My youngsters first flaw....aggressive with feed

nic85

nic85

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Ok, so my gorgeous girl has a flaw:o

We have discovered she is quite aggressive when you are taking her breakfast/tea in to her stable....

She will move back away from you but will put her ears back and fidget as if shes waiting to pounce:scared: little cow bag!

So my Question is...

how would you deal with this? I dont want her to be so aggressive but not sure how to go about teaching her to be nicer.....I mean I have an idea but not sure if its the 'right' way???!!!

Any ideas??

Thanks!!
 
give her her feed and leave her in peace to enjoy. gradually in time you can start to skip out sweep up around her til she realises you arent going to nick her dinner! you could also try giving her half her food and leave in peace, then give her the other half 20 mins later and stay in with her diddling around! but ask your self if you would like someone trying to alter your clothes or brushing your hair whilst you were trying to enjoy your dinner?
 
My mare is also food proud. She will put her ears back when I go into her stable with her feed and and also when I go in with her feed. I have had her since she was 3 and she is rising 9 now. I am perfectly happy with her to make a face, I think its a bit of a mare thing. If, however, she ever made a move to nip me, that would be another matter and she would be reprimanded instantly and sharply. My horse is a joy to look after and I can happily overlook her mean faces at feed time (you wouldn't wanna come near me when I'm eating a big bar of dairy milk!!!). I would personally ignore faces, but if it becomes anything more threatening I would react. Good luck!
 
Thanks for the reply.

I dont do anything with her when shes eating, I leave her alone. It is just getting the feed in to her stable where she becomes a grumpy cowbag.

If it just faces I can live with it, I just dont want to be dinner
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give her her feed and leave her in peace to enjoy. gradually in time you can start to skip out sweep up around her til she realises you arent going to nick her dinner! you could also try giving her half her food and leave in peace, then give her the other half 20 mins later and stay in with her diddling around! but ask your self if you would like someone trying to alter your clothes or brushing your hair whilst you were trying to enjoy your dinner?

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I totally agree.

Cappy was starved before we had him, however he has never been aggressive with food with humans. Maybe give her space to enjoy her buckets in peace.
 
I have to say I wouldn't stand for it! If she thinks she can get away with it now at her age and size there will be no stopping her when she's fully grown. If I were you, I'd go into her before getting her breakie and put her headcollar on. Then go and get her feed and as you walk into ths stable with it, as ker to go 'back' and use your free hand to direct her back using the headcollar.

If she comes towards you in an agressive manner you have to tell her back, stamp your feet and flap your arms to get her to go to the back of her box, then put her feed down and move away from it but NOT out of the stable completely. She HAS to learn NOW that being agressive towards you doesn't get rid of you! It won't take long.

Also ask yourself if she is getting enough forrage to keep her busy all night? if not increase the amount until she is getting so much that there is some left in the morning. this should stop her feeling so hungry that she feels she has to fight you for it!! same goes in the evening - if she's been out in the field most of the day with not much to eat, tie her up with a haynet while you groom her etc, then put her in her box and give her her dinner...
 
Personally if it were me i would put the feed in and leave her alone. Make sure shes got plenty of hay etc to keep her full. One of my mares had been bullied as a youngster and kicked off her feed so she realised that being possesive, rearing and kicking out this meant she could keep her feed.
Please be careful with how you go about reprimanding the behaviour if this is the way you go forward.
My friend was looking after my mare when I was working late one night - my mum was also working away. She thought that it was best to make my horse behave and back up and not tantrum (rearing) she backed out of the stable with her feed bucket. My mare walked towards the front of the stable continuing the rearing, when she came down, her leg went through the bars of the stable walls - she nearly ripped her foot off her leg.
She recovered from the accident but has never really got over feeding times. Shes better now she lives out 24/7 and gets her feed outside and well away from the others, She doesnt feel the need to pounce on her bucket as she had as much haylage as she can eat plus more (2 large round bales out at any time in the field)
 
I wouldn't make a big deal out of it; I'd do everything I needed to with her outside of the stable, then put her with the feed already there, and leave her to it.

