How can I catch my nervous horse?

L

LouiseH

LouiseH
Jul 30, 2006
15
0
0
45
Northern Ireland
Hi-I was wondering if anyone can offer me some advice.
I have a difficult to catch horse-he has no problems coming up to me in the field.
I go up to him every day with a bucket of feed and talk and stroke him for a half hour, but as soon as I get the headcollar out he shys away and walks off.
I've read many articles on how to approach a nervous horse, but how do I actually get the headcollar on him without causing either of us stress?!!
Your replies would be most welcome as I getting really worried about this habit-this is a new horse-I've had him for ten days and he has been turned out in the field to settle in.
But the longer he stays out without being caught the more bad habits he is going to have.
Oh, and to make matters worse he turns his nose up at carrots, polos, treats etc.
He is sharing the field with another horse-not mine.
I know this sounds like a very silly question to most experienced horse owners, but after riding for the last twenty years, this is my first horse.
I feel like a total failure!!!
HELP!!! :confused: :eek:
 
Hi Louise

You seem to have tried many things- getting him to come up to you is the first step and he seems to be doing that really well for his bucket of feed. Could just try and give him a bit more time- spend even longer with him- just sit around with him and talk to him etc... but it seems like you are pretty much doing that already.

Any chance you could drive him out of the field into the yard and then catch him there or get eleccy tape and herd him into a smaller area to put the headcoller on- might be a bit stressful for him and you at first- but once you have the headcoller on i would suggest leaving a field safe one on him to make it easier to catch him for a while until he is really comfortable around you and easy to catch- and then leave it off while he is in the field

Also when you do catch him the first few times just lead him a little way round the field or into the yard and give him a nice groom and a feed so that he doesn't associate your catching him with hard work- that way he may get a little easier over time.

You have not had him all that long yet and he is probably just testing the boundaries to see what he can get away with- once he learns to trust you and you both click it will all come right

Good luck
 
Thanks

Hiya Marusenka-thanks a lot for your quick reply.
You have no idea how silly I feel chasing him about all over the place-my husband who bought him for me (and as a man-always has to be right!!!) just stares at me as though I've lost the plot!!
I've read up as much as I can about difficult to catch horses but they all seem to refer to horses that don't even want to come up to you in the field-mine does, he just trots off as soon as he sees the headcollar!
I'm getting him moved to a stable in a few days so am planning to stable him for a month or so to bond with him until he gets really used to me-then I'll try turning him out again.
It's just a question of how I get him there in the first place!!
I just feel like a complete novice again as I get so panicky when I'm not sure what I'm doing-it's like going back in time twenty years!!
Well I'm sure you'll hear plenty from me while I'm learning the ropes!!
Thanks again for listening to a nervous first-timer!! :eek:
 
Don't feel silly chasing him around- I know so many people on my yard who have owned horses for years and spend about an hour out in the field with carrots etc chasing their horses they have owned for ages round and round- most of these though don't seem to get the point that everytime they catch them they make them work so yeah the horse isn't gonna want to come in!!!! Makes me laugh at times tho- especially when it's one of the horses belonging to a know it all type person!!!!!

As for bringing your horse into stable I think it may have to be a case of cornering him with some tape or something and lots of people if it is not possible to just chase him into the yard and catch him there- although most yards aren't secure enough to do that!!!

I'm sure it will all figure out and once you have him in you will be able to catch him and work with him no probs and this hard to catch prob will all be in the past

Have a great time with him and enjoy getting to know your new horse
 
Thanks again!

Hiya-only me again!
Thanks again for the reply-I forgot to ask people's opinions on which is their prefered stable bedding-I've read so many conflicting reports about respiratory problems etc, so am just curious as to which you would recommend.
And I have to borrow a trailer to get my horse moved to the new stable block, so hopefully someone will give me a hand catching/cornering him!!
Thanks again!!
 
