What's the worst-natured horse you've ever worked with or owned?

F

FionaM12

Well-Known Member
Joined
9 August 2011
Messages
7,357
Visit site
I was thinking today about a horse I knew at a riding school in the early '70s. I've never known a worse-natured horse. His name was Rufus, and he was very pretty, about 15.2hh and I have no idea who or what made him the way he was.

He would bite anyone at any time. He wore a muzzle in the stable to stop him biting passing clents, but the muzzle was made of something lightweight but solid (with breathing holes) so he used to hit passers-by on the head with it instead.

He also kicked so no-one was safe anywhere near his back end. When being ridden, he would throw his head back and hit you hard in the face. I think he wore a standing martingale to stop this.

He also wind-sucked constantly if not wearing his muzzle.

When I was about 14, I was holding the reins while someone mounted, and he grabbed me by my upper arm, lifted me right up and dropped me. I had several layers of clothing but the bruising was astonishing.

He really wasn't safe in a riding school, looking back (or anywhere!). I've never known a bad 'un like that since.

Has anyone else?
 
I had a killer of a mare I had her since a yearling and bought her from the field where she had been kept with her mum out 24 7. She would bite you and really mean it and if you weren't careful she'd corner you and try and double barrel you . She was just awful. In the end I ended up with a fractured femur and skull ( thru a skull cap) and we sold her to someone who rehabilitated horses.... She was put down 6 months later after she broke her new owners arm in the stable... I truly believe that that horse was mentally ill.
 
The yard where I worked as a teenager had an arab mare who we were terrified of. She would lunge at passers by over the stable door and bite them, and if you went in the field where she was she would chase you out, teeth bared. If you stood your ground, she turned and kicked.

She was very successful in the show ring, provided she did not choose to bite the judge (a trick she tried on several occasions) Haven't a clue why she was like this- she was treated very well at the yard, and came to us like that- past experience, surely?

Oh- she did have one great use. The tackroom key was kept in her stable. No way a burgler would get past her unscathed!!!
 
I love grotty horses, had several of them.

My old horse was a right sod who would dump me on the road whilst he buggered off home by himself, it would also take 3 people, to lead him anywhere - 1 person each side [of a chifney] and one to run round opening gates as he would throw himself aboiut rearing and lunging out with front feet at passersby or handlers.

Makes my current monster seem positively angelic...
 
I don't think horses are bad natured, I think they can be made like that by the way they are treated. My lad was a nightmare when we got him, rearing when lead- it used to take 4 people to lead him down the yard. Legs and teeth coming at you, he would attack you if you entered his stable, he is 17-3hh and is quite aware of his size. This was not because he was bad natured, he isn't he is a total sweetheart, it was because he had been badly beaten and abused and decided it wasn't going to happen again, so he got in first. He used to frighten his professional grooms to death, he was on a pro yard and they were terrified of going in with him, which he saw as a victory to keep the "evil" humans away.

Now he is a total gentleman, leads beautifully, is no longer aggressive and would not think of lifting a foot to you, even last winter when he had an abscess which had to be sorted.It took a lot of trust, patience and time, a lot of time, to gain his trust and for him to start to recover. However, he will still be aggressive if he is scared, still very head shy.

IMHO bad natured horses are not born, they are made.
FDC
 
Last edited:
my current loan horse on the ground! bites when groomed,tacked up, even stroked... you cant stroke him really :( kicks when grooming too.. cant catch him...
but once your on board hes a diff horse :)
defo past experience in his case as he was abused so i forgive him lol
 
My friends horse was evil! She would try to bite everyone & anything that came near her (I remember the YOs dog having a lovely furless bite mark where she got him once), she would kick, rear, she wouldn't always let you catch her, she was a moody mare in every way, but for some weird reason my friend loved her to pieces! She was definately not my type of horse!
 
