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Post by mol123 on Dec 8, 2009 19:33:28 GMT
Wondering if anyone has had a similar experience as i am running out of ideas! I bought my horse from a sale as a 3 year old he was untouched and very nervous (past unknown). After lots of time i got him socialised, backed him and he was getting on great, he was always head shy and not great to catch but we got on fine and could catch him easily with the help of a carrot! He is fab to ride, very willing and quiet for his age (now 4), great to hack, and winning at prelim dressage, his progress is excellent. But I have recently had major trouble catching him again. He has gone from being ok to catch to impossible in days, takes at least 3 hours to get him in from field and had to heard him in the other night as I simply couldnt get near him, i also have trouble just catching him in his stable! it so wierd as once caught he is fab as usual, great to tack up ride and handle. I dont understand what has changed in him thinking time of year? or if someone has done somthing to him in the field to scare him? or is he just taking the p*ss! if so what can i do! have tried join up, seemed to make him worse! any ideas greatfully recieved!
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Milliesmum
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Post by Milliesmum on Dec 8, 2009 19:37:12 GMT
Does he mind being left on his own? I find with a bad catcher if you bring the others in and leave them you often find them neighing at the gate when you go back for them! One of the field safe headcollars with a short piece of rope attached might help.
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Post by mol123 on Dec 8, 2009 19:48:33 GMT
yeh he hates being alone so i take the others in. he shouts his head off and runs around but still wont let me near him! have sent for a headcollar but at the moment he is too far away!
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Post by sarah00000 on Dec 8, 2009 20:03:25 GMT
mol123 - poor you! It sounds like you have done an amazing job with him so far and I am sure you will overcome this too!
I have only had 1 pony - in many many years of horses/ponies/liveries - that was SERIOUSLY bad to catch and I must say it was frustrating to say the least.
I am sure you have done all the obviouse tricks, like leaving headcollar on, bucket of course mix or section of haylage to entice him in - once the others all in.
Good luck x
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Post by mol123 on Dec 8, 2009 20:10:31 GMT
thanks, yeh it is the worst thing - cant tell him off as it just makes him worse! have thought about leaving him out but worried he will really hurt himself (along with my field!) as it is so wet. yes tried all this food isnt attractive to him when his head is gone thanks we will keep trying! x
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Milliesmum
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Post by Milliesmum on Dec 8, 2009 20:17:51 GMT
If you have the time to spend with him, maybe at the weekend, take a chair, a book and a nice rustly bag with carrots in it. Park yourself in the corner of the field and ignore him. Get a carrot out of your rustly bag every so often and nibble on it. If he comes to you, ignore him. If he really pesters you, give him a carrot, but don't try to catch him. You get the idea, he needs to want to come to you more than you want to catch him! Sometimes a bit of reverse psychology works wonders. Got to be worth a try!
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Post by mol123 on Dec 8, 2009 20:21:28 GMT
thanks - have a week off next week so will give it a go - if the rain stops!
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Post by princessstacie22 on Dec 8, 2009 20:50:11 GMT
In that case get some waterproof trousers and a mack and still do it!!! I have to say it works a treat!!! Took me two hours with an old pony of mine and it made our bond so much stronger!! good luck x
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Post by elliebee on Dec 8, 2009 20:53:13 GMT
Great advise MM I would do the same, tried to catch a yearling once there was 3 of us. The other 2 gave up, I just walked past him did not even look at him and just stood there for a while, the pony moved towards me and I walked off, I did this a couple of times till eventually the pony nudged my back I was then able to catch him. Good luck I hate not being able to catch ponies xxx
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Post by victoria (highhill) on Dec 8, 2009 21:25:53 GMT
If you have the time to spend with him, maybe at the weekend, take a chair, a book and a nice rustly bag with carrots in it. Park yourself in the corner of the field and ignore him. Get a carrot out of your rustly bag every so often and nibble on it. If he comes to you, ignore him. If he really pesters you, give him a carrot, but don't try to catch him. You get the idea, he needs to want to come to you more than you want to catch him! Sometimes a bit of reverse psychology works wonders. Got to be worth a try! good idea MM. My mum did this once with a foal we bought, we couldnt even catch it in the stable, she was very patient and it really worked well! Good luck
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ada
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Post by ada on Dec 8, 2009 22:12:17 GMT
good advice MM, its called kidology!! use it all the time, you just need to leave plenty of time, wont work if you are in a hurry.
