and the faster will come
naturally.
Rick
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: thank you thats what i wanted to no
she dont even back up as fast as the horse in
your video.she takes one step at a time like
5 secs apart. so i thought i was
doing something wrong. i appreciate your
advice and time it is
helpful.
Answer: Your welcome, remember horses in
the wild do not back up very much, it is not
safe and they can't see where they are going
or where they are putting their feet.
So the back up is a human thing
and it will take time for them to get used to
it.
She will get, try and have her do it more
when you are on the ground when she wants to
get somewhere. Like if she really
wants to get to her food, have her back up a
few steps to get to the food, if she wants to
get to pasture, have her back up the last few
steps to the gate, that way she will want to
speed up and it will be her idea, horses
learn better that way.
Question: Bought an 11 year old Arabian gelding couple years ago. Rode well at first, then decided no one would mount him anymore. Worked him in round pen for quite awhile. He has great ground manners but still, lets you saddle him, but throws you off immediately upon trying to mount. Vet has checked him out and seems ok. Anything I can do short of getting in an expert who doesn't mind getting busted up? Thanks.
Answer: Your question tells me that since
you had the horse for two years and I would
guess you would not buy a horse that did
this, it seems to me that you taught the
horse to do the things it is doing. A horse
is only a reflection of who is handling it.
You taught this for two years and
you are looking for a fix over an email,
won't happen. A horse will only
do what it is allowed to do. You
said something about an expert (not a big fan
of that word), but if you get someone that
understand horses, a horseman, they will not
get busted up. Since they know horse they
will understand this horse has not had good
direction and is doing what it does because
of what is being done to him.
The horse is the only expert of knowing
horses, since you think this is a horse
problem, you do not understand horses and I
always tell people, it is never the horses
fault. This horse is telling you,
you don't understand horses, he is telling
you that you are not a good leader, he is
telling you that he does not trust or respect
you, but you can hear this or understand it
since you don't speak horse.
Read my website from start to finish and you
will see horses differently and maybe realize
that you caused everything this horse is
doing and only you can fix it.
Q: Brief history of the equine in
question: 16.1, 12 y/o, TB, 3rd level
Dressage, and was a successful show jumper-
breeding stallion. Was shown over 5' jumps,
but his career ended because of lack of care.
His sale price was $36K but no one would buy
him. He refused jumps and had a few accidents
during training that hurt his legs. I waited
for him at the rescue he was sent to. When he
arrived at the rescue he had only three shoes
on, his hooves were grossly grown out, his
heels were underslung, he had wounds on his
legs, he was lame because he was nearly
walking on his heel bulbs, one coronet
injury, a hoof abscess, and bruised soles (he
has white feet). I brought him home and he
could hardly walk for three weeks.
Question: After his rescue, he is vet
checked, massaged, properly shod (but the vet
said his feet will never be as they were
prior to neglect), and sound. He is
performing beautifully as a Dressage horse,
moving into very advanced and difficult
movements. I had also wanted to jump with
him, but he practically has a breakdown when
he feels he's going to be forced to jump-
very low jumps, I might add. He doesn't even
like trotting poles. If he touches a pole on
the ground it shatters him. When we come to a
vertical I can feel him become tense under
me, snorts, over jumps it, then goes into a
(Thoroughbred) running fit like we're at the
track. I haven't punished him (I don't hit),
and when I pull him up during a fit he froths
at the mouth and quivers. You have more
expertise than I do, so I won't shove my
speculations down your throat. I've treated
the situation like he's had a harsh past.
He's very familiar with the arena and the
jumps being there, and the only time he has a
freak-out is when he knows he's supposed to
be jumping those obstacles. I saw him perform
a few years ago as a show jumper with one of
his former trainers and they placed well in
the competition- he was in great health at
that time.
I spend 5 days a week with him, 8 hours per
day, I know him very well, he knows my aids,
and we're very close. While I school him in
Dressage we're in harmony and he tries very
hard to understand what I want when I want
him to do it. So, my point is, asking
professionals their opinion on the matter is
a last ditch effort concerning jumping. I am
perfectly fine with retiring him from jumping
and showing him in Dressage, I just need to
know if I am completely missing the point
somewhere?
I'm not impatient, I just want to make sure
I'm not making the situation worse. For that
reason, I haven't jumped him recently. It's
not his fault. I love him, I have ever since
I first saw him, and I want to make the best
decisions possible in his interest.
Answer: I have to think you have not read
my website or read any of my other answers. I
am about the horse. I despise jumping horses.
It tears down their legs, joints, muscles, it
is un-natural, painful and destroys horses.
Asking me if I think you should jump a horse
is like me asking you should you slam a car
door on your hand, the answer is very
obvious. Many many people say they love their
horse and then do things that I see as
abusive and mean. Love is relative just
because someone says it, does not make it so.
If you were a horse, if you lived as a horse,
if you understood a horse and was connected
to a horse, you would not like jumping.
This is a human, ego,
competitive, win sport at the total expense
and pain of the horse. Since most
jumpers that 'love' their horses don't
understand what it does to a horse, they
justify it or rationalize it and as always,
the horse pays for it.
Think about it, a 1200 pound animal that
normally walks or four small hooves and thin
legs suddenly gets dropped on only two hooves
and legs, then you put steel plants on the
feet for the horse to land on which only
compounds the impact and pressure and damage,
then you add a 150-200 pound rider, then you
add speed and then you do it over and over to
look good and all the while your horses is in
pain and paying a severe cost. Do this
exercise then tell me jumping does not hurt a
horse. Get on a chair in your house and jump
off, not straight down, jump up off the chair
and land on two feet. Then do again and hold
one foot up (cutting your support in half,
just like you do to the horse)and land on
only one foot, then after you do that, move
the chair on concrete and land on one foot
(like landing on steel shoes), then, run to
the chair and do it again landing on one
foot, then after you tell me it is not that
bad, put a 40 pound weight in a back pack,
strap it to your back and do it again. Then
do it every day, ten or 20 times a day for a
week, then if you can walk after the first
day, tell me how great and beautiful it is to
make a horse do it.
This horse has been abused, hurt, neglected
and had a sh**y life thanks to people who
loved him. MY OPINION, is if you love this
horse, you would get rid of his shoes, good
barefoot trims, nice friendly rides NOT in an
arena, allow him to enjoy spending time with
you, not working, not trying to fit into some
category or rules and just take rides in
fields where he can graze, walk and enjoy
being with a human that is not constantly
requiring something from him. And when you
are not grooming him or being his herd buddy,
you keep him out of a stall and in the
biggest open area you can and you let him
hang out and be and play with other horses
when not with you. I say this
since if I was a horse, that is where I would
want to be.
Read my bad horsemanship page, my horse
history page and my horsemanship page, it
will explain why I see horses the way I
do.
Question: I have an issue regarding a colt
born to one of my mares this year. He was
unexpected. We are not sure how long he was
out in the field before he was found Easter
friday.The problem I am having is that he is
a bit on the wild side and wants nothing to
do with us. I was hoping you might have some
advice on the best way to halter train him
with minimal risk to him or to us.
