Having trouble trying to catch my mare?

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GypsyGirl

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Hey everyone,

So ive had Maisie for about 12weeks now. Shes 5 and she is coming on really well, were having weekly lessons and she really enjoyed our first lesson the other day and listening to me. I am so proud of her! We even managed to get a canter in with lots of leg lol .. shes very green in canter but shes great.

Anyways, a little while ago I had some problems with her, she started to become bardgy, pulling faces trying to bite, everytime I had her dinner she would pin her ears back at me and try to get it straight away etc and also when I changed head collar to bridle she would think its great to walk off away from me, just being plain rude!

I have now managed to get this all under control, by doing lots of groundwork again with her, she stands back when her dinner comes out and no longer bardges me, pulling faces etc and stands still when changing head collar to bridle etc.

Now, she no longer likes to be caught, because the rest of the herd is retired or they don't go out, she thinks that shes the same and everytime I try to catch her - she just runs off. It takes me atleast 20mins+ to try catch her. I don't want to keep a head collar on her as id like to over come this, but its a last resort.

I don't like to hand feed her as she does like to try nip and last time that led into her biting and pinning her ears. I also don't want to go shaking buckets to bribe her in as the whole herd will come running for food lol.

So is there anything else that I should do to try catch her? Some people say keep making her run, my field owner suggested putting my arm out and try calming her down but that doesnt work either. Its just a tough spot that were going through and I need to overcome it.

Any tips would be great :D .. sorry for the long post.

Thank you in advance!
 
Do u just catch her to ride her? If this is the case then she knows she's going to be ridden everytime she comes in? Could u bring her in to spend sometime with her grooming etc? It sounds like you have put a lot of effort into her groundwork and getting over hurdles nicely. It's probably just another teething problem. Hide the headcollar behind your back, walk up to her without making any eye contact if she runs off ignore her and start to walk backwards towards her. Making her run (ie join up) would not really work in a field with a herd of other horses I think will be a bit dangerous. I'm sure with a bit of time u will over come the problem. Go up to her and stroke her and walk off or do some poo picking etc so she gets used to you mooching around the field. Good luck :)
 
If she was mine I would just spend time in the field, catching her and letting her go so she don't always think she's coming in to work. Give her a nice rub on the head or a nice itch in her fav place. I would also not try to catch her stright away by walking stright at her but work round some off the others, rubbing them and moving on but for now I would just spend time and saying hello and walking away from her
 
Hey,

None of the above worked for me. It used to take me two hours each night so I understand how you feel.

What did the previous owner do? Did they have an issue?

I do join up with my horse in the field (with no ropes). The horses in his field don't get involved - there's 23 other horses so I disagree with the above that it should be ruled out - just depends on the herd.

Not sure if you have done any join up work already but I find that it really helps. I position myself the same as if I would if I have a lunge line and talk to him. I just tell him to trot on and look out for the signs of his head going down, licking his lips etc and then allow him to stop, approach him in a half circle shape and just pop the headcollar on.

I've tried bringing him in feeding him and putting him straight back out, taking a bucket down with food, sitting in the field watching him, left a fieldsafe collar on, leaving headcollar on, fussing other horses, taking other horses out, seperating him from the herd via a gate (herd the others out)..you name it and I've done it!

Just be mindful of how you approach her i.e. never straight line as they can find this threatening and don't give too much eye contact.

If you'd like anymore suggestions feel free to PM me!
 
This works with my gelding who can be a **** when it comes to catching:

I walk up to him (but not straight) and when he looks at me, I sit on the floor with a carrot and pretend to eat it. If other horses come over, they get a little bit, and eventually he comes over to see what the fuss is about. I then give him the carrot, stroke him on the face/neck, and then discretely slip a leadrope round is neck. I then have a hold of him and can put his headcollar on. I do, however, leave a leather headcollar on in the field until winter comes, as sometimes he will let me stroke his face etc, but not put on his headcollar, so this just makes sure he doesn't get upset :D
 
I have already done the sitting in the field, not making eye contact with her and stroking the other horses. When I try to catch her it's not always for work, I go up there to groom her give her itches etc. I did do the join up with her the other day actully, but she wasn't really having any of it, she eventually went over to some more horses so then I turned my back on her and was itching another mare in the field and then maisie came over to me.

I'm going to try the sitting in the field again although I'll have some very cheeky horses coming up to me etc and also the not making eye contact hiding head collar and lead rope and walk straight past her, then eventually make my way to her.

When I got her I never used a head collar or lead rope until she was being tied up etc because I led her under the chin like with foals, and she just followed me.

Her old owner would whistle and shed come over lol, but he'd get two horses in at once. She was like this with me, it's just a faze that she's going through I think.

