Re: 18 month old stud who WILL NOT stop nipping!
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Posted by PH Cody on October 22, 2002 at 12:19:18:
In Reply to: 18 month old stud who WILL NOT stop nipping! posted by martinslullaby on October 05, 2002 at 09:55:37:
:I am at my wits end with this one. I have never had this much trouble stopping this before with my babies. I have tried everything from pinching his lip to carrying a clean nail or a sewing needle to deter him from reaching out and nipping. The breeder was slapping him on his face which caused him to be extremely head shy. I have had him since March 2002 and he has overcome his head shyness, but now he has become a pain in the neck about nipping. Does anyone have any suggestions for me to try?
Lisa's idea is a good one, and will work for some of the nipping. However, if he's a smart one, he'll figure out that out of the round pen you have no defense.Your concern with head shyness is valid, to a point. However, its been my experience that head shyness comes from abuse, not discipline. I don't mean the person necessarily beat him, I mean the either the discipline was not given out IMMEDIATELY or it was indeed taken too far.
I have 3 studs, two which are here with me. Very rarely will either try anything like nipping. I raised them the same as I do my fillies, no tolerance and immediate discipline. If a horse of any age or gender bites or nips at me, I immediately strike back, often before they even get their teeth closed down good. I strike at whatever is closest, which is most often their mouth but if they have that second on me, it could be their neck or shoulder. One strike, that's it, but its a strong strike and a loud "NO WAY" along with it. If its one of my studs and I've got him on the lead line, I always have the chain on them. I VERY RARELY have to use it, but if you need it and don't have it, its too late. One quick snatch and they know they were caught, and no, its still not allowed.
Don't underestimate a horse's intelligence. If disciplined correctly, they know why and respect that. My boys are not head shy, never have been, but they both know better than to bite. Head shyness comes from distrust. A horse that is head shy is one that thinks your hand is always coming to do harm. Harm should never be dealt without reason, ESPECIALLY with a stud as they do not forget or forgive, nor should they have to. And regardless of how bad they are on any given day, ALWAYS find something good to praise them for. Find reasons to rub their faces on a regular basis, mess with their ears, around their eyes, mouth, etc. This, along with effective and timely discipline will build a trust between you and your horse. And once you have that trust, you can do about anything and your horse will follow :)
Good luck!
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