Moody Mare

[micmoo]

Please help. I have owned a five yr old mare for five months for three of those months she has been aggressive towatds me when I either go to catch her or once I have caught her and ask her to leave the field.
Her behaviour varies from day to day,minute to minute in the field. She strikes out with foreleg,tries to nibble me(not fully bites me)ears are flat back to her head-looking annoyed. she has swung her hind quaters around towards me and has kicked out with them. Plants her feet into ground and wont budge! Never making contact with me. just threats so far...Inside her stable she has become a bit bolshy too!
I have tried lots of diff approaches with her in the field.Using treats,a bucket of food, Another helper, a firm voiced "WALK ON", a tap on the rump with a lead rope, a tap with a crop.
I have booked an appt with behaviourist for oct but need a bit of help now.
However this is her third yard and I am her third owner since last Nov..
Too much upheavel and change in to short a time??!!.

However, She can be very loving and gentle and once I am.in the saddle she is very willing to learn and listens to me both vocally and with aids.

 

[Tallulabelle]

I didn't want to read and run, it does sound as if she has trust issues due to number of owners. I don't really have any advise to offer but hopefully someone will.

T x

 

[xgemmax]

I have the same problems with my gelding at the moment and he's from a similar situation (been passed around a lot). I am just being firm with him, not agressive (smacking, etc) as it can make it worse sometimes if they get nervous of you and try and defend themselves (obv in some cases a smack is needed but in this case I would feel it would make it worse). Also make sure you are confident around her, and not make it look like you feel threatened! Hard to do when you have feet flying at your head i know lol!

I think in time she will learn to trust you and you will sort your differences out

Re the catching issue: I found that leaving a field safety head collar on for a few weeks so that i could go in with a treat and just clip the leadrope on really helped as it saved the faffing around and got him out of the habit of being a **** to catch. Now i can just go in with a treat and put the headcollar on with no fuss as he has got into a routine of being caught.

Hope this helps!

 

[Magic mummy]

Hi I sympathise with you I have had my 8 yr old mare for 4 months and she came from a school and apparently a novice/ beginner ride etc well her behaviour soon changed she was bolshy on the ground at first but I think we have just about stopped that, she has reared throws my daughter off at beginning of every lesson but once told off then ok although very nappy and she has now developed another dangerous behaviour of kicking out when on a hack if another horse is too close to her.
I think it's all about patience and trust from both horse and owner, keep working on it and I'm sure you will become the best of friends. Good luck just to let you know you are not alone xx

 

[Carryonriding]

Having exactly the same problem as you! Just posted a thread after yours. Let me know of any advice you have or heard. X

 

[squidsin]

Interesting that it's mares! I feel quite relieved seeing these threads as it does make you realise the problem isn't YOU and that horses really do undergo massive personality changes when they're feeling unsettled. My mare is just starting to settle after 7 months of ownership - but unfortunately our riding hasn't really gelled so I am moving her to a new yard with a school. I never realised that first time horse ownership would be more stressful than first time parenthood (I have small children)! Although I am grateful that at least my mare doesn't wake me up at 5am!

 

[micmoo]

Thank you so much for the messages!.
I have been close to tears at times and definately felt alone with the issue until now. xx

 

[putasocinit]

http://www.naturalhorsesupply.com/leading.shtml

please read this article about leading and how to get a response and when to reward and why a horse walking behind is doing the same as it would in a herd, it would not overtake the lead horse. Are you the lead horse in your little herd or is the pony trying to do this because there is no leader for it to follow. Hope it goes well, there are no bad ponies just people who dont always understand the right way to get the job done, keep trying

 

[lucyrebecca94]

My mare is the same had her settled at a yard then moved her and now back to square one, went to tack her up at the weekend had her tacked up and started rearing and trying to throw her reins over her head I broke down in tears because I had no idea why she was doing it and even considered selling her. I then went home and thought about the situation and decided the best course of action to take with her is to do some lunging and gain her trust back again because she is such a loving horse and I want that horse back to gain more confidence again as when she foes stuff like that my confidence hoes in a split second I hate it. Hopefully some lunging will help with you as well and gain their trust that nothing is going to happen to her

 

[Cortez]

"Trust issues"? More like bad manners and a desperate need for some proper discipline. Get someone sensible to show you how to deal with your horse, and don't take any cr*p or bolshy behaviour from her.

 

[Quenotte]

She is testing you and you need to show her some leadership by making her move. I would suggest for you to be assisted by someone, that would help with your confidence and would be safer. Lots of ground work will help.
Rick Gore has done some interesting video on youtube showing how to deal with this kind of behaviour and I think you should watch them.
Just go on you tube and do a search on "rick gore horsemanship".

