So, you want to own a horse...

[RichZ]

Richard, good point about the stall vice. I keep toys in their stalls. I hung gallon plastic containers from the rafters with pebbles in them. They like to shake and rattle them. I also got them "Jolly Balls" which are large rubber balls with handles that they like to play with. I figure the more they have to play with in their stalls, the less likely they'll crib.

The adults have free acess to their stalls and can come and go. Our Belgian foal had some respiratory problems when we first got her, and the vet suggestted that we keep her in the stall at night. During the day, she has free run of the very large paddock. As soon as the vet says it's OK, I'll let her into the pasture with the adults during the day. She's already almost as big as a thoroughbred. She still plays with them through a wire livestock fence and she has two goats in her part of the paddock that she's pals with, for companionship.

One thing about keeping her in the stall at night, she's learned to come when she's called. I always amaze friends when she comes running to me as soon as I call her name.

Rich
"What a long strange trip it's been."

 

[cowboydoc]

yea it is pretty funny what you can do with the horses esp. when people don't realize it. My old roping horse I can tell him a number of things to do and he just goes and does it. I can tell him to go load up in the trailer and he will. I can tell him to go to the stall and if it's open he'll go right in or if it's closed he'll stay right there until I come and let him in. When I go to get him I just whistle and he'll come running from where he is at. He's pretty much like a dog. He even lays down, counts, bows, etc. But I've had the old guy for 16 years now. He was one that we've raised and over the years any neat trick I came across I'd just teach it to him. The ones like him are sure fun!

 

[Robert_in_NY]

Thanks for the idea. Do you know if the solar powered low impendence chargers are any good? We have our bachelor pens down back where there is no power and we were looking at these for down there. We have had a couple problems with dogs and there were two dogs that kept coming back after the third time we had to shoot the one and after that the other one never came back since it lost its friend. We had this problem at my grandfathers place a week ago and he shot one and the other took off. Every time we have problems it is when the dogs are in pairs, once they loose their partner they never come back. I will try the bacon idea when we get it set up next year.

 

[Bird]

Richard, does that horse follow the same instructions if they're given by someone else? Sometimes animals only respond properly to one person. I can remember when I was a little tyke and my dad would start to the barn to milk the cow, just whistle when he went out the back door, and that cow would meet him at the barn. And if he wasn't home, I'd have to go plumb to the back of the pasture and drive her up to the barn; she thought that was a great game.

I never was that much of an animal trainer, but did teach one of my horses to "shake hands." Just walk up in front of her and say, "Howdy" and she'd pick up her right front foot for you to take hold of her leg.

 

[cowboydoc]

Bird,
Noone else can even ride that horse! He'll just do whatever he wants with anyone but me. He won't come for anyone or anything. He sure is a one man horse.

 

[cowboydoc]

Robert,
Mine work great. I've got three of them that have never let me down.

 

[MikePA]

I have one of the solar chargers as the sole source of power for my electric tape that runs at the inside top of my 4 rail wooden fence. It's worked great for many years. Face it south, connect it, and you're done.

 

[Bird]

That's about what I suspected, Richard. A horse like that is a real joy to work with.

 

[cedarranch]

We are horseless now, but about 5 years ago my wife pleaded and begged for one. Well, I gave in and she promised to do EVERYTHING. She thought feed, water, clean stalls, and brush the horse. /w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif I put up a fence, made a small barn to store items, etc. She picked out a quarter horse. He was a handsome guy. That night I made up her a weekly chore list. Not knowing when or what was done prior to purchase, I had her start with all the basics. She called me at work to ask "what is the sheath and how do I clean it?" /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif She said "I can't do that!" I said fine, if you can't take care of him right, we will just sell him.
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