Am I the only one who thinks Stallions don't deserve the bad press?

[millreef]

I recently read a thread here which showed Parelli warning people against Stallions and just read Monty Roberts book where he too warns people against having them. I actually have four of them (they don't really geld horses in Morocco) and to be honest I have known mares (I also have one of them) which are more unpredictable and moody. I just think they have a terrible reputation but it's not warranted.

 

[Devonshire dumpling]

We have a gorgeous Shetland Stallion on our farm, we also have 9 shetland mares, hes a pleasure to have around the place, he has been trained not to bite of be pushy, , he's not different really than the girls, he's sometimes a bit of a handful if you are leading him past a "tarting" female, but then are they any different than an ungelded human on a sat night with lots of girls in their short skirts???? Probably better behaved lol

 

[j1ffy]

I'm with you! Having ridden stallions in Spain, including on hacks with in-season mares, I don't think they are nearly as dangerous or difficult as most people seem to think. I also rode some lovely barb x arab stallions in Morocco so I'm quite jealous of you! Our guide there said it's illegal to geld there unless it's for medical reasons - is that right??

Having said that, I chose to geld our Spanish horse before bringing him over. I do think that it's quite a lonely life for a stallion and they do get limited turnout at most yards. Unless you want to breed it is easier and a more pleasant life for the horse if you have them gelded.

I would also say that people need to accept that there are some stallions who DO need to be gelded as they simply don't have the temperament. A friend of mine was nearly in a very nasty accident in Spain due to a stallion who should have been gelded (the owner had been advised to do so, but decided against it) - the stallion dumped his owner and mounted the mare that my friend was riding. It took three men on horseback to get the stallion off and away from the mare. He was subsequently gelded and re-schooled, thankfully!!

 

[Kenzo]

Well without this sounding bad, I think the way he talks about many things is to a more, I duno how do I put this, novice kind of auidance, so I think what he's saying to perhaps some of the people who are wanting to learn from him, he's right in warning and stressing the fact that first time horse owners for example unless you are experianced, shouldn't go out and buy a stallion, lets face it, some people do and they end up with problems.

I don't think he's giving stallions a bad press, just warning of folk of the dangers of some if not handled correctly.

I don't agree with everything he says, well no, actually what I mean is I don't agree with way he comes across, but remove all the savvy silly jargon talk, he does also talk a lot of sense too, just the way they tell it that cracks me up.

 

[Ibblebibble]

i guess because they're more common in morocco they are treated differently to how we treat them over here?
i think we turn stallions into frustrated loons over here by the way we manage them, i've met stallions who are allowed to run with their mares all summer and they have been perfect gentlemen but i've also met one who was kept out of sight of other horses unless he was 'working' and he was a git! would he have been a git had he been treated differently? who knows and the problem is most people don't or won't take the risk to find out

 

[PapaFrita]

We had 6 stallys at the yard in Argentina (not including the young colts) and never had any trouble with them. At the risk of kicking the hornet's nest, a lot of Parelli devotees use it because they aren't very experienced or confident with horses and in these scenarios a stally would be a recipe for disaster....

 

[Damnation]

We had 6 stallys at the yard in Argentina (not including the young colts) and never had any trouble with them. At the risk of kicking the hornet's nest, a lot of Parelli devotees use it because they aren't very experienced or confident with horses and in these scenarios a stally would be a recipe for disaster....

This deffo.
Last stallion I rode was fine under saddle.. but on the ground out of his stable was a complete *****..
They don't deserve the bad press but they do need confident experienced handling.

 

[Spring Feather]

I've handled and owned stallions for most of my life and I can count on one hand with 4 fingers left over the amount of stallions who have been a real handful. Almost all of the stallions I've handled have been absolute gentlemen.

I agree with Kenzo though that parelli does usually have novice owners hold him as their hero so I suppose what he says to them is quite responsible. Don't want a whole pile of muppets wandering around with stallions now do we?

 

[xloopylozzax]

im glad they get 'bad press' to a certain degree.

simple fact is stallions (and breeding) should be left to people who are capable no just people who want to flash the fact it has balls about.

the reason the majority are better behaved is because morons arent allowed/dont want to handle them...

 

[Elf On A Shelf]

Of all the stallions I have worked with my own homebred one has been the worst. His father is a gem. You could walk him through a field of in season mares and he wouldn't turn a hair so long as he had a human attached to him. Turn him loose and he gets on with his job in the most, almost too gentlemanly way. He then goes back to his other field after covering season and lives with the geldings. My homebred has always lived with the geldings. He is 4 now and will learn about mares properly next year. This year he is going to learn to cover in-hand on my infertile mare as she is a gem, he needs manners and she isn't affraid to boot a naughty boy.