It's a tough one but I'm not going to give up until she stops lol
 
had the same problem with my mare!!!

got so bad i offered her to one of the girls a the yard for a tenner if she could catch her in 10 minutes :D :D

(never seen anyone shift so fast in their lives to try and get her in lmao...)

anyhow - persevere. i just constantly walked upto her - carrot/walk away

always had food in your pocket (but dont get it out) till you get to her.... dont always give her the food in the field - sometimes give it her when shes out the field... in the stable etc....

worked eventualy.... took a month of this and honestly i wanted to kill her at some points... but 2 months on she will walk towards me now when i get close enough - she dosent run away :)

fully expect that to change when its spring :D
 
Does she think it's a game? Mine has days where she thinks "Oh goody, you're here. Tag, you're it!" and then promplty walks away from me just out of my reach. The first couple of days two of us had to corner her and snatch her up. Now I can go grab her in myself. I work it on the basis that she only gets fed on the yard; before riding a tiny breakfast feed and then her real dinner afterwards. I also give her treats when she makes my life easy. There are the odd days when she wanders off or trots away, but through lunging I can ask her to walk and stand, then walk up to her and job's done. I spent a fair few days following her around the field, sitting down, running after her, chasing her, cornering her (which she barged through), cornered her with a lunge line (wasn't overly clever) and feeding her her breasfast; in the end it came down to persistance. If I went out there with the aim to catch her I would, no matter how long it took. If she kept running off then I'd work her harder (obviously she has energy to spare). Just be patient.

Alternatively you can try dropping the headcollar so she thinks that you're unarmed, walk up to her fiddling with a treat and then pop the leadrope around her neck and walk her to the headcollar, where food will be provided ;)
 
I can't believe how many of you can't catch your horses!!!

Time is what it takes. Time spent to build a relationship that makes them WANT to be with you.

We have 5 very different horses and our problem is getting rid of them, they flock all round us whenever we are in the field; they will walk the length of the field to say 'hello' (no treats involved)

<<shakes head in disbelief>>
 
Don't stress, she is only young and you are still getting to know each other, sounds like you are getting on really well and she is coming along nicely :) Just keep at it, maybe try treating her every time you do catch her, it wont take long until she is walking right up to you :)
 
Ladyinred said:
I can't believe how many of you can't catch your horses!!!

Time is what it takes. Time spent to build a relationship that makes them WANT to be with you.

We have 5 very different horses and our problem is getting rid of them, they flock all round us whenever we are in the field; they will walk the length of the field to say 'hello' (no treats involved)

<<shakes head in disbelief>>
Click to expand...

Well done, your a very lucky horse owner then arnt you.

Maisie was fine when I got her, I didnt need a head collar or lead rope with her. Its only recently she likes to play tricks with me.

It is time, and I know that I havnt had her long - but this has only just come up and because ive never had to deal with a horse being hard to catch, im asking how to overcome it.

She won't be like it for long, I know she wont its only a quirk lol (I hope anyways ;))
 
Ladyinred said:
I can't believe how many of you can't catch your horses!!!

Time is what it takes. Time spent to build a relationship that makes them WANT to be with you.

We have 5 very different horses and our problem is getting rid of them, they flock all round us whenever we are in the field; they will walk the length of the field to say 'hello' (no treats involved)

<<shakes head in disbelief>>
Click to expand...


Depends on the circumstances; my mare does trust me thank you. I'm one of very few (meaning my boyfriend and I) people who can actually lay hands on her in a field. She used to be on a riding school and so coming in meant working in the hands of IMO idiots. I never really had the chance to catch her but the things I heard about what she did shocked me. She tried these things with me, thinking that I'd be the same and so her not coming in bonded us even further. Please don't assume that our horses don't trust us; they might not trust what's being done to them.

I'll add that I moved her in the last couple of months and so she is now mine and mine alone.
 
martyfisch said:
Depends on the circumstances; my mare does trust me thank you. I'm one of very few (meaning my boyfriend and I) people who can actually lay hands on her in a field. She used to be on a riding school and so coming in meant working in the hands of IMO idiots. I never really had the chance to catch her but the things I heard about what she did shocked me. She tried these things with me, thinking that I'd be the same and so her not coming in bonded us even further. Please don't assume that our horses don't trust us; they might not trust what's being done to them.

I'll add that I moved her in the last couple of months and so she is now mine and mine alone.
Click to expand...

Yeah this is so true - Maisie used to be a racer, and when she was a racer she would of been kept in all the time. Now shes living out 24/7 and loving it a bit too much. When I got her she was weaving aswell like she done in her old home, and she doesnt do it now. She does it very rarely first time friday in weeks because she got really excited when we went to the yard lol.

I know that I havnt had her long, but I do think that shes starting to trust me, when were out on hacks etc and she knows that im never going to hurt her, I just think its because where the other horses don't get worked or maybe one does, she thinks that she can stay out aswell lol.

She is a very clever 5 year old lol shes not silly, she knows what shes doing. I think she plans it.

We had an accident some weeks ago on the road invloving a dog .. and she hurt her leg, the next day field owner text me in the morning saying shes fine shes just a bit sore on one of her legs. I turn up at lunch time and shes fine walking around the field grazing, as soon as she saw me coming - her leg went straight back up in the air and it was like I had a 3 legged horse again lol. She had lots of cuddles and itches went back off into the field still limping, she see's the field owner coming out from her house and goes trotting/cantering off with the other horses all fine, no lamness nothing haha.

Shes fine now obv but it she is so intellegent lol.

:D
 
Clever girlie, part of the reason I like mares ;) (not that lads are bad, just they don't think in the same way) :D mine used to live in 6 days of the week; I put her onto 24/7 turnout and she didn't believe her luck. She's 11 and a right sarcastic madam and since I've had her to myself she's become quite self assertive. And really, really fluffy.

I'm sure you'll have her in the palm of your hand soon; she might just be testing the limits. Or playing with you ;)
 
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