"I have a notebook of the tips from your site and I love them... Bonnie Anderson has been wonderful. All the tips I tried of hers worked the first time. I am now in the riding stage and my horse is awesome. Thank you all very much and keep the training tips coming!!!!!!" Karen Gossard
Fayetteville, NC
About the Author
Bonnie Anderson has a two year degree in Horse Science, has worked at two horse training/breeding facilities, and has had numerous articles
published while raising and training her own horses. She owned a saddle shop for a few years and now has a book published called Horse Tales & Tips. She is also a life time member of the Pony Express Riders of Iowa.
"I highly recommend
this book for those
new to the sport." Meg Beshey
IHAF President
by Bonnie
Bringing home a new horse is always an exciting prospect. We have all kinds of hopes and dreams for our new steed. But there are some things to remember when first introducing an unknown horse to your existing herd.
When first bringing the horse home, you should always isolate it for a few days to make sure it hasnt brought home any new diseases to infect your other horses. Take the horses temperature daily and watch for signs of being off feed, head hanging listlessly, and a general overall depressed mood.
If you can, contact the former owner and find out what the medical history of the horse is. See what shots hes had, and when its time for his next boosters. Find out when he was last wormed and about any illnesses hes recently had. Its wise to have every horse checked out by your veterinarian before buying it, but thats not always possible, especially if you buy at an auction.
If the new horse seems okay, then its time to introduce him to his new buddies. In each herd of horses, there is always a more dominate individual thats in charge of the other horses. This horse eats first, stands at the gate first, and bullies his herd mates around with flattened ears and flying hooves. Its the natural order of things for a horse herd.
When introducing the new horse to the herd, be prepared for a scuffleas the new horse tries to find his place within the herd. To lesson this ordeal you might try the following suggestions.
First you can try taking out one of the horses from the herd,preferably one that seems to get along with most other horses, and place him/her with the new horse for a couple days. Then reintroduce both horses back into the herd. That way the new horse has a buddy to hang with or to hide behind if needed.
If this doesn't work, and the new horse is still in danger of getting injured, you can try taking out the alpha horse (the most dominate) from the herd until the others accept him, then return the alpha horse to the herd and keep an eye on the situation. Within a day or two things should settle down, the trick is getting through the first couple days with no injuries to the new horse.
I have heard of horses taking a real dislike to a newcomer for what seems to be no reason, when in fact, the alpha horse might have had problems with a horse the same color or build that matches the new horse, and will really get upset and try to drive out the interloper at all cost.
If your alpha horse will not accept the new horse, no matter what you try, you will have no choice but to keep them separated. In fact, there have been cases of stallions refusing to breed certain color mares because a horse of that color has bullied or injured them inthe past. Breeders can sometimes get past this by blanketing the mare to hide her color...and sometimes not.
The safety of the horses is important, but so is yours. Never get in between two horses fighting. They wont see you and you could get seriously hurt. Separate the horses by haltering and removing the aggressor first. Trying to remove an injured horse while the others are still trying to get at him is a dangerous situation. Get help if needed.
Hopefully your new horse will soon feel right at home, and the both of you can get started on enjoying your special time together.
Pony Express Riders of Iowa:
Each spring the Pony Express Riders of Iowa saddle up for a special
occasion. From across Iowa they gather together the local donations from horseback. Then in an old fashioned Pony Express ride, they ride from all corners of the state to converge on Camp Sunnyside, a camp for the disabled near Des Moines. The donations are used to help run the camp. Watching the combined horsemen ride the final miles to the camp brings a lump to ones throat for the Pony Express Riders freely give their time and effort for such a worthy cause. For more information about them contact the Easter Seal Society of Iowa.
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