What bad habit do you allow?

Not many because the Appy was so horrible as a child, but they do all self load into stables.

The Appy has to make sure the other two have gone in first which is funny if she's hungry and someone is dawdling. Can almost see her tapping her hoof impatiently.

She is allowed to snack crab apples if we're walking out in hand. She used to find that bridleway scary but now it's her favourite.
 
I admit my boy can be very bad for shoving me as if I’m a vending machine and treats might fall out 🙄 I’ve had him since a youngster and just never really corrected it. He’s 12 now. Oops 😬
 
Robin smells everyone's breath when they arrive. He loves OHs beer breath and goes all funny if he blows up his nostril after he's had a beer. Its like an equine breathalyser. 🤷‍♀️
Reggie puts his foot over the bottom rail of the fence when he wants attention. Unfortunately I've probably made it worse by trying to correct it. 😕
 
Dave's Mam said:
Dave has a wee when I catch him. Once he had a wee when I was bringing him in & as we were stood for a moment, I gave him the piece of carrot in my pocket.
Now he will very obviously TRY to wee as soon as he's caught. I don't mind, it might take longer to fetch in, but it's one less in his stable & I know he's comfy if I ride. Heoften has a poo too.
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Actually, it's not a bad habit, so I should withdraw my comment. It's really handy & he's very clever.
 
My twenty-seven year old retired schoolmaster likes to knock objects off posts and watch them fall. Swings his head back at me to see if I'm upset. I am usually laughing. Got to watch him with phones though. He is also allowed to rub his supposedly 'itchy' forehead on my front. I would never allow this with a younger horse, but Clas has done all the things the humans have wanted for all these years, including getting to PSG. There's gotta be some benefits of age and he does it quite gently!
 
I allow mine to scrounge treats by doing this! He only does it if he wants a treat or wants reassuring about something. If you talk to him sternly (not that I do much but when he used to bite me or step or scrape his bad foot on the floor) he sticks it out as a bit of an apology.

Going to visit him tonight, can't wait to see him.
 

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That she's impatient, she will wave her leg in the air when tied up and if it's gone on long enough ( anything above 5 mins) she will just start rearing on the spot.
I just ignore her now , she never tries to pull back etc, it's just a display of how put out she is ... does catch new people unaware as she's a little fat hairy cob and doesn't look the type.
 
Dave's Mam said:
Actually, it's not a bad habit, so I should withdraw my comment. It's really handy & he's very clever.
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My old pony would always have a pee and a poo when I was fetching him in to ride.(he was never stabled) He wouldn't go when being ridden unless we were out for hours. I once told him off for stopping to poo so instead of keeping on walking he just didn't poo again, so offloaded before he came in.
 
Amber came with zero clue about a treat or being fed from the hand.
She now wiffles my pockets, nudges me and constantly nags me for treats. She gets a constant stream of them whilst grooming, tacking up etc.
It is really bad but I let her carry on as she's so good everywhere else.

Is started using treats as she really didn't see the point of me, didn't see me as anything useful or any form of help to her when I got her.
Now I think she trusts me and quite likes finding out what shenanigans we're getting up to today.
 
Archie puts himself to bed every night. I have to get 3 in so put the other two on headcollars but just let Arch wander in with us - it saves me another trip and he can wander round the other stables saying goodnight to his buddies on the way, which is his favourite thing to do. On the old yard he'd have to make a detour but we deliberately gave him the end stable at the new one so he can do it on his way in now. He zigzags up the corridor stopping at each stable to say good night and even waits for the two I'm bringing in to get into their stables to go to them.
 
Dave's Mam said:
Dave has a wee when I catch him. Once he had a wee when I was bringing him in & as we were stood for a moment, I gave him the piece of carrot in my pocket.
Now he will very obviously TRY to wee as soon as he's caught. I don't mind, it might take longer to fetch in, but it's one less in his stable & I know he's comfy if I ride. Heoften has a poo too.
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Does Dave give lessons? I would LOVE Archie to do this.
 
When I got my new mare I really struggled to get her to pick up her feet, so I started giving her a treat after I'd managed to pick out all four feet. So now whenever she wants a treat she starts waving a front leg around.....🤔
 
saddlesore said:
I admit my boy can be very bad for shoving me as if I’m a vending machine and treats might fall out 🙄 I’ve had him since a youngster and just never really corrected it. He’s 12 now. Oops 😬
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lol mine too if I am standing in front of her stable she puts her nose on me and pulls me back, it normally takes 2 or 3 goes till I bump into the door and close enough for her to want treats.
 
Annagain said:
Archie puts himself to bed every night. I have to get 3 in so put the other two on headcollars but just let Arch wander in with us - it saves me another trip and he can wander round the other stables saying goodnight to his buddies on the way, which is his favourite thing to do. On the old yard he'd have to make a detour but we deliberately gave him the end stable at the new one so he can do it on his way in now. He zigzags up the corridor stopping at each stable to say good night and even waits for the two I'm bringing in to get into their stables to go to them.
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My connie does this put herself out and in, and my late boy and his mum put themselves out and in so did my donkey. This ID is blonde she sometimes go awaol.
 