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Post by hacklover on Dec 8, 2009 22:24:53 GMT
well, i once watched a monty demo and he suggested chasing the horse, everytime it comes to you, you push it and chase it away so it comes to you under your terms. Sounds crazy but my old pony was a nightmare to catch and in the end i used to use the 'chase me' technique and she would trot away and then come straight up to me. It worked. You need to sort of pretend that you have the dinner and they are the second in command. lol. No, I'm not crazy!! lol
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sarahp
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Post by sarahp on Dec 8, 2009 23:36:21 GMT
Long before Monty I always used to teach ponies to be caught by just following them at a walk until they gave in - I think the longest was 4 hours but it does work. Now that I know more about horse communication I reckon I was doing the Monty technique without realising what I was doing!
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Post by sageandonion on Dec 9, 2009 9:41:10 GMT
Please don't do the sending away with a nervous pony, it frightens the hell out of them.
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Post by specialboy on Dec 9, 2009 11:27:17 GMT
i think it depends on the pony really, as my pony was very nervous when i got him, and he always will be a bugger to catch! but he gained my trust after a while and can still put on being nervous, and i sometimes use the teqnique of following , and he turns it into a game and keeps running back! it is nice to play with them as he learned to trust me more, he will always be a bugger you can never ever get him in without getting the others first, and even when he is on his own, i go to him, he walks all the way to the other end of the paddok/field, i walk away to the gate, he walks all the way back, then most of the time lets me get him, i do have to ignore him sometimes and leave him out, because when he wants to play and i want to bring him in, i have to go do the toher horse, then go back to him and he comes straight in! doesnt like the other horse getting attention lol
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Post by busybusy on Dec 9, 2009 13:50:36 GMT
We have a pony that can be reluctant to be caught - especially by anyone he doesn't know or when its dark. We use a field safe headcollar (I have a couple and a stock of replacement rubber rings) and leave about 6 inches of thin bale twine attached.
Once I have hold the twine he is quite happy to have his "proper" headcollar on (you cannot lead off the fieldsafe ones). These can safely be used in the stable too. After a couple of days with his headcollar on he is very easy to catch....now I have to resort to the fieldsafe headcollar for a few days every few months. When he first came he had to have it on most days. With him I think his reluctance to be caught is just a habit that needs breaking! If I used the "send away" technique with this boy it would scare him and I wouldn't put it past him to jump out!
I also give him a titbit when he is caught (the only time I ever do so) and he now mostly associates being caught with treat time....took a few months though!
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Post by bowditchblobs on Dec 9, 2009 15:40:15 GMT
It seems odd that he has just started this? He is a very young horse and has done quite abit, may be it is his way of saying i cant cope i need a break or some thing hurts??? Id get his teeth and back checked and turn him away till spring.
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Post by mol123 on Dec 9, 2009 17:10:44 GMT
he hasnt done that much really - just done well at what he has done! have his teeth and back done regularly so its not that and as i said he is fab to ride so would think if he was that upset with being ridden he would be upset when ridden. it is odd that it has just started. i agree sageandonion - sending him away just made things worse and lost his trust in me. my fieldsafe headcollar came today so thats my next plan!
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sarahp
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Post by sarahp on Dec 9, 2009 17:25:39 GMT
I didn't send or chase them away, just kept on walking after them until they gave in, they weren't frightened by it at all.
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Post by sageandonion on Dec 9, 2009 18:08:03 GMT
Is there a smaller paddock you can put him in or can you make a small coral to gently 'herd' him in to. Following around in a massive field might be ok in summer, but it is pretty cold for it right now. With the nervous ones, you have to go with your intuition and never lose your patience, easier said than done if it is piddling with rain.
I had a similar pony and I would herd him into an enclosed pen. He was quite happy to be caught when he didn't really have too much choice about it. He was also very happy being ridden. It was almost as if he needed the reassurance of someone telling him what to do. If he had the choice of not being or being caught he sort of couldn't cope. He was bottom of the pecking order and was even happy to be pushed around by a blind ram. Making up for all of that, he was the dearest, kindest pony I am ever likely to own.
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sarahp
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Post by sarahp on Dec 9, 2009 18:24:41 GMT
Yes agreed, not the weather for it, and I'm too old and crocked now for it but you didn't have to do it more than a couple of times for the pony to get the message and be easily catchable after that. I do think the bottom of the pecking order ones can be frightened of being caught - not of you, but of bossier ones having a go at them when they are haltered and cannot run away. Specially if food is involved.
