How to tame a horse thats had hardly any human contact?

Question

I just got a 3 yr old mare with a 4 mth old colt from someone who didn't have the money to keep them properly. She is very skittish and doesn't seem to have any trust, I understand that some of it is from her being a new and very young mother. How can i gain her trust? She doesn't even know what grain is when I try giving it to her (even from a distance) she looks at me like I'm crazy.. The only contact shes ever really had with humans is being loaded and unloaded from a trailer, I want her to understand that I am someone to trust and I want to be able to pet her and mess with her, I want to do this with the colt also but I figure that the mare will have to trust me before she lets me anywhere near that colt.. please help

Answer 1

First try to put her in a a round pen and try to get her to come to you. If she'll already come to you then try massaging her. take two fingers and go around her muzzle taking circle movements around and around go up through her whole head she'll get really relaxed and then try taking bigger steps.

Answer 2

you need to talk to her on a daily basis from a good distance..as close as she will let you. eventually she'll let you come closer. when that starts happening, you can try SLOWLY approaching her with your hand out. if she touches your hand, let her sniff it first then slowly pet her. never do any quick movements around her. and talk very quietly and sweetly to her..for encouragement. this can be done for the colt too. and about the grain thing..just put whatever feed you feed her in a bucket or something and leave it out..she'll eventually get curious and taste it on her own. :]