 

[surreygirl17]

Sounds like she's trying it on to me too. Buy a dually headcollar, worked miracles with our bolshy 4 year old

 

[Lolabay]

This is just to let you know there is light at that very long tunnel

I had the same problem with our mare when I first had her eight months ago,many times i wanted to sell her and normally ended up going home in tears after trying to deal with her(our first horse) admittedly she did have a bad back and she had to have a chiro out.

In a way that turned out to be a blessing in disguise as while I couldnt ride her while she was having the chiro treatment I did a lot of ground work with her like inhand grazing and grooming etc and really bonding with her.

Now she has turned out to be to such a wonderful horse and I cant believe the difference in her,still grumpy sometimes especially in the mornings but hey ho cant have everything.

I think you have to just be patient and take things slow

Good Luck xx

 

[NicandLiv]

C'or sounds a bit like my mare (see "stroppy horse"). The hardest, yet most affective thing I have learnt is to stand my ground. My mare has turned her hindquarters at me and I've moved away. However, like yours, I know she's more of a threat type of horse, so as soon as I gritted my teeth and refused to move no matter how much it made me nervous, the better she has become.

Also for 10 minutes every day when I do catch her, I take her into another field and practice our walk to halt transitions. I found with mine, that if you set up for success she becomes much more relaxed and the more your horse does as ''she's told'' the more she'll listen to you.
The main thing with my mare is her mouth, she hates her mouth being touched. So much so she needs double sedation with dentist and he can only do one side of her mouth at a time and come back a month later for her other side! I have had her only a month and today she had no issues with letting me pull her lips apart. I believe it's because I have been religiously catching, grooming or stroking and I touch her all over.(I do sing to her... sometimes she likes my song choices, sometimes she doesn't, it helps me relax though), taken into another field, 10 minutes of transitions, breakfast then release.
IF she tries to push past me I back her up about 5 steps. She keeps threatening to bite me when being tacked up, so I put my elbow up while tacking, so whenever she turns her head she bangs it into my elbow. She has stopped doing that now.

Whilst I think treats and food have their place, I don't think it should be used constantly as horses are clever and can pick up a bad habit of only being cooperative when they get something in return, as opposed to wanting to please you, trusting you etc.

I wonder why she's kicked at you in the stable. Is she stabled every night? Do you feed her in there?

As my mare also turns to kick, I got about a 8ft long PVC pipe from B and Q (as it's more stronger than a lunge whip!), and in the scenarios where she is going to kick at me (for me it's in the 'school' when I ask her to do something, either in hand or on the lunge, but more often on the lunge) I have it in my hand, just pointing at her bum, if she turns in to kick me she ends up hurting herself. She tried it twice and now I can lunge her without it and she hasn't done it since, but that's not to say she won't do it again.

 

[NicandLiv]

Rick Gore has done some interesting video on youtube showing how to deal with this kind of behaviour and I think you should watch them.
Just go on you tube and do a search on "rick gore horsemanship".

I really like Rick Gore.

 

[GeorgeyGal]

Also, Rick Gore has a fab website 'thinklikeahorse' have a read it talks about 'timing' and body language and how to interact clearly, it is like learning a new language but the more you practise it the more second nature it will become. You need to establish boundaries now, she needs to learn manners, ie step back when you go into stable and don't let her pull ahead when leading (learn about pressure and release) keep her head at your shoulder otherwise back her up or circle her until she stays where you want her, I'll stick an elbow out if my filly gets too close and I find making myself big, arms up and out whilst leading helps say this is my space stay out. Don't be afraid to drive her away either if she's trying to move you ie in the field, stomp your feet and wave your arms (learn where the driving line is on a horse), swing a lead rope and if she bops herself with it so be it. Don't feel you are being 'mean' she will feel much more comfortable and relaxed once you start demonstrating leadership consistently. From someone with a naturally dominant filly.

 

[deb_l222]

All I can suggest, for what it's worth, is routine, routine, routine. Mares by nature (especially alpha mares) are very herd orientated and need to know everything and everyone (horses included) are in their correct place at all times - I always say my mare goes in the field with a clipboard checking everyone off every day lol.

I had some truly terrible times with my mare when I first got her - couldn't catch her, could catch her but then she planted her feet and wouldn't walk, then would walk but on her back legs only!! I could go on and on but I won't.

Anyway, as daft as it sounds, just spending time grooming her and generally messing with her seemed to calm her daft head, then we could start working on other things.

Don't try to do everything at once - pick one thing to work on at a time and be consistent every time, she will get the message eventually.

Don't get me wrong, I still have 'daft' days with my mare and we sometimes do a wonderful passage to the field in the morning but she doesn't forget her manners now and stays at the side of me and then stops to cross the road!!

Mares are always a challenge but if you can get them to work with you rather than against you, they will give you everything in return.