My horse is taking over. She thinks she's the boss.. How can I show her that I am?

Question

My horse knows that she is the boss, and right now she is. When ever I go out to the pasture to put her halter on to walk her to the barn or go riding she pins her ears down and flares her lips so you can see her teeth. It takes me over 15 minutes to catch her. How do I show her that I'm the boss and you cannot pin ears/kick/bite me?

Answer 1

Use a whip on that horse when she tries that or sell her.  You are going to get hurt if you keep up the way you are.  What ever you do, do not get in a round pen with this horse without a whip in hand.

Answer 2

it is called round pen reasoning it is a way of establishing pecking order with out touching the horse first you get the horse to go to the right and the left in the round pen at least four times with out changing direction except on your command then you add in turning to the outside this teaches her to give way as she is moving away at your command then you teach her to turn to the inside on your command this teaches trust as she is coming toward you the you teach her to do outside turns and stop with her left eye on you and to turn her head to you and the the same but the right eye and turn her head to you the keep bending her head till she starts to walk towards you  know when you have done these things any time she acts like a bully send her out and do this ruetine what she will find out is you are the lead mare and you tell her where to go and what to do and every time she disobeys you will do it again this is how horses do it in the wild and how lead horses establish pecking order hey you know GOD loves you

Answer 3

u b the boss

Answer 4

Take a handful of feed with you next time you go to catch her.  When you give her the feed, slip the halter over her face, fasten it.  If she pins her ears, immediately take the lead rope and pull it down sharply and say no!  Do not hesitate! Lead her to wherever you are going.  Keep doing this every time she pins her ears. Be firm!

Answer 5

As this seams to be a recent "bossiness" had you thought that she may have banged her head somewhere and therefore making it painfull for her to be haltered/bridled etc.. It could be her teeth playing up and she knows that the bit hurts. Have a gentle look round her face/ears/neck/muzzle for any sores/lumps etc..When you go in the field, take some cubes or treats and offer them to her. If she gets nasty, just walk away, turn your back on her. Go and sit in the field and ignore her, she will soon want to know what your doing. Offer a treat, get up and walk away. She will probably follow you. Give another few treats and walk right away without attempting to catch her. Give her time, a few weeks and if it still persists, call the vet. There is a reason for this behaviour. Be very gentle with her and DON'T loose your temper as this will frighten her and your problem will get worse.

Answer 6

I know exactly what you mean. My horse will see me walking up to her in the pasture, and will take off. Because she knows when i catch her, we work. It takes me, my sister, and my aunt to chase her, corner her, and then fastly throw the halter on. Ive been working on this for over a year now. But, sometimes when i do catch, i dont ride her. Instead, ill tie her up and brush her, or just go for a walk. I always bring treats with me when i go out to get her. I also found it helpful to hang out with my horse in the pasture. Every once in awhile, ill go out to pick berries, and Razz, my horse, will be standing right next to me waiting for me to pull down branches into reaching zone. And before the grass in the pasture started growing, i would go out with buckets full of grass and let her and the other horses eat, this also helped us bond, and for her to earn my trust.

I think you should just try to bond with your horse a lot more. Mares are so stubborn. But when shes in her stall, go in and brush her. Tell her good girl, and let her feel wanted and loved. It could just be that you two need to bond more.

And for biting. My horse bit me once, and that was the first and last time. If a horse ever bites you, the best thing to do is to bite them back. I tell everyone this, because it works!! i dont get bit, and it saves so much pain. I wouldnt bother hitting them, they may not understand what they are getting hit for. Biting them back is very understandable. I know it sounds gross, trust me ive had a mouth full of dirt afterwards, but would you rather have dirt in your mouth, or your skin in your horses? This even worked for me with a stallion! When ever a horse hurts me, i do the same thing back. If a horse was to even kick AT me, id still kick them back. Im not mean to my horses, im just really big on respect. I respect any horse, and i expect them to respect me back.

I hope i helped a little.