I have a crazy little guy at the moment, he's a real headcase but came as a rescue from a truly awful situation. He won't be led and tends to walk on his hind legs, won't be caught, wants to nip, buggers off when you want to mount, and occasionally when you want to dismount too. Won't walk on the lunge, just jets off in a mad gallop. I could go on.....
 
probably my old loan horse - I had him on loan for 8 years and y the end of this time I could handle him like a normal horse with no vicious tendencies etc - asolutely loved him to bits. Atthe start he ran off when being led,bit ,kicked,chased people in the field etc etc awesome horse to ride however. Def a product of his handler as when you stayed quiet and stayed out of his face he was an angel ,get all loud and gobby with him and he gives it straight ack to you - really sad to see him back with his old owner - chifney in gob, cage over the top of his stable door again :(
 
I've had a couple of those - both small ponies ;)

When my kids tragically lost their pony a friend of mine turned up a day later with a pony for them - and OMG, what a fiesty mare she was! My son was completely oblivious to her body language, he would walk up to her in the field with a head collar, completely ignore the flat back ears, stamping of front leg and say "come on then Fern" bless him.. I can truthfully say that I never picked out her back feet for the time I had her because she was evil :eek: But once tacked up she was an angel, she did everything my son asked, hunted, did PC but my God she was a bugger to get over a jump :o

Another pony we were given and to be fair we were warned that he was difficult with mares - I have two mares. But good God I have never met such a vicious pony in all my life. He would charge at you all teeth bared and try to double barrel you if you went to catch either him or one of the mares, he pushed and broke down a gate, he broke my YO's thumb - basically he was totally dangerous :(

But once again, as soon as he was tacked up - he was an absolute angel and brilliant in PC but far too dangerous to let any children near him or holiday makers staying in the holiday cottages and unfortunately he had to go back :(

My very first pony was a demon too, beautiful too look at, jet black with a white star, pure bred Dartmoor, but he was trouble! He would either plant himself or bolt flat out. He would jump like a stag at home but refuse three times at the first fence at a show. He would cow kick any small child getting on him and dump them in the biggest pile of stinging nettles he could find - failing that he would drag me under the apple trees. But My God he taught me to ride ;)
 
One lad I worked with was the funniest horse I have ever met! If he knew you were scared of him then boy did he take the piss out of you! I got on with him and he only ever pulled faces and kicked the wall next to me but for people that were scared - if they got close enough he would take chucks out of whatever bits he could reach, if they went in his box he would try and corner them, failing that he would randomly cowkick or bite you. If you weren't in reach then he would still lunge over his door at you.

WHen he was on cross tied box rest he had to be tied with chains as he kept chewing through ropes and he thought this was brilliant! He'd shake his head, rattle his chains and watch people run away from him.

To ride he was keen as and could buck for Britain but it was never malicious, it was FUN for him! When you understood this horse and made friends with him he was incredibly loyal and would go to the ends of the earth for you. But you show one small sign that your scared of him and it was his pleasure to make you even more so!

I loved that wee horse!
 
My mum's friend had a really nasty nature, she wasn't too bad with people but she hated other horses. There were many holes in the stable and field shelter thanks to her, and many times we would stand and watch her in the field spinning around, kicking out and squarking. The thing was, all the others were miles away and looking at her like she was insane :D
 
Horrible big horse on a yard I worked at, picked someone off the floor by there back, bites at any given chance-over the door, doing rugs, giving hay. Also double barrels the Walls and you if he's in the mood. He's hideous with other horses, bites, kicks and attacks them. But sometimes he can b quite sweet, almost like he has schizophrenia episodes. And he's massive so it can b dreadful, lots of people had cracking bruises off him!
 
I had a mare from a dealer that a girl had p/x for another horse she was vile!! I owned her for 48 hours all I did was try and put her head collar on and she turned her arse on me and went to kick me in the face and it was very close!! I have had horses all my life and have never been that close to being killed!! Got in touch with her old owner and found out that the mare had put her in hospital by kicking her in the face and very nearly killed her and she cornered her mom and tried to kick 7 shades of $hi out of her!!! So after I found that out she went back to the dealer in and why she was mine the dealer sent her away and she was put into foal without telling me and is now up for sale as a broodmare because she knows she would not be able to sell her as she was so nasty!! If anyone want the name of the horse or dealer PM me!!
 
