Hard to catch *aaarggh* - deal breaker?

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Sauerkraut

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Oh flipping horse... I'm in a mood :(
I need to let some steam off ... Sorry

I have a horse on trial which is hard to catch BUT after a little work on my first few days it was ok. Most of the times I could get him straight away or with a little effort but today ... Ridiculous!!! I had to give up in the end (yes I know I shouldn't) because the field was so slippery and muddy and I got so frustrated in the end.
:(

I have the vetting booked now, we are getting on really well, had a nice fast hack out alone yesterday, I really like him. Please tell me this stupid "catch me if you can (or when I want to)"- issue will get better.

Rant over ...
Anyone want to share a big bar of chocolate with me ? ;)
 
He's trying to tell you that he wants to stay ;).

Seriously, it wouldn't be a dealbreaker for me - but then I've never had one that was seriously impossible to catch - Nell and Kal have both tried it on but gave up pretty quickly when I sent them away for a little while (as in moved their feet/wouldn't let them graze until they decided to come to me).

Actually refusing to be caught saved Nell's life . . . a friend was going to take her to a competition as a second ride . . . she was supposed to be first on the horsebox. Nell steadfastly refused to be caught - friend gave up and went and picked up the other two horses (belonging to her and a friend) and went off to competition. On the way home, the horsebox burst into flames - they only just managed to get their two horses off . . . it's likely that (as she would have been first on) Nell wouldn't have made it off that lorry. Bless her.

P
 
If the horse was perfect to ride for me then it wouldnt be a dealbreaker. My boy used to be impossible to catch but now comes to call (owned him for 2 years) but only to me! Others cant catch him still haha
 
For me personally it wouldn't be a deal breaker, it's something that can be solved so that 95% of the time you won't have a problem.

I do feel your pain though - it's so frustrating when you have a difficult catcher but it is fixable.
 
How long have you had him on trial? I only ask because when we got our boy he was a sod to catch for the first 2 months & when we go away & he goes onto livery he is always a bugger to catch!! Just seems to try it on in a 'new home'! We do still have the odd day where he will run off the first time I try & catch him but then stands on the 2nd attempt & tbh even when it used to take me hours he made up for it in every other way!! xx
 
Enjoying my share of the virtual choc bar right now!
Hard to catch is v frustrating, agree...suppose it really boils down to how much you really like him otherwise (which sounds like you do) AND how much you know yourself whether you've got the time/willingness/patience to change a bad habit and work with him on, sacrificing time you might prefer to be riding/whatever to do it. Which there would be nothing wrong with - you are right to wonder whether you just shouldn't go and find a horse without this tedious habit..SO, 60 billion dollar question that only you can answer..oops I better give you some of the virtual choc back!
But seriously, hard-to-catch can be sorted..but only if you know you want this particular horse above others.
Example: I took on a youngster-with-issues too numerous to mention but hard-to-catch obviously one of them..so headcollar turnout with catching strap clearly the first port of call thinks I and until I arrive to take him to new home and he has mysteriously shed the head-collar he's been kept in and between me and handler we can only rustle up a FS one, too big to be safe for turnout.. Would have loved to have known this in advance, ahem but the best laid plans etc etc..anyway, nowhere to stop en route to field to get one and friend;s trailer and friend needed elsewhere immediately after drop off so I watched my new boy wander off into a 3-acre field with no headcollar. And boy was I right when I knew it would be a wee while before I would even get NEAR him again never mind actually collar the b***er!
I admired him from afar for quite a while! :rolleyes:
Bear in mind though that this is a remedial youngster with multiple issues so I could have worked through this in a quarter of the time with something more straightforward..which you will be able to do if you decide you want him enough to persevere...am assuming you know what techniques you would use if you decide to take it on but if you have not dealt with this prob before, drop back in with the choc!
Good luck whatever you decide
PS Once I collared mine, he was ok for a couple of days then regressed like you say your trialler has..it has taken longer to get back to where we were originally but eventually feel he is getting easier now
 
If the horse is great in every other aspect and you get on well I wouldn't worry about it. It should get better with time, when he gets used to you :D

I hate horses that don't catch, I get frustrated and annoyed easily by it :( And haven't enough time in the day to spend trying to catch! So it would be a no for me.
 