Best Bedding

Umm my horse is just stabled with straw bedding and she seems to be fine with this- although i know a lot of people don't like straw because it does create dust and so fungal spores can lurk in it and also the added problem of the horse eating the bedding!!! But then mine is only stabled for a few hours and so spends as much of the time as possible outside.
Sawdust can also be pretty dusty and so the best most readily available bedding that is fairly dust and spore free is shavings- and although they are slightly more expensive they store well as they are wrapped in plastic and can last a long time and you use less to make up their bed and they don't eat them so do have many benefits.
Some people with horses that are highly allergic to dust and things use shredded paper but this takes a lot longer to break down and round my way the yard won't dispose of it and asks people to get it professionally removed so it can be a fairly costly option.

Best way to minimize risk to your horse from dust and fungal spores is to always (if you can) remove the horse from the stable while mucking out and for a short time afterwards and so the dust will settle and the horse will have less problems

Hope that helps
:)
 
There has been some good advice given. All i can say is to be careful if you plan to stable him for a while. If you keep him inside for too long you may find he certainly wont want to come in once he is back out. I understand it will save you the hassle of having to chase him around but it will take you a while to get to know him properly and the best ways of doing this is to solve problems like this and learn his quirks and tricks and see what works with him. The pro side of this is that you can spend more pleasant time with him and if you give him enough to do he may not be too bad once he goes back out. As you have had him only 10 days, that wont help either, he will just be testing the boundaries.

Jenny x
 
uncatchable but friendly

My mare was like this, its no shame on you, horses learn certain things lead to other things they maybe didn't like.
My mare was hit so she was very nervous but liked being scratched so i would do that with her and try to bond in the field but the same as yours if there was headcollar visible she wouldn't come near me, running away was more likely!
She did like carrots but isn't very food motivated. I practiced her having a carrot and me putting my arm under her chin and my hand round on her nose, so i've sort of got hold of her very gently - it took ages with her for her to allow me to pet her head in the field (i was catching her at this time by making a corral with electric tape and running round to get her in it!!).

Can you hold his food bucket and get him used to you taking his head like this? the idea is that then you wear the headcollar in your back pocket (stuffed into the back of my jeans) so both your hands are free. When he lets you 'hold' him this way you can reach behind and gently bring the headcollar round to his face. If he is really upset about it he may raise his head and back up, you can discourage his head from going up but don't grab him or tighten your hold, let him go or he will worry about being trapped. The gentle hold was enough for my mare to say ok to being caught, but she will still run away if she sees it first!

If you think that won't go well- if he's really scared of the headcollar try putting it on the ground by his food, with you away from him so he can just get used to that thing and then the next day maybe move it slightly while he'e eating, then progress to touching his nose with it etc.... You need to make some new memories for him about you and the headcollar, when there are enough non threatening ones he will be ok but you may end up with a horse that you always have to catch a certain way, don't worry about that. I don't think there are more than 50% of horses you can just walk up to waving a headcollar who stand there and wait!

Don't dispair! Someone has taught this horse being caught leads to uncomfortable things that could be something like back pain or just being treated unfairly like being told off when he was worried etc. You haven't had him long, as he develops trust in you he'll get better too. You are doing a good job of thinking from his point of view and trying to be friends, i think it takes 2-3 months (sometimes 6 if they have been treated mean) for them to accept you are a friend.
:)

I would choose rubber mats for a stable - less waste. You can use a little straw or sawdust for the edges. They vary in weight alot and you need to lift them once a week to wash the pee out so the lighter ones are nicer but more expensive. They say you'll make up the price on bedding saved. They look very comfortable!
 
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I have a similar problem, and this is with a pony I've had for over a year. She is very similar in that no bribes whatsoever will get her near a headcollar if she doesn't want to. A few things you could try - definitely if you can section a bit of field off. try and bribe him in there with a bucket of feed then close it off. You're then working in a much smaller area which makes life so much easier. Get a fieldsafe headcollar and don't try to hide it (I find that surprising them with a headcollar at the last minute causes more problems than it solves). If they can see the headcollar they understand the decision they have to make from the start. Very calmly and quietly walk him down - this is where the smaller the area, the easier it is, though he has to feel he can get away from you safely. If you aim for something school sized (about 20x40m) will probably be reasonable. It may not be quick, but just walking helps reduce the stress level. Once headcollar is on, turn him back out in the field straight away (reward for being caught) and remove the pen.

