Help!!! Mini gelding hates my new mini mares : (

[MyGoldenSunny]

I need some help. I have a gelding I have owned for 12 years that has never shown a mean bone in his body.....till now : (

I got two new minis mares a few weeks ago and he wants to KILL them!!! From the first day he would charge the fence to the separate pasture they are in. If they would get close he would viciously charge and try to bite them.

I have had MANY horses come and go and he has never acted this way!!! He has alway been my babysitter for foals ect.

I had my mini mare with him but put her out with the two new minis hoping he would see how she was ok with the two new ones and kept him by himself. Well after about a week he stopped charging the fence when they came up and he was acting just fine with them. So I let him in with them today and it all started over again! But it was not good this time because he was IN the pasture with them. I have never seen him be this was!! He attack them!!!! Trying to mount like he was a stud, but being WAY worst then a stud, just viciously attacking!!! I quickly got him out of there RIGHT away, and put him in the pasture by himself again.

Anyone have any ideas or suggestions???? I'm dumbfounded and at a loss......

He is a totally different horse and it's breaking my heart....

 

[Mona]

How old was he when you bought him? Did you have him gelded or did you buy as a gelding? Are you sure he is not cryptorchid? (undescended testicles) Or maybe cut proud?

 

[lkblazin]

Ditto Mona.

 

[MyGoldenSunny]

I got him when he was only a weanling(about 7 months old), and he is now 12, so I have had him for 12 years!!! I had him gelded and watched, so yes it was ALL taken out!!! I have had many mini mares, geldings, foals with him through all these years and he has NEVER been this way!!! I'm all struck about this!!! He is the horse I could always put babies and new horses with and he would take care of them.

 

[Mona]

Hmmm, you got me then. Hope you can get to the bottom of it.

 

[lkblazin]

Are the mares more dominant then him, maybe he sees them as a threat to his property? Are they a lot older than him?

 

[MyGoldenSunny]

No they are a few year younger then him, and on the bottom of the peaking order. They are being very submissive to him, and very respectful. They are some of the sweetest mini mares I have had. They don't try to bite or fight him back. This is the craziest thing!

 

[MyGoldenSunny]

Has anyone had this problem before??? How long do you think it would take him to except them, or will he never? I want to keep my new girls, and I would never give up my gelding. He is wonderful with my children and my amazing cart horse. And my foal babysitter, and WAS my new horse babysitter......... He is still wonderful with us humans. I just really can't believe he is being this way!

He is the horse in my avatar, "Sunny"

 

[MyGoldenSunny]

Side note

Mona your Chinese crested mix is cute!!! I just had to rehome my powder puff Chinese crested dachshund mix : (

Here is a pic

 

[targetsmom]

Not sure if any of this will help, but I wonder if the new mares smell different to him and that is his problem? Or if the weather is a factor. Here is why I think those might be possibilities: Our oldest gelding ended up with a different turnout group last week and I was shocked at what happened - but in the opposite way. Cowboy didn't leave to go out with his turnout buddies and ended up on the side of the fence where the youngsters and show horses were about to get turned out. He knew some of them well, so I figured I would leave him and see what happened. The new ones came out, one at a time, walked up to him, sniffed his butt carefully, then walked on by while he ignored them. All seemed fine until lunchtime, which is a problem because the 2 youngest geldings are on the bottom of the pecking order and are constantly chased from their piles of hay. I kept watch and could not believe what I was seeing - suddenly everyone had a pile, there was no chasing, or anything. It was as if Cowboy's presence in the group changed the herd dynamics in a very GOOD way. And even with close watching I never saw any of the usual threats, posturing, raised legs, or anything that horses usually do to establish their place in the herd by ANY of them. And our weather has been very crazy, as only this week does it look like there might be spring and the snow just might melt. So I think there might be hope. I would think about anything that might make them smell different because obviously that is a big deal to horses.