Thanks Amanda
Answer: Well the fact that you could be surprised concerns me more than a young horse that you cannot get a halter. All horses are on the wild side. How can someone not know a mare is pregnant for 11 months and then not know the horse suddenly lost a lot of weight and then just find a baby in the field? These things are not something that should be happening to responsible horse owners. Didn't this mare get shots, seen by a vet, have her feet done, given baths when hot, checked for injuries????? Explain this a little more so I know I am not wasting my time helping you.
Question: I just bought a horse and I do not have any other horses, and I am getting ready to bring her home soon. I cannot buy a goat because we have dogs in the area, coyotes and bobcats that would kill a goat. I do not want to get more horses or any other animals for a stablemate. Years ago I had a horse that lived without any horses or stablemates and he was a happy, well adjusted horse. How often does this happen, that a horse does not need a stablemate? What kind of symptoms would a horse have that needed a stablemate? Thank you.
Answer: Horses do not feel safe alone, they need other prey animals to keep watch and help them relax, sleep and feel safe, to share the work load, which is why horses are not solitary animals, they Herd animals, not pets, not meant to be alone. In my opinion, getting a horse knowing you are going to keep it alone is selfish and not fair to the horse, but many people do it. I don't agree with it. The damage is too large to explain in one email, read my horsemanship page and my bad horsemanship page and it will explain it.
Question: G'Day
i have a rising 4 year old gelding, with a
great temperament, unfortionally he has grown
very attached to a mare we already had. i am
starting to campdraft the horse and he wants
to go straight back to her on the fence or
back at the float.
i have managed through persistence to get him
to go away of late, but yesterday after a
ride with my daughter, he turned it on, as i
have had them separated for 7 - 10 hoping
this will fix the issue.
i have only been riding for about 2 years,
and have come off him once, i find if i stop
him back him up and turn the way i want to go
he normally walks off. the horse is a
quarter/stock horse. i look forward to your
reply, advice.
regards
Answer: Your horse is being normal, no big
surprise here. He is is still a baby and
growing until five. He will be
insecure and nervous when away from the horse
that keeps him safe and he spends most time
with. If you visited me and I
took you to downtown Oakland, CA and then
left you, you would feel lost and insecure
too.
Understand horses better will help you to
help this horse. When training a young new
horse, you should have a good second horse
with you, so the horse can learn to trust you
while stilling the comfort of another horse
with him. I would let his friend tag along on
the rides, she will follow and they both get
exercise or have someone ride her and you
just follow her with the young horse. This is
all about teaching the horse nice and slow
and not pushing or forcing him to his fear.
If you fight this and try and
force this with the horse by himself you will
only create more and bigger problems.
Work this from the horse's point of view not
yours. Stop thinking like a human who wants
to train a horse and think like a horse that
is young, scared, insecure and trying to stay
alive.
Read my website and do some sacking out, I
discuss this on my horsemanship page.
Question: I read your website but have a question. My horse use to be in a hurry to get back to the barn so we went riding a lot coming and going and now its not a problem when we ride alone. Yesterday I went riding with friends and the horses were walking faster than us on the way back. I need your help because I don't want my horse to get back into bad habits so what can I do so I can ride with my frinds and not be in a hurry
Answer: Don't ride with bad riders that
let their horse do bad things. Any horse will
want to keep up when another horse is acting
nervous, insecure or in a hurry since horses
like to stay alive and their herd instincts
take over, when they see another horse
(apparently) reacting to a possible threat.
A smart horse will not want to be
in the back of another horse running from
something that might eat him.
Your horse should listen to you, but you will
fighting lots of survival instincts and I
would rather not fight with my horse if I can
prevent it. With that said, I
don't let my horse dictate who I ride or how
fast they go. So like most of my
answers, this if a you issue, you need to get
better, you need to show this horse it has to
listen to you, you need to be able to
communicate with this horse and make him not
want to be in a hurry.
You are working against some strong draws
(see my article on draw) so if you were
better your horse would be better.
Your horse is telling you that it
will listen to you when another horse is not
telling him to be nervous. Since
you can't control other riders or other
horses, this is a tricky one and you have to
decide what you gain and what you lose by
doing what you do?
Question: My neighbors bought a few horses this month, a first they both seemed health after a week or two both horses have started having coughing spells. The horses didn't come from the same place so I'm confused at to why they both have a cough. These symptoms didn't start until after a few rainy days. Both have been on trail rides since being here but neither coughed while working. I have had horses all my life and they came to me for help. I told them that it may have been from the hay they have been getting. However the hay isn't very dusty, just mildly like all hay is. Can you help me?
Answer: They could just have a cold type
virus, one may have had it and gave it to the
other one. If they do not have a
temp, if they are still eating and real
lethargic, let it work out over a couple of
weeks. If it gets worse, they have blood from
nose, stop eating and drinking, then call a
vet. If they get abscesses on the neck or
throat area, it may be strangles, but they
will have a high fever, call a vet.
I would make sure they had free access to hay
so they can eat all the want when they want,
maybe some extra carrots and apples, and I
like to give my boys some oats and rice bran
when they are fighting something, just some
extra energy food to keep their system up and
working.
I would not work them hard, but some exercise
is good.
Q: My 5 year old Rocky Mountain mare has
kicked at other horses 3 times this summer.
She has only done this when moving faster
than a walk. It appears that she is
competitive and does not like to be passed.
This dangerous behavior is totally
unacceptable.
What is the best method to extinguish this
behavior?
ANSWER: Like most horse problems this is a
people issue. You want to see this as your
horse is kicking other horses, I see this as
you are not paying attention, you are not
controlling him, you have not taught him that
he should not and can not do that, you are
allowing other horses to get too close, you
are not keeping your horse far enough away to
prevent or stop him, you are not giving good
enough direction to the horse so it knows not
to do this, you are not being a strong enough
leader so the horse is ignoring you.
So it all depends on how you look
at it. From your view it is the
horse, from my way it is you. If
you can't control this horse so it does not
do this, it is only a matter of time until
the horse does other things you don't want,
since it does not respect you as
leader.
You did not say this in your question and did
not give me much info on your experience or
how long you have had the horse.
My guess is that the horse
started this behavior with you or after you
had it for a while, since I am pretty sure
you would not buy a horse that you knew would
be kicking other horses. If that
is true then that makes the point that you
caused this by not paying attention, not
knowing this was going to happen and not
stopping it, preventing it or making sure the
horse knows that it is unacceptable.
Again my guess is this is not the only thing
this horse does that you do not want it do.
You ask for the best method, the best method
for all horse problems is to look to
yourself, see what you are doing to cause it,
what you are not doing to prevent it and
where the lack of communication and
understand break down is. There
are lots of way to stop this, first being pay
attention, if I put my horses head in another
horse's butt or face he can't kick a horse he
is facing, if I hit my horse on the butt
anytime his butt goes towards another horse,
he will learn that putting his butt at
another horse gets him a stinging butt, if I
make my horse face a horse every time he
thinks about kicking, he will get tired of
that, if I make my horse run away and stop
and back up and run back to a horse every
time he tries to kick, he will soon connect
that to kicking and he will not want to kick
since he does not want to work hard when he
tries. If you notice a common
trend here, everything I have said is
dependent on YOU and what you do. Which is
why it is never the horses fault.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: I realize the answer is me, that is
why I asked the question, "what is the best
method". I wanted to know what I could do,
and did not feel I was blaming my
horse.
