Keeping horses on their own

[pistolpete]

As per title. Thoughts experiences pros cons. Thank you.

 

[shortstuff99]

On their own as in no other horses in sight or in their own field next to others?

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

If you mean at a premises with no other horses they can see or interact with, then no I wouldn't do it it's cruel.

 

[ester]

Mum did for a while, I'm not sure it would have been my choice but the mare was very human orientated, and slightly put out when I brought her field mate back. There were sheep.

Pro- she could have the run of the stable/yard/field as there wasn't anyone else there to argue with/go in your stable to annoy you etc.

 

[milliepops]

I would only consider this for a very short period, in exceptional circumstances or for the odd strange horse that actually doesn't like other horses.

I have one that was kept alone for 3 years. She'll be permanently messed up by it, she's very insecure and anxious and pair bonds to other horses very quickly.

 

[pistolpete]

Yes i mean in his own. There are horses two fields away about 200 metres maybe. He’s pretty grumpy with any horse you put in with him and always in the stable if I give him a choice to go in she his current companion stands outside I think he tells her not to get too close. He doesn’t like people either. Current pony companion is just that but he now doesn’t s too injured to ride so just thinking of cutting costs. Where I bought him from he lived alone. That was for about 18 months I think.

 

[PeterNatt]

Depends on the horse. Some don't mid at all.

 

[meleeka]

I wouldn’t do it. I think it must be incredibly boring for them. Even if you think he doesn’t interact with the companion, he will be subtly, even if it’s just to be grumpy to them. There is safety in numbers too I think. Even if they aren’t best friends, it’s better than being along imo.

 

[luckyoldme]

My horse was a nob when I got him . He tore chunks out of other horses and eventually we had to keep him on his own.
One of the replies I got on here was from a poster who said she had a mare who would sort him out and wouldn't take his crap.
As a new owner I was a bit affronted at the time....however.
He pushed his luck a bit too much and made one to many attempts to escape and join the other horses. He had pissed the yo off one too many times. My only option was to move him next door into a field full of Clydesdales.
They immediately identified him as a tosser and sent him to Coventry. He had no idea about how to interact with other horses but these horses just wouldn't let him near
In time a Percheron mare was introduced. She immediately put him in his place but after a while they became quite smitten.
The difference in him after the group taught him how to be a horse was brilliant to see. He spent the last 6 years of his life in bliss instead of his previous life hugging fences and gates and staring into the distance.

 

[TheBayThoroughbred]

I don’t think it’s unkind to keep them in adjacent fields if they’re all content, no. I do it often for ease of feeding as mine live out and the mare will eat the Shetland alive and chase him away from his food. Shetland is very happy on his own with the sheep, he can see the other two as they’re right next door to him.
Completely alone, I don’t really think so. As per above, I’ve run into several horses that have proper anxiety issues from being kept alone in past homes, I don’t think it’s healthy.

 

[Aperchristmas]

Nearly every thread I read on this forum about horses who don't like being out & beg to come in, who are grumpy or anxious (even if that's not the words the owner uses), or who are just behaving in a very weird way are kept alone. When this is pointed out, they don't believe it's the problem, but I almost never read similar threads about horses turned out in company.

 

[TPO]

I struggle with individual turnout and horses not being able to groom and swat flies together. A horse kept as an individual isnt right IMO for a herd animal.

Yes there are exceptions to every rules but I think those are few and far between. The horses with "issues" are the ones that usually need company and to learn to horse the most.

I appreciate that some choose to keep horses individually to minimise the risk of the out injuries or any mishaps that may interfere with the riders wish to be competitive but to a pleb like me that is incredibly selfish. However I'm often on the edge of the rabbit hole regarding what we do to horses for our benefit/enjoyment (probably should not have watched The Path to the Horse on youtube today!)

ETA there have been studies that horses "shut down". This can happen during (bad) training AND with being kept alone. Therefore to some people the horse is "ok" or "fine" when it really, really isnt, it has simply stopped functioning like a "happy" horse. I cant remember the source but will guess at Lucy Rees although it could be others too. I know Warwick Schiller has done a lot of work with shut down horses too.

 

[SatansLittleHelper]

Nope, unless it's exceptional circumstances, I think it's downright cruel.

