Poo! (Sorry weird one!)

[Fluffypiglet]

I have owned current horse for about 18mths. He pooed under saddle when I tried him as I remember him doing it down their very posh and clean driveway! I’m sure he has pooed under saddle since but now I think about it I’m not sure how much. He seems absolutely fine in every other way but we went on a longer than usual hack yesterday (about 2hrs) and when we got home he had a huge wee and poo (it was seriously massive)! I felt ever so sorry for him and I realised that he hadn’t had a poo at all whilst we were out and when I thought back I realise it’s not something he does much any more, I can’t remember the last time he pooed in the school? Is this something to worry about? I don’t usually ride him much over an hour and this has been more so recently in the horrible weather so is it possible he’s got used to holding it in?! Sorry for the weird question, I’ve ridden all my life and owned horses on and off for many many years and never has a horse that hasn’t just pooed as we go, usually down back leg boots obv!

 

[Sussexbythesea]

Mine almost never poos in the school and only once in 13 years has done a wee out riding. He does poo out hacking though but prefers to stop to do it. I know when he’s holding it in because he gets tail swishy. He doesn’t like pooing on the Yard either. His favourite place is his stable where he does 75% of them, I swear he saves a poo and a wee especially to do as soon as he comes in from the field. I often pop him in the Stable for a bit before riding if he’s been out so that he is then more comfortable for riding.

 

[Fluffypiglet]

Mine almost never poos in the school and only once in 13 years has done a wee out riding. He does poo out hacking though but prefers to stop to do it. I know when he’s holding it in because he gets tail swishy. He doesn’t like pooing on the Yard either. His favourite place is his stable where he does 75% of them, I swear he saves a poo and a wee especially to do as soon as he comes in from the field. I often pop him in the Stable for a bit before riding if he’s been out so that he is then more comfortable for riding.

Thank SBTS, that makes me feel better. I do ask him to wee before we go out, especially if we’re going out in the lorry! It’s like getting a child ready for a car journey! I guess I’ll have to see if he’ll learn to poo before we do anything as well although pooing on the lorry is never a struggle.... ����.

He prefers to stop for a poo but in the school I was asking him to keep moving whilst pooing as we can’t stop in the middle of a dressage test, he is a sensitive sort so I’m worried he thinks he’s not allowed to poo whilst I’m riding any more (yes I over think and worry waaaaay too much! ) perhaps he just prefers his own field or stable for such things.

 

[be positive]

Thank SBTS, that makes me feel better. I do ask him to wee before we go out, especially if we’re going out in the lorry! It’s like getting a child ready for a car journey! I guess I’ll have to see if he’ll learn to poo before we do anything as well although pooing on the lorry is never a struggle.... ����.

He prefers to stop for a poo but in the school I was asking him to keep moving whilst pooing as we can’t stop in the middle of a dressage test, he is a sensitive sort so I’m worried he thinks he’s not allowed to poo whilst I’m riding any more (yes I over think and worry waaaaay too much! ) perhaps he just prefers his own field or stable for such things.

He is learning that you don't let him stop so is starting to hold it in, I had one the same when he came to me and he actually got colic on a clinic once because he wouldn't go, after that I took more care to give him breaks without being on him, it was rarely an issue at competitions because he went in the lorry and I have never had a problem with any horse stopping in a dressage test to go because thy are usually empty after the journey, I nearly always let my horses stop of they want to after my experience with Woody who was with me for 18 years and only ever went a handful of times when ridden.

 

[Gloi]

When I started riding my oldie 25 years ago he stopped on a ride to poo. I bossed him into walking on and he has never done a poo when ridden since. He always has one in the field as he comes up to be caught and then saves it till a break or we get home. He's never come to any harm from it.
At one point he started stopping for a wee out riding and it turned out that was a sign of developing Cushings. Now he is treated he no longer needs to wee out on a ride.

 

[Fluffypiglet]

Oh no! I’ve broken my horse! Any ideas how I can get him to poo again with me on?! I guess lorry trips are ideal as it means he won’t need to go but I’d really prefer him not to hold it in. He’s a quick learner so clearly pushing him to keep going whilst pooing has told him he mustn’t, even though I have only asked him once or maybe twice max. ☹️. I feel so mean

 

[ester]

Mine has always stopped for a poo, he was impossible to boss into walking and it is encouraged in our school as it is easier to pick up after! It has never once been an issue while competing because he always goes while we are warming up/will have been int he trailer I think he may have thought about it once but happily pushed on and held it in as he knows competing is important

 

[Auslander]

I've learned to put Alf in a stable for a bit before we go anywhere, after two trips out to go hacking, where he got back to the box and had a huge wee each time. I felt sorry for him for having to hold in such an enormous quantity of fluid - and both times, the river of wee came out of the box, and headed off down someones driveway, which was a little embarrassing! I knocked on the door, apologised profusely and offered to hose down their driveway!

