How do you deal with a horse that bites?

charmeroo said:
I've found that a hoof-pick with the bristles on the end are really useful, especially with a horse that nips when you're doing up rugs as you can tap them on the nose with the bristles and this does deter them! You can also use it when leading a horse by holding the bristles under their chin and if they go to bite you you can tap them firmly again and they do not really realise where it is coming from!
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IME, horses that bite do so for a reason. It may, in some cases, be that they have been given too many treats and have come to expect them. In this case obviously stop giving treats. However we feed treats and have never had one that bit because of it.
We have had biters though. Big horses which have come to us from RS have bitten when being rugged/tacked up because they have got used to small people/staff in a rush/inexperienced clients throwing their rugs & tack at them in a very inconsiderate manner.
We teach them that we take care when dealing with them, we do things slowly and give treats for good behaviour. We also have an elbow ready, so that we do not get hurt and generally ignore attempted biting. A near miss gets a firm "No".
We frequently have 2 people deal with these horses, we do not tie up but have one person to hold the horse and talk calmly and confidently to it, while the other person does whatever is necessary.
We had another smaller horse which bit when being girthed/rugged. This turned out to be because she was allergic to her feed and this made her very sensitive, so we dealt with that by changing her feed.
 
At the risk of being jumped here, I would give the nag a slap in the mouth delivered immediately after the bite. Biting is dangerous and unacceptable in every way imho.
 
I suppose that it is up to the individual how you want to deal with stuff like this. From a personal point of view I also believe that horses do this sort of thing for a reason. There is no mystery about why they do things and understanding their inate behaviour is always the key.

I try not to fall into the trap of being anthropomorphic about horses, which is one reason why I don't hit or shout at them.

Our horses and horses we train are given and expected to deal with responsibility, this goes right through their education from simple things like walking in hand to ridden work. Horses that bite are not really an issue for us because the problem is sorted quickly as part of thier training and education.

However, lots of folk think that shouting, slapping or hitting them works and if thats what they want to do fair enough.
 
I don't often hit a horse, but if it goes for my face it will get a slap on whichever bit of it my hand reaches first.

My usual way of dealing with a biter is to make a 'psssst' or sharp noise and a jerky, big movement to get them out of my space. After a second i then carry on as normal. Seems to work pretty well (long term, not just as a short term deterrent). But there's lots of reasons for biting and they need dealing with diferently. If i had done that with the aggressive previously abused WB i rode years ago he would have took my face off. He was best when you were confident and the elbow trick was the best defense against him. Also taking him away from 'his' space, so away from his box helped. He never bit in the field, only in/ around his stable.
 
I was always told when a horse bites, don’t bring your hand closer to it’s head e.g. to slap it on the neck/nose, otherwise they can easily lunge and catch you! A pony at our RS tries to bite when being girthed. I’m always slow and gentle with him, and he’s only done it once with me since he’s been back in work, which is odd because he seems to do it at all other times without fail. He’s never got hold of skin, and I always give him a sharp no and generally stick close to the saddle so it’s harder to reach, but remain prepared in case he cow kicks instead. He never has, so I think it’s more him registering dislike than being vicious. He’d get a quick slap if did ever make contact though – action-outcome learning works, no matter what the species!
 
Having had a biter for several years, the only thing that worked was for me to carry a small plastic water pistol and squirt him on the side of his face when he tried to bite. After a while I only had to carry the pistol and let him know I had it and he would behave!
 
alma said:
Having had a biter for several years, the only thing that worked was for me to carry a small plastic water pistol and squirt him on the side of his face when he tried to bite. After a while I only had to carry the pistol and let him know I had it and he would behave!
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I'd forgotten about the joys of water pistol carrying! Never used it on a biter, but had a really doggy napper once (used to plant and refuse to budge in any direction) I took to whipping a water pistol out of my pocket and squirting her whenever she went into the zone. Mare v unimpressed, but responded beautifully. After a few days of water torture, the turbo kicked in whenever I put my hand in my pocket!
 
We have a mare on our yard who is totally evil in her stable - will reach out and try to bit anyone who passes
But in teh field and even leading down (yes ive led her down often) she is a total sweetheart.
This mare has been abused in the past so i think (the owner has put a big note on her door saying this mare bites) just be aware and dodge!
She really is a total sweetheart but very protective of her stable - there is a reason for this so why woudl you slap or pour water on her and make it worse?
Just let her be narky - shes not narky outside her stable, in fact i think she is funny - its her littel quirk, we all have quirks - leave her be (just dodge the stable door lol)
 
not read all this thread, but a horse tried to really bite me today at work, and he got the message via a punch on the nose. He obviously wasn't expecting it ;)
 
Have been really frustrated with my chap, spring is in the air! He nips because that is what stallions do to test mares for 'readiness' !! Got so fed up I bought him a grazing muzzle which he has on when I am grooming him, sometimes leading him in and out (when I remember) and most recently holding him for the chiropractor and the farrier - its great. Obviously he doesn't like it much and the first time I put it on I got a split lip where he bashed me in the face with it (oh joy!). But now he is not biting so much (without it on). I do feel he is trying to tell me something and probably because I am a fluffy bunney I have had his back checked and the next thing is to get his saddle checked. I also enrolled on a day's course this Saturday for Animal Communication. I really do not want to get angry with him, it is mainly natural instinct and possibly habit. Also something useful I have found is to raise my arms up above his head - gently - and appear bigger than him (not too difficult as he is only 15 hands) this seems to work - especially when loose in the field (he wants to play when I want to poo-pick).
I am looking forward to picking up some tips on the course. Watch this space.
 
shysmum said:
not read all this thread, but a horse tried to really bite me today at work, and he got the message via a punch on the nose. He obviously wasn't expecting it ;)
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Personally I wouldn't hit it in the face, I'd always go for the shoulders. Considering you said you were at work, I am assuming it wasn't your horse- I would be pretty annoyed if someone else had punched my horse on the nose.
 
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