Curing a door kicker?

I have metal doors so if a horse bangs it reverberates all around! Day time mine stand behind chains so no noise. It also gives better ventilation and is quicker for people going in and out the stable.

I will not tollerate door banging and I am not spending out money on something to stop them when there is no need.
As someone said, a horse bangs to gain attention. If the attention he gets is not what he wanted then he will stop banging fast.

If a horse bangs the door then I go into attack mode and will charge to their stable and frighten the heck out of them by chasing them around the stable.

Some years ago I had a bad door banger in the form of a 14.2 pony. He would bang non stop if he fancied it.
Bad enough during the day but at night it was a bit much.
One night he had been bashing for about an hour. That was it. I was out of bed and ran to his stable picking up a broom on the way. I chased him around the stable and used the bristles of the broom on his belly - never physically hurt him but sire as heck frightened the door banging out of him. He never did it again.
He left my care and returned several years later. First feed time he started to bash the door, I called out his name and he ran to the back of the stable and never did it again whilst with me.

They want attention - give it to them but no in the way they want.
 
Foxhunter49 said:
I have metal doors so if a horse bangs it reverberates all around! Day time mine stand behind chains so no noise. It also gives better ventilation and is quicker for people going in and out the stable.

I will not tollerate door banging and I am not spending out money on something to stop them when there is no need.
As someone said, a horse bangs to gain attention. If the attention he gets is not what he wanted then he will stop banging fast.

If a horse bangs the door then I go into attack mode and will charge to their stable and frighten the heck out of them by chasing them around the stable.

Some years ago I had a bad door banger in the form of a 14.2 pony. He would bang non stop if he fancied it.
Bad enough during the day but at night it was a bit much.
One night he had been bashing for about an hour. That was it. I was out of bed and ran to his stable picking up a broom on the way. I chased him around the stable and used the bristles of the broom on his belly - never physically hurt him but sire as heck frightened the door banging out of him. He never did it again.
He left my care and returned several years later. First feed time he started to bash the door, I called out his name and he ran to the back of the stable and never did it again whilst with me.

They want attention - give it to them but no in the way they want.
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This!:D:D:D

I once bought a setter that began barking at first light. OK in winter when it gets light at 9am (in Scotland) but in summer it is light by 3.30am!

Every evening, I'd fill a bucket of water and place it beside the kennel gate. Every morning I'd stumble out in dressing gown and slippers, throw the bucket of water over him, and crawl back into bed.

Unfortunately, dogs are more persistent than horses and it took about three weeks!;)
 
Love the idea of changing the bottom half of the door into rubber matting, will suggest this. Unfortunately horse is out in a field with post and electric wire, mains powered so he kicks the gates until they splinter and fall apart at the post! He's also not the kind of horse anyone could chase around the box with a broom because he would come back at you, he was badly abused in the past and now likes to get in first so only his owner can get in his box, but even then not with a broom. Under saddle he's a great ride, jumps beautifully and loves xc but unfortunately he's dangerous on the ground, and at 16.2 and built like a tank I wouldn't argue with him! Will definitely suggest the rubber matting though as I think this could work. :):):)
 
As others have said if they kick, don't reward them with food.

Also found that putting carpet on the door and stuffing straw behind the door muffles the sound so its much easier to ignore them! There's nothing worse than the sound of a consistent door kicker :(

Bikerchicone If the horse is kicking the gate can't you put a bit of leccy tape up so he can't get near the gate?
 
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Well said amymay, the thought of these door kickers being squirted, hit, screamed at, food withheld leaves me in terms, mine is a door kicker I gave him the chain and make ure he is fed first saves a lot of tears.
 
One thousand present recommend a Quit Kick. Have been got by it myself a few times!! The jets go to the side so not straight up in the face. It doesn't take them long to stop banging and then you can get a dummy kit so the horse still thinks it is there. It has certainly saved me loosing a very good worker as she lives next door to the horse and it was driving her nuts!!
 
Samba is a door kicker none of us hard feed it's more of a let me out floor pawing ( which she does out of the stable too) or door kick. I shut my top door on her and she sulks for a bit. Although not having an immediate effect she is banging less. She has the door shut 2-3min max
 
Thanks for the suggestion Monkeybum, we have tried this but he walks straight through it! This horse is most definitely not the easiest around, it was full on mains powered electric too so not weak in any way but he's determined! It drives his owner mad but because he's had a bad time it's really difficult to manage him safely/successfully. Thank you very much for the suggestion though. :)
 
A few years ago we bought my daughter a new horse, 16.1 thug, hunter type. He spent the first night banging his door until my hubby said, 'if its going to do that every night you can take it back!'
I made up a square of electric rope by screwing the insulators to the stable side of the door frame and using gate hooks as a 'door'. Then threaded the rope through some hosepipe to go over the door to the electric box, pushed into the ground outside. This then meant that the rope square stood proud of the door frame allowing the horse to look over the door but if he got too close or lifted his leg he got zapped either at the base of his neck or on his leg.
Result? One very polite horse who neither kicked the door any more nor pushed to come out of his box in a hurry and respected the rope even if it was off.
I then had a portable grid made up, that hung from the door which meant I could take it to shows like PUK temporary stabling, somewhere he wouldn't have been in long with his kicking habit!!
 
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I like horses to feel a bit secure in their stables so wouldn't do anything that shocked, scared, chased etc. My concern would be that you'd replace one stable stress behaviour with another, maybe one that was more acceptable or less noticeable. I like Amymay's suggestion, and it would work unless there are other stress factors going on as well. Also, look at ways to stop the door kicking making a noise, like thick padding. The idea of putting a rubber lower door sound like a good 'un, unless you have a determined limbo horse.
 
I agree with Tinypony and AmyMay - I have one who door kicks for his feed, I just don't care, it is a bit annoying, but I have people around me who are annoying, I wouldn't spray them in the face though. his manners in every other aspect are perfect.

I make up all the feeds before they come in and put them in their stables ready so they just walk in and start eating. Doesn't alleviate the morning feed but I quite like their little quirks, they are all different and happy to be being fed.
 
Phew! A couple of us agree with a less confrontational approach then.
Problem with door kickers is not just that they might get "rewarded" with food, but people react to them. People will often be shouting, waving stuff at them and generally interacting with them as a result of the behaviour. This can have one of two effects, either it is some sort of reward to a horse that wants attention, or it just stresses a horse that is stressed anyway. So often we feel as if we have to actively "do something" about unwanted behaviours in horses, but maybe looking at the reason and dealing with that is less stressful all round, for the horse and people.
Being stabled is difficult for some horses anyway, so why risk making it worse? For example, you can electrify the door (!) and give them a zap. Horse will surely stop door kicking, but there's got to be a danger of making them uneasy about being in the stable, maybe unwilling to simply come and look over the door? Remove the cause if we can (as Amymay suggests), remove the irritation to the humans (rubber mat etc) and chill.
 
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