# Stop pawing!! I mean it!



## equiniphile (Aug 16, 2009)

Arthur paws when he's impatient, especially if I make him stand and wait on the way back to the barn. If he paws, I'll reach forward and give him a jab on his shoulder with my foot and he'll usually cut it out. If he's pawing just when he's eating and it doesn't hurt anyone, I think he's okay. You might want to carry a short crop when you feed and give him a light flick on the shoulder if he starts pawing and a reproachful "Ah". If they paw before you feed, do the same thing, and don't feed them until they stand quietly.


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## lacyloo (Jul 1, 2008)

For pawing while tied. I will tie them and let them stand there for an hour or so everyday. Or for 15mins and do it an hour or so later. It stopped my gelding. I have a hay string wrapped around a tree that I tie to. That way in the event something happens while I am not out there he can break free. He's not one to set back while tied so I have never had any issues. 

Now my mare paws at feeding time- I gave up. I have heard you can hobble them but I just dont have the time to stand out there and watch her eat honestly. She will dig to china if you dont put a board or something under the feed bucket. She is also bad about slinging the food out of the bucket. I have lost track of how many different buckets we have tried. Heck I even used a small swimming pool for a bit but she tore that up with pawing...


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## horsplay (Jan 25, 2011)

I agree with equiniphile if either does it while tied or standing give them a quick bump with the halter to catch there attention. Do this every time and they should eventually stop. with the feeding I think the key is to get them to stand quiet before feeding. As for the cold the only thing I can suggest is a pair of Carheart coveralls a thick carheart jacket and a nice warm beanie. When I worked at a ranch in the mtn that is what I wore every day during the winter. One day it was nearly noon and still below zero.... it didn't keep me toasty that day but at least I didn't freeze. Remember 1-2 pairs of nice thick socks too.


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## horsplay (Jan 25, 2011)

Buckets. I have found the big thick black rubermaid buckets work GREAT. I have one big and one small and my horses have yet to tear them up. I got mine at wallmart but I'm not sure if they still carry them.


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## DrumRunner (Jan 26, 2011)

I have the black rubber buckets from Tractor Supply, they are great and come in different sizes. I even have the really big one as my water trough. They are great feed buckets though. I've had them for years and I think one or two have been run over by the tractor while mowing the pasture and they are still kickin...My gelding doesn't even paw..it's more annoying and I can't get him to stop. First he pawed waiting on his feed and I did stop it with yelling "ah" at him and kinda scaring him, but now he just picks his front foot up and holds it there..he will switch feet and do it the entire time he is eating..he won't spill his feed though. He doesn't believe in wasting  He has to get every little morsel or it hurts his feelings.


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## New_image (Oct 27, 2007)

For a horse who paws while tied if I am there (typically they paw if I have stopped paying attention and am standing there talking to someone) take thumb nail (or hoof pick or handle end of crop) and "jam jam jam" in the stomach or ribs and I will say "Quit thinking about yourself" they stop, I continue chatting. 
I have been known to whip something across the yard at a pawing horse (ended up taking a mostly empty little bottle of roll on and throwing it 50' right smack in the forehead of a horse who learned not to paw if I was there but started when my back was turned and I walked away. Made a good thunk and I yelled "I said NO" as I continued walking away) Might apply a similar thing to a horse pawing while I walk in the gate with his food, right now he'd get a snow ball. 
Also, you could try walking in with a lounge whip and sending all of the horses to the other end of the pasture until you've set the bucket down so they don't have time to stand there and paw while they wait. 
And if horses are pawing there food out of buckets (hard to stop while they are eating and most do like to dump there food, humans think buckets are nice but horses do not have table manners) so I find myself dumping 10 out of the 15 horses heres food right on the ground so at least they cannot fling my expensive grain, its already on the ground. Same goes for bucket breakers. BUT that said the rubber pans at Tractor Supply Co ARE great and do not break, they double as toys. My guys like to play tug with them.


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## DrumRunner (Jan 26, 2011)

New_image said:


> For a horse who paws while tied if I am there (typically they paw if I have stopped paying attention and am standing there talking to someone) take thumb nail (or hoof pick or handle end of crop) and "jam jam jam" in the stomach or ribs and I will say "Quit thinking about yourself" they stop, I continue chatting.
> I have been known to whip something across the yard at a pawing horse (ended up taking a mostly empty little bottle of roll on and throwing it 50' right smack in the forehead of a horse who learned not to paw if I was there but started when my back was turned and I walked away. Made a good thunk and I yelled "I said NO" as I continued walking away) Might apply a similar thing to a horse pawing while I walk in the gate with his food, right now he'd get a snow ball.
> Also, you could try walking in with a lounge whip and sending all of the horses to the other end of the pasture until you've set the bucket down so they don't have time to stand there and paw while they wait.
> And if horses are pawing there food out of buckets (hard to stop while they are eating and most do like to dump there food, humans think buckets are nice but horses do not have table manners) so I find myself dumping 10 out of the 15 horses heres food right on the ground so at least they cannot fling my expensive grain, its already on the ground. Same goes for bucket breakers. BUT that said the rubber pans at Tractor Supply Co ARE great and do not break, they double as toys. My guys like to play tug with them.