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Post by amumwithapony on Dec 9, 2009 19:55:45 GMT
i'd recommend ignoring him tbh. i remember when i was about 15 going up to the big field (about 30 acres) to catch a little mare for a clients lesson when i used to help out in a riding school. spent 20 mins chasing her round, wouldnt be caught. i knew she was due out on a lesson in about half an hour and it was a 15 min walk back to yard, sat on a rock wondering what to do and feeling a bit sorry for myself as i had forgot a bucket and would probably get into trouble for going back empty handed. as im sat there i could hear a landrover approaching and knew it was YO come to see where i was, she parked in lane at side of field and shouted over 'what was i playing at, pony due out in 25mins and youre sat on a bloody rock with your head in your hands' i shouted back that i couldnt catch her, 'well why the bloody hell not, shes literally stood on you!' turned round and she was! had assumed that the snuffling behind me was my mare as she had followed me around the field chasing the one that wouldnt be caught, and i thought she was still there, but it was the one that didnt want to be caught, wondering what i was doing. grabbed hold of her, tied lead rope to headcollar, vaulted on and got back to yard in about 8 mins! i did have my hat on tho, as i had intended riding her back, just not as quickly as that! you wouldnt get away with bareback in a headcollar down that road now tho, and you cant even get onto the path you could canter accross, as is all council recreation land fenced off to stop moterbikes. sorry, bit o/t, but honestly try ignoring him, he'll soon want to come in then!
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Post by rosefinch on Dec 9, 2009 20:34:36 GMT
i have had a few nightmare ponies to catch over the years one that would trample you as look at you we used to leave a trail of carrots to the gate and then grab her from other side luckily she was very greedy!!!. Food is always best idea - do you always ride when you have caught him? try just bringing him away from others feeding him and then throw straight back in field. Sometimes they associate it with work and dont fancy it! i have a 18yr old pba mare who is now awful to catch she gets worse as she gets oder! hates going in the stable but unfortunately nobody has told her that on livery yards she has to do as she is told. Equally dont always catch him and bring him in just brush in field and give tit bits for coming. will soon get the idea not always work. good luck and let us know how you get on. ;D
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Post by hacklover on Dec 10, 2009 22:35:04 GMT
sarahp thats a funny vision, lol. did it ever get dark before you caught it,lol. Ponies are great eh.
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Post by mol123 on Dec 11, 2009 9:14:14 GMT
well had him following me round the outdoor school last night - major improvment! going to try him in the smaller field later today with my little dartmoor and his new headcollar. if im not on for a few days im still in the field! wish me luck!
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sarahp
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Post by sarahp on Dec 11, 2009 9:21:44 GMT
If I had one I wasn't sure about I only tried when I had LOTS of time! Same with lorry loading training - don't start unless you know you have time to reach your objective, letting the horse get away with doing what they want will only make it worse for next time. I did have one that was VERY difficult to get to load - after about 1 1/2 hours when my back had given out and I had rope burns on my hands (my fault, should have worn gloves!) I revised the objective in my own head to getting both front feet on the ramp. When that was achieved I took her back off with lots of praise as if that's what I'd wanted in the first place and then led her round the garden going on and off every different surface I could find - tarmac, lawn, paths - as it's often the change of what's under their feet they worry about. A friend came round that evening to finish the job - 1 1/2 hours to get her on the first time, 1/2 hour the second and perfect after that, job done!
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Post by rosefinch on Dec 11, 2009 21:53:58 GMT
definatly followed my old mare round field for over an hour other week in rain!!!! u can imagine my language!!!! good job no one was around. funny thing is you are so mad but have to behave like they r a long lost firend you havent seen for ages when really you would love to give them a kick up the bum and lecture them on how ungrateful they are. definately not stress relief!!!! this is supposed to be a hobby - enjoyable!!!!!
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Post by gadabout on Dec 11, 2009 23:05:29 GMT
The 1st horse I bought could not be delivered for a fortnight because they could not catch it, they told me the horsebox was broke. I turned it out in 56 acres and cried because I could not get near to it. I found that if I gave all the others tit bits and deliberately missed mine out, she could not bear it and came. Also i did the same as MM advised and sat in the field till she got used to me and eat carrots.! Good luck.
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kayjayem
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Post by kayjayem on Dec 12, 2009 22:01:08 GMT
I didn't send or chase them away, just kept on walking after them until they gave in, they weren't frightened by it at all. Thats funny - it's exactly what we did with our TB who's a bit highly strung but very intelligent - he couldn't understand what was going on and in the end was so curious as to why we were following him that he turned to look and we walked away - the roles changed and he would follow us round the field and we ran to pretend to get away from him and he would trot round after us. He is always catchable now, sometimes he starts to walk away so if you turn your back on him and walk away he follows you to the gate and waits for his headcollar putting on!
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Post by fayeandash on Dec 12, 2009 22:27:25 GMT
I had a pony when i was younger that was an a*se to catch, we tried everything - bring everything else in, bucket of food, polo's, carrots etc, one day we were told to go in with the lunge whip and every time he came near just wibble it (not hit him, just gently wave it) and turn our backs, we did this till he had had enough of the "game" and came to us, then after a few nights he came to us as soon as he saw the lunge whip, so we always had to have the lunge whip to catch him, i think it was more the turning of our back when he came over than the whip that made him nosey, but it worked, so maybe try ignoring him once you have his attention, good luck xx
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