Horse rearing at stable door

melissa1971

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I'm in need of some advice I have 6 horses all stabled overnight in a barn so all stables can see each other. The problem I have is with my 4yr old he is fine in the stable over night but come morning if he is not first out he rears at the door and I'm so worried he will hurt himself. Even if just one of the others goes out he does it so it's not like I can leave him till 2nd to last I'm really wanting him to be able to stay by himself so when he starts work this spring I don't have worry about him been in by himself. How can I get him over this thanks.
 

Hippona

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Is he ok if you bring him into an empty stable block, and put him in alone? Is it only when others go out before him that he rears?
One of mine was fine to out alone but if he went out in company and then you brought his companion in he'd go nuts if he was left. He also had to go out first or he'd be demented...but if I brought him in alone he was fine.
 

comet!

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Does he make any attempt to get over the door, or is it like a bit of a temper tantrum just because he wants to be first out? Just asking as my horse tried jumping his door earlier this year and got stuck with three legs over and one leg left behind so he now has to have a weave grill up to try to prevent him doing it again. In my horse's case, it was simply because he was excited about it being breakfast time!
 

melissa1971

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He is fine to come in first he does little excited bunny hops at breakfast time but goes right up when the others go out before him
 

texas

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Put up a door grill, the mesh type that they can't get caught in. The only sure fire way of knowing he won't hurt himself. Then you can stop worrying if he does it.
 

Ibblebibble

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my cure would be simple, put him out first :) but work on having him in alone, no others just him, bring him in, groom and faff about and then put him back out.
my 3 come in and go out according to their place in the herd, if i tried to bring one of the others in before the bossy mare she would throw a tantrum, so i don't do it. when i want to ride because it is not part of the normal in and out routine she doesn't take any notice.
 

melissa1971

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I would just continue to put him out first but really want to know if it can be cured as last week with the bad winds we lost part of our fencing so I kept them in as I tied them all up one at a time to muck out (tie ring is inside barn so no horse went out of sight) he was doing it then and there are other times when that's going to happen like farrier visits or if they have to be kept in again at all so while yes putting him out first is the obvious answer I'm just hoping there's a way we can cure him thanks
 

Wheels

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Putting him out first is not really a cure if the op would like him to be able to stay in on his own.

My youngster was doing something similar, he didn't like going out first or being left in the stables on his own although if I brought him in from the field and stayed with him he was fine, I suppose it's a version of separation anxiety with not wanting to be left.

We have worked on this over time and are getting there although we have had setbacks along the way.

You need to do things gradually, your youngster needs to realise that he will see his buddies again and it's not the end of the world if he's left for an extra few minutes. I would start off by leading the other horses in and out a few times, not far just taking them out of the yard and back in, then go a little further and back again and repeat until you can get all of the way to the field gate and back. You should give plenty of breaks in between the tries. You may manage this in a morning, it may take a few days. The idea is not to let your youngster get stressed so if you have to start by just taking one horse out of its stable and then putting it straight back in then that is what you need to do. The more effort you put in the easier the horse will find it.

You need to wait until you have proper time for this so in the mean time I would agree to turn him out first but long term it is not the ideal
 

Antw23uk

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I don't think 'putting him out first' is the right answer! Its an easy answer but this needs to be worked on before it becomes dangerous. We own these big animals and they need to be compliant with EVERYTHING we ask of them and say for example in an emergency he needed to be in on his own and if it hadn't been worked on and was impossible then surely the only other option is to have a companion ... well if that's not possible ... what then? pts?

Good luck OP,I think little steps and maybe google separation anxiety? Get your head round that and see if you an apply aspects of curing that to your situation? :eek:
 
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be positive

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I have had the occasional horse in that does much the same, like you it is easy to turn out first but there are days when they have to stay in for some reason, they can learn to be sensible about it but it takes time.
When he can start work I would take him out and work him before turning out, bring him in tired, or at least relaxed and make him wait for a while before turning them out in order, him first, it is a pain because it means keeping them all in longer but will really help. Summer when they are out more is the best time to instill this, bring him in and work, take another out tie up, get the routine very flexible so he gradually spends more time waiting and becomes less demanding, some work will probably help him settle anyway.
 

