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Got a problem? You can solve it by being a good detective! By Cynthia CooperHow many times has your horse behaved badly? How often have you thought he/she has an issue you must solve with either better discipline or a different training technique?
I am often contacted about problems people have with their horse and I’m happy to help them get to the bottom of the issue.
Over the years of solving various issues, I’ve realised it’s generally not bad behaviour that is the true problem.
A horse will usually only behave in a negative way if there is an underlying cause, so our job is to find out what that is.
There are the obvious things to check like teeth and saddle fit but when you look closely there are so many other parts of a horse that can be affected and therefore cause behavioural problems as a result.
Here is my Check List:Feed (pasture, supplements, minerals, grain, hay):
What goes into your horse will change what comes out – in the way of condition, overall health, ability to focus, strength, soundness, gut health etc.
Having experienced first hand what the lack of a vitamin or mineral has on me, I know how detrimental this is for good function. Without supplementing magnesium I can be crabby and irritable at times, and without good iron stores, I’m lethargic, tired and can’t think straight.
So, the same can happen to your horse – if the diet is unbalanced or lacking, then all sorts of symptoms can manifest – some physical and some mental or emotional.
For example, a horse lacking in magnesium, perhaps because it is eating false dandelion or flatweed, or capeweed, will display physical symptoms of stringhalt.
An excitable, nervous, stressed horse may also need supplementing with magnesium which is one of the minerals tied up by toxins coming from weeds or grass.An oversupply of feed can cause a horse to be excitable or lethargic, irritable or unable to focus. It can cause hoof tenderness which then causes a shortness of stride, unwillingness to move forward or to jump, inability to cope with hard surfaces and these can all manifest in behavioural abnormalities.If you want to find out if your horse’s diet is balanced go to www.feedxl.com where for a small subscription you can have the diet analysed by special software, and then make changes to get the right balance of roughage, grains, minerals and vitamins.
Pain – teeth, feet, body:
Physical pain is one of the major causes of behavioural problems. Some horses cope with pain better than others. It’s in a horse’s nature to hide problems that may indicate to a predator they could be the next choice for lunch!
Even when pain is not physically obvious, it can cause the horse to avoid any activity that makes it more uncomfortable. When pushed to do things, a horse will display signs such as tail swishing, ears back a lot, teeth grinding, head tossing, threatening to kick, refusing to go forward, bucking and rearing.
These are all messages from the horse trying to tell us there’s a problem and therefore it should not be ignored.
A horse with pain anywhere in its body may show any of these signs so it’s important to have teeth, hooves and body/muscles checked out by a qualified, competent equine veterinarian, dentist, bodyworker or hoofcare provider.
A mare who had such bad behaviour problems it was recommended she was euthanaised, turned out to have a vaginal infection that caused her great pain when ridden. With a course of antibiotics, and a 'caslicks' operation she was back to being her old amendable self.
Other physical issues – old injuries or ulcers:
A horse may have limitations due to old injuries that may or may not be obvious. A well qualified Equine body worker will be able to detect those that can’t be seen, otherwise, you must rely on the horse’s previous owners to reveal anything that might be a causing a problem.
For instance, I have a horse that fractured his pelvis as a yearling. It is not visible but it has affected his stance and muscular development to the point that he will only ever be a pleasure riding horse.Horses that are kept stabled, yarded and on limited or infrequent amounts of roughage, can develop gut ulcers that affect their behaviour. If you’ve ever had a sore gut, you will know just how little you feel like doing, so it is no wonder horses with a gut ulcer are irritable and behave badly.
Equipment:
Whatever equipment we use on a horse must be comfortable and fit well or the horse will show negative responses.
Badly fitting saddles, girths and bitted bridles are often the cause of undesirable behaviour. Horses are incredibly sensitive in a tactile way – just as we are. We get cranky if our clothing isn’t comfortable, and get rid of it. The horse has no choice, but to wear whatever we choose to put on them, so it’s up to us to take heed of the subtle signs when we tack them up.
