ARRRGHHH Stallions!

[IrisSilverMoon]

ok, so we have two stallions at our barn for training at the moment. BOTH have irritating issues.

the first probably shouldnt' even be a stallion, he's an andalusian, but a little on the small side so not very impressive to me. Since he's always been isolated from other horses he never learned proper behavior and totally tries to push you around! he bites, he shoves into your space, even if you use a whip he doesn't understand and still thinks your playing. We are trying to remedy this though, so hopefully he'll learn. A lady who is visiting us from the UK did some natural horsemanship with him and he did pretty well, its just unfortunate he can't learn good behavior from another horse!

the second stallion is actually pretty nice, a gorgeous bay arab. He tries to nibble some, but other than that usually has pretty decent manners. his main problem is that he's just really scared of everything! at least it was his main problem! today he decided to challenge the geldings in the paddocks near him when i was brining him in! he kept screaming at them and rearing, i thought i was going to lose the lead rope and he'd run off to fight with them! :eek:

heh...tomorrow I will bring the geldings in before him and my instructor told me just to bring a whip just in case, at least I have only one more day of work at the stable! :D :p

the day wasn't all bad though, George, the horse I've been riding recently, was excellent in the jump group! i am so proud of him! he's doing so well!

[casey]

Stallions are very sociable animals, and I hate for them to be kept isolated. Both the stallions I have had have been turned out with geldings. My 8 month colt (who will stay entire providing he passes his grading) will be turned out with a filly all this year, and next year will be turned out with the young stallions.
I will only keep them if they can socialise. I find it very sad when they're not taught to behave.
Good luck bringing in tomorrow. Wear your hat..:)

[epcd3000]

I was a bit nervous of the stallion at my barn when I was working their part time.. Even though he's 27 years old and has come down with terrible arthritis, he seemed to get agitated really easy by the sight of any other horse. When I took him out to his paddock I was always terrified that he was gonna pull a fast one on me and I'd lose him. :p Though actually since I've been around him for awhile he seems to be quite the sociable guy. Stallions seem to have a poor stereotype nowadays, eh?

[Wally]

It makes me so angry when I hear about stallions having been isolated from other horses. There are all sorts of old wife's tales about how stallions should be kept, and you must keep them away from other horses and such nonsense.

They NEED other horses more than most so they can play and be taught manners in the herd. Keeping them with sheep, goats or pigs is not company form them.

Here, in winter the bigger breeders keep all their stallions in one park together, it isn't until spring that they are split up into thier herds with the mares they are to cover that year. You see them lined up being bucket fed and there is never so much as a nasty face pulled at oneanother.

We keep our stallions, colts and gelding all together in a big rugby scrum. The colts are NEVER separated from a group, they ALWAYS have someone to play with and work off thier energy. If a younger one over steps the line of common decency and manners an older gelding or stallion gives them a good hiding. We even had two old barren mares who we used to knock the manners into one of our stallions. The two old matriarchs knocked him into shape in no time and he became and still is a pillar of the community and a perfect gent, he has nothing to prove.

What do folk expect when they keep a colt on his own to grow up to be a very mal adjusted stallion. They are making a rod for thier own backs. Stallions are what you make them, treat them like a horse and you'll get a horse, treat them like they are some sort of deity and you'l get a brat.

[IrisSilverMoon]

yeah...the whole thing is pretty annoying, I rarely ever see the first stallions owner so I wonder if she even knows her horse is a brat. hehe...If it were up to the stable both stallions would probably have the company of another horse, its such a shame we can't do that.

They aren't completely isolated, they have horses in paddocks next to them, but that still doesn't help teach anything, it just keeps them from being lonely.

the woman from the UK even said whenever she gets a bad tempered or bratty stallion she turns him out with a group of dominant horses. I guess they can do in two weeks what will take her six months of hard work to accomplish in terms of proper behavior.

[Laetitia]

Its either because they're so valuable, or people are scared of them that keep them isolated. I read a fascinating article about that and how humans deprive the stallions of their family herd, and whisk their wives and babies away so the babies learn nothing - their father would never hurt them- and ofcourse no wifey to cuddle up with. We have a lot to answer for sometimes.L

[Tootsie4U]

Stallions are a huge liability. Why, probably some bias. We have to hang signs in the barn so that people visiting will know that there are stallions located therein. Kind of like a "Beware of Dog" sign.

We currently have five stallions. We have to be careful with them. Stallions deserve a different type of respect. Their genetics require it.

That doesn't mean we isolate them in tiny little paddocks or that they're locked up 24/7. It just means we take caution. They get turned out in adjacent paddocks to each other with "babysitter" horses but they are not kept in the same vacinity as the rest of the herd.

They are bred in hand. They're carted off to exhibitions and shows. They're expected to have manners and behave like gentlemen but the second you forget they are stallions and don't pay them the respect they deserve, you've got trouble on your hands.

One of our stallions (the coming 3 year old) is a handful. He gets handled regularly, turn out, breeding rights, exercised and groundwork. He finds NH offensive. He doesn't like the idea of a human telling him where to put his feet. His genetics make him focused on his own dominance and when we go in there and challenge that dominance, he reacts, sometimes negatively. We keep up with the respect training but he's a stallion and we always have to keep it in memory somewhere that challenging his dominance is not like teaching a gelding about respect for humans.

Its hard work and you've got to be confident and focused with stallions.

[IrisSilverMoon]

Well both our stallions tried to get in a fight today.

The arab decided to stop and challenge the Andalusian while on his way to do some work. Same thing as he was doing in the paddock. Thankfully it was not me leading him this time, it was my instructor. Who was really ****ed! LOL.

I think spring made this guy forget his manners.

[Lgd]

There are three stallions on our yard - a Russian Orlov (Tavia's Dad), an Arab and a Hannoverian - and all of them have at least one mare next door to them!

Never have any bother with them at all, they are all turned out regularly with an elderly gelding during the winter and the Orlov and the Arab often run out with the stud's own mares during the covering season. The Orlov and Hannoverian are also ridden with mares quite regularly all year round.