Aggressive at mealtimes

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fidgeuk

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Hello everyone.

I'm hoping you can give me some advice regarding my Welsh section D X. He's become really aggressive when fed.

This evening when i gave him his feed in his stable his teeth connected with me. Luckily i had my gloves on and there was no damage. However, i am concerned that he may bite and injure one of the other girls on the yard when they go to feed him in the mornings. The horses are all fed at the same time every morning by the same person during the week & by the liveries at the weekends.

I have had a couple of comments from the other DIYers about how nasty he is when they've given him his dinner & some of them have said they've stayed & watched him eat his dinner because its amusing to see him get so grumpy.

I usually get him ready for bed (so to speak) change rugs, pick out feet, quick groom & lots of fussing, then i go and mix his dinner - he hears me coming, will stand back to let me put it in his manager, then i lock his stable door and leave him to it. He does pull faces & shake his head at me & his ears are usually flat to his head whilst i bolt his stable door but up until tonight hes never come so close to biting me.

He's also tried charging me in the field when i've put hay out and does the usual head shaking but i've stopped him going for me by raising my hands above my head & grumbling/growling at him.

Sorry for the long post but i'm worried about this behaviour and would appreciate your thoughts and comments regarding my naughty nag
 
fidgeuk said:
Hello everyone.

He's also tried charging me in the field when i've put hay out and does the usual head shaking but i've stopped him going for me by raising my hands above my head & grumbling/growling at him.
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You've got the idea - you need to do that in the stable, too - even take a plastic bag, or something he has a bit of respect for, in with you.

I've got a mare that grumbles - one day she connected with me, I put her to the back of her stable just by being assertive with her, and wouldn't let her near MY hay until she started to lick & chew. She's been quite respectful since.

But I would ask the others not to spectate, they're only encouraging him and making things worse.
 
MY horse who wasn,t gelded till 8 now 10, liked to try and dominate and when i first got him a year ago was horrible at feed times, evil faces ,kicking out.
I ignore him or growl at him if he is really bad, over time i just stand in his stable while he is eating he soon realized i wasn,t a threat, i can now stroke him even change his rugs while he eats,still makes tho odd face, i just say shut up and he knows he dosen,t frighten me
 
I agree with some of the above comments.
I had a Welsh sec D X Arab who used to have major issues with feeding time, so much that he would kick out & buck when feeding in the stable. I took to feeding him in the arena when I could, or making him move back in his stable, and then placing his feed in the back corner of his stable. I would make his feed, and mix it before you bring him in. Def agree with leaving him well along when he's feeding, I'm on a livery yard and put a note on the door to just chuck the bucket over the door and leave him to it!
When putting hay out, I always used to make sure their was enough piles of hay for each horse, with an extra one, so that it didn't cause any arguments - this is probably were the behaviour originates from. hope this helps :) Also wear a hat and carry a schooling whip, if he wants to try and bite or kick. carrying it was enough to stop my previous horses behaviour.
 
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I have a mare which I've had from a foal and she is positively evil at feed times I've tried to make her stand back but she would turn her bum round and become even more aggressive, so I just put her feed over the door & let her get on with it safer than getting bitten or kicked!
 
How hungry is he at meal times?

And why not make up his feeds prior to bringing him in? That way much of the anticipation will disappear - because if you hide it around the corner (or simply go an fetch it) he won't have so long to get worked up about it.

Some horses are not good at feeding times - regardless of upbringing or handling. And I'm a firm believer in leaving them alone to eat. So for those on your yard who enjoy goading him - a flea in their ears, because they are just compounding the issue.
 
