Integrating New Horses

kbsaff

kbsaff

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I'm looking for advice with regards to (as per the title) Integrating new horses onto our yard.

We're based on a Very small yard which is currently home to 5 horses, 3 of which are turned out together, one geriatric who just potters about the yard and an arab who has his own field.
In our field we have the typical Dominant Male who loves a good fight and is generally a grumpy beggar, a Youngish Sec D who gives as good as he gets and a relatively impartial 20yr kids pony.

At the end of the month, a new livery will be moving in with 4 new horses and I'm worried about how ours will react. I don't want to just chuck them all out as we'll end up with absolute mayhem and definitely some form of injury.
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What would you do and how would you go about integrating 4 new ponies into a happy herd of 3?

Snaps if you got this far!
 
There's no other field I'm afraid.

When I said the arab was on his own, I mean we've sectioned part off of our main field for him as he didn't get on with our boys.

There's plenty of room in our field for the 4, i'm just wondering about the best way to introduce them
 
I'm a bit of an old school 'stick them in the field and let them get on with it!' I take hinds off all known or suspected kickers, chuck them out and be there with a headcollar and leadrope just in case!
 
Can you not then section of another part of the field for the new ones?

We have to take ages introducing any new horse to ours as they are an established 'herd'. We separate for a good few days (see what the general reactions are) then we will introduce on of ours to the new one. We usually start with the lowest herd member upwards as this generally means they will nto then be so interested in the new horse when wedo intergrate them all.

This then means our established herd leader doesn't have to work so hard keeping his lot away from the newbie as they are not as interested having already met it!

However with 4 new ones I would separate off for longer and maybe introduce one at a time to your lot.

Think the longer you separate them the better really - you want to minimise the chance of injury to yours and the new ones.
 
This is an interesting quesiton! At my yard they just check them all out and let them get on with it, adn they bomb about for a bit. they ar enormally fine, there've never been any bad injuries (touch wood) though obv threy all have a good kick at eachother and sqeal etc. However i think there are better ways...!!

My friend's a behaviourist and when she got her new pony, did a sort of introduction as if in the wild - e.g. kept them one field apart i think or somethign at first, then let them talk over the fence so it was a gradual introduction, then let them in.

It sounds like that mgiht not be possible for you? so if not - I have also read that it's a good idea to put all horses in stables or somewhere else, except the dominant one, then put the new horse in wiht the dominant one so they can sort themselves out first and foremost. then introduce the others one by one after a little while. Might be safest, if you hvae somewhere to put the other two?

some people let them meet over the fence but i personally think that's a recipe for disaster if you have the sort of horse (as i do) that lashes out wiht its front feet - i know two people who did that last yr and ended up wiht front tendon injuries form catching forelegs on the fence in this way.

hope that helps a little?!?

good luck!
 
oh - also i would say ti depends on the horses; if your 4 are gunna go mental the second you split them up, wind up the new one etc then just let them get on with it in the same field wiht your new one. the same if your new one is a bit of a separation anxiety freak and you plan on putting it in its own section for a while or whatever. i don't think there's a right or wrong way really....
 
Thanks for your thought - Yes we have stables that they can all see each other from. I guess i'm just panicking as 4 horses is a lot more than we're used to and I would hate to see any of them lot hurt.

I'm also aprhensive about upsetting the balance between these ponies as they're such a quirky, but harmonious group but on the other hand, in order for us to upkeep the yard, we need more liveries. Aggh... it's such a catch 22!

So are we of the general consensus that they should meet the most dominant first or the older pony?

I'm off to muck out in a mo so will have a chat to other livery about perhaps sectioning the new part off. It would be electric tape because, as you say both our young'uns will lash out with front feet so tape may be more forgiving than posts (hopefully)
 
For a start, isolate them for a bit unless you KNOW they are healthy and where they are coming from.

I have bloody rampant lice because a livery put her new horse out in a field with her others and mine without permission. I delouse, de-worm and isolate everything that comes onto the farm usually. It is -8C, I can't wash them and de-lousing horses with 3" of winter coat with powder is a flipping joke.

When I do introduce new horses to a group I put up a round pen IN the field so that they can talk for a few days without kicking seven bells out of each other. It doesn't necessarily stop the bickering though (2 unshod mares fighting for the top spot cost me over $700 for the Vet to practise his needlework this summer) easy to say if you have the facilities, not so easy if you don't.

Chucking new horses straight out in an established herd is an absolute no-no as far as I am concerned. Sure, it works just fine most of the time, I've done it myself, but the times it doesn't can be expensive or even tragic.

I think you have to play it very much by ear and introduce them gradually as Lady T says.
 
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