SilverLinings said:
I have one who is very orally-fixated, he seems to make up for the lack of opposable thumbs by using his mouth to investigate EVERYTHING. He will also throw things, apparently to see how they sound when they land. I allow him to do this when supervised as his curiosity is fascinating, but I make sure that when he is in the field or stable without me around that there is nothing for him to 'play' with (and I quickly discovered that things have to be moved quite far to truly be out of his reach!). He understands a verbal 'no' so if I am there and he is being too rough then he will stop when told to.

He also likes to pick up big sticks when we hack and either carry them for a bit then throw them, or bash them on the ground. He is quite odd really 🤣
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This reminds me very much of my fave guy!! Orally fixated is the perfect description 😂 When grooming, every brush needs a top lip inspection before being 'approved' to proceed... He is very curious about textures and objects!

A few nights ago, he took a tiny mouthful of hay as we were leaving the stable to go into the arena...carried it around in his mouth the entire time and then when I took off his bridle, he very carefully and methodically removed the hay from the bit before he would release it! 😂🙈 It made me laugh so much .. I love to see them able to express themselves in these little quirky ways 🥰
 
I have actively encouraged picking up feed buckets when finished- the old boy does it and the youngster has learned which is handy when you don't want to bend down, but the youngster gets bored and will lob the bucket across the field if you're not quick enough to grab it from her which is... less helpful 😂
One she has got away with that I would like to correct is walking through electric fence, but I've had to give that up as a bad job- the old boy also used to do that and has somewhat grown out of it (the grass has to be  really nice for him to break through) so I'm holding out hope it will lose its appeal as she matures!
 
Leading him around to the mounting block and jumping straight on without him even stopping. I didn't really realise it had become a habit until someone else tried to get on him that was much slower to mount than me. Ken was very confused when he kept walking off but she still wasn't on board yet 🤣
 
My bad habit...
Getting down with them when they're asleep for cuddles 🙈
Shetty is not allowed bad habits.
TB is far more indulged, also orally fixated and likes to hold onto/suck things like lead ropes brushes etc
Also when impatient, he knows he has to stand still, but has to move something, so compromises with a million mile an hour head bob which slaps his lips together like a wet percussion instrument. We call it 'revving his jets' and is a good way of alarming pedestrians who want to stop and chat for too long while we're hacking 😂
 
SilverLinings said:
I have one who is very orally-fixated, he seems to make up for the lack of opposable thumbs by using his mouth to investigate EVERYTHING. He will also throw things, apparently to see how they sound when they land. I allow him to do this when supervised as his curiosity is fascinating, but I make sure that when he is in the field or stable without me around that there is nothing for him to 'play' with (and I quickly discovered that things have to be moved quite far to truly be out of his reach!). He understands a verbal 'no' so if I am there and he is being too rough then he will stop when told to.

He also likes to pick up big sticks when we hack and either carry them for a bit then throw them, or bash them on the ground. He is quite odd really 🤣
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I have 5 horse but two of them, both knabstruppers are orally fixated. My saddler says it's a breed thing as she's seen a few others who are the same. Sometimes it's cute. One of them always throws things around the yard and has always thrown his feed bowl over the stable door when finished. The other times it is a pain trying to put a bridle on or stopping them chewing reins.
 
The wee cob puts everything in his mouth... Doesn't harm whatever it is, just has to go in there, with lead ropes being retrieved before disappearing all the way down his gullet! Now when a headcollar goes on I just leave him to carry the lead rope for me.

The only other sort of one is in the winter just one call will, despite them having ad lib hay and grass, have them all amble across the field to me and I could probably not bother to headcollar at least three of them, but my inner-witter won't allow me to take them out of the field / paddock without. Whereas in the summer I could call 'till the cows come home and they'd not so much as lift a head between them.
 
myheartinahoofbeat said:
I have 5 horse but two of them, both knabstruppers are orally fixated. My saddler says it's a breed thing as she's seen a few others who are the same. Sometimes it's cute. One of them always throws things around the yard and has always thrown his feed bowl over the stable door when finished. The other times it is a pain trying to put a bridle on or stopping them chewing reins.
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Interesting! I have a spotty with Knab in his lines and he also likes to grab things and play with them. Headcollars/buckets/rugs etc
 
spotty_pony2 said:
My boy bites my coat pockets looking for treats usually when I am changing his rug, etc 🙈 not the best habit but at almost 25 I don’t think I going to stop him doing it now - he’s been allowed to do it for too many years!
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My new one does this, but I don’t intend for it to continue after he broke the pocket zip on my favourite coat.

The same pony also can’t let you walk past him with a bucket of water without having a drink, no matter what. I think he’s checking it’s not food 😂
 
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