I have had horses for 20+ years and this is
the first horse I have ever had this problem
with. I bought her as a yearling and have
been riding her for slightly over one year on
the trail. She is ridden at least twice a
week and to date she has well over 1000 miles
on the trail.
You are right, this is not the only thing she
has done. As I resolve one issue she moves on
to the next. One example is, stopping on the
trail when she is not confident to rub her
head on her leg. This was resolved by
catching her before she dropped her
head.
When running she kicks out very quickly, I
was paying attention and still was not able
to catch her fast enough. The horses she
kicked at were far enough away to barely be
reached, however I can only ride my own horse
and have no control over the other
horses.
I have been doing the things you have
suggested, and wanted your opinion on the
BEST method. I thought perhaps you had some
insight that I did not. Thank you for telling
me what I already knew, in a not very nice
way.
Answer: Silly me, I always get questions
from people that know so much and they always
only tell me AFTER I ANSWER THE QUESTIONS how
much they know.
If you think that was not nice maybe when
your horse throws you, you can say he was not
nice either. You are the only
owner of this horse, anything bad this horse
does is a result of you. Since I can't fix
you and you know so much, keep your questions
to yourself or ask someone else. Your horses
would say these things to you if it could
talk, but I am sure you would tell him how
much you know and would ignore anything he
said. Which is why you are having
these problems. So thanks for making my
point. You = only owner = all problems belong
to you = you telling me how much you
know.
I have a choice to tell you to take a hike,
unfortunately your horse cannot. He is stuck
with you and all your knowledge.
Good day!
Mouthing and Nips:
I always tell people
not to get caught up too much in a
horse's past. Not sure what is going on
or causing this, but, if you just stick
to basic horse communication, it
usually works. A horse does
not bite, kick or strike a human, no
time, no where, no how, so I would
handle this as a disrespect issues and
push this horse back fast and hard, it
will stop fast if you address it like
he just tried to kill you.
If you don't stop this now
he will think he is higher and will
think you are a lower member of his
herd and will treat you like that.
Which means he will tell
you when and where to move and if you
don't he will correct you like he would
a horse, with a bite or kick.
He is NOT being mean he is
being a horse. Once a horse
feels safe he has to try and move up in
the herd as high as he can.
There are benefits in being
higher. So he has to know,
he is not higher and he cannot bite or
kick you or any other person. As for a disruptive herd member, the herd will take care of that, we people tend to want to help and save and be the protector of our horses and we end up making it worse by trying to help. Let the herd deal with him, you deal with his dealings and behavior of you. |
Licking is not bad, my young horse does this as well, especially when I am sweaty, he likes the salt. It does not matter to me and I let him, he never bits. I just did an article on this topic. Article on Nips
Being so young, she may miss her mom and
horses that young are very mouthy and use
their lips as we use our fingers to feel and
explore. If you want her to stop,
you can tap her nose and tell her "Quit",
that way she will learn the word quit and you
can use it in later training.
I would let her be a young filly and just
enjoy the bonding and I think it will make
your relationship closer for later
training.
He is in his terrible twos, you have let
him know now that his behavior is
unacceptable. I would put him in
pasture with as many horses as you can,
forget same age, it better to let some old
mares teach him some manners and push him
around. If he is only you and
people he will soon learn that he can push
people around and not respect anyone.
let him get schooled by some
other horses, he may get a few bites and hoof
marks, but it will teach him manners like you
cannot.
When you say drags you, I say you let him
drag you, you can either let go and he can
run away or you can take his head away hard
by yanking it to his butt and then release
pressure. Don't keep pulling or
he will pull, yank and release, if you are
using a piece of junk Web halter, get rid of
it and get you a good Rope Halter, see my
rope halter page. Also tie him
good and do lots of sacking out while tied,
see my sacking out section on my horsemanship
page.
You have to use your mind and not your
strength.
Subject: Bitting: www.thinklikeahorse.org Question: Hi, I am boarding a friend's horse because she has not other place to board it. Yesterday he pitched a fit with her. She was trying to take off his shoe because it was lose and the next thing I knew he was trying to pull his bridle off his head, he succeeded. I think she is too aggressive with him and the horse is not trained properly. What I would like to know is how best to teach this horse to keep his hoof up so that "we" can do anything that needs to be done, done safely? I have trained horses in the past but this is a friends horse that has little patience. What can I do?
Answer: Tell her she is being too rough and not understanding. Tell her she is causing the problems and let you try. A horse is a reflection of the person handling it. You did not say how old she was, what her experience is, how old the horse is and other helpful information, but it sounds like most horse problems, they are not really horse problems they are people problems.
If someone was able to put shoes on, then the horse already knows how to stand and let someone handle his feet. So it goes back to the person that shod him knew what they were doing and not the owner does not.
Your friend is basically training this horse to be resistant and now will learn to give the farrier a harder time and she is teaching bad habits that will end up hurting the horse and making the horse pay for her lack of knowledge. She will not listen to you, but since you keeping her horse at your place you can not allow her to screw up the horse and maybe end up causing the horse to tear up your place. Your barn your rules. My barn, horses are treated fairly and not abused or neglected or you find a new barn.
Sound like an easy fix for you if you really want to stop it, you can.
Rick ( you could just show her my answer and make me the bad guy) :)
If you don't mind it, then he is
doing what you allow him to do.
If you want him to stop,
you have to let him that you do not
want it. As for bites
that is an absolute No NO.
He should get popped in
him mouth the second he bites or
tries to bite. Biting is
disrespectful and is telling you that
you are lower and he is higher.
You have to tell him no
and pop him HARD, don't be easy,
don't be nice, don't ask, tell him so
there is no confusion and he is clear
that biting is absolutely
unacceptable, will not be tolerated
and will get you hit hard in the
mouth. It should only
take one or two times if you do it
hard, if you do it easy, then it will
take 15 or 20 times and the horse
will be confused.
|
Mules:
Hi Floyd, my experience with Mules are
limited. I have heard some interesting things
about them, the ones I have worked with
appear to be the same as horses.
Mules are considered more
thinking animals. They will not
let you abuse them like a horse will.
Mules tend to be more thinkers
and evaluators. They do not
instinctively run like horses do when in
fear. A mules tends to stop,
freeze, and evaluate. After they
size of the situation they then decide to
fight or flee. Many people say
once you ride a mule you will never want a
horse again. For those reasons
they are said to be more of a one owner type
horse, but if treated right they can be
handled by different people, if treated wrong
they will kick your butt and remember.
Their kicks are said to be much
more accurate than a horse.
As for like a dog, I think horses are like
dogs when treated right. No Equine is like a
dog when it comes to time, care and expenses.
Horses require much more than a
dog and I trained dogs for in the military
for 18 years, so I know dogs pretty well.
The reason so many new horse
owners get out of horses (80%) in the first
year is most people have no clue and when
they find out how time and effort it takes
they get out.
