Posts Tagged ‘horse behavior’

Everyone in our family is 5’10 or taller and relatively hefty. The lightest of us is 220 lbs. We’re interested in finally bringing a horse to our property but were worried we may be too ‘giant’. None of us have any riding experience but our daughter is experienced in horse behavior and care and we have a friend willing to work with us over proper riding techniques and we have a trainer lined up for any horse we bring on. We’re just wondering what breed of horses should we look for. Or if breed doesn’t matter, what height or ‘hands’ should we look for? Any advice is appreciated. Thank you.

Horses chew, we all know that, but if you’ve ever watched horses out in pasture they’ll perform types of grooming and bonding rituals with their teeth. Take a look sometimes and you’ll notice many times horses standing together while one is almost seemingly biting the flesh of the other. They’ll grab a little bunch of flesh and in a careful way kind of nip away with a little tug of the skin. This is very common and it’s a cooperative event where one horse allows the other. I’m quite sure I wouldn’t discourage such behavior amongst horses.

Now we (humans) come along and from day one we teach our horses- even from babies- not to bite. At the slightest indication the young horse is nipping us we’ll most likely retaliate with a little swat on the horses nose to discourage such a thing.

We spend a lot of time with horses; wouldn’t you suspect perhaps these wonderful sensitive animals would perhaps want to bond with us just as well? They’re practically like family aren’t they? Didn’t the Arab horses of old (maybe still) actually live in the houses of some people? Well yes. So why are we discouraging – well obviously having a horse even a baby horse come up to us and nip us on the neck just doesn’t make life pleasurable to say the least. Ok- so what’s the point, there is one.

The point is I’ve seen and worked with horses that were full of anxiety due to not being allowed to “Bond” with us. The urge for horses to nibble on us in a bonding way I believe is very strong. The point is rather than smacking your horse on the nose discouraging him and pushing him away perhaps we should find a way to be permissive of such horse behavior. But how is the question right? – Are you now thinking that perhaps I let my horses and other horses nibble on me? YES! I DO. I actually feed the side of my hand “Baby finger side” into a horse’s mouth palm facing up.

You’ll be amazed how many horses take the bait and commence with the nibbling. (Insert laughter here).

Here’s an example: I was called out on a job one day to shoe a horse, it was my first appointment with this horse. When I approached I immediately noticed the horse was full of tension and to a degree I’d never seen before. What puzzled me was there was no apparent reason for it, it was just part of his demeanor. Needless to say I was quite surprised by the behavior. To make a long story short when I fed this horse the side of my hand he took it and just practically melted right before my eyes, the tension just nearly completely dissipating. It was obvious this horse had been denied this urge to bond for quite some time, perhaps always.

Now by contrast I have been with other horses that when I encourage the nibbling behavior their reaction is one of almost “Fear” and panic! Obviously residual from being smacked anytime any part of the human body comes in contact with their mouth other than if there is “Food or a Bit” in hand. A pretty sad event when you think about it. The horse has the urge to bond and it gets beaten back by unsuspecting human beings. The horse literally filled with joy.

Ok – here is a word of caution if you’re intending to discover and pursue this for yourself. Some horses are so full of anxiety over being denied this that when you do first start to feed the side of your palm to them they’re going to clamp down quite hard (you must be careful and prepared and go slowly). Just sneak your hand in their mouth for a second and slip it out before they clamp down. And basically most horses will “Snap” the skin of the side of your hand with their teeth. So you’re pulling away slightly as they’re clamping down which causes the snap. They do it in the pasture as well; they pull the skin & snap.

So please be careful – every horse is different, you need to learn how to read them. Obviously I have an advantage because I’m a Farrier and I get to handle a lot of horses.

So should horses be allowed to chew on us? My answer is a resounding “Yes, but in a controlled manner. You’ll have a different horse as a result.

If you liked this story and would like to get your hands on a horseshoeing method that has a 16 year 100% track record “Not One Single Lame Horse” rush and click the website link down below in the Author Bio – do it before you and your horse loose out. Your horse will love you for it.

Thank you, happy riding and remember to Care4Horses.

Reprint rights allowed providing nothing is changed.

Author: John Silveira
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Mobile device news

Time and again, I hear about a horse behaving badly-a horse chases someone around a pasture, it kicks, it bites, it bucks, it won’t canter. While all of these issues sound different-they can all be traced right back to one and the same cause. A horse that exhibits bad behavior is more often than not just suffering from what I call alpha horse complex. That is, the owner of the horse has not truly established himself as the leader for the horse. The horse thinks that he is the leader, and all he is doing is behaving like an alpha horse does! The owner calls this bad behavior and feels like he needs to correct it. In truth, what we need to do as horse owners is take a step back and learn how horses think. Then apply our new knowledge to make ourselves the alpha mare or stallion of the herd, rather than letting our horses fill that role. Where to begin? In this article I’m going to mention 7 easy to apply exercises that will help you become a leader for your horse.

1. No more treats for your horses while working

When you are working your horse, do not give him any treats. Period. Giving treats to a prey animal does not reinforce good behavior the way we think it does. Instead, it makes the horse think of you as a cookie factory. This in turn makes the horse want to take advantage of you. So throw away the treats-during training. Give your horse a treat after you’ve been working with him and you’re finished.