Answer 7

I am glad you are at least asking for help ....

Is she actually attacking you??  Or just threating?? Did it just start??  

You need to do a lot of ground work ... if she is attacking get a trainer ... if not, don't show fear .... if her ears go back use an authoritive voice and tell her no ... say her name firmly ... put yourself as the alpha ... she is the alpha ... I bet she is treating you like the other horses in the pasture ..... stand up to her and take over the herd .... and never let go of the herd ....

Being alpha is just not catching her .... it is with every horse and doing everything .... do not let them swing a head around while they are tied and try to nip at you ... while brushing back legs do not let them lift a leg and threaten to kick ... do not let them walk in front of you ... do not let them .... you don't beat them into submission you firmly rememind them they are following you ..... a nudge with an elbow ... a tug on a lead rope .... a smack with your hand on the neck or butt .... watch an alpha horse with the bites to the butt of a lower horse .... pinned ears ... teeth bared .... a swish of the tail ..... just do what you see and pull rank .... it is not something you can fix today ... and if you can't get tough without being "abusive" ... find a good trainer .....

And read H&R July 2008 ..... "Why does my horse respect my trainer and not me" ..... good article!

Good Luck

Answer 8

watch how horses pick the pecking order,it is not nice and can be painfull to a pair of head strong horses.most people want to try to bribe their horse with treats and this can make a horse pushy and not respect your space.in order to make a horse respect you as the leader you have to teach it that it does something because you allow it to do that at that time. this pretty much comes down to how much time you spend with your horse.if i am trying to teach one of my horses that i am the leader of the herd i will halter and lead that horse twenty times a day.i will allow it to eat by leading it to a  good grassy spot in the pasture with the halter on and i will only allow it to have some when i am satisfied that it can stand there and pay attention to me first.i use a rope halter or a "be nice" halter which gives me more control over my horses. i feed all my working horses in one spot and i will stand there when they eat and rub my hands on them while they eat to teach them that they eat when i say they eat and this also teaches them that i am not threatening them.find their foal spots so it can calm them down.remember that you have to spend a lot of time with your horse everyday to get a good working relationship with your horse.

Answer 9

well what I use to do with Jim who was a 15hh 10yr old gelding STB who use to be a pain for me to catch. I would grab a handful of grain to catch him in a minute but then I figured that would make it alot worse if I sent another family member out to get him, so I started training him in his pasture when he would try to kick me I would have my lunge whip out and crack it down by his feet and get him to trot around me in a circle, he would stop his ears from being pinned back and listen to me closely to see why I was doing this, I then would try and put the lead line on him as the halter was already on him for easy catching, he then would throw his head to the side and make a swoop of his head which in horse body language means, " You are no boss of me." so I would do the same with him and stamp my foot, this would get him to stop and stare at me so all attention was back on me just like all horse owners want and need to get there horse to listen, then I would make him trot around me again. Then when he still would kick out and lunge at me I would smack his choulder with the whip anytime he lunged at me and push him away with it to let him know I wasnt going to stand for that and he would stop a few feet away and watch me with interest and I would make him trot again, and then by the fifth time I would just stand there whip down and hand down with the lead line and he would look at me and then walk right up to me nickering and let me hook him, this happened because he understood I wasnt going to back down and I could match him stride for stride and then he felt safe with me and saw me as a boss more than he was. Now he comes to me and family member anytime he sees us coming with a lead line, so all in all be patient, match her stride for stride and she will learn you wont back down because she is trying to be the boss. Also the pasture was 5 acres long so I was running a good time in a day so get use to being stride for stride in a huge enclosure. Also hope I helped and good luck!!

Answer 10

If she becomes aggressive (tries to bite you, turns her rear on you etc) then I would go with the confident, but not aggressive "No". however if she puts her ears back, ignore her. Do not give her any treats until she settles, otherwise she will see this as being rewarded for bad behaviour.

