Relationships with late gelded horses

[Waffles]

I've got a 6 year old gelding who was gelded shortly before he was five. He's fab to ride and pretty unspooky. I wondered if anyone else on here had experience of late gelded horses and if they find that the relationship with them is different than that with mares, or other geldings they have owned.

 

[dumpling]

Mine is fine, the only thing I have is with a field of mares he will mount them if in season! But they pretty much put it in his face. Fine with geldings, has been lower down the heard ands heard leader. I actually had him in with another late cut gelding and they were best buds.

 

[Tinypony]

Mine was gelded at four and has covered mares. He's no different to any other gelding, and doesn't attempt to cover my mare.

 

[Waffles]

mine has quite a few foals to his name. I think he's quite possessive about me. He gets bolshy if I have a friend with me somehow. He's pretty gentle but he put his ears back at a friend of mine when I was giving him a couple of carrots. It's like he wants me all to himself. When I was talking to someone on the yard he started kneeing the door to get me to come back to him. Mind you, my last horse was gelded at 3 and a half and he wasn't like that. The current horse has never had one to one relationship before though.

 

[Waffles]

When mine first arrived I think he thought he'd arrived at a stud farm as loads of the mares were in season and where I am they don't separate the mares and geldings. He was having a whale of a time! (though he's not high up in the pecking order)

 

[dumpling]

I've never thought of it like that but mine will put his ears back at anyone that comes near him when I'm with him. He's not nasty though.

 

[Waffles]

Mine isn't normally nasty either - you rarely see him being aggressive to other horses either.

 

[pines of rome]

My boy is 11 and was gelded at 8, he still has some stallion traits , not nasty but can try and boss other horses and me to start with but he does now know I am the boss although I think he views me as a dominant mare!

 

[Rose Folly]

Have only known two, and they were both 'one man' horses. One who belonged to my father really only loved him, and (just) tolerated everyone else. He could be very sharp with strangers, and jealous...

The other was an LDR TB. I rode him a lot to get him fit for his owner, and the old horse did get quite fond of me in the end. But he adored his (male) rider.

Horse 1 was gelded at 8, Horse 2 at 9.

 

[Waffles]

It seems that every time I start grooming mine, I have to kind of earn his respect in order for him to let me into his personal space (which he seems to regard as his tail end). He will kick up his leg towards his tummy as if to say "get off!" (but no ears back). I think this is his way of showing irritation - he will sometimes do this out riding if he gets a bit peed off with going downhill on a stony path or something.

 

[dumpling]

I get the leg thing too but really only when doing leg straps , I just tell him not to dare try it! He's never kicked, just probably telling me to watch what I'm doing!

 

[Waffles]

Mine is ok with the leg straps (and I'm pretty sure he'd never worn a rug till about a month ago) - it's when I go to brush the back of his ribcage - at first, in the summer when I had him this year, I though he was trying to get horse flies off his belly - that's the kind of kick it is.

The other thing he was doing (but has stopped now) is to nip me on the arm when I was holding him but talking to people. Now, he just clicks his teeth with his mouth shut instead as I made it clear it was unacceptable, even if he wasn't being nasty and it didn't really hurt etc.

 

[jendie]

One of our mini shets was gelded at 18!!! He is the most gentle character I've ever met and is bullied by the two mares he lives with. He was gelded just before he joined us so I can't say what he was like before the op.

 

[bumblelion]

My tb was gelded at 4, he can occcasionally get a bit nippy (when leading) but shouting at him puts him back in his box! Other than that, he's very gentle and very loving! Does get possessive if out with mares though. He's also very dominant with other geldings (doesn't help my other is very dominant too) so they play fight a lot, get ripped rugs etc frequently! He's also prone to mounting geldings but I think this is purely because he's so playful!

 

[Piglet]

My boy was cut just before been broken in and was used to cover a couple of mares befor his "tackle" was stolen from in, he mounted our experienced brood mare - but she was giving him the "come hither"!! He has to be turned out in a "boys only" field as he becomes very possessive over a mare who takes his fancy but this may be his personality rather than the fact that he was used as a stallion

 

[TicTac]

mine has quite a few foals to his name. I think he's quite possessive about me. He gets bolshy if I have a friend with me somehow. He's pretty gentle but he put his ears back at a friend of mine when I was giving him a couple of carrots. It's like he wants me all to himself. When I was talking to someone on the yard he started kneeing the door to get me to come back to him. Mind you, my last horse was gelded at 3 and a half and he wasn't like that. The current horse has never had one to one relationship before though.

My mare is like that!