 

[be positive]

Oh no! I’ve broken my horse! Any ideas how I can get him to poo again with me on?! I guess lorry trips are ideal as it means he won’t need to go but I’d really prefer him not to hold it in. He’s a quick learner so clearly pushing him to keep going whilst pooing has told him he mustn’t, even though I have only asked him once or maybe twice max. ☹️. I feel so mean

You haven't broken him, most will learn to go when ridden, my boy was obviously well ingrained when I got him and was fine most of the time, it was only after the colic I realised there could be an issue if he was not encouraged to go, he was fine at ODE's if there was a decent interval between classes but showing could be tricky if the class was big because he would get tight and tense, never had one since that was anything like as tricky, most will "ask" to stop in some way and if allowed quickly get into the habit of going, we do have one in the yard at the moment that would easily become like it, he finds moving when going very hard and gets tense for other reasons as well.

 

[Mosh]

My mare came to me at 21 and this is obviously behaviour she has been taught, but she has never done a poo when hacking/ schooling and only does it when at a show. Never done her any harm and she is now 24 and a nutter. 😁

 

[Orangehorse]

Mine doesn't go often while ridden. He does sometimes if it is a long ride and he will also wee if he needs to on a long ride. He will sometimes wee in the field when I get back from a ride (I have to get off and lead him through a gate at the end of the drive) but usually not until we get back to the stable. All horses are different!

 

[SEL]

I'm so glad someone else asked this question! The 'no pooing under saddle' is proving a bit of a problem with my mare (currently off games) since I've started to increase the length of time she's being worked. We go next door for polework clinics and she's probably under saddle for about 90 mins and the relief on her face when she gets back to the stable and offloads would be funny if it wasn't for the fact she's obviously struggling.

She has poo'd once under saddle in the posh arena next door and was so happy to offload that she threw a buck in straight after. I actually tried to praise her so she knew it was OK, but we've had the same problem since.

My circus-trained Ardennes has obviously been taught to wee and poo before any work because as soon as he knows he's going in an arena he does what he needs to do. His sense of where and when could be better - often had people in trainers jumping for cover as a river comes flooding their way! I think he was clicker trained for what he did (he certainly understands clicker training anyway and it seems the most likely), so perhaps that might be an option.

 

[Fluffypiglet]

Ah SEL, clicker training might be the way to go! I have taught the cat high five and ‘stick ‘em up’ with a clicker (I was bored) so it must be easy to train a horse to poo ? ��.

Thank you to everyone who has responded and I’m glad I’m not alone in my pondering ����. It is exactly the issue of increasing work load that has bought it to mind, throughout winter we weren’t riding for more than an hour max so it wasn’t really an issue and I think that’s why I didn’t really notice. He’s in his stable before work and if tied on the yard will move himself indoors or will give up and go on the yard for a poo. He always wees if you do his bed or will eventually wee if I whistle and tell him to (before going on the lorry) and I’ve noticed he always goes both wee and poo after work, just not to the same extent where it looked like he’d been full to the tip-top and must have been sooo uncomfortable. Clicker training and praise it is, which will no doubt get me some funny looks at the yard but I don’t care if it makes thing better for him.

 

[Fluffypiglet]

He is learning that you don't let him stop so is starting to hold it in, I had one the same when he came to me and he actually got colic on a clinic once because he wouldn't go, after that I took more care to give him breaks without being on him, it was rarely an issue at competitions because he went in the lorry and I have never had a problem with any horse stopping in a dressage test to go because thy are usually empty after the journey, I nearly always let my horses stop of they want to after my experience with Woody who was with me for 18 years and only ever went a handful of times when ridden.

That is concerning and I will try and train him into relieving himself. Unfortunately he’s 16.3hh and I can’t get off whilst out on a hack - well I can get off, just not easy to get on again. He also needs training to be obliging about standing next to things for me to stand on! Next time he wants to stop and poo I shall gladly let him!