 

[Flowerofthefen]

My old lad was kept alone. We had various horses come and go and next door had a few come and go. He seemed fine, until I moved him. He then had friends. He is now unsettled at others going in and out whereas before he was alone he would stay in or out even if his friends weren't there. It has definitely changed him for the worse. Some horses cope fine. He obviously didn't.

 

[COldNag]

My old lad was kept alone. We had various horses come and go and next door had a few come and go. He seemed fine, until I moved him. He then had friends. He is now unsettled at others going in and out whereas before he was alone he would stay in or out even if his friends weren't there. It has definitely changed him for the worse. Some horses cope fine. He obviously didn't.

My experience too.
We got ours from a home where he had been kept for years completely on his own. For quite a while he really did struggle with other horses going out before him, and it took a very long time for him not to panic about it.
He is now fine and can now even cope with box rest but it has taken years to get to that point. He just loves company and I still get a lot of pleasure watching him groom a field mate and seeing him happy being able to be a horse.

 

[Nudibranch]

Pros? None that I can think of for the horse. For the owner, convenience and cost. I would love to be able to keep just one as I have mine at home, but morally I could never do it.

Cons - the horses I know who have been kept alone tend to have significant pair bonding and/or separation issues when allowed to have contact of their own kind. Also potentially problems understanding the social cues and rules of other horses. I bought a youngster who was not kept alone as a foal, but only in the limited company of adult horses. He had an awful lot to learn in terms of manners and acceptable behaviour. I doubt any horse would become antisocial for any reason other than human management.

 

[blitznbobs]

Nope, cruel and asking for trouble imo. I don’t even like having 2 cos one has to be left alone if you have to go anywhere or you have to take the spare with you which can also be difficult

 

[SantaVera]

its totally wrong and should bemade illegal except for short periods of time eg when companion had died and owner is looking for a new companion. its cruel and unnescessary. poor horse is stressed.thy are herd animals and need to be in a herd even if thats only 2 together. horses will bond with other species so keeping a lone horse with a flock of sheep for example would be a second best alternative but keeping a horse in a paddock on its own it wholy wrong.

 

[luckyoldme]

My experience too.
We got ours from a home where he had been kept for years completely on his own. For quite a while he really did struggle with other horses going out before him, and it took a very long time for him not to panic about it.
He is now fine and can now even cope with box rest but it has taken years to get to that point. He just loves company and I still get a lot of pleasure watching him groom a field mate and seeing him happy being able to be a horse.

I so get that.
The pleasure from seeing them interact with other horses.
I felt that my horse was only with me a few hours a day. It was a great feeling knowing that he was content for the rest of the time.

 

[luckyoldme]

With reference to the issue of a horse with separation issues.
Mine went through exactly the same.
I took some time off riding and did about a week or so of bringing him out of the field for short times and then putting him back.
Once he got used to the idea that he was going back he was fine..mine thrived on routine and it was just a matter of gradually introducing a new routine.

 

[Roasted Chestnuts]

My old boy lived alone on the farm for 4/5years. He periodically had cows and sheep depending on the time of year. Didn’t make him sad or upset and he wasn’t neither up nor down when we went anywhere or met up with other horses and people.

Obviously keeping them in a herd or at least two together is ideal but mine lived out and was stables at night on his own and it didn’t harm him.

 

[shortstuff99]

My old mare was at her most miserable when she was in a herd, constantly fighting, stressed and injured (£10000 + of injured)!

On her own with a horse next door was her best way of being kept, not all horses read the manual!

 

[Trouper]

Horses will tolerate anything eventually - if they have to. It doesn't make for a good life. As a herd animal they need some security from other creatures to enable them to get proper sleep knowing someone else is "on guard" for short periods of time and I don't think we take lack of sleep seriously enough when they present with behavioural problems.
I think the very minimum I could countenance would be having sheep or other farm animal companions.

 

[AUB]

It’s actually illegal here in Denmark to keep horses alone. We also have rules regarding access to turn out, the size of the fields, and rules that say that young horses cannot be turned out alone.

It’s a new law and there is a transition period where horses that are already kept alone can still be kept alone.

 

[Winters100]

I think the problem is that there are many 'pros' but they are all advantages to the owner, not the horse. I would not do it except in truly exceptional circumstances.

