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Unable to Live Without Chocolate or Coffee
Posts: 1849
   
| im wondering if this is “normal” behavior or if I have a different type of filly lol. She was raised on a ranch I think only halter broke. Then a lady bought her and got her gentle so you can Tie her, trailer, kind of pick up her feet but stillnot very well. She had her for several months and then I bought her last month. I haven’t really round penned her but just had her move off and around me in a small circle on my 13’ lead. Twice she has pinned her ears, shook her head and reared pawing. Not really at me but obviously letting me know she’s not happy with being asked to move. Is this normal for a colt with such limited training? I’ve had colts before and none have ever reared and pawed like this when asked to move.
Shes 18 months old so I’m not asking her to do a lot. I want her to just be a horse and grow up. But I do require manners and respect! I corrected her of course but I was kind of surprised at her attitude. | |
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  Neat Freak
Posts: 11216
Location: Wonderful Wyoming | not normal, but easily fixed. Mine are all ranch raised and most go completely untouched unless they let me scratch them in pasture, until they are 5 months old. We try and check on them every other day, but don't always have time to try and rub on them. When I wean, I start to halter break a couple days later. I rope them and ask them to give to the pressure. I luck out because I only keep gentle mares and breed to good natured stallions, so I am usually rubbing them within 5-10 minutes and then I take the rope off. Next day I do the same and the day after that until they are leading around with the slightest pressure on the rope and responding to me, wanting attention. I halter them and start to lead that way. When they give really good, I start to tie them to inner tubes and pick up feet. They end up as gentle and respectful as those that have been handled since day one, sometimes are more respectful. So her not being good with her feet at 18 months is because she hasn't been trained to, or at least not correctly. I have a buckskin filly that is bossy to the others, she pins her ears and runs them around at feeding time. She tried it at me and I tossed the grain bucket at her. I can't bite her or kick her, so that was my "go to." I caught her later that day and messed with her quite a bit and tied her. Made sure she knew I didn't hold a grudge and as long as she was respectful and willing to learn, I would treat her kind. She hasn't tried to boss me around again. But you have to nip any bad behavior in the butt asap when they are little. They only get bigger and nastier.
I have used a soft rope to trap a hind foot and get them to bring it forward. When they quit jerking and fighting I let it down. I also rub them down to the hock pretty often. Most will tolerate that easy enough. Get them good with that, and with the rope bringing it forward and pretty soon you just reach down below the hock and ask that foot forward. When they give with no issue, let it down. Don't pick a fight with these young ones that you can't win! Make her respect you in a round pen. I don't like to round pen a young one, but I sure will for a few minutes if I need to accomplish something. | |
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Unable to Live Without Chocolate or Coffee
Posts: 1849
| wyoming barrel racer - 2017-12-05 6:37 AM not normal, but easily fixed. Mine are all ranch raised and most go completely untouched unless they let me scratch them in pasture, until they are 5 months old. We try and check on them every other day, but don't always have time to try and rub on them. When I wean, I start to halter break a couple days later. I rope them and ask them to give to the pressure. I luck out because I only keep gentle mares and breed to good natured stallions, so I am usually rubbing them within 5-10 minutes and then I take the rope off. Next day I do the same and the day after that until they are leading around with the slightest pressure on the rope and responding to me, wanting attention. I halter them and start to lead that way. When they give really good, I start to tie them to inner tubes and pick up feet. They end up as gentle and respectful as those that have been handled since day one, sometimes are more respectful. So her not being good with her feet at 18 months is because she hasn't been trained to, or at least not correctly. I have a buckskin filly that is bossy to the others, she pins her ears and runs them around at feeding time. She tried it at me and I tossed the grain bucket at her. I can't bite her or kick her, so that was my "go to." I caught her later that day and messed with her quite a bit and tied her. Made sure she knew I didn't hold a grudge and as long as she was respectful and willing to learn, I would treat her kind. She hasn't tried to boss me around again. But you have to nip any bad behavior in the butt asap when they are little. They only get bigger and nastier.
