Halter breaking near wild ponies

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Kevo

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Heeelllp .. feel like iv tried everything..

I take on rescues and socialise them. Look after them so they can be rehomed.. always done this on a yard.. since moving house and getting my own land I have no yard just one large stable.
Iv had a few ponies dropped off in the hope I'll gain their trust enough to socialise them to make children's ponies. One was badly mistreated but still very young so hopeful.
Anyway I cannot get head collars on them!

Tried everything for weeks now iv sat in field spent hours with them.. one will let me stroke his face when giving him carrots.. one let's my fingertips touch his nose .. other will not come within 5ft of me ...
Feel if I could just have hold of them I could do some join up etc but I'm getting no where! Iv never ever been so stuck! Iv done all ages breeds and sizes and these little ponies are very difficult..

As soon as I make any sudden movement or try pick up the rope near to them they are gone!
Any advice would be great !!!xxxxx
 
Stick with a hand on it. Stuff a glove with padding. Attach it to a broom handle and put pony in large stable. Or a feather duster on an extendable stick is good too. Daily contact will gain trust, keep pressure on, make sure that you progress a little bit each day. Don't use a rope, a soft scarf once you are closer to them and use that to groom them with. Then once they are accepting the scarf you can start rubbing their face and neck, make a halter with the scarf. Hopefully that may help you.
 
It's been many years since I did it - but I was once landed with 6 weanling TBs that hadn't been touched and were as wild as ******! I used a 6' bamboo cane with foam rubber wrapped around one end to touch them (while they climbed the walls, lol), tap them, rub them all over - and I worked my way up the cane day by day until I could replace it with my hand. I think I bored them to death.

The latest really wild horse I had to deal with was a WB mare of 4 - had serious separation anxiety when she came to me to be backed - owner had only just bought her and thought she'd had very little handling - but it was worse than that. We had to get the headcollar on first - and that was hard enough - but any movement around her scared her witless. Have a look at the video of her 3rd day at 'rider desensitisation' - she seemed to go almost into a trance. 8 weeks later she was hacking out!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zkemq9OKEsg

I think that if you had - say 2 - in a small box - and used the padding perhaps on a solid piece of water pipe - you could mesmerise them enough to get a rope around their necks (keep tapping) and then work up to a headcollar around the neck - and then the noseband.
 
I have been doing this but as soon as I lift the stick up to them they're gone.
I would love to be able to get them in the stable I feel I'd be able to get alot more done but I can't get them to and in the stable :(((
Feeing defeated :(
 
That's a great guys I'm going to do this but I need them in thee stable??? How can I do this???? They are currently on a 7acre field but in a paddock so to get them to the stable which is opposite side of field .. need to do this without loosing them in the 7acres else I'll never get them! Haha xxx
 
Whereabouts are you? In all honesty unless you get them in a stable or a smaller area you won't progress much. I have dealt with semi-feral stock from the forest and I always get them in a shelter to start with.

Can you open the stable up and start feeding them in there? A round pen would be ideal in your situation so that you could encourage them in there too.
 
Last edited:
Kevo said:
That's a great guys I'm going to do this but I need them in thee stable??? How can I do this???? They are currently on a 7acre field but in a paddock so to get them to the stable which is opposite side of field .. need to do this without loosing them in the 7acres else I'll never get them! Haha xxx
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I trained hawks for falconry all my life, some were (legally) taken from the wild. After a month, they'd be flying 100 yars to my hand. Food is the key.

To succeed, you need to be satisfied with very little progress and to have a lot of patience, but it can be done. I'd start by getting your ponies to take a handful of hard feed out of a bowl in the field. I use soaked sugar beet with a few chopped carrots, but whatever you use it has to be more attractive than the grass that's available.

Start by just putting the bowls out and leaving.

Over a few days, they will begin to anticipate your coming with feed. Continue putting the feed out and leaving, but put the bowls nearer your stable or shelter each day. Do nothing to try to catch or handle them.

Continue this until they will walk into your open stable and you can shut the door. (If a double door, make sure you shut both or they'll try to jump out).

If you botch any of this, they will be on the alert and even more wary. Patience is the key, but it can be done.
 
Put feed in stable. Do they know electric fence? If so, tie a length of (unconnected) electric fence to NEAR the stable. Walk after them, unraveling as you go. Don't push too hard - you want to guide and persuade - and don't do it on a windy day! 20mm wide tape is best for this and you need to keep it taut. Obviously having a couple of SENSIBLE people along the tape would help.
 
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