A draft mule would be good, they can go 1500 pounds or more or a draft horse would do. They say a horse can comfortably carry 20 percent of their weight. Depending on their level of shape, muscle and experience. However if you lost some weight your balance would improve, your health would improve and you could get back in the saddle easier. I know if I dropped 20 or 30 pounds I would ride better and my horse would be happier. :)
ANSWER: You have to stop thinking they are just pets. All horses need to be handled so you can doctor them if hurt, trim their feet, lead them from danger. So you need to understand horses (equines) so you will know how to handle them and get them to trust you. I have never worked with a donkey, but they are part of the equine family so they should respond accordingly. Read my web site, especially the herd behavior section and the sacking out section. This will help you understand pressure and release. These guys know since they let the other owner do it, so you need to learn or ask the old own to help you out or call a farrier who may be willing to work on them for extra money or you need to spend time and learn yourself so you can help them.
Since you have horses, are they kept together? Seeing you handle and halter your horses will them to learn you will not hurt them. If you are handling horses, these guys should be no different. I have an abused mustang that was very hard to handle and even thou I don't ride him I still push him around, move him, and make sure he sees me as his leader and as a higher horse. But he is much like a pet. Treating them like a pet is not bad if you can do the other things they need. If I let this mustang go for a year without handling him he would be near impossible to handle, but I do his feet, I give him shots, I doctor his cuts, so I have to spend some time maintaining my higher position so he will allow me to do those things. It does not matter what you use them for, my point was you have to spend as much time as needed to get the job done so you can care for them. Unfortunately, there are not short cuts with horses that don't involve brutal means, force and pain. So to avoid those methods, you need to spend time and understanding. There are many other good sites out there so read lots, but you have to do with horses to learn, just reading makes it sound so easy and simple, but there much more. If you have raised kids or know someone who has, can you imagine someone writing and saying my child is 16 years old and won't listen to me, how can I get her to listen? I feel that way sometime when people write and say my horse won't ???, can you tell how?
Rearing:
If a horse is rearing you are causing it. It appears you have prepared this horse so it does not know what you want or you have shown it that you are the leader or it was weaned early and is running to you for protection, or you are sacking out too aggressively and have not taught it to accept it properly, or you are doing something else. As you can tell, everything comes back to you, a horse is only a reaction to what we do, so if we get the wrong response then we did not teach it right or did not prepare the horse right, or you are not doing something right. This is a young horse and is trying to learn, but someone has to talk to him in horse talk not in human talk. You are this horse needs to be a herd of two, you have know how to behave and act in a herd. Read my horsemanship page on my site.
This is not a horse problem it is a people
problem.
The people leading him are the problem.
This happens a lot in barns where
horses have multiple handlers.
Every person handles a horse
differently, some worse than others.
Not sure what a lead shank is but
if that is stupid chain over the nose or
under the chin, commonly known as a stud
chain, then you are going to make this horse
mean and soon he will be striking more.
Pain is often substituted for
lack of knowledge or lack of ability.
The second thing that I
absolutely disagree with is separating the
horse from the herd, that is another thing
that will raise the drive of the horse and
will make him harder to handle.
If the barn manager is stupid to
lead a horse then don't make your horse pay.
Horses step on people and act
like horses, all horses will rear if they are
allowed or caused to rear, just another
example of horses having to pay for people
not knowing what they doing.
Getting kicked out this barn may
be the best thing for your horse.
If others can't handle your horse
then maybe you be handling him more.
Locking a horse up, away from a
herd is wrong and the horse does not deserve
this. The fact that the "barn
manager" is now scared of him, is probably
the reason he did what he did.
Perhaps she should stick to
management and leave the horse handling to
people who are not scared. The
old saying "you can't fix stupid" seems to
pop up a lot in the horse world.
So don't try and fix a horse that
is not broke. Good luck trying to
fix people with titles like barn manager,
trainer, life long horse owner, and I been
riding horses since I was kid people....
When horses develop problems or issues as
we call them, they are normally caused by the
person handling them. If a horse
rears with me, I caused it. If a
horse was not rearing before, then I caused
it. A horse is nothing but a
reflection of it's handling. Yes
there are a few exceptions, but very far and
few. So I would say your trainer
caused this or let people ride the horse that
caused it.
If I gave a horse to a trainer, which I would
never do, and the horse developed a bad
habit, it is only reasonably that the trainer
caused it. If you give me a horse
and it was not rearing before and then I call
you and say, your horse is rearing, guess who
caused this. This seems really
simple to me. Then again, if I
was charging you for a service and I knew you
were not too horse savvy, then I could tell
you, opps, for no reason, your horse started
rearing, but it is not me, it is your
horse.... I say it all the time,
it is never the horse's fault.
I don't know the trainer, I don't know the
horse, I don't know you, so please don't tell
me how good your trainer is, how good your
horse is, it is my opinion that the horse is
never to blame and that horses do not start
something unless someone has taught it
them.
I have a section on rearing on my site, read
it and it might give you some ideas.
A horse will not rear if he can
go forward and does not feel trapped.
Most rearing is due to bits that
hurt, improper training, and a lack of
understanding of a horse.
This can be one of the most dangerous things a horse does. Never pull on both reins together, only one rein so the horse will always turn and not back up and rear. It is harder for a horse to rear when going forward or left or right. However this is not a easy fix and I would need more info to try and help. I ask that you provide the requested information that is posted where you type your question.
This is a serious and dangerous problem.
You did not provide the requested information
that I requested at the top of where you type
the question.
Horses normally don't flip over unless they
are pulled and are give too much pressure and
they cannot find release from the pressure.
I need more info to answer this
better.
First it is a young horse and does not know much. Rearing is a thing that is caused normally by rough hands, painful bits, poor riding or lack of understanding of a horse. A horse will not rear if it can move forward. So when it rears it is saying I don't want to go where you are trying to force me, I am nervous or scared and don't know what you want, so since I am confused and don't know what to do, and since I can't go forward or backwards or left or right, I will try and go up to get you to stop pressure. You need to realize that you are causing this and you can stop it or prevent it.
ANSWER: This is your problem and not the horses. Most rearing is caused by rough hands and someone being too tight on the bit. A rear happens with a horse wants to go forward and a rider tries to hold him back, if you understood horses better you know that holding a horse too much will cause a rear. If you redirect the horse and not try and hold him back the rearing would stop. You also said the horse does not care about hurting itself, of course she does, no horse wants to hurt themselves, but with a bit comes pain and with pain a horse does things that will hurt them. A horse will run off a cliff if you scare it enough or cause enough pain.
Question: I have a 16yr old TB mare. I have known her for 7 years now. I bought her about 5 years ago and had her for 3 of those years and never had an issue with her. She was stolen from me and I just recently found her and got her back. For some reason When ever she is tied she freaks, rears, falls, and gets hurt. I have been tacking her in her stall or just having her stand with the rope over her neck but I really want to be able to work through her problem without her getting hurt! What should I do?
Answer: You say she
freaks out, she is scared and may be telling
you that she does not trust or respect you
enough to be tied. I have a web
page on tying a horse, read that and it will
help.
You say she rears, I say you are not tying
her short enough to stop her from rearing.
