how firm are you with your horse?

C

clairefeekerry1

Well-Known Member
Joined
4 December 2008
Messages
1,602
Visit site
just being nosey really. how firm are you? the other day my horse nipped my instructor, she slapped his chest hard. i would normally just growl at him, he never did it to her again tho, where as he always tries to nip me, so maybe i'm not firm enough!!!!
 
Not as firm as I am with other people's horses!
grin.gif


Well, that's not strictly true. With manners, barging/biting/kicking etc I would come down on her like a ton of bricks. I tend to be much more lenient over more trivial stuff, like mugging me, taking the p out hacking etc.

Like today, I went out for what was supposed to be a quiet ride, and she was a complete loon. Walking down the side of a field she spotted some horses behind us and turned round to gawp at them. I couldn't turn her round for the life of me and just sat there in fits of giggles. If that was a horse I had been asked to ride for someone else, I wouldn't have tolerated that!
 
I'm very firm with Herbie but he gets huge rewards when he is good (He's my new problem pony and needs alot of issues seeing to)
Lucy now gets away with murder since her diagnosis
tongue.gif
But i used to be firm but fare with her to (she is a reformed problem pony)
I treat each horse as an indervidual some i just growl at and that is enough but Herbie at the mo needs firm handeling but i hope he'll get the idea soon. All Lucy needs is a look and she knows she is in the wrong.
grin.gif
 
With my mare and old lad not so much as they have been with me for years and are extremely well behaved and respectful around me. With the German monster very!! He is very cheeky bordering on pushy and will try it on big time. He pulls at your clothes and would be a big problem if he wasn't put in his place on an almost daily basis. He's a big strong lad.
 
If you growl and he does it again I'd say you weren't being firm enough the first time. I don't see anything wrong with giving one slap for a nip.
 
I am very firm with my 2 and tbo they hardly ever cause me any problems because of it ....

They can be let together everywhere, will stand outside their stables quietly and are brilliant most of the time, so it must work
smile.gif


Or I am just very luck and have good boys
grin.gif
 
i would have done the same as your instructor. he knows he can get away with it with you. it depends on the character of the horse, i cant hit my horse really coz he has a breakdown, a large growl scares him enough! today at work i got dragged by a big 17hh idxtb and got rope burns and he got a telling off, he soon walked like a dobin when i stuck a chifney in his gob. in fairness to him hes on box rest and i was taking him in the school to be loosed and he buggered off in the collecting ring! dont like it when they use there size against you!
 
Dizz got booted the other day - she waved her teeth at me because I asked her to move over! Damned rude, and in Dizz's case dangerous - she's the type of horse that if you stay on top of her (firm but kind), then she's as soft as old mush, but if you give her half an inch she'll take your head off
frown.gif
blush.gif
If been on the receiving end of her once before and I'm not going there again, it was bl00dy scary. When I handle her every day she is good every day, for me and for others; if I don't handle her for a few days, even if others do, she gets a bit bolshy - she's too damn big to be bolshy!
 
I am quite firm in general but struggle a little with Belle because she's clearly been beaten in the past and can be nervy. Luckily she hasn't shown much naughtiness yet but I'm not sure how I'll deal if she does start playing up - I don't want to risk terrifying her!
 
I'm firm but nice when needed, and nice but firm when needed.

Always I try to be fair. Have friends who are firm all the time and they are no fun for their horse to be around.

But safety, particularly with kids, cannot be compromised.
 
[ QUOTE ]
just being nosey really. how firm are you? the other day my horse nipped my instructor, she slapped his chest hard. i would normally just growl at him, he never did it to her again tho, where as he always tries to nip me, so maybe i'm not firm enough!!!!

[/ QUOTE ]

I like to think I am firm but fair and very consistent..my horses all know what is acceptable or unacceptable in the ponys case
smile.gif
 
I'm a soft touch with my girl
blush.gif
She has a tendency to 'pretend' to nip you when you rug her up, and although she has never ever actually bitten me, Mum always gives her a smack on the nose if she goes to nip. I, on the other hand, tend to laugh at her
blush.gif
grin.gif


When she was a baby, I was very tough on her for things like lifting a leg when you walked behind her, and she doesnt do it now. But I have definitely gone soft as we've got older
blush.gif
grin.gif
 
i dont let mine get away with anything on the ground, mainly because my kids are around him and handling him at times. and when i'm leading/lunging him with them onbaord, the same. i do tend to let him get away with murder when i ride, jst coz he's a fab fun ride and thats what i like. altho i do make sure he's safe on the road and will stop mid-gallop if a dog comes near us or there are walkers in our path!!!
 
Genie knows what's acceptable and what's not, and if she pushes the boundaries then I will be firm with her. My Mum (who is in her late 60s) handles her at times and I need her to know her manners (which she does, and she is an ANGEL for Mum).
 
Ols can try to be very bolshy so has to be kept in check. When he is kind so am I but I cannot let his manners slip, I give him the odd reminder about my space when handling him. Basically if we stick to turnout routines and how he should behave when entering the stables that kind of thing all is well.

