Horse problem?

Question

I got my new horse at the beginning of november, and apart from a few teething problems while she was settling in, we got on fine. suddenly, in the past week or so, she has started being really nasty.
when i go to catch her in her field, she pins her ears back and snaps at me, and kicks out at me. she has a headcollar on, and when i manage to grab her she throws her head around trying to get away.
after a few seconds she stops, but then i can't get her to move. i've tried taking her rug off first, then asking her to move, turning her head to move her, but she only takes one step, everything i can think of! i dont know what else i can try, so i'm asking you lot!

things before she started this:
she is in a huge field, but at first she was fenced off with electric fence. a storm broke the circuit and she got out.

i have since taken the fence down, after putting her back in and seeing her get out despite of the electricity

she ripped the inside of her rug but has a new one now

thanks so much for all the tips so far! the website sparky gave has given me some more tips too, so thanks for that!

i have tried bribing her with food in a bucket, but that has stopped working too. when i do manage to catch her, i often only groom her, and she has hay to munch on when she gets brought in too, because i have been trying to make dissasociate being caught with being worked. i have been doing this for a while, and she has only got worse!
she hasn't got another horse with her, but there are about 70 sheep!
as for getting a horse whisperer, i really cant afford it. i am 16, in my last year of school, and i have a part time job which pays me about £80 a month, so not much! i really don't want to sell her, but obviously if this goes on for much longer i wont have a choice. because i have only had her for a short amount of time, i'm going to give it a few months before it comes to that!
thanks again for everything so far!

oh, and this behavior has been pretty constant and getting worse for more than a week, so i dont think she's in season

She is only in this field temporarily. I was originally going to keep her at my friend's farm with her horse, but they are building there at the moment, using the field to get through to the barn they're building. so don't worry, she won't be on her own forever. I am hoping that when i move her it will improve her behaviour, but i need to start sorting this now, not in a month or whenever the field is ready.
Just because i am young doesn't mean i am inexperienced, i have been riding since i was very young and have worked voluntarily at the riding school i go to, as well as having my own horse who i sadly had to sell last summer.
as an added incentive to really makke this work, i bought this horse with my own money, just as i did the last horse i owned. i have saved all my life for buying a horse.
thanks for every answer recieved, iv'e got some good tips!

Answer 1

Of the answers so far, Wild and Free has the best, you need to re-establish that you are the boss. I dont agree with those that have suggested bribing with treats as this can actually cause a nippy/food aggressive horse. I would stick with an electric fence as those are best in preventing other bad habits such as cribbing and wind sucking. start out slow, merely approach pet then walk away then progress to grooming (in the field-dont even think about brining her in yet one step at a time) then lead for a few steps quit groom walk away. you may have to go beyond and desensitize her to touch. This all could take months depending on the reasons for her behavior. Everytime she attempts to bite/kick chase her off- bring a lunge whip with you everytime you enter the field. In the natural pecking order if a herd leader is pushed around by a lesser horse he pushes back harder and drives the animal away and must invite the lesser back into his space. Your horse may feel threatened/crowded so learn your horses space requirements and gradually build on that to where you can enter her space at any given moment under any circumstances but she must "ask" for permission into yours. Remember that horses are herd animals and as such have a pecking order they want/need a dominant figure, and if they dont get that then they become it. Never make the punishment worse than the crime (ie: if the horse shows you her teeth ur not going to punch her in the mouth but ur also not going to scratch her special spot either.) the key is to find and use the least bit of pressure to get the job done. If ur trying to drive her away from u first try just waving ur arms n sayin move if that doesnt work u may have to crack the whip if that still isnt enough run at her screaming ur fool head off while cracking the whip, release the pressure as soon as she turns n starts off in the direction you want, you are establishing u say what goes and her behavior is unacceptable. You must be vigilant and persistant if you dont want her biting drive her away EVERY time she so much as hints to doing so. I hope this helps, and this principle can be set to just about all aspects of your training program no matter how minute the issue