Wow! Lots of amazing stories of scary beasts! :D

I do think it's true that what we all see as "bad natured" was probably caused by bad handling by people in a horse's past.

Looking back, I wonder if Rufus had had a patient, consistent handler whether he would have turned round. I suspect his viciousness was founded on fear. A riding school was a dreadful environment for a horse like him.

I also wonder if anyone's ever had a horse from a foal which despite good handling, turned "bad"? Would that be possible?
 
A stallion called Ballanger at the Conduit Stud. He was savage to the point of trying to kill you. None of his offspring as far as I know had his temperment. He was a good racehorse too, just a horrid stallion.
 
The first horse I ever came across that was really nasty was a 3 yr old TB colt. He came to be got fit prior to going back into training. He broke three of my ribs the second day he was with us. He got worse. I had to leave a halter on him, catch him over the door and tie him up outside before I could muck out his stable. He would bite, kick and try to squash you against the wall.
He was quickly gelded but that didn't make a lot of difference to his temperament. Any chance he got he would ditch me.
One day out riding with someone else he refused to step over a drainage gully and something in me snapped and it was a declaration of war.
I beat that horse as I had never before or since until he was going forward and trotting over every gully.
That as the change of that horse, he stopped being a bully and became a lovely animal that I fully trusted. He went back onto training as a 4 year old and won both on the flat and over hurdles.

Another was a big 3 yr old bought by a famous trainer that came with a consignment to be broken. He was nice enough in the stable and lunged well enough but when it came time to getting a roller on him he was a different animal and his one objective was to kill me (I had him in the school on the lunge) It took me nearly three hours before I could get to him without him attacking me, to get the roller off.
It took me three weeks before I could get the roller back on him in the stable and when I did he was attacking anyone who went past the stable. If he made contact he would have hauled you into the stable to kill you.
He smashed up his water container so until he would come to the door nicely he got no water.
I got him a bit better and walked leading him for miles.
One night he got cast and damaged the muscles in his hind quarters. He was turned away on a stud and then went to the trainers. The head lad was told to put a rug on him (before X straps) and when he went to do the roller up the horse attacked him, the lad went over the door and the horse busted the door open chasing the lad into a garage which was packed with new doors for a new yard that was being built. The lad went between the stacks and the horse was rearing pulling the doors down. He smashed the roof off the garage and cut his head badly.
He was destroyed the next day.

The first horse had been able to frighten all who had dealt with him (including me) but I haven't a clue what had happened to the second but he was a seriously dangerous horse .
 
Horse at the farm i worked at was an evil cow but she was battered black and blue before she arrived so she did have an excuse. She refused to be led, caught and tacked up, to ride she was even worse! if she decided she didnt like you, you were dumped in the nearest hedge and she would trot home, tail held high. She would try and crush you against the stable walls if you had to do water, hay or rugs or take chunks out of your arms, back or wherever she could grab as you went past, but get her out hunting and she was a different horse. In the end she did settle but had to be pts a few years later due to a shoulder injury :(
 
FionaM12 said:
Wow! Lots of amazing stories of scary beasts! :D

I do think it's true that what we all see as "bad natured" was probably caused by bad handling by people in a horse's past.

I also wonder if anyone's ever had a horse from a foal which despite good handling, turned "bad"? Would that be possible?
Click to expand...

My sister bred a foal, she was not at all friendly, in fact quite nasty, if I remember correctly more or less from birth. You couldn't turn your back on her and had to beware walking past her stable. I'm sure if she had ever been sold people would have assumed she'd been badly treated, but nothing could have been further from the truth. She was great to ride, very safe. My sister kept her for her whole life and bred a foal from her ...

... he was absolutely angelic. Kind, friendly and gentle. He was also very safe to ride and gave my daughter many happy years as a pony club allrounder.
 