Tie her short with a good rope
halter, NO buckles or snaps that can break,
and when she pulls freaks or falls, just
stand back and DON'T get involved or help,
let her figure out that pulling gets her
nothing. Just be there in case
you need to help, but don't help unless she
stops moving and jumping. You
have to make sure and tie her safely so can't
get hurt when she jumps around, she will get
tired of pulling.
Question: Hi, My 14 month
old shetland filly has just started rearing
when I go into the field. The previous owners
said they played the first Parelli game with
her, and she is a quite a clingy horse. She
prefers humans to the other horse in her
field. If I walk around the field she follows
me everywhere and as soon as i start to walk
away from her she starts to charge, ears back
and and rears at me, what is making her
change so quickly. As soon as she does this,
i will get my her side, crouch down to her
level and stroke her neck and she stops. When
i stand up again, se will graze around me and
stay near but once again, as soon as I am far
enough away for her to gather up a charge,
she comes for me again. Is it a game to her?
I know she needs a lot more training.
thanks.
Answer: It sounds like
she is playing, but she can hurt you.
I play chase with my horse but if
he gets too horsey I have to shut him down.
If she accidentally gets too
close and hits you in the head or back she
will break something on you or kill you.
She needs to taught that rear is
unacceptable. I am sure you like that fact
that she follows you, but charging and
rearing has too many ways to go bad.
And, more importantly, she is
learning and will soon learn that she scares
you or she can make you move and then she
will think she is higher and it will move
from playing to telling you to move and when
you don't she will try and make you by
charging and rearing, then she will get
labeled as being mean or aggressive.
Teach her that she can't and that you can
stop her so there is no confusion that you
are higher and you are in charge.
The fact that you are crouching
down to her level tells me you don't
understand horses and are treating this horse
like a dog. You may think you are
being nice and clam by getting down, I think
the horse see this as she is making you
submit and she is making you say you are
sorry. It does not matter what
you think you are doing or what you plan to
do, it only matter what the horses thinks.
A horse only respects stronger
and smarter, it only respects you if you can
move their feet, back them down, make them
yield to you, control their movement...horses
DO NOT respect love, carrots and pets...
this is horse is not mean, is not
doing anything wrong, it is simply being a
horse and you are being a human, the problem
is both of you are working from your
beliefs..... that is the problem, you are
smarter and need to really understand a horse
so you can work from their point of view not
yours.
Knowledge is power and knowing helps you deal with fear. You may not agree with this but your horse flipped over because of what you did. Everything a horse does is because of what we do. I don't want to debate this with you, but I assure you that if had not done what you did the horse would not done what it did. You could have slowed down, made sure the trail was safe, kept better balance, seen the danger before it happened, helped the horse....what you did is saddled, ran the horse, made it do what it did, put it in the situation for what happened... you may not want to admit it, but it is true, you had all the options and the had NONE, it did what you told him, made him or caused him to do. This is why people get hurt and fear horses and it is never the horses fault.
Horse know fear since it is the opposite of assertiveness, control, aggressiveness. Horse only respect strong leaders that push them, correct them and make them listen... you will never see a lead horse, begging asking, offering treats to get a horse to trust them.... the lead horse will push, kick, and Make the horse know who is leader and then the lower horse leans, respect and feels better and safer... yet people continue to try and be nice, ask, give carrots, beg, be soft and easy, horses see all this as Weakness and will walk all over these people.
This horse is rearing since you do nothing but get scared when he does it. If you hit his butt, made him run, made him turn and flex his head and did it with force, assertiveness and made it clear to the horse that rearing gets him grief, gets him work, gets him tired and gets you upset, then he would learn Rearing is not fun and he will NOT want to rear. Now, he rears, you get nervous, you freeze, you don't know what to do, you probably get off or try and talk nice to him or let him stand and relax..........all bad and all tell the horse Rearing is good, rearing gets him to relax, rearing is not bad so why should he stop... basically you are teaching him to rear.
Read, study and learn horses, learn about herd behavior, learn about all the things I discuss on my horsemanship page, spend time with horses and once you really understand them you will know how to push back and show them you are boss and all your horse problems will go away and so will your fear.
Thanks for you additional
information, but it is also not
helpful. It does not
matter to me or to your horse who
your trainer is. I have
worked with many horses with many
problems and many of the horses and
riders had great trainers.
A trainer is not
responsible for every problem of
their student or the horse that the
student is riding.
However, if your trainer
rides the horse and it rears, I would
say it is your trainers fault since
he was riding. You said
the only time the horse acts right is
with your trainer. Which
makes my point. If your
rears with you, you are causing it.
If your does anything
wrong when you are riding it,it is
your fault. I say it to
most everyone and say it to myself,
"It is never the horse's fault".
So you feel good that you defended your pony and your daughter. My experience with MOTHERS are that they are blinded with "motherly instinct" much like a fearful horse, they react instinctively without much forethought. Your daughter is NINE years old and you are calling her experienced. That is just ignorant and shows your lack of knowledge. I have been riding horses for almost 40 years and I still have much to learn. I can not help a horse when people such as yourself want to take any advice as criticism, make it personal and refuse to admit that they don't understand horses and don't understand how dangerous they can be. My so called bias opinion is from years of experience of seeing ponies and horses hurt kids and then seeing parents blaming the ponies for hurting their kids, blaming trainers for not training the pony correctly, blaming the doctor, the system, and anyone else that will transfer the responsibility to anyone other than themselves. So you go ahead and ignore my "bias opinion" and when this pony hurts your daughter, you and I will know that I tried to warn and educate you, but you knew better. If you care to read my web site, you might learn something about horses that you did not know. |
Spooking and Sacking Out:
First thing you need to do is understand horses better. All horses are spooky. That is how they survive. So being scared is very natural. Your horse does all these things since she does not see you as her herd leader. All horses see the world as a herd, they have to try and be higher all the time, so unless you tell her you are higher she will never stop being scared with you. She has to feel safe with you and she can't until she sees you as a leader. You can't show her you are a leader until you understand how horses think and how they pick a leader.
Hey Michaela, this is a you issue and not the horse. You use terms like embarrassed, ungrateful, horrible and bad horse. Those are your terms not a horse. Your horse is only being a horse. He is nervous since he does not have a good strong leader that he can trust and feel safe with. He is nervous and scared since he knows you are not the leader so he has to be the leader and always be on guard. If you require more from him, make him listen, move his feet, stop babying him, he will see you as a leader, then he will trust you, then he will feel safe with you and will not need to worry about everything since he knows you will take care of him. He will never do this if you keep being too easy, too nice and not requiring something from him. Move his feet, make him back up, lunge him, round pen him, show him you are a higher horses and he must respect you. He needs to pay attention to you and not other things, if he ignores you, pays attention to other things, then put him to work, back him up, make him circle you, move his feet, then he will see you as leader and he will get better.
You only make him worse by trying to be too nice. You raised him and have been a friend, but he does not care or know what that means, he only knows that you and him are a herd of two and you are either higher or lower. He is treating you as a lower horse, so you need to help him see you as higher, stronger, a good leader, who will protect him, but you have to move his feet to show him this.
Read my sacking out section on my horsemanship page, this will help with his fear.
ANSWER: Well this is tough one. I agree
with your husband in part. A horse is not a
four wheeler. A four wheeler needs gas, an
engine and tires to run. A four
wheeler can be turned off with a key.
