Sudden bad manners at bring in time! Please help!

tankgirl1

tankgirl1

Well-Known Member
Joined
6 October 2012
Messages
2,486
Location
Derbyshire
Visit site
I'll try and be as brief as possible. We moved Boyo in September to our current yard, a step up from part loan to full loan. He had mostly been alone at his old yard, another pony within viewing/whinnying distance, but it never bothered him. Bit bolshy but generally easy to do.

Moved and he was on individual turnout next to his stablemate for the first 6 weeks or so, no problems. Then we turned them out together. Stablemate, lets call him Patches is a bully. Always chasing Boyo away from resources, but they graze happily together, and work happily together. Patches deffo wears the pants!

Bring in time, Patches won't let Boyo near the gate. No worries, we (I -one person) get Patches out first, then once he is on the other side of the gate in his headcollar, Boyo will come up to the gate, put headcollar on, and they walk down to the yard nice as pie, odd bit of facepulling but nothing to write home about.

The last few days Boyo has started sniping at Patches as we walk down, making biting faces and snaking his neck. So we (I and co loaner) started going up together so it was a 1:1 ratio with the horses. Patches out the field first, no probs, I come to get Boyo, he's cantering round me, sniping at me, face pulling at me, threatening to bite, generally being a PITA.

Once we get down the track to the yard he turns back into the sweet little lad I know and love, with near perfect manners. It's just walking down the track that he has suddenly become a git. And only at bringing in time!

Any ideas? Its so out of character for him to snipe at a human!
 
Hmmm, think there's something going on with the other fieldmates possibly, maybe some sort of separation anxiety when you remove the other horse??

Interestingly, my cob has been pig ignorant with me on the ground lately: the only thing that's different is that we've put a youngster in with him and mare, and that's when its started.

Think there's probably a bit of a herd supremacy dialogue going on with yours and the ones out with him. Often its the horse being dominated who will exhibit the "dominant" symptoms. It sounds a bit like "Boyo" has been subdued by "Patches" to the extent that he is insecure whenever he's not there to tell him what to do!

If you can, I'd get on the case of yours and do some groundwork with him when he's out of the field. Practice stuff like pushing your hand where your leg would go and making him move his hindquarters, and forehand, around. Make him go backwards and forwards. You might need a professional to show you how to do all this correctly and firmly because it really IS important that your body language is right.

Also...... sorry if sounding preachy, but PLEASE make sure that you and your co-loaner wear appropriate safety wear, i.e. hard hats, gloves, and proper footwear, when bringing in from the field. A body protector wouldn't come amiss too. Just for your own safety, you can't be too careful.

IF you are feeling threatened - there's nothing wrong with taking a lunging whip into the field with you in order to re-assert your dominance of the situation!!!
 
Thankyou for replying, very interesting as although Boyo has been better under saddle of late, he has been harder work on the ground. He is deffo being bullied by Patches, no doubt about it, and according to his owner he is used to being the boss. There is also separation anxiety a brewing, mainly on Boyos part, galloping around screaming if Patches is brought in first, planting if he is turned out first with Patches still in the stable. We do have the option to change the grazing, put them on individual turnout again. Patches is renowned for bullying, don't know what to do for the best! And DO NOT LIKE my usually lovely boy trying to bite me as we walk in :(
 
Are they having hay in the field? I've always found that there is a lot more tension between the horses at bringing in time if they are a bit hungrey and anxious for their tea.
 
If he's being chased away from 'resources' I expect you mean hay - which will always result in a bit of excitement at bringing in time, because your lad will be hungry.

So improve the 'resource' situation, and just ignore the odd bit of naughtiness at bringing in time.
 
This is where it might be of benefit to stand back and ask someone else who's knowledge & experience you respect (and/or a professional) to come with you at bringing-in time - and let them stand back and see what is going on, as often the onlooker will see much more of the game and they might see something going on that you somehow haven't.

That's what I'd do. If you allow the situation to carry on like it is, then its not going to improve unless you change something - and it could be just that insy-winsy little detail that the whole thing is blowing up from.

So IF you're beginning to feel threatened, and/or IF any of the horses is actually threatening you with a violent act like biting, kicking, or barging, then time to ask a professional to see what's happening IMO. Because this whole manners thing could easily progress into ridden work if you don't check what's happening on the ground now.
 
I would make sure that they have hay available, in several piles to discourage fighting over it, in the field. As for bringing in, I'd catch Patches first then make him wait politely to one side, while Boyo leads the way along the track. I always work with their hierarchy when they are loose but insist that they do what the handler/rider wants when necessary. You wouldn't always let the 'boss' horse lead on a hack. I do think that most of the trouble stems from Boyo having been kept alone for so long previously, which of course was not your responsibility.
 
amymay said:
If he's being chased away from 'resources' I expect you mean hay - which will always result in a bit of excitement at bringing in time, because your lad will be hungry.

So improve the 'resource' situation, and just ignore the odd bit of naughtiness at bringing in time.
Click to expand...

This.
Also maybe that he's settling in a bit now and finding his feet he is trying to move up
the pecking order.
 
hollybear said:
Are they having hay in the field? I've always found that there is a lot more tension between the horses at bringing in time if they are a bit hungrey and anxious for their tea.
Click to expand...

amymay said:
If he's being chased away from 'resources' I expect you mean hay - which will always result in a bit of excitement at bringing in time, because your lad will be hungry.

So improve the 'resource' situation, and just ignore the odd bit of naughtiness at bringing in time.
Click to expand...

Echo these. Very common to suddenly start having problems this time of year through hunger. Two on my yard have started it. One is naughty anyway and got much worse. The other is normally really good but has turned very bargy. Both have gone back to normal once hay was put out
 
Thanks everyone. No they do not have hay out at the moment, but Patches will chase Boyo away from the water trough, and as mentioned the gate. I think the time is looming quickly when we will have to start putting hay out, and it worries me as I know it will cause problems when it gets down to the last pile!!

Co loaner brought them intonight. Apparently Patches good as gold, and Boyo just 'rude' so could just be my handling. We are going to try as someone suggested and let Boyo and I take the lead down the track, see if that makes a difference.

We have a lesson tomorrow morning so may mention it to our trainer if we have enough time.

I love my co loaner to bits, and she is a dear dear friend, but I worry about these things much more than her, and I want to nip it in the bud, as although Boyo has been a git for her before, he has always been a good lad for me, so it is a bigger deal for me and more significant when he acts up? Does that even make sense?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top