I have used a soft rope to trap a hind foot and get them to bring it forward. When they quit jerking and fighting I let it down. I also rub them down to the hock pretty often. Most will tolerate that easy enough. Get them good with that, and with the rope bringing it forward and pretty soon you just reach down below the hock and ask that foot forward. When they give with no issue, let it down. Don't pick a fight with these young ones that you can't win! Make her respect you in a round pen. I don't like to round pen a young one, but I sure will for a few minutes if I need to accomplish something.
lol i don't blame you i'd thrown the bucket at her too lol! yeah i was pretty surprised and caught off guard at this one's behaviour. I was not expecting that. i jerked the rope around and chewed her out verbally to let her know i was not happy and whirled the end of the rope at her when she was pinning her ears at me. after she got over that tantrum i pet her and let her loose since i was about done anyways. i had already been messing with her feet and brushed her all over so it was at the end of the session. I just had wanted to ask her to move around me a little before i turned her loose. maybe she though she was done lol and was "mad" lol | |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 851
Location: West Texas | Forgive me for being to the point. It is normal and not normal. It is normal if one has been babied, which is sounds like she has. It should not be normal, if handled correctly.
She was rearing and striking at you. She does not want to do anything and is content just being gentle (or just kind of fake gentle). Sounds like she is more dominant than really trained much yet. The other thing is that horses do not respond much to being verbally repremanded. You will need to really get this fixed and get some respect from her or it will get worse. I sure don't like to see a baby pin ears at someone.
Edited by Tdove 2017-12-06 5:14 PM
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| I agree with the other replies, it is normal and not normal. She is definitely trying to establish dominance, and she sounds like she is pouting and throwing a tantrum because you're asking her to do more than she wants to. If she was handled at all on the ranch, they probably taught her manners, which she most likely promptly forgot when she was "gentled" by the lady owner. I think you did the right thing by letting her know that's not okay, but don't get too worked up yourself because some horses will egg you on- if that makes sense. They will push your buttons just to get a reaction.
Our 4yo TB mare has gotten really food aggressive now that she has a sister next door. As soon as we come in with her grain, she pins her ears back and runs towards me. More than once I've thrown my hand up in the air and hollered at her. Now I just have to give her the "look" and shake my finger, and she backs off.
Once they realize you are the alpha, and you are there to guide them towards making the right choice easy and the wrong choice hard, then it gets a lot easier. | |
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Unable to Live Without Chocolate or Coffee
Posts: 1849
| thanks for the replies. yep you guys are describing it pretty much to a T. She is dominant yet not really gentle imo. shes fairly quiet but kind of squirmy. she dislikes having her feet picked up which can also be a dominant thing i think. shes kind of a pill. I've never had one like this. all the ones i've had were total people pleasers. shes a nice built thing and athletic. I round penned her today and she got an attitude check. lol. I'll keep it up and i'm sure she'll turn out nice. time for some downunder horsemanship lol!  | |
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| camocowgirl - 2017-12-06 4:27 PM
thanks for the replies. yep you guys are describing it pretty much to a T. She is dominant yet not really gentle imo. shes fairly quiet but kind of squirmy. she dislikes having her feet picked up which can also be a dominant thing i think. shes kind of a pill. I've never had one like this. all the ones i've had were total people pleasers. shes a nice built thing and athletic. I round penned her today and she got an attitude check. lol. I'll keep it up and i'm sure she'll turn out nice. time for some downunder horsemanship lol!
Sounds like you're getting her figured out! Better for you to be the boss than her have you buffaloed! Good luck! | |
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 Expert
Posts: 3782
Location: Gainesville, TX | My yearling stallion just barely went up with me the other day. Normally he is very respectful. That was it!. Verbal correction means relatively little to me. I immediately chased him off by coming at him. Then I went and got a rope and we had a 10 minute mind your manners lesson. He has been hovering a bit too close at feeding time, so I got a rope and taught him what I considered a respectful distance to be there too. Now, instead of trying to crowd at feeding time or anytime, when I enter he stands back and looks at me until I invite him into my space. He stands a good ten feet back too now. Didn't take long at all to remind him. He already knew what was right, he just needed to be reminded. | |
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Yearling behavior