Horses with personal space issues - does anyone else have a horse like this?

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Waffles

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I've had mine 18 months now. He is absolutely fine with his head, ears, mouth, you can brush his tail and mane, but most mornings he does not want to be touched on his body - for instance, this morning, he was in a particularly foul mood, and just placing a brush against him above his shoulder made him quite angry. He doesn't kick (but will swish his tail lots and kick up at his own belly to warn me off), he doesn't bite though will shove his nose into me with ears back - mostly he wriggles from side to side, into me, away from me, pulls back, walks forward - anything to get away from me. I have tried all sorts of brushes, and fingers too. I am endlessly patient and beginning to think I deserve a medal for that alone. Other than this he is great - I can lead him round with just a lead rope round his neck and he will walk, trot, stand, turn etc. easily, so groundwork is all fine. he is fab to ride too - only problem there has been a very slight tendency to nap and I mean very slight.

He is fine to tack up too and fine with the girth (though I am very careful not to pinch etc.).
Brief history - he's 8 this year, was gelded at 5 having been at stud for a couple of years.

Gasp..... sorry for long post. Just wondering if anyone else has had similar problems - oh yes, finally, last summer he was ace and from May to November was fine to brush, but he reverted to being ars*y once he was stable again over night.
 
Does he do this with anyone else other than you?
Only asking as I have a old lady who is very grumpy when I put on or take off rugs. Anyone else can do this without a single angry face or any reaction. I do it, she pulls faces and scowls. Nothing wrong with her, she just likes scowling at me. :rolleyes: Other than that shes never grumpy with me and is a lovely, "affectionate" old lady.
 
I've only had one horse like this and he had ulcers. It started as you describe. He was fine to pur girth up and ride etc. the only other thing he did was really chew on his bit
however he then started not wanting to go forward and bucking. Was scoped and treated. Now he loves a groom
However I am aware that some horses just don't like being groomed
 
To be honest, no one else has tried to brush him. He's quite affectionate towards me when not being brushed and will have his head cradled in my hands and go to sleep. I think other people at the yard find him "intimidating" as he tends to look people right in the eyes with an intense stare (I know that probably sounds ridiculous, but you would have to see it to believe it):D

I've heard of the ulcers thing from a couple of people, but think, ok, if it was a particular area (like girth or whatever) then I would be prepared to think that, but as it is sometimes, just placing my hand on his neck will send him wriggling around and generally swearing at me. Also, sometimes, he is fine, when he's in the right mood, and if I can manage to calm him down, he will enjoy having his tummy scratched.
 
My mare (ex racer 12 yrs old) doesnt like her space being invaded. Infact you will see from my previous posts when i got her just before Xmas that she was a pretty vile animal and i was heartbroken by her behaviour ... Rugging, brushing, girthing, stabling, feeding ... You name it she can pull a face and bare those teeth like something from the Aliens film! She will suss someone out within a minute of meeting them and she will run rings around anyone who doesnt stand up for themselves and she will not tolerate ANYONE in her personal space when she isnt in the mood for it.

So now I have painted a rather good picture of her I can go on to say that now we have got to know each other better she is very loyal and loving. She can show a sweetness that melts my heart but the second she thinks you have sussed her out she turns on the vileness again ... just to keep you on your toes of course :D I adore her and its early days but I cant imagine not having her :o

As for brushing belly and bum area :eek:... I think grooming is overated anyway so just give it a miss, the mud comes off eventually :p
 
Waffles said:
Brilliant.... Lots of people on the yard think it's because he was a stallion and it's that "stallion attitude". I think he's just a git. :D
Click to expand...

It'ss not always a bad thing having people giving your horse a wide berth. Stops the gossiping and bitching groups meeting up outside your stable thats for sure :D
 
Now for before and after photos - it took me an hour....
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I also own a git horse, he is an angel out of the stable, tied up, ridden etc, will follow me around like a dog. But his stable is very much "his" space so he can be a bit vile (pulling faces etc) and has on occasion been quite nippy (especially if I should dare to do something awful like try and put his rug on..).

To be honest I think it's just him, though I have been informed that he was kept on his own for quite a while after he was weaned so I wonder if this has anything to do with his antisocial tendencies. I try to avoid doing things I know wind him up; I never turn my back on him when rugging 'cause I know to him that is a prime opportunity to sink his teeth into me (alas not always successful, the git got me the other day, big black bruise now)..

Echo the others though, everyone else thinks he's a git too so nobody fusses around him or annoys him :D and outside of the stable he is a real sweetheart. :rolleyes:
 
Mine doesn't have a problem with rugs, apart from trashing every single one I have bought for him (about 6 in 18 months). I've taken the rug off now and he will have to put up with me brushing him.

Also, re the ulcer thing (which is of course a valid theory) - in this case, it wouldn't affect me trying to touch his upper leg would it? He'sthat much of a git. I suppose I should be thankful he doesn't bite. :eek:
 
When I first had him , he used to nip me if I was talking to someone. Also, he would lash out at anyone if I was with him and was giving him treats/carrots. My husband gave him a carrot, he dropped half of it on the floor, husband bends down to pick it up, horse puts ears back at husband. He (the horse) got kind of really possessive of me after a couple of days - he's ok now in that respect.
 
