mare hates work

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PlodAlong

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As the title says, she hates it!

Doesnt matter what it is wether it be hacking,lunging or arena work she just doesnt want to do it. Shes had her back and teeth done recently and shes still the same. The only thing so far i have done with her that she has enjoyed is going to the beach. She has started napping when hacking, she will spin round and round in circles, she will take off into gardens, she will turn and face into hedges or walls and try get over them and she has even reared. Yet the moment we turn the opposite direction she is perfect?! First it was when hacking alone but she now does it with company although not anywhere near as bad. I will hold my hands up and admit i have smacked the daylights out of her and it works but obviously i do not want to have to do that! As for lunging its almost impossible. When she sees tack she will stand in the corner of her stable and refuse to move.

Ive only had her 3 months and ive ridden her max 15 times, shes like this with everyone :( anyone else had a horse the same? suggestions?
 
How old is she and what is her history? Was she ridden when you bought her or have you just started her? How experienced are you etc. etc. Sorry impossible to make any real judgement without a lot more info.
 
sport horse said:
How old is she and what is her history? Was she ridden when you bought her or have you just started her? How experienced are you etc. etc. Sorry impossible to make any real judgement without a lot more info.
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She is 11, has been used for hacking and hunting but was out of work for a few months before I bought her. Ive been riding for about 6 years on and off but it is not just me she refuses to work for its everyone, except an old owner that i am friends with(owned her about 3 years ago, sold her then i bought her)

I dont believe there is something physically wrong with her. She is fed allen and page calm and condition and alfa a oil twice a day if that helps.
 
My first thoughts are that the mare is either in pain or very complicated in her head. What is the secret that the old owner has to get the mare to enjoy herself?
 
Magnetic Sparrow said:
My first thoughts are that the mare is either in pain or very complicated in her head. What is the secret that the old owner has to get the mare to enjoy herself?
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Shes been checked over by the vet, had her teeth done and her back just a month ago. I think she just know that her old owner wont take her crap, she said she was never a problem with her, i think the folk i bought her off have sickened her :/
 
The pain thing can come from other sources - if it is pain, I'm not saying it is. It's just the only time I've ever had a horse see me approaching with tack and try to hide it was because she was struggling with a physical problem in her fetlocks. If an equine vet says she's ok then perhaps it is a head thing.

Certainly a horse can be soured, do you know if she have such a tough time in her previous home that that is likely?

If it was my horse and I was prepared to put in the work I think I would start with very tiny pieces of work (at the level of tack up, praise, titbit, untack; then once that works well tack up, praise, walk in hand round the school, praise, back to box, praise, titbit, untack; if you get my drift) so that she always associates work with good things. If you just turn her away you might never get her mind back on your side.
 
She sounds very clever! I think she has learnt that if she naps/plays up she gets turned around and taken home. She is just taking the mickey, which I suppose is why when you get fed up and tell her off she behaves herself.
 
Agree she's probably quite a clever horse& possibly quite lazy!! You say she's fine when you turn her in the other direction, do you mean you turn her for home when she's being a pest? If so she's probably got you well trained!

ETA: I have a clever mare too who is also good at training her human! If you are strict and consistent (also praising when good) it does go a long way!
 
My first thought is mismatched horse and rider . Some horses and riders just don't get on . Why don't you try something completely different with her like horse agility or pairs xc
 
I have only ever turned her round for home once, i had completely had enough of her mucking around and cried the whole way home lol but once i got home i called her old owner who then came down and hacked her then i got on and took her out again this time not letting her get the better of me! She needs a lot of topline on so ive been mainly just hacking and lunging(or trying to atleast lol)
 
Hello! I've never been in this situation so my advice may seem a bit silly, but have you tried just enjoying each others company on the ground. First in the stable, then in the yard, then in the school. lots of transitions, backing up etc, before walking out in hand. Maybe she has a strong bond with her old owner and trusts her, so she's willing to work of her?
 
Take her off the A & P Calm & Condition - I have found this makes them very quirky. Tried with two different horses and had same effect. Eliminate so there is no possibility this is the cause. If you only want to hack just feed her hay until her behaviour improves.No hard feed at all.
When you go into her stable always take a tit bit so that she turns to you. The putting her head into the corner and bum to you is just to intimidate you - at present she is succeding! Pretend you are not in a hurry and just hang out at the front of the stable, not looking at her and she will eventually turn to see what you are doing.
I own a lot of mares and they are much brighter than geldings - sorry to any men on the forum! She has worked out that if she presents you with the back end she is in control of the situation.
Never start a battle - she will win. You however, I hope, are more intelligent than her so the titbit and a fuss will kid her that you are not going to tack her up. With tit bit, put headcollar on and tie her up. Then get tack!!
Do not do too much lunging or anything that is too hard work for her at present - just keep her sweet and put yourself in a situation that you can win ie hack in company, use her old rider to help you as much as possible etc. etc.
I think that she is probably testing you so keep calm and try to carry on. Good luck.
 
