New Horse Blues!

[meko72]

Hello everyone,

I have been riding(Western) for a couple of years but I had never trained a horse at all.. I just bought this 10 year horse that
has a problem in which I just found out! Errr The problem is that he was owned by a rancher in texas they tried to perform a "home" castration (gelding). Well they messed up. The owner told me that I could easily fix it by bringing the vet out. The problem I am having is that he(Horse) is real agressive towards other horses. He trys to bit and kick. When he is in the stall without a halter he is real skidish but when I put the halter on him he is fine but then he tries to snipe at my arm. The other problem I have is when I saddle him up and I mount him he wants to take off in a gallop when I slow him down he starts to buck alittle. If i loosen up on the raines alittle he wants to start galloping or running. After about 30 minutes of this I can calm him down and he does fine to a extent. While calming him down and also when he is calm I always praise him. I have been trying to teach him voice commands and rein control at the same time.

Is there anything im doing wrong or is there more things that I need to work on with him. Do you all think once I have the vet come out and fix him that he will be fine around other horses and his tantrums will cease. Would alot of round pen session help etc.....

Thanks for any infomation that you all can provide..

[Wally]

When did they try the home castration, how old was he and how long ago was it. When you say "messed up" did they get both testicles or did they only get one, or have they got 1 and most of the other? He may well be in pain if they have undermined his muscles, there is SO much that can go wrong castrating a horse!

I'd get the vet out and get his undercarriage checked and sorted- if the vet can sort it out, it may well be too late. I'd get him to look carefully at his back and his teeth very carefully as the problem when you ride could lie in any of those places.

He needs firm fair handling by the sound of it, anything with stallion tendancies will need this. He also needs to respect you. Read up on some horse psychology books and get him listening to YOU on the ground, if he isn't paying his full attention to you there neither will he pay you any attention when you are on his back.

I hope THEY are going to pay for the veterinary expense since they conveiniently "forgot" to tell you when you bought him!

[meko72]

Wally,

I chatted with the owner last night he stated that the horse was cut 6 yrs ago and that they cut one side the right way and the other side they didnt get enough. My only concern with the horse is that if he does get fixed how can I get him into being sociable with other horses also on the other hand what if the vet cant fix the horse can he still be sociable with other horses?
I feel sorry for my horse, I guess that why my heart goes out to him and I want him to friends with my other horses aswell..

[Tootsie4U]

Although our circumstances are slightly different, my guy was gelded late and carries most stallion tendencies.

Unfortunately, I hate to be the one to tell you, but you may have a long road ahead of you. That doesnt mean its not worth the journey :D. With my horse, Bonfire, it took me many months of FIRM handling to gain my place in his heirarchy. Its the stallion attitude that interferes and as such I think my advice may benefit you.

Harsh? No. Firm? yes! With horses like ours, until your place is sorted out, you really need to have a firm hand with your horse. Although it broke my heart at times, I could not treat Bonfire like a regular school horse at first. I was forced to train him like the dangerous pushy 1,000 pound animal he was. And to be honest, natural horsemanship methods did not work.

The basis of my training was "dont give him an inch". If he did it only half way, it wasnt good enough. Yes, it puts a load of demands on the horse, but I truly believe it is necessary for these strong minded and bodied horses.

My point here is this: TOUGH LOVE. This horse can and will try to eat you for dinner, if you let him. Firmness, but not abuse, is the key. Stand your ground. One day your horse will realize that challenging you is a dead end and he will become a new horse - with you.

I find that even though my horse is very respectful of me, he is much less of other people. THat is something I just have to deal with. My horse is dominant in turn out, but isnt a fighter. So, that is where we have our differences. Your horse may always keep this behavior, you will just need to find out how to harness it. First things first, take care of the situation where you are concerened. Then deal with the turn out issue. Dont jeopardize your safety!

Feel free to private message me if and whenever you have questions. I think, from the sounds of it, we have alot in common where our horses are concerned. A different point of view or even a experienced second opinion helps humongously!

[CityGirl]

I hope THEY are going to pay for the veterinary expense since they conveiniently "forgot" to tell you when you bought him!

Ditto with that sentiment! That's just outrageous! I'm not sure what they mean by "didn't quite get enough":eek: but that could lead to a lot of complications & if they really didn't get enough & you put your boy out with others - you just might be facing an unwanted pregnancy.

I don't mean to sound down but I would have SERIOUS concerns about an owner that would do this & then "forget" to tell a buyer. I'd be concerned that there might be some other issues that they also "conveniently forgot" to tell you about....:( (such as galloping off under saddle??!!)

[meko72]

Im going to have a Vet come out to look at my horse in the next week or two. I also wanted to Thank everyone who responded back to me .

Dusty