 

Dont you love the "I SAID NO" saying? I love it! I yell it all the time but I think Hickory just looks at me like "You honestly think I care that your yelling me me? I will run away from you before you get to me." and he enjoys it!


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## New_image (Oct 27, 2007)

I do love "I said no!" and "Quit thinking about yourself!" my horses almost know these as commands now


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## musicalmarie1 (Dec 8, 2010)

Hahaha at DI and NR... I do that too! 

I talk to my horses and my dog like they're people and actually get it. My dog especially-- she nips at the horses, and I say things like "I told you not to do that!" and "How many times do I have to tell you no??" and "If you do that ONE MORE TIME...!" They're like my children. 

Duncan usually gets comments like "Stop that you silly goofy little pony baby!" Said in the sappiest voice I can muster. Ginger usually gets comments like "Quite being a bully."


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## msmaryy (Sep 20, 2010)

LOL I think this is the funniest thread I have seen yet. I am also guilty of the "what part of no didn't you understand" or "don't make me tell you again". Hahaha.. )) I have a gelding that pawed like a fool while tied until I got tired of it and tied him for an hour or so a couple of times a day for several days. He no longer paws, he stands quietly no matter how long he is tied now.

I used to have a mare that was a feeding freak too. No matter what sort of bucket I used she would throw the feed around. She was also one that would paw while she ate. The pawing never stopped but I ended up feeding her on a mat (4x8) and she never dug a hole but she always threw her feed. I would suggest having the horses teeth checked for a bad tooth.. that can sometimes cause them to be irritable during feeding.. sometimes not. ;o)

Good luck! If nothing else hire the little digger out as an earth mover!!


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## G and K's Mom (Jan 11, 2008)

Frankly I ignore pawing, they can paw and fuss all they want while tied it just means they stay tied longer......it's one of the least distressing vices.

If he's pawing at his dish on the floor get a bucket and hang it. Make sure to put a bit of duct tape over the bent up part of the handle.

If they're getting anxious and pawing for their food then don't give it to them until they're standing quietly. Feeding a pawing horse just proves his/her point that pawing gets me food.



> I would suggest having the horses teeth checked for a bad tooth.. that can sometimes cause them to be irritable during feeding..


Good suggestion!


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## G and K's Mom (Jan 11, 2008)

> If nothing else hire the little digger out as an earth mover!!


LOL too funny


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## hhadavis (May 3, 2008)

my gelding cochise was bad for pawing, especially when it was time to eat..no patience whatsoever...anyway put a rubber mat down in his stall to keep him from pawing a hole to china...also for a time i would stand next to him and everytime he put his hoof up to paw (because he would do it while eating too), Id put my foot behind his and say nope(and make some silly noises...that started helping(especially while he was eating, and only took a few times)...but we also came to a mutually beneficial arrangement that if he didnt paw waiting for his feed..he got fed first..and he kind of figured that out quick. I just make the noises I made when I would put my foot behind his...and when he would stop Id feed him...and that started him getting fed first. Now he rarely does it( and if he does he gets fed last). Horses are smarter than you give them credit for..I know he understands exactly what Im doing. Honestly it wouldnt have bothered me at all except its one of the reasons I initially had to put front shoes on him...he was tearing up his hooves with all the pawing he did. Shoes helped a bit too for some reason.


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## cloudkisser (Jul 19, 2010)

Ok...newb question but...Why is pawing so bad? does it hurt the horse? lead to something else? or just annoying?.


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## New_image (Oct 27, 2007)

Cloud - Pawing is just an extremely annoying habit. The only way I suppose it could hurt a horse is if they were tied in the trailer and pawed a hoof into the hay net (for those that use hay nets) or something, so no, it doesn't really hurt them directly or lead to something else. Its impatience, rude and generally annoying.


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## horsplay (Jan 25, 2011)

cloud IM is right it is mostly just annoying but could have potential problems like getting caught in a hay net or like hhadavis said her horse was wearing down his feet so she had to put shoes on them, they can also waste their grain by pawing the bucket hard enough to fling it. It is considered rude and impatient but mostly just annoying.


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## awaface (Jun 4, 2010)

What works for me is say "no" or "hey" or something like that, loud and throw a cookie or something at them, they find the cookie when they stop pawing and get rewarded! and eventually they will respond to just the "no" part.


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