Okay, so what would you do...

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MizElz

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...if you had a pony who refused to stay in the field on its own? In the scenario in question, the people have no stables with their cottage, only a field shelter; sometimes they put wooden bars across the front to keep the ponies in. Now, every time they take their older horse out alone, the pony follows - she jumps clean over their electric fence (they did have the waist height posts; they've since bought new tall ones, about 4ft, but even when the tape is on the top hook, pony still jumps over
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) She then gallops through the cow field, jumps clean over the barbed wire fence into the farmyard, and invariably ends up either galloping around the milking parlour (hardly ideal) or being caught by us and shut into Ellie's stable. Owners have tried shutting her in their field shelter; last week she went ballistic and actually broke the bars down (she cut herself in the process).

When they got this mare (a few years ago now) she had never shown any tendency to jump out, and had often (but not always) been in the field on her own. She is basically taking the mickey, but they are at a loss as to what to do with her. I dont want Ellie's stable being commandeered every time they want to ride their other horse; it seems once stabled, the mare is fine - she just resigns herself to being shut in and eats her hay. They are going to try to put some doors on their shelter....but dont know what to do in the meantime....

If she were mine, I would go to the farmer and ask to borrow a pair of cow shackles/hobbles. I would tie her up in the field shelter with a nice big haynet, hobble her, put the bars up, and leave her be (preferably with someone around to keep an eye on her). But I'm sure this wont be a popular approach....what would everyone else do?

NB. They also rent their grazing, and the farmer does not want any kind of permanent fence put up...which is unfortunate, as thos great big 6ft plastic railings would be ideal....
 
Get a different pony or another companion as well. Some horses will just never get used to being left behind and its not worth the stress to the horse and the vet bills for them, persisting, not to mention if they get sued by someone involved in an accident caused by the pony jumping out and running around loose.
 
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Get a different pony or another companion as well. Some horses will just never get used to being left behind and its not worth the stress to the horse and the vet bills for them, persisting, not to mention if they get sued by someone involved in an accident caused by the pony jumping out and running around loose.

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Oh blimey, I dont think they could afford that; they can barely afford the two that they've got. And then it becomes a vicious circle....when you've got three, and you want to take two somewhere (they often do) you need to get a fourth to keep the third company....
They did have a little pony who, due to lack of space, time and rider, they sold on last year, and he had the same problem; they couldnt leave him anywhere on his own...
 
I'd either get something to keep the pony company or, if they really don't want a third animal, find other premises where the pony can be shut in sensibly. To be honest, I wouldn't be very happy anyway with the fact that they can't have a permanent fence. It sounds like just a matter of time before the pony hurts itself badly.

Edited to say that having read your other reply :

What is the horse that they take out like to leave on its own? If it's OK, I'd sell the offending pony and just keep the other one.
 
How long has she been doing this for? You say they've had her a few years... is this a recent thing? If so I wonder why she would suddenly start jumping out now?
Is she ridden, or just a companion? I have a similar issue with a little pony I've got as a companion for mine, they're a nightmare when separated, so much so I've stopped riding until after my baby's born, as I can't be bothered with the hassle right now. When mine comes back into work I'll have to tackle the issue, or if I can't then the pony will just have to go, and I'll have to keep Missie on her own. Not ideal, but as you yourself know, sometimes there just isn't any other option!
 
donadea - yes they've had her about 3 years now, and the jumping out thing does seem recent. The horses have escaped, both of them, in the past, but that's only when they've forgotten to turn the electric on
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I do wonder if the mare has just got canny to the fact that fences often yield, and now does her own thing...

forester - they use both horses; the naughty one is the girl's PC pony, does everything, she's perfect in every other way! The other is the mum's elderly cob; she quite often rides him out during the day on her own, when the girls are at school (they quite often go out for lessons/PC in the evenings). The cob is beautifully behaved on his own, they never have problems with him!
 
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donadea - yes they've had her about 3 years now, and the jumping out thing does seem recent. The horses have escaped, both of them, in the past, but that's only when they've forgotten to turn the electric on
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I do wonder if the mare has just got canny to the fact that fences often yield, and now does her own thing...

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I suspect you're right then! How annoying. If there's no possibility of getting a more solid fence then I'd probably go with your suggestion of tying her up with hay and hobbles!
 
I don't think it's fair leaving the pony on it's own and should have a companion. I know some horses are ok left by themselves but they are herd animals and all the horses I've had (most of them totally sane!) would be stressed out if left alone in a field. It must be very frustrating for you to have your stable commandeered but I don't think the horse would go over all those fields and fences if it wasn't stressed. From what you say it doesn't sound like they can afford another pony so I don't know what the answer is. I personally think hobbles are cruel and will only exacerbate the pony's stress.
 
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I am sure you had thought about this but why cant they put it in Ellie's field with her when they ride the other one?
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We have thought about it, but Elz has barely enough grazing for herself as it is, and also, she is used to being turned out alone now - it seems very unfair to give her company every now and again, and then take it away!
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I dont want to upset her!
 
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I don't think it's fair leaving the pony on it's own and should have a companion.

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I know many people feel like this, but we are talking about maybe one hour at a time, not even every day, being left on her own....I hardly think that is cruel....

Besides which, she travels perfectly fine on her own, she is happy to be stabled (if they had any) on her own....
 
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she is used to being turned out alone now - it seems very unfair to give her company every now and again, and then take it away!
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I dont want to upset her!

