purplelucia
New User
Hi
I have two young horses. One aged 5.5 and one is 6.5. They used to be grazed and ridden at a yard in with lots of horses (15) and all got along pretty well no problems. The other gelding was shown to be a bit clingy/nappy with hacking but nothing unmanageable.
The horses live out all year round and during winter months their grazing is limited with low electric tape and gets moved out every two days to give them more grass. My youngest is clever and would jump over the tape as she was hungry and eat the fresh grass and then would stress when she couldnt get back with the others. She couldnt be on her own at the yard as they cant allow one horse to have a whole paddock and then she would stress at not being able to be with her friends just over the fence. Sadly I had to leave that place as my youngest would escape everyday over the tape for fresh grass into the other side of the paddock. I can go back there in the Spring when they do not limit their grass for the Horses, so no electric tape up at all.
Where I live the grazing is really limited and there is hardly anything just lots of dairy farms. I have a few paddocks that I have borrowed, they are not huge so the horses get hay and I rotate them every 1-2 weeks which is a small drive inbetween each one so I just trailer them. I then trailer them to use my friends arena.
I now cannot seperate my two horses without the other one neighing, fence walking, basically going crazy. I guess since moving them away from the herd they only have each other and have firmly bonded. Especially both being young, one mare and one gelding. My gelding was always a bit clingy/nappy but now its like over drive. Just loading them seperately the second one I load is going crazy in the paddock which winds the other up.
When my youngest mare has been ridden and she is tied up or in her hard and I ride my other horse (only in the arena right next door to where she is tied) she box walks, paws at the ground and digs holes. Once she is worked up it takes her a while to chill and wont touch her food. She was never this bad at her old yard. The slightly older one is very very clingy and can be nappy whilst hacking.
Do you think the youngest will grow out of this stressing? If she is left on her own for a couple of hours at a show she shows the same behaviour just out of boredom/stress. Ive never known a horse to stress as much as her. She is excellent to ride and is very safe, she is not clingy to her friend when I take her for a hack, she doesnt care. But my gelding doesnt box walk or paw when he is left alone he just neighs and gets really worked up, and jumps around he wont want to leave her when I try to ride him.
Mare is fine once I get her riding, gelding is terrible with separation when I try to ride him.
People say just sell one but thats a very difficult decision but I guess grazing hasnt worked out how I thought it would and be nice and easy in one place. I now have to move them all the time to different fields. I have thought I could get an older companion but there really isnt room in the fields and it is another to feed and rug through winter that doesnt belong to me. I just have to wait another few months until they can be all back together but riding at the moment is quite stressful for them and will this just happen again next winter? Probably unless some other grazing miraculously appears.
Wondering if anyone has been in the same situation? Just hoping my mare might grow out of her anxiety, sometimes I just feel so terrible when they get stressed. Seems like my Clyde x gelding has a stubborn streak and has always been nappy and clingy to his friends. I have thought about separating them and sectioning off areas but their fields are small and I cannot risk losing the fields if my horses tear them up and make a huge mess. Ive asked friends with Horses but no one wants to share grazing. My mare is excellent with full proper fencing that is post and rail or wire and fence posts just not low electric which is easy to jump over. M Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Finding this situation a bit of a struggle, the last three months Ive just ridden in the arena and ignored there stressing, I cant really hack at the moment unless Im allowed to leave one in the arena but I come back and the gelding is drenched in sweat, gallops around and neighs but after about an hour he chills out. If I take my gelding out for a hack and leave the mare hes grown so attached he wont move, goes to buck etc which is quite naughty.
Thanks
I have two young horses. One aged 5.5 and one is 6.5. They used to be grazed and ridden at a yard in with lots of horses (15) and all got along pretty well no problems. The other gelding was shown to be a bit clingy/nappy with hacking but nothing unmanageable.
The horses live out all year round and during winter months their grazing is limited with low electric tape and gets moved out every two days to give them more grass. My youngest is clever and would jump over the tape as she was hungry and eat the fresh grass and then would stress when she couldnt get back with the others. She couldnt be on her own at the yard as they cant allow one horse to have a whole paddock and then she would stress at not being able to be with her friends just over the fence. Sadly I had to leave that place as my youngest would escape everyday over the tape for fresh grass into the other side of the paddock. I can go back there in the Spring when they do not limit their grass for the Horses, so no electric tape up at all.
Where I live the grazing is really limited and there is hardly anything just lots of dairy farms. I have a few paddocks that I have borrowed, they are not huge so the horses get hay and I rotate them every 1-2 weeks which is a small drive inbetween each one so I just trailer them. I then trailer them to use my friends arena.
I now cannot seperate my two horses without the other one neighing, fence walking, basically going crazy. I guess since moving them away from the herd they only have each other and have firmly bonded. Especially both being young, one mare and one gelding. My gelding was always a bit clingy/nappy but now its like over drive. Just loading them seperately the second one I load is going crazy in the paddock which winds the other up.
When my youngest mare has been ridden and she is tied up or in her hard and I ride my other horse (only in the arena right next door to where she is tied) she box walks, paws at the ground and digs holes. Once she is worked up it takes her a while to chill and wont touch her food. She was never this bad at her old yard. The slightly older one is very very clingy and can be nappy whilst hacking.
Do you think the youngest will grow out of this stressing? If she is left on her own for a couple of hours at a show she shows the same behaviour just out of boredom/stress. Ive never known a horse to stress as much as her. She is excellent to ride and is very safe, she is not clingy to her friend when I take her for a hack, she doesnt care. But my gelding doesnt box walk or paw when he is left alone he just neighs and gets really worked up, and jumps around he wont want to leave her when I try to ride him.
Mare is fine once I get her riding, gelding is terrible with separation when I try to ride him.
People say just sell one but thats a very difficult decision but I guess grazing hasnt worked out how I thought it would and be nice and easy in one place. I now have to move them all the time to different fields. I have thought I could get an older companion but there really isnt room in the fields and it is another to feed and rug through winter that doesnt belong to me. I just have to wait another few months until they can be all back together but riding at the moment is quite stressful for them and will this just happen again next winter? Probably unless some other grazing miraculously appears.
Wondering if anyone has been in the same situation? Just hoping my mare might grow out of her anxiety, sometimes I just feel so terrible when they get stressed. Seems like my Clyde x gelding has a stubborn streak and has always been nappy and clingy to his friends. I have thought about separating them and sectioning off areas but their fields are small and I cannot risk losing the fields if my horses tear them up and make a huge mess. Ive asked friends with Horses but no one wants to share grazing. My mare is excellent with full proper fencing that is post and rail or wire and fence posts just not low electric which is easy to jump over. M Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Finding this situation a bit of a struggle, the last three months Ive just ridden in the arena and ignored there stressing, I cant really hack at the moment unless Im allowed to leave one in the arena but I come back and the gelding is drenched in sweat, gallops around and neighs but after about an hour he chills out. If I take my gelding out for a hack and leave the mare hes grown so attached he wont move, goes to buck etc which is quite naughty.
Thanks
