Rearing

[Eclipse]

My horse is a real calm and quiet horse for a 4 year old. But when he bonded to our new filly whenever I ride him he persitently wants to go be with her. I try everthing to stop him, like I take the reins and put his head to my knee but he gets really mad and when he gets free he does a kinda rearing thing I can tell he's going to it cause his ears go back so I grab onto the horn and hold on. He just lift his front legs up about 2 feet and goes down. Bucking and rearing isn't his thing, he just wants to be with the filly. I separated them for now but what can I do to break this habit and stop him from doing this stuff. I'm very persistant with him and everything and eventually he gives in but then 5 min. later he starts up again! I just want to go for peacful rides like we used to. Please help.

[Sarah]

hello!

Was your 4yo on his own before you bought the filly? If so, i am not surprised that he is a bit nappy, now that he has a herd to live with (albeit a small one) he doesn't want to leave it.

When did you get the filly? It could well take him some time to get used to living with her and then leaving her and going abck to her. If you have only had the filly a short time then maybe leave the two horses together for a while - like a month or so then slowly get him used to being apart from her. Start by bringing him in from the field without her and grooming him alone, feeding him alone, etc. Then try leaving him away from teh field in hand for a short distance, gradully increasing this. If he starts rearing just stand calmly with him. Maybe sure you have your riding hat on, are wearing gloves and that you have him on a long lead rope. If you can then get him to take even one more step in the way you want to go, praise him like mad, then take him back.

Then try to do the same when riding him, but only if you feel you have the experience to do so. If you have not been riding soon then please, for your own safety, do not ride him out, get a teacher or ezperienced friend to help.

He will learn with time that going away from his friend gives him praise from you and that at the end of it all, he does finally get to see his friend again.

You will have to work on this for a long time - a period of a few months, but it will be worth it at a the end. If you don't feel you are experienced enough, then please get someone else to help you, rearing is potentially a VERY dangerous activity.

Good luck.

bye!

[Jay Kay]

Is the filly calling to him while you are out ? If you have only had her a short time Sarah is right it will take a while for things to settle down again, especially as he is thinking that it is his responsability to look after the new youngster, if she is unsure of herself in her new home, he probably feels that it is his duty to be her protector
I know it is a nuisance when they bond in this way, but given time and with persuasion on the lines that Sarah has advised he will go back to being his old self eventually, how long it will take is anyones guess.Are there any other horses around or is it just the two of them.?

Jay Kay

[Eclipse]

Actually I've only had him for about 2 or 3 months. before I got him we were leasing two other 4 year old geldings. So when I first had him he was with the other two geldings. He acted the same way with them. Even though one of geldings tried to bite him often he got attached very quickly. But their owners took them back about a month ago. We got the filly two weeks ago so he was alone for 2 weeks, but he bonded really fast to her.

[LC]

Basically this is a psychology issue. You have a very young horse that is new to you. He doesn't have much experience with humans to fall back on. I think many times people underestimate the importance of the herd to a horse. The herd is all important for survival and of course they are going to bond first to their own kind. You are asking the prey to leave the protective herd and go with the predator! Patience will win in the end. However, you are at a sticky point as this rearing can escalate into a dangerous vice.

[Sharon H]

I think that you are probably making things worse by separating them at this stage. As has previously been said, the herd instinct in horses is very strong and your pony is probably worried that if if leaves your new filly, she won't be there when he comes back, after all he lost his other friends and is probably feeling very insecure about it at the moment. Personally for the time being, I would just ride him in an area from which he can see her, do some schooling and give him something else to concentrate on, to take his mind off her for a bit. Gradually, he should get used to her still being there when he gets back and you should be able to go out of sight for a little while, you can then gradually extend the time that he's away from her and so on. Try to put him in a position where he's doing the right thing by himself and praise him for it. Don't ask too much of him, he's bound to get it wrong and then you will have a fight on your hands, which will, in turn make it less enjoyable for him and make him less likely to want to do what you want, if you see what I mean? Have you heard of Monty Robert's join-up methods? I think that it would be worth you trying that. It will help you to forge a bond between you and your horse, which, although it may never be as strong as the bond between the two horses, will at least make you a trusted friend to your pony and may make him more inclined to go with you when you ask.