HELP nasty in field

carthorse

Well-Known Member
Joined
24 January 2007
Messages
11,554
Location
west mids
s150.photobucket.com
I am at my wits end tonight. Long story but will cut short. Bred my horse he always lived with a mare. We have two fields so the other two have lived in the other field as my homebred was very protective and would chase and really bite any other horse, he is 15 years old.
Last year we sent him on loan and said he should go out by himself, while he was away the old mare died, she was 30. He was in a field next to a pony and after a couple of weeks they put them together and all was fine. He came back from loan after 3 months as her circumstances changed.
He went to another loan home, here they had him seperate by electric fence with no problems. He was there 6 weeks and came home because Mum and daughter fell out.
He went to college as loan horse, he was fully stabled but at half term he was turned out with lots of other horses no problem. Unfortunately he got injured and has come home. He has been by himself in the field next to others but he sometimes jumps into the yard if they come in first or if they go for a hack so we have to put him in.
Yesterday we bought a 2 year old filly, we put him in one field and her in the other all was ok. They had to come in as field was being rolled and when we turned them out we thought we would try them together. Disaster he galloped her off her little feet , he never kicked but he bit her. After 10 minutes we had to bring him in and put him in his own field. We turned the other two out with her and they got on great but he was galloping up and down the fence and threatening to jump in. We bought him in and he is in his stable very upset , very sweaty and neighing like mad.
My husband says he has to go but who would have him he looks very sound now but as my daughter is pregnant I can't get him ridden to check that he is. Someone was going to hack him out today but they let me down. I am thinking that the only option is to have him put down but maybe in a few days he will be ok again. I have no idea why he is fine away from home and so bad at home.I am trying to find someone to put a new fence across my field but that is going to cost thousands as the fence is not brilliant.
Why is he like this?
 
Goodness don't have him put down! This is horses for you! He may be protective of his space, horses have their personal bubble around them, that is their space, maybe he doesn't like the filly in his field leave him for a couple days maybe turn him out while you are their so you can keep an eye on him then keep him in at night until you see an improvement on his behaviour , my horse is like this and she would kick anything that goes near her, in field or under saddle, its normal! Maybe the filly is tormenting him !
 
What is he like when someone takes him out regularly? I'm sure you could find someone else to loan him or come and ride him, how much stabling does he need? If he could live out it would probably be easier to find somewhere private that he can be separated from other horses, or have horses nearby but not in the same field. Have you advertised for someone to ride him? Must be pretty stressful though, but please don't have him put down he probably just needs quieter surroundings and regular exercise :-)
 
Sounds like he's unsettled tbh. Is your field smaller than the ones where he's been out with others ok? And what's he like with a gelding?
 
Sounds like he needs to just chill and everything is changing for him, can you get some more fencing up higher and maybe electric? turn it on and give him a few zaps. I would give him a few weeks to chill and get him used to your filly more can they be stabled near each other just to get used to her.

No need to think PTS x
 
Don't laugh (especially you cynics out there), but my mare was perfect in every way apart from when turned out.
I moved yards, had her alone, in a group, in a mixed herd, all to no avail.

I contacted an animal communicator and the one thing I asked her to "ask" the pony was which field did she like best.
Armed with my answer, I asked my YO if we could put her in the suggested field. She hadn't been in there before and it wasn't even for client horses but YO agreed as she was exasperated as I was.
We are now into our third year and she is still happy :). YO did mover her once but her old behaviour reared its ugly head.

Anyway, for twenty five quid I was happy, as was pony :).

Don't pts yet :(, try and find a solution for him.
 
This is pretty much normal horse behaviour when a new horse is introduced and it doesn't sound like your horse was especially nasty to the filly.

He seems very unsettled from what you've said in your post and has been through lots of change recently.

Things probably would have gone more smoothly if you'd introduced them slowly.

Could you not pay someone to bring him back into work for you, even if it means sending him away?
 
Thank you. Will take it all on board. Tomorrow the others can come in and him go out but i expect he will jump into yard. He was an inter. Eventer. He seemed to want her but was just terrible to her. She was just friendly. They were together in seperate fields for 3 hours. Then we grazed them together in hand. Then she was loose in yard and they scratched each others necks but as soon as turned out together he galloped and galloped her. Hopefully can get the money to refence and he will sort himself out. So sad thought the filly who is only 13.2 and he is 16.2 would be a friend for him . Just cant understand him
 
Oh god, I don't think he needs putting down!! We have 5 horses, two of them mine (14.2hh pony and 16hh horse), I have had them 18 and 17 years respectively. 14.2hh is the boss and my horse is his 2nd in command. If we ever get a new horse it takes weeks to settle them in. I got a 15mth old in 2010 and it took 5 weeks of separation and steady introductions before they were all together and even then my horse decided he wanted to kill him and just chased him round and round - I had to get him in and we separated them again for the night. The next day all was well and they went back in together.

My horse never used to be like this, he loved every horse but since he has become the boss's sidekick he's a horror! You just need to giveyour horse time - if my horse went to a strange place/neutral ground with just him and a strange horse I imagine he'd be fine BUT on HIS field that he's known most of his life, with HIS mates, he's a different horse.

You just need to give them tinme - make sure you have adequate fencing so he can't jump in an attack her but I can bet, after a few weeks of steady routine and slow introductions he will settle down. Have you got any other horsein with him? If you've put her in with what he considers to be his pals that is probably why he is upset - my 14.2hh is like this, he would go mental if I put his pals in with a new horse and left him out.
 
How about turning it the other way round? Keep your gelding out and section off a small bit for the new girl.

My old gelding did this to a new arrival. Was amazed as he was such a gentle horse. But he too had just lost his former companion. He chased my new one so badly I though she would get badly hurt and I'm a fan usually of letting them get on with it but even I had to act.


For a week I kep the new one separate with visual sight but no touching, I let them graze together in hand and they walked past each other twice a day.

After a week I crossed my fingers and put them out.

Not a squeal! Heads down and they became best friends for the next six years.


Your gelding has had lots of change and so not really surprised he is unsettled and it may be worth trying.
 
Why on earth would you have him put down?

Simply don't turn him out with a vulnerable youngster.

He was probably fine in herd turnout - because he was the bottom of the pecking order.

So just give him individual turnout when at home. You don't have to ride him to see if he's sound - just run him up. And if your not 100% sure then get on him yourself???
 
Top