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  Dog Piling Expert
Posts: 5868
   
Location: Elkview, WV | Wondering where you'd send this filly. 3 year old, will be 4 in early March. I've had her since July 2012. She's always had an attitude. Guess that's one thing you don't get a feel for when you buy an unbroke 2 YO based off pictures.
Anyways, she's always been top of the herd, even with mares older than her. I have a gelding right now that she is downright terrified of but he's not physically dominant with her, it's quite strange.
From the beginning when I started her groundwork, she's had a attitude/work ethic problem. Would rear and strike when told to do something. Finally got her somewhat settled and behaving. She still bucks occasionally under saddle and I'm certain she would have bucked more this summer had I worked on her canter.
She has threatened horses in the show ring. Will pin ears and threaten to bite or tuck her rump and threaten to kick but I try and stay one step ahead. She tried to bite a friend's mare at our last show and when I popped her with the reins, she bucked.
Out in the pasture and around the barn, she has gotten a lot nastier lately. I think part of it is my mom has been doing more for me lately (30 weeks preggo) and mom is afraid of her so kind of let's the filly push her around. According to mom she has been cornering her and threatening her. Last night she struck at me when I sent her out of my space. Her stall latch is currently not latching and she opened the door this morning and went running and bucking. Frequently runs around flinging her head with her ears pinned, striking/stomping at anything that gets in her way and randomly kicking/bucking.
I have her lined up to be at a trainer's until after my baby comes but my truck is down right now so I can't haul her out there. Trainer can have vet out to give depo shots but I'm not real familiar. If she's not cycling during winter, does it do anything? She's had a few bad cycles where she displays mild colic symptoms. I've had mares in the past, but none as bad as her. There's not a lot I can don with her right now. Don't want to risk my baby. Might be able to get my sister to come by every few days and lunge her.
Usually I can point and tell her to get in her stall or away from me, etc and she does but she's "talking back" now and it's making it too risky for me to even go down to feed or blanket horses. |
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Expert
Posts: 1488
| Sounds like she needs to go to the sale barn, not the trainer.
Sorry but I don't care how severe her "cycles" may be(I assume that is what you are attributing this to)iis no excuse for dangerous behavior.
Period
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 Bye-Bye Jiggle
Posts: 1691
Location: Where ever there's sunshine! | She needs someone with a bigger attitude than her. I'm sorry. I call bullchit on the hormones being her issue. If shes acting like a brat when ever she feels like it (not just while being worked) shes just being down right ugly. I'd find someone who will make life a little tough for her and she if she changes her mind. |
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Dog Piling Expert
Posts: 5868
Location: Elkview, WV | When I was able to work her more she wasn't so bad. She has to be kept in her place which I'm usually really good at doing. However, with my mom doing more at the barn and me doing less, she's back-tracked a bunch. When I first got her, she reared anytime she didn't want to do something and I haven't seen her rear in-hand since last summer except for once while giving me attitude about loading where she was immediately corrected. I'm fat and slow now and don't want to risk hurting my baby so most I do is whack her with a training stick and use my boss voice with her, which usually works |
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 Reaching for the stars....
Posts: 12704
| Xena was very disrespectful for a while after her futurity year (away at trainer). When she came home she would pin her ears whenever I headed her direction, and kick at me when I dumped her feed and walked away. I started throwing empty (small) buckets at her and running her off her feed and holding my ground at her feeder. She learned that *I* was the top mare here. The buckets cause no damage but make a big statement. I know you're preggers now and can't get in a direct confrontation with this mare. I did most of my work on Xena from the outside of the fence. Just an idea if you wanted to try the discipline route for yourself. It really sounds like a respect issue to me, even if she is having painful cycles. She needs a Come To Jesus session, or ten, or however many until she knows you're the leader. |
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 Saint Stacey
| Sounds to me like you have a lack of respect issue, not a hormonal issue. This filly simply things she's the alpha when it comes to horses and people. |
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 Northern Chocolate Queen
Posts: 16576
Location: ND | She needs a trainer that will tollerate none of her crap. I don't care if they are in heat or have ugly cycles, it's no excuse for dangerous & disrespectful behavior. If she had been in my barn, reared & struck at me during ground work she would have been seriously regretting that idea. I have ZERO tollerence for that behavior & I'm not nice about it. And I definately would have got her loping under saddle, no good comes from hiding from them (I've learned this the hard way). Since she's bucking at a trot I would have got her loping & loped the snot out of her daily. When they are dripping wet & their head is hanging their attitude will typically change. I totally understand you are very limited in what you can do being pregnant but I'd either find a trainer who will put her in her place or send her down the road. |
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 Warmblood with Wings
Posts: 27846
Location: Florida.. | trainer...but id do a fast sonogram and palpate for a cyst .. it will make a mare exhibit aggressive nasty behavior as well.they call it stud behavior but truth be known i think witchy mares are worse then studs. |
