Horse Terrified of tractors *long*

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daretodream

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Just asking a bit of advice on how to desensitise my horse to tractors (if at all possible)
Took flash on a hack today with bootys_new_mum and her gelding, everything was going grand until i spotted a huge tractor with the biggest trailer ive ever seen coming up the road behind us, i signalled for him 2 slow down and 2 keep a good distance (which fair enough of him he did)
at the end of this road (which was only 200 yards away) there is a motorway bridge (which we were for crossing) i looked round 2 see which way the tractor was for going when i noticed that he was for overtaking us on the bridge (nutcase) so again i signalled for him 2 stay back, just after this bridge he started 2 overtake, flash starts to panic but lucky enough for me there was a side road that i put flash up b4 he got 2 close 2 us

walked on down the road about 500 yards and noticed the tractor coming up the road towards us again, i shouted 2 bootys_new_mum to tell him 2 stop, but he kept coming, flash started 2 freak and again the young fella in the tractor kept driving on, flash spun 180 degrees round to bolt up the road, i tried 2 stop him and he spun 90 degrees and thought about going thru the hedge then spun another 90 degrees to bolt up the road towards the other gelding but i got him stopped. my legs were like jelly most of the rest of the way home.
i was so angry at the driver especially after he seen that flash was scared the first time he tried 2 pass but he kept coming on anyway.

Another thing he is terrified off is young cows that spot us out hacking and run towards us, i can deal with this but its the tractors that i cant deal with because its something that we meet out quite often.

advice would be greatly appreciated
 
Can you put a tractor in your horses field for a while? So that he can smell and get familiar with it, at his own comfortable pace so he isnt as afraid of it?

Nick.
 
hes kept on a farm and sees one every day, thats what im confused about. He was scared of the one at the yard and when he went 2 run he cut his leg on tin but he was scared of them b4 this, i just wonder has this reinforced his fears.

lots go past him when hes in the field and he doesnt seem to be bothered by them but its when they come close that he panics and freaks out
 
No advice really apart from de-sensitizing him at every opportunity in a safe environment, but I'm interested in what replies you get as I have the same problem - only my horse not only goes ape-sh!t about tractors, but also lorries, trucks, vans, trailers and even larger 4x4s.
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Some horses have a real problem with large vehicles, especially like tractors - towing things behind them.

Having had a horse that was like this, the only thing I can advice is to ensure your own safety at all times. If this means riding in the middle of the road and insisting a vehicle stops - or trotting on to a safe passing place so be it. Sometimes getting the tractor to stop and switch the engine off will enable you to safely pass it (providing you have enought room to do it safely).

My current horse is bomb proof in the heaviest of traffic, with the largest vehicles - and it's an absolute godsend!
 
We used to have an Appaloosa mare who was terrified of all large vehicles. We bought a ShirexClyde mare who was unfazed by any traffic. She would stand between the Appaloosa and whatever was frightening her, she also took up a lot of room on the road, so no-one tried to go past until she was ready
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This is a bit of an extreme solution and does mean that you always have to ride out with some-one else but it certainly worked for us (and gave me my confidence back on the road after losing it on yet a different horse). The SxC once took 3 horses (including 2 she'd never met before) past a bus on a very narrow road, she just had that very calm confident quality.
Sorry probably not much help really
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Hey there, what a selfish tractor driver!!

Can I suggest to get your poor boy used to this sort of ignorance you organise to walk him in hand down a quiet stretch of road (ideally with a good calm horsey chaperone) and ask a friendly neighbour to drive a tractor steadily by?

The reason being that I suspect that you may anticipate his fear and get tense, which he senses and reacts to (making you more nervous) which your boy senses again and reacts to... and so the vicious circle goes on... If you take him out in hand he wont be able to sense your nerves through the reins and the saddle and hopefully it will stop it all escalating into chaos.

I recommend this because I took a neighbours horse out on our lanes and had no trouble at all with tractors or the bin men- we have come to the conclusion that it is because my neighbour had failed to tell me that her horse is *terrified* of anything larger than a car and so I didn't change my riding at all when the larger vehicles went passed, and consequently the mare didn't react either.

