wits end with him

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puss

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Iv owned my horse two years when I first got him he was realy dangerous rearing boxing bolting over you and kicking out and using his teeth which has but me in hospital. In the two years hes greatly improved and hasn't done a lot of this for over a year. Then someone went to get him in and done it all at her and scared very badly. she got him in before loads of times never a problem she wont any more but everynow and then his past comes back to bite me on my a--se. He sometimes still does it to me but rare and I know how to deal with him. But so disappointed with him for doing this will he ever be normal. Hes had a very bad past before me. I just feel really down at the moment.
 
If he's had a "really bad past" then you can't really blame him. I think that only you should deal with him (IF you are happy to do so) and keep a really close eye on him. There may well be signs he's about to do it or he only does it in certain situations so try to avoid those etc.? You may also do something which triggers it without realising, like raising a hand in the air or something - he might think you're going to hit him (if thats what happened in his past).
 
As Magic Melon has said, there may be a tiny trigger for this behaviour - a gesture, a movement, a sound, a smell - which takes the instinctive part of your horse's brain straight back to his difficult past, thus producing his defensive behaviour. No-one can tell him that these things will not happen again - you will need to look for the triggers, and understand and avoid them. In the meantime, hopefully the growing trust between you and him will very very gradually dilute his memories.
 
I do not think any animal ever forgets a bad past especially if it was prolonged. Only trust can really help you move on and some one different is always going to be an unknown risk.
Well done for keeping faith with hi, do hope you can do as suggested above and find a way through.
 
Sounds a lot like mine, had him for 10 years and have always had to be very selective over who handles him, and selective as in someone who knows and understands what he can be like, someone who isn't likely to set him off with their behaviour but equally knows how to handle him if he does start pratting about.

I would say over the years he has gone from being consistently aggressive to unpredictably but only very ocasionally 'playful' at least he thinks it's fun and games, unfortunately most other people would disagree with him. It has meant a lot of extra work for me and I have had people refuse to bring him in for me but I have accepted that along with accepting him for the horse he is and the past he has had.
 
My WB had a bad past - abusive ridden and whipped and punched. He was also in pain from a chronic injury noone looked into or treated. He obviously coped by either being very aggressive or switching off totally.
I have owned him for 2.5 years now and finally I have a loving horse, but he can switch if there is presumably a memory trigger. I am always careful and watch him; it's not his fault, but equally it only takes a second to get an injury.
He used to rear at me and strike and kick and bite extremely aggressively and could never reprimand him as it made him worse. Now if he has a moment I can tell him off and he takes it. He will still strike if he is anxious, but he now does it with no malice, not that that is any consolation if he catches you.
Time and consistency are great things, but never take his past completely foregranted.
 
I really did think we was over it all. I don't know what got him started that day but he hasn't run and reared at someone for about a year. Im annoyed with him because now its only me who has to get him in hes such a tie when I work.
 
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