Answer 11

To show the horse that your the "alfa" you need take the lead. When going out to get her be calm and do not expect her to do something bad because then she has a much higher chance of doing something bad. Try aproaching her calmly and talk to her in a soothing relaxing tone when you finally aproach her try to put the lead line over her neck then pet her and then put her halter on. This way with the leadline you have some way to hold on to her, but if she runs DO NOT chase after her!!!! Because then she will run faster because she is a flight  and freight animal. When you get her try to use a stud chain this way is telling her you are the boss the chain will not hurt her it will just give her a more distinct signal to listen to you. Do not fear that she is going to bite or kick her horses can sense fear and may react badly becuase if your scared they think maybe they have something to be scared of...this is all I can give you with this info, feel free to ask me more questions. I hope this helps!

Answer 12

Switch to using a rope halter with loop-attached lead about 10' long...I like the nylon rope best for it's flexibility and strength.  When you get near her, throw the lead over her neck and hold it around her throat while you put the halter on.

Keep you hand 2 to 3 feet away from the halter and immediately shake the lead hard, so it ripples , with your hand directing it right at her chest.  You'll have the lead coming out of the top of your hand and be snapping your wrist like if you were casting a fishing line.  the point of this is to back her off of you and teach her to respect your space.  When you are doing this, you can also use the end of the lead to swing at her and encourage her to back off.  She should stay 3 feet away from you as you lead her in.  If she crowds you, you can shake her back, and you can lunge her around you on the long lead, then back her before resuming leading her.  Never place your hand closer than 2 feet from the halter, and never lead her by the halter...she should be walking behind you with a relaxed lead.

at first you may need to lunge her if she won't cooperate (in the lead in the pasture while this is going on).  Plant your feet and make her do all of the work...you can switch the lead from one hand to the other as needed, and use the end of the lead to swing like a lariat in her face if you have to, but make her move...not you.  Always shake her back away from you before you allow her to be led in a relaxed lead again.  This teaches respect and if you want, many more exercises can be performed using this rig.  Be sure you get it with not metal parts...the lead attaches to the halter by being looped through.

If at any point she tries to run from you, hold firm...she can't out muscle you in this rig...even if she puts all her weight into pulling, the pressure on the poll will give you the leverage and she will give in...like a tug of war, but your opponent is pulling with his little finger.

Answer 13

Groundwork, groundwork, groundwork!

Once you can catch her, you need to focus on getting her to listen to you on the ground and working on "Who's boss."

Some exercises I did with my horse were these:

1. When you're walking, randomly stop and make her back a couple steps. Don't turn around, just stand forward and make her back. She will learn not to go into autopilot and just keep doing the same all the time. I did this so much with my horse that she began to back up every time I'd stop her on the lead line, ha... don't do it so much she anticipates it!

2. Pivots, teach her to move off of you. She should get to the point where you just turn to her and get in position, and she's already moving away from you. That's a sign of respect, you don't have to push or force her.

These may sound simple, but these small exercises worked for me to show my horse that I was in control, and this control translated over to under saddle and when around her in general.

Answer 14

oh god i think your me 3 months ago

I have a pony who was exactly like that and what worked with her was when i wanted to catch her i would feed the other horse in her field causing her to get jealous and come over so i could grab her without the hassle, after taht she would be nice for a while as she thought she had won

when she was tied up and biting and kicking i would stroke her calmly and if she let me i would say good girl and give her a treat but if she didnt i would walk over and make a fuss of another horse or flick her nose and back it up with a strong no

When i was getting on her she would run off or try and stamp on my feet so i would pull back on the reins and say no aand began using a mounting block which i would keep making her circle till she gave in and let me on

When i was riding she would buck and rear so I used to smack her with a crop and did a lot of lunge work on her and since then she rarely bucks or rears only if i havent ridden for a few days

I also started to spend a long time grooming her which did allow us to bond more and she seemed to accept me much more than she did at the beginning

