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Post by janetgeorge on Dec 21, 2006 19:00:39 GMT 1
THat sounds pretty plausible. Given the lack of predators in the UK I used to wonder if a horse really could recognise the smell of a possible predator, since I'd have thought it was learned rather than inherent. Oh yes - they do! Try riding a horse past a circus that has big cats (but only if you're feeling suicidal.) Mind you, the smell of a camel will set them off too - if they're not used to them. They have such a good sense of smell that anything they don't know will frighten them - or wind them up. Working with racing colts and stallions we had to be very careful with deodorants and perfume - a few of the colts would get VERY 'interested' in you otherwise ; same at 'that time of the month'! They'd know. There's a reason for this pony's behaviour. Hopefully rusheen will have got some thoughts from this thread that will help her investigate and determine WHY he behaved in this manner. In the meantime, obviously, he needs to be closely monitored and supervised.
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Post by fin on Dec 22, 2006 15:37:40 GMT 1
Lol! I'd quite like to see what my ned would make of a big cat or any other animal that might like to eat him. His past record with other species is pretty abysmal--dogs, cats, birds, goats, ponies, anything smaller than him is there to be chased, bullied, stamped on and generally sent back down the food chain (preferably bruised and limping) .....if he got a whiff of something more carnivorous it might actually make him think twice! He's a really nice horse really, honestly--very bold and friendly. He's just a bit odd....
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gillmcg
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Post by gillmcg on Dec 22, 2006 17:35:41 GMT 1
Interesting thread - the only person my horse has ever bitten was a 12 year old child. She WAS grooming his shoulder with a dandy brush mind you and he's quite a sensitive soul! She is the daughter of a friend and very assertive and confident and, I think more importantly from his point of view, jockey-size (he's an ex-racehorse). Wonder if he ever took a chunk out of Kieran Fallon..... On a more serious note - I'd have to say that unless the original poster can get to the bottom of this (and it turns out to be a problem with one particular child) they can't take a chance with this pony in a riding school, people sue these days.
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Post by samcspottyhorses on Dec 24, 2006 20:00:35 GMT 1
Where I leanred to ride there was a pony who used to live behind a pub with lots of people feeding/petting/poking/teasing her. You had to be careful around this one, as she was prone to giving you a swift kick in the thigh, or biting your arm. But this was because of previous treatment and how she had learnt to be. She got better over the years, gradually, but never quite lost the defensive behaviour.
Maybe something from the past made this pony behave like that? Sounds like a food issue to me.
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Post by zenjane on Dec 26, 2006 14:10:28 GMT 1
Why would two ponies bite the girl on the same day? Was she inviting the attacks or in some way irritating the ponies? I just think it's very strange that she would be bitten twice in the same day by two normally good natured ponies. Has this pony been aggressive towards other children or people before or since? Perhaps he just doesn't care for this child, sweet as she may be. Perhaps she needs a different lesson pony. I agree that this behavior isn't a normal reaction. A bite is generally a warning and not delivered with much punch behind it unless the horse is really attacking. What was the circumstance with the other pony bite?
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Post by zenjane on Dec 26, 2006 14:17:25 GMT 1
Sorry! Next time I will look to see if there are any other pages to read before I post a reply
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Post by jill on Dec 27, 2006 18:35:29 GMT 1
zenjane I've done that so many times lol
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el
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Posts: 710
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Post by el on Dec 31, 2006 1:58:16 GMT 1
Hi Rusheen, It could be a behavioual thing, or possible a medical issue. Jim Mulcahy is the vet we use outside Tipperary town - he does all our horses, has a lot of experience, and I'd recommend him for a vet check. His numbers in the book. Out of charactor behaviour can be caused by internal medical issues, tumors, etc. Has the pony had any other strange (unrelated or not) behaviour? Behavioural wise, if the pony is a bit 'dominant' thats definitely one thing you can start working on straight away. Groundwork, leading (does pony stop when you do?), lateral, etc. Write out all the different things pony does to display alpha behaviour then design a groundwork program to address each of them. After that, see if he behaves well with everyone, or are there specific people / types of people he does behave well with, and find out why. Has his feed been changed recently? Is he possessive about food, other horses, one other horse in particular, herd bound, etc? Do give Jim Mul a ring, and hopefully in the meantime you'll be able to work on groundwork with him and maybe stumble accross some other reason.......I'm in New Zealand at the minute, but will be back in Tipp in Feb... if you like I can come up and do a groundwork evaluation with him to see how much of this is behavioural? The child may have caused this in some way, but still a pony shouldn't react like this. Best wishes, Elaine H.
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el
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Post by el on Dec 31, 2006 4:16:10 GMT 1
One other thing...... At the minute I'm working at an NH riding school & horse treks in New Zealand. The 11 horse are all trained up to level 1 ANH & all are handled and trained with NH methods. All riders are instructed in leadership, horse psychology & behaviour, and NH riding before they are allowed to ride for any length, horses are lovely, well behaved, happy and ridden in NH halters only so they mouths don't get pulled. Even still though, what can happen is that if a particular horse gets a few people in a row who don't have good leadership, and don't really follow up on the boundaries which the horses are used to, the horse can get a bit confused / less tolerant after a while. Horses do need consistency in how they are handled, wchih is difficult if they are beng ridden / handled by different people. If this happens, then we (one of the instructors) does some basic riding / geoundwork with the horse, reestablising the boundaries, and creating a good horse-human team again, and them they're fine again. You do see with horses, if the little things aren't reinforced consistently, then sometimes unwanted 'big' things happen. You probably find the same with your horses... I'd say its the case for most. Just an idea anyway. It's probably more likely to happen with ponies and children I guess, but once the groundwork is reestablished, sporadic groundwork sessions every 2 - 3 months to reinforce expected behaviour does work well
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phoenix
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Post by phoenix on Jan 2, 2007 19:11:37 GMT 1
Hi - you may find a grazing mask (for restricting grass intake) more practical than a muzzle. Also, having once been whacked on the head by a muzzle-wearing horse, I should think it might make matters worse :-)
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Post by gordo on Jan 2, 2007 19:36:02 GMT 1
Very interseting thread. Any further news?
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