How to teach a 2 week old filly to stop kicking

[miniaturehorselover]

Hi there my mini filly was well imprinted from birth and was handled right after birth. After only being 2 hours old she started turning her bum and kicking at us. At first it was cute but now that she is 2 weeks old its pretty scary. She loves getting her bum scratched but once she's had enough she violently kick.. any suggestions on training thanks

 

[MiniNHF]

We had a very young TB filly (about under a month old) do that and she actually ended up kicking me in the ribs when I got pinned between the mom and a hard place when I was working. So every time she turned her butt around we doubled up a lead rope and cracked her on the butt; she soon stopped after she realized it hurt when she turned around to kick someone

 

[miniaturehorselover]

Well I slapped her on the bum yesterday with my hand and she tried to kick even more little goof..

 

[Mona]

I would say you need to be ready, waiting and expecting her to kick, and AS SOON AS she even flinches those muscles to begin her kick, she needs your hand smacking her rump, and not a tap either. She needs to KNOW that YOU are the boss, and it is NOT acceptable behavior. It may take a couple of times to establish that, but once you do, you should see much improvement. You can also reinforce it with loud, deep vocal correction at the same time you are swatting her butt.

One more thing, with her at least, DO NOT give her the bum scratches. I was also guilty of that over the years. Mine never kicked from it though. They would however, back up into me, asking for it. I was fine with it, but when people were here visiting out in the pasture, it is pretty unsettling when a horse backs up to you in that way.

 

[miniaturehorselover]

Ok thanks so much

!

 

[bevann]

I would correct her but not with my hand.I would get a short riding crop also called a bat and carry it when you are near her.I makes a smacking sound when used and might be more effective than your hand.IMO this needs to be corrected ASAP.Good luck and keep us posted.Baby antics are often cute and then grow into something not so good.

 

[FurstPlaceMiniatures]

I had a food aggressive 3 yr old who would do that. Whap her one and if she does it again smack her again. Be big loud and scary as you do it then make her get out of your space. Good luck with her! Only once or twice being scary should make an impression!

 

[FurstPlaceMiniatures]

I had a food aggressive 3 yr old who would do that. Whap her one and if she does it again smack her again. Be big loud and scary as you do it then make her get out of your space. Good luck with her! Only once or twice being scary should make an impression!

 

[Tab]

Squeal, and if that doesn't work a squeal and thumperonthechest! It's exactly what another horse would do to her.

PS It works, too!

 

[Mona]

Squeal, and if that doesn't work a squeal and thumperonthechest! It's exactly what another horse would do to her.

PS It works, too!

How will she be able to thump her in the chest when the filly has her butt up against her and is therefore not facing her??

 

[MiniNHF]

If you can find it, they make crops that have two pieces of thin leather that slap together, they dont hurt they horse, they just make a sound when they connect. I think it was a type of racing whip I cant remember but I would use it on my TB's I would retrain and it worked great. They were more surprised by the sound then they were to a normal crop that delivered a sting.

 

[HGFarm]

Another horse would bite her or kick back- hard enough to let her know that it will not be tolerated. Yep, a good smack and even a yell at the same time may discourage her from doing this. If she tries to kick even more, she is not getting the point, so repeat. Your reaction has to be right away though.

 

[disneyhorse]

I don't like horses turning their butt to me in the first place... They should always be watching me and being respectful. I'd discipline her the minute she started to turn around... If she runs away and faces me, we'd be good again. I get to walk around to a horse's rump... But they better never point the rump to me on their terms.

 

[sfmini]

Babies also have that spot on the hindquarters that we call the buck button. It is a natural reaction, so leave that part of the baby alone unless haltered and you are grooming. Then, a well aimed smack is in order.

 

[Danielleee]

agree with the smacking on the butt but also yell! make her think the worlds gonna end for two seconds with your voice. no more butt scratching either.

 

[jandjmc]

Baby needs to learn to respect you as above her in the pecking order, so you want respect without being overly harsh. All of the previous advice is good and should work.

I took a slightly different tactic with a very young ( under a month) paint filly I had. She had kicked out at me several times, so I was ready for her. The next time she kicked I latched on to her leg with both hands and wouldn't let go, didn't take her long to start to panic and I kept holding on. For several minutes til I made my point. She never kicked again and I had her for 20 years.

It is very important to teach a young horse the same rules that you will expect from them as they get older. No kicking, striking, biting or rearing. Reward appropriate behavior and discourage or punish bad behavior. It's important that you are aware of what you are actually rewarding or punishing. If a behavior is increasing for any reason, the horse is getting something out of it.

 

[Minimor]

Easy fix for that--don't scratch her on the butt. Butt scratching often leads to kicking--I scratch mine and laugh if they jump their butts up at me. However--if one foal is particularly bad about kicking then I simply do not scratch that one in that area. If baby presents its rear end for scratching--I simply push him away, then scratch neck or shoulders instead. There is no point in creating the negative behavior and then punishing the foal for it. Generally the babies grow up and lose that tendency to kick--mine all do anyway.