Loading problem - unusual solution

A while a ago I was asked to help Jane (name changed) with her horse Reiss and his loading issues with their lorry.

Initially Reiss was like many horses who reared, spun to the side of the ramp, backed away etc to avoid loading but after a short time he was placing his front feet on the ramp. A little while longer and he had his back feet on the ramp, I noticed at this point that he was stood on his tip toes with his hind feet and never having seen this before was a little concerned. Jane agreed to stop the session there and then and get him checked over by a physio.



The physio found that Reiss had probably taken a stumble and fall in his paddock which caused him to have pain/discomfort in his pelvic area, chest and back.

A few weeks later once he had the all clear, we started again and after a short period of time I asked Jane if she would be comfortable with taking over while I made suggestions from the side lines. Both Jane and Reiss worked away for a while and then I got the shock of my life - Reiss calmly reversed in!

It turned out that Jane had learned to back Reiss through or around things he wasn't comfortable with and over time he has learnt to trust her, so when he started to back in she didn't correct him. I have seen horses load in a variety of ways over the years but never backwards before.

After letting Reiss have a look around Jane unloaded him and then asked him to load again, thankfully Reiss chose to load in the normal manner and went up the ramp forwards. With a little bit of homework Jane has now reported that she has a good loader and that they are both exploring the big wide world that is out there.

So, keep an open mind and if your horse tries something allow him/her to follow it through, you never know he/she might just get it right even if it is in a round about way.

Sympathy and your horse or pony's behaviour

I so often hear horrific stories about a horse and its past mistreatment and it's good that a new owner can tell me the history of a horse, as I need as much information as possible in order to devise a re-training programme. However, the most important information I inevitably get from the new owner is that because of the horses history, he/she has been treating the horse with extra kindness and sympathy.

This is very admirable BUT in most cases can inadvertently create behavioural issues.

Horses need EMPATHY far more than they need SYMPATHY.

Oxford Dictionary
Empathy = identifying yourself mentally with another person and understanding him or her.
Sympathy = a feeling of pity or tenderness towards someone who is hurt, sad or in trouble.

By understanding your horse and how he/she would behave within a herd we can help them overcome their past in a far better way than we can by going softly softly. In nature, softness equals weakness and your horse or pony will probably feel the need to take charge. As I'm sure we all know, when a horse or pony takes charge and behaves like our leader all sorts of issues arise (some quite painfully).

In human life isn't it much better to work for a boss who is confident, firm but fair with a smidgen of consideration? It's the same for your horse, watch a few herds and you'll see that NO herd leader is weak and watery. Some might bully their way to the top but the rest of the herd goes along with it begrudgingly, whereas a happy herd will be led by a horse that is confident, firm but fair.

Lets assume a horse has in the past had a beating with a broom (it happens). A sympathetic owner would 'make allowances' if the horse shied whenever he/she saw a broom. An empathetic owner would show understanding by carefully and gradually teaching the horse that a broom is no longer something to fear. Which approach do you think is better for the horse?

Stable vices???

I came across a so called 'horse whisperer' web site the other day which looked well laid out and professionally finished etc - BUT - I was very surprised to read the following passage:

"Any horse owner who has experienced the maddening scenario of a cribbing horse (a horse that chews and wind sucks on fences, borders, etc.) knows all too well how quickly this poor behavior can spread. If you are not careful about isolating a cribbing horse, or do not take steps to prevent the behavior, before you know it nearly the entire barn can break out in a cacophony of horse belches."

It worries me that many readers will believe the above statement to be true and unfortunately I've heard the same statement made on many yards I've visited. Usually it's said in a loud authoritative voice, by a rosy cheeked lady in her 50's wearing green or blue wellies with one of those quilted waist coats with a couple of badges pinned to it.

Vets are finding more and more these days that horses who perform these so called 'stable vices' also suffer from ulcers.

I strongly believe that horses do not copy habits from other horses. If they did surely we would all have super well behaved ones that loaded well, didn't kick the farrier (or us) that rode like a grand prix champion etc etc. We would stable our horse next to one who 'behaves' well and let it watch and learn without us having to do anything.

I believe the reason this myth has come about is down to the environment the horse is living under. I've been to a good number of yards (full livery and DIY) where I've been told that the owner has put a one hay net limit per horse per night. Obviously this is down to cost and wastage. Trouble is, a horses stomach is designed to trickle feed throughout the day for up to 22 hours. If a hay net is put up at 8pm probably by 11pm the hay net will be empty. So, the horse could be stood in a stable for 9 long hours with nothing to eat. During this time the stomach juices (acid) are still doing their bit, but because there is no food to break down it acts on the stomach lining instead, causing ulcers. By performing a so called 'stable vice' it is now believed to be the horses way of relieving the discomfort of these ulcers.

