Eeekkkk terrifying isn’t it . People say “they feel your fear” but how can you not be a bit worried … my brain just can’t pick that battle daily. I tend to jump off now as he’s ok if I’m “protecting him” on the scary side. Mine was also shod and the person we were out with said sparks were flying off each hoof.
I was watching a youtube by Temple Grandin (animal behaviourist with autism perspective), and she touched on this.
I agree 100% with this, and the analogy applies to some other ‘baby steps’, ‘little by little’, introduction processes used with horses, too. Sounds logical to people, not necessarily to the horse!
Another very good point I’d not really considered. Do you have a link ?
I'll see if I can find it again...
Mine was 29!! At what point do they become sensible?
Would be a no from me, I get the logic but he is so flighty I have visions of him running through a fence in a sheer panic. Added to the fact he’s a chubby cob on a mega diet
. He is gorgeous.
Dave will definitely sacrifice me.
Aww thank you , Yes he’s mostly happy to feed me to the lions , he kind of buries his head in me so he can’t see
.
This has worked for us very well. It's not a perfect process as if she is tense about something else (wind, rain, the moon) the cows will still be a problem, but it is miles better. Treat as soon as she sees a cow, I say HELLO COWS*. If she needs to stand and watch them for a couple of minutes she can, more treats if she goes closer or CALMLY goes past, if they come closer and she gets tense but stays where she is she gets another treat, if she needs me to get off and lead past I will, if they're too bouncy we turn round. But tbh she is a horse that usually goes for curiosity first rather than flight, I have done a lot of R+ with "new" objects so she has a foundation and she isn't punished for stopping or spooking. We also did a lot of in hand grazing beside any cows I could find. If "run away at light speed" is an already ingrained response you kinda have to work backwards through almost every interaction with that result before you can move to something more relaxed. I don't blame people who don't take the risk.
It has been hard work, when I have my own confidence issues too, but I was proud as punch to see that kind of progress. 
if still doing a lightening 180 then legging it aged 29, accept it as a tribute to great health and good care!This sounds the most sensible for OP’s situation, and sure your husband’s dead right.
He’s a complex little being , can at times respond well to treats/reassurance , even get him grazing next to fence by them , but then the next day/week blind panic ensues. He’s much better with me on foot leading him. It’s hard to find a suitable nanny as the most reliable old mare took off after him last time , and I don’t want to scare anyone. We have quite a few livestock phobic horses at our small yard.This has worked for us very well. It's not a perfect process as if she is tense about something else (wind, rain, the moon) the cows will still be a problem, but it is miles better. Treat as soon as she sees a cow, I say HELLO COWS*. If she needs to stand and watch them for a couple of minutes she can, more treats if she goes closer or CALMLY goes past, if they come closer and she gets tense but stays where she is she gets another treat, if she needs me to get off and lead past I will, if they're too bouncy we turn round. But tbh she is a horse that usually goes for curiosity first rather than flight, I have done a lot of R+ with "new" objects so she has a foundation and she isn't punished for stopping or spooking. We also did a lot of in hand grazing beside any cows I could find. If "run away at light speed" is an already ingrained response you kinda have to work backwards through almost every interaction with that result before you can move to something more relaxed. I don't blame people who don't take the risk.
We actually had to rescue a lost calf the other week and last year she wouldn't have stood within 30m of a stressed out baby cow, but she just stood and watched me herd it round back into it's field and didn't even get tense when it tried to come over and make her and her mare friend it's new herd
*If we see a sheep, it's morphed into "HELLO SCHNEEP" for reasons I can't fathom.
Yes her approach works well for her /moo but I am a bit of a pony patter/a soft touch and when I have shouted (even not at him) he has what can only be described as a horse panic attack, trembles, jumps hood to hood looking for an escape route .
I love this , this is Apollo all over. He equally guards me from all his friends and gets extremely jealous if I fuss the others. Wish he’d be that brave faced with a little pig.This sounds the most sensible for OP’s situation, and sure your husband’s dead right.
I do sympathise as we’ve got one big girl’s blouse that could be led through the very gates of hell -
“danger threatens - women & children first.... after you”,
attitude, really irritating, I could kill him on occasion (if he doesn’t manage to take us both out first!)
Sadly I’m less agile, no choice but try and ride it through
I get it, a nanny is only good if they aren't scared of the same things and you have to just get lucky. We will lead others past bins and flapping plastic and road signs, plant machinery etc but need led past cows and a hole in the hedge and getting the perfect combo for the same hack is impossible
I’m a proud pony patter, he’s my sanity and a pet above all else, riding is a bonus.I get it, a nanny is only good if they aren't scared of the same things and you have to just get lucky. We will lead others past bins and flapping plastic and road signs, plant machinery etc but need led past cows and a hole in the hedge and getting the perfect combo for the same hack is impossible
The inconsistency is probably just trigger stacking for him. I have to judge the days where she can cope with cows and the days I will end up on the ground anyway and just have to make it my choice on how I get there. If he is better on foot then I would just keep working on it on foot, possibly a painful process in terms of time and your legs but the more opportunities he gets to the point of running away, the more ingrained the response becomes. My focus was just avoiding the flight response at all costs at the beginning (after her taking off at a canter towards a 60mph road and scaring the life out of me) even if that meant hand walking a mile to look at a cow 2 fields away, having a treat and a graze and then going home again. When we had a bit of a set back at the start of this summer I was back to hand walking past them, even with a good nanny horse with us.
I will also say, even with 2+ years of mostly R+ training and hard work under our belts and a lot of good progress, getting a qualified equine behaviourist on board was the best thing I ever did. For better, more consistent reward timing and communication, but also the confidence to be seen as a soft touch/ pony patter if that's what my horse needs for her confidence. Maybe some people can just ride their horses through fear and panic but I don't want to.
My Appy is nightblind and although she shouldn't technically have issues in daylight I'm not convinced.
My mare i the mare has a lot of fear, passing walker in tweed clothing, other peoples wheelie bins, pigeons, moving vegetation , continually looking to spook for 90% of the hack, to the point you dare not go faster than trot, snorts eyes wide, head up like giraffe. Duke of E ruck sacks on kids, you name it. Doesn't mind donkeys or carriage as we had those here before.My boy is 15 so no spring chicken , I’ve posted very similar posts before and taken advice on board.
He has a fear of all livestock (bar sheep !) so cows, donkeys, pigs, goats. His go to fear wise is generally poops himself , trembles and runs whilst making that awful noise I have named the death snort. He lived next to pigs for a whole year and still reacted the same every time he saw them. He is as good as gold with road works/lorries/motorbikes etc. people will say “put him in a field with cows” but I’m not going to do that, would cause himself injury as it’s blind panic. Weirdly if they are head down eating, he kind of jogs past but if they are looking at him no chance.
Do you sometimes just accept that is them … rather than trying to fix it? He’s the kind of boy I could do tons of work with moving past cows in hand etc but then if those cows move to another field or are different cows , right back at square one(big baby)
He has no health conditions bar asthma which is managed well.
He’s gently plodded along past fire engines whizzing past with sirens on , it’s just living creatures
I’m at a point that I think do I just not keep pushing and hoping and just avoid , it’s also not that safe to keep trying as most are alongside busy ish roads. I’ve owned him 5 years and he’s come a long long way but this issue nope!