2. Do not use treats to catch your horse

All too often horse people want to just grab their horse and go ride. But the truth is you’re establishing the bounds of your relationship with your horse the second you walk out to the pasture to get him. Your horse is sizing up your body posture, how you walk, and if you can be intimidated. That is he is seeing who is the leader in this relationship! You cannot bond successfully with a horse that you have to bribe to come into you. Instead of wagging carrots at your horse hoping he will come over, learn to catch your horse using body language horses already know.

3. Lead Your Horse Properly

Where is your horse when you’re leading him? Is he in front of you or creeping up on you? If so you aren’t leading properly. He is going where he wants to and not really minding you. Take some time to study proper leading of horses. Just by doing some simple leading exercises, you will find your relationship with your horse improves drastically.

4. Do join-up in the round pen

Longeing your horse in the round pen at liberty so that he joins-up or hooks-on with you is a great way to establish yourself as the leader of your horse.

5. Get the Attention of your Horse

If your horse is not focusing two eyes on you, then he is not paying full attention to you. He is looking off with the other eye for threats or maybe things more interesting than you are. To become a leader for your horse, you need to have both eyes.

6. Do backup exercises

The alpha mare or stallion in a herd gets the other horses to move out of the way. We can use this fact to communicate with our horses just by moving them around. A great way to do this is using backing up as a regular part of our groundwork routine. Backup exercises are an excellent way to get a horses attention when he is behaving badly.

7. Look for Precision

When you are communicating effectively with your horse, take things to a new level by looking for precise backups. Instead of asking your horse to back up 10 feet, ask him to backup just a hair. Start with 2 steps and then ask him to stop with a “whoa”. When you have that down, ask him to backup a single step. Progress from that so that you can get your horse to shift his muscles backwards without even taking a step. When you establish that kind of precise control with your horse, you are not only communicating with him effectively but also establishing leadership. A horse you can control precisely on the ground is a better riding horse.

That concludes our look at 7 tricks to eliminate bad horse behavior. If your horse is being dominant in any way, apply these 7 steps and build the foundation you need for a successful horse-human relationship.

Author: David McMahon
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Canada duty

Cribbing is a compulsive behavior, which horses sometimes develop as a result of boredom, typically resulting from being left in a box much of the day with nothing to do. It consists of the horse firmly biting an object, arching its neck while pulling on the object, and sucking in air. It is believed that this triggers the release of chemicals (endorphins) in the brain, giving a pleasurable sensation. Cribbing is also known as ‘wind sucking’ or ‘crib biting’.

The horse cribbing habit is sometimes mistaken for wood chewing. Both activities involve biting on wood and causing damage to it. However, they are really different habits. With wood chewing, the horse simply nibbles on wood, typically to occupy itself and to meet its natural desire to chew. With cribbing, the horse does not chew on the wood but simply grabs it so that it can stretch its neck so that it can suck in air. Examination of the damaged wood will show the difference as in one case it will be nibbled away whereas in the other it will show signs of being firmly bitten and then pulled.

Over time, cribbing will wear down and damage the horse’s teeth. The pulling motion results in an abnormal muscle development in the neck, making it thicker. A number of other illnesses, such as colic, are associated with cribbing but the relationship of these illnesses is unknown (e.g. does the colic pain promote the habit, or does the cribbing air sucking cause the colic, or are both colic and cribbing simply more likely in horses which lack pasture time).

Ideally, one should prevent the development of the cribbing behavior by providing the horse with as natural and interesting environment as possible. Once a horse has cribbing, the situation is more difficult, but one can greatly reduce the frequency of cribbing by providing a mentally stimulating environment. The first step is to provide as much pasture time as possible. One should also make the feeding regime as natural as possible, consisting of pasture grass if possible and hay as a second choice; foods such as grains which can be quickly eaten with minimum chewing are the least desirable. In addition, many small feeds are preferable to a few large feeds, as this helps break up the day. Any other activities which provide interest, such as exercise and grooming, will make a positive contribution.

An interesting environment will normally prevent the development of cribbing, and help already cribbing horses to reduce the amount of cribbing. Unfortunately, once the habit is established, this in itself will seldom cure it completely. One needs to combine this action with treatment to physically prevent the horse from cribbing, in order to eventually break the habit.

A common treatment is the ‘cribbing strap’ which is a strap that fits around the neck with a metal plate underneath to making swelling the neck to suck air uncomfortable; this device is also known as a cribbing collar. One can also use a specially-designer muzzle which allows the horse to eat but prevents it grasping fence rails or other objects with its teeth. Putting a fencing wire (with electrical current) on top of fence rails will also keep the horse from cribbing on them. There are also a number of paints which are designed to have a foul taste which one can paint rails and other objects with to discourage cribbing on them (make sure that any product you use is veterinary approved). Some people find that anti-depressant medication helps. If none of the above techniques work, the final approach is surgical, consisting of cutting certain neck muscles and nerves and thereby preventing the cribbing activity.

Successful treatment of cribbing requires that one both improve its conditions (more activity, less boredom) and that one physically discourage cribbing using one or more of the above techniques. Either method on its own is likely to have only limited success.