Cortez

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He needs to learn to stay on his own. Put up a grill, and tie him when you put the others out. I'd leave him tied for short periods so that he learns to just chill out, and then put horses in, out, whatever until he learns that tantrums will not produce results.
 

Antw23uk

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How about mixing things up with them? So for example go to turn him out first but tie him outside ... get another horse and tie it next to him, take him back in and tie him next to anothers stable ... take out another and tie outside, then tie him outside again .... Obviously my post now sounds like a crazy persons as I read it back but my thinking process is that turn out is such an A-B process but by mixing it up so he doesn't know if he is going out, being tied up, going in ect will make him less bothered or anxious about being left behind?

It would be time consuming and you would need to be dedicated and make notes to what you have done so it doesn't become a 'pattern' like turn out is!
 

melissa1971

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Thank you all for your replays I will try getting a grill up then doing a little at a time. I don't think it is a separation anxiety as he can be left in the field by himself and can be brought in first by himself I think it is over excitement at going out time and maybe mixed with a little panic that I'm going to forget him lol it is something I want to work on as like you say you never know when they will need to be in by themselves
 

ILuvCowparsely

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I'm in need of some advice I have 6 horses all stabled overnight in a barn so all stables can see each other. The problem I have is with my 4yr old he is fine in the stable over night but come morning if he is not first out he rears at the door and I'm so worried he will hurt himself. Even if just one of the others goes out he does it so it's not like I can leave him till 2nd to last I'm really wanting him to be able to stay by himself so when he starts work this spring I don't have worry about him been in by himself. How can I get him over this thanks.

My welshie rears for her dinner, if you walk past and give donkey hers welsies rears and whickers, I do gode her to do it sometimes
 

AmyMay

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Putting him out first is not really a cure if the op would like him to be able to stay in on his own.

No it's not a cure. But sometimes we have to work around their little foibles.

I've just had an interesting chat with a friend who I haven't seen for a while. She has a little mare that loads beautifully on to a lorry or a trailer - as long as its backwards. She simply won't go on front ways. It's not an issue because friend simply works around it.
 

Goldenstar

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I would remove everything he could damage himself on from the stable and invest in a grill and leave him To get on with it .
Keep him in a while with one other friend , mix what you do so you don't let him get used to always being first don't always leave him last make him second last or second mix it up.
 

Kelly1982

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OMG!! Have you stolen my horse?? Lol

Mine doesn't rear over the door but he runs round screaming and throws himself against the door. When I first got him, even if you took a horse out of its stable and put it into another stable still within sight he would not settle unless that horse was back in its rightful place.

And if I got my mare out of her stable and tied her outside his, he wouldn't settle until she was back again.

I have just stuck to a strict routine with him so he knows what to expect and carried on as normal as possible. Also putting him on the end stable with my mare the other side helped as he used to get attached to the horse stabled next to him so was a nightmare if they had a different routine or wanted to ride.

Like yours though he was happy to be left in the field on his own or if he got brought in on his own to be ridden. It's just purely when he is stabled and another one moves, it's like he thinks he is missing out on something.

He got a lot better once he was broken in and in work as he had something else to focus on. And I started taking my mare away for short periods etc and gradually lengthened them.

I've had him 18 months now and even though he a million times better I have still not managed to 'cure' it. It used to really stress me out but routine and perseverance is starting to pay off
 

melissa1971

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Quick update.. My OH was home this weekend to help out so he put bars across the top of his door then stood by while I put the others out on Sat he reared maybe 5 6 times then settled I left him 10 mins then put him out this morning he reared once then stayed in for 15 mins so hopefully we can beat this
 

mjcssjw2

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i completely ignore my filly when she is doing it and ask others to ignore it also, she does have a high door and they are high indoor stables, thankfully when she rears up there is a bar across the top of her stable at her head height that kind off deters her coming forward over the door. i don't want her to learn it will cause a panic by doing it.
 
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