Colty yearlings

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magic104

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www.jc-countryside.co.uk
We have a newbie at the yard, a yearling appy by August Harrier. Not sure if his behaviour is due to all the changes or he is a hoolie/rig. He has been owned for a month & this is his 2nd move in that move. Anyway he is being a nightmare to lead, rearing & striking out, bitting etc. Earlier this week someone else tried leading him, & all they did was growl at him, he went up tried striking at her, came down swung round & tried to kick her. Anyway today the YO tried to lead him out & managed to loose him, because he reared up, came down getting the line under his front leg. After galloping to the end of the drive, he thought better of going on the round turned round & galloped back, running through people until he got back to his stable. I put my in-hand bridle on him, along with a lunge line & led him back, on the way he went up & landed on my chest (no damage done). Anyway got him down to my paddock because I have agreed to let him stay out with mine. He is going to stay out 24/7 for a while now & hopefully with another yearling & the colt to play with he may settle down a bit. He is a bit stressy in the stable, he paws at his bedding, he is has no space awareness, & bites a lot. He came direct from the stud & was still running with his dam. The stud are not giving much away ie how the weaning went or anything. I along with a few others have suggested she get a blood test done if he carries on with this behaviour. The only reason I have mentioned the stallion is in case anyone on here knows of his stock. I have escaped these kind of antics, so have never had to deal with them in my own youngsters. My yearling is a bit mouthy, but he does not mean to bit you, he chews on lead ropes & may try nibbling at you, but he does not go to bite. This years colt is a bit more full of himself & I think he could go the way of this yearling if I am not careful. So any ideas folks, have any of you experienced a youngster wanting to come back at you in this way? His owner is aware that she needs to be firm & show him boundaries, but again she has never had a youngster behave like this.
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Forgive me if you've said, but is he a colt or a gelding? (If a colt surely you dont need a blood test?).
Sounds a bad case of basic lack of manners. Id advise a chifney and a smack between the legs with a bit of blue pipe every time he goes up.
 
second the chifney - or a pressure halter if the owner doesn't want to use a chifney
but he cannot continue this behaviour

sounds like a spoilt/unhandled brat chucking his weight around to me and never been put in his place - you're bit about having no space awareness tacks into that as well

maybe he's also not been stabled before ?

hope he isn't horrible to other horses as well - are you sure you want to risk yours with him ?
 
I agree with AmyMay sounds like he hasnt been handled properly or at all. I wouldnt use a chifney on a yearling. I would chuck him out with some friends (like you have done) and let him settle in, especially as hes been moved around a lot.
 
second the blue pipe and keep doing it untill he learns, sounds like hes just been allowed to behave badly
 
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Sounds a bad case of basic lack of manners. Id advise a chifney and a smack between the legs with a bit of blue pipe every time he goes up.

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Forgive my ignorance, but why does the pipe have to be blue? Does the colour make a difference?
 
Well he has settled in with mine, & Mo in less the 24hrs allows him to play with her boy. He will stay out this week & we will see how he is at the weekend. I think it has all been too much for him & he is lacking confidence so has gone on the defence. I think this with little handling before he was sold has contributed to this behaviour. This evening he & my yearing were having a great gallop around & I think he has lacked this the past month at least. Perhaps being able to play & let of steam may help as well. The bridle gave more control, so we will play it by ear.
 
Glad things seem a little calmer. Please don't let them resort to violence - aka blue pipe and chiffney. Sounds like he just needs time to adjust, and have some regular, firm handling.
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Sounds a bad case of basic lack of manners. Id advise a chifney and a smack between the legs with a bit of blue pipe every time he goes up.

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Forgive my ignorance, but why does the pipe have to be blue? Does the colour make a difference?

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Alkathine (sp?) just happens to generally be blue. It's hollow and made of plastic and makes a thwacking, hollow noise - which is often more alarming than any negligible pain caused by it - I should know, I've been whacked with one
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What is violent about blue pipe and a chifney?

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Maybe violence was the wrong word - but it's a bit 'all guns blazing' I think.

Generally a huge respector of what you say Vici - just can't agree with you on this.
 
Loose and rearing horses are no good for anyone.
Put a chifney on and he probably wont even try, if he does a tap with a blue stick(only a stick because it is an extension of your hand) and he probably wont do it again.
I definetly didnt mean crack him one and yank his back teeth out!:-)
 
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I definetly didnt mean crack him one and yank his back teeth out!

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No I know you didn't
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But you're talking to someone who refused point blank to hold a twitch on a yearling earlier this year
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I'll go back and hug my tree............
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I should know, I've been whacked with one
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Well we have all told you about your habit of rearing...it was the last resort
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I should know, I've been whacked with one
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Well we have all told you about your habit of rearing...it was the last resort
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I know, I know - it was one of my many vices. Emphasis on the 'was' - I don't do it anymore - I didn't need a chiffney though
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Glad things seem a little calmer. Please don't let them resort to violence - aka blue pipe and chiffney. Sounds like he just needs time to adjust, and have some regular, firm handling.
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When your brat is using your chest as a landing zone after rearing...some stronger lessons than 'time to adjust' may be required
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Well it seems to have worked, he is a lot calmer about things, so fingers crossed it carries on. I dont think we would resort to a chiffney just yet, not on a yearling when the bridle seems to have done the job for now. I do think it was a confidence issue & now he does not feel so threatened he has backed off. No you dont want them rearing up, & coming down on you, but sometimes you need to take the pressure off.
 
I can understand your hesitation in using a chifney on this youngster. I've recently been experiencing similar behaviour with my yearling colt but not half as violent, he likes to bite and rear and doesnt enjoy doing anything that doesnt include grazing with his friends. I have resorted to a chifney purely because, i believe at his age he is old enough to start experiencing different thinks like walking through puddles, being introduced to passing vehicles ect. My colt is over 15hh now and the only way he could be lead out to do this was if my husband took him as he was far too strong, and frequently camedown on my head. He has responded excellently, I havent even had an altercation with him when he's in it, he turns into a little seaside donkey. I've not needed to resort to a chifney with any of my previous youngsters although none have ever been especially colty like this, I wouldnt hesitate to do it in the future though. Just treat him with the respect he deserves when using one as with any bit.
 
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