Answer 3

Okay, here are some things you need to know. First, parelli is a person. Pat Parelli. Parellie, John Lyons (my guy), Monty Roberts, and Clinton Anderson are some of the big name natural horsemanship trainers. Natural Horsemanship is not breaking. It's gaining the horses trust and getting them to see you as the herd leader by communicating with them. If your going to be doing anykind of horse training, you should invest in a round pen. You can built one or you could buy panels and lock them together. It's going to need to be a circle that's about 45'. This is a good size, but I wouldn't go any smaller. I wouldn't go bigger than 60'. This will make it much easier and safer. The horse can't go anywhere if you lose control. It also means you don't have to chase her when your working her. I'll try to start off like she's untouchable and take you up through riding. Even if she's too little to ride, she can have excellent ground manners. Okay, so if she won't let you touch her. You just need to spend time in the pasture letting her get used to you being there. Once she seems comfortable with that you can start to walk twoards her. Observe her and if she looks like she's tensing and is going to move in 5 seconds then turn around  and walk the other way in 4 seconds. You are rewarding her by taking the pressure away. In the wild if a horse is bad, the lead mare chases him to the edge of the heard and holds him there by looking at him. When she turns around and drops her head then the pressure is released and it rejoins the herd. Using and releasing pressure is how to gently train a horse. Anyway, you continue to walk closer to her and turn around to reward her if she's about to walk off. However, if she does walk off, then don't let her mosey off. Send her off. Throw a rope behind her butt or yell or wave your arms. This lets her know that there is a consequence to he actions. Eventually, if you do this, she will stand still while you approach her. She knows that if she doesn't then she has to run and that if she stands still then you will go away without hurting her. That's how she sees her options now. Once you can touch and interact with her then she'll see that your a good thing in her life. Once you can go up to her, then pet her all over her body and head. Use the same method. Start petting in a non threataning area like the shoulder. You can move from there to the rest of the body. I would save the head and feet till last. Use the same method. Rub till you think she's too uncomfortable and is going to walk away and you go first. If she does leave then send her off. Your not trying to be too strict now so if she walks a step or two and stops you don't have to send her off, but if you keep approaching and she keeps turning or walking a few steps, then send her off. After she's comfortable with this you can coil your rope and use it like you used your hand to get her used to it. This is called sacking out and you can do it with anything. Lastly, make sure you get her to where you can rub the rope all over her head. John Lyons will have untouched horses to where he can hang his rope on their heads within 45 minutes at the longest and often shorter times. This is important because the horse gets comfortable with ropes around her head. You can then put on the halter and she should give no problems. If she does, then go back a step or two. Once she does accept the halter. If she doesn't know how to lead. Take a sack, like a pillow case or cloth sack and sack her out with it. Then put it around her neck. You'll need to take your lead rope and tie the two ends of the sack together with the sack on her neck fairly close to her head. Make it a know that will pull loose if she panics and tugs too hard. Then thread the rope through where you would clip the rope normally. Now your ready. The bag spreads the pressure out since she's not used to it. Put tension on the rope. Enough that it's a little uncomfortable. If she backs away in panic then go with her, but keep the small amount of pressure so that she can feel it. As soon as she stops backing, let off the pressure. She's rewarded for tolerating the pressure. Do this again and keep doing it till she takes a step forward. As soon as she does, then release the pressure. When she gets comfortable with this then increase the amount of steps your looking for. Soon she'll be leading around and you can try to remove the sack and clip the rope on normal. If you can tie up the extra or get a short rope it would be better. That way if she gets away she won't step on the excess. Once you can lead her you should take her to the round-pen. Monty Roberts has something called join-up where you send the horse around the pen. They will turn and ear twoard you first and then might chew or mouth and then will drop their heads and start circling in twoard you. As soon as they drop their head which is a submissive pose, you should turn around and drop your shoulders and head. Watch your feet or something. This is an inviting pose, like I told you about with the mare earlier and the baby. The horse should walk up near you from behind and may sniff or nuzzle you. You can then turn around and pet her though if your horse is extra skiddish then don't look it in the eye as this is what predators do. Eventually you can, but she might be calmer if you don't right away. She'll probably follow you around after that. John Lyons does something different. He sends them around and turns them a few times. Then he ups the ante and makes them turn inwards everytime. He does this by turning them and if they turn to the outside, he turns them back and lets them go another lap or two before trying to turn them again. When they are doing that consistantly then you can give them the opportuinity to stop and rest. This is when he does the method of approaching an unhandled horse that I described above, but if you've already done this, then you can proceed to the next step. It uses the same method we've been using to try to get the horse to pay attention to you. It can't learn if it doesn't pay attention. He gives it the opportuinity to stop and makes a kissy noise to get it's attention. If it doesn't look or looks and looks away, which it will, he sends it off for a few laps and gives it another opportuinity to stop. Soon the horse learns to follow him with it's head and often it's body. He then starts sacking it out with the gear it's going to be using to ride. He sacks it out with the blanket and throws it on heavily several times from both sides before he's finished. He does this repeatedly. Then he doesn the same with the saddle. Once the saddles on he sends it around the pen again. This is when they'll buck if they have any inclination to, but some won't. He then stops it and proceeds to yank on the stiruups and bang the saddle around to get the horse used to it. When it's completely okay with this, then he'll put a foot in the stirup. If the horse is okay then he stands up in that stirup without putting a leg over. He does this several times from both sides. Keep in mind that for this process he gets down if he thinks the horse is going to walk off right before it happens and praises the horse, but if it walks off it gets sent off. Once it's okay with him standing in the stirrup he'll put a leg over, sit down gently and just sit there. Don't try to make the horse go and you can let him wander. After a little while you can get down. Repeat this process several times. Getting a horse used to the bridle is a little more difficult but not hard. It's more easily achieved with a combo halter/bridle. You need to get the horse used to something in it's mouth. You can put your fingers in the gap between it's teeth, but watch them carefully. After that you can run something like a dowel from one side to the other. When it's comfortable with this, try to take it out throught the teeth. Then you can try to put it up to the horses mouth to try to get it to except it this way. You can put a little honey on the stick to help the process along. To let the horse know that things going in it's mouth is a good thing. Eventually replace it with the bit. By now your horse knows how to give to pressure, accept tack and accept a rider on it's back. You need another person there in case something goes wrong, but you should be able to get on your horse and guide them gently around the arena. You really need to get a round-pen, but if you can't right now there are other things you can do. You can get her used to everything no riding related. Use the same technique we've been discussing and teach her to move parts of her body with a touch or gesture. Get her to pick up her feet by squeezing on the back of the leg right behind the hoof till she gets aggravated and lifts it. As soon as she does, then let off the pressure. This should get her picking them up by herself real soon. Don't be afraid to squeeze hard if she doesn't pick them up. I had to squeaze hard on all of ours and it may take a few minutes, but don't let go till you get some response or she'll learn not to pick them up to relieve pressure. This helps immensly for when the farrier comes. Get her used to all the grooming tools. Especially clippers. turn them on and run them over her body with the same method with the sharp part facing out. When she's used to them you can trim her whiskers. You can teach her to cross tie but you need a quick release on one and you need to hold the other until she figures out that they aren't going to hurt her and to stand still. You can't send her off in the cross ties so use the pressure method. If she pulls hard then give her some slack otherwise hold till she lets up some and then give h

Answer 4

Put her ina small yard or round pen and go in with a deck chair and read a book. tie a halter or practice your singing. don't try and get her to come to you, just show her that hey i'm not out to get you, just doing my own thing and in time she'll become a accustomed to you.

or you can get her in the cattle crush throw a headstall on her and a 10 metre lead line and put her in the round yard and get her over it quick...either or

Answer 5

i have never had any experience trying to tame a horse that has had virtually no human contact.  TO get started i have 2 suggestions for you:

1.  Put her and the colt in a stall (a large one tho not a box stall) and bring a chair or a bucket in when u walk in and sit on it.  Put your back towards the horses and they will start to act curious about what you are doing in their stall.  Slowly they will come up to you and when they do have a big handful of treats ready for them.  HOpefully after a while of doing that you can gain their trust.