Hi, we have a lovely sec a that we only bought a few months ago. I knew that she could be difficult to catch so we spent the first month ctaching and releasing aswell as catching to ride. She got much better and then we had to give her a break, she reverted for a week or so and now is as good as gold. I would persevere if it was me but I dont mind the time. If you are likely to be stuck for time and are limited when you can ride then perhaps not. My little mare took a while to settle and suss out if we would persevere and most of the time is fine. I keep her in electric so that she doesnt have quite so much room to get away from me.:rolleyes:
 
PolarSkye said:
He's trying to tell you that he wants to stay ;).

Seriously, it wouldn't be a dealbreaker for me - but then I've never had one that was seriously impossible to catch - Nell and Kal have both tried it on but gave up pretty quickly when I sent them away for a little while (as in moved their feet/wouldn't let them graze until they decided to come to me).

Actually refusing to be caught saved Nell's life . . . a friend was going to take her to a competition as a second ride . . . she was supposed to be first on the horsebox. Nell steadfastly refused to be caught - friend gave up and went and picked up the other two horses (belonging to her and a friend) and went off to competition. On the way home, the horsebox burst into flames - they only just managed to get their two horses off . . . it's likely that (as she would have been first on) Nell wouldn't have made it off that lorry. Bless her.

P
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How spooky! Sent a shiver down me. So pleased the horses made it off the lorry.
 
Regarding the OP's question, if the horse was great in all other ways I would still buy it. I have had a couple of really difficult horses to catch in the past (both were liveries and not my own). It took a lot of hard work but finally both were okay in the end. I had to restrict the paddock size though to begin with and sent them away until they started licking and chewing if they refused to be caught. In a larger space you may need to recruit some helpers to keep the horse moving (not allowing it to graze) until it learns to be caught. It can take an hour or more first time but the time gets shorter and shorter until the horse gives up and always lets you catch it.
 
Just keep plugging away at it:

A number of good approaches:

Smaller paddock, lunge whip, the second the horse looks to move, make the thing MOVE!! :D, when it calms down and tries to come back to walk, tell it no, it wanted to play silly sods and send it forward, when it is only moving because you say you want it to, then start to move in :D

Leave head collar on, and attach some string or a FLAT lead rope to it to make it easier to catch. Normal lead ropes can tangle.

Do not always catch and bring in. I will often feed ben and ebony in the field, they do not then anticipate it with leaving the field.

A good approach is, sending it forward, finally catching it, and then giving it some chaff in a boal in the field, a stroke on the neck all over, and then just turning and walking away, do this until it becomes the most boring thing in the world :D:D

Another thing is poll pressure, if the horse is notoriously difficult to catch it may have pressure in the poll, Ebony does, and when you go to put a headcollar on in the field she hates it, you still have to do it in a 'certain way' because she is 'special' I have someone come out who fixes this, but I was on the premier equestrian site the other day, and saw magnetic poll thingys, which are designed to thread over the headcollar, don't know if it is relevant to your boy but I am certainly getting one for ebony, even though she is a babe to catch now.

I feel your pain though, I have lost many a battle with her over the years :D

Make sure you do lots of catching, then walking away, vary it with bringing in and feeding, and bringing in and riding and if at all possible, do it numerous times a day. Ebony will now walk/trot/canter across the field to me, I have possibly 4 times in the last 12 months when she has played up, but this generally had a reason behind it, the other horses had just gone into the paddock next door, I had just changed the electric fencing and she had more SPACE!, the tractor had been in the field that day, so it can be done, they can get back to being normal. :D good luck :D
 
It would be a deal breaker for me, life is too short to spend the day chasing a horse around the field. Theres lots of others out there at the moment.
 
It wouldn't be a deal breaker for me now if I liked the horse in every other way as occasionally (when she is coming into season) Tilly can be a pain to catch. Now I just do as lots of other people have done and send her away and don't let her eat and now she canters / trots round me in a perfect circle and gives up after a couple of circuits but the first couple of times it took up to an hour. I did the same yesterday with a pony on the yard who nobody has been able to catch without cornering with lunge lines for a week and it took me 15 minutes to get her and that was after she had managed to get her headcollar off (!) so it really does work.

