EXPERIENCED horse folk only, please! Abused horse ...?

Question

I have had horses 34 years and I've never seen anything like a pony I just bought from an auction. He was ridden by kids with a halter in the ring, very obedient. NOT drugged. He was shy in the stall, but led very well, and loaded like a dream. When I got him home, I could not get near him. He did get tangled in some vines when running from me, and when I worked him loose, he shook and shivered, blowing in fear. We finally cornered him and caught him again, and he is terrified of people, expecially men.
He is such a nice pony - POA and Arabian - and will make a very classy pony for some experienced kid one day if I can get him over the fear. He must have been a great pony for someone once before, but some monster has terrified him. Any suggestions aside from gentle handling and t ender loving care? He doesn't have a mean bone in his body. I want to help him trust humans again. He deserves better, and the creep who hurt him deserves to be beaten himself.

Answer 1

You are going to have to work with this guy on his terms, and in his time. Take baby steps.
First, because he seems so traumatized and therefore doesn't want to be caught, put him in a small corral that's safe for him. This gives him the illusion of being able to get away, and not feel trapped, but enables you to get within a decent distance from him.
He will learn over time that you (and it should be the same person every day) are the source of food and water.
Go about your everyday activities in his corral (mucking, cleaning buckets etc) like you would every other horse....."ignore" him. In time his curiosity will get the better of him once he realizes you aren't going to hurt him, and he will venture to find out what you are doing.
Let him do all the work.
Sometimes you could just go sit in the corral with him, just let him get used to your presence without you doing anything, or asking anything of him. Then when you see a slight change (more relaxed eye, will eat in your presence, takes a step towards you), then you could take another step in working with him.
Hope this helps. Email me if you have any more questions.

Answer 2

You make my day and are a breath of fresh air! I have had thousands of horses literally pass through my hands during the course of my life and have only ever seen a couple that I would honestly say were abused and often wonder about the disproportionate amount of horses that owners claim to be abused on this board. I even get the impression some people relish the telling of how bad the previous owner was and how they have "saved" it from a fate worse than death. Even horses that come from rescues are not all abused, some have just gotten too much for inexperienced owners or the owners have run into problems and for one reason or another cannot afford to keep them. It appears to me that people on this board think that racing is barbaric, showing is cruel, breaking is inhumane, keeping a horse stalled is torture and the only thing a "true horeselover" should do is keep them in a field and stare at them. Not sure though how they come to the conclusion though it's ok to ride them though? Reading between the lines on many on these threads leads me to believe that a lot of problems are caused by the inexperience of the owner and the fact that the horse has realized this and taken advantage of the situation. When I go to a pasture with 50 mares, there are always the ones that don't want to be caught, maybe because it knows it's going to the breeding barn to get infused again or maybe because it just plain prefers to be out with it's buddies. I don't think for one minute it's been abused. Abuse to me is deliberate and with the intent or knowledge to cause an animal to suffer, eg leaving a horse with no food or water for a month. Any rational person knows that is going to cause the animal to suffer. Discipling a horse that weighs a ton is the responsible thing to do before it does serious damage to itself or others. It's like my son, if you don't teach him right from wrong and what behavour is acceptable, you are setting not only yourself up for trouble but him too later in life. Great question and I'm going to give you a star! It's refreshing to see that not all reason has left the building. (spell check isn't working so I apologize for any mistakes)

Answer 3

I'm sorry to say- but it does sound like a drugging case. The remarkable thing when you Ace a horse- it won't show the usual signs of being drugged. Since this horse was able to be ridden, caught and even load when you purchased him- the best thing I can tell you is to start doing ground work with the little guy in a round pin until he gets comfortable with you. If you had a vet check done and blood was drawn, a small dose of ACE would be almost undetectable in such a small guy. I've seen cases like this in my practice where I went with a client to look at a prospect. I did the blood work on the what seemed like a calm, respectful, unabused horse and blood work came back clear for bute and tranq. drugs. When given at the right time and in a very small dose- just enough to calm the equine- some Tranq drugs won't show up on blood work.
When you went to view him for the purchase he may have seemed like a laid back guy that would at some moments perk up and then settle down again but never be out of control. He may have had a little bit of dullness in the eye and have late reactions to things happening to him- like flinching 15 seconds after a fly landed on his face or taking a few moments to compose himself before walking off.

Keep him in a small corral and start a regular schedule feeding time where you and only you feed him. He'll get use to you feeding him and that will make him more comfortable. If you are able, hold the feed bucket and ask him to take at least one or two mouthfuls with you standing there. Set the bucket down after he does so and walk away- progress with holding the bucket more and more until you can scratch your nose or move around without him startling. Other than that and the proper ground work- there's not much more you can do but show him he has a nice loving home where he won't be hurt.

Answer 4

Yes, I agree the monster who did this should be beaten. Why are people so cruel and evil? I would never do anything to scare or mistreat any animal. A person who does those things can not be trusted. If they could abuse a poor frightened animal, what do they do to humans.

I'd say just keep doing what your doing. It' gonna take time as you well know. First , let him learn to trust you, then gradually work on his trusting others. Poor baby needs to see that not all humans are evil. It doesn't make sense that he acted so well at the auction, but reacted so badly to your place. Maybe something you have in your corral scared him or brought back memories of his abuser. Good luck and bless your heart for giving him a loving home.

