Cant believe what he has done now

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I disagree with making sweeping statements labelling horses you are not familiar with, as dangerous and agressive. There are reasons why horses display untypical behaviour. He is clearly showing his displeasure at being kept stabled for a such a long period of time.

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He may be showing his displeasure at being kept stabled for so long but IMHO any well mannered horse knows not to behave in such an aggressive manner towards humans. Mine, who I have said in my earlier post can be rude and bargy, spent over a week stuck in 24/7 but he wouldn't dream of behaving this way. The worst I got from him was a little nip when he got a bit over zealous trying to groom me back. It is not acceptable for the OP's horse to corner someone. And I'm sorry but I don't accept that we can't make judgments because all of the OP's posts have said the horse can't be turned out, can't be kept in, can't be led, is difficult to handle, is aggressive... no one is getting these opinions from thin air, they are coming from the OP.
 
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Turn him out and leave him out for a few days to let off some steam, then deal with his obviously bad manners. Get a professional out to show you how to set boundaries for him and maintain them.

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Well said.
 
Just for others that havent seen previous posts OP has stated that she has owned this animal since he was a 5 or 6month foal and I think he was a hand rear - richie please correct if I am wrong.

hand rears are known to be difficult but apart from this this horse does not have a traumatic background as an excuse for his current behaviour. Which is why I in part agree with tinkerbee and where I think he is poss different to yours kitsune?, however without seeing him it is hard to grade the extent of his behaviour we only have OPs descriptions.

am sure we have done the options before
sedate him
turn him out
get someone else to help you get to the root of the problem because whatever you are doing now doesnt seem to have helped the root cause of the problem if he reverts to like this when in.
 
I don't think that op doesn't 'want' to turn him out. she is frightened of the icy road which leads to the field and obviously with the way he is feeling just now, is unlikely to walk there sedately. She is scared of the horse or herself being injured.

I think it is right that sometimes a horse gets a reputation and it jsut sticks. my horse never puts a foot wrong now for a few years , yet people are still frightened of her.

I think you need to bite the bullet and try to get him down to the field with a friend and let him release his energy. It must be a worry that the yo might ask you to move on, or is she understanding?

Unfair to say to shoot the horse, these are extreme weather conditions, but they won't last forever. Next winter you will know better and then have a better chance of managing it more effectively.
 
Unfortunatly,not every horse is your horse. Good for you for putting the time and effort into producing a well-mannered horse. I just disagree with people labelling horses that they have not personally dealt with as dangerous and aggressive. Its not helpful, its inflammatory and its a cop out.
 
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I just disagree with people labelling horses that they have not personally dealt with as dangerous and aggressive. Its not helpful, its inflammatory and its a cop out.

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What part of this statement does not describe a dangerous, aggressive animal?

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He is quite aggressive and stopped 1 person from coming on yard to feed and cornered another in barn and was trying to stamp him and trying to bite him

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QR - Can I just point out, that although I haven't read the whole thread (got to page 3 and found the bickering tedious), as the owner of the horse, you are liable for third party damages if your horse escapes and causes an accident and/or injures someone. You have admitted, in writing, that you were responsible for his escape. Don't let it happen again, as should it and he injure someone/cause an accident, this thread, if found, could be used as evidence of previous negligence on your part.
 
I'm afraid I have to agree with Tinkerbee et al (but not with the way it was put). OP, you have repeatedly stated that this animal is agressive and difficult to handle. You've kept him in a way that makes him worse. It's all very well saying you love him but he doesn't sound like a happy animal and you loving him doesn't seem to be helping him much. Cornering people is a step too far (if the livery can be believed) - get a professional in to sort him out and have a goal to make him a different horse in six months time. If you can't afford it, get rid and get an animal whose behaviour is manageable at your yard and on your budget. Horses are working animals - even 'pets' are expected to do some thing in return for the vast amounts of money spent on them annually. He doesn't sound like a pleasure and you do have a duty of care to other people, yourself and your little boy. Be honest with yourself and imagine what it would be like if you had a sane horse to handle and ride. Wouldn't life be so much more pleasurable? Do you really want an animal to be such hard work? Take care. x
 
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Unfortunatly,not every horse is your horse. Good for you for putting the time and effort into producing a well-mannered horse. I just disagree with people labelling horses that they have not personally dealt with as dangerous and aggressive. Its not helpful, its inflammatory and its a cop out.