A horse is a living creature that
can run, stop and turn when it wants, you
can't turn it off and it will kill or hurt
you without ever thinking about it.
Fear keeps up safe and it keeps
horses alive. A horse has to live
with fear every single day and it can not
escape, but it keeps on doing it.
A horse will give you things no
one or nothing else can give you.
The reward is high and so is the
risk. If you that scared of a
horse, then you are that scared of other
things in your life. Horses make
us grow, face our fears, teach us about
ourselves and make us better.
Can't think of one person that has never been
scared of a horse, I am always aware that a
horse can hurt me if I am not careful, aware,
on top of my game and fully aware of many
things, but the reward if worth the
risk.
So the choice if yours, you can not face this
fear, take the easy way out and get out of
horses. Which may the best thing for you. Or
you can attack your fear, learn from it, grow
and know that you the reward if worth the
risk. No can make that choice for
you.
The safe choice if get out. The odds of
getting hurt are high, especially if you
approach this like a part time hobby. Owning
horses is a lifestyle not a hobby.
Those that do it as a hobby make
their horses pay. Horse needs
time, lots of it. The first time
you got behind the wheel of a car you were
scared, but you did it and now don't think
twice about it. I get on a horse
like I get in a car. It has
become second nature and almost automatic,
but has taken many years.
So not sure what answer you are looking for
or maybe looking for me to make this
difficult choice for you, but I think you
lose in many ways if you give up and let
horses out of your life. The more
you have to work for something the more you
appreciate it. I would bet that
at least 50 percent of horse people are STILL
scared of horses and probably in the 75
percent area, but they still do it.
You will not meet another creature that is
has fearful as a horse, they big, strong,
fast, and beautiful, but they live in
constant fear everyday and they have no
choice.
If you read more, educate yourself
more, watch videos, go to horse
clinics, hang out at barns, handle
lots of horses, turn horses out, hang
out in pastures with horses running
free, watch others handle horses,
take lessons from a Horseman or
Horsewoman and not just a trainer.
As you discover how
complex horses are you will gain
confidence, the more you hand out
with horses you will see that they
are not mean and do not do much
unless there is a reason to do it.
Doing ground work on
different horses will help you build
confidence, no two horses are a like,
they all teach you something
different, so working one or two
horses that you get comfortable with
does not help, it actually may make
it worse. Get in a group
that do horse things.
Horses have to fully
encompass your life, you have to try
and become part horse, to understand
them you have think like them.
Owning a horse, being
able to ride a calm trained horse
does not make you a horse person.
The more you learn about
the horse, the more you will realize
how little you know about
horses. |
Answer: I believe no
horse is past help. You want to
focus on the horse as the issue, I normally
focus on the people as the issue.
My first guess would be the
trainer is not very good, or she has not been
working with the horse as much as she said.
Horses get better very fast.
If you have not been at each
lesson and have not seen progress at each
lesson then I say it is trainer and not
horse. All horses are spooky and
they stay spooky or get worse depending on
who is handling them. His size is
probably intimidating and he will know it, if
someone does not push him hard.
Five months of training is crazy in my book,
you should cutting cattle and doing advanced
trails by now. I have an article on picking a
trainer that you may want to read, it is on
my articles page of my site.
The ear pinning is normal horse behavior, he
is doing it since it has not been make clear
that he cannot do it. I don't care if he was
abused or not, he is a horse and needs to be
treated like a horse, a lower horse and the
people handling him need to make it clear if
he threatens or pushes he gets pushed and
moved fast and hard so it is clear that he
does not push people.
I hear your story over and over, I can bet,
with a 90% chance of being right, that this
is a people problem and not a horse problem.
This horse may need some tough
love to teach it and not so much feeling
sorry for it. Too many people
think being tough on a horse is mean, it is
needed and will save their life.
You cannot expect the horse to
change if you keep doing the same thing.
Your trainer should have figured
this out by now, but it sounds like she is
doing the same thing since the horse is doing
the same thing and not getting better.
It could be medical, it could mental, but I
would bet it is people.
When I hear about horses like this, if they
are close and I go work with them, the horse
changes in about 10 mins and the owners can't
believe it. This horse needs
strong leadership, good direction, good
sacking out to help him deal with his fear
and not so many excuses on why he can't get
better.
Read my web sit, take some notes and then ask
your trainer some educated questions and see
if you get reasonable answers or if you get
double talk about this horse is different,
this horse was abused, this horse has
something wrong with him.....
this is an easy way to blame the
horse and not admit that you (the trainer)
are doing something wrong.
Don't give up on this guy, get involved,
read, learn and understand horses so you can
help this horse and not depend on others to
tell you what they cannot do.
that is my take,
Well anytime a horse is shaking with fear,
the last thing you want to do is get on his
back. Fear is normal, but shaking
is a sign of a horse about to blow.
As for breaking him.
You can try some good sacking
out. I have a section on this on
my site on my horsemanship page.
By increasing his fear and then
removing it, you will build confidence.
If his ground manners are great,
then put a saddle on him while doing ground
work. Get him great on ground
manners while wearing a saddle.
He will soon learn that the
saddle is nothing that is going to hurt
him.
When doing your sacking out, get him to let
you learn on his back, sit on his back and
lay on his back, with NO saddle. So he can
learn that being on his back will not hurt
him.
Then after he is good at both of those, then
you add the saddle with you in it.
If you go slow and prepare him
good, he should be fine. At anytime he starts
showing lots of fear or any shaking (you
should see fear before he shakes and stop)
take him back to something he is comfortable
with. So whenever he gets scared,
go back to something easy that he is really
good at, so he learns that he can be scared
and you will take care of him.
Question: Hey Rick,
I'm hoping you can help me. I'm 44-years old,
I grew up with horses because my Grandfather
raised Quarter Horses for a living, so I grew
up in the saddle. I can say I'm not the
greatest horseman, but I've broke a few colts
with very good results.
Now it is many years later, and I just
acquired a 4-year-old Mustang gelding, Wiley.
A friend of mine did a Mustang rescue and got
a mare. A couple months later, she had a
colt. Now he is mine.
My friend told me stories of him lying next
to him in the pasture when he was first
born.........and so the story goes. Spoiled
rotten.
I just got him last Sunday, and they brought
another horse along just so he could get
acclimated. She is a QH mare.
The first day went well. Took a trail ride;
he followed behind her. Second day, I
pony-led my 12-year-old son, who has no
experience, on a trail ride. I rode the mare,
he rode Wiley. Nothing exceptional except bad
manners, pinning of the ears, and Wiley
kicked at the mare when she got behind him.
(not that that was actually good!)The third
day did not go so well.
I took him off by himself. I noticed a
definite attitude change just leading him
around. He was miffed that I would ask him to
do anything, and at that point I wouldn't
doubt that he may bite me. He would pin his
ears back if he knew I was looking at him.I
responded with my voice and a a firm grasp on
his head. I proceeded to saddle him up and
got on. I asked him to move
forward..........he would not budge. I turned
his head to the left, I turned his head to
the right. I kicked; he bucked. I smacked him
with the reins; he bucked. I had someone lead
him forward. He finally walked, but then
stopped and LAID DOWN!!!!!!!!!!!
