Re: RC: Stallion Behavior

[CMKSAGEHIL@aol.com]

In a message dated Wed, 20 Jun 2001 10:14:36 PM Eastern Daylight Time, SandyDSA@aol.com writes:

<< No indeed! I don't EVER want someone allowing their horse to go nose to nose   
with mine, mare gelding or stallion! Horses by NATURE don't go up in each   
others' faces, in the face of strange horses without the possibility of   
threat. I would never punish my horse for resisting an in-your-face encounter   
with a strange horse. This is NOT the same as sharing a water trough or   
standing politely side by side. NOSE TO NOSE opens the door to getting struck   
by a front hoof, stepped on by a horse trying to get out of the way of   
another horse, and in 20 YEARS I have never seen two horses who are strangers   
jolly right up to each other without some level of formal introduction. >>

Sandy, I have to agree with Jim's point here.  You are right that no one SHOULD bring a horse nose to nose with another horse, regardless of gender.  But the point here is that there are folks out there who don't know any better, and it behooves one to have a horse with sufficient manners (regardless of gender) who will not misbehave despite the insult.

When such things happen to my stallions, I get them out of the situation as quickly as I can, and then reinforce their good behavior by soothing them and telling them that they are good.  I don't want to tempt fate by LEAVING them in a situation that under all rules of horse behavior will cause a ruckus--but on the other hand, I expect them to remember their manners long enough for me to rescue them from the insult.  A little indignant muttering is one thing--but a full-scale reaction is simply meeting wrong behavior with another wrong behavior.

Heidi