 

[MyGoldenSunny]

Thank you Mary,

I didn't think about weather. The weather has been really crazy here! One day it's below freezing and snowing, the next the temp is 70! Now we just had 3 days of rain non stop and bad flooding.

So if he doesn't like the smell of them, do you think he will never get along with them? He seems to really hate the small mare much more. She is very little.

So glad it worked out well with your guys! : ))

 

[targetsmom]

If it is the smell, one thing you could try would be to take a blanket or sheet, put it on him or one of the mares he LIKES, leave it on til it picks up the smell, and then put it on one of the new mares. Do you have a helper so you could introduce them on long leads? That was how we used to introduce new horses - expecially a mare & foal - but of course the foal wasn't on lead. Then you could pull them away before they tried to kill each other if it didn't go well. I would not give up just yet but I would be very careful.

 

[MyGoldenSunny]

I will try that! I will use a sheet because it is warm here again. He will be fine with wearing it, no sure about my new girls lol

I'm willing to try ANYTHING!!! Thank you!!!!

The weird thing is, is that these new girls are not trying to fight him back at all!!! They nicker at him and run away.

I really don't have anyone to help, but I may be able to get my non-horsey husband to help me.

 

[lkblazin]

Very odd. I'm sorry I can't be of more help.

 

[MyGoldenSunny]

Yes Rebecca it is very odd! : (

 

[AnnaC]

Is there any chance that to begin with he was charging the fence to make sure the new girls kept well away from his own mini mare, and then when he was added to the group of mares, he was trying to separate HIS mini from the others? Perhaps you will have to return him and his mini to one field and simply give them all longer to live apart until they really get used to each other?

 

[MyGoldenSunny]

Anna yes you are right he was! Summer is Sunny's sister and they are very close. He would not let her get close to the fence to meet the new girls. So after about a week I put summer in with the new girls to show sunny that she was ok with them, and she was. So after a week of him watching summer being with the new girls he seemed better. The new girls would come to the fence to see him and he no longer acted ugly. And that is why I tried putting him in also. BAD idea! He attacked. Do you think it is all because of him protecting summer????

I would think he would be happy to have two more lady's to be with him. It's very odd because I have had other minis come here and go and he has never been this way.

So should I put summer back in with him? I hate him being alone, goes against everything inside he to keep and horse alone. He can see and visit with then across the fence.

 

[Ridgerunner]

How old are your new girls? My stallions will charge the fence at the yearling fillies. All of them do it, and always have. Doesn't matter if the filly is theirs, or totally not related. Guess it's a throwback to the wild stallions running the non breeding girls off. They usually calm down by the time the girls are 2 or 3 year olds, but some stallions just plain don't like certain mares. Good luck, hope you can get it figured out!

 

[AnnaC]

Ridgerunner I also had a stallion who would not allow anything under the age of 4 to be in his herd. Although he was perfect and would happily play with foals, once they were weaned they were out and not allowed to return. But Jessie's Sunny is a gelding who is now 12 and was gelded at an early age.

Jessie, I only suggested that you put Summer back in with Sunny to keep him happy for now. I have no idea why he has decided to take a dislike to these two particular mares, but for his own reason he obviously has. Maybe after a while you could remove Summer from the equasion (stall her) and then take Sunny back in with the new girls but on a lead so you can have control over him - perhaps trying this for a short while on a daily basis until you are sure of his behaviour? If he is still not happy/showing acceptance of the girls then I think for them to be kept apart might be the only way to keep the peace. Sorry I cant be more helpful.

 

[MyGoldenSunny]

Thank you Anna! I put summer back in with him last night. I'm going to just keep working with this. It's a good idea to put summer in one of the stalls out of sight and lead sunny out with the girls. Maybe in a few months things will get better. I hope.

Ridgerunner, my new girls are about the same age as sunny. 12 or so. And like Anna said my Sunny is a gelding. That's is what is making this all so odd.