Horses and tractors

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bluewhippet

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My horse is feared of them. In fact he seems to be growing more scared as time goes on. I ride him past them firmly etc and don't let him getaway with spinning round and running for home. We get past. He survives. But the next time he is just as frightened.

I can't say I blame him. Farmers have so many different scary contraptions to add to the basic tractor. Things that hang off the top, the bottom, the front, the back, with wheels and sharp things and rattling things and creaky things, and just plain big things.

No wonder the poor horse is a quivering wreck...
 
Don't take this the wrong way but if he's getting worse & you are expecting him to be scared then its likely you're tensing up & transmitting that fear to him. Can you get someone more confident to hack him past one? That way it could give you the confidence to ride him past them without assuming he's going to be scared.
 
littlelegs said:
Don't take this the wrong way but if he's getting worse & you are expecting him to be scared then its likely you're tensing up & transmitting that fear to him. Can you get someone more confident to hack him past one? That way it could give you the confidence to ride him past them without assuming he's going to be scared.
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Honestly, I'm not tense, I'm not scared of him or his reaction. I am very relaxed when we are out hacking, God knows why. Jumping is a different matter though...
 
Sorry, didn't mean it as a criticism, haven't even seen you ride, it was just the way you said you didn't blame him for being scared & that he's getting worse that made me think of it.
 
littlelegs said:
Sorry, didn't mean it as a criticism, haven't even seen you ride, it was just the way you said you didn't blame him for being scared & that he's getting worse that made me think of it.
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I didn't take it as one! I could easily be that sort of a rider - it's just weirdly I am very confident on him however he behaves.

And I was joking about not blaming him, but it has been a real revelation to me this last year quite how many different contraptions farmer get to use. All big and noisy...
 
As you can see them coming, try to get behind a hedge or at least out of the path, so he can stand and watch them go by, I must say farmers round here are really good with horse, and will slow down or stop till you get in a good position.
 
Mine hates them too but after lots and lots (and lots!) of repetition we're finally getting there, its been a slow process but he's so much better than he used to be. We tend to hide in verges or gateways so that he can see the "monster" go by but doesn't feel as threatened by it as he would if they were on the road together.
Sounds obvious and you've probably already tried it, but have you hacked him out with a horse who's confident around tractors?
 
Mine are fed from a tractor from the first day turned out - at 24 hours old! The mares see the tractor and run to it - foals follow - and learn tractors are nice and bring food. Mine is only a compact - but when we back them they are always good with HUGE tractors on the road (the bigger the tractor, the more food it can carry!)

But just getting a horse in contact with a tractor later in life - when they're already scared of them - doesn't work. We have horses come here for backing - or mares for covering. They run the first day we deliver haylage by tractor - and they're still running 6-8 weeks later (after all, they KNOW that running away is a successful strategy!!) The only way is to bring them in contact when they can't run away - preferably leading them up to a stationery tractor, then one with the engine running - and treat them when they get close! It'll take time! But well worth doing - a horse spooking away from a tractor can put itself (and rider) under something else!
 
Talk to a local farmer and get him to drive in a field thats safe and then just ride your pony along behind the tractor, obviously at a distance at first but quickly getting closer and closer. Horses love to think they are chasing the big bad monster away and that "its" frightened of "them".

We have lots come in for breaking and retraining and as there's an abundance of farm machinery in our region its something we do on a daily basis.

Please dont hide in the hedge, you will only put your horse and yourself in danger . ;)

Good luck.
 
at the livery yard my horses used to be at the the tractor brought the hay so they have a positive association with them and no fear. harder to get this positive association in your case but there are some good ideas on here.
 
Could you borrow a tractor and put it in the paddock? All but one of mine don't bother with them they follow me down the field. One even deliberately stands in front, Stupid Arab, he does the same with wheel barrows and a ride on mower :) One of mine is a real kak pants when we're out and won't go past. I always have to have someone else go past first, then he's okay, I'm just hoping one day he'll get over it. Could you go out with someone else and let them passed first?
 
Thanks very much for all the advice (sorry for delay in replying - thread seemed to have got lost).

The tractor driving farmers I meet are very helpful so I might approach one about letting my (poor) boy become better acquainted.
 
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