At that point, I was dismayed and really mad.
I made him get up and smacked him with the
reins and very quickly made him work for me.
I spent the next 2 hours on the ground
leading him in circles, stopping, starting,
backing up, and then I tied him up for
awhile. He actually had a change of heart and
was responding without attitude. I didn't get
back on because there was no one around and
because I wasn't sure if I really should.
Wiley needs to get the fundamentals of being
a domesticated horse.
Now that I know what I'm dealing with, I need
to stop and and back up and figure out how to
deal with him. I have never had to deal with
other people's problems. If my horse had a
problem, either it was me as the cause; and I
knew it and could fix it, or just a matter of
time with a green-broke horse. This is
different.
He is kept in a pasture, and has been all of
his life. The first couple of days here, he
was pastured with cows. When I turned him
out, he showed his aggressive nature toward
them. I get that, but I have never been
around a horse that treated ME as the
herd.
Today, when I went out into the pasture, he
ran at me. I turned around, put my hand up
and said whoa! He did. But not the thing I
want to happen when I walk into a
field.
His previous owners tell me, "he will never
hurt you", but I think he is a dangerous
horse. At least he is not the kind of horse I
am used to.
My 90-year-old Grandpap has strong advice on
how I should deal with him. He has had
success. But I think I should start with
isolation. Wiley cannot be in the position
bully another horse or cow or me. I have to
quit being afraid and stand up to him.
What is your advice?
Answer: lol, pretty sure you
are not going to like my answer, but I will
give it to you. Growing up in
Texas and at our age, showing a horse who is
boss was accepted and normal business.
This works, but it is not the
best way, it is harder on horse and human and
you will not get as good as horse in the end.
The hard way worked back in the
day since we used horses everyday, worked
them hard and spent lots of time in the
saddle and working the horse.
Nowadays we want this to work
when a horse is a part time gig, ridden a few
times a month, fed high quality feed and
grain and we keep horses in stalls away from
herds where they can't be with other horses
and get lessons and exercise.
What you called spoiled, lots of people call
imprinted or desensitized. A
horse that has not been raised with hard
handling does not fear/respect people as a
horse that has been handled kindly and maybe
cuddled too much.
You don't understand this horse since you
have not learned the horse language, herd
talk, herd behavior and what I think is the
better way to work with horses.
The old way and what your grandpa
is telling you is probably to stub this horse
up, isolate him, withhold food and water,
sack him out and show this horse who is boss
and not to mess with you. This is
called breaking a horse, breaking his spirit
and breaking his resistance and basically
making him a well behaved slave.
This worked for years and brutal
methods have been around as long as horses.
The new way, that most old timers
don't like, don't want to accept, think is a
waste of time, is what I believe is a better
way.
You are looking at this horse as a beast of
burden and a tool for you to use as you see
fit. My way and most Natural Horsemen believe
if you take more time, use understanding,
work with the horse's natural instincts, you
get a better horse, it is less dangerous for
you and horse, and it makes you better
because it.
You have treated this horse like a master and
slave relationship, a Mustang is wild bred
and has very strong herd instincts, he is
comfortable with herd behavior, survival,
does not like or trust humans, and will be
quicker to fight if cornered, mistreated or
man-handled. On the flip side, he
will be the best horse you ever had if you
talk to him in his language, gain his trust
and respect, show him that you understand him
and act more like a horse and herd.
So the choice is yours. You can use the old
ways and fight with this horse, break him,
tie him, beat him, abuse him, tear down his
spirit and rip away his soul and the beauty
of the horse, or you can use your head more,
take more time, learn from him, become a
better horseman, not use brute force and pain
methods and in the end have a great horse
that is your partner, who sees you as his
herd leader and not a brutal human predator
that he only listens too from fear.
I have lots of information on my site, tell
your grandpa to read it, he will learn some
things and see some things he agrees with and
will see some things that he thinks is horse
pucky. Older horsemen knows what
worked and don't see much reason to change,
especially if it takes more time.
Back in the day, horses were
money, work and livelihood, making it better
for them was not a concern.
However, with knowledge and the
new age of information, better ways have been
proven to be more effective, longer lasting,
safer and better for man and horse.
Check out my site and feel free
to write back.
If you don't have time, want fast results and
don't care about this horse, don't mind
fighting some bucks and taking risk on you or
your horse getting hurt, then don't waste
your time on my site, it will not be helpful.
My site is more Natural
Horsemanship orientated, so it contradicts
the old ways and appears not to make sense to
those who believe and still practice the old
ways.
For your horse's sake, I hope you read my
site.
Good luck to you and your horse.
Stall Behavior:
STOP scaring your horse. She is in a new
place, has been abused and neglected by race
horse people and now she has another human
scaring her. Treat your horse the
way you would want to be treated if you were
a horse. You say she has scraped
herself twice, no she has not, you have
scared her and made her in fear of her life
so she reacted like a horse, YOU caused her
to get hurt. Too bad she did not
kick you when you scare her instead of
running then maybe you would get the idea
that scaring her is not fair.
How can you say you are afraid of her getting
her and then you continue to scare her?? You
caused her to get hurt twice. You
also say the gelding is aggressive over food,
you are causing this too. Horses
only fight over food when HUMANs are too lazy
to feed them correctly. If you
put food where horse have to fight to eat
then they will fight, they are survival
animals. If you put enough food
in different locations so they do not have to
fight then they do not fight.
Educate yourself about horse better so you
will stop thinking like woman and stop trying
to protect a horse from another horse.
Horses don't need protection from
horses, they need it from people.
Just to make sure I get this, you make the
horse stay alone to protect it from a horse
and then you scare the crap of it with a whip
so it gets so scared that it hurts itself and
then tell me that the horse hurt itself and
you take no responsibility for the injury??
I think I get it.
If I sound irritated, rude or mean, good! I
try and be the voice of the horse, if I was
this horse I would tell you, don't protect me
from the other horse, protect me from you.
You lock me up, you keep me from
my own kind, from my herd, from my safety of
another horse and then you scare me and push
into a panic and then blame me for hurting
myself.
Here is a wild answer to your question. DON'T
PUT THE HORSE IN THE STALL.
ANSWER: Sounds like he is stall sour and has become protective and aggressive from being locked up without other horses. He will only get worse. He needs a pasture with other horses to play, push, fight and get taught some manners by other horses... he is still a horse and people cannot provide all his needs, he is a herd and social animal that needs other horses. This just another sad example of people putting horses in situations where they have no choice and then when they develop bad habits due to the conditions they are kept in, people want to blame the horse or call him names like mean, aggressive, or other names. This could be caused and made worse by people correcting, teasing or treat him like his is mean, like his reputation calls him.
ANSWER: I also know it is hard to accept
that you may be the cause of the problem.
Unless you are spending 24 hours
a day with your horse horse, there is no way
you can say he is not being teased.
You said he had a large turn out,
your large, my large and a horse's large is
very different. The fact that he
is hanging out at his gate to charge people
tells me that it is not that large or your
horse would not be at the gate.
There are several options to stop
the charging but I am sure you have will
reasons for not doing each of them and the
horse will continue to be blamed.
