# Trail horse doesn't want another to follow behind



## BlindHorseEnthusiast4582 (Apr 11, 2016)

I'm not saying at all that I'm very experienced with this, as I've only ridden one horse who was very "butt aggressive" so to speak, as in she didn't want anyone anywhere near her butt ever. Any time she'd start trying to stop and pin her ears, I'd urge her forward, and pop her on the rear end with whatever I had in hand, or my hand, if she decided not to listen. Making ugly faces is one thing, but actually threatening to kick, or kicking, is a definite no-no, especially with a rider on board and other riders involved. With her, she didn't even get to slow down with those ears back, because I knew what she'd do if I let her.

ETA: Verbal corrections, by themselves, did nothing for her, but if you paired the two together, they were much more effective.


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## Foxhunter (Feb 5, 2012)

Use something to drive him forward the moment he pins his ears. Let him know it is not allowed to show aggressive behaviour when being ridden. 

The other thing you can do is to have another horse ride alongside him then have them slowly drop back. Be aware that he might want to kick out and be very fast to correct.


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## walkinthewalk (Jul 23, 2008)

I have a horse that has never liked anyone close behind him. He would easily take the lead but the horse directly behind him needed to keep ifs distsnce.

This is one time I will disagree with Foxhunter regarding putting a horse beside yours. We tried that once (with a good 20 feet between them) and my horse cow kicked out so fast that there was no warning. I'm a life long rider and never used a saddle. I never felt him tense or give any sort of warning. Yes he did connect with the other horse and I was sure glad he was barefoot. He was deadly accurate, catching the other horse on the hock.

I agree to use a riding crop + plus verbal to drive your horse forward. The hope of breaking him of this habit lies in the fact that he didn't used to do this, but you're going to have to lace his hind end while verbally killing him. It's anybody's guess how he got this way, hopefully you can get him back to where he was when you stopped riding


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## Avna (Jul 11, 2015)

My Empress-Of-All-I-Survey mare knows well that laying her ears back at another horse when I am in range, on the ground or astride, is one of the few things I don't gently correct. She gets a big loud smack and a HEY KNOCK THAT OFF. 

Carry a popper crop and smack him hard the second he lays back his ears. Careful not to catch his mouth if he bounds forward, just slow him up and say, okay, let's see that attitude change, bud. The next time he lays back his ears you might only need to raise the crop and make a warning sound. 

This is one of those super-dangerous habits that _will_ escalate. Fine to be bossy in a big pasture with other free horses, but the horses being ridden around you do not have the choice to stay clear of mister crabby, and somebody is going to get hurt.


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## dbr549 (Oct 21, 2012)

Thank you for the suggestions! 

Thankfully, so far he hasn't tried to cow kick anybody (yet). He'll ride along side another just fine but if they fall behind him, he'll start it up again. I'll have to take a crop with me next time, as spurs seem to have no effect and using my hand just makes my hand hurt. lol Hopefully we can nip this in the bud quickly!


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## walkinthewalk (Jul 23, 2008)

Avna said:


> My Empress-Of-All-I-Survey mare knows well that laying her ears back at another horse ----.


That was the other thing that did not happen the day of the cow kick. Rusty was motoring along *ears forward* sweet as he could be -----

People wonder why I treat him different and think it's terrible when I say he has had more lacings in his life than all my Keeper horses put together. He is a sneaky conniver:cowboy: 

He's not as bad now that he is 25 and changing his diet years ago certainly helped. But -- he is an ornery horse -- hard working, fantastic 4-wheel drive-there-isn't-a-trail, trail horse. I've also had him on cliff hangar trails to where I gave him his head and let him pick his way -- get him down in the wide open and all the other horses need to stay out of his way as all good behavior bets might be off ---


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## cbar (Nov 27, 2015)

I am following this as I have a mare that does this. She is fine if we are riding with one other horse, but as soon as there is a group (and I'm not talking large group - I mean 3-4 horses), she gets super cranky. 

She pins her ears and the first time she did this I didn't correct it fast enough and things escalated VERY quickly. 

She was better on the last group ride, but still had cranky mare glare on any time the other horses were anywhere near her....and seems she directs it at geldings. Which is odd since she is pastured with 2 other geldings and they all get along great.


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## Dustbunny (Oct 22, 2012)

It's odd that he would develop this issue just standing around. I'm thinking that ground work is not the solution.

How is he with people? Does he give any indication of irritation when you are grooming or just walking around him?

Any possibility that he is having eyesight issues? Maybe his muscle structure has changed with the layoff and the saddle doesn't fit well making him cranky. It certainly is an issue that needs addressing as it's dangerous.

Would he do the same thing if ridden with his pasture mate?


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## dbr549 (Oct 21, 2012)

Dustbunny, I thought it was odd too. But he loves people, has a big personality and really no other issues. He just had his "check-up" and shots last month and everything seems fine. 

I've rode him twice the past couple of weeks and he's pulled this crap both times. The second ride, he just seemed to have a bit of an attitude right out of the trailer. He can be pushy if left alone but quickly comes around with a little ground work. He has developed into a rather large horse (between ages 5-7) and has gained a little weight because of the time off. I suppose it could be saddle fit but I really don't think so as he's fine camping out in the back of the line. 

As you suggested- I'm going to verify how he acts with his pasture mate in tow. I agree this need to be corrected asap and a crop may be the answer. I've always used a training stick when ground working him and he does respect it. Not that I've ever used it to be mean to him but a hard enough tap to get his full attention does the trick. 

I'm kind of thinking he's really enjoyed his time off and decided he'd rather be home hanging out, eating junk food with his buddy and playing video games all day!


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## Woodhaven (Jan 21, 2014)

You say he turns around to face the following horse right? If there is a horse coming up behind you, can you be extra vigilant and prevent him from turning around, and push like crazy, even using crop and loud voice if you have to to keep him moving forward? Hopefully stop him before it even begins.

If you can't prevent him turning and you say he won't move except to back off the trail, can you just make him back and back AND back up the trail so he gets tired of that and will turn around and go forward?? Just some suggestions as I have never run across this before when a horse turns to face the follower.

Another thought does this just happen with one particular horse or any horse that comes up behind? If only one there may be a reason he fears that horse.


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## dbr549 (Oct 21, 2012)

Yep- he turns to face the one behind him by stopping, backing up off the trail to the side (basically stands perpendicular to the trail). Unfortunately, I can't keep backing him up as it's usually thick woods. The first time he did it I thought it was a particular horse. But this last time, it didn't matter. I'll have to try these suggestions to see how he responds. One way or another- this needs correcting.


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## SilverMaple (Jun 24, 2017)

I'd pop him over and under with the ends of the reins or a leadrope the second he even THINKS about pulling this little stunt. It's one of the things I will not tolerate. Correct hard and immediately. crack-crack-crack and done. I usually ride with spurs and will roll them to remind the horse of his manners when another horse comes up behind, too, if he's like this. If it continues, he'll get a spanking. 



Have his eyes checked, though. A lot of horses who can't see well get very uncomfortable with horses behind them, but are ok with horses in front of them. It's still behavior that is not allowed, but it's worth looking into.


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