Just for fun.

[Gloi]

What cheeky things have your horses and ponies learnt to do?
To start off my old pony was an absolute master at pulling out electric fence posts. He'd get hold of the bit you put your foot on to push them in and pull them out again. ?.
Current pony is a cheeky upstart. When out on narrow lanes I sometimes need to pull in to let a vehicle past. He'll stand nicely tight in the side while large vehicles squeeze past. When the vehicle is next to us he'll sneak a mouthful of hedge because he knows I can't pull him away at that time.
He wears scoot boots and sometimes when riding he wants to rub his face on his leg. I have to watch him when he does this because he also undoes his boots with his teeth given the chance.

 

[ponynutz]

This

 

[KittenInTheTree]

What cheeky things have your horses and ponies learnt to do?
To start off my old pony was an absolute master at pulling out
electric fence posts. He'd get hold of the bit you put your foot on to push them in and pull them out again. ?.

Argh, this! My roan has figured out that if he pulls out enough plastic posts, then he can lay the electric fencing down flat and safely tiptoe his way over it by putting his hooves on the ground between the strands! So now all electric fencing has to be secured to wooden posts dug into the ground, and the plastic posts are just there to help with tensioning it.

 

[Barton Bounty]

BB has learned how to smile, say please, bow down, pull your zip on your jacket up and down, he can toss a bucket or a tyre ?
Super impressed with my boy ?

 

[HorseMaid]

Is it only geldings that learn to do cheeky stuff like this? My mare and her 2 mare mates are super boring, except the one on rehab from a tendon injury has recently learned she can get through a double line of electric fencing using the "bodyslam" technique, which is causing all sorts of grief!

 

[Gloi]

Is it only geldings that learn to do cheeky stuff like this? My mare and her 2 mare mates are super boring, except the one on rehab from a tendon injury has recently learned she can get through a double line of electric fencing using the "bodyslam" technique, which is causing all sorts of grief!

I think geldings are more playful but maybe it's also a pony thing, the smaller, the cheekier.

 

[HorseMaid]

I think geldings are more playful but maybe it's also a pony thing, the smaller, the cheekier.

Yes. Ours never play, they just pull faces at each other! Occasionally they will tear around the field doing power slides but that's about it. We'll be moving fields over the next few months and will probably need a companion, maybe I'll get a little boy Sh*tland just to stir things up a bit!

 

[Gloi]

Yes. Ours never play, they just pull faces at each other! Occasionally they will tear around the field doing power slides but that's about it. We'll be moving fields over the next few months and will probably need a companion, maybe I'll get a little boy Sh*tland just to stir things up a bit!

My lad just constantly plays in winter when he gets turned out. Plays bitey face for hours interspersed with grooming each other then back to play fights. Unfortunately in winter they are only out part of the time so he makes the most of it.
I thought he'd start to grow out of it but he hasn't yet. Summer he takes breaks from playing because there's grass that needs eating .

 

[Snow Falcon]

NF's treat electric fencing wrecking as a sport. One of mine used to pull them out right at the top and lie enough down to pop over. Another two used to jump over it, on hearing my car coming down the track, one used to jump back over leaving the other to get told off. They also learnt the art of climbing through it. Another used to pull the handles off the baler twine loop. And of course, they know instantly when the battery dies. ?‍

 

[SEL]

Big mare pulls out plastic fence posts and lays all the electric tape on the ground so they can all hop over it to the long grass.

Little mare flicks tape with her nose (the thick tape that goes between our wooden posts isn't electrified). Unfortunately she's taught this to my youngster who walks along the entire fence line flicking the tape off the connectors (or breaking the connectors) with his nose.

 

[DressageCob]

Mine isn't naughty at all, but since learning carrot stretches, every time someone is in his stable he checks his tummy to see if a sweetie has grown there.

 

[cobgoblin]

Nicking bobble hats off your head, then delighted when you put it on his.

 

[Goldenstar]

Sky steals your bobble hat ,takes the elastic out of your hair zips and unzips your fleece .
He picks up his bowl and waves it around if his food is late .
He steals anything he can reach in the corridor and drags it into his lair and dances on it .
He is like a Labrador puppy .