My dad had a tb when I was a child who used to bite and charge baring teeth, he used to bite hard at the wood at the side of his stable door.
My dad had to keep nailing on a new bit of wood as he did it so often he made it wear through,myself and all my borthers have scars on our heads where he picked us up by the heads when we walked past his stable when we were little.

My youngest sister is the ony one who has not got a scar from him and she feels deprived, my dad loved him and was devestated when he died, we never really thought much of him being like that as we were sort of used to it.

My dad also took a cleveland bay gelding to sort out for someone as they were terrified of it, it would kick bite attack other horses if they went near it.

It also used to back up on cars people anything while it was being ridden and start kicking, you couldnt go in to the stable without him trying to attack and he picked the vet up by the back once.

My mum tried to look in to his history and he had been used as a stallion and cut later on we assume because of his tempremant and he really was a disturbed very agressive horse.
 
2 horses that I have come accross spring to mind, but nothing like the stories on here in comparison :eek:
First was a pony, maybe 14hh approx, cremello gelding called Christmas. He was at our school, (boarding school with horses). He was fine to ride, and oddly don't recall any trouble catching or tacking up but passing his stable, grooming him or heaven help going into his box to hay etc.. was a potential death trap. Bite and snarl at you for England. My friend got a huge chunk of her shoulder taken off, remember the blood!!
The second horse, a rising 3 year old 17hh by Mayhill. He was very very coltish, but had been gelded, (maybe they didn't get 100% of his man-hood? thinking about it now). Didn't trust humans, and would happily turn to kick, HARD, and mean to get you. He was a big horse who knew how to get people scared, ideally needed a man to handle him, and some work to get his mind thinking. He was more like a spoilt kid, who if he didn't get what he wanted, would throw a tantrum and if you were unlucky, he would drag you into it!!
He was backed (and wasn't easy) as a rising 3 yr old, and as far as I know was sold - to someone suitable.
 
I once had an ISH who was an utter baggage. Her novice owner was terrified of her so for 2 ½ years she got away with murder - she barged you in and out of the stable, dragged you to and from the field, rushed in and out of the gate, wouldn't stand still to be groomed/tacked up/mounted, kicked when you tried to pick her feet up, deliberately threw me head first into a fence on several occasions and her best trick was throwing herself into the path of a car doing 60mph!
 
FionaM12 said:
I also wonder if anyone's ever had a horse from a foal which despite good handling, turned "bad"? Would that be possible?
Click to expand...

Yes I bred one, mad or just plain bad, I don't know.

I had a purebred arabian that was apparently born in a foul mood and stayed like that most of the time until I sold her at 10 months. Her new owners loved her even though she did try to dismantle the trailer with her teeth on the way home and she killed one of their spaniels - intentionally.

Her dam was the sweetest natured mare ever (this was her 2nd foal so she knew the ropes) her sire wasn't bad either.

She was a brat. She was biting her dam within an hour of birth (and it was a straight forward, textbook delivery) and she was vet checked the next day - she would kick, and mean it, at anyone that came within reach, including her poor Mum, visitors and the grooms. Had her checked out (expensive) because I honestly thought there was something not right with her, bloods, eyes, ears, neck, back, heart etc, etc etc were all checked, physically she was functioning perfectly and kicked the Vet to prove it. Mentally, who knows.

She self-weaned at about 4 months old and was adopted by a 20 year old mare in the same herd.

She never had a days illness in all the time I had her, she lived out in a herd environment. I didn't beat, or mistreat her, but neither am I a pushover. To this day I think that her wires didn't go all the way to the top as she was completely untrustworthy, one day you would think you'd turned a corner and she was a normal foal, the next she'd come at you with teeth bared and feet flailing. Never had one like that since, Thank God, if I did I would seriously consider having it pts and not passing it on.
 
Last edited:
My riding instructors horse, we dont know her history but she is the biggest B***h you have ever met! I used to share her before said riding instructor bought her, she lunges out over the door to bite you, attacks you randomly, kicks, cow kicks etc. I was a young teenager at the time of sharing her and shes 16.3hh - I used to have to use the handle of a rug to do up the belly straps (picture that one) and to undo used to dive in with one hand and hope for the best. She squased me against the wall once and I had the option of taking front end (feet and teeth) or back (just feet) so went back to try to get out and she kicked me in the pelvis, I still have a wonky one to prove it!!

