Problems with Lancelot

by Amanda

For some reason, I have a lot of problems with my bay thoroughbred gelding, Lancelot. When I look at him tight in the eye when I want to catch him, he runs away from me and I never catch him. It's really getting annoying when he does that. Also, when I walk to him from the front or back, he rears and gets scared. Sometimes he almost kicks me! I don't know what to do! My mom & dad suggests that we should get rid of him, but I don't want to! Any suggestions? I really want Lancelot to stop doing those things.

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Apr 06, 2011
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No!
by: Amy

First-off, never ever look a horse in the eyes, here are some tips:

-Carry a bucket with a half scoop of food inside, about a cup and feed it to him, and walk out of the pasture and leave him alone. This shows him that coming to you does not always mean work. you can also use treats. do this at least once a day.
-if possible take all the other horses out of the field. this way the horse has no friends, and therefor, has a reason to come to you.
-when you catch him, reward him, if he was good! if he was playing hard-to-catch, then do not give him a treat.
- when you have his attention in a stall, try training him to do some tricks! it is a great way to bond with your horse and get him to trust you! You can find how to train them tricks online. do only 10-15 minutes of trick training per hour. horses have short attention spans, and any longer than this with less than an hour in between will confuse, and bore them. use plenty of treats!

Feb 19, 2011
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Catching Tricks
by: S a v a n n a h

Looking at him straight in the eye is considered a threat with horses, if you carry a small treat, hide the lead and halter or bridle and look at the horses rump he shouldn't run away. Don't make any jumpy moves and if he doesn't want to be caught get him to run away, and eventually you should be able to catch him.

Jan 25, 2011
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ok
by: Anonymous

if he keeps doing that use a lead rope and use the end to get him to run away from you. eventually he will get tired of running away and will stop running away. also put him in a pen by himself.

Jan 19, 2011
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MAKE HIM COMFORTABLE
by: AKOIYA

DON'T DO ANYTHING THAT FREAKS HIM OUT, JUST CARRY A TREAT & B WHERE U DONT SCARE HIM. PUT HIM IN THE STALL AND BE WITH HIM, OUTSIDE OF THE STALL. PET HIM AND SHOW HIM UR NOT A SCARY PERSON

hey this is akoiya and i am just requesting you guys to go to my reply page. when you get there, read the comments comment back to them, ask me questions and i will look at your comments and reply back. its gonna be really fun so just look under training stories for it.

Jan 02, 2011
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dont look him in the eyes and carry a treat!
by: Anonymous

The way I sometimes have to get a horse is take a carrot or another treat with me and hold it out to them. I let them eat it once I've caught them, which is easy because they usually go to the treat. ;)

Dec 24, 2010
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uhh ohh
by: Kassi

don't look your horse in the eye... this is a major no no... when you are training a horse, just bought a new horse, or having issues with you horse don't look them in the eye!!! until you have a very strong bond with you horse don't expect nothing else... if you haven't had him for long he may not fully trust you.

Dec 21, 2010
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Lancelot
by: Anonymous

All I can really do is second the previous commenter - brilliant advice - and perhaps suggest that you try Join-Up? It's a technique for earning a horse's trust developed by Monty Roberts, and it worked for me. But yeah, you only look a horse in the eye if you want to get him to move away from you.

Good luck with Lancelot.

Dec 17, 2010
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Catching Tips
by: TheCougar

a)When you're trying to catch your horse, carry treats either in your pocket, in your hand behind your back or in a bucket (hidden or in plain sight). The treat theory varies for every horse. Try them all out.

b)As soon as you enter the paddock/pasture, just start talking baby nonsense. Talk softly and continuously. Let the horse hear your voice and calculate where you are. The horse may have been spooking because it was taken by surprise. Horses cannot see directly in front of them, so avoid approaching that area.

c)NEVER LOOK THE HORSE IN THE EYE - That's what predators do; they lock eyes with their prey, giving them the signal that time's up. Morbid, I know, but the horse is traditionally a prey animal. They still have the fight-or-flight instinct, and it never goes away, no matter the horse.

d)Try to hold the lead rope all collected into your hand. Some horses might take the opportunity to spook because the rope looks like a snake, trailing behind you.

e)If the horse has already begun to spook/rear or what have you, stand still and show the treats, still looking near the horse or at some body part on the horse other than it's eyes. If you know from previous experience that you calling it's name helps, try that.

f)If the horse is bolting and continues to do so, consider bringing a lunge whip with you. With the whip in hand, your object is to turn the horse every time he reached a fence. He may gain speed when he sees the whip; this is okay. With the quick turns, he'll be forced to slow.

DO NOT: let him slow to a walk or halt or let him approach you. If your horse is responding well to the turns, drop the whip and communicate further turns by turning your shoulders and giving lead-stallion signals; do not pass, listen to me, faster, etc.

As he either tires or turns himself into a corner, continue your relentless talking and approach his shoulder and attach the lead rope.
[This is called 'free lunging'.]

Overview!

-talk
-carry treats
-be confident (walk briskly and straight)
-have a plan B (the free lunging OR ask a friend to pasture their easy-to-catch horse with yours, so when they go out to catch with you, your horse won't feel so frightened at uncertainty [horses are flighty creatures].)
-and always reward good behavior (if not comfortable with your horse, have an experienced rider or trainer help you!)

Jan 30, 2011
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Big No, No
by: Horserider

When you're going to catch a horse NEVER look them straight in the eye. Always look slightly away.

Hope it helps:)
I try to comment on lots of stuff, and I really hope it works!!!

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