As with humans, some horses are more susceptible and will start to show signs earlier than others. So, on a yard of say 8 horses one of them starts to show signs of a 'stable vice', 2 weeks later another horse starts to show the same signs - WALLAH "copied behaviour". Wrong - as all the horses are under the same feeding regime it's far more likely that the second horse could cope slightly better but has now succumbed.

It would be much safer to put sufficient hay in so that there is some still left in the morning. If you're worried your horse will pile on the weight, change to small-holed hay nets. If you're already using small nets double the nets to make the horse works harder to get at the hay. It'll keep them busy and allow natural trickle feeding.

Bad horse behaviour or Pain????

More and more I'm being asked to deal with a horse's 'naughty behaviour' when in fact a good vet would be better qualified to help in the first stage.

I've said it before and I'll say it again - a horse is a horse - they do not think or behave like us humans. Generally they want a peaceful and easy life and will put up with our ways in order to get it. They don't wake up one day and think . . . .
'I think I'll start to buck just to see if she's a good rider'.

So when a horse or pony "suddenly starts to rear/buck/kick/bite/spook/barge for no reason", please take a little time and try to work out why. Nine times out ten you will probably find it is pain related. It could be his teeth, tack, shoes, diet, any number of muscles, ligaments, tendons, infections etc etc. They have no other way of communicating to us other than by being out of character.

If we think of any and all the ailments we humans can get - why can't a horse get the same. If we trip over something don't we pull a muscle or bruise or slip a disc or fracture a bone or strain a tendon? Sometimes it takes days or weeks for us to be effected by an accident and it's the same for them.

If a horse suddenly starts to demonstrate unwanted behaviour there is probably a very good reason for it. It is in our duty of care to eliminate pain or discomfort long before we consider rectifying behaviour.

Remember - bad behaviour in a horse is a symptom.

How do you lead your horse?

How you lead your horse determines how your horse views your place in it's herd.

A very large British equine organisation teaches handlers to lead at the horses shoulder which immediately puts the handler in a subordinate position and increases the risk of injury.

When ever you see a mare running with a foal the foal is always at the mares shoulder, this gives the foal protection and allows it to follow the mare's changes in direction. By placing yourself in this position you are putting your horse in charge and many horses find this uncomfortable. If you are unable to see over the horses withers/neck how are you able to anticipate any difficulties that might arise from the blind side? If your horse takes a spook he/she will probably jump into you in an attempt to get away from the 'grab me gotcha' that has just leapt out of the hedge. When leading at the shoulder how do you perform a right turn at a junction? Usually, and I've seen it done so many times, the handler will turn the horse in a circle to the left and as they come out of the circle lead the horse forward.

Another large 'Natural Horsemanship' organisation based in America teaches it's students to lead with the horse following behind. Again this puts the handler in a subordinate position and increases the rick of injury.

We all know that in any type of herd one horse will lead from the front and another pushes from behind. By placing yourself in front of the horse you are allowing the horse to drive you forward. When the inevitable 'grab me gotcha' leaps out at the horse from behind you are likely to be trampled in the rush to get away.

It is far better to lead with the horse's head at your shoulder. Your position is that of an equal to the horse. You have good clear all round vision so nothing unexpected can happen. If the horse does spook into you all that is likely to happen is his/her head will knock into you. When you come to a junction and wish to turn right all you need do is take a slightly larger step and walk towards the horses head, he/she will move their head away and the body will follow.

By keeping your hand away from the horses head you are not creating an 'in-to pressure' scenario where the horse moves forward at a quickened pace. The only time my hand goes near the horse is to indicate a signal which might be slow down, speed up, move away, come closer, get ready to stop and stop. Once the signal has been given my hand returns to it's original relaxed state.

Static build up in horse rugs?

I recently had a very interesting telephone conversation with an owner and thought I should share it with you all. I asked the owner to post her story on my forum and here is the slightly edited version.

I hope you guys will find my story interesting - and maybe along the way it will help some other distressed horse owners !!

