horse ppl PLEASE help me!!!?

Question

ok... i have had my mare misty for almost a year now. id say we have a pretty good relationship....but she hates me getting on her. and i have been working with her every day to try to calm her down wen i get on... i mean she gets bad! well yesterday she was acting a little wierd. then i couldnt get on her. she was throwing up her head, running away from me and like flipping out over nothing. smetims she acts up wen she doesnt have her grain.....but not this badd. so i walked her outside for a bit to calm her down then i went back to the ring. then i thought i will just try to end on a good note.... so i just wanted her to stand next to the mounting block....well she was soo angry....and pawed the ground...and like bolted away. she is NEVER this bad.... i was so frustrated i was yelling...and i was trying soo hard to keep my temper down... after she was ok.....but wen i went in her stall she wouldnt let me pet he. what do i do? help me plz. wut r ways to strengthn our relationship? HLP

Answer 1

I am surprised no one has mentioned her back or teeth yet! Get them checked right away. It seems to me that she has some pain, which has started the behaviour, and you have re-inforced it by not getting on her. I have an ex-racehorse that had similar issues, and bowen (like sports massage for horses) solved the problem. I do feel your problem is a little more complicated though. you also need to make sure her saddle fits really well. If you take her saddle off and there are dry patches amoung the sweaty ones, that is where it is rubbing and will be damaging her back. If it's not physical-

I don't think hobbles are a good idea- this will make her feel helpless and more frustrated and angry with you. She'll just play up so you can't put the hobbles on. You are right when you say she needs to trust you more, Natural Horsemanship will definately help you out here. Pat Parelli, Monty Roberts, David Lyons- these are all good teachers to go with. You can buy books and videos on different aspects of training that helps you to understand her point of view and gets you communicating with her on a level of mutual respect. Help of a good trainer will also prove invaluable to you.

I'm not going to tell you specifically what to do here, because her behaviour could be the result of many different things. I think you'll need a professionals advice for your individual situation. You may need to start her from scratch, working from the ground up.

Don't give up on her yet, it seems to me that the horses that are this hard to manage on the bad side, are the best partners to have when you work well together. All the best to you- the most important thing about owning horses is admitting you aren't perfect and need help. You're already well on your way to a great future with your girl.

Answer 2

You need to find out if there is a health problem (like a sore back) that is making her not want to be ridden. You didn't say if she acts up if you try to ride her bareback. If she doesn't act up, then check your saddle. Sometimes a saddle isn't fitting right & can make the horse's back sore. If she's healthy & the saddle fits correctly, you need to work on trust,love & communication. Without trust & love, there will not be any communication and neither of you will enjoy being with the other. If everything checks out ok, the you need to start with the basics & earn her trust. This will mean not riding her for awhile but it will be worth it in the end.

Answer 3

Dont bring treats!!!!!!! This will only make the problem worse because she may start bitting you. Try putting her on a calmer and lowering her food gradually to a bassic feed. If she is in heat you may want to put her on something like Regu-Mate to help her from being as moody. Just take things gradually. She may have this habbit because her previous owners may have abused her or she may be in pain somewhere. Back problems ecspecially are a big issue in horses that are mounted improperly so you may want you local vet to check her back as well.

Answer 4

Ok, first off, I would NEVER let a horse that doesn't want me on it just go back to it's stall. NEVER! She has you fooled. She needs to learn to respect. She has learned that if she pitches a fit and acts up, you'll let her get away with it and she won't get ridden.

First off I'm assuming you have checked to make sure your saddle fits correctly, and she has no medical issues to make her not want to let you on.

Horses not standing for you to get on is a common problem, but something that is easily fixed. She needs roundpen work. Take her in completely tacked up, and start working her. Work her for a good while (until she's breathing a little heavy.) Walk up to her and go to her side. If she moves at ALL, put her back to work. Keep doing that until she STANDS STILL. It might take 10 minutes, it might take an hour. WHen she does, put her up. She is being rewarded for standing and letting you on. Do this everyday, and after a few you can begin riding her. IF she even starts it at all, take her back to the roundpen.

If she's not coming around very well, you need to do "tough love". Start out in the morning, and work her. When you are done round penning her, tie her up with a set of hobbles. Work her again in the afternoon. Tie her back up with hobbles. Work her again in the evening. She has a major respect issues, and by doing this you are showing her you are boss, and you control when she gets to eat/drink/go to her stall. Tieing one up hobbled works GREAT for teaching patience. Hobbles are important because they can't stand there and paw or move around as much. We use them on every single horse we train, our's or our client's.

If you don't feel you are capable of doing this by all means get a professional trainer to help you. She is to the point now that she is becoming dangerous for you. You need to get her under control and teach her to respect you. We have worked with LOTS of horses that have had thos problem and got them through it. It has started, 90% of the time, with the horses acting up and the owners putting them back in the stall.

Answer 5

1. get her back professionally checked out
2. go to a Monty Roberts demo or read his books currently on tour in the UK now
3. Do not feed tit bits, surrending "your
2 food to her is giving her power, you can put carrots etc in her feed bin
4 if her back is OK you need to rig up a dumb jockey, a rider she cannot thow off, this should be done by an expert, and is part of the Monty Roberts training, there are Intelligent Horseman trained people in this country you can contact who have done his course

Strongly suggest your read join-up by Monty Roberts, have been doing it with my friends horses, and the yearling colt that bolt from his field, panicked, but then ran back to me, as I was seen as "herd leader" and I just caught him without any chasing... its amazing and all done with any force to the horse

Answer 6

please take a look at her grain
it seems to me, that there might be something in the grain that does not agree with her fragile system
for example mold or some kind of mold dust, active spores, or mites
if her food is not the answer, and I mean any and all food consumption, including water, she may need a good animal therapist to work with her, and with you. I am thinking that she may have trust issues that will need to be addressed before the two of you can progress with the work that you hope to do with her. maybe your vet can recommend someone in the area. good luck

Answer 7

I would visit her daily, bringing treats. If she allows you to touch her, give her the treat. If not, just sit there. She will probably warm up to you. Eventually, you should probably be able to get near her without the treats. Slowly introduce her to the tack with the treats, first the blanket, then the saddle and so on. Then you should get her used to having weight on her back. She should calm down this way.

Answer 8

Please check the fit of your saddle. Have someone help you. I have seen horses act like this, when their saddle didn't fit and it pinched them. This can be extremely painful, and Misty won't want you getting on. Can you afford to work with a good trainer for about a month?? That would help alot... Good luck!

Answer 9

You need to take her to a trainer to work with both of you. They can help you on a one on one basis, which is what you need. they will be able to watch you work with your horse and give you advise based on what they observed and will help you with your relationship with your horse.

Answer 10

what id definately do is take her to a saddle shop and see if her saddle even fits her. my horse had the same problem so we got him a new saddle and it stopped.