If the horse is perfect for you in every other way I think I would persevere as you never know what other issues another horse you might take on has. Good luck whatever you decide x
 
queenbee said:
Another thing is poll pressure, if the horse is notoriously difficult to catch it may have pressure in the poll, Ebony does, and when you go to put a headcollar on in the field she hates it, you still have to do it in a 'certain way' because she is 'special' I have someone come out who fixes this, but I was on the premier equestrian site the other day, and saw magnetic poll thingys, which are designed to thread over the headcollar, don't know if it is relevant to your boy but I am certainly getting one for ebony, even though she is a babe to catch now.
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Do you have any more info on these? Sounds like the sort of thing I'm after.
 
In reality, very few horses are actually bad to catch. Those that are difficult are usually quickly caught once you understand what the knack is for that particular horse.
 
What sort of bad to catch? If nervous - don't worry that will come in time. If it's serious naughty I-am-laughing-at-you,-watch-me-trot-in-circles-just-out-of-reach-hahaha bad to catch that would make me think twice!!! But very few catching problems are unsolveable with a bit of time and patience...
 
Also much more frustrating for you at the mo as you have this horse on trial and no doubt want to spend the time doing all sorts of other things with it to find out if suitable, rather than trying to correct a remedial problem..obvious I know but could you keep it in a smaller space whilst on trial, or even bring it in so you can just concentrate on other areas and then spend the time correcting the problem once you have decided to buy and committed to him?
Did owners mention he was like this? Is he just trying it on (or even genuinely a bit nervous) because you are new..
 
I have to agree that there is nothign worse than a horse that won;t be caught, very frustrating. However, having come across quite a few in my time, I can honestly say that none of them have REALLY been bad to catch, there is always a particular way that will work.

If it was genuinely uncatchable, I wouldn't buy it. If I thought it was like every other uncatchable horse I have come across, I would buy it expecting that the issue could be easily resolved.
 
Unless the horse was perfect in every other way I'd keep looking esp if its the cheeky can't be caught Morgan mentioned, I really can't stand that! Also how much it inconveniences you. I may be horse searching in the future but it would be a 30 min drive to the field and to then spend X amount of time trying to catch something...no couldn't be doing with it!
 
:mad: Dealbeaker, for definite. Spent enough time as a child with ponies I couldn't catch (ended up with lots of cast-offs and handmedowns) - hours of my life I'll never get back.
 
Could never catch my old horse until I discovered the fieldsafe headcollar (dont use leather they dont break). Straight up to him and caught no problem. If he didnt have it on there was no way he would let me near him. Deal breaker? Well what was the horse like before?
 
Thank you all for so many comments! Some really good tips I'll try.

We have him now a week and he is not a naughty bad catcher but generally a bit on the nervous side. But I really thought we cracked it right in the first few days as I couldn't catch him the first day but after the second try where I didn't let him rest when he didn't let me come near him we had a "wow" moment and it got better and better.
 
HelloKitty said:
Oh flipping horse... I'm in a mood :(
I need to let some steam off ... Sorry

I have a horse on trial which is hard to catch BUT after a little work on my first few days it was ok. Most of the times I could get him straight away or with a little effort but today ... Ridiculous!!! I had to give up in the end (yes I know I shouldn't) because the field was so slippery and muddy and I got so frustrated in the end.
:(

I have the vetting booked now, we are getting on really well, had a nice fast hack out alone yesterday, I really like him. Please tell me this stupid "catch me if you can (or when I want to)"- issue will get better.

Rant over ...
Anyone want to share a big bar of chocolate with me ? ;)
Click to expand...

There are techniques you can use to sort this behaviour quite easily, basically, you want the horse to catch you.

It certainly wouldnt be a deal breaker for me, but it's a lovely bargaining point, lol.
 
My current ride can be a b£$%^r to catch but only on certain days, usually when she's on lots of grass. If he will be out with others if/when you buy him, my tactic is to walk around all of them, making a fuss of them, until she can't bear not to be involved. It is important to do this when you are not going to bring in as well as when you are.
 
We had a pony that was difficult to catch. We just tied a long piece of tape to a fence post and, by one person keeping it taught, used it to corral him into a smaller and smaller space. Did it for a about 2 weeks and he simply gave up all resistance. Guess he realised there was no way he could win. Good as gold now.
 
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