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Post by dickel on Aug 24, 2015 12:43:59 GMT
I don't claim to be a horse trainer even though I find a way to get horses to do as I ask. I rock the little foal starting day one. Rocking really is not the key. I rock them because of my disabilities not letting me to get down to their level. In my opinion it is the closeness and rubbing them all over the body and legs. I also start commands like step up and step over using the halter and catch strap with gentle tugs. Last night and this morning Prancer responded to both commands with me holding the catch strap without tugs. I lay it up to giving the same precise commands over and over with the gentle moving his body the same exact way each time a command is given. Horses that I have bought in the past were much more difficult and took a lot more time than the ones I have raised. Like I said, in my opinion the intense close attention as a foal makes the horse easier to manage as they age. Not all of my horses have caught on as fast as Prancer did at only a month old. I don't think the size of the horse matters. I never raised a large horse from a foal but I assume it would be the same.
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nhg
Junior Member
Posts: 2,429 
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Post by nhg on Aug 28, 2015 22:30:47 GMT
I agree. Similar but on a larger scale. And I agree with asking just slightly and rewarding the response by discontinuing to ask. You have minis, do you think Prancer is a particularly good one as far as responding to you? Or is he typical of minis?
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Post by dickel on Aug 28, 2015 23:18:23 GMT
Prancer is responding quicker than any other mini I have had at only a month old. However he has regressed to making me tug more this week as I give him commands . I think it is normal though. He don't really resist strong. Sparky is four months old and was three months old when he first seemed to want to respond on command some. He leads on a loose rope now though. He comes to me when I call him by name.
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Post by horselady on Aug 29, 2015 0:13:18 GMT
I have raised a few large horse foals. and you are right on. the more they are handled even before nursing or standing the better they are at accepting human contact..
about 17 years ago a mare that i rescued who was arabian had her foal and the foal was stolen by another arabian . since they were in a field with 7 horses and out at pasture i never thought the mare was even ready to foal.( my first mistake.) when we had company that day and the gentleman said that the red horse has a beautiful brown baby . and what did we name the baby and it was close to his birthday . we looked at each other and stormed out to the field and sure enough the red arab stole the baby of the bay arab. i am sure hours went by and no human contact. so the foal was scared, we had to fight off the red arab from hurting the bay.
to this day that filly is standoffish and not wanting to be touched or fussed with. usually we handle rub them with our hands put our fingars in their mouths, eyes, ears, and bend their legs and tap their feet. and use a cloth to rub and touch them. when standing we will hold them and pick up each leg and actually lead them, than turn them . after all that allow mom and baby to bond. oh we do let the baby nurse because that is most important above all else.
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mingiz
Junior Member
Los Lunas, NM
Posts: 3,320
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Post by mingiz on Aug 29, 2015 1:53:32 GMT
The more you expose them to as babies the better they are going into their adulthood.  |
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