Not tieing up ....

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diesel41

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Hey, my OH fell in love with a horse who is now living with us. She is 7, she is pregnant, she was backed at 4 but wasnt mature enough to go on so was bought as a brood mare.

She is lead mare in the field. She can be caught and generally she walks well. In the yard we have posts in the ground to tie up on, no rings in walls etc. So essentially any horse who wants to can walk round in a 360 degree circle all day if it chooses to, they are close to the stables and it doesnt feel comfortable so I am tieing a lead rope between posts to make it 180 degrees.

When tied she will not stand still, she paces round and round, paws at the ground, backs up like she may kick (she hasnt yet) and rears, although not much. She will not stand to be brushed or have her hooves picked, or even just for some love but she has had limited human contact for the last couple of years.

Usually I would let her get on with it, leave her safely tied until she sees that doing all these things is not going to get her back in the field but ... she has only been with us for a week and she is in foal. I dont want bad manners to manifest or feel like the mickey is being taken out of me, and I have a OH who is determined that it is just new yard nerves, "lots of cuddles will do it...." She is eating well, has sorted out the heirachy in her field, comes when you go down to the field, but jumps even when a carrot is snapped in two in front of her. She needs her feet trimmed but isnt going to stand for a farrier - All things considered what would you do?
 
A girl on my yard has similar issues with her youngster and had people from the RC out to help her with clicker training, supposedly it has made a huge difference already after only one session. Could you look into that maybe?
Good luck x
 
Little and often like a youngster, end on a good note, lots of praise and rewards, plenty of time spent around people getting used to doors slamming, buckets rattling, voices, etc and lots of time and patience, would be my best answer.

Basically, treat as a baby.

Can she safely spend time wandering around the yard loose to get used to sights and sounds without feeling restricted?

I've had two foals and learning to tie up was hard with both of them. Being restricted goes so much against a horse's flight instinct.
 
Probably obvious but - have you tied her up next to a horsey friend? Some horses react badly to being tied by themselves but are a lot happier with another next to them, may be worth trying if you haven't already as she might be panicking due to being "alone". Obviously not ideal if she needs a tying buddy but you could work on that if it helped.

My current tmare was like this when I first got her, she was also very insecure and would dramatically throw herself to the floor and thrash around if I stepped more than a metre or two away from her. I just did baby steps with her, I think as emilieu suggested, clicker training would be good for this kind of thing but I just used lots of praise when she stood still and ignored the rest - if she was being dangerous (kicking out towards me or threatening me with her back legs) then I'd use a firm voice to tell her no, and get her to step out of my "space" . It's definitely a very slow process as we're in our 4th month now and although she still spins and paws the ground/air, she no longer throws herself to the floor, only rears in what she considers "extreme" circumstances (her neighbour leaving her), allows me to brush her and pick her feet out, and will now stand (vaguely) still for the farrier which was impossible at first. It doesn't sound like much but is a huge improvement so I'm sure we'll get there in time!
I'd personally be wary about your OH giving too many cuddles incase she starts to walk all over/take advantage. I think the best way forward is firm but fair, so that your horse exactly knows where she stands (or doesn't as the case may be! ;)). She probably is unsettled being in a new place, so she needs to be sure of what is acceptable and what isn't, but do it in a consistent and patient way, rewarding the good and not reacting to the bad (unless someones at risk of getting hurt).

I don't know much about broodmares and what they can/can't have but if farrier is going to be a huge problem maybe consider a calmer? The global herbs instant calmer worked wonders with my last mare (who also wouldn't stand still!), turned her into a complete donkey and I always gave it to her before she had her feet done - farrier didn't believe the horror stories I was telling him! Not sure if it's suitable for broodmares so may be worth giving them a quick call to double check, they're very helpful - good luck!
 
Hey, Thanks everyone.

Today did get worse. She refused to leave the field. Halter was hard to get on and then she just stopped midway and barged us out of the way, then semi charged. No interest in a bucket of feed, apples or carrots unless right under her nose, tried moving other horses out of the way to see if it was them but no just refused, no gentle encouragement or taps on the bum was seeing her moving out of the middle of the field.... was a bit scarey today.

P.s - my OH would like me to say I also fell in love with her, it wasnt just him :-/
 
Sounds like she's testing you to see what she can get away with. Like others say be firm and persist with her. Is there hard ground you can walk her on a lot to wear the hoofs down?
 
Not sure if you can as she is pregnant - but what about mixing some calmer in her feed? Sounds like shes very on edge and that might take the edge off for her and help ease her into being loved?
 
How far in foal is she? How long have you had her? What do you intend doing with her?

Cannot recommend Richard Maxwell's book Train your young horse, highly enough.
 
Hey, we've had her just a week so its early days, the plan is for her to have this foal, which we will keep, and be rebacked as a riding horse for my husband / oldest son. Her foal is due in March 2013.
She was backed when she was 4, but it was felt by her then owner, who Ive now tracked down and had a chat with, she wasnt ready. Hence she was sold to a breeder and put in with a herd for the last 3 years. She had one foal in Nov last year. I think human contact has been limited to visits without much work being done to keep up with her manners ...
 
Can you not cross tie her between the two posts?
Then she will have to stand pretty much still... Leave her like tied like that for a bit - observed of course, but ignore her, she'll soon learn to keep still.
RE handling, just persevere, try not to get angry with her as she's probably just never really been taught properly. Richard Maxwell and also Jan May have some very useful books out for these types of issues.
 
No, there is no where to cross tie in the yard. We are going to try and get her to not nap and come in, hoping the rain will work in our favour.
 
On a high with Richard Maxwell atm ( he got my girl cantering with no bucking/ tantrums etc)


However I would untie her and then get her backing up and moving her feet. When Samba has a tantrum in the morning I get her out back her up, walk her forward and leg yield her (something I have taught her) and put her back in again, she has learnt very quickly tantrum= ground work
 
Hi, have only scanned the posts so not sure if this has already been said but are you giving her a hay net when tied up? May help to occupy her and help her relax and get used to being tied up- may also encourage her to come in from the field more willingly if she thinks food may be involved!
 
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