Herd advice - 1 gelding 2 exsisting mares??

[justjb]

Hey everyone any advice welcome,

Is this normal behaviour for a gelding could he be riggy?

The two mares already together for 4 years so a good bond both know where they stand i have introduced a gelding and he chases them around alot one of the mares is 30 years old!!!
He also wont let me catch him unless its tea time and will make my mares stand in the corner while he stands at the gate also i have to catch him first and them when i walk to the mares he trys to chase them away from me??

Anything i can do to help this or is this just the natural herd ways?

Thanks

 

[DuckToller]

I suspect he thinks he's died and gone to horse heaven - two mares all to himself, and one too old to get away from him! All his natural instincts will still be in place, gelded or otherwise, so I doubt he is riggy, just a proper boy.

Hopefully he will calm down - how long has he been out with them?

I introduced an older mare into a gelding herd and they all chased her for a while, then it settled down and the mare actually became the dominant force, which is a different scenario to yours, but I was worried for a while and was much relieved when it sorted itself.

Just keep an eye on the older mare and make sure he isn't making life too tricky for her. If he is, you might have to think of another arrangement - dividing the field perhaps with electric fencing. But wait a bit, it might resolve itself.

 

[justjb]

He's been out with them for a month now and usally the older mare is my dominant mare and she is the pony i used to use to put all the new ponies out with her so she could teach them the ropes, so to speak,but atm i think its too much because she just excepts being chased now maybe ill give it a bit longer,

he is also getting harder to do anything with him when hes away from them like lunge him groom him general things will this get better or is this something i just have to manage?

Thanks for the reply

 

[DuckToller]

Hmm, if it's been a month and he is getting worse, you may need to change something. Some geldings are just more dominant and keen to act as herd stallion than others - he sounds like my gelding - a pain!

What are your grazing arrangements? If you only have one field then I doubt electric fencing would sort it as he will probably go through it to get to 'his' mares. Can he go out with other geldings or are you on your own? Or could you section off part of the field for the older mare, to give her a break, and see if he settles better with just the one mare?

It's not good for you if he is getting tricky to handle - how old is he?

 

[justjb]

he's 6 years old and only 11.2 but when i bought him he had had no turn out so i was giving so lee way for him to adapt to actually be able to act like a horse.
I cant part the twos mares and the young one is a mini and shes 4 and goes crazy even if she can see and touch the other one she needs to be almost underneath her friend (spoilt ponies tbh),
the field is just one square and there is not reli anywhere else to put him atm as the other geldings are out with some (hormonal) mares,
I figured i should just preseve and keeping taking him away from the mares to lunge and work with him and evenutally he will settle?

:/