Oh he doesnt bite? Oh well what ya posting for, he sounds like a dream :p Lol :D

I think the biggest thing for me was not being so touchy feely with her. I just wanted to love her and cuddle her, fussing her and spoiling her and she just isnt that kind of horse .. Once I got this through my thick skull we really started to click and now I just go to my friends 17.2 gelding if i need to cuddle a horse because he loves them :rolleyes:

I think you do learn to change your behaviour and expectations so for example going in her stable to hang a haynet or skip out is a trigger for her so i either tie her up in the stable or tie her up outside. She is food agressive ... Simple I just leave her to it. I no longer look at mud and think it must be brushed off :p
 
JillA said:
When a horse is grumpy or resentful around its body it is always worth checking as in this video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fr05hMmLCY4

It costs nothing and might point up a problem (which you can treat) or at least give you the all clear to carry on insisting he allows you to do stuff around him
Click to expand...

Thanks very much for this link. It's very interesting. Am watching it now as I type. His poo is completely normal and he's not gassy. Am still watching it... am going to look at it again now as there were some similarities with my horse's behaviour...
 
Yes, very interesting, that link. However, some days, he's ok and it wouldn't account for him not wanting me to touch his shoulder or legs when he doesn't feel like it, although I suppose it could be making him feel tetchy generally.... also it wouldn't account for last summer him being fine the reverting again. Sometimes, just putting the flat of my hand on him makes him tetchy. Still, when the vet is up next I think I will have a chat with him
 
I won't know if it's seasonal or affected by him being stabled till they go out 24/7 at the beginning of May - it will be interesting to see. I think I'm going to e mail the guy I bought him from though and try to find a bit more about his past/previous treatment
 
Ok - e mailed previous outlining the problem and said if there was a problem, please tell me etc. and if he's always been like this and so on. and he says "I think he's so intelligent that he's fed up with the weather!!" so I take inference from that that he's always been a git :D
 
One of our boys doesn't like to be touched. He tolerates grooming but you can tell he feels it is a waste of our time. He'll stand beside you all day but doesn't want to be fussed or stroked, he just wants to BE with you. Thankfully our other boy is so affectionate and cuddly, he makes up for the other one! :p
 
Is it only in the morning that he is like this after he has spent the night in? What is he like when he has been in the field for a few hrs?

Sounds like a pain reaction to me...
 
Knobberpony is like this.She views being groomed as a personal affront to her dignity.:D She doesn't like other horses or ponies in her space either.

She pulls faces,tail swishes and lifts up her feet,she just gets told to 'give over' and I ignore her.She does occasionally try and groom me too now and we have an understanding.Good job I love the cantankerous old thing.
 
he's worse after a night in, definitely. When he was out 24/7 last summer, he was a changed horse, then it all started again when they were stabled overnight in November - so if it was ulcers and have been thinking of this all night....then they wouldn't go away and come back again. Also, thinking about that youtube link - could gastric ulcers really affect the withers?? there are no gastric bits there...
 
Ok, have looked up lots about gastric ulcers as have been on verge of phoning vet (and will have a chat with him very soon anyway) but some of the symptoms are decreased performance, reluctance to work, poor body condition, reduced appetite, low grade colic, diarrhoea - he has none of these.
 
Could be worth getting physio/chiro out to him and seeing what they say to see if it's pain.

It could be ulcers. Many people on here swear by Coligone to help upsets - might be worth trying a tub of it (will cost around £15) to see if it makes any difference before scoping?
 
I'm not convinced about the ulcer theory.... (although as have said, will chat to vet) - It wouldn't make him sensitive on his lower legs for instance, would it? Also, he's fine with being tacked up, never bucks or seems in discomfort with the saddle or rugs. Weird really. Another part of his history I don't think I've mentioned, is that someone bought him rising 4 (still ungelded at the time) backed him then told the breeder they were getting rid of him, breeder got him back. I'm strongly beginning to suspect that he was worse when ungelded (gelded at 5) and that they couldn't handle him.

They only have him 3 or 4 months...
 
Unless he has truly ad-lib forage in the stable, ulcers could well explain his behaviour. If he has been standing in the stable for a considerable length of time with acid building up in his stomach, he will certainly feel grumpy. Obviously when he is living out this will not be the case.
I also wonder if you started giving him hard feed of any kind at about the same time you brought him in. I used to have a mare who could not tolerate refined sugars or cereals and really couldn't bear to be touched, if she had eaten any.
 
I give him as much hay as he can eat - enough so that there is still some left in the morning. He has a very small amount of cool mix and a very small amount of sugar beet.
 
I would cut out both the sugr beet and the cool mix and see if there is any improvement.

I have a mare now who can be grumpy - I suspect ulcers, so following a tip on here, I make sure that she has Aloe Vera juice every day. On the rare occasions we run out, she reverts to grumpiness very quickly. In fact so much so that now I make sure that we don't run out.
 
Just phone vet...and after explaining the not liking being brushed it the only symptom he said "Is he ok to tack up?" and I said "Yes" and he said "There's your answer then"
 
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