Why You Should Not Spoil Your Horse
By Gaye DeRusso
Horses are herd animals in nature. They live in bands of as small as 3 and up to 12 horses. The alpha mare is the leader, and the stallion is the protector. But in the herd, there is arguing over personal space, there is struggling for position and power in the herd.
The young try to overtake the older horses to have a better position and to have more food. The horses in higher positions drink first, eat first and are more protected then the weaker or more submissive horses. So, you will see, kicking, biting, charging, and rearing at times in the herd, as they keep the other horses' behaviors in check.
In the herd, if a horse is misbehaving, and will not change their ways, they will be chased out. They will usually, still try to follow the herd but will be on the outside by themselves, to be easily picked off by a predator. They know that is not a good place to be.
In time the herd may give them another chance. But the herd will not tolerate bad behavior. The herd must work together to find food, water, and safety. So even though, they will test each other for hierarchy, they will abide by rules and work together for their goals.
What does this mean in horse ownership. That it is natural for the horse to test its boundaries. If it is not kept in line and given rules, it will naturally try to take over for a higher position and for power and control.
No matter how long the horse has been trained and taught good behavior, the horse can and will take over if given the chance. It is natural for them to do so. That is why you will hear a lot of people say their horse was so well behaved when they arrived but now, they do not understand why they are doing bad behaviors.
It is simple, it is because someone is letting them and there are no repercussions when the horse is acting up. The hard answer is, that it's you.
Horses are not born spoiled. But they are also not born knowing how to act around humans. They must be taught how to behave around us, so we remain safe. It is not only to help you be safe, but also everyone who must handle the horse, such as the farrier, barn employees and the vet. No one enjoys handling a spoiled horse, they can become dangerous since they do not behave, and they do not respect humans.
How did the horse get spoiled?
By not giving it rules and by not showing it how to correctly behave. I have heard many people say, I want the horse to make the decision and they do not do anything when the horse is behaving badly. Over and over the horse does make the decision, that is best for them not the human.
You cannot let the horse make the decision, without you guiding them to what is the right answer. Remember the saying, make the right thing easy and the wrong thing hard. That is what it means.
It is the same with children if we did not guide them, they would just walk into stores and steal all the candy and toys. But the parents teach them, that this is not how the world works. It is the same with the horse, you must teach them and guide them on what is appropriate behavior and what is not. Giving them 100's of cookies for no reason besides they like them and letting them do whatever they want, creates a 1000 lb. monster, not a horse that is going to love you and respect you.
How does a spoil horse act?
No respect for your personal space
Temper tantrums
Aggression
Defiance
Destructive behavior
Refuses to comply to requests
Pushy
Grabs treats or it's food
Nips
Barn Sour
Kicks out
Bites
Undersaddle they can kick, buck, rear and refuse to go where you want them to.
Now some spoil horses do all of these and some, just do some of these. But if your horse does any of these things, you must look at yourself and ask, did I spoil my horse? What people think is love and good intentions, can turn your horse, into a dangerous monster.
No one wants to buy a spoiled horse, but I see repeatedly, people taking nice well-behaved horses, giving them no rules and no consequences if they do bad behavior. Over a short period of time, the horse becomes a bad horse. I have even seen people try to blame it on the trainer, like the trainer did not train it well enough, but the only one there is to blame, is themselves.
A good trainer would never let a horse behave badly; they know it is dangerous. But because horses test all the time, if you the owner, do not admonish bad behaviors, any horse no matter how long it has been trained, will start behaving badly.
Horses are very similar to children; they will constantly test and if they succeed with getting away with anything they will repeat the behavior. How many times have you seen a child throw a fit when they could not get something they want and if the parent lets them have it to quiet them down, the child learns they get what they want when they throw a fit.
If the child does not get what they want and there are consequences for their bad behavior, then they learn this is unacceptable and will behave much better when asked.
A horse is the same way, they will test and if they get away with something, they will try it repeatedly. So, if it paws and you put it in its stall, it learns to paw to get its way. If it rears up when tied away from other horses and you untie it and put it with the other horses, it learns to rear to get its way. If when you ride it in the arena it kicks out because it does not want to work and you get off and put it away because your scared, it learns to kick out in order not to work. If when you try to leave the barn, it starts to buck and you get off and take it back to the barn and put it way, it now has learned to buck to stay at the barn.
If it pushes you to get a cookie and you think it's cute, they will now start to push you. If it grabs at your pocket to get food and you think its funny, it has learned to bite you to get food. There are so many more, but these are just examples of a horse being rewarded for bad behavior instead of being made to do the proper thing.
