A little reassurance?

A

angellauren

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Hi guys,

So, in the end the loan pony arrived first, last Saturday! He settled in like a dream and considering he usually tries to jump over stable doors, field gates etc *touch wood* so far he has been good as gold. So chuffed to have him back and behaving!

Little foal arrived on Tuesday, a total nervous wreck. The poor mite, I did feel for him, we let him straight out in to the field with my pony and they made friends pretty much immediately which I'm relieved about. Little one spent a while calling for his pals who he'd made after weaning but has since settled.

I've got him in the stable now which he seems to be enjoying, I wake him up most mornings because he's flat out snoring in there, clearly I'm up far too early!

Now he's had zilch handling and it's been a few years since something totally unhandled came to me and I'm just doubting myself and that I'm doing things in the right order.

He was very wary of me and it's only been a few days. He's stopped cowering in the back of the stable when I go to put haylage in and will let me know scratch/stroke him etc but I wouldn't say he's 100% comfortable with the idea even though we've found his fave itchy spots! I've just made an effort to give him some attention each time I go in so he learns that I'm not there to hurt him.

Is there anything else you'd be doing with him or other peoples ideas that I can get him used to me? I'd just like some "If I were you"'s!

He's lovely though and boy, he can move!
 
Take a magazine in to read and just spend ages just sitting in the corner of the stable, not really taking any notice of him so he can check you out in his own time and eventually he will start coming over to investigate you.
 
Just give it time really. He'll also follow loan ponies response & behavior to quite an extent, so the more he witnesses loan pony behaving calmly & unconcerned to whatever you are doing the more he'll accept it too.
 
Get Sarah Weston's book on foal handling, No Fear, No Force. I swear by it since I used it on my feral foal, which I bought in October. It's not often I get to brag, but I now can walk him out on the lanes, have taught him to trot in hand, load in a trailer, pick his feet up when askedand best f all (only because I have never managed to teach my grown-up horses this!) I have taught him to stand at the back of the stable while I put his feed bucket down and he may not have it till I say the right words. He can now stand and wait for 12 seconds and he is only 8 months today! Good luck!
 
I was also going to suggest setting up camp in the corner of the stable and reading a book! It's what I did with my mare when she first came to me - she wasn't unhandled but she was completely thrown by moving to a new place, turned a bit wild (to say the least!) and didn't trust us in the slightest as she'd been taken from everyone / everything she knew - so I read her stories every night (;)) and it worked wonders!! Just sitting there and letting him see that you're not a threat and don't necessarily want to do anything with him should encourage him to take a bit of an interest and learn to trust you a little more x
 
Thanks guys, just what I wanted to hear! I have taken a book in to read most evenings, he was much more interested in the book than me! Thank you for the book recommendations too, will check those out.

It's quite funny watching my other lad (pony back from loan) setting an example as I got him feral when he was 10 months old over 4 years ago and now he's doing me proud showing this new fella how its done! Funny really :)
 
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