( still waiting for parts- to geld)
He is mostly a nice fellow however now that he has been here for awhile I am finding things I really don't like about him. Cody is a chewer he is like the kid that puts everything up his nose...only in this case he puts everything in his mouth ...including me, he is chewing the crap out of the fences. Cody treats me like I'm another horse he continually tries to bite and shove into me ....just how he is with Jazz...he totally does not get the human... I'm the boss thing...at this point he is not biting to be mean and he has not actually got a hold of any skin...yet.....but you can't turn your back on him, he has managed to grasp my coat sleeve a few times but I'm usually prepared for him. Cody has the attention span of a gnat ....or who knows maybe a gnat has more than him....whatever he is becoming a pain in my ass. I don't have the time or patience to play along with him.... I need him to get with the program.Cody is good for haltering and leading......well mostly, he no longer tries to eat the halter when it goes on...he has no problem accepting it. When leading he spends all his time trying to get the lead rope in his mouth so there is a lot of head tossing and other strange things ....in an attempt to get it into his mouth.... also trying to bite the other horse thus making it a pain to get from point A to B. I have tried everything I know to change his behavior ...to no avail. In an attempt to stay off his head I have resorted to this.
Cody accepts the muzzle just as readily as he does the halter...after a few lessons.... he has quit trying to eat it when it goes over his mouth. he stands well for removal...also took a few lessons... but he is good now. He can no longer bite other horses being led beside him...which makes for a much easier time of getting where I need to go.
Cody still spends a lot of time trying to chew the muzzle so there is still a lot of head tossing and trying to get his mouth on the ground and he is still trying to get a hold on the lead rope....the good thing though is he can't get a hold of me....doesn't stop him from trying . After he gets in trouble a few times he will pay attention and then he settles in and is easy to deal with. If any of you have suggestions on a different way to deal with this colt please share them.
12 comments:
Well that doesn't sound like much fun. Hope you get the problem cured. I had a nice filly years ago - half QH and half Thoroughbred. I led her out to show her to a friend one day and she grabbed my shoulder...in just a reflex action, I reached my arm back and popped her hard in the nose - she let go, and never did it again.
This might well be something he will grow out of with consistent handling. I wonder if he was weaned too early, or perhaps he might have a stomach ulcer- but mostly it just sounds like coltish behavior. Remember, you are probably the first thing in his life other than his dam, that is consistent in disciplining and setting boundaries. Once he is gelded things might improve too. I say just keep up the good work and be patient. I had a Morgan gelding once that I found really annoying- we had a personality clash- and it may be that his personality and yours don't jive, and so reselling might be in his future. And hey- you might be a little spoiled with some of those good horses hanging out in your mare pen!
Have you had his teeth checked? Just to be on the safe side?
Otherwise, just stay consistent. One of my mom's horses is very mouthy and it drives me batty. He's gotten better with age (a bit, anyway). With one like this, it's very important to stay away from hand-feeding treats - which you probably already knew and have been avoiding :)
Sorry I am going to say its just a time thing, easier when they have another horse to tune them in , but even then... If we were closer I would say bring him here and he and Harley could learn some herd stuff together, but hang in there
Thanks guys, I have tried everything suggested ...including a few pops to the nose. It cures him for about 30 seconds then he's reaching out again.His sole purpose for being here is to get well looked after and healthy so he can go on to a new home....but he does have to learn to behave while he's here. I have dealt with a lot of foals (horses) and I have never come across one like this. I guess he'll be sporting that muzzle for awhile.Sigh
what about a jolly ball or one of those hanging slat licks since he is such a mouthy guy?
Cute little Cody sounds very much like he has a mind that wants to be kept busy and is looking for something to do with it. Some snowy easy going round pen work. ?? I know he is young but just a little work in the pen to make him think on his feet and become a little more aware of who the herd mare is ?
That is something I haven't done yet...we still have a bit too much snow in the round pen....but it's coming,thanks Willow..we are on the same page.
Looks like you have a good solution until you can break his bad habit. He is a cute little bugger:)
This is fairly normal for a lot of colts, some are just sooo obnoxious about it, like Cody. Something that has worked well for me is to put a bit in his mouth, leave it a little loose so he has to work to carry it. Usually, they spend so much time thinking about the bit, they won't bother anyone else. It has the side benefit of teaching him to carry a bit properly. Once he realizes that he can work without putting his mouth on everything, he will be better about it.
Something else that can really help is to give him a very small mesh hay net. The nibbling it provides really helps settle a horse like this, even if he has free choice hay, the net helps stop the constant mouthiness.
And last, get him gelded as soon as possible, that works wonders:)
Oh yeah, one other thing, I agree with whoever said to get his teeth checked. It is likely at his age that he just has teething issues and time is the only cure for that, but a tooth issue would cause this behavior. Good luck with him.
Awww poor fella, he looks like the horse version of Hannibal Lechter..:-))
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