I have had a couple of comments from the other DIYers about how nasty he is when they've given him his dinner & some of them have said they've stayed & watched him eat his dinner because its amusing to see him get so grumpy.
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What the hell?
Are these people complete muppets?
No wonder he's fed up and pulling faces, so would I be if someone constantly did something knowing it would wind me up:rolleyes::mad:
 
My gelding is like this, though he normally goes for you with his feet not his teeth. He will however pull some mighty ugly faces!
My first suggestion is that you leave him be while he eats. I wouldnt like people watching me, and ive found this used to wind Harvey up more.
He used to kick out at the wall too which made me worry about him doing all kinds of concussion damage to his feet and legs, so when i put his feed in, if he kicked out at the wall i took his feed off him and ignored him for 5 mins, then the feed went back in. The process was repeated if he did it again. This worked a treat and he never kicked out at the wall again, though his nasty threatening faces will never go away. I know this and ignore him.
x
 
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Thank you so much for all your replies and apologies for the delay in responding to you (internet problems.. again)

Very helpful and useful information. I'll make sure his dinner is ready and waiting for him in his box when i bring him in from now on and we'll see how that goes.

I like to leave him to eat his dinner in peace but advice on the yard was to stay, watch and prevent him from being mean by grumbling at him - to be honest it didn't work and i wasn't comfortable doing it.

I'll tell the others to leave him alone, although i'm sure some will ignore me coz they are afterall the experts!! And, as for when he's in the field i think i might put the hay out before the horses.... might work out better that way.

I could do with some more advice over a couple of other issues but feel i'v gone on long enough already....

Thanks again

Fidge
 
fidgeuk said:
Thank you so much for all your replies and apologies for the delay in responding to you (internet problems.. again)

Very helpful and useful information. I'll make sure his dinner is ready and waiting for him in his box when i bring him in from now on and we'll see how that goes.

I like to leave him to eat his dinner in peace but advice on the yard was to stay, watch and prevent him from being mean by grumbling at him - to be honest it didn't work and i wasn't comfortable doing it.

I'll tell the others to leave him alone, although i'm sure some will ignore me coz they are afterall the experts!! And, as for when he's in the field i think i might put the hay out before the horses.... might work out better that way.

I could do with some more advice over a couple of other issues but feel i'v gone on long enough already....

Thanks again

Fidge
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If you need more advice then ask for it, that's what the forum is here for afterall:)

As for the advice about staying with him while he eats, just leave him be. He wants to eat in peace and is trying his best to let you know.
 
Hi SleepingDragon,

You are right i should just ask. I'm very new to all this forum stuff and quite nervous of asking what might appear to be dumb questions!

I've been a "lurker" for a while and enjoy reading the posts, especially those that are relevant to my experiences. If i'm honest I would have to say i log in every night for my fix!!

But i'm going to post a question about my cantering problem in the New Lounge now and hopefully get some useful ideas/opinions about what i should do.

Thanks
 
Very helpful and useful information. I'll make sure his dinner is ready and waiting for him in his box when i bring him in from now on and we'll see how that goes.
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Fidgeuk, brilliant to have it ready - but NOT in his box. Outside, well covered, around a corner etc. But not in the box.

Good luck and as SD says, we're here to help.
 
fidgeuk said:
I like to leave him to eat his dinner in peace but advice on the yard was to stay, watch and prevent him from being mean by grumbling at him - to be honest it didn't work and i wasn't comfortable doing it.

I'll tell the others to leave him alone, although i'm sure some will ignore me coz they are afterall the experts!! And, as for when he's in the field i think i might put the hay out before the horses.... might work out better that way.
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Oh don't we all love the yard 'experts' :rolleyes: What idiots. If someone watched me and grumbled in my ear whilst I was eating my dinner I'd turn round and smack them :eek: Well, perhaps not quite, but you get my drift and it is how your horse is feeling. Agree, have it ready and take it straight in no faffing around - absolutely make him stand back and wait and be firm if he comes at you, but the more of an issue you make it the worse he will become. Put a note on his door making it clear that he must be left alone whilst eating - haven't these busybodies got something better to do anyway?

