How do you get a horse to stall comfortably without freaking out over it?

Question

my daughters just paces back and forth and swings her head around the stall she wont even really settle down to eat her food she will just grab a mouthful and start up again and we have to stall her for fair.

any help please

Answer 1

To calm her down and direct her attention to her food, halter her and tie her to the feed bin....not tight, with enough slack that if she tries to pace, it stops her...she will eventually calm down and eat.  That's the first step, and sometimes, all that is needed, if you need further ideas, email me..

Answer 2

How long has it been since the horse has been moved into the stall?  I've seen it take horse's between a minute and a month to get accustomed to stalls or a new stall.  Make sure the horse has food and can see its friends.  Also, try leaving it alone for a while.  At least the horse is eating.

When the horse gets home from the fair work on adjusting it to different stalls.  For example, take it to a friends barn once and a while.

Answer 3

Ok i work with races horses they ushally do that..Why is it in a stall in your paddock?

Answer 4

She is anxious. Why? You haven't given us enough information to help you solve this, but consider:

When you stall her what is different? Smaller space obviously. Is she out of site of usual companions? Does she need company? Are there different noises, smells, etc there? Figure out what is different then use a process of elimination to decide what she is actually stressing about. THEN you can go about habituating her to it.

Answer 5

try giving her a ball to play with or something also how often do you work her she could just be bored

Answer 6

try giving her a ball or somethin like that she could be bord when you see calm give her treats at home and at the fair....

Answer 7

I would slowly introduce her to the stall and not leave her in it for long periods at a time to start. Put her in it for an hour or 2 and then let her out again. The next time leave her in longer. Is she being stalled with other horses in the barn? Make sure there is another horse nearby to help ease her anxiety. Stay with her a while. Maybe groom her in the stall and talk to her to help calm her. As for the fair, is it possible to take another horse she is friendly with and stall him next to her? That could help calm her.

Answer 8

Two thoughts.  The first is that it's just nerves.  She may not be accustomed to being in a stall or a new location.  That is pretty common.  In these cases, if you give her enough time, sooner or later she may settle down.  

How long have you tried leaving her in her stall?  I have found that most of my "nervous nellies" will pace around for an hour or two but settle down eventually.

Just pacing around will tire her out, but keeping her stabled for a day or so will do no long term harm.  Be sure the stall is completely free of anything that she could be hurt on.  If the stall has dutch doors, it may help to close the top door to keep out distractions.  

You may want to take her out of her stall well before the class just to give yourself extra time to get her warmed up (or ridden down, depending on her mood) and mentally ready to compete.

In these cases, if possible, I would take several days to acclimate her to being stalled, starting with an hour, then 2 or 3, then 5 or 6, then overnight, etc...if she has enough food, sooner or later she will get tired and just settle down and eat.

However, there may be a more problematic situation.  The horse could have issues from a previous time in her life when she was stalled - perhaps stable vices developed from being confined too much for too long.  Being confined will trigger these memories and she is therefore reenacting old behaviors.  Usually these go beyond mere anxiousness or restless and are some kind of repetitive behavior; the horse weaves its head back and forth over the stall door, or paces in the same direction over and over, etc...

In these cases, you have a much harder time and may never completely break the habit.  The best solution in these cases is to  minimize stalling as much as possible.  If the fair requires her to be stabled overnight, see if there are barns with a small paddock attached where she can get an alternative form of housing, or if your fair is close to home, try to get special permission to trailer home overnight.  If they are rigid about the rules, consider if there is any type of natural calming product that is show legal for your competition (tranquilizers usually aren't) and give it a try.

For both the merely anxious horse and the horse with stable vices, usually shutting the top door helps.  If she has a companion at the stable, bringing her friend along may also help.

Good luck