Turn for the Rebeliouse (HELP!!!)

Ok I know better then to not have expected this but Aragorn and Venus have gone from pretty mellow Mustangs and crazy I want to trample you horses.

Heres the thing Aragorn is in a seperate paddock from all the other because of course he's a stallion and i don't want him covering Sunshine or the other Mares or beating up on my geldings. So he's there on his own until he is fixed which will be next week. His space isn't tiny but it isn't huge its fine for him with plenty of grazing and he has been pretty content with it. He even leads and goes into his stall nicely or he did. Venus is a bit weary of the other horses all at once so i decided to bring Abby in and help them in the front pasture so she can have a friend other then Aragorn in the pasture. Venus actually has bonded very well with Abby and stays right at her side which is wonderful. Once again Venus has been a pretty mellow girl.

Well this morning i went up the barn to feed and turn out. Well right when I walked in a heard this great commotion in the back and it was Aragorn flipping out trotting back anf forth in his stall. I turn on his stall light and looked in on the floor looking for a mouse or something but there was nothing at all. So figured he was just ancy and ready to be let out like a few of the other horses get. So I fed and watered them and led out the horses as they finnished their food. Well Aragorn completely ignored his so i decided i would just turn him out. So i grab a lead and go to grab him out of his stall and right when he got those from feet out he knocked me down and took off driveway end of the barn!!!! So im panicking because I know i can't reach and shut the barn doors before he gets out. So I used the barn phone dialed the house phone made sure it was ringing and hung up and with that my parents were out of the house so quick it was
crazy. By this time Aragorns already almost to the end of the drive and so my dad takes of in the truck from the other drive to catch Aragorn while I got back in the barn.

Even more fun i go in the barn and as im passing by Venus's stall she pins her ears back and sinks her teeth right into my shoulder and so I start bleeding nice and heavy. I really wanted to scream but I just led the rest of the horses out and then got Abby led her out to the front pasture and I got Venus who proceeded to bite the arm while I was leading her out the same arm as the shoulder. I just kinda jogged her to the pasture and turned her loose where she had a nice galloping and bucking fit and bit Abby a couple times on the rump.

So now i sit here with a large bruise on my arm (venus bite), a nice large bruise on my back ( Aragorn knocking me down), and a nice large bloody now scabby bite from the lovely Venus. By the way Aragorn was finally caught three miles down the road and fought the who way home . Boht have just been in the worst mood all day but for some reason i find myself likeing them even more after this. yes im crazy .

Anyone who has adopted wild mustangs before advice or stories about your experience i'd love to know either one so i don't feel like the only abused girl lol.

Sorry so long

 

Have they ever been stabled....??? how long ago were they taken out of the wild... ? If the first answer is no and the second is...not long ago...you need to NOT take them in at night but leave them in a pasture area...they feel threatened in a barn and are also likely to be full of energy being cooped up... THEN you need to examine what you are feeding... If it's pretty rich cut back and do grass hay...older dry stuff... It honestly sounds to me like they're frustrated at being INDOORS and probably also getting too rich a mix of hay (or whatever you are feeding). Mustangs aren't like lots of other horses as in they know they are horses and Don't know much about people...or what to do with them... So they're treating you like they would a horse... They are unhappy with SOMETHING you are doing (most likely with caging them up etc..) Make sure THEY know you are IT... What you should probably do is take BOTH and make them SOLITARY for a bit...depending on you and other PEOPLE for their stuff... ALSO have you read Monty Roberts stuff...I'd HIGHLY recommend using his Join-Up method with these guys to get them to learn to respect you as they don't understand you at this point...

I've dealt with Mustangs before and they're a whole different ballgame than most other horses because they have "horse" stamped on them and have had this stamped and re-inforced for YEARS...they have no HUMAN type information in their heads...YOU have to teach that....but in THEIR language.... Does that make sense...?

