We were gonna sell Apaché

[kimbalina]

So… on Monday I needed to call my mum and sort out the studio upstairs. I put on a show on tv for baby Dusty and gave him his snackbox and headed upstairs. At some point, while going through some business with my mum on the phone I look out window to see our tiny dachshund Panda galloping up into pony paddock. I freak, why is she doing that? she runs up and then I can’t see her because there’s a tree in the way. I move so I can see her and I see my baby Dusty out there in the middle of the paddock all by himself and Apaché pushing him over and treading all over him over and over!!!!! I bolt out there to rescue him and vow that I will sell pony to knackery asap!!!

Dear little baby Dusty, not content to stay warm and safe where I left him, was excited by the new hay we bought the day before and headed out into paddock to give Apaché a snack. Apaché, as a thanks to our baby’s kind heart, was, in my eyes, trying to kill him.

I put him on market but lots of people asking if he’s good with kids and I don’t want to be responsible for something happening to someone else’s kid down the line… so for now decided to keep him. I feel awful. He is alone and this is the cause of his malaise. There are horses next door but he can’t see them generally and hasn’t really had chance to say hello to them. Also we still haven’t sorted out fencing so he has the whole backyard and we still don’t have a driveway out the front so we go through the backyard anytime we want to go anywhere. All these things will eventually be rectified… we will get another pony, we will do fencing, we will get driveway… though we don’t want to rush any of those things, especially with economy looking so uncertain right now. We need to do more training. More yielding with the kids around.

Dusty knew he was not to be in the paddock by himself. But I felt Apaché’s behaviour extremely terrifying. Yeah he was ‘just being a horse’ and he is tense because he’s alone and we’re always traipsing through his paddock.

What would you do?

He is great for taking the kids around the block and will be a companion for the bigger pony we plan to buy, but maybe he should move on? Maybe we should start from scratch?! I took his ad down and told everyone I planned to keep him, except one couple who will come this weekend. They plan to have him as a companion which would suit him down to the ground!

 

[Kelly]

Holy crap! That had to be absolutely terrifying! Is your baby ok? Did you have to rush him to the hospital? WOW is all I can say and I am so sorry that you have to go through this. He probably was trying to kill him or use him as a toy or play with him, IDK but so scary! What a FREAK thing!

I don’t have kids so Im probably not a good person to ask these questions to because if I did have kids maybe my answers would be different, IDK.

I understand that Dusty escaped from the house, so it really isn’t fair to blame him, yourself, or the horse. It’s a learning experience and you will have to forgive yourself first. I know I would NEVER leave any child unattended or unsupervised with any of my little boys or any of my horses for that matter.… heck I wouldnt leave them alone with any other livestock either, sheep, goats, whatever. Livestock can be very unpredictable. If I were to leave a child with one of my horses they would have to have horse experience and be at least a teenager and even then I would have my doubts. To say “a horse is good with kids” to me that would mean a child could ride/drive them under the supervision of an adult. To me that does NOT mean that you could leave a baby with them unsupervised and NO harm would be done. I think that he, as you put it, “was just being a horse”. I guess there might be some horses that could be left alone with a baby, I just haven’t meet them yet.

With that said, you may have to sell him unless you can forgive him. Maybe this could be a learning experience for both of you? You have to also keep in mind that you know this horse and the next horse you get could be even worse with kids even though you bought them as “kid friendly”. Horse people aren’t always honest and you won’t know the history of the next horse. Thank goodness he wasn’t the “bigger pony we plan to buy”! The outcome could have been much worse with a bigger pony!

Apache is absolutely beautiful, if you lived closer I would buy him in a heart beat! Keep us updated and let us know what you decide. ♥♥♥ My heart goes out to you, what a hard decision ♥♥♥

 

[Kelly]

Oh just a thought… I can’t remember… has Apache been gelded?

 

[kimbalina]

Oh just a thought… I can’t remember… has Apache been gelded?

Yes he has, although he does display some stallion-esque behaviour at times!! He is really careful about where he puts it in dung! he doesn’t just poo anywhere… he has very neat precise piles.. usually right along the fenceline.

Dear Dusty was ok and was later seen taking his guitar outside to sing a song for Apaché when Apaché was tied up. He was miserable at the time but bounced back thankfully with no lasting injuries. The hero of the day being our little dog Panda, who shone in her courage and confidence to run out to Dusty and draw my attention to what was happening. So she is being treated like a queen in our house… Apaché tries to kill her too sometimes if she wonders into his field… She’s a tiny black and tan dachshund that’s had spinal surgery so it’s always terrifying if Apaché chases Panda. She risked her own life to save Dusty’s. I love her so much.

 

[Kelly]

Awe, GO PANDA! What a WONDERFUL PUP!

Yeah I wouldnt leave my 3 month old filly out with my little boys.… but she too has struck out with her front feet at my 75 pound dog! And my little filly probably only weighs 40 pounds! All my horses will chase off cats and dogs and whatever else enters their pasture, they are very territorial!