If that's not possible then I'd do as suggested above, and make sure you are in control of backing her away etc and ensuring that she has unlimited forage.

I'd also make the hard feed really big and boring, with lots of hifi/ alfa A or something, so it takes ages to eat... I think the longer it takes to eat the less 'exciting' a feed a is.
 
i clicker trained my youngster to stand at the back of the stable & turn her head away from me. Didnt take too long to do & am now in the process of teaching the grumpy foal to do the same, shes picking it up very quickly.
My youngster used to be very aggressive. She used to be fed in the field & would run backwards at you kicking out. But she is now the best behaved out of my lot
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Having bought a 7yr old gelding who was aggressive over his feed I'd do as CBfan said and nip it in the bud now.

It took me ages before I could go in his stable when he was eating as he'd threaten to bite and kick me.

He was really scary, but it was the only way, especially as I needed to walk through his stable to get to my other pony.

Think I put a headcollar on him, put his feed down and stood next to his head holding the rope.... and just patted him.

I remember him doing a jig on the spot and grimacing at me and lifting a leg or swinging in towards me - so I did the human equivalent. Waved by arms about, stomped up and down and growled.

He stopped showing aggression after a while of standing there but it took a lot longer before I could walk past him without him tossing his head at me with his ears back and chucking his food all down my leg!
 
If she backs away and waits while you put the food in, then it wouldn't bother me that she pulls faces, and I would just leave her in peace with her feed.
 
Thanks for the replies.

I would just like to point out, I dont do anything with her while shes eating, I did mention this in my 2nd reply.

She is only aggressive when I enter the stable with her feed, she pulls faces and fidgets.

I do make her back up and stay back until Ive put her food down but shes very stroppy about it and if i take too long in her eyes she comes forward with her ears flat back and nostrils flared...then I make her back up again and put her food down. Once shes got her food shes fine.

This morning, just to make it different, she was fed on the yard with an over the door bucket and was as nice as pie.
But, was then led to the field with a buket of carrots that she wanted NOW. I turned the bucket away from her which she didnt like and was trying to bite me so I aimed the bucket towards her so when she went for me she hit the bucket.....after one or two circles around me as she was being a bit naughty she led up perfectly well....

so what do we think? Is she just trying me, to see how much she can get away with?

Oh and she has hay in the field as well as at night and her tea is mostly Chaff.
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I have to say I wouldn't stand for it! If she thinks she can get away with it now at her age and size there will be no stopping her when she's fully grown. If I were you, I'd go into her before getting her breakie and put her headcollar on. Then go and get her feed and as you walk into ths stable with it, as ker to go 'back' and use your free hand to direct her back using the headcollar.

If she comes towards you in an agressive manner you have to tell her back, stamp your feet and flap your arms to get her to go to the back of her box, then put her feed down and move away from it but NOT out of the stable completely. She HAS to learn NOW that being agressive towards you doesn't get rid of you! It won't take long.

Also ask yourself if she is getting enough forrage to keep her busy all night? if not increase the amount until she is getting so much that there is some left in the morning. this should stop her feeling so hungry that she feels she has to fight you for it!! same goes in the evening - if she's been out in the field most of the day with not much to eat, tie her up with a haynet while you groom her etc, then put her in her box and give her her dinner...

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Baaa baaa !
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I agree, My rising 4 year old will stick her ears back or did until I got her to go back either with raising my voice and pushing her back . She would stick the ears flat back and shake her head .

Now everytime I ask her to go back she goes back and stands there until she is invited forward by me sticking my hand up and her head touching my hand . As soon she does this I allow her forward, tell her shes a good girl and leave the stable and let her eat her feed .