Ears laid back, avoiding the saddle or bridle, trying to bite or kick, holding the head high, are the only ways a horse can indicate there is a problem with the equipment we’re using.
Past issues:
If a problem is ignored or the horse disciplined for reacting and showing its discomfort, then they will either ‘shut down’ and put up with it, or continue to display bad behaviour, even after the situation has changed.
A horse, like an elephant never forgets. They can forgive but that memory of past issues is carried with them and it usually doesn’t take much for the problem to resurface. Sometimes it takes a compete change of the person's attitude, or ownership for the horse to overcome an issue sufficiently for them to be comfortable and happy.
Positive based training such as ‘Clicker training’ often has good results with situations where the horse’s past resurfaces frequently.
Social situation:
If a horse is socially deprived in any way during its life, it’s behaviour will not be normal. It can range from excitability around other horses, to separation anxiety, intolerance of other horses, to aggressiveness.
It may take some time and patience along with a change in the horse’s social situation, to change their behaviour. Being a herd animal, a horse needs appropriate company for its age and social status to feel happy and comfortable. It needs good leadership to feel secure enough to leave the herd, along with a consistent routine to become used to the activities we ask it to do.
Training:
There are probably as many methods of training or educating a horse as there are horse personalities. Different personalities cope better with some methods than others and it is important to choose the discipline or pursuit most suited to the horse you have. Or go and buy a horse suited to the discipline you want to ride in.
Even sticking to the same old training routine can cause a horse to develop behavioural problems through boredom. Cross training is recognised as the best way to keep a horse interested and athletic in their field of specialty.
Rider/handler ability & attitude:
Ability and attitude have a huge effect on horse behaviour so it’s not surprising that beginners and those with a stiff, inflexible attitude have more problems.
Some horses cope better with beginners, or are more forgiving, while others will not tolerate their lack of independent seat, feel, timing or balance.
Even amongst experienced riders there will be horses who respond better to another style or way of being with them. I guess that’s why there are a lot of horses for sale and magazines like Horse Deals are so popular!
As in marriage, everyone is looking for their perfect partner so if your horse is looking for a divorce, maybe its time to realistically assess your situation (or have someone help you do that) and make the change to a more suitable partner, or method of horse handling/training.
Instinctive responses:
The nature of the horse has developed over hundreds of thousands of years so no matter how good the breeding or the temperament, you’re never going to remove those natural reactions or instincts.
Some horses are more reactive than others, but an understanding of the horse’s instincts and the ability to see things from their point of view can reduce many so called problems.It’s natural for a horse to shy or spook, refuse to step over or into scary things (until proven they are safe) or to leave the herd. It’s natural for the horse to run from perceived danger, to fight if cornered or trapped and to experience emotions such as fear, grief, anxiety, distrust, playfulness and high spirits.
Young horses and those inexperienced in the ways of the human world will turn to their natural instincts quicker than the ‘been there – done that’ older educated horse.
If we can educate ourselves in the way of the horse and learn horse psychology or ‘know the nature of the beast’, we will be more tolerant of their natural behaviour and be able to educate them to cope with human demands.So the next time your horse displays some kind of ‘problem’ look behind the behaviour and be a good detective to find out the true cause.
After all, displays of behaviour are just one of the ways a horse can communicate with us.
When we get really good at listening to our horse, we will have very few if any issues to deal with and isn’t that the relationship without horse we’re all are looking for?Is it really bad behaviour?
Cindy from Horses Just Wanna Have Fun writes about her experience with solving a behavioural problem with her mare.
Trainer Clinton Anderson says "Any problem that a horse could possibly have comes from either a lack of respect or fear, or in some cases both". (source Midwest Horse Digest Jan/Feb 2010)
There is a another reason - maybe she really can't do what you ask. Read the story of Lucy, the dream quarter horse mare who over a period of months turned into Lucifer, the night-MARE. You will gain some understanding into that other reason and maybe head off problems of your own. Click here to read the whole story.
