Being a git with picking feet up! ponies! ;-)

[sheltiegroomer]

Hi all!

Can anyone offer some advice my little exmoor is being a pickle.... He is good as gold with the farrier and has recently been shod... However whenever I go to pick his hoofs out he just messes around... its nothing majorly nasty (no biting etc) just silly and verging at times on being pretty dangerous to me... He does stuff like.......

I go to pick his front leg up , run my hand firmly down his leg and say foot up, grab the foot go to lift it and he does a little dance which usually results in him attempting to barge me away from him... I've tried leaning on him to get him to lift the foot up and this results in the foot coming up and the dance ensuing with the foot in the air waving around!!

Back legs are a differnt story... sometimes ok to lift, pick and put down..providing I can do all that in about 15 seconds!! lol... others he will lift the foot hold it up as if he is going to be ok and then let out a mini kick towards me.... its pretty small and im guessing is never aimed to get me (though im quite sure one day it may well do...hence I am little apprehensive re back feet).... other times with his backs he starts to do little bucks as I run my hand down his leg....

He's sound, had back check as far as I know about 3 months ago, recently shod...and was very footsore prior to coming to me...had had no shoes on for 4 months and was on rough ground... used to live out and not have his feet picked much or often... He has been known to be a pickle over feet with young people and children or people who are new...

Any ideas to help us to overcome this...??? any suggestions welcome...
otherwise he is a delight!! very good boy!

 

[mikh]

Hi how long have you had him? I recently got my mare 8wks ago and up untill 3 wks ago she was like this, as she also was a bit foot sore. What I did:

Try and pick up feet, if it didn't work first time, I'd brush her a bit, then try again.
Say the second time was successful at her picking it up and letting me hold it - I wouldn't pick out at this point but instead gently put foot down give her pat and treat then brush a bit more.
Then go back to same foot pick up this time and pick out then big fuss and big treat.
If she messed about too much I found strong voice worked, a telling off then high pitch encouragement when attempting to pick up the feet.

She also kicked out when attempting back feet I just now follow the same tactics but am very quick and try as hard as possible to get everything but if I miss some I'd rather not stress her and try again in the evening or next day.

I tend to find my mare is more responsive/willing when the yard is quite.

Hope this helps.

 

[sheltiegroomer]

Hi how long have you had him? I recently got my mare 8wks ago and up untill 3 wks ago she was like this, as she also was a bit foot sore. What I did:

Try and pick up feet, if it didn't work first time, I'd brush her a bit, then try again.
Say the second time was successful at her picking it up and letting me hold it - I wouldn't pick out at this point but instead gently put foot down give her pat and treat then brush a bit more.
Then go back to same foot pick up this time and pick out then big fuss and big treat.
If she messed about too much I found strong voice worked, a telling off then high pitch encouragement when attempting to pick up the feet.

She also kicked out when attempting back feet I just now follow the same tactics but am very quick and try as hard as possible to get everything but if I miss some I'd rather not stress her and try again in the evening or next day.

I tend to find my mare is more responsive/willing when the yard is quite.

Hope this helps.

Brilliant! I will try all of that yes he's new only had him 3 weeks... have tried the pick up and treat idea with no picking out and it started to work but he still wouldnt let me pick but would hold foot up for me to look at! lol! I will persevere! thanks ever so much!!!!

 

[redhead123]

I have the same problem, my horse is a bit footsore - he's unshod but he isn't really being ridden at the moment (once or twice on a weekend) and had cracked feet - the cracks have gone (thanks to biotin supp and v expensive hoof ointment!) but he can be difficult with the feet, mainly the back feet - it's much easier if the one you want to pick out is further back that the other one because otherwise mine loses his balance - so i walk him on until the foot i need to pick out say, near hind is slightly farther back than his other hind leg. Plus squeezing the hock a little and saying 'up' sometimes works!

 

[mikh]

Great glad it's working, my mare still has her moments, her left front is the hardest I have to push her away from me and grab it mid step - then the big fuss is over once I've got it! lol