Personally, I wouldn't stable him if you can help it. It's a tempting thought, but you don't really know how he'll react. As an example, I caught my pony the other day (took half an hour) as the farrier was coming. Farrier was running late and I had to have her stabled for an hour. She wasn't a happy bunny about this and I actually struggled to catch her in the stable as she started running round in circles when I went in. She's not normally stabled, but has been before - it's not something completely alien to her, but she was away from her friends who were still out, though she could see them. If she was bigger it would have been downright dangerous. Since turning her out I have spent hours trying to catch her again. Finally managed it with a pen in order to put a headcollar back on, but it now takes about 10 minutes before she'll let me near her in the field whereas previously I could just walk straight up to her as long as I wasn't carrying anything. Fact is, she doesn't want to be in and she doesn't like it. The occasions that it's unavoidable make life incredibly difficult for a while afterwards.

Other thing to do is once you have a headcollar on, make it 'normal' for you to be in the field with something in your hand, be it a headcollar or leadrope. Once that's accepted, sometimes use them, sometimes don't. If he'll lead nicely just in a headcollar you won't actually need them, but it helps if you ultimately want to make the transition to not wearing a headcollar in the field. (This is where I was up to with my pony until the latest setback!). Until that's accepted, if you want to catch him, use the headcollar he's wearing and leave a leadrope by the gate or in your pocket. This assumes a couple of things - one that he won't pull back and freak out when you're hold of him and produce a leadrope, and the other that you don't have to lead on roads or anything and the fields go straight onto your yard (the fieldsafe headcollars are not safe for leading as they will break, but if he leads nicely you're probably ok in a safe, controlled environment - ie field/ yard).

Good luck. It's incredibly frustrating and even more so when they seem to have read the books and know what you're up to :rolleyes:
 
Thanks guys!

Thanks everyone for all your help-I'm now reconsidering stabling him.
I might just pop him in for a day so that I can spend ages making a fuss and grooming him without him walking off, then I'll try to turn him out again.
There is a small paddock tnext to the stable block which may come in handy as it limits his space to escape from!
Only thing is there isn't much grazing in there at the moment, but I could subsidise with hay and feed.
I'll just keep trying every day with the headcollar-I actually got as close as getting it in front of his nose while he was eating from the bucket, without him flinching too much.
I guess if I perservere I'll get there in the end!!
When I saw him the day I bought him, his previous owner was able to just pop the headcollar on while he just stood there, so I was thinking it was something I was doing!
Trouble is, being in rural Ireland, I haven't the back-up as I would if he were being kept at a livery yard-we've rented the stable off a local farmer.
I've hardly slept the last week worrying about all my horse-care related problems as I panic too much!!
So thanks everyone-your support has put my mind at rest!
I'm sure you'll hear lots more from me while I learn as I go along-thanks again! ;)
 
You can take the end of the lead in your hand (left hand if you're on the horse's left side). Slide that hand under the neck, put your other hand across the top of the neck--like you're giving him a hug--and take the lead in your right hand. You now have a loop of rope around his neck, and can hold him steady while you halter him.

I'd probably start by going out, haltering/unhaltering a few times and then turning him back out. I'd do that a few times until he got more comfortable with the haltering. If he doesn't get more comfortable with it, I'd suspect a poll or neck injury; perhaps a mild one, perhaps something a chiro could work with. It's surprisingly easy for a horse to damage his neck by pulling juuuust wrong on a lead, and then it becomes very painful to have the halter over the injured area.

If it does seem that he's tender around the poll or jaw, you can try using a different type of halter or adjusting your halter differently--I find that I can place a rope halter a little further down the neck and it will stay put, making it easier to keep the pressure off the poll itself.

I had a mare with a nasty injury at the poll, for which she needed surgery. She couldn't be haltered, period; it hurt too much. So I led her around with a neck rope only. During the time we were waiting to scheule the surgery, I handled her in just the neck rope: cleaned her injury, taught her to trailer load, etc etc. A horse doesn't absolutely need a halter in order to be led.
 
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