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Re: [RC] OK: suggestions sought on rearing/brattiness (long) - powergaitHaving weighed in on the side of the 'smackers' (though I don't favor use of lumber or hitting on the head), I'm happy to hear any suggestions from 'no violence' folks would deal with my TWH gelding: this horse is extremely responsive, gives to the bit well, has great self-carriage. He is great in most situations except (1) when ridden in the fields where he is boarded, near but out of sight of the herd and (2) when returning from a trail ride, heading home, when asked to stop and stand (allowing a car to pass, say) before crossing the road. In both these situations he gets bratty and threatens to rear (sometimes does). Why don't you step off the horse and see if he will stand better for you. If he doesn't, then you know you need to do some more schooling. I am not a pacifist by any extent; I believe horses should behave and not put their handlers/riders in any danger. I believe there are times a horse must be smacked, but not when the problem may be caused by a lack of training. If the horse is already dancing and threatening to rear, do you think hitting them is going to make that behavior go away? IMO it would just make them even more anxious to get home to safety. The 'keeping the hind-end moving' approach does not help much when I need to KEEP HIM STILL to allow a car to pass (no room to circle on the side of the road). I have been giving him a good whack with the crop on the side of his neck and saying 'NO!'. Usually only takes one or two whacks to get him to stand. However, another woman also rides him (I recruited her to get him out more, since he has been acting herd-bound I thought that would help), and she does not like disciplining him. When he started bucking and rearing with her while riding on the farm (scenario # 1 above), her approach was to retreat to the ring and do ring-work til he settled down. Well, the horse needs more training, that's for sure, so she had the right idea. Well, the ring is in sight of the herd, so in that case I think he won (I was not present at the time). I am certain this behavior is not fear or pain induced: he is staging a temper tantrum to get his own way by trying to intimidate his rider (he is very alpha in the herd: acts like a stud, bosses all the pther horses). You are 100% correct in what your horse is doing. He could become a dangerous horse in short order if you don't act appropriately. A horse that rears for the purpose of throwing a tantrum could soon go over on his rider. I don't see how ground-work/suppling excercises would help in this situation, though I'd be happy to hear suggestions along those lines. Since this other rider is hestitant to discipline him: what do the pacifists on the list suggest she do? The horse needs more training by someone who isn't going to smack him around when he makes mistakes. The horse needs to be put in a position to be asked to do something where it won't be dangerous for the rider if he refuses (like oncoming traffic). If you ask him to stand still and he stands still for two seconds, he needs a reward. Work up from there. He will soon find it much more pleasant to do what he's asked than to balk. I had a young horse that was having the same temper tantrums. He was even rearing and spinning. I rode him into a corner of the yard where he always threw his tantrum. This horse knew what the "go forward" cues meant. He stopped and started backing, threatening to rear. I got the "whacker" and lightly smacked him one time on the rear, making sure I had NO pressure on the bit. I didn't care which direction he moved as long as it wasn't backwards. It took two light smacks to get him to move forward. After about three times of that, the horse quit refusing to move forward. JME P. =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= http://www.endurance.net/ads/seabiscuit.html Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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