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That is very true. Okay then, another random suggestion... can they get a sheep for company, or two?! They are cheap and easy to look after
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. I don't know how much grazing they have but if they have a cob (usually very good doers!!) and a pony (which if like mine gets fat on air) then having sheep garzing may help....
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That is very true. Okay then, another random suggestion... can they get a sheep for company, or two?! They are cheap and easy to look after
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. I don't know how much grazing they have but if they have a cob (usually very good doers!!) and a pony (which if like mine gets fat on air) then having sheep garzing may help....
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Haha.....they sort of explored that avenue...they had two pigs in a pen next to the horses, but they also kept escaping - they were worse Houdinis than the pony! So they were sent for the chop a couple of months ago...
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Sheep would fit in well with their lifestyle - they're kind of animal-mad.....I might mention it
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Oh, in that case I honestly wouldn't know what to suggest but I'd be very worried about the pony hurting itself. Could they not find somewhere else, more suitable, to keep them?

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Not really, they've been living in a caravan in the field for the past two years whilst they renovate/extend an old derelict cottage....the horses kind of co-exist in the field with them! The plan is to build stables eventually, I think
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Might mention the stable mirror idea...
 
Can they not advertise grazing?! Let someone elase keep there horse there, making sure it dosn't mind being left alone? A retired horse or something?
 
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Can they not advertise grazing?! Let someone elase keep there horse there, making sure it dosn't mind being left alone? A retired horse or something?

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Good idea, but the field doesnt belong to them (same anti-horse landlord as us) and they too are limited as to how much he will allow them. Bloody farmers!
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But how big is the field? If it's only small then adding another horse is just going to put more pressure on limited grazing, which causes its own problems and expense in the long run. One thing I'm learning with my current situation is that you can spend a lot of money, time and worry trying to cater for your horse's every whim, but there comes a time when you have to say no, actually, on this occasion you're going to have to fit in with my lifestyle every now and again! I'm sure it must be possible to solve the problem without having to add another horse into the equation?
 
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But how big is the field? If it's only small then adding another horse is just going to put more pressure on limited grazing, which causes its own problems and expense in the long run. One thing I'm learning with my current situation is that you can spend a lot of money, time and worry trying to cater for your horse's every whim, but there comes a time when you have to say no, actually, on this occasion you're going to have to fit in with my lifestyle every now and again! I'm sure it must be possible to solve the problem without having to add another horse into the equation?

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I'm sure it must be; Ellie herself is testament to that! The general line of thinking these days seems to be to 'get another horse' to solve this kind of issue; many people dont seem to realise that this is not always possible or financially feasible.

Their field would be about half an acre, I would have thought, a bit bigger than ours. They have a starvation strip which they've actually bought that they use in the winter, but that is no bigger than a dressage arena!
 
just tell them to be careful if they use hobbles, mine was on box rest from having sarcoids lazered he was doped up to the eyeballs but fought his way through it and was a maniac in the stable, the YM hobbled him in the stable and within 5 mins the back of the stable had dissappeared (sp) if they do decide to kick out remember there is more force with 2 feet together than one - I must say looking back on it, it was comedy but when it happened it was the worst 4 weeks of my life, some horses will just go mad on their own. Hope it works out for them and you!
 
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just tell them to be careful if they use hobbles, mine was on box rest from having sarcoids lazered he was doped up to the eyeballs but fought his way through it and was a maniac in the stable, the YM hobbled him in the stable and within 5 mins the back of the stable had dissappeared (sp) if they do decide to kick out remember there is more force with 2 feet together than one - I must say looking back on it, it was comedy but when it happened it was the worst 4 weeks of my life, some horses will just go mad on their own. Hope it works out for them and you!

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Ah, thanks for that info - I personally have never used hobbles, so have no experience to draw on....maybe not such a good idea if they can hurt themselves! To me, it would seem they'd be worth a shot, but owner wasnt overly enthusiastic about the idea anyway!
 
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If Mother is just going for a bumble around on her cob why can't she ride him and lead pony, no big deal and would end the hassle? Otherwise I'd hobble it too - or shoot it!

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I think I'd have done the latter by now.....
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She cant really lead the other one every time she goes out for a ride - she often goes up the Downs, as I do, and a lot of the bridlepaths are single-file, very narrow! On the roads she'd be ok, but it's less than ideal, really, and would probably restrict where she could go
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All she has to do is use a longer lead rope so that pony can drop in behind them on single file paths; done it loads of times, they soon get the hang of it. I always use a proper webbing lead rein for ride and lead, they're longer, soft in your hands and fold into your hand better than either proper reins or the usual lead ropes. I'd still suggest this because it won't cost as much as a vet bill even if they do wear down more shoes in the process and at least she won't be worrying about where the damn pony is now if it is with her!!
 
I hope some of these suggestions work for them, I like the sheep idea.
I don't think they're cruel - they certainly don't sound it, I sometimes wish I lived in my horses field! I just thought the pony might be stressed. I'm sure there might be something about horses being left alone in a field that freaks them out. My older horse is perfectly fine about being left alone in a stable with no companions, travels alone and happily hacks out alone but on two occasions I've left him in a field by himself and he has leapt over the three foot fence within minutes. I was totally surprised because he is the most laid back character and also stiff with arthrititis! Luckily, I keep my horses on a farm with many horses so he always has company.
I hope your situation is sorted out soon.
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I know that they might not be keen on another horse but is the fencing secure enough for a mini shetland - it wouldn't be able to jump out anyway if that was left on its own occasionaly and they don't need much grass??
 
How about putting another fence inside so it is doubled. We have done is in the past with a pony that would not stay in its own field. It realised it was too wide to jump so stayed put.
 
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