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In some ways I agree with you but the OP is the one who describes the horse as dangerous herself. Her username even calls him a loony! IMO the horse is just conforming to the perceived opinion of him. I think it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy in the end. People are scared of him so when they handle him, they act nervously or defensively and he picks up on this, which probably winds him up more. Sometimes we forget that horses are much much better than us at picking up emotions and they don't react how we expect them to. If someone goes into the stable expecting him to be aggressive then they will be defensive or possibly even slightly aggressive themselves, so the horse gets used to being dealt with in this manner and reacts accordingly.
 
I don't get this issue with ice on the way to fields etc. how long has this weather been around for now? I don't care what you pay for on your livery, sort the access out to you field pronto. I am pretty sure its not something that a bit of hard work and some salt can't fix.

I have been turning out every day - I wouldn't never leave in because of the weather, even if I had to spend 1-2 hours a day clearing a new path I would, even if that meant I had to get out of bed 1-2 hours earlier. Access to run around should be a given for any healthy horse.

Then turn the horse out and let him let off steam, I think that is your first problem, before any other issues are dealt with
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Your fellow liveries must be very tolerant, if your horse was on my yard I'd go to the YO & say either that horse goes or I do. I wouldn't tolerate being threatened by my own horse so there's no way I'd tolerate it from somebody else's!
We had an aggresive mare on the yard once before (you had to take a lunge whip out into the field to protect yourself from her) so a group of us spoke to the YO & said horse had to go.
 
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To be honest that's merely an accident and can happen whatever the conditions. It's a sad reality of horse ownership.

Your horse sounds to be a bit of a bugger but to be perfectly honest I am one of those who tends to feel most people like to exaggerate stories somewhat! He 'cornered' someone? How? He's a horse for gods sake and surely people on the yard know how to handle horses - why didn't someone just bloody well get a headcollar on him and put him back in the stable. Peopl overreact and panic far too much!

Surely, it's not hard is it - he's not a killer horse? My horse has escaped before back in the day when i used to forget to put the kickover on, he could undo the bolt and also any clip used to stop him doing it! Thankfully we have our own stables so don't have to put up with other numpties who have no clue and who panic in any given situation!

Ours have also broken IN to the yard and I've gone down and found them doing stuff they shouldn't! You just sort them out, without flapping about it

It's horses isn't it? Jesus people!

I would just poor this poor bugger out in the field though - bet he had the time of his life on the yard with all that food and hay all for him!!!! Lol
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That's another thing - why isn't the feed shut away anyway? I would never leave mixed feed out, it's locked in a separate room so horses cannot get in!

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I couldn't agree more! none of this is the horse's fault! It's an accident. horses escape all the time and if people ar too lazy to pop into the feed room for their horse's breakie every morning they run the risk of overnight escapees eating it!! I've lost count of the numer of accsions I've had horses (not mine) escape from fields and stables - it happens!!
 
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I also can't understand why the horses owner can't get a decent shovel & clear the ice herself.
It would be hard work but worth it, when you're on a livery yard with other people you have a duty of care to those people, they shouldn't have to deal with somebody else's out of control animal.
 


One minute he IS aggressive..........[ QUOTE ]
He is quite aggressive and stopped 1 person from coming on yard to feed and cornered another in barn and was trying to stamp him and trying to bite him

[/ QUOTE ] ............. and the next minute he isn't
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Which one is it? Either way he needs to be sorted out one way or the other!
 
The horses behaviour was a reaction to a situation at that time. He has been labelled dangerous and aggressive because of this reaction. Managed correctly. with time and patience this sort of reaction can be contained. Deregotory labelling of horses is usually a result of persons inability to deal with said horse.
 
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The horses behaviour was a reaction to a situation at that time. He has been labelled dangerous and aggressive because of this reaction. Managed correctly. with time and patience this sort of reaction can be contained. Deregotory labelling of horses is usually a result of persons inability to deal with said horse.

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I suspect it's attitudes like this that have made this horse in to the horse he is.

And as the owner of the horse has labelled him dangerous themselves (who better to know their horse??), I guess he either is dangerous - or they are unable to deal with his strong personality themselves (as you say). Which is quite possibly why the horse has turned out the way he is - bearing in mind they have had him since he was 5 or 6 months old........
 
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To be honest that's merely an accident and can happen whatever the conditions. It's a sad reality of horse ownership.

Your horse sounds to be a bit of a bugger but to be perfectly honest I am one of those who tends to feel most people like to exaggerate stories somewhat! He 'cornered' someone? How? !

