Wild filly HELP

Jacki · #1 14th Mar 2004, 05:05 PM

Hi all, I'm new here and only been in the cafe so far where I did get a few replies. Having spent many years with horses of all types, I now find myself with a totally wild 8 month old filly only 3 weeks off the Spanish mountains. The first week I spent befriending and halter training her. The next several days I spent walking her out on a long rein where she could graze and I could walk up & away from her. Then I turned her out. For over a week she came & went, in & out of the field to her stable without a hitch, Great I thought. But on the 9th day, she said NO! I won't be caught and has stayed that way for the last few days. She has no concept of treats and only a short time of good human contact so has decided her wild days are more comfortable. ANY IDEAS? PLEASE. Jacki

Lovecat · #2 15th Mar 2004, 01:33 PM

I'm probably spelling this completely wrong but a guy called Klaus Hempflinger (?) has written a book called 'Dancing with Horses' where he mainly works with unbroken, straight off the mountain/plains horses, using natural horsemanship techniques. It all reads brilliantly and there are loads of step by step illustrations.

There's also a video but I don't believe (haven't seen it) from other NR member comments that it's not as informative as the book.

Could be worth a look?

Good luck and welcome to NR

Alibi · #3 15th Mar 2004, 02:16 PM

Parelli have just done a DVD called the Catching Game, it has some great ideas which i'm sure you could use, but i think you would have to get your pony in to a smaller enclosure as it would be too difficult to do in a field. But you could give it a go.

If i was you i would try and spend lots of time in the field totally ignoring her, she'll get curious and look at you and when she does you walk off the other way all nice and calm. Eventually she should start to come in closer and hopefully when you walk away she should start to follow you. When you get to a point when she's there next to you give her a little scratch and then walk away.

Or,

The other way you could try is to make her feel uncomfortable by waving a plastic bag or a rope at her bum if she turns her bum to you and runs off, keep the pressure on her by swinging the rope of waiving the bag and the minute she stops and looks at you release the pressure by stopping the movement with the rope or bag. The Parelli DVD explains this method better and it would also need to be done in a smaller space, unless you were very fit and could run round the field many many times.

I find the less i try to catch a horse and look disinterested in them the more likely they are to come up to you and be caught.

Harry Hobbes · #4 15th Mar 2004, 03:28 PM

Jacki,

All the above is excellent advice.

I'd only add that if we leave the horse alone and not interact with it, then we teach the horse that it being left alone is normal, and interaction with humans is abnormal. Then, at some point, we have to reverse this.

So, I suggest that you engage in as much daily interaction as possible; such as catching and releasing the horse many times per day. The horse should come to realize that human interaction is the norm.

Intersperse this with other ground activities, such as leading around the premises, grooming, or "ground work", before you release.

I also strongly recommend that you pursue the furtherance of your equine education with the suggestions above (and more, as you progress.)

Best regards,
Harry

Jacki · #5 16th Mar 2004, 07:24 PM

Thanks all of you. Just to put you a bit more in the picture. For the first 10 days, she was being groomed, walked in and out of the field/stable, taken for walks around the property, made loads of fuss of every day. Catching her was easy, she stood waiting for me. The problems started when for no reason, she decided she didn't want to be caught any more. I then left her alone for a couple of days so she would miss the company, and then tried again. She is not frightened, she just keep herself a few feet away from me. I then erected a small compound and ushered her in. I tried the pressure trick for over an hour without success, she then took the fence from a standstill back into her field. As her field has the same fencing, I didn't want to pressure her into jumping out of her field and never finding her again.(The countryside around here is also wild). Since then I have been sitting in her field with her each day. She still stays just out of reach and watches me with one ear cocked. As soon as I stand up, she moves away?????

Harry Hobbes · #6 17th Mar 2004, 12:50 AM

Quote:

For the first 10 days, she was being groomed, walked in and out of the field/stable, taken for walks around the property, made loads of fuss of every day. Catching her was easy, she stood waiting for me. The problems started when for no reason, she decided she didn't want to be caught any more.