 

[Firewell]

I think mine was gelded at 3.5, he was def entire when he raced at 3 so sometime after that!
Mine can be a bit overfriendly. He's not very respectful of personal space and will want to come right up to you, not in a nasty way but in an attention seeking way. He is VERY chewy and nippy. He won't bite but he will chew his rugs, leadrope, brushes anything really. He will also try and grab your jacket, pull your hood off ect. I have to constantly remind him about it and he had had a few hard wallops when he I have felt his teeth graze my arm by accident. He will then remember for a short while but will then start play nipping and chewing again.
He is horrendously playful. He plays a bit rough with other horses so is now out in an individual paddock which I hate but other liveries got fed up with their horses coming in with grazes and their rugs torn!
Mine isn't clingy or interested in mares, he's very easy to do everything with. He just forgets he's bigger than humans sometimes, I often lead him with a bridle or stallion chain as if he's cold or wet or excited he can jump around.
He's very much an alpha horse, he will be on guard looking for things especially out hacking and even tied up to another horse on the yard he will start getting into their space and trying to play with them. He is good with dogs but again he has been known to chase them (especially if they come near his feed!).
The flip side is he is very friendly, I can squash his nose up and kiss it and really cuddle his head and he loves it! He fell asleep with his chin resting on my OH the other day.
He's very happy and very bold. Loves work, jumps anything, he's a real lion heart. I do just have to keep on top of him though reminding him who's boss everynow and again as he will push the boundaries which I do think is stallion traits coming through .
I love his character though!

 

[ginger76]

mine was apparantly gelded at 8, hes full connemara, he has the sweetest and most cheeky pony character ever! but when hes stabled he will pull faces at anything that walks near his space, hes very possesive of his space even from mares, hes in his own field but everyone knows hes still top of the pecking order! sometimes when grooming him he will get his bits out and flick his tummy with it! hes a brilliant jumper and jumps anything, we struck up a bond within a few days of him arriving last december. sadly he crib bites and occasionally weaves but we manage this quite happily, think perhaps he wasnt out much in his stallion days and got rather bored, wouldnt swop him for the world though!

 

[dumpling]

Interesting point about dogs. If there's any around while he's got food he'll strike out with a front leg. Woman says her gig followed her into the field last week and she thought he was a gonner as my boy came at him full speed and 'launched' himself towards him :s

 

[Snowysadude]

Mine is no different really I dont think. I have a much closer relationship with him then I have any other horse I have owned but hes not the first horse I have owned that was gelded late! Hes very affectionate with me but hes just a soppy idiot - very dominant with other horses though.

 

[Waffles]

I'm just back from a very calm, enjoyable grooming of my lovely (late-ish gelded) boy. It's still early days I reckon - I learn something new about his personality every day.

 

[Ibblebibble]

My ginger boy was gelded at the normal time but he's very posessive over my mare, turns himself inside out stressing when she goes out and he's left behind In fact he acts more 'manly' than the pony we have who was gelded at 4 yr's old, ginger boy is very bossy to all of my other 3 and to the little herd of 7 ponies in the field next door. With people though he is an absolute sweetie, i think some geldings are just that way inclined regardless of when they were cut

 

[Waffles]

So - do you lot reckon there's anything in that myth about women and hormones affecting stallions? Indeed, can horses tell the different sexes in humans? or is it just a matter of them being able to differentiate between (generally) bigger people with (generally) bigger muscles and (generally) deeper voices?

 

[SusannaF]

So - do you lot reckon there's anything in that myth about women and hormones affecting stallions? Indeed, can horses tell the different sexes in humans? or is it just a matter of them being able to differentiate between (generally) bigger people with (generally) bigger muscles and (generally) deeper voices?

I seem to remember reading somewhere that the sex or one thing was *******s (pardon the pun). I'll look for the source.

http://www.thehorse.com/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=5461

Both humans and horses bond with oxytocin though, and I wonder if that's what enables us to bond cross-species non-sexually!

 

[Waffles]

Both humans and horses bond with oxytocin though, and I wonder if that's what enables us to bond cross-species non-sexually!

Hey - I didn't know that it was specifically oxytocin. Great.

 

[Spotsrock]

My boy was gelded at 8. Now 12 and quite protective of my mares but ok with non dominant horses of either sex. Very soft and compliant to handle. Angry monster to ride but thats treatment not stallion traits I think. I don't normally get on with geldings. Strictly a mare owner

 

[rara007]

The pony I drove last year was Gelded at 10, and I had him 6 months after After he found his feet at his new home he was totally normal He's got a few foals My 4YO was only gelded at 3 before being imported and broken but I certainly wouldn't consider him late cut He's the least boyish horse you could get