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Def agree with this, there are a few people on my yard that like to stretch the truth. I would be very interested to hear how he managed to corner someone, can you find out and let us know!? Especially as being a horse he is a flight animal, not a predator! Surely if the cornered person had just shouted, jumped up and down and waved their arms around a bit, he would have backed off, no?
 
To put this bluntly, if I had a horse that done anything like this, the last thing I'd do is put a post on H&H stating it to the world.

Sorry, you're kinda asking for trouble and people will be blunt and give you chapter and verse
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Wow that took a long time to read.
Firstly, if I was a paying livery, and arrived at the yard and was confronted by a dangerous horse who was trying to stamp on me, I would be straight to the YM saying that either that horse goes, or I go, simple as. I don't expect to turn up at the yard and prevented entry because of an agressive horse! Who know, the livery might have been late to work because they couldn't do there horse when they got down there! You must have very understanding fellow liveries and YM.
Secondly, I think it is a bad combination. Richie is quite clearly a troubled horse, and richie_is_a_loonie is IMHO, failing to deal with it. The horse needs to be turned out, if this means that you have to go and buy £20's worth of salt to grit the roads with, or spend 2 hours digging a path on the road, then so be it. You need to get professional help as mentioned by others, either coming to the yard, or sent away to their yard to be given boundaries and be taught acceptable behaviour. I hate to say it, but if a professional cannot correct his ways, you may have to consider PTS. Accidents do happen yes, but at the moment from what you have said, it sounds like he is a danger to himself, and everybody around him. The only other solution I can think of is to rent a private yard with just you there, then at least it is only you and him he could hurt, you wouldn't be endangering anybody else.
I'm sorry if what I have said sounds harsh. I haven't written it to hurt you, but I don't think you really understand what a serious accident waiting to happen your horse it. How would you have felt if your horse had seriously injured the person he corned? I wish you all the best with correcting his behaviour and hope with the help of a professional that you suceed, so he can be a happier horse and you can be a happier owner.
 
I have to admit that I haven't seen previous posts about this horse.

First of all, I want to say that there are a lot of unhelpful comments on here, that I believe are not constructive (shoot the horse etc). This person really needs support from the forum to deal with her horse.

My horse is very good to handle, lead, ride, shoe, load etc. However he is aggressive in his stable. He looks over the door and pulls the worst faces/nashing of teeth. I have made sure that he is at the back of the barn, where there is minimal human traffic. He has 2 A4 signs warning people to keep away. I can't bear it when people STILL try to make friends with him over the door. For some reason he hates people looking at him in that confined space.

I have been at yards where he becomes a target for bitchiness and gossip. This only creates a bad atmospere for me in particular. And, as others have said, he then can pick up on the vibes. I have no problem handling him and neither do the staff.

I really think it is unfortunate that your horse has become a target. I would encourage people to stay well away and do as much of his care as you can to minimise different / inconsistent ways of handling, and worry about injury to others.

You need to be firm with him and disciplined with correcting his behaviour. There is no need to scream and shout but he needs firm, confident handling that does not accept certain behaviour.

Have you had a Monty Roberts or similar out?? This is frankly where I would begin. Cut out any barging, bolting and get him to respect you as a leader. In a way you have to be less of a 'peer' to him. Without such help I believe you will not succeed with this horse.

I presume he is on minimal, low sugar and low protein feed? And hay rather than haylage? Maybe introduce a calmer after doing some research? I would definitely have turned out during the snow. My horse has been out all the time with the exception of about 2 days. Any exercise will be helpful.
Please change your username - If you refer to him like this he is already getting labelled - Be careful of this at the yard too. This instance was not his fault if the door was left open.
I really hope you succeed but you need experienced behavioural help urgently. Don't give up if there are behavioural avenues to explore. If some people here think that passing him on is a good option then I am surprised......
 
The horse cornered someone in a barn, and then tried to stomp on him and bite him.......screams dangerous to me, and in fact if I had been that livery I would have demanded action from the YO.

The horse is a product of his environment, and the environment in this case is obviously wrong for him.
If the yard you are at cannot provide the facilities for your horse, find one that better suits his needs!
 
Yep, as per these posts - if a DIY yard then that's exactly what shoud do DO IT YOURSELF! Get the shovels, get some grit/salt or both and get the ground sorted and safe. You say the horse goes out for a couple of hours so therefore presumably it is safe to turn it out?

Once he's out LEAVE HIM OUT!!! 2 hours or 24 hours it doesn't matter the horse is at no greater risk of injury. Unfortunately if a horse is going to injure itself it will - sad fact. Better to let it have its freedom then imprison the poor thing. I am sure if any one of us was shut in our rooms for 22 hours a day we'd all be pretty miffed off and ratty too!!!
 
