Horse Talk

[chicken19]

Oh. I guess I just underestimated the strength of a mini! I don't know much about minis. And I've never heard of that, I'm not sure if they have such a thing in my area but I'll look into it. I still need to teach June how to load in a trailer though.
And thank you for asking that question! That's something I've always wondered. I see people take their horses out with other people's horses all the time and it's no big deal, but every time I've introduced two horses they act like nut balls. So how do you keep them calm together on the trail/in the trailer?

I do gymkhana's and group trail rides all the time with horses my horse has never met.
My horse is 7 and is quite green still and not super friendly.
Let the horses meet, but stay away from touching-distance (a horse length away), don't get too close.
If your horse is full of beans, lunge him/her. In the spring there can be some crazy group trail rides but it's best to either avoid or survive them...
Gymkhana's aren't so bad because venues are large and horses don't nessesarily have to be close.
Trail rides are different because the horse's sometimes see another horse and want to race.

It's never been a problem for me.
If your horse has problems with being around other horses, invite a friend to bring their horse over for a horsey-playdate, board your horse at a busy equestrian center for a day, or take your horse to a show/gymkhana so they can just hang out and watch.

 

[ChickenLover200]

Oh. I guess I just underestimated the strength of a mini! I don't know much about minis. And I've never heard of that, I'm not sure if they have such a thing in my area but I'll look into it. I still need to teach June how to load in a trailer though.

And thank you for asking that question! That's something I've always wondered. I see people take their horses out with other people's horses all the time and it's no big deal, but every time I've introduced two horses they act like nut balls. So how do you keep them calm together on the trail/in the trailer?

I do gymkhana's and group trail rides all the time with horses my horse has never met.
My horse is 7 and is quite green still and not super friendly.
Let the horses meet, but stay away from touching-distance (a horse length away), don't get too close.
If your horse is full of beans, lunge him/her. In the spring there can be some crazy group trail rides but it's best to either avoid or survive them...
Gymkhana's aren't so bad because venues are large and horses don't nessesarily have to be close.
Trail rides are different because the horse's sometimes see another horse and want to race.

It's never been a problem for me.
If your horse has problems with being around other horses, invite a friend to bring their horse over for a horsey-playdate, board your horse at a busy equestrian center for a day, or take your horse to a show/gymkhana so they can just hang out and watch.

What about trailering wih a "strange horse"? Should the horses be introduced before trailering? I thought about hauling my horse out to a trail and taking a friend and her horse along, too, but not sure our horses would get along.

 

[ChickenLover200]

Also, they are both mares. Hers is a shorter horse, close to pony size.

 

[chicken19]

I've trailered my mare with another mare that she's met before, briefly.

Let them sniff noses and squeal a little until they settle down and then load them, would be my advice. Of course not every horse is the same but don't be afraid to try new things.

 

[ChickenLover200]

I've trailered my mare with another mare that she's met before, briefly.

Let them sniff noses and squeal a little until they settle down and then load them, would be my advice. Of course not every horse is the same but don't be afraid to try new things.

I'mmainly afraid of getting kicked by my mare... she's a kicker and I know it. She sent a gal tothe hospital. No worries though, she came home with (thankfully) just a bruise on her chest (phew!)
I just don't want to get in the middle of a fight, you know?

 

[chicken19]

Quote: Yeah...

 

[ChickenLover200]

So, today starts my work with my mini. I'm planning to do a half hour after his supper. 6:30-7:00PM. It's the coolest part of the day then,too.

 

[abigalerose]

Good luck with your mini!
Last night Penelope was acting weird.. I fed her and she didn't finish her feed, which is odd, and then she started doing these stretches, she would kind of stretch out like she was going to pee, then she'd bend her head around to the side and stretch it outwards, and her lips were twitching a bunch, and she was leaned so far sideways I thought she'd fall over or lay down, and she just kept doing it, she'd stop and walk a little and then do it again. I was pretty worried. My grandpa said she was probably fine but idk, it freaked me out because I've never seen something like that before. I'm about to head back out to my grandparents and I'll check her when I get there

 

[abigalerose]

Now I'm freaking myself out. I looked up horse colic on YouTube and there's this video (called "Symptom of Colic horse cramping" with a little bay horse with a pink halter) and the way the horse is stretching is EXACTLY how Penelope was stretching, except she didn't have good enough balance to pick up her back leg like that. I didn't think I had to worry about colic since she wasn't laying down but now I am. So I think I'm gonna head out there now so I can make sure she's okay.

 

[ChickenLover200]

Did she get into any kind of feed or anything and eat too much? What you described sort of sounds like colic. I've nevr experinced it, but I've done a lot of studying on it (mainly because of my mini and because my mare is a genius that knows how to get out of her stall and take bungy straps off of food containers).
What does her stomach sound like?