I do not like ill mannered horses, also I have a fair amount of muscle wastage due to illness so I have to jump straight on small problems before I cannot manage them.

Ollie knows I am kind and loving but he also knows not to mess me about or I will react.
 
I always start with a growl, and usually that is enough, however if that does not have an immediate effect I will move on to a smack, or a flick with the rope or whatever is needed to reinforce the need for good behaviour
 
I'm the same as I was bringing up my kids, firm and fair.

When all is well I'm easy to get along with and he can take a few liberties, but when he steps over the line, then he is corrected immediately, either with a good telling off, a slap or the occasional knee in the ribs. He is also rewarded and made a big fuss of when he does things right.
 
It depends on the horse.

But my mare, I'm soft on. I don't need to be anything else.

I don't think a slap on the chest is unfair if the horse nipped though.

Mine would get that without doubt.
 
[ QUOTE ]
I'm firm but nice when needed, and nice but firm when needed.

Always I try to be fair. Have friends who are firm all the time and they are no fun for their horse to be around.

But safety, particularly with kids, cannot be compromised.

[/ QUOTE ]

I have friends like that too
smile.gif


I am firm on mine, although rarely hit him but he rarely steps out of line enough to warrant it maybe because I have always let him know what the boundaries are and the fact that he's a nice boy.

I do laugh at him when he's silly out hacking though. When he spins and doesn't want to go past something. Getting angry gets me nowhere. But patient and firm (with the occasional giggle) works every time
smile.gif
 
Not terribly firm - I guess he's well mannered and had a good education as a youngster.

Interesting about the biting though, OP, because mine loves nothing better than a sly nip - but doesn't do it to anyone else...........
blush.gif
 
very black and white with certain things, esp if horse is known to be bargy/push boundaries.
kicking,biting,barging are not acceptable in any circumstances. i do not want my horse to think they can act like that when people are anywhere near them.

i allow for spooking/fear response and will take in to account if the horse has been mistreated in the past but generally i err on the firm side-i dont have time to pussy foot around half a ton of attitude,and neither is that safe.

im just as quick to praise though.

iv had a few horses in for schooling that turned up bargy, angry,grumpy and impatient and after a week or 2 of black/white handling were relaxed happy and easier to handle-horse generally prefer it when we are in charge, as long as we are a firm consistant leader and are clear that we ARE in charge.

i like the fact that a young kid could safely catch,groom and rug up any of mine as they are careful of personal space, and uber polite (without being jumpy and terrified, which is what happens when people are firm but not fair!).
 
I am firm and make a conscious effort to be confident, clear and consistent with regards to boundaries. However I do not hit horses as I find this method full of falacies, mostly due to the anger, frustration and high emotion associated with it. That said, I would say I am very physical in terms of manipulating the horses' movements, doing lots of groundwork exercises i.e. swinging a leadrope to encourage the horse to move out of my space, asking them to move backwards and towards me, to lead well etc ... choosing not to use a method that uses pain for results doesn't automatically make anyone a wallflower! Being firm is as much about having self confidence and a purposeful attitude as anything else.
I think it's also important to be empathetic, understanding and patient ... none of which suggest "firmness" in any way! I suppose the rider has to get a comfortable balance between having black and white rules, and being flexible enough in their attitude and actions to listen to their horse at the same time.
 
I am not that firm with my horse but I don't feel I need to be.

He is good to lead moves out of my way in the stable, but is very impatient doesn't like standing still for long and loves pulling your clothes. I think he is quite sweet and hate it when you hear people screaming, shouting, reprimanding for the smallest things.

Obviously if he tried to bite, kick, barge me out the way I would be a lot firmer, I don't like it when horses are rude.
 
[ QUOTE ]
just being nosey really. how firm are you? the other day my horse nipped my instructor, she slapped his chest hard. i would normally just growl at him, he never did it to her again tho, where as he always tries to nip me, so maybe i'm not firm enough!!!!

[/ QUOTE ]

Cannot understand this, if a horse nipps you and he's using his mouth to do this, tap him on the nose not the chest!
 
Not very as he is very well mannered!
He will get a growl if he is pushing it though. I am firmer with other peoples horses than my own!

I think its individual what people will tolerate, for example some people think rubbing head on me etc is bad manners wheras I dont. He will also tell me off and give me a nudge if he wants attention, he does not get wrong for that either, maybe I am soft.
 
i have to be carefull with the boy as he has been beaten senseless in te past & is really nervy, but he still knows right from wrong & gets told off if needed (got a smack the other night for threatening to kick out at me) the girl is also firmly cared for.
there are 2 small children (soon 3) to consider in this equation & i need to know the muddies are not risk to them (directly or indirectly)
 
Always firm, like others say, especially on the ground. I can stare down my boy and he will stop in his tracks and submit, because i have done turning away and then joined up with him, so he views me as alpha. If only husband was so easy to control!
 
Not at all, little horse has obviously been beaten in the past and is still very nervous and scared as a result.
In three years I've never ever been remotely rough with him, but still if I'm in his box and just shift the bridle as it hangs on my shoulder he scuttles off and shakes.
Rather demoralising.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top