RIAL.

not sure if you are still reading this,
you say you love him
I get this absolutely and completely.

but do you think he is happy /contended with life as it normally is? I dont mean now in the extremes I mean generally, not all the time but enjoys his work, his companions etc. I know there are horses which do not enjoy being handled.

If the answer is no then I think something has to change for the welfare of this horse as it is not fair on him even taking everyone else out of the equation.
 
"I suspect its attitudes like this....." I don't think my last post had attitude at all. This one might though...... Give me a minute.......nearly there.............. nope.......... its gone. Just like me.
 
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Def agree with this, there are a few people on my yard that like to stretch the truth. I would be very interested to hear how he managed to corner someone, can you find out and let us know!? Especially as being a horse he is a flight animal, not a predator! Surely if the cornered person had just shouted, jumped up and down and waved their arms around a bit, he would have backed off, no?

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in theory yes, in real life no.

not all horse will simply back off if you flap your arms.
i had one horse i bought as a 3yro who would see someone flapping and shouting as a threat and would attack you with teeth and front feet!
his whole philosophy was 'kill or be killed' and he made sure he got in first!

it took a while to change that mindset and during that time i would not go in the stable with him loose and would put his headcollar on over the fence rather than go into the field loose with him.

back to the OP, stop making excuses and turn your horse out!
 
She has said in previous posts that the horse works well under saddle so I would say it's the yard. There are some issues going on there - or maybe a respect thing with the owner.

It must be so dis-heartening to own a horse that behaves like that. It'd break my heart and I wouldn't be able to justify keeping it if there was even a minimal percentage that it could kill me.

I really feel quite sorry for both owner and horse to be honest
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They need to do something positive!
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If this was the first post about this owner/horses problems I wouldn't have outright suggested she shoot him.
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yes, she needs the support of the forum, but she posts time and time again and never takes any of it into consideration.

Which is why I said what I did...
 


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in theory yes, in real life no.

not all horse will simply back off if you flap your arms.
i had one horse i bought as a 3yro who would see someone flapping and shouting as a threat and would attack you with teeth and front feet!
his whole philosophy was 'kill or be killed' and he made sure he got in first!

it took a while to change that mindset and during that time i would not go in the stable with him loose and would put his headcollar on over the fence rather than go into the field loose with him.

back to the OP, stop making excuses and turn your horse out!

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The thing is, I could understand him being agressive if he was the one being cornered either in his stable or in the field, but for him to seek out someone to corner - apparently he went into the barn and did it, that to me just sounds really odd, predatory, something I've never come across before. I don't know if i'm interpreting the OP correctly but that's what it sounded like. But yes you're right, waving your arms and shouting isn't necessarily going to work
 
Poor horse. You don't mean OP that he has been kept in 24/7 since the snow began with no riding and no turn out? Surely not. As for leaving the stable door open, you really have to be more careful.

I wonder if there is not a bit of Munchausen's Syndome by Proxy about this. Even by the OP's username, she seems to sort of revel in getting attention over how difficult her horse is. As someone said, its becoming a self fulfilling prophecy. Its up to you, as owner, to ensure he is safe to handle on the ground. The fact that he isn't is again up to you. Do something about it. Not exercising him or tuning him out is clearly going to make any issues worse.

We all know the type of treatment that makes horses bad to handle/bargey. Its over-affectionate owners, treating them like pets, spoiling them and then suddenly whack! if the horse bites, then its "oh sorry, poor pet blah blah blah" until another bite. The poor horse doesn't know whats wrong and whats right but what it does know is that it doesn't trust the owner to make safe decisions for it so its reasoned that its better to take control of the situation itself.
 
I agree in part with what Tinkerbee says but I dont think it is the horse that needs shooting. This sounds like a mismatch situation to me. The owner doesnt have any understanding of how to deal with this horse and she hasnt had any understanding of it since she bought it as a 5 month old foal. Yes handreared horses can be difficult but *NOT* forever more with correct handling. And certainly not when you have had the animal since 5 months old. This behaviour should have been gently corrected within its first year but it obviously hasnt and the situation has gone from bad to worse with the owner getting more and more out of her depth. My opinion is she needs to sell this horse and give it a chance at becoming a good and decent animal in the hands of someone who knows what they are doing. The longer this horse remains with this person the more damage this horse could do.

A horse by and large is a product of what we make them. It sounds like this poor horse hasnt stood a chance in hell in making a positive impact on the world. Poor animal.
 
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