Horses that kick other horses

HashRouge

HashRouge

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Feb 18, 2008
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Cheshire..but London right now
Are 'kickers' born, or made? If the latter, what are the main things that cause them to be like this?
My mare is one (a star with people though), and is very volatile with her back legs. I've never met a horse as ready to kick as she is - most people say their horse kicks because it might, though often doesn't. When I say Lou kicks, I mean that she will always put her ears back and shake her head when horses pass her, and if they are within a certain distance she will 95% of the time lash out at them. I've never really understood why she is like this, so it would be interesting to have some insight.
 
I would say its wither because she is aggressive by nature, or she is usually bullied and has resorted to kicking.

I have a horse, Amber, who is naturally aggressive, she chases after and kicks other horses, she is head mare, 3rd in the pecking order, but she is just naturally aggressive to other horses, mostly mares she hates my other TB mare Maddie with a passion.
 
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I've seen some foals copy it from their - ears back and kicking/threatening etc.

I do also think some are more grumpy than others-or perhaps are high enough in the herd that that is their 'right'?

I guess it could be an increased genetic/learnt from a very young age propensity towards a more forceful reaction (in the same way that some are more flighty) that interacts with position in herd/other factors to see if they are rewarded by using the behaviour (e.g. other horse moves away) or punished (other horse gives 'em two barrels!)
 
No_Angel said:
I would say its wither because she is aggressive by nature, or she is usually bullied and has resorted to kicking.
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The thing is, I can't seem to fit her into either of these two categories. She is not confrontational with other horses and will keep away from them in the field unless she has a particular friend in the herd. She doesn't intimidate others or chase them of, but if they come close to her and she will react. However, she is better with geldings than with mares. In fact, in our herd of mares, she is the one horse everyone is happy to put theirs out with (we have a lot of very dominant mares!) and no-one percieves her as agressive.
However, she isn't pestered or bullied by other horses from what I've seen. In fact she seems quite confident enough to approach other horses, and doesn't mind them approaching her so long as they don't come too close.
She was a brood mare though from a fairly young age, and I do sometimes wonder whether this has made her slightly wary of other horses if she has ever had to 'protect' her foal. I don't know if that makes sense - I could be rambling!
 
Native I ride kicks at only one horse the other gelding, he is frightened of him but likes to give him a clout cos he doesn't get to do it in the field. And the mare I ride (PBA) is exactly like Lou she isn't scared or especially aggressive, she likes to be in front and can't stand anyone taking over her.
 
My mare I don't trust not to kick, but she hasn't done it whilst being handled in a long time. She is very dominant and when she first had seasons was a witch, she had me several times and my poor geldings took a bashing too. Eventually she became so bad we put her out with 2 huge and older mares in the hope they would bring her in line, she went straight out and double barrelled them both :(
She is now nearly 6 and very sweet 99% of the time but can still get very ansty, my gelding regularly pushes his luck and gets kicked (has half a front tooth for his troubles!) and last year my mare took the gate into the next field off the hinges and kicked 10 bells out of YO's mare :eek:
I have to say that she has never lashed out when under saddle, but i don't want to give her the chance to. I ask people to give her a wide birth all the time as you can never tell when she is feeling grouchy until it hits you! Best be safe than sorry and all that.
 
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I've met alot of kickers that are okay with other horses when given space so I wonder if it is sometimes a claustrophobic type reaction... For example we had a mare on the old yard I was at that would anialate (sp.) any other horse that came near her in her stable, or on the yard. Less so when in open order in the school but you had to be careful when passing her and providing she wasn't hemmed in on hacks she'd allow another horse to be next to her without even her ears back.
 
:o ours kicks - and I mean ears back and double barrel - full on backing up :o

He NEVER did this till last October and he is pushing 20 He's always been grumpy if boxed in but only ears back - never lifted a foot or even threatended

Last October at a team jumping event in the warm up arena, a coloured pony literally slammed in to the side of him, he staggered and nearly went over, little one screamed as it was fast and she got hit as well and he tried to run and the other's in this delightful child (approx 12 year old) team, boxed him in waving thier crops over their head

Daughter is now hysterical as is pony - I managed to get in the foray, shouted at them and led out one shaking pony (he was shaking with terror and his poor eyes were out on stalks) - sobbing terrified daughter - awful

She was trying to leave the arena when it happened

she was warming up -they weren't due to jump for a couple of hours and were bored so went in the arena and lined up as a group of 4 and charged as fast as they could up and down - I called daughter out - and one of them slammed into them

Since then - he's kicked if anything gets too near

And yet his field mates - they stand right next to him at shows, inc up his bum and he is fine

At riding club there are a number of ponies that can stand right next to him and go up behind and over take and he is fine but there are two that are coloured and he will literally go for them


He is not aggressive - and has never even looked like he might kick a person

He has never kicked or even gone to kick any pony in the field, including new ones

So I'd say a very bad experience can turn a good pony into a kicker :(
 
I never blame a horse for kicking. I think that it is important to think of why the horse may feel the need to kick - insensitive handling and bad experiences in the past being the primary causes. No horse is a "born" kicker; all horses can and do kick at some ppint (after all, it's only natural and healthy) but it doens't mean they do it out of habitual fear/defensiveness/self-protection.
 
puzzles said:
I never blame a horse for kicking.
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Sadly, I've met a number of people who do.
When I was about 13, and so used to Lou's kicking that I could handle her well when riding in company, I had a horrendous experience out riding with another woman from my yard. Basically, she was in her twenties so old enough to be blooming responsible, and well aware that Lou kicked. I rode at the back for safety. However, she kept trying to ride alongside us, which led to her horse napping towards Lou and her kicking out (though fortunately not catching him). Towards the end of the ride we were waiting at a set of traffic lights with me a safe distance behind, but she took her horse onto the pavement (he was getting a bit fidgety) and then tried to ride him back onto the road right next to Lou. I have no idea if he was napping or what, but I had no way of getting out of the way and Lou lashed out violently and caught him though fortunately not severely. IMO it was entirely her fault - I still have absolutely no idea what she was doing when she could have asked him to go back onto the road in the big old space where she'd been stood before - but the ride ended with neither of us speaking to each other after a furious argument in which she refused to ride out with me again if I didn't smack Lou for kicking, which I told her pointedly (and probably not all that politely since she had sworn at me and acted like it was my fault) I would not do and I declared I didn't want to ride out with someone who could not control there horse. Don't think we ever spoke again after that - fortunately she moved off the yard not much later :D:p
 
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