Horses learn very quickly how to manipulate people. Remember they read body language and so they know if you are scared, weak or simply have no idea what you are doing, and they will take over.
What you think is being a good owner by all the love and treats you give them, but not giving them rules, can make them into a dangerous horse that no one wants. Some are even euthanized if no one can handle them and a trainer does not want to own it. No one wants to deal with a difficult horse. So don't make your horse into one.
So, what you think is cute and funny, can end up turning it into a dangerous unwanted horse in time. Sad, but it happens all the time. That nice, sweet horse you started with can become a monster.
Horses attacking their owners, did not start with the attacking, it built up over time by having no rules and finally the horse took over.
What do you do?
The good news is most the time this is fixable. But the sooner you catch it, the easier it is to fix. The longer it has been going on, the longer it will take to fix.
First realize you need help if it's to the point your horse is dangerous. You need someone to show you how to make your horse behave and you need someone who can get your horse back to a level you can handle it. You need a good horseman or horsewoman or a trainer.
Once they get the horse back under control, then they will need to teach you how to handle the horse and how to prevent it from going back to that bad behavior. You need to give the horse rules and you need to give the horse consequences if they do not abide by your rules. You need to teach them how to behave around humans and how to be patient.
If your horse is not dangerous yet, but is spoiled, you need to change your ways, learn how to properly keep your horse out of your space, learn how to reinforce good behavior and learn how to show your horse bad behavior is not acceptable.
And no, they do not need all those treats. You are not a Pez Dispenser. Start replacing that food with a scratch or a good boy but keep the treats to a minimum (2 treats) and only when they do something good. If the horse is bad, or not getting better, then the treats need to go away completely.
Your horse will learn very fast that the bad behavior is no longer acceptable, but they might throw some big temper tantrums. Do not give in. It may be hard, but it is the best thing for you and your horse.
If you cannot handle it, get a trainer ASAP. The longer you avoid fixing the situation, the worse it will get and the harder it will be to fix. Remember, you made them into this. Too many horses get put down because of what their owners have created them to be, dangerous.
So, remember a spoiled horse can become a dangerous horse in time. Horses are not born spoiled. Other horses do not spoil horses. Spoiled horses are made by humans. Sometimes the hardest part is just admitting that you have spoiled your horse. But now that you understand why it is bad, you can start on the road to fixing it and go back to having a sweet, kind, well behaved horse that anyone would be happy to have.
By Gaye DeRusso
Horses are herd animals in nature. They live in bands of as small as 3 and up to 12 horses. The alpha mare is the leader, and the stallion is the protector. But in the herd, there is arguing over personal space, there is struggling for position and power in the herd.
The young try to overtake the older horses to have a better position and to have more food. The horses in higher positions drink first, eat first and are more protected then the weaker or more submissive horses. So, you will see, kicking, biting, charging, and rearing at times in the herd, as they keep the other horses' behaviors in check.
In the herd, if a horse is misbehaving, and will not change their ways, they will be chased out. They will usually, still try to follow the herd but will be on the outside by themselves, to be easily picked off by a predator. They know that is not a good place to be.
In time the herd may give them another chance. But the herd will not tolerate bad behavior. The herd must work together to find food, water, and safety. So even though, they will test each other for hierarchy, they will abide by rules and work together for their goals.
What does this mean in horse ownership. That it is natural for the horse to test its boundaries. If it is not kept in line and given rules, it will naturally try to take over for a higher position and for power and control.
No matter how long the horse has been trained and taught good behavior, the horse can and will take over if given the chance. It is natural for them to do so. That is why you will hear a lot of people say their horse was so well behaved when they arrived but now, they do not understand why they are doing bad behaviors.
It is simple, it is because someone is letting them and there are no repercussions when the horse is acting up. The hard answer is, that it's you.
Horses are not born spoiled. But they are also not born knowing how to act around humans. They must be taught how to behave around us, so we remain safe. It is not only to help you be safe, but also everyone who must handle the horse, such as the farrier, barn employees and the vet. No one enjoys handling a spoiled horse, they can become dangerous since they do not behave, and they do not respect humans.
How did the horse get spoiled?
By not giving it rules and by not showing it how to correctly behave. I have heard many people say, I want the horse to make the decision and they do not do anything when the horse is behaving badly. Over and over the horse does make the decision, that is best for them not the human.
You cannot let the horse make the decision, without you guiding them to what is the right answer. Remember the saying, make the right thing easy and the wrong thing hard. That is what it means.
It is the same with children if we did not guide them, they would just walk into stores and steal all the candy and toys. But the parents teach them, that this is not how the world works. It is the same with the horse, you must teach them and guide them on what is appropriate behavior and what is not. Giving them 100's of cookies for no reason besides they like them and letting them do whatever they want, creates a 1000 lb. monster, not a horse that is going to love you and respect you.