The most well behaved colts and stallions that I have ever come across are the racehorses. They are never given even a millimeter of room to misbehave. You can't have any that are silly when you ride out a string of upto 30 colts at a time - you would be asking for trouble if you did. The fillies on the other hand are allowed a bit more leeway to keep them sweet so they are allowed to dance and prance and buck a little.

But no, most stallions don't deserve the reputation they have and it is only inexperienced people that believe the reputations.

 

[madlady]

I have been handling and riding stallions for a number of years now and yes I do think they get a bad press but that is mainly through ignorance.

I have a 2yo homebred colt at the moment and I fully intend to keep him entire if he gets a good enough linear score. He is a gem to handle in and out of the stable but he will be broken to drive and will learn a useful job before he goes anywhere near any mares.

I have come across some stallions who have been a touch 'difficult' but they have invariably been the ones who only cover mares, never do anything else and spend their whole lives in a stable only getting contact with another horse when they are doing the business, to me that is a form of cruelty.

 

[Vindaloo]

I actually posted a while ago about the stallion I ride, he is an absolute saint to ride. Tricky on the ground with the staff but then they are scared of him and he blooming knows it.

The chap I ride (not Casper obviously) is an ex racer and is an absolute gent. He gets no turn out, fed fairly high protein and is VERY forward but extremely sane. Amazing since he is stabled 24/7 and cannot be lunged so the only exercise he gets is ridden. How he doesn't have a screw loose i'll never know.

He regularly gets schooled with mares who, when in season squirt at him (the hussys) and he'll cock an ear but that's about it.

 

[dafthoss]

I have little personal expiereance with stallions so cant speak for the majority but at the weekend we had a stallion join our group on a sponsored ride and I didnt realise he was a stallion untill the rider said so. He was in a big group of horses with mares and geldings and was brill we were in all 3 paces and he followed a mare most of the way too. So if they are like that then I see no problem with them but he had an expierienced rider and by the sounds of it had lots of vareity in his life.

 

[millreef]

The only "problem" I have with my boy is that he's really slow if there is a mare behind him on a ride and really forward going if there is one in front!

 

[Lolo]

I would never own a stallion, as I lack the necessary skills and experience to handle him properly. However, they deserve no more bad press than any other type of horse!

 

[Fransurrey]

Have ridden and handled a few in my time and the best horse I ever rode was an Arab Stallion. He was kept out, 24/7. Conversely, the only one I've known personally that was a 'loon' was kept in his stable 24/7, in a riding school where mares and geldings were paraded under his nose going to and from lessons. For years I thought of that poor, poor horse every day. When I helped out there I was the only one who would muck him out, as apparently he was a fierce biter. Given that I only worked there once a week, you can guess the state he lived in...

 

[Janah]

I worked on an Arab stud yard many years ago. The stallion ran with his mares all year. He was brought in to cover visiting mares and was a gent with the girls though he always did the business!. He really didn't like grey mares so was teased with one of the stud mares and then he couldn't not do the deed!!!

He was a joy to ride, though a bit of a show off, liked to jigg about. Absolutely not a nasty thought in his head.

Jane

 

[Muchadoaboutnothing]

They don't deserve the bad press

There are good ones and bad ones but most of the 'bad' ones have been created by bad management.

Most horses confined to being kept in and isolated go a bit nuts

Get them out, let them be sociable, let them be horses.

 

[Fii]

I think it depends on what you do with them.
In Europe heavy working breeds are worked every day, (logging etc) and most people work their stallions just as they would a gelding or a mare, in pairs, or more next to each other, and rarely have problems.
But they have been trained from almost day one to do this.
If you keep a stallion purely for breeding in hand, and it gets no other stimulation ( except one. ) then in my mind you are more likely to have a problem!
Like another poster has said, i don't have the fascillaties nor the want to, to keep a stallion.

 

[Jenni_]

Mines is amazing! After having a stallion I don't think I could go back to having a gelding. His pizzazz and sparkle is second to none and he's such a character. He's excitable about other horses but no more than any other young horse.

Quite frankly- handled right stallions have every right to stay stallions aslong they are trainable.

Mines is an Andalucian and he's an absolute superstar most of the time.