Answer 2

OK, sounds like you are having fun with your horse. Have you had her checked by a vet, maby an inner ear infection, or something. How does she behave when you aren't trying to catch her- is she eating ok. Also, apart from the fence has anything else changed in her field or your routine? If you have stabling and are able to, why don't you try keeping her in for a few days, once you get her in next time. Make sure she has plenty of hay, and a lick or something so she doesn't get bored.
You talk about maby having to sell her, before you consider doing that, try to manage until she is moved to her permant field with company and see if her behaviour improves there. Also you say you have worked at your riding school. If there is an instructer there who would be willing, ask them to come out to your field and try to help you fetch your horse in. That way you can get some expert advice from someone who can observe the behaviour and how you and your horse interact.
If it's been a fairly sudden change, then has someone maybe gone in your field and hurt or scared your horse when you weren't there.Something like that would explain a sudden aversian to human contact. In which case if you have an enclosed school area then try doing some join up with your horse as this will help her to trust you again. You should be able to get a book from the library telling you how to do this, but basically, in a reasonably enclosed space ( a round pen works best), use a lunge whip to make your horse run round the pen, in the same way you would when lunging. Keep very square on to your horse so that you appear big and scary. Watch the horse carefully. When she starts to drop her head and mouth and lick and chew, thats all indications that she wants to be close to you, not running away. Turn side on to her and stop chasing her, drop or lower the whip. If she comes to you, slowly walk away, she should follow you. If she takes a few steps and stops or stops and backs away when you turn sideways, then start running her again. This could take quite a long time, but persevere. Once you can walk slowly round the pen with her following you, calmly and quietly then slowly turn a little to face her and start strockin her neck, working up to her face. If she stands for this then clip a line to her halter and walk away slowly. At this point she should follow you. Throughout all this if she resists, throws her head up etc then chase her away until she starts chew etc again and start from the beginning again. Don't expect too much in the first session, and one time won't fix the problem. Even if your first session goes well you should repeat it, and do it regularily even when you don't have problems. It helps you build a good bond with your horse and can make them feel secure. If you don't have a secure areana to use then you can do it on a lunge line, but it's harder as you have the line attached to get in the way.

Answer 3

Go to the pasture, but ignore her. Take a book, some apples or t reats, and something for yourself. Sit and read and wait to see whether she approaches you. This may take a few times before it works.
If she approaches you, give her a treat and then ignore her some more. I would do this often.
When you do need to catch her, have a lead line with a quick and easy clip to latch onto her halter so when she snatches away you have hold of her. Yank it hard when she nips or kicks, but a few moments later, rub her and talks in a sweet, soothing voice.
Tie her to groom her and give her a treat. Groom her, and give her another treat if she is good.
When she won't move in the field, place your back against her belly and push backward while pulling her head around. Also try a stock whip against her hind legs when she won't move, or use a longe line instead of a lead and when she balks, longe her using a longe whip.
There are several ways to get to this mare and make friends with her. She is bossy and thinks she can buffalo you, but with patience, you can get it out of her. Treats and praise when she is good, gentle but firm discipline when she misbehaves. And always, ALWAYS end on a good note with her!

Answer 4

Just from reading the 1st paragraph it sounds like you have dropped a level in the pecking order. You may need to get a little more stern and assert your dominance over your horse. Yes the horse has the ability to over power you, but you have the advantage of higher intelligence. Use this to your advantage.

As for the biting and kicking, a little physical encouragement with a riding crop or dressage whip will help improve the attitude.
This correction should be stern, but don't beat the animal.

The others have listed some good suggestions also!

Answer 5

Maybe she was used to her previous owners and you haven't earned her respect. You should try to be tougher with her. My horse used to do the similar thing (and still sometimes does) but when he wouldn't do as I wanted I just sharply tugged on the rope. The trick is that you just can't let her win, not even once. Because if you do she'll remember that and do the same thing again next time. Another thing I do if my horse is too out of control after I ride him, is I just put him in the stable away from other horses. He goes crazy inside and remembers it. You need to remember that your horse is stronger than you and physically you can't force her to do something she doesn't want to do. So you have to show her you're the boss. And don't forget to praise her for every good thing she does.

