Progress with touching my foal!!!!

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annareed6

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Hi some of you may remember me posting on here about my 6 month old foal who was vicious when touched.

Progress made at last!

After taking on board the advice from you guys, none of which worked. I tried join up where she just tried to run at me and kick me lol. I tried mimicking her like a foal would do and touching her with no eye contact then walking away, she tried to attack me again.... I tried ignoring her, no luck.

Then today at the yard a friend suggested something which i hadnt even thought of!

She and another friend held the lead rope over the stable door and held her tight while i leant over the stable door and stroked her so i was behind the door and she couldnt attack me, at first she freaked but as there was 2 people holding her she couldnt move. Anyway eventually she calmed down and let me stroke her neck, ears, head and nose!

I also managed to get hold of her headcollar and loosen it as i was way too tight.

Im sooooo happy! After nearly 2 months i finally touched her!! She was nearly falling asleep when i was rubbing her ears.

In a great mood now and cant wait to do it again tomorrow!!!
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competitiondiva

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Fantastic news, I've just taken on a fairly untouched colt foal. In comparison to my homebred he's a total different kettle of fish! He'd had no handling until weaning so sees people as hardship and also doesn't like hands near his face.... Well he's turned out with my homebred (who is all over you!) so he learns confidence from him, he was for the first week or two near impossible to catch, once you had hold of his headcollar you could do anything with him but trying to catch him to do that wasn't easy, plus I wanted him to WANT to come to me. Well today I felt we also had a breakthrough, I was stroking the big boy (homebred) and he was on other side and I came around infront, and without looking at him stroked his shoulder, he for once didn't move off and I was able to work my hands up to his head, put my head onto his and give him lots of affection WITHOUT holding onto him!! He could have moved off at any time but CHOSE not to!!! yipee!!! Think he maybe coming around!! Good luck with yours.....
 
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annareed6

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Thanks, well done with yours, i really want to train her parelli style but had to be able to touch her without her trying to kick or bite me first, im hoping after a few more days of doing this i will be able to touch her in the stable
 
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Moggy in Manolos

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Spooky! Thats taken me back some years, just had a memory I had forgotten all about, back from 1992!! We bought a foal who had not been handled properly and it was only when she herself got stuck and we had to touch her to move her, she came right straight away, after that she was a million times better, hopefully your foal has gotten over that initial problem and will be easier from now on in
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AmyMay

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Find posts like yours most odd. Foals are very, very rarely vicious, especially newly weened ones who have been taken from familiar surroundings - to unkown territory. Scared, yes, vicious - no.

Super that you have managed to get your hands on her today - but if you have as much experience with horses as you say (in a previous post) you will be more savvy than you come accross.

And getting two people to hold on to it whilst you try to attempt some sort of 'join up'??????? Come on................
 
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artypants

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I agree with SallySmith, i've never ever known a vicious foal (we breed horses!) nippy-yes, naughty-yes, bad tempered-yes but never vicious and only ever "nasty" when something is physically wrong eg kidney infection etc.
Plus who on earth in their right mind would turn a foal out into a field of strange fully grown horses???
Nah..its all a bit fishy that no tried and tested methods worked only that parelli styled tripe...which by the way is utter codswallop. (IMHO)
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annareed6

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Im not lying, she threw a fully grown man out of the stable, reared and kicked another girl, and dragged my dad (who has worked in racing all his life) over and bruised all his arm. i dont know her background, she came to the yard a week before i bought her n they bought her from a market so i dont know if she had been hit or anything. and i didnt say i tried parelli with 2 people holding her, i said i want to do parelli with her after i could touch her.

Anyway to those people who actually have something nice to post on here, today she came up to the stable door and let me stroke both sides of her head while she licked my chin without me even holding her!!
 
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annareed6

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i turned her out and she jumped the fence,it then took about 4 hours to get her back, i then turned her out with another foal and couldnt get near her, and i mean at all, i then sectioned her and the other foal off and thats when we had the problems with her running to attack us. it wasnt just me she used to attack it was everyone, so i bought her in.

i do take her out every day for a pick of grass, but if i let her off no one can catch her, she so headshy that u cant clip a leadrope on her, even with feed, shes now in and as soon as i can get to be able to touch her head, clip a leadrope on and off her n stuff then i will turn her out
 
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shadowboy

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Are you sure she is vicious? maybe the lack of turnout is making her stressed which is causing her to respond negatively in the stable. Howie was 9 months when I got him and he had been unhandled - he was never nastly but only very scared- but within a week we could turn him out without headcollar and then catch him. I would sit for hours in the stable with him for the first 2 days not even trying to touch him- curiosity got the better of him. He is now the easiest 17 month old ever!
 
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annareed6

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i dont think that is the problem, she has been a lot better behaved in the stable, she is finally coming around now, today she put her head over the stable door and as i stroked both side of her head she was licking my chin, im getting there slowly
 
AmyMay

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[ QUOTE ]
She was, it has taken me 2 months to touch her without her trying to attack me

[/ QUOTE ]

Oh, ok. Reading your OP makes it sound as if she was viscious 3 days ago.
 
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Sugarplum Furry

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I strongly recommend you get yourself a copy of Sarah Weston's book 'No Fear No Force'. She is a total expert on handling the untouched youngster, and as the title says, no fear or force involved. Or even better, depending on where you are in the UK, book a visit from her.

http://www.logicalhorsemanship.co.uk/ this is her website.

K x
 
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