2.  If you have a round pen or a small ring try bringing only the mare in there.  Bring a lunge whip and just make her start running in circles.  After about 5 minutes of running have her stop (u dont need a halter or lead rope/lunge line for this) and turn your back toward her.  Just like with sitting in her stall hopefully she will come up to you.  When she does come up to you give her lots of treats.  then take her back to her stall and sit in there for a while with both mom and baby.

Good luck and happy trails

just remember there is no quick fix to this and it may take a while for it to work

Answer 6

Just keep with her. If you can get her in a small space you can get closer. If you are patient and quite she will come around. Also, if she is getting fed hay, you should do it. It will make her see that you are her food source.

Talk to her. Pet her when you can. Approach her in a normal but quite way. To slow and you will look like a predator stalking her or her young. The more you are around the better she will be.

Also, if the foal approaches don't shy away. If she sees that you won't harm her young she may be more open to contact.

Is she and her foal just going to be a pet or are you thinking of them as future riding animals?

PS. Parelli is fine for some but I personally had no use for the touchy feely c**p. Horses are herd animals not rational people. :) And don't put her in a small area! She will just end up feeling trapped! Small pen yes, stall no! Also no whips, halters, lounge lines, ropes or shoots. I spent 5 years running ponies into a trailer and working them into riding horses. They had zero contact with humans, sometimes negative contact. So just be consistent, quite and approach her normal. If you act weird she will be weird. Plus once you get her used to one way of you being around her it will freak her out if you change your behaviour.

Good Luck! :)

Answer 7

try to do pareli with her, it is natural horsemanship. she needs to trust u, like u said, try to sit outside or in the pasture with her and just get her used to having you around. good luck

Answer 8

Good luck with that! I have seen some horses like that worked but have no experience myself.

Answer 9

When shes in pasture sit or lean against the rail so she gets used to you being around. Dont try touching her yet. Show her a treat then put it some where and walk away. so she knows that your good/nice. Dont bother touching the colt yet wait till the mom trusts you. And are you positive you got the right info on the mare because having a baby at 3 for horses is very rare and dangerous.

Answer 10

Parelli Natural Horsemanship!  

http://www.parelli.com/product.faces?pro...

Answer 11

It's gonna take time if you want to gain her trust.  The area you described is not that large.  So it will work good for you becoming part of her and foals enviroment.

I would take the time to just hang around her area.  Reading a book, singing out loud, carrying on a conversation with her.  As long as you are making audible noises.  You can even read your book out loud if you feel awkward having a one way conversation.  Use her name in your talking to her.

Do not turn your back completely to her when you are around her.  I just don't believe that is safe.  More than likely the foal will come up to you first.  RESIST the urge to pet the foal at first.  Or the mare if she decides to come near you.  So many people blow it by rushing to 'touch' the animal.  Let the mare watch you and come near to you on her terms.

This doesn't mean not to try and get closer to her yourself.  But read the horse.  If the horse is uncomfortable with you coming near...learn to 'see' when she is getting agitated or nervous and getting ready to leave.  You want to get close and STOP before she leaves on her own.  If you notice her getting ready to run off...turn around and walk away before she does it.  The foal will learn quickly to run from humans from his mother.

Always keep your movements and body language...non aggressive.  Slow movements with hands.  Not facing the horse directly.  Not making direct eye contact with the horse.  If she lets you near...do not go for her face.  You want to stroke the shoulder and neck area first.  This is for safety too.  You can push off a horse from the shoulder or neck, or block a bite, or evade a kick or rear.

I'm not a fan of treats...but they can be a useful tool in teaching a horse to come to you.  Use carrots or apples if she likes them.  If she comes for a treat...resist the urge to pet her the first couple of times.  Just give her the treat...and leave.

It's going to take time...every single day.  And like I said...most likely the foal will come up first.  They are very curious and inquisitive.  Don't scare the foal, and it will return.  Maybe with momma following.

For the grain...if you're feeding hay...sprinkle some grain ON TOP of the flake.  Just a little at first until she gets to like it.  Soon, you can just pour a small amount on top of the hay flake.  Soon, I bet she'll be looking forward to her grain.  And it's also another useful tool to get her to come to you.  Once she understands what it is...

Don't forget to talk all the time in a soothing and calm normal voice.  Let her associate your voice and presence with good things...and no fear.