Major Help Needed! UNHANDED PONY

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mrfluffyfeet.

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So , I am total soft touch.

I saw a little pony on a Facebook page needed a home or you know.. So having a spare stable and my horses at home i went and got him , day one he ran into the stable.. i would sit in and read to him everyday for about half an hour and slowly try and approach him but never chasing him. He would run away at the sound of a voice or you passing his door over time he would come over and eat out a bucket i held but then he started to kick me! He has also reared at me now.
I have made a maze out of electric tape just to be able to get him in and our everyday , he will follow my big horse..

I feel like i just can't do it, I rescued my other two ponies all with there own issue but i feel like he just doesn't want me to help him.. Ive had him three months and i don't have any progress other than he follows my horse in and out
I understand its a slow process

I have emailed my instructor , however i don't know she takes halter breaking.
I have also given a Horse whisper a call to get them out..
what else can i do ?
 
it sounds like you might be almost being too soft on it. Being unhandled is no excuse for it to kick or rear at you, you need to set the rules on acceptable behaviour. Forget the horse whisperer and get a ground NH groundwork instructor to come and give you lessons, you'd get way more out of it. If you are too soft around them sometimes they pick up on you being nervy and almost become worse.

I got a terrified, kicky, fairly mad one in last autumn and i turned her out in a massive field for a few weeks without bothering her, apart from feeding her. Gradually she started to come over. If she ever turned her bum towards me or threatened me with teeth, I'd make my body language very aggresive and chase her off. She used to go flying off, but eventually she'd creep back closer. We had an understanding after a few days of what the rules were and her aggressive behaviour stopped completely. Gradually she'd walk up to the bucket beside me and i could pat her. Same happened with catching - it used to take hours but i'd just keep her moving around the field, and make her change direction until she eventually stood still, then i'd give her a treat and walk off. After a week she was no bother to catch. At the moment it sounds like the pony takes the lead from your big horse instead of you. I'd keep it in the field, and go in in a hat and body protector and something you can shake to keep it a safe distance from you if you feel threatened, just so you feel more secure.

I got a completely feral 20 year old one in last month, that was so bad I thought it was gonna to run through the fence anytime i went near it. With that one it was a different approach. I kept it in a smaller paddock and had to do a ton of work walking slowly around it and making it change direction from a distance. Whenever it stopped or turned towards me i'd take the pressure off. It wasn't food orientated at all due to a mouth issue and not having a clue what buckets were, so that made it more difficult, is yours like that? Had to take a completely different approach with her.

The base issue with yours though seems to be that it feels it's above you as it threatens you. I think once you man up and stand your ground and be confident in owning your space then you will see a huge change.
 
I think it sounds like you're being a little too careful with the pony and if it were mine I'd be setting weekly goals, like 7 days to be able to get a headcollar on for example, then you'll be able to focus on just one problem at a time whereas trying to deal with everything at once. Personally, I'd also do join-up with the pony in a small space as its worked well for shy / little handled ponies I've had in the past (this is the extent of my "natural horsemanship" by the way, I dont do any of the other stuff!).
 
Get Sarah Westons book.No fear, No force. It's very good. Also get in touch with your nearest intelligent horsemanship RA. Look on their website.
 
I really have no time for the parelli etc guru's, BUT, I did have a wild child (4 legged) and a put a piece of white cloth on a long stick and after literally 2 days I could drag it up her neck, over her ears and down the front of her face. Flap it around all 4 legs and tummy too. After this, she decided I perhaps wasn't as dangerous as she thought and started talking to me. Give it a whirl.
 
To me it sounds like he expects to be hurt. I got my pony from the field, a unhandled field rat and to be honest your sounds like he has been hit or scared in someway, rather then just not touched before. With mine as he had been untouched at all he had a healthy infestation of lice. Once he discovered I had fingers that could scratch he was more or less putty in my hands so to speak.
 
yeah the secret is always to find the secret scratch spot, once you get that you are half way there!
 
I got an unhandled pony last Saturday. He now has a headcollar on, will stand to be groomed on main part of his body with rope through baler twine (but not fastened so if he did shoot backwards he wouldn't meet any resistance) and will walk around the field on a lungeline. He is very, very nervy but is coping well and already starts walking towards me when I arrive at the yard and wants to interact. I natter away to him the whole time I am there so he knows where I am and what I am doing whilst I do my jobs. I use the same tone of voice whenever I ask anything new of him which (I believe) helps him comprehend that although its scary it is bearable. I also completely ignore in my body language and voice any jumps, spooks, scoots he does. With no reaction he is quickly becoming less of a quivering wreck and more inquisitive.

Like others have said it sounds like he considers himself above you in the herd pecking order. Have you got someone who (with hats and body protectors if you feel the need) can help you get a headcollar on him? Unfortunately it may just be a case of backing him in the corner of the stable and getting it on. Once you've done that you'll be able to do some stuff with him on his own so he isn't reliant on your other horse/horses. Mix up his routine so he has some time in on his own so he becomes more reliant on you.

He may find this change stressful for a while but usually you see them get to a point where they have exhausted themselves mentally by jumping at every tiny thing that happens that they give up and accept their fate (to end up a loved, pampered neddy!!) and start to interact with you.

Oh and carrots help too! Let us know how you get on.
 
Definitely get Sarah Westons book, No fear, no force. And go on the intelligent horsemanship website and find your nearest instructor. Exactly a year ago I bought an exmoor pony who turned out to be almost completely feral and today he's more like my shadow. There's been a lot of ups and downs but their approach has always worked for us.
 
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