Troy and I are having a few issues :o(

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Troy is really starting to bite... all of the time!

He is biting Hannah a lot and she seems to be letting him get away with it (although she is so strict with him with other things). I discourage him by growling at him or if he bites my elbow I elbow him a little. However, it is not working
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Does anyone have any suggestions? I am hoping this is just coltish behaviour, but I also know I do not want it to continue getting worse and worse. Richard Maxwell is coming out to us on Tuesday to do some work with Troy (organised quite some time ago) so I know this will be a good experience.

Also, he seems to have a few bald patches on his legs, one big one on his front knee. Would you treat them with anything or just leave them as they seem to be healing. It looks as though Hannah has got him at one point, or he has scraped it on something.
 
The best thing you can do with colts is just leave them up to the mares. They will all sort him out. The young boys I have here are always put in with a few older mares - they do not tolerate their naughty behaviour much over 6 months old; but the little ones end up spending time being tired out with playing with their peers so end up being not such a drain on the old mares.

As to injuries, superficial I always leave alone.
 
Definitely superficial...

I can't just leave him to Hannah because it bloody hurts when he bites
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They are in at night as I am on a livery yard where 24/7 turnout is not available.
 
sorry mate I cant give you any advice as Willow didnt do anything like that - boys, who'd have them eh?
Id wait to see what Max says and go from there, but until then carry on what youre doing with him
 
I got my horse as a 4 yr old and he has always tended to be aggressive in the stable/when groomed. It is more aggression than naughty nipping. He is bad with people who are nervous of him, or those that try to be aggressive towards him.

I have spent a lot of time using Monty Robert's and Parelli's techniques. Basically to get my horse to back away from my space (he had a habit of swinging his quarters around or coming forward into my space). If he goes to bite me I would put my elbow out or give him a poke in the nose. If he moves over into my space I will push him out of it. That with sending him away from me in the school and doing join up work (& Parelli's 7 games). It has helped.
It is difficult to say whether your horse is actually displaying aggression? It sounds more like naughty opportunistic nipping?
I would react if he went to bite me. Just a short sharp poke with an elbow or finger. No shouting.... That's what I would do. But I think when you have Richard out you will be on the road to solving this behaviour.
 
what a little [****] hes being. Dont you just want to have stern words with Hannah about his behaviour - I know at some points I did with Ebi!

Yes mares all the way!! Also I didnt have to have to have mine cut - yet another reason to have mare - god mustve been having a good day with me when he decided what she was having!
 
Oh I shouldn't worry about Hannah, she will easily be able to deal with him. I doubt he hurts her. She can keep him sorted overnight in the stable and then she will have help from the other horses through the day. Aunties are sooooo valuable when it comes to colts.
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There are only the two of them out in the field too... all the other horses on the yard are shod and I just don't want to risk putting a foal in with anything with shoes on.
 
Have you got a sharp ref's whistle? Sometimes that shocks them into running to mummy instead of attacking you!
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Trouble is you nearly choke holding it in your teeth waiting for him to have a go!
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You could also try an umbrella, flashing that open at him though Hannah might object by going through the ceiling so not a good plan!
Failing that, I get to the stage where enough is enough and I will give them a loud crack on the chest along with growling and chasing them away and forcing them out of my space.
I dread having colts although I have to admit I love their sparkle!
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Is there any chance he could have a foal company (another mare with a foal)? From what I saw in a stud they need company to play about with each other and play. Most of young colts I saw get through the biting and aggressive stages but if they have company they just play with each other. If one mare (mum) is forgiving another will not be and you can't overestimate the aunties' discipline
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The whistle idea is a good one, and if that doesn't work give him a slap on the chest, a small smack never hurt anyone.......i am a bit of a traditionalist though.

Little swine though, thats why I'm secretly hoping for 2 fillies.
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No, there is no chance of another foal for company because there is only Hannah who has a foal on the livery yard. I did have a look around for somewhere they could go together, but no where was as secure and safe as where they are now (they are in a field completely post and railed). Hannah is very settled where she is, and does not do moving very well.
 
It's such a shame you don't have the chance to have him in with other foalies as from personal experience this is exactly what he needs. Foals learn from one another and also the other mares thart keep them in line and it looks like your mare is tolerating it.
I am sure he will come through good in the end but agree with the others be firm from the start or otherwise it may get out of control.
 
Originally there was going to be another mare and foal on the yard, but the lucky owner bought herself some land and moved the mare and her two year old on to that (green eyes becoming very narrow
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)

She is still waiting for her foal to be born at the moment, it is 11 days over due now.
 
Yes it is a shame they are on their own - Mum needs time off and help and others can generally provide this. The little ones generally wear themselves out playing with others of around the same age which helps them stop looking for trouble elsewhere.

Becki, they aren't always just going to be alone together are they? If they are then you will have a bit more work later on as he will get so attached to her. Maybe someone will move to your yard with horses that can be buddies to both Troy and Hannah.
 