ASK CYNTHIA – Kicking Horse
I have recently bought a little 3/4 Arab mare as a second horse to ride and would love your help with her. She came to me very nervous and worried and has not had much done with her over the last 4 years.
She has settled in well and I am gaining her trust and she's nowhere near as worried as she used to be on the ground. I’ve been playing the 7 games with her and spending as
much time as I can doing groundwork with her but still have a long way to go. She was very disrespectful when she first came to me but is very responsive and learns quickly and I am aware not to use too much energy with her as she's quite sensitive.
My main problem with her is that she cow kicks when you clean out her hind feet. And she doesn’t just kick out, she steps over towards you and kicks out! This is of course very disrespectful and not acceptable behaviour not to mention dangerous!
My question is - what should I be doing to a) protect myself from being kicked and b) stop her from doing it.
I have been playing the friendly game a lot with the carrot stick and using it to rub down her legs and feet and giving her lots of praise and encouragement. She will stand quite happily while I do that, but the minute you ask to pick up her feet she will lash out at you.
Friends have suggested that I keep playing the friendly game and use lots of encouragement but also said to email you as I’m sure you will have other ideas how to deal with this problem.ANSWER: It sounds like your new mare will teach you a lot!
Even though she seems to be assertive towards you, its most likely that she’s worried about her legs being confined in the hands of a perceived predator (You!)
Being friendly is definitely a good starting point so continue to use the stick to keep yourself safe, then add friendly with the rope to prepare her for the next stage. Once she accepts the rope swinging around her legs, loop it around her pastern and gently lift the leg forward a little, just enough that it releases. Work gradually to where you can lift it up and down with a rhythm before you try to hold it up.
If she kicks at the rope, just go with it and keep the rope there without fighting her.
This way you can stay out of kicking range and she won't be able to get rid of you as you're attached to the rope. Once you can hold it up for a few seconds then add rubbing your hand on her leg with the rope still around to hold it up.
Once she can accept that, then lift her leg out of the rope and put it down a few times.
Even when you are ready to lift the leg towards the back, keep the rope on it in case she kicks and you need to let go with your hand. Try to hold the leg low - she may have even developed the kicking habit because she is in pain from having it lifted too high. I'd even get her checked out by the chiropractor in case she still has a physical problem.
Ask Cynthia - Why does my horse have a sour attitude?
"A few weeks ago I got bucked off Blaze. I know that it isn't a rare occurance when we have horses but it really scared me. We had been travelling really well up until then but something has changed....
We were riding in the round yard - me and Blaze with Rob on Fred. Blaze seemed very 'cranky' (ears back, reluctant to move forward) so I kept on persisting, trying to mix it up a bit - side passes and indirect rein etc. She was going ok until I asked her to walk on forward - ears flat to her head and rounding right through her body. She started to buck and to be quite honest, I would have won the rodeo if it was a comp... I managed to get flexion but then lost it again and she took one big buck and off I flew! Once I managed to scrape myself off the ground, I walked to her and she was shaking like a leaf! It really worried me that she was in such a state....
I am concerned that the saddle may not fit her perfectly so I'm getting my wintec fitted by a lady at Horseland AND I also got Gaynor Ross (Chiropractor) around to see Blaze. Blaze has an old injury to her front right foot and Gaynor thinks that she may have been caught in a fence when she was a baby and may have torn some muscles in her shoulder - but this shouldn't cause much pain now although we are working on the injury.
Anyway, I haven't ridden Blaze since (until I get the saddle checked) but I have been doing ground work with her nearly every day but she seems to 'dislike' me... When I do some circles, friendly - even brush her she puts her ears back on her head and stamps her back foot. She has even tried to take a half hearted kick at me when doing circles. Cynthia, what do I do?
I hope you can help me. I love Blaze so much and want us to be partners... Am I taking the wrong approach?" Cathryn.