Answer 5

It's going to take a lot of time, a lot of work and a lot of patience and the sad reality is that he might never completely get over the fear. We had a horse at the stable where I ride at that was an abuse victim... he was fine with women and could be handled safely and riden, but he is still terrified of men. They had finally gotten him to the point where he could stand having the farrier work on his feel and he could be groomed, but he still won't tolerate a man riding him. It's pretty sad.

Without knowing exactly what was done to him, it's had to judge how he'll respond to treatment but give him plenty of time. Let him get used to being around you and wait for him to get comfortable. He'll let you know when you are pushing too hard.

Oh, and if you ever find who did that to such a sweet pony, be sure to smack him upside the head with a 2x4.

Answer 6

Now I don't have near as much experience of you, but one thing I recommend is putting a radio down in the barn if you don't already. Hearing humans' voices all day will help your pony to be accustomed to the sound. It is obviously going to take a long time before you can do much with him. I would let him see how your other horses trust you, and just sit in the stall with him, or even down in the barn and pass chunks of hay to him. Good luck, and God bless you for taking this poor pony under your care!

Answer 7

I know you're asking for people with experience specifically with horses and I haven't worked with horses in ages. But I can try to help!

Do you have a stable or let them roam?

I would imagine with any frightened animal that it's best to give them space in a new environment as it can be pretty scary! Women have very calming voices and horses are always listening. I would advise talking soothingly to the horse, using deeper, softer tones with your voice. I would make brief visits and take treats. Some yummy apples and carrots are always enticing. Maybe just leave them at first so the horse can eat them on it's own. Try conditioning the horse by calling out softly when you're coming near, even when first dropping the treats off. Pretty soon the horse should come to realize that when you're coming, you're baring gifts and should start to warm up to you. Then you can give the good scratches and brushing.. :)

Remember to keep your hand open, with your palm facing upwards too..most strikes are from fists, or slapping, so make sure you don't accidentally make those movements. And be slow...

This is going to take time and patience, but just understand trust is hard earned, especially after abuse (for all things!).

Good luck! It sounds like you'll do just fine..! :)

Answer 8

If you can find a woman willing to help you then see if she can work with the pony. Sometimes they are just so afraid of the gender that hurt them.
I have a PercheronX mare who only likes men b/c a woman owned her and always used brooms on her horses. SHe loves men but can now tollerate women too.

Answer 9

What I would do is put him in a round pen or a arena and just stay in the middle and when he wants to he will come around...go out there for 1 or 2 hours at a time a day and fed him there.Kindda like the movie "Flicka"
GOOD LUCK!
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Answer 10

Alright, your new horse is very nervous with his new owner and he is still trying to figure out if you are going to hurt him and if you are safe to go near. This is going to take a lot of time, not going to lie-- but it will be worth every second.

You are going to need to build up trust with this horse, take him in an indoor arena and let him loose, this way he wont feel as if you are going to completely control him and "take him hostage" on a lead line... it allows a healthy distance for both of you... Go in with him and walk over to him slowly with treats in your hand, as you bring your hand to him if he retreats then you retreat-- its called the "approach-and-retreat" method of training. It is also known as Desensitizing a horse.

#By using the approach-and-retreat method, a horse can be trained to accept new objects in his surroundings while eliminating her fear, and most importantly without emotional damage. Through repetition of the approach-and-retreat method, the horse soon learns to trust you when it encounters new things that may seem frightening to her. She begins to trust your judgement and leadership skills, which is MOST important for you and your new horse to establish!!!

The approach-and-retreat method works this way: you begin to walk towards the horse with an object that you'd like the horse to become accustomed to, or less scared of ( even if that includes you holding a carrot ) Watch the horse's body posture very closely. The instant you think the horse may even be thinking of moving away, you immediately turn and walk away from the horse. Wait a few seconds (or until the horse has relaxed), then repeat.

By your walking away, the horse is instantly rewarded for her behavior of standing still without restraints. She is rewarded for not thinking that her fears about the object are strong enough to turn and run away. She is rewarded for those few seconds of trust that she gave you. She learns that your request (asking her to accept a scary object - let's say 100 feet away) was not so hard after all. The next time you ask for the same request, you may be able to walk 99 feet from her, then 98 feet, then 97 feet, etc. Through repetition, she is soon no longer afraid of the object and HER TRUST IN YOU HAS GROWN.

Walking away (or removing the stimulus/scary object/etc.) EACH TIME is the most important part of the approach-and-retreat method. When you walk away, the horse thinks "Whew, I thought that was going to be scary, but I guess I was wrong". Through repetition, this thought gets saved in the horse's long-term memory which eventually takes over her fear of the object.

This approach-and-retreat method works very well from the very simple things such as approaching the horse in the corral or pasture to be petted, or haltered, to more complex things like lungeing and riding. Being able to approach the horse and interact with the horse in ways such as petting, brushing and leading are the very first training steps that should be taken with every horse, whether they are wild or gentled. Until these first lessons are learned very well by the fillies, the training should not progress any further than that.