am i being cruel to my horse ??

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hannah28

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reading some of these threads and posts about horses being kept in heards has got me thinking......

my horse is kept on his own with a cow, he usually has 1 other horse but this horse is currently on long term box rest, he doesnt really get on with this horse or the cow, he can also see 4 other horses which he can touch over the fence. he has a big field with lots of trees hedges etc.

some people on here have stong opinions on horses being kept in heards, so would you consider it cruel to keep a horse on it own ?
 
I wouldn't consider yours to be on his own, if that's what you're worrying about, as he can see and touch other horses.

One of mine was kept, when I went to buy him, so that he couldn't even see or hear another horse. I don't know if that's why he is so desperate for company now but you certainly can't leave him alone in a field, he will jump out to join his friends. Having said that some horses seem to do fine on their own, some seem to be natural victims that are always picked on and do better by themselves.

I currently keep mine as two pairs of mare and gelding, all of which can touch each other over the fence and one on her own because she needs starvation rations only - but she can see all the others.
 
My first horse was kept on his own (with sheep) when I bought him, and I kept him on his own, on and off, for years. It never seemed to trouble him.....He loved running with the cattle, and used to share his feed with the sheep!

As long as your horse appears happy enough, I wouldnt worry.....Some horses are in 24/7 so never make contact with another horse....
 
some horses dont go out i saw in a mag once ellen whitaker puts her horses out for ONE hour each day
but some people may say its cruel but i know a horse that was so nervous it coudlt go out because it was scared and would just hurt its self so theres too sides
 
I think its quite sad if they are totally solitary on their own i,e can't see or hear other horses for mile around, if they can see/touch other horses I see no problem with it, mine are only kept in a pair which again is different to the herd instinct, like others have said if you horse is happy I wouldn't worry.
 
Some prefer company some don't. One of my horses prefered being with my pigs, one of my mares likes being one her own,but within sight of the others,one gelding has to have company or he frets.
 
I wouldn't consider you to be cruel either. Cruel is keeping a horse solitary if it yearns company (some don't give too hoots if they're by themselves). I wouldn't dare leaving one of mine alone. He'd be out of that field quicker than a dose of salts. The fact yours can see/touch other horses should be sufficient. They're good at telling their humans what they like or don't like ....
 
If he can see and even touch noses with the others over the fence, then he's fine and not really alone.

My horse has his own paddock, although he's surrounded by the others. It has saved me an absolute fortune in vets bills!
 
i keep my horse alone and he is very happy some people are very lucky to have more than 1 horse but others arent i would love to keep my horse in a herd but dont have enough land etc
 
Then you just have to be his friend and herd.Even human company(we probably come way below cows pigs and sheep) can be stimulating for a lonely horse.My old pt to pt horse had a winter stable in my workshop ,a bit like Mr Ed in Wilburs garage:D:DHe took a keen interest in everything going on and I dont think he got bored( But he could be very critical of my work.:eek:)
 
horsecrazy25 said:
Nope your not mean, i know many horses kept on there own but aslong as the horse/pony happy no probs. x
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But will you understand if your horse is telling you that he is unhappy, unless he is absolutely miserable? A pony was bought by some of our neighbours, he was kept in a field on his own, he could see other horses but not touch them. It was obvious to those of us who know horses that he was unhappy, he paced the fence, reacted to loud noises, didn't lie down. Eventually he settled down and tolerated being on his own because he got used to it. I cannot see that that the pony was ever happy and as he later had to be pts because of laminitis, I believe that the owners failed this pony, who had a miserable existence all the time that he was with them.
IMO asking a horse/pony to live only with cattle/sheep/pigs/goats is akin to asking a human to live only with a chimpanzee - tolerable and better than no company but nowhere near as good as having companions of your own kind.
 
IMO asking a horse/pony to live only with cattle/sheep/pigs/goats is akin to asking a human to live only with a chimpanzee - tolerable and better than no company but nowhere near as good as having companions of your own kind.[/QUOTE]

Substitute chimpanzee for horse and argue that one out!!
 
Mike007 said:
IMO asking a horse/pony to live only with cattle/sheep/pigs/goats is akin to asking a human to live only with a chimpanzee - tolerable and better than no company but nowhere near as good as having companions of your own kind.
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Substitute chimpanzee for horse and argue that one out!![/QUOTE]

Sorry Mike, I don't really understand your point. Would you really want to live somewhere with only a horse for company, with no opportunity to communicate with another human being at all? In any way? I know I wouldn't. And while I would also prefer to keep horses rather than chimpanzees, I think if I were to have to live in solitary confinement except for one animal, I would prefer to live with a chimp rather than a horse as our lifestyles would have more in common.
 
