Keeping horses minds at work

[cowgurl_up]

Ok, I am kind of going off the "What do you do with your stallions" thread because I really thought it was about activities you do with your stallions. I was wrong! OH!

Anyway, I have a 3 year old stallion who seems to be going through spring fever and I hate to tell him he has several months left of this stuff! He has daily turnout with my mare and yet is still just so full of himself. I haven't been able to do his ground driving lately since it has been so cold and I think that is bugging him. He is just a little energizer bunny!!!!

He tosses his head when he is being led or lunged and doesn't like to walk at my pace (I get after him for it and he will walk nice for about 3 steps and then he is trying to get in front of me again!). He just seems so eager to go somewhere, anywhere! I really think he is going stir crazy as he is pretty good at shows and just loves all of the activity!!!

I have been trying to come up with other ways to stimulate his mind and was wondering what every one else does with their horses to keep their minds active. I have been thinking about doing some trick training and so far he is getting very very good about rearing on comand after just working with him on it twice!

So what do you all do with your horses when it is just too cold out to do too much????

 

[muffntuf]

Give him a jolly ball or a milk carton with treats in it, anything he thinks he can play with! That'll keep him entertained! My stallion is very active and is a thinker.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

My Kody is a lot like your guy as far as getting VERY cranky if I slack on his driving. He gets nippy, starts tossing his head, forgets all concept of leading manners, and just generally shows his frustration in any way he thinks will get his point across. After his stifle surgery in October he was handwalked twice a day for four weeks and with the addition of a little clicker training it's amazing how far his manners came. All of a sudden a walk was the only way he was getting out of his stall and he didn't get to walk unless he minded his manners. The clicker helped him realize it was a game and that it was actually funner to do what I wanted as I'd praise him enthusiastically and make a fuss over him. Now that was a bit more like it! Kody likes praise and making Mom happy. Especially if it involves food.

I've worked really hard since then to keep him mentally busy. Every night I go in his stall and we do stretches to keep him supple, using clicker training to teach him to hand me his feet and treats to get him to stretch his neck. He's learned to pick things up, to step on things, to bow, to rear, to kneel, and I think I could get him to lay down and then sit up pretty easily but he's not ready yet. Learning these things does tend to get a horse pretty overexcited though and I've had good luck teaching him two opposing behaviors. We've learned ground-tying and believe me, putting a good "Whoa, Stand" on him has been a lifesaver. He wants to offer a rear, it's "No, whoa-stand." He wants to back up perpetually instead of bowing? "No, whoa-stand." And then he gets a click for doing it. Now standing still isn't that annoying time between fun things, it's actually Something To Do. Now we're refining it to where he has to stand with his ears up and acting soft and happy before he gets the click. He has become soooo much easier to work with. The other opposing behavior I've finally taught is to turn his head away from me instead of mugging my pockets when he gets overstimulated. Between that and the whoa-stand he's developed way more patience and discipline and his whole attitude has turned around. Now he's eager to see what we're going to do next but waits patiently out of my space for me to give a command. It's very cool!

I'm also doing an awful lot of work on obstacle in-hand and spending a lot of time just grooming him and being together. He likes it but on those evenings when he just can't stand it and gets pushy I simply pet him goodnight and quietly leave. It didn't take him more than once or twice to figure out that if he is rude he gets left by himself in that boring stall/pasture whereas if he minds his manners Mom will stay as long as she can and do fun things with him. Now if I leave prematurely he's on his best behavior the next time I come back. It's really quite funny!

I swear handling these guys is just like raising kids. Give them clear choices, let them think about it, then reward them when they do it right.

Leia

 

[cowgurl_up]

Muffntuff, I just might have to try the treats in the milkjug thing!!! He has a basketball, but doesn't seem that entertained by it. Do you just put the treats in it and leave the cap off, or do I need to make a hole in it somewhere???

Hobbyhorse23, your guy sounds exactly like my guy!!!! Now I am very excited about what I can teach him! I mean if he learned to rear in a matter of days, I am sure the possiblities are endless!!!! He is basically a perfect gentleman in the stall, it is when you go to take him out that he over does it.

I have never used a clicker, but it sounds like an interesting idea! I'm assuming you start using the clicker with food so they think when they get a click they get a treat. Can you get away from the treats? I don't want to end up with a nippy horse.

I think I may have to start tonight by maybe taking him out of his stall and as soon as he gets ansy, take him straight back and repeat setting a goal for us of how far I want to get quietly. Think he will get the idea that way? I hate it that I have had to lead him with a chain over his nose lately, but this icey ground makes things to dangerous on me and the lady I board with for him to be dragging us around.

 

[mininik]

You can find all sorts of clicker info. by doing a google search.

Food works well as a reinforcement because it is a necessity. You can work on going longer without treats and changing the reinforcements as you go. As far as ending up with a nippy horse, you can always train an opposing behavior as was mentioned in another post. So long as your horse isn't rewarded for being nippy, it shouldn't be a problem.

 

[muffntuf]

cowgurl_up - I think it depends on the treat size. I get the buckeye apple pellets, or put some grain they can eventually tip out of the milk jug and chew up. I got the idea from Carin, so attribute that to her.

oh and the horse who loves his jolly balls, also does very well with the natural horsemanship training and likes to play. We successfully play retrieve with his jolly ball, which incidentally drives my lab nuts, because after all, isnt' that his job - to retrieve, how can a horse do that?

 

[Joanne]

One of the things we do with our stallions is to give them a new location. We switch their paddocks (with their mares if they have them). They get a new perspective on life and their world. It also keeps them busy investigating who was there last. It keeps them from getting bored.