Cynthia's Solution: You have done the right thing in getting Blaze checked out for possible physical causes for the issues you are having with her.
If you haven't mde any changes to her feed (for instance a new grassy pasture or toxic rye grass, may cause irritable, nervy behaviour and bucking), then the next consideration for a mare is to notice if this behaviour occurs all the time or just at certain times of the month.
She may be experiencing hormone problems which can cause some mares to become crabby around the time they come into season. If this isn't the case then her sour looks may be that she's trying to show you she's still higher in the pecking order - the same as she'd drive away a pesky youngster lower in the herd.
The ground work you do needs to establish a partnership where you are clearly the leader so maybe she has read from your body language that you you possibly aren't a good leader yet and she is taking on that role. Check that you are not 'giving ground' to her - notice if she causes you to step out of her way or move backwards when she's coming close to you when you play ground games.
A good way to check this while circling is to place a marker such as a tyre or a cone in the middle of the circle and ensure that you walk around it as she circles. If she's pushing on you, you will step onto or behind the tyre or cone and you need to then correct this by pushing her out with the tail end of your rope or your training stick. If she has a kick at you, then drive her hindquarters away from you - keeping a shorter rope so she can't turn her hind end to you.
Other reasons she may show a sour attitude are a boring routine or she is learning faster than you are therefore not being challenged enough which is like your teacher asking you to repeatedly do something you mastered long ago (like your x tables or the alphabet). Try to play with her in an interesting way that is different every day by setting up different challenges and obstacles. Even moving the same obstacles to a different location can help. There are some good ideas for challenges on my Ideas Page that should help get your lateral thinking going.
It might also help to mix up or expand the type of training you do - for example horses that learn quickly love 'Clicker Training' and its a great way to improve your timing and thinking of how to break tasks down into achievable steps. For more info on Clicker Training go to my Book Review and my Links Page.
As for the riding, again, you're doing the right thing in checking saddle fit first. When that is sorted out it might be best to ensure that you have good communication and respect on the ground before attempting to ride again. When it is time to ride, spend only a small amount of time in the roundyard and incorporate some challenges like poles to walk over and cones to weave through.
Once you're sure she is responding well, go outside the yard to ride over the other obstacles you have or ask Rob and Fred to lead on a short trail ride at a walk. If you feel her starting to round up again in preparation for bucking, get off and make life uncomfortable for her so she is not rewarding for 'gettting you off'. Play some active, yielding games at the trot or if you're in the roundyard, tie your reins up safely and send her around at the trot for several laps until she wants to acknowledge you and come in.
Then get back on and just sit there for a while to give her comfort for having you on her back. Try to finish the riding session on a positive note by getting off when she has walked without wanting to buck, even for one lap around the yard, then she will give you more next time when she remembers that riding was not a big issue.Remember that if you find yourself struggling to make progress then get hands on help from a reputable instructor.
How to help your herd bound horse
by Cynthia CooperOften referred to as being ‘barn sour’ or rushing home, the herd bound horse just wants to stay near the barn or get home and back to their mates as fast as possible.
It can turn in to a frustrating if not dangerous situation, especially if you’re out on the trail and lose control when you head for home.
Some horses display mild issues such as jigging, reefing on the bridle/ head tossing, or just speed up their pace, while others can buck or rear when held back.
All they are trying to tell you is they would rather be back home with their friends, especially their best buddy.So aren’t you supposed to be one of their best friends?
Well, if your horse doesn’t see you that way, there are many and varied ways to convince them that you do have their best interests at heart.
Spending more time doing friendly things away from the herd is a good place to start so the horse sees time with your as something special, not always hard work!
Take them out for a walk to nibble on nice grass and other plants they don’t have access too in their paddock. Catch and saddle them but just go out of sight of the herd and give them their bucket feed instead of riding.
Take them to the round yard/arena for some ‘treat (clicker) training’ and finish with a nice grooming session.
