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Very bad behavior not sure how to fix help?

2K views 11 replies 6 participants last post by  goodolesunny 
#1 ·
OK my horse is 11 years old and has always stood tied in cross ties well, we have used them for years but about 1 mnth ago she spooked at something and backed up and broke them and now she does it all the time she has learned to just apply pressure and break them to get away..my daughter is taking her to the county fair in two weeks and we are not sure how to fix this problem
 
#2 ·
Oh and we went back to some basics like plain rope halter with pressure points and we have been tying her to or hitching post instead of crosstieing her...the other night she backed up and pulled so hard to try and snap free that I couldn free her with the safety knot and she just kept the pressure untill she passed out completly and I had to cut the lead line to release her...this has been going on for a few weeks now and its frustrating.
 
#3 ·
She pulled back until she passed out????

Wow. That is pretty intense.

Has anything else changed with her? Any behaviors? It seems like she has passed the moment of learning through release and has entered scared flight mode. What scared her when she was tied to the hitching post for her to react so violently? I think your key is to start fresh and to figure out what is scaring her so much and work with that.

I worked with a mare who would literally sit on her behind if you grabbed at her chin too quickly. That was her uncomfortable/scary moment. I guessed that it had something to do with her training when she was a weeone. And we worked with that.

It could be something like that.

ANd I wouldn't tie her to anything for a bit. Let her regain her confidence.
 
#4 ·
There wasnt anything that scared her she is so bomb proof its not funny. I have taken her camping 100 times where she stood tied to a hitching post for days and nights. The farrier came down to shoe her and she pulled out of the cross ties a few times on him and and think that is where she figured out that they would break. Its become a habit I am sure that tying her her where she cant get away will fix it but I never dreamed she would pull so hard lock up and pass out. I thought she was going to break her neck. I was told to go back to some basic excersises like reteaching her to give to pressure and when we do that she is fine. thee has got to be a way to fix this with out her passing out.
 
#5 ·
I would not actually tie her but would have a rope through one of the rings and stand to the side but behind her. When she pulled back I would use either the rnd of the rope or the bristles of a broom to make her jump forward.

When they get to know that they can a) pull back or, b) panic when tied then pushing them forward is going to teach them that a) it isn't worth it or b) there is something more spooky behind than in front.
 
#9 ·
We have used 'Be Nice Halters' for about 40 years now. They have always worked to make one stop setting back.

And yes, I have also had them keel over pulling back. Usually they are sulled up and not unconscious. The only ones that have actually passed out had been tied with a halter that was too long or loose and it came down across their nostrils when they pulled back and stretched it. I have had to cut a couple of ropes, but usually just 'sic' the heeler on them and they jump right back up.

I am using 2 geldings right now that I bought for the trail string that were sold to me because they could not be tied. The Be Nice Halter fixed them both. One tried to break his halter once in a while for a couple of years after I got him. I have had him 12 years now and he has not pulled back in the last 9 or 10 years of that. He was the worst one I had ever seen. He would also pull back and roll up-side-down in hand if you had fly spray in your hands. After getting him over all of that crap, he has been the best gelding we have had for trail riders now for years.

With some horses, it only takes one broken halter or lead to teach them to pull back.

You won't have to cut a rope if you learn to tie a 'bowline' knot. Just tie the first part of it like a regular bowline and then stick the rope doubled up into a loop in the last step and you can always pull it out.
 
#10 ·
I tie a safety knot that is the same as a bowline knot and she had pulled back with direct force and the rope was so tight I could not pull it free. I will check out the halter I just want it to stop my daughter is terrified to take her to the show. She is afraid she will pull away and get loose.
 
#11 ·
What Foxhunter said is what I did for Brock when he learned he could break free. Worked a treat, he stopped pulling back no problem. (So he learned to untie himself - ugh.)

But she really sounds like she's getting into right brain mode when she does it, especially if she didn't release and passed out! Whatever it is is causing her to get into flight mode so it might take a while to get her back in the right frame of mind to learn.

But yeah, learn to do a quick release knot as Cherie mentioned, very handy in an emergency.You might want to avoid tying in a rope halter too - I've known nasty head injuries to occur with horses pulling back suddenly. She's clearly not reacting to pain/pressure from the halter so I would avoid using anything that relies on that or she might seriously injure herself.
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#12 ·
I checked out this halter and it looks pretty smart my only question is will it break? she has broken 2 good halters at this point and I would hate to by this and she break it. She is a tank she once pulled a 3 horse trailer backward about 100 feet because some idiot at our barn tied her to a trialer that wasnt hooked to a truck.
 
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