No such thing as "...no reason." Just offhand, I'd say that as she got to know you a little bit better, and understood your limits of physical interaction, she decided to change the "relationship" so that she is dominant. This is normal and natural, and horses do it instinctively; think of it as "testing the bounds of the arrangement", and changing it where the human allows change.

Quote:

I tried the pressure trick for over an hour without success, she then took the fence from a standstill back into her field.

Was this you driving her around the compound? Such as John Lyons' "Round Pen Reasoning"? If so, there are effective instructions and techniques at: http://www.whmentors.org/saf/catch.html

Quote:

Since then I have been sitting in her field with her each day. She still stays just out of reach and watches me with one ear cocked. As soon as I stand up, she moves away?????

You might try the following technique, copied from post:
http://www.newrider.com/forum/showth...ighlight=field

Quote:

In terms of catching, there are several workable techniques, but the appropriate techniques require you to have the time and patience to keep the horse moving around the pasture/paddock until he decides that this is just too much work, and that he'd rather stand still, letting you approach his head. If he stands at your first approach, then halter him. If he moves off, then you need to train him to be caught.

My technique is to walk after the horse continuously in order to cause the horse to come to the decision to be caught. If he decides that he does not want to be caught, then I just walk after him and keep him moving; he runs off, stops, I continue to approach, then he's off again; he gets no rest. I'm making him move if he decides not to stand.

When the horse stops, turns and waits for me, then I approach softly, pet and halter the horse. But, I never jump at, nor run after a horse that doesn't wish to be caught. One would only reinforce in the horse's mind that he can run away from you. (He's faster than humans.)

I've done this successfully many, many times; it works every time. The most time it took was 40 minutes in a 40 acre field where I wanted one horse out of a herd of nine. (And they all ran; for a while.) After that, the horse caught immediately; every time. (He remembered all of that movement.)

The important point of the above, is that the horse gets no comfort by staying away from you. Rather, the horse must work to stay away from you. Horses, being comfort-seekers, will try to resolve this problem by running/walking/trotting away, thinking that they have gotten away from you. But when you follow, and they are consistently unsuccessful, they'll look for another solution. If we do not put a lot of pressure on them against a fence, then they will not go over the fence; but, still, they have the problem of trying to stay away from the human.

Sooner or later, the horse will decide that staying away from the human is just not worth the effort. It will stop, and turn and face the human, in an attempt to get relief from all of that movement.

When the horse decides to stop moving and stand still, calmly and softly approach the horse's head, and put the halter on the horse. If the horse takes off again, then you should honor its choice to move off, and help it move off more; and keep it moving. When it decides to stop and stand, then you should honor that choice by allowing it to stand (as you approach and halter.)

Also note that we never run after, or jump at any horse; rather, we calmly and briskly walk after them to keep them moving, until they decide to stop, and turn and face us. Then we approach calmly and softly.

But, with your filly, you should realize that sitting in the pasture waiting for her to come to you, only reinforces her dominance. (She's the acting party; you're waiting on her.) And although she will probably come up to you eventually, you may have a very long wait; and she probably won't stand there when you try to halter her. Then you'll go back to waiting.

Try the walking technique explained above. If you're persistent, she'll get the message, allow you to catch her, and begin to accept your dominance.

Best regards,
Harry

Hyper · #7 21st Mar 2004, 08:27 PM

From what you describe she was fine ............... until...........I wouldn't even try to guess what because I know I would very likely get it all wrong.

If you can, I would urge you to contact Mike Peace, who I am certain would be able to help a lot.

Anyway, whatever you decide to do, I really hope that you find you can give her what she needs. She's lucky you found her.

Sandra

Wally · #8 22nd Mar 2004, 07:38 PM

When we get a really wild one we take everyone out of the field and leave in one old fool who LOVES his grub and treats and let her bond with the old timer and then she can learn from him that being with folk can be a good rewarding thing. We never put pressure on them just lead the old horse in and out of places with any luck if she follows then you can start again with her.
If that has no effect then Harry Hobbes' ideas are very valid. It's just I'm too bone idle to do the walking down thing unless all else has failed, If one of the other horses will take the nervous one under its wing it makes my life easier!