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Biting. HELP!

3K views 25 replies 18 participants last post by  trailhorserider 
#1 ·
i have a lesson horse who i ride and he is an obsessed with biting. you go to take his blanket off and he attacks you. he will bite you until you get to the point that you have to hit him (which i am so against) he almost bit my friends finger off. i have been trying so hard to make him stop any suggestions?

thanks :D
 
#3 ·
Tell your instructor that the horse ate your checkbook and your not going to get another one untill he quits biting. If he is not your horse then you shouldn't be correcting him the owner should. If that isn't going to happen then tie him short enough he can't get to you and stay away from his head. If he tries to bite you, hit him in the mouth, if he does it again hit him harder. You can be against it all you want but I presonally am against having my body damaged by a horse.
 
#22 ·
I have a friend who has lots of horse experience. She had a horse that was a biter when she got him. What she did was the same as what vivache described, expect she used a nail positioned so that the point of the nail was between two of her fingers to the top side of her hand. When the horse went to bite she let the horse's muzzle make contact with the point of the nail. What registers to the horse's mind is that the "hand bit him". Horses do not like to hurt themselves on purpose. The horse did stop even attemtping to bite.
 
#6 ·
I know it may seem harsh to smack a horse, but when he is trying to inflict pain on you on purpose, you have to do something about it. Give him a smack, or if you choose to ignore it when he bites you, he probably will carry on doing it.

But you must also look at the reasons he is biting you. Is he scared, or is he just being cheeky? If he is scared, or if he started doing it because he was being hurt in any way, then smacking or disciplining him would make matters worse.

If that is the case, you have to go way back and find out what is scaring him, and see if you can try and do something about it, maybe get someone who can help you.

I know of two real life examples of a cheeky horse and a scared horse.

One of the cheeky horse was called Sweet Prince. He just started biting out of fun. His owners never actually did anything about his biting...and it just got worse. I don't know what happened to him after he moved from the barn where I'm boarding though.

One of the scared horse is Prins. When he used to stay in a field (before I knew him), these people used to come and harrass him, by throwing things at him and scaring him. He eventually started biting to protect himself because he was scared of getting hurt. He was later bought by a guy who worked with him and gained him trust, now Prins never bites the guy anymore, but is still wary of other people who come near him.

I hope this helps, and good luck. :wink:
 
#7 ·
thanks for giving me suggestions everyone

i lease him and every time i take off his blanket he turns around and bites me. i have hit him, i have cross tied him and carried a riding crop while just walking him. i am really gentle when i do everything with him from putting a saddle on to taking his blanket off.

what about the method of just ignoring it? i heard that works.
 
#9 ·
thanks for giving me suggestions everyone

i lease him and every time i take off his blanket he turns around and bites me. i have hit him, i have cross tied him and carried a riding crop while just walking him. i am really gentle when i do everything with him from putting a saddle on to taking his blanket off.

what about the method of just ignoring it? i heard that works.
Whatever you do you need to be consistent and protect yourself. If you decide to hit him you need to do it every time and never ignore it and if you ignore it you can't ever hit him.
 
#8 ·
sounds like my horse when i bought him.

if he lunged and tried to bite me, id wack him in the mouth with whatever was in my hand, a brush, a waterbottle, or even just my hand.
sounds mean, but biting is unacceptable, and i personally wont take it. cutter hasnt bit me in about 7 months now
 
#10 ·
Good advise from Kevin. Ignoring him is absolutely not an option. Any idea how old this horse is, how long has be been doing it, and is it just with his blanket?
 
#11 ·
When I'm around a horse I even suspect of being a biter, because I'm a sissy, I wrap the end of a rope around his muzzle. I'll even carry a extra rope, not real thick, if I think of it ahead of time. I don't hit, because it can start a fight I KNOW I can't win.
 
#19 ·
7 years? 7 years? and he's still doing it? What the heck? JustSam is right -- it's a respect issue if he's doing it just when someone walks by. The horse needs some serious mediation work. Yes, indeed, smack him in the mouth when he bites and when he tries to bite. When he gets his muzzle anywhere near you, push him away even if he is not biting. You and all others around him must NEVER let him move his muzzle to you. Only you can move to him. But that might take a while.

One of my horses was pretty domineering about her space when she came here. She was a wannabe biter. She was just at the point of trying it out (actually did get my clothes a couple of times), so I made sure to stop her whole attitude right quickly: Anytime I was in the field, she wasn't allowed to come into my space. My space is now defined by the length of my arms, it used to be the length of my arms plus a crop. If she came into my space without my invitation she was sent away. EVERY TIME and with WHATEVER IT TOOK. When I was grooming her or doing her feet, if her head came my way at all, I'd elbow her or push her or bump her. If she actually tried to bite, she got smacked on her mouth and I'd be right in her face physically and verbally. When I was ready, then I would move into her space and be all nice to her. Currently, she is a big suck and loves to have her head rubbed. Your horse will not become head shy if you enforce the difference between him moving into your space and you moving into his.
 