Apparantly at new yard she is kept behind bars (full grid) at all times and not handled by anyone other than senior members of staff. Its quite sad really as something obviously happened as shes the sweetest mare to ride and when you get to know her does get a bit better! I think if I had her now (at 21 and with more experience) I would be fine handling her :)
 
I had one, a lovely looking 15.2hh mare. She came to me as her previous owners had bought her for quite a price 4 months ago. All I was told was that she was bad at feed time. For the first week she was an angel, and actually quite sweet. Once she settled she became the bitch from hell, would lunge at you over the door, kick out when being groomed and heaven forbid you tried to go in the box with her. I forgot one day and she had me pinned against the wall in the corner going at me with both back legs and I had to yelp for help till a member of staff came with feed to distract her so I could get out. Again she had no bad history, was bred by a very nice lady (who we traced and spoke to) who had her mother and said she had always been funny from birth. I jumped her for over a year and had a lot of fun with her then sold her on to a lovely home who knew what they were dealing with. She's doing well now but is still a witch on the floor! Funnily enough I do miss her, if she had been slightly more careful in the ring she would never have been sold!
 
Hmmmm - a few.

Frank - he's at my curent yard - 15.1hh cob cross gelding - very handy with his teeth - we think he was beaten in his stable at some point because he's very defensive in his box and picked up a groom by her collarbone and shook her - now his door is always closed and he is stabled at the end of the barn so there is no/minimal foot traffic - Frank spends most of his time with his ears flat back against his head

Rocky - aka "Pookie" Rocky (16.2hh ISH) is very insecure in his box (an angel out of it) and will lunge at people with his teeth over the door and has cornered and double-barrelled unsuspecting grooms - the key to Pookie though is to handle him with confidence - he can sense any kind of fear and it must make him feel more insecure - but he is pretty much perfectly behaved if his handlers are confident - lovely horse out of his box and to ride

Sapphire - 14.2hh cob cross mare - very talented under saddle but a complete cowbag on the ground - another one who spends much of her time with her ears flat back - she has kicked and bitten more people on the yard than any other horse - also very mareish - she is stabled opposite Frank at the end of the barn (the two grumpy greys) but she keeps escaping which is a problem because she can't/shouldn't be handled by people who don't know her little "ways"

Rosie - 15.3hh mare - was bought for a relatively novice woman and her daughter to share - the mare had a serious screw loose - bucked, reared, span, bolted - all without any warning whatsoever - her only goal was to get the rider off . . . not even the staff would ride her - they put her in foal :mad:

Hawthorne - 14.3hh cob cross mare - I didn't know this mare personally, but I knew the woman who bred her - she was homebred, the owner broke her to ride and drive but discovered that, despite being very pretty and extremely talented, she was a complete cowbag . . . she attacked people on the ground (in her field, on the yard, in her stable) with her teeth and her feet, she would bolt (for no apparent reason) while out driving, and she kept depositing her owner (a middle-aged woman) on the floor - again with no warning . . . after her second hip replacement (caused by the mare), the owner came to the sad conclusion that she couldn't keep on - and after 14 years of persevering and trying had the mare PTS - she knew she couldn't just turn her out - she beat the daylights out of other horses but ran through wire fencing if left alone - and she didn't want to pass the problem on - brave decision in my view

P
 
my mare apparently lol, when her previous owner went to try her the whole yard turned out to watch the 'poor sucker come to try the bitch mare'!!:eek: didn't take too kindly to people being in the stable with her, especially when food was present and was generally a rude and stroppy piece of work. Very aware of her size and had learnt to intimidate people. She's better now than back then but she'll still try and intimidate new people with her evil faces:rolleyes: And she doesn't lunge, she'll go round once or twice and then just turn and rear at you.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top