When you do go for a ride, stay within the horse’s ‘comfort zone’ and work on gradually expanding that combined with positive reinforcement so your horse can learn to cope with being away from the herd.
Remember to include some reward breaks for grazing and resting during your ride to strengthen the bond and trust you have – and to show your horse its not all about you – they are considered too!There are so many ways we can give our horses a good reason to enjoy our company, from grooming, to finding their itchy spots, feeding them and taking them out with a mate instead of insisting they go it alone.
This is one of my favourite ways of exercising more than one horse at a time – I ride one and lead one. They then don’t mind leaving the herd so much as the three of us become the herd that goes out to explore!
My horses see going for a ride as a wonderful opportunity to see new places, find things to eat, and get a nice grooming session at the start and finish.
It only takes a bit of practice in an enclosed area to teach a horse to lead another, and to get comfortable with the rope, learning to ensure it doesn’t get caught up under your horse’s tail.Its also helpful to teach the horse being led to keep its head level with your leg, or go behind on a long lead for where there are narrow trails or gates to go through.
When starting out with leading like this, select two horses that get along well together and ride the more confident/dominant one – in most cases this works well although sometimes, the dominant horse can be less confident and be better off led!If its not possible to take another horse out too and you have to go alone, here are some suggestions to help expand your horse’s comfort zone so they learn that leaving the herd is not all bad. Deb in the USA sent in this strategy that worked for her ‘barn sour’ horse;
“Today I placed three grain buckets in a triangle in a mile square field, and used the telephone poles to line them up so I could remember where they were. I walked her to the field, then hopped on, and rode her in a straight line towards the first bucket. Since she was walking away from home, it was a hesitant, drunken cowboy kind of walk to the first bucket. It helped me to have the bucket to focus on, so when Eclipse turned her head towards home, my focus stayed in the direction I wanted to go.
She was pleasantly surprised to find food sitting in the middle of this field. I headed her to the second bucket, towards home but angled away, and she argued a bit more.
Once she got the idea, she started relaxing. By the time I had started the fourth circuit, we were on a casual rein, and she was a million times better than when we started.
Tomorrow I will do the same thing, and then gradually move the buckets further away from home, and even start putting the buckets along our usual trail ride.
I just want to cruise down the trail and have a casual ride. I don't need all this drama, and I bet she doesn't either. This is a nice, calm way to help a horse through the anxiety of leaving home.”From here you could then carry your treats with you instead of having to continue putting buckets along the trail. A pocketful of ‘horse trail mix’ (sunflower seeds, oats, chopped carrot) will be a welcome treat when you reach various points along the trail.
You can also use the treat rewards on the way home to reinforce good behaviour, and if it all falls apart, you know you’ve gone a bit too far out of your horse’s comfort zone.When their behaviour gets dangerous or you simply don’t want to put up with jigging, you can get off and walk if your horse has good ground manners. If your horse keeps walking too fast and passing you, simply yield the hindquarters so they end up behind you again, and keep walking. Pretty soon your horse will find it easier to stay with you, especially if you reward them with a treat for doing so.
There are many more options for helping your herd bound horse – just doing a web search on ‘Barn sour horse’ or Herd bound Horse’ will find thousands of pages and many varied suggestions from trainers worldwide. Some advice is good and some will only reinforce your ‘do as I say’ attitude (I’d rather a ‘would you like to?’ attitude), so here are a few I’d recommend for further reading:
Advice from Cheryl Sutor
Advice from Cherry HillScot Hansen's article focuses on our own herd bound behaviour too.
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Disclaimer: The information contained within this website is soley the expressed views and opinions of the author, unless otherwise stated, and the author accepts no responsability for the way this information is used by viewers. The information is provided to help PREVENT problems, not to replace veterinary advice.
Contact:
Cynthia
Cooper -
Natural Horse World
46 Wattle Lea Lane, Golden Valley. Tasmania, 7304. Australia.
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