Following the horse kicked dog post in TR

[meleeka]

My lot are pretty good with dogs. The only one who’s ever kicked one is my ancient Welsh mare. We were all so gobsmacked at her energy and aim (it was SIL’s spaniel running past at full speed), it took a minute to sink in what she’d done ?

My mini will chase my German Shepherd. He’s fine if dogs don’t run, but he thinks chase is a really good game. We have a footpath next to the field and he’s the resident security if dogs stray in. They usually run out pretty quickly when he goes after them.

The others all just ignore dogs.

 

[SEL]

Our yard has footpaths crossing the fields. In most of the fields there is electric fence keeping the horses off the paths and signs asking walkers to keep dogs on leads (a spaniel killed one of the chickens recently). The number of dog walkers who don't think the signs apply to them astounds me.

I recently pointed out the sign to a lady and she said her dog didn't chase horses and marched off. I watched her in the bottom field where the dog slipped under the fence and was happily trotting around the paddock while she ignored it. My mare will chase loose dogs - she had a play friend as a foal and still thinks it's a game.

 

[DabDab]

My dogs have always just learnt to coexist with the horses. For certain situations I lock the dogs out of the way, but by and large they are fine just milling around the yard. They know to stay out of the fields and school unless I'm with them on foot and they all understand the command of 'get out' which means to remove themselves beyond the next fence or wall. They know not to come down the barn when one of the horses is out.

I completely understand why people would choose to keep the two separate, but I would honestly much rather have dogs who know how to stay out of trouble around the yard - in case of accidental escape/release if nothing else.

 

[paddy555]

It was a horse vet who rocked up at ours and let his JRT out to roam the place without asking…

The resident dog, who we had shut in the house, was exceptionally unimpressed at the intruder.

that would piss me off. Our vets usually bring a dog and always leave it in the car.
Anyone who politely leaves their dog in the car I always offer them to let it out for a few minutes or a stable and drink for the dog if it is hot.

 

[LadyGascoyne]

I expect my dog to be excellent with horses, and my horses to be excellent with dogs.

They are totally different animals to train. I’ve trained my horses not to be reactive to dogs, and I’ve trained my dog to be focussed on me permanently.

Rio knows that he doesn’t cross into other fields without me directing him to. I direct him to where he can run with hand signals, otherwise he’s at heel or sitting and waiting where I have asked him to.

He knows not to approach the horses unless he’s taken the cue from me. He will run alongside if we are hacking on the farm. The horses consider this normal - and that’s training, because they have accepted a predator running alongside them. Rio does not fall behind as he is focussed on being level with me, and they do not worry about the dog. Horses have learned to carry a predator on their backs, they can learn to respect a dog.

Of course, that is only really feasible when both the dog and the horses are well trained, and the dog isn’t crowding the horse or being aggressive/ defensive. Rio a collie so it’s not terribly difficult to train him. My animals live at home and I expect them to coexist without drama.

If we are out and about, it is another matter. Rio will be on a lead, even though he’s highly trained - I don’t trust other people to have their dogs trained. If he sees a horse, we sit and wait for it to pass. He knows not to approach horses unless asked to.

Out and about my horses are expected to be polite and stand if asked so if a dog approaches, we stand until the owner has gained control of it. I absolutely would not tolerate kicking or stamping, but they know how to stand quietly so half the battle is won before we add a dog to the equation.

If a dog jumped up, bit, or chased if we were in motion, I would forgive a protective kick. I would be furious with the owner though. Training our animals is our responsibility and I keep up my end of the bargain. Too many people have barely trained animals these days - both dogs and horses.

Rio and Mimosa - Rio is outside the field, focussed on me and waiting for instruction. Mimosa is just impatient to go on a hack ?

 

[MissMay]

it wouldnt even be up for discussion for my dog not to come with me- we have our own yard and loads of land for hacking and he loves it.
The horses are just taught to get over themselves we mostly breed our own so he is there from day 1 and after the first day ridingwith him they usually just ignore might take a few days with anxious ones but seeing no other horse take notice works. the only thing he does we cant stop him is he starts barking as soon as the horse is fully tacked and doesnt stop until we walk out the gate with excitement.

Our all hunt so it means they are fully hound proof by him running around by the time they go.

 

[Clodagh]

I had a very spooky, nappy mare BITD when I was brave. She went beautifully if Sash the lurcher came on hacks, and didn’t even react to Sash charging off or sneaking back through hedges.

 

[scruffyponies]

We graze the horses loose on the lawn whilst we play football with the dogs, who are big mastiff types.
Several free-range chickens on the pitch complete the ensemble. Occasionally this might even coincide with the 'pitch' being mowed.
Dogs are focussed on the ball and the game - they see horses (and chickens) as part of normal life here. Horses are stuffing their face with contraband grass, and half the time don't even move if ball or dog accidentally runs into them.

