QueenT
Well-Known Member
Our gentle gelding had his nose/mouth in the electric fence a week ago - that day it took five adults (yard staff) to get a hold of him so he could get in from pasture. The following two days he stayed in and was all jittery, and acted as if touching him shocked him again, and of course very sensitive around his head. Once on a lead he is super easy, well-mannered and no probs with riding. We had him vet checked just to be sure, nothing wrong there. But we still can't catch him when he's off the rope. He is in a small paddock now, so we have a tiny chance of getting hold of him, even so, I don't think having several people corner him everyday is a good solution. So I called in one of these horsemanship-cowboy-trainers (brilliant man!) He agreed that the horse does not act scared or traumatised anymore, but has clearly realised that running wild is a lot more fun, and the experience has probably triggered a flight response associated with people - apparently that's fairly normal. 32 minutes, and the horse was following the cowboy like a lap dog. So, when I did it yesterday it took me close to 2,5 hours, but at the end of it he stood still and let me hook the halter. I take that as some form of success, and I know that these things can take a long time to retrain - still, I am exhausted by the thought of having to do this every day for the next long period. The yard staff has bailed on getting him in, and I understand that, they can't spend that long on one horse. Have any of you experienced anything like this, and how did you resolve it? Thanks!