My 8 yr old mare lives out 24/7 all summer and is stabled at night during the winter between the months of October and April. When my mare comes in for the winter her behaviour becomes bizarre, irratic, unexplainable and inconsistent.
The main issue was always that when turned out for the first few weeks she would graze but at points during the day she would simply bolt from one end of the field to the other with no regard for her safety she would even run at gates and "forget" to stop. She lost all her herd instincts. Worried and having many sleepless nights I had her blood tested as it was suggested to me that she may have a hormonal imbalance, two weeks later still waiting for test results (her blood has been sent to the States!!). After these first few weeks of being a looney in the field she would lose all her basic instincts ie. leave the rest of the herd, not roll, but more importantly not eat, she would simply stand by the gate and refuse to move or eat. My attempts to lead her away from the gate ended in disaster (ie. running blindly back towards it) I tried to tempt her with food (my horse is food obsessed) she wouldn't leave the "security" of the gate.
My horse was only interested in my company and being safely tucked up in her stable 24/7. This is NOT normal.
I spoke with Steve Thompson who suggested that if it wasn't hormonal it was possibly food related so we agreed to gradually switch her from haylage to hay for a week or so and see if it made any difference.*
On Saturday it was too icy to ride her so I took her for a walk with her fleece rug on - on the way back it seemed to be rubbing a bit so I took it off and she walked home "naked". When I got back to the yard it was a little too early for stabling her for the night so I put her in the field "naked" just for a few minutes whilst i put the other horses beds down. When I went back to get her she had "disappeared". After everything I had been through I thought she had been abducted by aliens!!!! but NO she was grazing away from the gate.
The following morning - the coldest of the year so far she was turned out with rug - stood at gate. Rug off - Bye Bye horse she trotted off to join her friends and eat.
It was suggested to me that she may be getting too much static from her rug - which was interesting. I have 3 rugs 1 Amigo Turnout rug - which is Nylon lined and 2 Weatherbeta Rugs 1 Nylon lined and the other cotton lined. She is NOT happy in the Nylon lined rugs she is a little happier in the cotton lined one but seems to prefer to be rugless (even in the worst weather conditions). For a TB X this is bizarre, you would expect her to be shivering and a miserable wreck but I have to say she is a different horse without her rug. The RSPCA may come knocking but my horse, for the first time in weeks is a VERY HAPPY HORSE, so I am a VERY HAPPY HORSE OWNER.
So if any of you guys out there have a similar problem - bite the bullet, take off the rug and see what happens.

Once this was pointed out to me it seemed so obvious, after all there are so many people out there who can't wear certain materials because it makes them ill, builds up too much static or brings them out in a rash, so why can't it do the same for horses. I will certainly be adding this to my list of possible reasons for unusual behaviour in the future.

* I reasoned that as no previous owners had fed the horse haylage and reported no unusual behaviour that there might just be a link.

Listen to your Horse

As a species we humans are so good at talking, but how often do we really listen to each other let alone our horses. We all know someone who has said "my partner never listens to me" or "so and so doesn't understand me".

You would not believe how many times I've heard the phrase "my horse ??????? for no reason at all". When ever I hear this I have to stop my self from laughing out loud or rolling my eyes, neither of which are good for business.

Horses are 're-actionary', they react to events around them, generally by running away (spooking), fighting us (kicking, biting etc) or in our eyes misbehaving (bucking, spinning etc), they don't process a thought with all it's variables and consequences as we humans can.

If a horse spooks it's because it's instincts have kicked in and gone into survival mode. If a horse fights (as described above) it is generally either in pain or discomfort and gone into survival mode. If a horse 'misbehaves' (as described above) it is again generally in pain or discomfort and gone into survival mode.

If a horse spooks he/she is saying to you in the only way they can "I'm not a hundred percent confident in your ability to see me through this situation".

If a horse fights you he/she is saying to you in the only way they can "that is uncomfortable or painful please stop it now". Be aware that horses often react to 'remembered' pain or discomfort. The cause of pain or discomfort might have been taken away but the horse has now learned to expect pain or discomfort in a similar situation.

If a horse misbehaves he/she is saying to you in the only way they can "now look, I've been telling you for weeks I'm not happy about ????? and you haven't listened, maybe you'll listen to me now".

I cringe whenever I see a horse tacked up and fitted with a flash or restrictive gadget because I know at some point in the future there is going to be an issue. If I ask the owner/rider why the flash I'm usually told their mouth is open, or tongue over the bit etc. More often than not I get a blank look when I ask why their horse is doing that. If a horse has his/her mouth open they are saying "I'm uncomfortable in some way", by fitting a flash or gadget of some sort all this does is take that line of communication away from the horse and he/she will need to find another way of expressing themselves, usually by napping. A better course of action would be to eliminate the cause rather than the symptom.

As horse owners we have taken on the responsibility for their welfare and well being, we should learn to listen when they speak to us and not wait for them to shout.