It could have been a territorial thing…
One time when I boarded my biggie, 2 Rottweiler entered a pasture of about 15 horses. Those horses teamed up and chased those two dogs out of their pasture, it was truly a sight to see. Another time I was riding with 5 others on about 60 acres, when the horses in that pasture teamed up. There was about 25-30 horses out there, they all lined up starring our way. They were all side by side looking at us, speaking to each other about the game plan, I had no idea what they were saying. It totally freaked me out, so much that I got off my horse and was like “good luck dude, if they charge us you are on your own”. Had those horses charged us my hope was that at least I wouldn’t be bucked off and trampled, my horse could fend for himself, and I could run as fast as possible in hopes that those horses would be occupied with the other horses. I’m such a whimp! It was really scary at the time but funny now looking back.

 

[Dragon Hill]

Oh, what a horrible experience for you and Dusty! I am so glad he wasn't seriously harmed. Hurray for Panda! It sounds like Apache was gelded late, or possibly incompletely. But the biggest issue is whether you can forgive him. If not, a new home is best for both of you. I had a bad experience with a horse (she was "just being a horse" and I made several mistakes that made it possible) but I could not trust her after that even though I tried to work through it. She picked up on me not trusting her, so she didn't trust me. The people that got her made a nice horse out of her. If you keep him, be aware that getting another pony may not help his territorial behavior. If you sell him, be honest, but that doesn't mean you have to give the details.
A hard thing to go through. I hope things will work out to be the best for all. Maybe the people coming will be how it works out.

 

[MaryFlora]

A terrifying experience for you all! I was grateful to read you were ultimately ok!

I agree with the above posts, but if Apache were mine, he would be for sale with full disclosure. I would couple that with all of the positives about him, especially his suitability as a leadline pony for neighborhood children.

Also there is no way to explain to any horse that one day things will be different with fencing, friend, etc., he lives in the moment. I absolutely understand the economic challenges we face as horse owners, mortgage holders, renters, gas, heat, etc. We have to do the best we can with what we have and where we are at in life.

Sending you warm thoughts from Minnesota as you work through this. You are a loving parent and whatever you decide about your mini, give yourself full marks for also being a thoughtful and caring horse person.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Going after a dog, not so bad. The dog will learn to mind his space.
Going after a baby--he's a goner. No excuses.

 

[Kelly]

Going after a dog, not so bad. The dog will learn to mind his space.
Going after a baby--he's a goner. No excuses.

That’s my hubby's vote too!

 

[kimbalina]

We still have little Apaché. I can’t decide what to do and so have plundered deep into a paralysis… Except I’ve put the gas on looking for a companion for him. He was very well behaved when we agisted him with a big bossy mare, is it naïve of me to think he might change once he has company. I don’t trust him around the kids… I didn’t trust him around the kids before this incident anyway!! it’s just that when he has a kid on his back he is very well behaved and puts up with all sorts of crazy stuff… My guilt at having him alone in a paddock is overwhelming my ability to sell him. I am now quite certain that he was gelded late or (is it possible?) incompletely due to his stud piles and territorial behaviour. In which case I should sell him absolutely… I’m confused. The fault lies all with me… for having Apaché alone, for not properly securing my child from entering the paddock all by himself. We do want to get a riding pony for the family and when we do I feel like I don’t want to put that new horse into a paddock alone and potentially end up with behavioural issues due to solitary confinement so keeping Apaché will at least give our soon incoming riding pony a companion. But then we probably won’t keep Apaché in the long term. But then again he may settle back down to being happy and not so angry once he’s got a friend! So this is our fix. Thank you everyone for your wisdom and understanding and I agree I should sell him straight away… it’s just I’m baulking at starting at square one with no horses!! In the meantime I guess I’m trying to emphasise to Dusty that he is not to go in the paddock alone!!!!!!! Dusty won’t always be so little and vulnerable also! But in the long term we won’t keep this Apaché I think because we also have very exciting news this week that my husband is to be a grandfather!!! so we have more little people coming up the line!!

 

[kimbalina]

 

[Ryan Johnson]

Im glad you have decoded to keep him. That must have been horrendous to see that out the window but from looking at the pics above , I don't think he was intentionally trying to hurt Dusty, More looking for someone to play with. If he really wanted to hurt him he would be double barreling him , biting , kicking. Hope you are able to find a friend for him soon , he will really benefit in having one ( or two or three , bit like a bag of chips, can't just have one ). Hope you are ok up in Sydney with all the rain again , What a winter it is here, down under in Oz

 

[kimbalina]

I’m glad we are keeping him too. He’s beautiful and actually I love him. I’m finding it hard to find a pony for us. I don’t want an over-educated horse that will be upset by my young sons as they learn to ride and I don’t want a 16hh OTT TB of which there are dozens. It needs to be be big enough for me to ride too. Finding not a lot locally, they’re all 5 hour drives away which is a struggle to fit into the daily grind!

 

[kimbalina]

Furthermore… I have finally realised that Apaché has ulcers… I have finally put all the symptoms together and feel a bit stupid that it has taken me so long. But they highly recommend contact with other horses as part of the treatment, and with taking so long to get another pony I’m considering putting an ad out offering cheap agistment to someone to try help Apaché in the meantime!