Coming to call

Tilda said:
Thanks brightbay I might give that a go although I might have to take it to another level of getting him to put his head in the headcollar as we can get near him but if we go to put the headcollar on or even just get hold of it if we leave it on him then he swings his bum round and has been known to double barrel!
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That's a separate issue in itself which needs addressing and should never be acceptable.
 
Pandoras jar I have tried literally everything that has worked with other bad catchers I have come across (mainly other peoples) and nothing worked. The biting the carrot worked once but never again, he only gets ridden 4/5 times a week and gets caught everyday even when out 24/7 and often just for a quick check over, a carrot and then let go again. He was in a herd of 3 and was bottom of the pecking order and this is when he became at his most difficult so that's why he has been separated. I spent 4 hours in the field last year and whilst his fieldmates would wander over to me Max didn't come near.

When he swings and attempts to kick he gets chased away as he would in a herd and that's when I started the join up. This was another reason for moving him because chasing him round a 4 acre field for up to an hour was not ideal even though his brilliant field mates just stood and watched and whilst it eventually worked I couldn't keep up with him which defeated the object. He is perfect at join up in the arena and always follows me round and respects my space in all other situations. Hence the absolute last resort option of moving him to a paddock on his own!
 
Tilda said:
Pandoras jar I have tried literally everything that has worked with other bad catchers I have come across (mainly other peoples) and nothing worked. The biting the carrot worked once but never again, he only gets ridden 4/5 times a week and gets caught everyday even when out 24/7 and often just for a quick check over, a carrot and then let go again. He was in a herd of 3 and was bottom of the pecking order and this is when he became at his most difficult so that's why he has been separated. I spent 4 hours in the field last year and whilst his fieldmates would wander over to me Max didn't come near.

When he swings and attempts to kick he gets chased away as he would in a herd and that's when I started the join up. This was another reason for moving him because chasing him round a 4 acre field for up to an hour was not ideal even though his brilliant field mates just stood and watched and whilst it eventually worked I couldn't keep up with him which defeated the object. He is perfect at join up in the arena and always follows me round and respects my space in all other situations. Hence the absolute last resort option of moving him to a paddock on his own!
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Have to say 4 hours would have done nothing with our old liveries. It took mainly the full day over the course of a couple of weeks to get her to coming over and not legging it. Then worked on headcollar on and off. She was ridden regularly by being cornered and caught and had been trained but took several months for me to catch easily by myself (don't like cornering method). I could never catch at feeding time though so she always came in if needed before any were hayed.

Never had a horse that took so long before but she needed a proper bond.
 
You see the problem I have is that I don't have all day everyday to do this I have a job, a child and other responsibilities. My horse is also on assisted DIY (minimum offered by yard and it took me 5 years to find this yard which is brilliant) and the yard managers have to catch him 2 or 3 days a week so even if I put the time in I can't really expect them to do the same! We will keep him as he is over the winter (he is only out for 7 hours anyway and always very happy to come in) and I will continue to work on our bond (although as I say in every other way we have a fab relationship I have managed to get clippers on him without a twitch which his previous owners couldn't after 4 years) and hopefully come the summer he will be in the routine of being caught everyday and be able to go back to his friends.
 
Sorry meant to say thank you for the suggestions though I will keep the idea of sitting in the field all day in mind for the summer :)
 
Tilda said:
You see the problem I have is that I don't have all day everyday to do this I have a job, a child and other responsibilities. My horse is also on assisted DIY (minimum offered by yard and it took me 5 years to find this yard which is brilliant) and the yard managers have to catch him 2 or 3 days a week so even if I put the time in I can't really expect them to do the same! We will keep him as he is over the winter (he is only out for 7 hours anyway and always very happy to come in) and I will continue to work on our bond (although as I say in every other way we have a fab relationship I have managed to get clippers on him without a twitch which his previous owners couldn't after 4 years) and hopefully come the summer he will be in the routine of being caught everyday and be able to go back to his friends.
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Old liveries was a dream once in. But bond had to be in the field too.
It isn't great fun spending days doing it when you have other things on your plate. But I found that the time saved by doing this added up very quickly! After 4 months of spending a couple of hours mucking around catching said pony each side of the day before and after work I was quite happy to take some holiday and spend time (I'd much rather have been spending with my own) doing this to save in the long run.

Sorry probably haven't come across great on the computer.
 
Not at all I appreciate you answering and your suggestions. One of my YMs I know would put the time in with me (the one max let's catch him as much as me) but the other definitely wouldn't and as she covers the one evening I absolutely can't get to the yard due to work the problem would remain. Some things to think on though and at least I know it has worked before so probably will be worth it rather than an unknown!

Thanks again and sorry OP to hijack your thread!
 
amymay said:
No, never taught a horse to come to call. Simply for the reason that I don't want them galloping up the field and trashing it.
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Nope, same here never taught horses to come to call... Ebs and pickles used to do all they could to make me come to them:rolleyes: Ben is always waiting for me at the gate or comes to call naturally though... Can't say what a joy it is:D
 
I have taught Chico to recognise me coming to the field by whistling him.

I just give a quick wistle and his head pops up from the ground and he ambles/trots/gallops over (depending on how keen he's feeling that day)
 
I feel your pain Tilta, the first horse I had as a teen was a nightmare to catch. He was wild caught and would have been sold for slaughter if our yard hadn't bought him and his brother. Zack, on the other hand, always comes up to the gate with a nicker the minute he either sees or hears me and has since pretty much day one. I get the feeling Zack relishes human contact and actually looks forward to it, whereas my first horse never seemed to care much about the attention I gave him unless food were involved. It took years to train him to catch reliably, and even then he still went through the odd difficult phase.

Spending time with him loose in our arena with no tack or headcollar helped a lot initially. At first he'd just go in the arena and totally ignore me and scrounge around for whatever food might be available, but after awhile he learned to play and chase me around over jumps and things. About the time he started enjoying playing was when he became easier to catch, so I put two and two together.

I don't know much about your relationship with your guy Tilda, but I hope it comes right for you soon, I know how awful and helpless it feels when they just will. not. come. in!
 
Thanks keelind it's nice to hear from people who've been there. I am sure we will get over it in time I have only had him 11 months and his previous owners used to herd him into a field shelter even after 4 years of ownership so he is already better for me. Otherwise he is my perfect horse and has helped me get over a huge loss of confidence so he is worth the effort :)
 
Thanks brightbay I might give that a go although I might have to take it to another level of getting him to put his head in the headcollar as we can get near him but if we go to put the headcollar on or even just get hold of it if we leave it on him then he swings his bum round and has been known to double barrel!
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Again, this is very easy (and quick, relative to chasing a horse around a field) to resolve using clicker training - Lucyad on here did it with hard to catch Pony, and ended up with a pony who would gallop over when he saw the headcollar. It is just a case of breaking it down into small steps. Trying to trick the horse by luring with a carrot only works once, but if you break it down and use plenty of rewards you turn the headcollar into a good thing from the horse's point of view rather than something to be avoided.

Again, I'd suggest having a look at Hannah Dawson's videos/website for more detail :)

It's hard to describe in a short post, but when you use clicker training, it very quickly stops being about the food - the horse learns to enjoy the game.
 
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