 

[Roasted Chestnuts]

I don’t like loose dogs around my horses however I taught my dogs to ride out with me and they would heel to my leg when ridden just as they would if I was walking also lead from the horse as well but this wasn’t a everyday occurrence. My old boy would kill a dog if it were in his field hence why I never really mixed them. Always told YOs if they had dogs that he did it so they were aware.

I have exposed Faran to dogs, so far all good experiences but there will more than likely come a time where he won’t have A good experience so time will tell what he does.

 

[Michen]

I find the blanket dogs and horses don’t and shouldn’t mix attitude a bit odd tbh. What about hunt horses?

My dog hacks with me every time I hack weather allowing. She is trained to stop with both hand, voice and whistle and not move off the spot. Knows to go in front or behind or heel aka walk alongside even whilst I’m riding. Or come in aka be near me but not at “heel”.

Both my horses have hunted and neither have so much as lifted a hoof to my dog or any other dog. I think Boggle once flattened an ear as a youngster and got reprimanded. Surely it’s good to teach your horse to be tolerant of dogs for the inevitable idiots that have them off lead and running up to you out hacking anyway?

IMO with correct training for both animals it’s rare that the two can’t mix quite happily. Always exceptions of course.

 

[iknowmyvalue]

I expect Posy to behave herself around horses/dogs/livestock. I'm a mixed vet, so she encounters all sorts. Though I'd never let her out without asking an owners permission, though usually don't even ask just leave her in the van unless they offer. She'll also hack out with me, gets an "away" growl if she gets too close for comfort.

Helped that I worked on a yard when she was a baby and she came to work with me, and now being a vet dog she's used to being around livestock/horses/other dogs. Also Henry is great with dogs, but once (trying to be friends) shoved her with his nose when she was about 12wks old and she's never wanted to go too near a horse ever since.

Agree with others that you can teach both species to accept life together to some extent. But again, horses are so much bigger and might not notice a dog or might spook at something else and tread on them, so I'd always teach a dog to give a horse space just in case.

 

[laura_nash]

I've had four dogs since having a horse and they were all different.

Our first lurcher was amazingly well behaved and well trained from the day we got him as an adult. I suspect he'd been a poachers dog (from the history we had and his reaction to torches). He responded to voice commands or hand signals and didn't need to be trained to behave around the horses as he just did as he was told and went / stayed where he was put as usual.

The greyhound could never be completely trusted and was never really allowed loose around the horses, especially loose ones in fields or ponies or foals. She was scared of larger horses and would keep well away from them if they were tied up or in a stable.

Our second lurcher came to us with a bunch of bad behaviours and we had to teach him to behave around horses the same as we did for sheep, i.e. we would undo his normal lead but still have him on a long-line and harness we could use to re-inforce the "no" if he didn't respond immediately. He wasn't trusted loose around them without close supervision (i.e. if I was concentrating on something else) for about 4 years but became very good eventually about staying close but not too close and giving them space.

My current terrier-type mongrel is very quick to understand what is wanted of him without really needing training, i.e. if I tell him to stay out of the field when I'm going in then he just does. I've never really known a dog like him for that, he doesn't seem to need training like previous dogs as he's so good at reading people and eager to please. I don't have him loose around the horses when I'm doing stuff like I would with the lurchers though because he seems to have a lack of awareness of what is going on and just always seems to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and I'm worried he'll get stood on (he's the same with swings, just walks in front of them without seeming to get that they are going to swing forward and hit him) so he either sits in the corner or doesn't come.

All the yards I've been on have been dog-friendly and have had lots of dogs (often more dogs than horses since lots of people had 1 horse and 2-3 dogs). I've only experienced 1 dog/horse incident in probably more than 20 years around them together. He was a young, large, boisterous dalmation who decided to chase an ID in a field at one stables and got a nasty beating off the mare before anyone could intervene. Luckily he was fine, just badly bruised, and he was actually brilliant around the horses from then on (though obviously a hugely risky training method and not one I'd ever try, and his owner was given a warning on it from YO as he shouldn't have been off lead in the fields at his age and level of training).

 

[splashgirl45]

i used to rent a yard with some friends and we all took responsibility for our own dogs and horses. i used to hack with mine with no problem. ist one terrier mix, second one, deerhound, 3rd one whippet/collie and all trained to behave around horses...since then i have been on yards so out of respect for the other liveries and YO if i bought my dogs to the yard , they stayed on leads or tied up, even though i know my dogs would not go near the horses..i did have them off lead when i poo picked my field as it was just my horse and my friends horse in the field..