Now I have introduced rugging her whilst she eats, shes quite happy for me to stick her rug on, Our routine now is that once she has her head in the corner unit I throw the rug over her and do her front buckles, then go behind her and ask her to "go over" she pivots her back end whilst still eating and I can get to the other side to do the surcingles up and then she pivots back over to the side of the wall . Shes becoming quite a pro at it
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I don't tolerate food aggression, shes never had to fight for her food as I have had her since she was 6 months, Her breeder has told me shes never had to fight for it either, so no excuse for bad manners .

Col x
 
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Thanks for the replies.

I would just like to point out, I dont do anything with her while shes eating, I did mention this in my 2nd reply.

She is only aggressive when I enter the stable with her feed, she pulls faces and fidgets.

I do make her back up and stay back until Ive put her food down but shes very stroppy about it and if i take too long in her eyes she comes forward with her ears flat back and nostrils flared...then I make her back up again and put her food down. Once shes got her food shes fine.

This morning, just to make it different, she was fed on the yard with an over the door bucket and was as nice as pie.
But, was then led to the field with a buket of carrots that she wanted NOW. I turned the bucket away from her which she didnt like and was trying to bite me so I aimed the bucket towards her so when she went for me she hit the bucket.....after one or two circles around me as she was being a bit naughty she led up perfectly well....

so what do we think? Is she just trying me, to see how much she can get away with?

Oh and she has hay in the field as well as at night and her tea is mostly Chaff.
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I wouyld say from what you have said she is just testing you! I would be very strict with her and not accept agression and she should forget about it...

One thing I would say is that I wouldn't lead any youngster with a bucket of feed/ carots etc.. I think it's just asking them to be naughty. In the start especially, You have to make it as easy as possible for them to be good... not saying you have to mollycoddle them but just be sensible. You also really need both hands free should they decide to demonstrate their athletic abilities to you on their way out to the field...

Good luck with her! It's very early days yet...
 
i would sit in her stable with her food on my lap, and fuss her when she is eating. In herds, the head of the heerd says who eats when and what, so i would want her to know that I am head of her herd!
 
william was like this to the point that he would spin his bum round and kick me. straight away i made sure he realised this was not acceptable. i put his headcollar and leadrope on and whilst he was eating his feed i touched him all over. if he went to spin or kick out i tugged the leadrope sharp and hard. now i can touch him al oer/ pick up his feet etc with no hassle.
 
I find that the most aggressive horse settles once they have a routine and know that no one is going to steal their grub.

I have two greedy thugs here - if I am feeding outside they are separated. For the most part my horses are fed in the stable and even the door bangers - impatient for breakfast - are pussy cats once they know the routine.

I would do nothing. Feed her and leave her in peace.
 
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One thing I would say is that I wouldn't lead any youngster with a bucket of feed/ carots etc.. I think it's just asking them to be naughty. In the start especially, You have to make it as easy as possible for them to be good... not saying you have to mollycoddle them but just be sensible. You also really need both hands free should they decide to demonstrate their athletic abilities to you on their way out to the field...

Good luck with her! It's very early days yet...

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She is turned out with 2 others who have a bucket of carrots each also and as they were being ledup at the same time it was the only way to get her carrots there too before world war 3 broke out
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Yes Ideally its not great but she was fine once she realised she was getting them but when I said so
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I suppose we are living and learning but thank you all for the replies
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My old boy used to be a bully for food, not helped by the fact that one of girls who fed him his morning feed (she was a BHSAI) used to chuck his bucket over the door as she was too frightened to go in with him. I used to square up to him and say get back, he was not allowed his dinner until he took a step back. We got to the stage where he would wait until I said OK before touching his feed even if I was no where near and was then an angel to feed but he never forgot what he could do and would try it on with weak, timid people.
 
If it were mine it would be groomed while eating, I pay for the bloody feed so they will eat it on my terms. I think a horse should be able to be handled exactly the same while hes eating- sometimes its just easier to chuck them their feeds and change their rugs etc while they are eating.
 
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