So here are the choices for you
to tell me why you can't do any of
them:
-Move the horse
-Keep people away from the gate
-Put the horse in a several acre pasture so
he will not hang out at a gate
-Spend more time with your horse so he is not
in his "large turn out"
-Keep your horse out of his "large turn out"
more
-Keep your horse busy with a job so he will
not make his job protecting his gate to his
"large turn out"
-Put your horse with more horses so he will
have a herd and can be a horse with a job and
not a guard of his gate to his "large turn
out"
-Tell the people that are so scared of this
horse, the ones that tell you he charges
them, to stay away from the horse if they
just want to run and see him charge since
they are causing and reinforcing this
behavior
-Put a video camera up to record all this
charging and confirm the no teasing is taking
place (even though you already know this is
not happening somehow)
As you can see from all my suggestions, this
is about you, what you do, what you prevent
and what you control, like most all horse
problems it is not the horse's fault, this
horse is forced to live in your world under
your terms and has no choice. Of
course this it never the answer anyone wants
to hear since they love their horse.. I see
more horses hurt, killed and mentally abused
by people that love horses. A
horse is happiest with other horses and in
open areas, horses in pasture and in herd
normally have no vices or no so called
problems... why is this???? the
answer is simple, Less human involvement,
love and help.. no stalls, no
blankets, no trimmings, no shoes, no hugs...
just horses allowed to be horses.
So please don't tell me how grand
your horse has it in his "large turn out" and
then try and find an easy answer for keeping
a horse caged up and causing vices and
aggressive behavior and then expect to find
an easy fix by writing an email to
someone.
Spend more time with your horse and keep him
out of his "large turn out" is the best
advice I can give.
Answer: I agree you went
way too fast and did what I call set the
horse up for failure. You want to
make this a horse problem and I see it as a
you problem. You did not spend
enough time learning and establishing your
leadership role with this horse before
handling it in a non controlled environment.
All horses are stronger and we
need a cheat like a round pen or enclosed
arena so the horse cannot get away and get
release. You said the horse is
not broke, I say you are not experienced
enough to handle an untrained horse.
This horse is only three so to
say he is a stud or stallion, I think is
giving him a tough name, he is still a baby,
he is young and needs good handling.
Handling that is fair and done so
he can understand not done by someone who is
scared, thinks he is a big bad stud or with
stud chains or brute force. Not
saying you are doing this, but that is
normally how people want to handle so called
Stallions.
The fact that you took this horse out too
early and have now taught it a very bad
lesson, he now thinks, and I agree, that you
are not capable of controlling him, he now
thinks he is stronger, he knows that he can
get away from you, he now knows that you are
not a strong leader and that he has to be in
charge when with you, he now knows that when
he wants to go somewhere you cannot stop him.
You see this a he is not trained
or herd bound, I see it as a horse sees it.
Because you went fast, and did
not take the time to do it right you have to
do much longer, much harder and makes the
horse pay for your going fast, taking a short
cut or taking on something that you did not
know you could succeed at. Now
you have work much harder to unteach what you
have taught. Now the horse will
be less likely to trust you, to submit to
you, to see you as a leader... NOT because he
is not trained, not because he is herd bound,
but because a person has put him in a
situation where he had not choice and he did
only what he knows to do, be a horse!
Understanding of a horse is best
gift you can give a horse. If you
were to read my web site, you would know that
calling a horse names like stubborn,
untrained, mean, bad or other terms only
tells me that the person doing the name
calling does not understand horses.
Handling and controlling horses is about
understanding them and communication, not
about blame, fancy equipment, chains or other
gimmicks.
You made the mistake, you caused what
happened, you taught the horse bad lessons
and now the horse learned. So you
have learn how to fix it and how not to make
the same mistakes.
The fact that you asked this question tells you are trying and don't understand horses. Pain, whips, scare tactics do not help horses, they make them scared and insecure and they don't like or trust the people that do it. Invest some time, read my site, understand how a horse thinks and feels, you may not have experience, but you can read and gain knowledge so you can get experience. You would not buy a car that was in middle of a highway, having never have driven before and then say, I own this car in the middle of a highway and I have never driven before, can you tell me how to get it home. So don't just start using a whip to scare a horse since you don't know anything else. Read and educate yourself so you don't make the horse pay with pain and suffering from your mistakes.
ou will like my answer, but this is not a
horse problem, this is a you issue.
This horse is just testing and
pushing you to see how you handle it.
So far the horse has TAUGHT you
to feed him while saddling, to groom him, to
hurt him and to NOT to be consistent.
He does not know the right
answer, I don't know the right answer from
your description, I know what you want, but
the horse does not know. He is
guessing and training you. He
tries different things and you try different
things, so he keeps changing because you keep
changing. If you want change in
your horse, you have to change, but you can't
change every time you are with him.
You change by making this clear
and consistent. You do the same
thing the same way until you get the same
answer. If you change the
question your horse will never figure out he
answer you want.
Horses don't understand punishment, the
understand discipline, very big difference.
They need to know what is going
to happen each and every time.
There can only be ONE right
answer. When you get the wrong
answer you need to ask the questions again
again until you get the right answer.
Too many people ask ten and allow
ten almost right answers, so the horse is
confused and guessing each time, he never
really knows the right answer. So
if I ask my horse to walk off and sometime I
allow him to walk one step, sometime I allow
him to just back up one step, sometime I just
allow him to move his head, sometime I allow
him to push me, sometime he can pin his ears,
sometime he can't, how in the world is going
to know that walk off means walk off.
A horse is a reflection of his handling, know
the horse, know the person.
Scared, fearful, insecure people
have the same type of horse.
Inconsistent, moody, and loud people have the
same type of horse.
A horse only knows what it is taught.
The first clue to this is over
half of all questions I get start with, my
horse just started this! If you
are handling the horse and it did not do it
before, then it is very obvious that you
taught it, allowed it, or caused the new
behavior.
Be consistent, don't bribe with food, don't
beat with whips and chains, ask once, tell
twice, order the third time. I
could saddle this horse with none of this and
if it did happen, I would addressed firmly,
and forget it, and it would stop.
The horse would learn very
quickly that if does this I do this, he would
learn very fast that one way is easy and one
way is hard on him.
Read my sacking out section on my
horsemanship page, this will help you gain
more respect from your horse and will help
you learn to read him and deal with him
better.
All horses are spooky, it is how they stay alive in the wild and the spooky gene is passed on. The non-spooky gene is not passed on since those with that gene are eaten and killed. Sacking out is very important often overlooked in horse training. I have a sacking out section on my horsemanship of my site. Read it and do lots of it. You said you will never raise your voice or be forceful in anyway... this is a problem. Your horse has figured this out and not sees you as a lower horse. Any horse that will defend himself or kick or push back will be the low horse. Once your horse sees you as low horse, he will not feel safe with you, will not trust you and will not get any confidence from you. Sacking out will help you raise your horse's fear and will teach you how to read your horse before he blows that way you can calm him and help him learn to look to your for help. Also if you do not give him direction when he spooks (take the slack out of your reins) he will feel more scared and will think he has to take matters into his own hands. When y |