 

[hobbyhorse23]

I didn't think to mention that but of course I let him out as often as possible, either into the yard or Spyder's pasture or the ajoining empty paddock. He goes more than slightly stir-crazy stuck in his own pen and letting Spyder run him around a bit keeps him in better shape. He needs that, what with his stifles and all!

Edited to add: The secret with clicking is to be absolutely consistent. If you click, he gets a treat even if you did it accidentally! What makes it such a powerful motivator is that the click always means they did it right and will get a reward. You can certainly use petting if that motivates them or a food treat they aren't gaga over. The nippy thing is why you teach them to keep their head out of your space. Just like introducing the concept of "Whoa as An Action," the Grownups Are Talking lesson shifts the paradigm from the obvious-to-the-horse idea of mugging the pocket where the treat is to the idea that the fastest route to the treat is to turn their head away from it.

I don't think I'd take your guy back to his stall when he acts up, it would take too long after the initial disobedience and he wouldn't have any clue what it was for. When he acts up I'd make him stop and stand, and the minute he stands perfectly quietly even for a second let him walk forward again as an obvious reward he values. Keep your sessions short and end when he's been good for a couple of stops in a row.

Leia

 

[cowgurl_up]

Thanks everyone for the advice! I wish I could turn him out 24/7 or at least be able to switch where he gets turned out, but I board and have limits during the winter when all of the cows are also up close to home. Hopefully in the spring he will have a nice turn out area rather then just putting him out in the arena all the time. Of course during the spring and such there is so much more activity with the guys getting fields ready for planting and such and that keeps him entertained watching what everyone else is doing.

I think I will try the milk jug idea to keep him more interested in his stall and I will also try your idea Hobbyhorse23 on stopping him when he gets to overexcited and only move on when he is quiet. I may just have to pick up a clicker too and see how quickly he takes to that.

I think we just need spring to be here now! I have clipping fever, I am eager for my first foal to be born, I am ready for shows to start, I am ready to get my boy worked more on being hooked to a cart plus maybe work on some jumping, and I am sick of below freezing weather!!!!!

 

[HGFarm]

I provide toys for mine to play with, but they also have jobs. Mine all learn to drive- we drive on roads and across country so they learn about obstacles and going around things and stay focused on stuff. It seems to make a LOT of difference for them to have something to do and use up their 'excess' energy as well. In addition to being good training..

 

[cowgurl_up]

Thanks HGFarm. I wish I could be doing that stuff as we started ground driving this fall and he loves it!!! He just takes in all the new sites and sounds with bright eyes!! But the weather has just been way too cold and the ground to icey and such for me to take him down the road or around the farm as I normally would, which is why I think he has gotten so bad antsy wise. I am looking for other things that I can do with him to keep his mind busy while we wait on spring.

I sure hope it comes soon! Then we will hopefully be able to hook him to a cart, plus doing halter obstacle, and even learning to jump a little, but those 2-3 more months of this cold stuff is going to drive us both crazy first I think!!! I think he has cabin fever!!!!

 

[Naira3284]

This might sound funny, but I have a dog treat ball for mine. My dog loves them

and so does Olie.

its just a big rubber ball with 2 holes in it. I fill it with some

complete pellet, and he has to roll it arown the stall. As it rolls, the pellets drop slowly

out. Thats how he always gets half of his meal. it keeps his mind and body goin. LOL

 

[StarRidgeAcres]

Give him a jolly ball or a milk carton with treats in it, anything he thinks he can play with! That'll keep him entertained! My stallion is very active and is a thinker.

cowgurl_up - I think it depends on the treat size. I get the buckeye apple pellets, or put some grain they can eventually tip out of the milk jug and chew up. I got the idea from Carin, so attribute that to her.
oh and the horse who loves his jolly balls, also does very well with the natural horsemanship training and likes to play. We successfully play retrieve with his jolly ball, which incidentally drives my lab nuts, because after all, isnt' that his job - to retrieve, how can a horse do that?

This might sound funny, but I have a dog treat ball for mine. My dog loves themand so does Olie.

its just a big rubber ball with 2 holes in it. I fill it with some

complete pellet, and he has to roll it arown the stall. As it rolls, the pellets drop slowly

out. Thats how he always gets half of his meal. it keeps his mind and body goin. LOL

Question for those of you who give your horses milk jugs/dog toys with treats inside. I can understand how it works if they are in a dry lot, but if they are in a stall do the treats fall into the shavings and then they nose through the shavings to get the treat? Do you find they end up eating shavings when they do that? Just curious. I'd like to try it, but always thought it would encourage shavings eating.

Thanks!

 

[Naira3284]

good point.

the shavings I use are realy big, I'v never had an issue with him eating them.

I guess if you use fine shavings that could be a problem.

I think if you have big shavings use small treats (pellets)

if you have fine shavings use big treats (cubes)

that way there is a big diference between the treat and beding.

idk lol

 

[Jill]

Next year, I hope to have DunIT in with a couple of his brides this time of year. However, this year, we are not "sure" who he got in foal and just didn't want to chance a winter breeding.

He shares a fence line with some other horses and socializes with them, and also a line with our yard and the dogs give him attention, too. He gets at least 2 huggings a day when we feed and a few times a week, H and /or I play with him. He likes it if I stand in the middle of his paddock and clap my hands. He will free lunge a circle around me and change directions when I tell him... all the while shaking his head in definance when he is the one deciding to play (but wants to act like he's the boss). Ends with a woah and a hug session.

He's got toys (balls, and a jacks thing) but is not interested in them.