Door kicking

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MollyCon

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My young horse (who is used to being stabled) kicks her stable door incesantly. I put her hard feed into a ball and she has a JollyBall, a salt lick, and the pony next door to play with (they seem to like throwing their feed buckets over the wall at each other), but kicks the door none the less. Naturally, she does it more at feeding times and when there are people around, but the yard is close to a privately owned bungalow and the family living there say they can hear her kicking at all hours, including during the night. With all her toys and her friend next door she can't possibly be lonely or bored, so any suggestions for what I can do to get her to stop?
 
Not sure how you can get her to stop, but you could try nailing some old carpet pieces to her door to muffle the sound ( for the neighbours!) and maybe she won't find it so satisfying and decide to stop? Sorry, best I can do! I'm sure there are others here who can suggest lots to help.
 
You could fasten the door back completely and fit a deep, webbing stall guard. With no door to kick, the problem is solved. However, if your pony has a feedball, that won't work as if the feedball rolls out of the stable, your pony may do something daft in frustration! A simple solution is to fix a long piece of spare carpet to a piece of 4" by 2" wood the width of the stable door. Then you fasten the piece of wood to the stable door so that the carpet hangs inside the stable, clearing the door by a couple of inches. The pony kicks and the majority of the energy behind the kick is absorbed by the free hanging carpet. If the kick is hard enough to make the carpet touch the stable door, most of the energy will already have been absorbed and all you should hear is a soft thud. Be prepared to have to change the carpet now and then - just hang on to old bits of carpet and get friends and family to give you 1st refusal if they're changing carpets. Doesn't matter how manky the carpet is, nobody will see it except your horse!
 
I had a mare that did this, mostly round feeding time but it's very annoying! The carpet thing definately works. Or I used a piece of rubber matting left over from when I matted the stable which lasts longer and looks a bit neater! If you don't have matting, you could contact somewhere that sells it and maybe negotiate a cheap off-cut. :D
 
Ditto the quit kick - I have one for a jumper who kicks if he thinks another horse is getting more attention than he is! Although I have seen the electric tape approach it isn't something I would reccommend other than as a very last ditch desperate measure.

But if you have a quit kick on watch out when putting feed over the stable door. If you get too close you'll trigger the spray which shoots right up your front! Bitter experience talking....
 
Shay said:
Ditto the quit kick - I have one for a jumper who kicks if he thinks another horse is getting more attention than he is! Although I have seen the electric tape approach it isn't something I would reccommend other than as a very last ditch desperate measure.

But if you have a quit kick on watch out when putting feed over the stable door. If you get too close you'll trigger the spray which shoots right up your front! Bitter experience talking....
Click to expand...

how much are they? thanks
 
I had a pony that kicked incessantly and the neighbours complained, it drove me bonkers too. In the field she would kick the water trough at first light when she wanted breakfast!
A slip rail across the doorway of the stable worked for a bit then she just started kicking the wall next to the door. We tried balloons, no good and carpet was OK as at least it made her quieter. Finally she ended up with broom heads, good hard bristly ones, screwed to the wall at all kicking points. Eventually her whole stable had them!
 
if the neighbours say they can hear her at all hours, does that mean there are people around the stables at all hours ? replace the door with a web door grill, my cob also does this but since putting the web door grill in place it is not as bad, also I just feed him when he starts a handful of hay is all it takes for peace and quiet, simples
 
I have 5 horses within 5 metres of my head when I'm in bed (and 30+ within earshot) and believe me some horses do kick at 2am, 3am, 4am when there's no-one around. We have 2 quitkick units that we rotate around the 'frequent offenders'. Some horses learn after their first stint with the quitkick but others need a reminder every now and then.
 
I found that placing the water bucket at the stable door stopped my horse getting close enough to kick the door and he stopped. You have to use a proper heavy duty plastic water bucket, not a flimsy one or flexi trug type....Or you can fill a bucket with bricks if you find he is spilling the water. It certainly worked for me....I would drag it across to the door at night then put it back in the corner in the morning.
 
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