#13 ·
Thats is a respect issue then. He's saying "you are not allowed in my space, don't come near me". Sometimes my TB does this. Usually a nice long session in the round pen with lots of changing directions and changing gaits works well to cure it.

However, I do agree that if he does actually get you, even if its just grazing teeth, wallop him on the muzzle. You have to do it within the first three seconds after you've been bitten, or it doesn't count. Horses don't think like people, he won't understand you ignoring him since this is not attention seeking behavior, he'll just take it as a sign that he can get away with it.
 
#21 ·
My mare recently started biting. I was getting her in the field and she tryed to nip me. I let it go because i thought she was mad cause there was a pony like right behind her. So i groom her and walk her to the arena. I tighten the girth and she bites me. I smack her in the mouth. I don't take crap from her. She is a fat mare and it was disrespect. I get in the saddle and she tries to bite my foot. I reach down and smack her in the mouth. I yell at her and continue on my riding. Then she tries to rear and she has never reared since i got her NOT ONCE ! I make her listen and then get off. I don't give her a treat. So next day she bites again so then i make her mad and i get on and make her canter and i pick up my whip. I keep on making her canter. She hates to canter and gallop. She is used as a school horse at the barn. She is used for like begginer/ intermediate. I trot her and then i stop to adjust my stirrups. She tries to bite me. I tap her mildly with the whip. She stopped doing this now.
 
#23 ·
I agree it is a respect issue. Hunter is a grumpy pony who has tried to bite, especially in the cross ties and I am trying to brush him. I used to be afraid of him (not just the biting) but have since got my confidence back and since I haven't been putting up with any of his crap he has a whole new respect. He had other issues (couldn't get him to load without 2 people) he now walks right on to the trailer with just me there. He tried a little attitude again the other day but I smacked him when he tried to bite and he threatened again and then stopped. I think I may try the nail trick.. Good luck
 
#24 ·
I would not follow the advice to smack him in the mouth. This tends to just cause them to want to bite more, as now you have engaged in the fight. I would go into an open area with a long rope. Start grooming, taking off the blanket, etc. basically whatever you would normally do. When he tries to bite, immediately send him away and make him WORK. Circles, changing direction, backing up, etc. When he appears more submissive (head down, chewing, coming closer to you) then pick up where you left off. Do not make a fuss about it. This may take quite a few times for a really stubborn horse, and you will have to reinforce this every time you work with him in any way. Remember, he has been doing this for 7 YEARS, you are not going to get it to stop in a few minutes. Doing more groundwork with this horse may also be required. Get him to respect your space and follow directions...do not get mad, this is counterproductive. If you meet force with force, an understanding is impossible. You need to get through to this horse's thought pattern to modify such an ingrained behavior. Obviously, if this is not your horse, this may not be possible. If the trainer is unwilling to do anything about it, you may have to resign yourself to the fact that this is going to be an ongoing problem and you just need to take steps to protect yourself. Unfortunately, many "trainers" aren't willing to put in the time to actually correct a problem and just use cover-ups to mask them. I have known many people like this and ultimately I have found that I am happiest when I find a situation where I am around people who use more intelligent methods, even if that means switching instructors or barns.
 
#25 ·
Have to say I agree with Kevin on this one...While I like to be as 'quiet' as I can around horses, I will be as loud in my body language as I have to, in order to get a point across, especially in regard to dangerous behavior. That said, I usually only resort to smacking if I am in no position to be able to put that horse's butt to work.

If this horse is not your horse, I would strongly suggest using a different one for lessons; you should not be the one having to correct the behavior, or risk being injured by a horse who has little respect for his handler's space.
 
#26 ·
Not to hi-jack the thread, but what about if the horse in question is a mouthy, 6 month old colt? And isn't biting with aggression, but wants to chew on EVERYTHING.

My colt wants to nip and chew, and it's gotten to where smacking either at his mouth or with a crop at his body, doesn't really get his attention. I think he finds it to be a game. His ears aren't back, it isn't aggressive, but it's annoying as heck and I don't want it to get worse.

Do they ever grow out of the mouthy stage of wanting to put everything in their mouth? He chews on his lead rope, his halter when I try to put it over his nose, any kind of tack or clothing, just about anything he can reach, has to go in his mouth. He even ripped off and ate a piece of plastic grocery bag much to my horror- I just couldn't get it away from him before he ate it. :shock:

What do you do with a colt that isn't really being aggressive, but just has to chew on everything, including your clothes and his tack???

I am thinking he needs a small bit to wear as a pacifier. :lol:
 
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