 

[KittenInTheTree]

As to whether mares are ever as bad, the backpack had been left sitting zipped up outside the paddock:

 

[LadyGascoyne]

 

[Peglo]

My mare is cheeky but very cute with it. But she has started playing with the stable door latch. I think it won’t be long until she figures it out. And wheel barrow tipping. Even when it’s not even in her field
And it’s not safe to leave her anywhere near her grooming bag as that’s where the treats are kept and she will get them.

 

[fidleyspromise]

Pull fence posts out either by the top or by wiggling them near the bottom
Climb through fencing between any number strands/pattern of tape.
Lift rope and open gate so needs a lock.
How to push screw driver out of clasp lock to open feed shed so padlock needed.
Find anything not nailed down and play with it - rugs hanging, grooming box sitting etc.
How to gallop and then sliding stop leaving the biggest skid marks in the field as close to the fence as possible.
Canter with her head on the ground (occasionally grabbing a bite of grass as she goes).
Loves to go off track when hacking and find her own route.

 

[catembi]

My old ex-racer knows how to do bolts and has previously locked me in the tack room. For some reason, it never occurred to me that he might do it the other way around until he opened the door to the tack/feed room one night & I discovered carnage on New Year's Day... Tack room now has a padlock on it... He can also do zips.

 

[Celtic Fringe]

My gelding will start doing carrot stretches on his own to see if I will produce a treat - he is a cob after all and totally food focussed.
His best 'trick' is chasing motorbikes! We taught him this from when he was 3 or 4. Fortunately most 'bike riders are super-careful and polite so I normally ask my cob to halt while they go past and he trots off after them. I think we once had 6 or 7 at once and he got a bit bored and wanted to get going before the last one had gone past slightly alarming the bikers. 'Bikes that are coming towards us need a little more care as cob has been known to turn round (a rather slow 'spin') and follow so the rider needs to be prepared!
He is also very good with bicycles, cars, vans and lorries and once totally ignored a double-decker livestock transporter full of sheep.

 

[catembi]

Oh, and the bloody Sh*tland has learned how to do kick bolts with her nose, so I get locked in various stables now and then and have to climb back out! There is no point even saying what she was like with electric fencing before we got our permanent stock fencing. It might as well not have been there.

 

[Archangel]

I have a head torch that turns on/off when you wave you hand near it.
Big horse has learned how to do it, so on the way to the field in the dark it is light on light off light on light off.
He thinks he is very clever.

 

[littleshetland]

My Friesian will show people his teeth (curl his top lip up) on demand, and then look very pleased with himself.

 

[FestiveG]

The appy mares were both very adroit at using their lips to undo ropes, the first one could undo bolts and had a good game of picking up my plait and trying to pick me up by it! She also once found a chain by her stable and proceeded to wave that about. This was all done with a grin

 

[eggs]

One of mine went to a rehab yard after surgery and learned to pull the bandage wraps out from under his bandages whilst leaving the bandages done up.

He also taught all the stable staff there that he could not go into his stable until he had had a polo (although strangely at home he is quite able to go into a stable without getting a polo!).

When he was a youngster he would often be seen trotting down the field with something he had picked up (missing fly masks, broken surcingles, dog toys, etc) which he would then drop neatly over the gate. The fly mask one was useful as he was out in a very big field so it saved me a lot of searching!

Another of mine is excellent at untying himself and anyone else stood near him and undoing the zips on my jackets.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

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Must be an Arab thing both of mine do that?

Arabi will bite just about anything his favourites are mainly my clothes, zips collars, laces on boots, in summer he will also love to lick human skin his not fussy who's, even my face gets a good wash and the poor farrier gets one as well.

Louis is a massive escape artist can untie himself and can undo bolts in a second, Arabi can undo them as well but his not quite so bad and won't actually walk out the stable whereas Louis is gone and takes himself to the field.

They both talk to me as well if I call them or have a bit of a chat with them they call back with a whinny or whicker I think that's the right word? they also do it after I have ridden or lunged it's so sweet I love it, they are both massive characters.

Arabi likes his tongue massaged he will stick it out and wait for you to massage it, has done it to a few judges over the years it's hilarious ?