How does a spoil horse act?
No respect for your personal space
Temper tantrums
Aggression
Defiance
Destructive behavior
Refuses to comply to requests
Pushy
Grabs treats or it's food
Nips
Barn Sour
Kicks out
Bites
Undersaddle they can kick, buck, rear and refuse to go where you want them to.
Now some spoil horses do all of these and some, just do some of these. But if your horse does any of these things, you must look at yourself and ask, did I spoil my horse? What people think is love and good intentions, can turn your horse, into a dangerous monster.
No one wants to buy a spoiled horse, but I see repeatedly, people taking nice well-behaved horses, giving them no rules and no consequences if they do bad behavior. Over a short period of time, the horse becomes a bad horse. I have even seen people try to blame it on the trainer, like the trainer did not train it well enough, but the only one there is to blame, is themselves.
A good trainer would never let a horse behave badly; they know it is dangerous. But because horses test all the time, if you the owner, do not admonish bad behaviors, any horse no matter how long it has been trained, will start behaving badly.
Horses are very similar to children; they will constantly test and if they succeed with getting away with anything they will repeat the behavior. How many times have you seen a child throw a fit when they could not get something they want and if the parent lets them have it to quiet them down, the child learns they get what they want when they throw a fit.
If the child does not get what they want and there are consequences for their bad behavior, then they learn this is unacceptable and will behave much better when asked.
A horse is the same way, they will test and if they get away with something, they will try it repeatedly. So, if it paws and you put it in its stall, it learns to paw to get its way. If it rears up when tied away from other horses and you untie it and put it with the other horses, it learns to rear to get its way. If when you ride it in the arena it kicks out because it does not want to work and you get off and put it away because your scared, it learns to kick out in order not to work. If when you try to leave the barn, it starts to buck and you get off and take it back to the barn and put it way, it now has learned to buck to stay at the barn.
If it pushes you to get a cookie and you think it's cute, they will now start to push you. If it grabs at your pocket to get food and you think its funny, it has learned to bite you to get food. There are so many more, but these are just examples of a horse being rewarded for bad behavior instead of being made to do the proper thing.
Horses learn very quickly how to manipulate people. Remember they read body language and so they know if you are scared, weak or simply have no idea what you are doing, and they will take over.
What you think is being a good owner by all the love and treats you give them, but not giving them rules, can make them into a dangerous horse that no one wants. Some are even euthanized if no one can handle them and a trainer does not want to own it. No one wants to deal with a difficult horse. So don't make your horse into one.
So, what you think is cute and funny, can end up turning it into a dangerous unwanted horse in time. Sad, but it happens all the time. That nice, sweet horse you started with can become a monster.
Horses attacking their owners, did not start with the attacking, it built up over time by having no rules and finally the horse took over.
What do you do?
The good news is most the time this is fixable. But the sooner you catch it, the easier it is to fix. The longer it has been going on, the longer it will take to fix.
First realize you need help if it's to the point your horse is dangerous. You need someone to show you how to make your horse behave and you need someone who can get your horse back to a level you can handle it. You need a good horseman or horsewoman or a trainer.
Once they get the horse back under control, then they will need to teach you how to handle the horse and how to prevent it from going back to that bad behavior. You need to give the horse rules and you need to give the horse consequences if they do not abide by your rules. You need to teach them how to behave around humans and how to be patient.
If your horse is not dangerous yet, but is spoiled, you need to change your ways, learn how to properly keep your horse out of your space, learn how to reinforce good behavior and learn how to show your horse bad behavior is not acceptable.
And no, they do not need all those treats. You are not a Pez Dispenser. Start replacing that food with a scratch or a good boy but keep the treats to a minimum (2 treats) and only when they do something good. If the horse is bad, or not getting better, then the treats need to go away completely.
Your horse will learn very fast that the bad behavior is no longer acceptable, but they might throw some big temper tantrums. Do not give in. It may be hard, but it is the best thing for you and your horse.
If you cannot handle it, get a trainer ASAP. The longer you avoid fixing the situation, the worse it will get and the harder it will be to fix. Remember, you made them into this. Too many horses get put down because of what their owners have created them to be, dangerous.
So, remember a spoiled horse can become a dangerous horse in time. Horses are not born spoiled. Other horses do not spoil horses. Spoiled horses are made by humans. Sometimes the hardest part is just admitting that you have spoiled your horse. But now that you understand why it is bad, you can start on the road to fixing it and go back to having a sweet, kind, well behaved horse that anyone would be happy to have.