Answer 6

I'm sorry, but horses are herd animals and go mad if kept alone. Happy horses stay in their field; unhappy ones try to escape. I know thats not what you want to hear but you just can't keep a horse alone. Sheep or other animals just aren;t suitable company for them.
Is there a livery yard locally where you could jkeep her and they could use her for rides?
She's probably playing up for many reasons, they will if they know you're unsure and they can get away with it.
As for using a horse whisperer you could just get Monty Roberts book out the library and learn how to start yourself; its called 'The Man Who Listens to Horses'. Its just not enough though, it can't teach you how to handle a horse and it doesn't teach basic equine care.
I think your money would be better spent on riding and stable management lessons, this horse is going down in value the longer this goes on. That just increases the risk that she'll end up at the knackers. Badly behaved horses are a liability.
One of the reasons you need to learn to handle and school your ponies is because you should always aim for them to be better schooled and in better condition when you sell them on than when you bought them.
Carry on learning, look for a local riding club or something that has activities you can join in and a social life; keep your eyes and ears open and learn as much as you can. There are plenty of books you can read but bottom line is that handling animals is not something you can learn to do from a book.

Answer 7

When your horse was broke she needed to be taught come. I know this probably sounds weird, but everytime I go to catch my horse no matter where he is I saw come here when I'm about 5 or 6 feet away and he comes up to me so that I don't ever have to worry about going all the way up to him. If you ever get her into a small pen you need to work with her on this. The best way to start is get a lariet (lasso) and rope her inside front foot. Let her get used to the rope around her foot. If she flips out just leave it there until she stops and licks her lips or shows some sort of sign. Then say come here in a clear and strong voice. If she doesn't move pull on teh rope to move her foot hold it until she puts it down towards you on her own then release and do it again. This will take a long time, but when she gets that do the outside leg the same way. Once she gets the idea of come here then leave the rope on her and make her run around the pen. When you say whoa let her stand for a second then say come here and if she doesnt move pull her leg. Once she gets that run her the other way and do the same thing. Then go to the outside leg and be sure to go both ways. You will have to do this every day with her until she gets it down pretty well. Remember to say come here and make her come here each time you go to catch her after this. If she doesn't come to you make her run in a round pen or small pen until she wants to stop and come to you. If I didn't make myself clear on some of this please feel free to IM me or email me.

Answer 8

hi, sounds like your poor mare has had a real bad time , could other people got in to the field and hit her with hands and rope ? did she rip her rug on some fence and was tangled up for a while ? i would leave off the rug for a time, keep head collar on and wrap lead rope round nose to lead her for both your safety where gloves and hard hat when handling with some Polo's / carrots in pocket for good behaviour. have you a small area or even a stable where you can do JOIN - UP ? to get her trust in you back on track . lead her out with bridal on talking to her as you go . sometimes it takes a few months for a new horse to settle in , good luck

Answer 9

It's a real pain when you seem to spend half your time trying to catch your horse before you do anything with her. Couple of tips might help,attach a short piece of leading rope to her head collar it makes for easier catching.also try to be as nonchalent as possible,she is playing you up and knows this situation is getting to you.Ask someone else to come into the field with you,see if she's better that way for a while,go into the field and do something eg pick up her droppings but ignore her,this can provoke interest. Make her work with you interesting and varied so she wants to spend time with you. Try to persevere,she needs to know you are boss,not her. And good luck.

Answer 10

I read an article about this kind of thing happening once..your horse is trying to be alpha horse and...(I'm assuming that there are no other horses around?) being lonely, she's making you the bottom rung.
you need to re-assert your dominance...round pen work is the kindest and is the only way I know to do this...read Ga Wa Ni Pony boy's training book, or rent a video from parrelli (my personal favorite) or clint anderson (another very good one) on how to round pen effectively.
She is bossing you around, and with a large animal/small human..this is very dangerous...I recomend you get to a round pen asap. She is longing for a herd leader...chances are she was an omega horse in her old residence, and is probably doing this to you because she's scared, unsure..and to quote cesar milan..unbalanced.
good luck to you and your horse.