Instinctive horse behaviour

I'm sure many of you will be able to relate to this. You are in the stable happily grooming your horse when he/she inadvertently steps on your foot. Instinctively you place your hands on their shoulder and attempt to push them off your now throbbing foot, only to find that your horse is now adding even more weight on to your dainty tootsies.
Believe it or not but there is a very good reason for this and no, it's not out of vindictiveness on your horses part I can assure you, your horse is merely acting on instinct by moving into the pressure of your pushing hands.
Horses have learnt to move 'into' pressure over the 55 million years they have roamed the earth in order to survive, and it is only through regular training that we can get them to respond to leg aids etc. This instinctive response to move 'into' the pressure came when a horse was attacked by a predator. If say a wolf grabbed a horse by the belly and the horse ran off it's belly would rip open and the horse would die. Horses soon learned that if they step 'into' the pressure of the bite the wolf would think "ooop's, I could get stepped on and end up with a broken leg and then I might die", the wolf would let go and the horse could then run away to live another day.
If ever you get a chance to handle a foal, place your hand on it's shoulder and you will see that the foal instinctively pushes back into your hand.
Now take a moment and think about your own instincts and how hard it is to counteract an instinctive response, and remember, we humans have only been around for approximately 60,000 years compared to the horses 55 million years.

Be aware also that pressure is not only physical it is also spacial. I have seen so many handlers taught to lead a horse with their hand on the lead rope clip and struggle because the horse is too forward going, why, because the fact that their arm is extended out to the horses head and the horse see this as pressure and so moves forward 'into' it. Horses lead so much better if the handler keeps his/her hand close to their own body rather than the horses.

Carrots and Horse Behaviour

Over the years I have advised many clients who feed their horse carrots to try an experiment and stop feeding carrots for a week to see if there was any change in their behaviour.

On average 9 out of 10 horse owners would report back that they had indeed noted a change in their horse. Sometimes it would be a small change and with others it would show a definite improvement in their behaviour. An experience from a few years back highlights the above.

An owner came to see me saying his horse would nap dangerously if they ever hacked a route they had done before; he couldn’t even hack out of the yard. He would have to transport the horse to a totally new destination in order to ride. I was fully booked for the next two weeks and made an arrangement for a visit sometime after. During our conversation I asked what he was feeding the horse and he mentioned carrots to which I suggested he cut out the carrots for a week. I made no other recommendation as I felt I would need to witness the horse’s behaviour. Four days later I received I phone call cancelling our appointment as he could now hack out of the yard.

So, if you have a problem horse or he/she shows a certain behaviour pattern, try cutting out the carrots. It’s free, does no harm and you never know - it could well make a difference to you and your horse.

BHS Instructor - “Take up the contact!”

Some time ago I had the privilege of being invited to watch a friend of mine who was a ‘qualified’ Riding Instructor give a lesson to a beginner. The rider arrived suitably attired, carrying the obligatory crop and leading her precious little pony. The rider looked excited and eager to learn, that is until things started to go wrong.
The Instructor told the rider to “take up the contact and squeeze with your legs to get him to move off”. After a number of attempts to get the pony to move off the Instructor then said “take up some more contact and squeeze harder, if he doesn’t move off give him a smack with your crop”. At this point I was starting to feel very uncomfortable and thinking of making excuses to go, the pony however was obviously feeling even more uncomfortable.
He started to move backwards, sideways, spin around in fact everything he could think of except go forward. Needless to say the lesson was a disaster with all three participants feeling very frustrated.
When the rider was out of earshot I suggested to the Riding Instructor that maybe the pony was a tad confused and was trying to do his best with the contradictory signals being given to him, to which I received a blank but brooding glare. I pointed out that ‘maybe’ the pony thought . . . . . . . pulling back on the metal in my mouth means slow down or stop BUT squeezing legs means go forward or speed up so my human must want me to do something different, ok I’ll try backing up etc. At this point I was told “what do you know anyway, have you done all the exams I’ve done to become a QUALIFIED RIDING INSTRUCTOR, I DON’T THINK SO”. I was then left with an image of my friend’s back as she stomped off muttering something under her breath. Unfortunately she has chosen to have no further contact with me since.
Why is it that there are so many people in the horsey world who wear blinkers? Why are so many of them fixed and rigid in their beliefs and ideas? If the rider had been told to give the pony the reins and not use them as a balancing aid and then squeeze with legs surely the pony would have known that it was ok to move forward?
Until people learn to think about their actions, question what they have been taught and try to think things through from a horse’s point of view I’ll certainly never be out of a job!