Feel free, anyone, to give suggestions... THIS could get bad if the problem isn't understood and fixed ASAP. Mustangs rely on their feet and teeth for protection. They CAN kick a fly off a wall so you have to ALWAYS be cautious when handling them...ESPECIALLY FRESH ones...but even long broken/trained ones take caution to deal with in MOST cases. BE CAREFULL and read Monty Roberts' first AND second book (Shy Boy particularly...as he was the mustang Monty trained on the prairie...

 

I have to agree. The one thing you need to realize is you can't take a horse out of the wild and expect it to domesticate in a day, week, month, or year.

I suggest leaving them out to pasture with a lean to shed, or something for wind/rain cover. Work with them daily. Your first step is going to get that boy gelded and gelded fast. Though its not going to settle him down fromhis stallion tendacy's it will give him a reality check and you the peice of mind knowing he can no longer breed. That being said, he may probably never be allowed with geldings.

I highly suggest you get intouch with Monty himself or Patt Perelli. Both can really help you a LONG way.
THey are obviously dominating you and thats not a good thing.

 

Thing is both horses were stabled before and they were taken from the wild about a year ago. Both are on a simple hay, oats, and a bit of maze. We have anouther Mustang named Draco but he came to us at nine and had all these problems worked out. Thing is with these horses they get these nervouse spells when their either in their stalls longer then the would like and even when their in their paddocks to long their just very nervouse. Its a tough job I know taking on Mustangs but what else could I do? They were even worse off where they were.

Both are better now I took both in this evening and boht settled in perfect in their stalls like every other day they have been here. Im think I will just tkae them both out right away early in the morning before the rest and feed them in their paddocks together and then take Venus out to the front with Abby once their done. Any more advice would be awsome.

 

Has the weather been changing at all. Its gotten way cooler here and my girls are all frisky as all get out!!! Sassy ran and bucked and threw a hissy fit this morning. The cool crisp air must have made her feel really good today!

 

Honestly the best and only advice that CAN be given in this instance is what has already been given. If the horses had been stabled previously and had gotten run of the place (seems that they have) they are still very much "wild" and you really need to look at what was mentioned in the above two posts.... Contact those two trainers and see what you can learn from them. Wild horses are VERY different from our domesticated ones. The other horse you received is not an accurate guage of a wild horse... One of the FIRST Things you need to realize is that no wild horse wil acclimate in the same manner or the same time frame etc...etc....etc... THIS is why we have suggested the things we did. Some wild horses will NEVER acclimate to what you are asking these guys to acclimate too... The horses will feel less threatened in a paddock rather than a stall...they will not have the opportunity to overbear you AGAIN (each time they do it they are rewarded by getting what they want...OUT...etc...) and they will be less stressed and more capable of learning how to conduct themselves as DOMESTICATED horses rather than wild ones. Seriously...these guys have ABSOLUTELY disrespected your space and got away with it and rewarded for it....it will LIKELY happen again etc... I do hope you at least take up some reading of Parelli and Roberts on Wild horses and training... contacting them would be the best idea though.

 

Got some books today and my father is contacting a trainer friend of ours he brought us some adoptables before. He's really Mustang trainer and so we're thinking of either having him come out here or having the horses go to his place for a while. Im really working on all of this.

I would leave them both out in the pasture over night but we don't have shelter for them out there and it gotten realy could here and is said to Snow tomarow and saterday. Thanks for the advice though anymore I will appreciate as long as its not cruel. Not that any of you are. Thanks i will keep you updated

 

Patience is the only other thing I can think of besides practicing lots of caution... Since there's no shelter I'd take them in too...unless they're already all full of their winter coat.... But inside should work fine as lon as you keep on top of them and put them in for a minimal ammount of time... It's likely kind of scary for them in a new place etc...

I'm glad you've got a trainer to help and that you grabbed some books. Which ones...I'm curious?

 

The First Touch - Gentling Your Mustang" (Tape)
The Man who Listens to Horses- Monty Roberts (book)
Almost A Whisper (Book)

thats all I have right now im hoping to get more though

 

Almost A Whisper??? I'll have to look that one up sounds interresting...haven't heard of it... Hmmm....