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Hungarian Midget Woman
Location: Midwest | DD2012 - 2013-11-24 8:24 AM Sounds like she needs to go to the sale barn, not the trainer. Sorry but I don't care how severe her "cycles" may be(I assume that is what you are attributing this to)iis no excuse for dangerous behavior. Period
this
I would not want an agressive horse around with a baby on the way. Soon that baby will be a toddler running around, and I would not want a witchy mare near me or the child. I really don't care what excuse she has. She's treating people like subordinates in the herd
that is never okay |
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 Coyote Country Queen
Posts: 5666
| I agree that it wouldn't hurt to have her ultrasounded to see if there is anything abnormal. I used to own a mare that had reproductive issues, and she was a grouchy thing. However, her biggest problem was that she had gotten her bluff in on previous owners. We didn't put up with her nonsense and never had a problem. I always like to give mares the benefit of the doubt as far as cycling related issues. And I'm quick to get them to the vet to be ultrasounded. But my experience with mares is that they are smart, and some of them use this intelligence to take advantage and become dominant in their relationship. Every problem mare that I've taken in has had respect issues because someone has not gotten after them for their bad behavior. And I honestly think that no handling is better than improper handling. If you think your mom is contributing to the problem, set up your feeding system where she doesn't have to go into the stall, but simply toss her feed in from the outside. Every time she wins, you're just reinforcing the bad behavior. Or get her out of there into the hands of someone that is very consistent in their training and handling of this mare. Unfortunately, it's going to take a lot of work to retrain this mare and get rid of these bad habits. Just remember that everytime you work with her, you're either training or untraining. Be in the moment and don't let her ever exhibit any behavior that would make her the dominant one without immediately reprimanding her. |
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Dog Piling Expert
Posts: 5868
Location: Elkview, WV | I'd love to have it where my mom didn't have to really interact with her to feed her but I leave them out of stalls as often as possible.
When I was working daily with her, she didn't have the attitude towards people, just the other horses, dogs, etc. I had planned in getting her canter worked out this summer but couldn't with being pregnant. It was a battle to get hubby to let me ride as it was. I still ended up coming off her twice. Finished my ride the last time but haven't ridden her since.
I'm working on getting shipping quotes today. The trainer I'm sending her too will absolutely NOT put up with her attitude. I purchased this filly from her and she has offered to buy her back if I ever sell so if this attitude isn't corrected, she'll just stay. I've got a bad temper without dealing with her bad temper. And you're right, I don't want my child around a horse I can't trust. Especially when he's young and doesn't understand. |
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Warmblood with Wings
Posts: 27846
Location: Florida.. | there is NO excuse.. for her behavior i agree.. when my mare had a tumor on her ovary she was very aggressive.. and laid down alot when cycling.. painful.. i knew something was wrong.. she would lash out.. run at.. bite horses and or dogs.. she was clearly not herself.. not typical behavior for her.. is reason i suggested to just have a look but if its just a witch then dont.. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 929
| personally I'd put her with the gelding that she's terrified of and let him teach her a thing or two about respect, equine style. As for the rearing and striking out...my mother worked for a trainer a long time ago that used a MikMar training halter. It was a round metal noseband that would sit where a stud chain would go on the nose. It looked cruel, but in fact, it was more humane than your average stud chain. If the horse behaved, he was fine...if he went up or tried to take off it would jerk him in the face. HARD. It calmed them down a lot.
This mare sounds like she needs to go to a cowboy or a charro who will "break" her old school, or like someone else said, the sale barn. Dangerous horses are NOT anything you want to deal with, especially if you are expecting. |
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Dog Piling Expert
Posts: 5868
Location: Elkview, WV | She's out with that gelding 24/7. I think that's part of the issue. She can't assert her dominance over him so she asserts herself over anything that will give her the chance. |
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The Advice Guru
Posts: 6419
| I would suggest selling the horse, there are too many good horses out there to risk it
After your baby comes you will have even less time to work with the mare, and even then you cannot risk getting hurt as you are the primary caregiver for our child.
I don't think it is a mare thing, all I have are mares and not me will disrespect me or another horse while I am present.
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 Proud to be Deplorable
Posts: 1929
| Bibliafarm - 2013-11-24 10:53 AM
trainer...but id do a fast sonogram and palpate for a cyst .. it will make a mare exhibit aggressive nasty behavior as well.they call it stud behavior but truth be known i think witchy mares are worse then studs.
Boy you can say that again!!!!! |
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Dog Piling Expert
Posts: 5868
Location: Elkview, WV | I'd like to get her checked by the vet then she's spending 90 days at the trainer till after baby comes. This mare got me 3 grands and a reserve this season so I know she can work |
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