Finally I used to not give her her dinner until stopped begging and biting and stomping on the ground

hope this helps

Answer 15

Ok well dont give in one bit and definatly dont reward this by giving her treats. I would spend more quality time with her out in the pasture. Maybe if she does come to you or even close just stand there and give her a pat on her neck then let her walk away. Everyday if you do this, she will know that you are boss yet you  are doing it in a gentle way. Before you know it, she will be trotting up to you in the pasture. Also dont let her dominantnes scare you. If she pins her ears and curls her lips, ignore it. She is trying to get attention back. just tell her to quit and maybe give her a little hit on the neck. She will soon begin to love you even more and know that you have equal powers!

Hope i helped!

good luck!!!!!!!!

:) :):)

Answer 16

pinning ears isnt really bad unless she bites or kicks u in the process....

one time my old horse bit me while i was putting his girth on and as soon as he bit me i slapped him with my lattago and he never bit me again...

so when your horse bites u..SLAP HER HARD

(this is not abusive and your just doing what would happen in the wild honestly)

when she kicks u KICK HER BACK!!!!!

(again this is what would happen in the wild)

my new horse kicks when u put medication on his belly cause he gets really bad fly bites and when the owner of the barn goes to put it on him he would kick....

she started kicking him back whenever it looked like he might kick and now when she puts his medication on his sores he doesnt kick her anymore

good luck with your mare

Answer 17

Take Control  Like Tell her No Ah Or If your riding Get a Cop or whip or branches work

Answer 18

round pen!!!  horses are herd animals and everyone puts everyone on a hierarchy and your horse obviously put himself above you.  when he does that you need to send him away and push him and make him go.  watch horses interact with each other and see what they do when one asserts himself who is considered lower on the totem pole.  Your horse is probably trying to do that to you.

Answer 19

Well First of all not riding him is almost punishing you not her. You always be firm, for example when I am putting my horse back, i make it go in like a gentlemen and I jerk the lead rope  look hm in the eye and ssay you quit now and I tell him what he supoosed todo. lik "you go in there like a gentleman" And then he takes it easy and walks slowly in his stall. And for the ears thing people say that you should rub their nose with two hands until they come up, best used when they are crosstied, right when  their ears comeup say good girl and she knows oh i'm doing good! and when they are trying to bite you slap them, not real hard but just enough, slap them on the neck or their nose, its not abuse or anything, its just so they get in the habbit.

Answer 20

when you go to catch her take a packet which will make a sound when you move it in your hand. this will get her interest and she will be focused on you. DO NOT look her in the eye (makes the horse think you are a preditior) and walk up to her slowly. if she runs away, dont follow her, change direction and wander off slowly. once she stands and looks at you again, turn around and try again until she gets bored and allows you to walk right up to her. Praise her and make out like she has just won you several thousand pounds. sometimes just walk up to her praise her, give her a treat- carrot, apple, peice of turnip,ect, then walk off. when you want to catch her, slip the headcoller on genlty then praise her and give her a treat.

when she pins her ears back and looks moodly at you. you ignore her and insit that she walks on and at your pace.

Dont beat her or scream at her, this will make things worse, be patient and praise every LITTLE improvement.

Remember: praise the behaviour you want, ignore the behaviour you dont

try Monty Roberts and Kelly Marks too, they are fab for things  like this

good luck

EDIT: dont do what Jeff.S says. please dont give up on her, you will get there with some work and patience

Answer 21

try parelli, or try lunging, it creates better bonds, and just spend lots of time with her, push her away from you alot of the time to show you are the leader and put her in her place.

it takes time so dont think it will work straight away.

Answer 22

I would just go out and catch her feed her cookies and everytime you catch her dont ride her.. Mix it up so that way she dont know.. If she pins her ears send her away from you before it becomes her choice that shows them HEY, this is my space not yours MOVE.. And when catching a horse aproach from the sholder and farther back your are telling her she is the boss and any farther forward and your telling her to turn. Basics of free lunging.. (don't know them all but some of them.)