I strongly suspect that a great many people manage with the companionship of an animal,particularly old folk. Its not a perfect world,for horses or humans.
 
my horse seems happy enough i visit him twice a day, he is ridden regularly by himself and others, he never paces the fence, he always eats and lies down flat out every night, so i think he is fine
 
hannah28 said:
reading some of these threads and posts about horses being kept in heards has got me thinking......

my horse is kept on his own with a cow, he usually has 1 other horse but this horse is currently on long term box rest, he doesnt really get on with this horse or the cow, he can also see 4 other horses which he can touch over the fence. he has a big field with lots of trees hedges etc.

some people on here have stong opinions on horses being kept in heards, so would you consider it cruel to keep a horse on it own ?
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My horse is turned out in a paddock on his own although he has friends in the paddock next door. He is not, in my opinion deprived of anything, other than the opportunity to get kicked. I have lost a horse to a broken leg which was possibly, in the vets opinion initiated by a kick prior to him bucking and it snapping under him as he fell in his field whilst turned out. My present horse who I've owned for 6 years got kicked about 3 years ago and had a bone chip, he was very lucky. So since then he's been on his own and I would rather it stayed that way to be honest. He is able to interact over the fence but he likes to keep to himself, he always has, even previously when turned out with others I would seem him grazing away from the herd on his own.

In my opinion as long as they are within sight of other horses they are fine.
 
Mike007 said:
I strongly suspect that a great many people manage with the companionship of an animal,particularly old folk. Its not a perfect world,for horses or humans.
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That is very different from being in solitary confinement 24/7 with no one to have a conversation with, most elderly people in this situation will have a home-care assistant/meals on wheels/neighbour/relative popping in at times and there is an element of choice in their situation. And of course we feel very sorry for older people in these circumstances.
Horses are entirely at our mercy, it is our responsibility IMHO to ensure that we give them the best care & living conditions possible. I am afraid I will never be able to agree that keeping a horse permanently on its own is anything less than cruel and I believe that the argument that 'I haven't got enough land for 2' is disgraceful. In that case you haven't got enough land to keep one horse.
 
Mike007 said:
Its not a perfect world,for horses or humans.
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While I appreciate this point, if I could not have provide company for my horse, long term, I would not have the horse.

They are herd animals. I appreciate that riding, stabling, transporting horses etc is far from natural, but because we do these things, I think it's even more important that we meet the animal's other basic 'natural' needs, which to me include company.

applecart14 said:
My horse is turned out in a paddock on his own although he has friends in the paddock next door. He is not, in my opinion deprived of anything, other than the opportunity to get kicked.
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What about pair bonding with another horse, and mutual grooming? Or in stressful times, like thunder & lightening for example, & your horse doesn't have the security of a herd?

I'm not accusing the OP or anyone of being cruel, but I don't really understand the concept of 'he can see another horse, so he's ok'. To me, it's not about seeing another horse, it's about the basic and 'natural' interaction of other horses, that I think are essential to a horses' basic well being.

Just my opinion :)
 
FleabittenT said:
While I appreciate this point, if I could not have provide company for my horse, long term, I would not have the horse.

They are herd animals. I appreciate that riding, stabling, transporting horses etc is far from natural, but because we do these things, I think it's even more important that we meet the animal's other basic 'natural' needs, which to me include company.



What about pair bonding with another horse, and mutual grooming? Or in stressful times, like thunder & lightening for example, & your horse doesn't have the security of a herd?

I'm not accusing the OP or anyone of being cruel, but I don't really understand the concept of 'he can see another horse, so he's ok'. To me, it's not about seeing another horse, it's about the basic and 'natural' interaction of other horses, that I think are essential to a horses' basic well being.

Just my opinion :)
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Well said!
 
All very interesting - I don't think OP is being cruel.

My horse has lived in all sorts of situations. Entirely on his own without sight or sound of another horse, in large herds both single sex and mixed, next to others, closely bonded in a pair and now with another and 2 in the field next door.

I can honestly say his behaviour has been similar in all instances, although he was bullied in the gelding herd and jumped out of the field and ran away. So that was not at all ideal and he had to be moved to a smaller group. When he was in a pair his partner died and he did miss him (for a day or 2). He never paces or calls when he is left alone.

Now he is older he prefers me to horse company which is why he is with a small shetland. I do the grooming and scratching and it is me he looks for and calls to. TBH he would be quite happy on his own, so long as I spend a lot of time with him, he doesn't really like me to go.

Horses are naturally herd animals, but they lead a very unnatural life with humans, some horses are fine on their own, some aren't. Dogs similarly are pack animals, but most live on their own with humans.
 
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