You need to get more assertive ;)
 
I've been having the same problem with my filly but shes been turning round and trying to double barrel me :mad: Shes ok in the stable she just pulls faces at me, but I've just ignored her and told her to pack it in etc. If shes fed in the field I give her the food without eye contact then just turn around walk away and ignore her
 
fidgeuk said:
Thank you so much for all your replies and apologies for the delay in responding to you (internet problems.. again)

Very helpful and useful information. I'll make sure his dinner is ready and waiting for him in his box when i bring him in from now on and we'll see how that goes.

I like to leave him to eat his dinner in peace but advice on the yard was to stay, watch and prevent him from being mean by grumbling at him - to be honest it didn't work and i wasn't comfortable doing it.

I'll tell the others to leave him alone, although i'm sure some will ignore me coz they are afterall the experts!! And, as for when he's in the field i think i might put the hay out before the horses.... might work out better that way.

I could do with some more advice over a couple of other issues but feel i'v gone on long enough already....

Thanks again

Fidge
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I would advise you dont already have it in his box, as the voice of experience, if you get cornered when bringing him in and he gets agressive, you cant get away. I nearly broke my skull doing this!!!
Hope you find a system that works :)
x
 
ok cool, i'll have dinner ready but not in his box. I think he's just testing the boundaries, he's only 5 and just recently has tried being well, quite dominant. You know, trying to drag me about and generally being a bit thuggish. Have managed to resolve the barging & charging off problem - basically means i don't let my guard down by daydreaming when i should be paying attention to him.

Because he's a youngster i've not wanted to spoil him by doing something wrong in his training, although he's proving to be a right drama queen!!

Thanks guys

x
 
When the girl went to give Jack his breakfast yesterday he decided to bite her on the shoulder! I've seen the evidence and she has a nasty black bruise from the top of her arm, under her bra strap and it stops at the base of her neck.

She'd opened his door to put his breakfast in (usually its thrown over the top) she hadn't made any kind of eye contact with him and was bent forward, she felt him grab her and pulled herself away, taking his breakfast with her. She then left his breakfast outside his box and fed the other four horses before returning to him and giving him his. She said he was stood at the back of his box and didn't approach his food until she'd moved out of sight.

Obviously i'm very worried about this aggression at meal times and was hoping you could all put on your thinking caps on & help me decide what to do about it. Do you think what she did was right? Could i use that kind of method as a way of showing him we are in charge, not him?

Any thoughts and ideas will be gratefully received. TBH i'm absolutely mortified that he bit her and i'm worried for the safety of other people who may have reason to be near him. Should i put a sign up or is that just silly?

Have yourselves a nice skinny latte and a chocolate chip muffin for getting this far...

thanks

Sarah
 
Any thoughts and ideas will be gratefully received. TBH i'm absolutely mortified that he bit her and i'm worried for the safety of other people who may have reason to be near him. Should i put a sign up or is that just silly?
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You should be worried if he's that aggressive - I agree.

Yes, put a sign up. And only one person should be handling or feeding your horse, you.
 
What is he being fed at the moment and does he have plenty of hay overnight in the box? Obviously you need to be firm with him, but it is also worth thinking about what is at the root of his aggression. For example, if he finishes his hay early in the evening, he may be ravenous in the morning, hence the aggression. If this is the case, then give more hay, or arrange for someone to put another net in last thing.

I would also consider cutting out any 'exciting' hard feed such as mix, nuts, grains etc., and just give him a bowl of something boring like Dengie Hi Fi Lite, so he is not quite so fixated on his hard feed.
 
My horse started getting agressive at meal times and what i did was when i put his feed bowl down i would stand a metre or so back and make my horse wait until i patted him before he was allowed to eat, if he tried to i would wave my arms up and stamp my foot on the ground. Its worked really well and now the most trouble i get is ears back. Its just reminded my horse whos in charge and that he has to wait politely to get his feed.
This may not work on all horses but it certainly did on mine! you could give it a go?
Good luck! :)
 
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