Poor You, it must be so disappointing and frustrating! It is still quite early days and some horses, especially the clever ones, can take some time to settle into a new home and bond with a new owner. My horse was pretty vile for the first 6 months and I almost sold him, he wouldn't go nicely for anyone in the school (bought as a dressage schoolmaster!)but at least he was OK to hack. One day after a particularly horrible session when he'd tried to buck me off I looked at him in the stable and frankly he looked as miserable as I felt. Although he'd passed a 5 stage vetting, I had him checked over again, basically fine but he was very tight in the neck and back which I had treated. I also changed my trainer to someone who had a much less assertive style and who helped me to work with the horse instead of challenging him when he wouldn't do what I wanted and it made a huge difference. Some years on and we have a very good partnership but looking back to that timeI now know that the horse is sensitive but quite dominent, I realise he really struggled with changing homes and rider and basically shut down. I don't know if your mare is struggling to settle but I do think horses will revert to previous bad behaviour when they are unsettled partly to test boundaries but sometimes perhaps they don't know what else to do to show their unhappiness. I hope it works out for you. Do you have a good trainer to help you, if not get one.
 
when you manage to get her out hacking, do you vary the route? is it all roads/lanes or is it bridlepaths and fields? i used to ride a horse that was sour when hacking round the same route all the time. (boss's decision not mine) but as soon as we were allowed off road and on bridlepaths he perked up. also you say she enjoys the beach...is there anyway you can take her there a few days a month or something just till she starts to enjoy herself again?

we had a horse that used to turn her bum towards you when you entered the stable and as above we used to stand by door and just ignore her. have some feed or a titbit and when she turns round and approaches you and praise her but dont trick her by tying her up and then getting tack as she will get wise to this and wont come even for titbits eventually. is there anyway you can do groundwork other than lunging?

im not saying you do this but try not to do the same thing/ride day after day. keep it varied and try to keep yourself upbeat and positive.

just a thought if theres no turnout couldnt you lead her out in hand for a pick of gtrass for 10/15mins? might sweeten her up for you to catch in stable then?
 
Thank you everyone for your advice, its roads she hates she rides fine in the field but obviously with this weather i cant ride her in the fields again yet:( hopefully she will be in livery soon so we can vary what we do!
 
It would be intersting to see what she is like out hunting, but don't know if this is an option....

My old connie was the laziest, most backward thinking, stubborn pony I have ever owned, and like yours would do anything to avoid work. However he adored his hunting and was a totally different horse on the hunting field, so we kept him purely as a hunter.

Also is she happier hacking in company and how about some fun rides in the summer to perk her up?

If you have exhausted the vet route, hopefully a change of yard and finding something the mare enjoys will provide a solution.
 
You don't say if you've had her saddle checked? And if you get the saddle checked make sure saddler checks your numnah too, make sure the saddle isn't sitting on any seams etc. second taking her off the calm and condition, alfa doesn't agree with some horses either so I would take her off all feed and just give her hay for now. She's had her back checked what about her hocks and fetlocks, may be worth having a full lameness work up done
 
I was thinking saddle too. My lad REALLY reacted when his saddle fitting was wrong, it was very slight, but it must have really been uncomfortable. Next thing is teeth - it may help to try a bitless bridle in the school, and see if that makes any difference. Shy is a different horse bitless. The third thing is check the feet - any infections, thrush, do the shoes fit, etc ?

I have never had a mare, but have read a lot of stuff on here about how hard they can be to bond with. As someone has said already, LOTS of time spent on the ground may help. I would even try join - up.

In your position I would first, ring your vet for advice and tell them what you have told us, then give it time, and I would also enrol the help of a Natural Horsemanship trainer.

Hope this helps.
 
What does the old owner do differently/how does she react with her?
What was the reason she wasn't being ridden at old home (is it possible something started so they turned her away?)
I'd want a vet to give her an MOT tbh.
 
PlodAlong said:
As the title says, she hates it!

Ive only had her 3 months and ive ridden her max 15 times, shes like this with everyone :( anyone else had a horse the same? suggestions?
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I would suggest that you get the saddle checked and once that is sorted out ride her each day. A new horse needs to be ridden each day for the two of you to bond together and understand each other.
 
Have you ruled out foot pain? What about trying her on Bute and seeing if that improves her? If she's better on Bute, you can bet she has pain somewhere, and she's behaving very much like one of mine - who seems to have chronic recurring metabolic foot issues.
 
No, horses don't "take the mickey" but every time they are rewarded for inappropriate behaviour, that behaviour is reinforced rather than the behaviour you want. Napping is horrible to deal with because it takes a lot of commitment to sort out and it can be quite frightening unless you are a very confident rider. on balance, I think the mare is probably perfectly OK pain wise but would prefer to stay with her mates rather than go out and do the job she's been bought for. If she OK in company then that suggests there's nothing wrong with her apart from thinking she's in charge. We had a nappy horse that got quite nasty if you confronted him head on, so we just used to make him stand facing the way we wanted to go until boredom got the better of him. If he took a step in the right direction he got a pat, if not he was completely ignored. It was very time consuming but better than rearing on a slippy road and eventually he gave up napping altogether. Another horse would be led, so my daughter would get off and lead him for a few minutes then hop back on, or if he whipped round, she'd make him go backwards in the direction she wanted to go. You just have to find what will work with your horse. PS always do circular routes even if you have to put a bit of a silly loop in somewhere. Don't give up, if she didn't nap with the previous owner, she's perfectly capable of being OK in the future and when horses change homes, they often revert to previous behaviours. Good luck.
Wagtail said:
Horses don't 'take the mickey'.
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