** if you are going to try this please be careful as it might be that your boy has a genuine phobia and you could get hurt if he tries to flee!**
 
Slightly more use to you perhaps.
I agree with ali-m re rider nerves. My current horse can be nervous of noisy vehicles but if I sit quietly with my legs wrapped round but not squeezing, making sure that if she is standing still she can see the vehicle, or if the vehicle has stopped she is walking on sensibly we are usually ok. I need to make sure I am not transmitting tension through saddle or reins and I talk to her reassuring her, telling her how good she is. She passed a broken car on a low-loader today, eyes out on stalks and at the other side of the road but no dancing etc
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My pony used to be scared of tractors etc and still is to a certain extent but is a lot better, mainly due to me getting a grip lol. I moved him to a yard on the same lane as an agricutural contractor so I had lots of practise, esp at harvest time
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Try and be very authorative on the road, asking tractors/large vehicles to slow right down/stop/turn engine off etc, whatever you need but then quickly get on with what you want to do so as not to inconvienience them too much.

I find it better if I can pass them rather than them passing me, I even turn around and go the opposite way to what I'm heading if need be, they don't even need to turn their engine off and can even be moving v slow. Keep horse going forward, keep talking gently but firmly to them and praise afterwards but not too much of a big deal. Lots of thanks to whoever has stopped for you, big smiles and even blow kisses lol, hopefully they will remember you if they pass you again.

Might be worth practising this with a friendly farmer?

I also find it okay to wait in a big passing place (enough room for them to spin but not cause damage) but prefer the 'passing them' way if possible, I find mine winds up more if standing still but he is forward going.

I've had my pony 4 years now and the worse he has ever done is spin and get away from me for a couple of strides so I don't worry that he is going to rear/buck or take off with me anymore. Don't know how long you have had your horse, can you find out if he has done it with the previous owner? Mine was scared of larger vehicles to a certain extent when I first had him but I think I made him worse once I realised he had a problem.

My pony doesn't get any confidence from others (he is the one that normally does that for them) he would be 100% to hack except for this, he is not one to spook at anything and will lead others past/through any obstacle - I always say he is scared of the things that could hurt him like tractors rather than the things that can't like pieces of paper/cows/sheep
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He does not bat an eyelid at fast cars, motorbikes, cyclists and for some strange reason doesn't care about the bus either though they are a lot quieter than tractors.

He also doesn't bother with tractors when they are in the field or even in a field/lane that we are passing, it's when we have to pass them on a narrow lane and more so if they come up behind us.

Good luck, hope you can get him over it, my pony was 13yo when I had him so no spring chicken but I've been able to change his ways somewhat and it really doesn't worry me now as I'm in control. You just need to learn to trust one another which may take time but I'm sure you will get there.
 
If you are on a farm you could try the tricks that worked for us.
A huge tractor was parked between the field & his stable so he had to get past it to get to his tea (if your horse is as food obsessed as our pony it helps!). Make sure he has space to give it a wide berth at first. Once he is walking past ok start leading him up to it to have a sniff & a look. Let him take his own time & not force him to get too close. Through both these stages have someone standing next to the trailer patting it & talking to it like a friendly dog (best if you warn other people what you are doing!). Once he is prepared to get close put polos or another favourite treat on the tractor where he can see them easily & make a fuss of him as he takes them.
It only took a couple of weeks to convince Bobby, who was 22 & had always been scared of tractors, that they were ok although the fact that he will do anything for food undoubtedly helped.
Our hacks often take us through another farmyard where we know the farmer & he was happy for us to continue his education by walking him up to assorted bits of machinery.
 
Thanks everyone for your replies.

Ive had Flash a year and 4 months, he came from a yard in a town so he wasnt used to farm life, i could take him over a motorway bridge over the busiest motorway and he wont bat an eyelid, theres always lorry drivers and buses etc that fly past him and none of this phases him but he has a genuine fear of tractors.

im defo going to try some of your tricks and il update if and when we get over this fear

thanks again
 
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