I think this is a rare problem for us because they are always out with other mares and foals, and the Auntie mares give them a face pull then a sharp nip if they get pushy.
If they bite me the first thing I do is growl "NO" and chase them away from me, the second time they get a very hard smack on whatever part I can reach. our discipline methods always follow what happens within the herd, so a chase away then a reaction if they don't respect my authority. I don't think I've ever needed to give more than two smacks ever to stop biting, after that a simple Dont' you darrrrrrrre works fine.
We tend not to do more than give ours an itch and a stroke once or twice a day, so they don't get cheeky, most people with one foal love and cuddle them to bits (not a criticism just fact) and they often have difficulty instilling respect.
Be firm and don't let him take liberties, I find my actual stance and deeper voice works best, I've even been known to turn my back and lift a threatening leg as a mare would. I did that yesterday to something and it shot off bucking and leaping tossing it's head. luckily a good few feet away from me at the time!
 
Unfortunately, yes they are always going to be on their own. There are no other horses without shoes on the yard (apart from one gelding and I think Hannah would really go to town on him because she can be quite a dominant mare). To be honest, Hannah gets time to herself because there are many a time when I have watched them from a distance and they are both at the opposite ends of a 5 acre field
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I also plan on separating them a little when Troy gets to around 4 months, just taking him away for a few minutes and then taking him back. I have started it a little bit already when my husband can come down with me. I lead Hannah, he leads Troy, and keeps him back a bit, turns a circle and by then Hannah is out of sight around the corner. Then we put them back together. It is only for a few seconds, but a start none the less.
 
Thanks HH... I have been doing this a little, but tonight was the first time I smacked him (did not put it on here before as didn't want people having a go at me about it). He bit my back while I was picking out one of his front feet and I pushed him quickly away and he came back into my space and bit me again... so he got a very sharp smack on his shoulder.

He sulked for a while and then came back a bit sheepish... the next time I pushed him away he moved back and stayed back a bit better.
 
Oh hey, no-one on here who has had young colts would ever have a go at you. They need to be dealt with firmly as they can do damage to you if you don't keep your wits about you. I also much prefer fillies as they do seem to be far more placid than colts but heyho there's not a lot we can do about that.

I think you are doing exactly the right thing by separating them for tiny amounts of time right now. This will help a lot. You just make the separation times slightly longer each day and they soon get used to it. We tend to ride out our mares once the foal is about a month or two old just doing it little and often and keeping close by. By the time the foal is 3 or 4 months old the mare can generally go out of sight and be gone on a hack for about an hour without either of them becoming concerned....however you can really only do that when you have them in with other horses.

You're doing fine though so don't worry about it all - these are just the usual things that can happen.
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he is just playying with you, but must learn to respect you, pinch him, harder if he still does it . I dont do too much with my foal (now yearling). let mum sort him out. when she went put him with oldie, when he bossed that one. Put him with another mare that sorted him out. now he with another youngster and plays. since his mum went (sold on ) he looks on me as mum (i feed him). but he respects me. I push him away if he tries to play with me. dont want to encourage play with me as he will do it when older otherwise..... Foals are the biggest time wasters dont you find... sit and watch mine for hours...........
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Thanks... it is hard being on a livery yard because there are things that I would not do if I had somewhere of my own. However, until I can find some suitable land then the yard I am on is the best one in the area and it is a lovely yard too.
 
I agree you are doing the right thing and would not hesitate to smack a colt if he is getting really bolshy.
I don't think foals should be kept on their own though (please don't shout at me all) as most behavioural problems stem from lack of socialiasing and teaching a discipline to a youngster is so much more difficult later in his training. Many problems become fights only because a horse wasn't allowed to be a horse (i.e. grow up in a group with a leader who later is replaced by a rider).
This was drummed into me as I rode stallions and it is very important to keep them focused on the leadership of the rider.
I would advise that you try anything to get him a company - maybe even send him to stud for 6 months or so.
Of course I wish you all the best if you can't do anything but you may need to start looking for protective clothing
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I think your doing just the right thing, it is hard having a foal on a livery yard but it can work. We had some issues with our filly who had many coltish behavior issues when little and would have got dangerous had we not kindly disciplined her. We also used to chase her off in the manner of another horse **whispers** she also needed a smack now and again
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Hi,
Been reading Kelly Marks book and it says in there when he tries to bite you throw an absolute fit by jumping up and down and waving your arms around sometimes the shock of it makes them think twice about doing it again.
Just make sure there is no-one around otherwise you might find yourself being sedated and taken to the nearest padded cell
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my baby colt started biting when he was just 2days old, hes now 15 days old and has teeth, tried ignoring him and leaving mum to sort him out but she lets him kick and rear on her! i just shove him away now or clap at him if hes really biting
 
Thanks everyone...

I can't move them because Hannah is not good at moving house. She gives herself colic no matter what you feed her or try to keep the same whenever she moves home (she got it the first night she was taken to stud) and I just cannot risk it with Troy in the stable as she really throws herslef around. My friend's mare is in foal at the moment and is due any time. Originally she was going to still be on the yard with me, but she moved to her own place and there is no room for Hannah and Troy unfortunately.
 
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