The problem we have is that it is far too easy to mistake 'coping' with 'happy'. I myself made that mistake when I took my mare out of a pack that she was not happy with and went for individual turnout for a short time. It is true that she did not want to be with a pack of much younger horses, but this did not mean that she didn't want company, and interacting with others through the fence was not enough. When we found the right companion for her she immediately went from hanging around near the gate all day to making me trudge through the field to fetch her. Now she goes out with my 2 geldings and is the undisputed boss, the oldest and smallest of the 3 and she really does prove that attitude is everything!

 

[Scotsbadboy]

I currently keep my new horse alone, although he has a 'wider herd' he can see all around him and usually a field of mini's directly next door. Im totally and utterly torn right now about this set up. The mini's have moved (mud and injury, they are on owners yard for a few weeks) although he can still see them.

I dont know him well but he has coped with this set up for a few months and even spent half of winter stabling alone with no issue which makes me think its the norm for him BUT my fear now is adding a companion and him becoming too bonded with it.
I am also contemplating getting my own couple of mini's so he always has companions next to him (dietary needs will dictate they aren't in the same field!)

It breaks my heart day in day out being torn between staying as we are (albeit getting my own mini's to avoid current short term situation) and getting him a companion and the issues that could arise from him pair bonding. Im on my own at home, he's a big horse, i rarely, if ever, have help and/ or time to spend hours a day working through issues and i really dont want more than one horse to care for. This is the dilema i am in. I've had no luck with looking for a suitable livery (and i dont want one to be honest)

It's not as black and white as some seem to think!

 

[DabDab]

Minis are perfectly suitable companions SBB, particularly if he is used to them already.

Most people are saying it is black and white because most people, like me, would just keep a horse on livery if we only wanted one to look after.

 

[milliepops]

Most people are saying it is black and white because most people, like me, would just keep a horse on livery if we only wanted one to look after.

^^ this.

I agree about horses coping look like horses that are just fine and dandy, but the wheels can come off when they are finally given some company. i don't think the people who had my lonely horse before me had any idea the level of distress she was under, because she looked calm, ate grass all day and didn't run around neighing. But as soon as she came to my place where there were other horses, a switch flipped in her and it all came tumbling out. My heart really broke to think what she had been managing internally, looking like she was "coping".

 

[TPO]

I currently keep my new horse alone, although he has a 'wider herd' he can see all around him and usually a field of mini's directly next door. Im totally and utterly torn right now about this set up. The mini's have moved (mud and injury, they are on owners yard for a few weeks) although he can still see them.

I dont know him well but he has coped with this set up for a few months and even spent half of winter stabling alone with no issue which makes me think its the norm for him BUT my fear now is adding a companion and him becoming too bonded with it.
I am also contemplating getting my own couple of mini's so he always has companions next to him (dietary needs will dictate they aren't in the same field!)

It breaks my heart day in day out being torn between staying as we are (albeit getting my own mini's to avoid current short term situation) and getting him a companion and the issues that could arise from him pair bonding. Im on my own at home, he's a big horse, i rarely, if ever, have help and/ or time to spend hours a day working through issues and i really dont want more than one horse to care for. This is the dilema i am in. I've had no luck with looking for a suitable livery (and i dont want one to be honest)

It's not as black and white as some seem to think!

But...all the reasons for not having company are because it doesnt fit with your lifestyle (for want of a better word) regarding time, money and (lack of) desire. I can fully empathise with all of them but that doesnt help the horse.

The company issue is also solved by moving to livery but you dont want to (perfectly understandable from a human POV).

As you've written it none of the choices have been for the horses assumed benefit but to fit in with human requirements.

It's not a personal attack on you and just my take based on your black and white words and you're certainly not alone with your thoughts or choices. However everything is centred around the human circumstances.

Horses are quite a tactile breed too and again I hark back to even individually turned out horses missing out on grooming, playing, fly swatting and taking turns standing guard etc.

I really think its unethical to keep any herd animal alone regardless of how well it suits us or how inconvenient the alternatives are. If it's really impossible to provide company and allow a horse to horse then perhaps ownership needs to be reconsidered. That would be part of "my" licensing scheme too and while I'm at it I'd copy Denmark's ruling too

Denmark appears to be miles ahead of us regarding horse keeping and welfare. Didnt they ban whisker removal first too?

 

[Dexter]

It's not as black and white as some seem to think!

It is though. If you read that back as someone not personally involved you know its not right and you choose to do it as it suits you. Sounds harsh when its written down like that, but thas what it boils down to.