[belle4]

I will never understand the adjustment period. I see all the time where someone buys a new horse, brings it home and then will let the horse "adjust" to his new surroundings. How long does this take? How do you know when it's over?

If I brought my horses to a new facility and turned them out with new horses, there would be about a 7 minute adjustment period where they all would run around. Then the eating would begin and the party would be over. The 7 minute estimated adjustment period is only because they are loose.

Every time we haul to a show, it's a new environment. I don't give my horse even 2 seconds to adjust. I just go on about my business and expect and demand that my horse 'adjust'. I would expect my horse to come off the trailer, go to work and act like a trained animal no matter where we were. No adjustment.

I've unloaded my horses at rest stops, Burger King parking lots and down town on paved roads. No time to adjust, just behave.

Given all things are equal like feed and turn out, why the adjustment period? If I sold my horses tomorrow, I would expect that they would go on to their new homes, come off the trailer and go right to work.

[Blistering Winds]

I do agree as far as what is demanded out of trained horses. I expect my horses to "deal" with whatever is thrown at them, and get over whatever inhibitions that they are having.

New untrained horses, I still get things done. When Sage arrived, she got her feet done not long after she arrived. We all got a lesson that day on how 'well' she will stand for a farrier.

I expect my horses to behave wherever and whomever is handling them.

I have ridden horses that just arrived to my property, usually to see what they need and to show them the fence line. (I dislike walking that big of an area if I don't have to. LOL)

Adjustment in the herd takes a short time...some take 7 minutes, some continue to challenge for weeks on end till they literally get it "BEAT" into them that they belong in a certain spot in the herd.

But then, you have to consider some horses DO need an adjustment. They have never been told "SUCK IT UP" like we tell our horses. Just like some people, they need coddling, they need their hand held with anything new. And they need the time to adjust before getting back to normal. To me, that is the owner's fault for not letting the horse "deal" and teaching the horse that life goes on, I am moving on, so catch up already!!

[iridehorses]

Good question and one that I argue with a friend of mine all the time. His theory is that while it is true that when you take a horse to a show (as an example) there are new horses, new people, different surroundings, etc. BUT, you are the same, your tack is the same, his routine is the same (basically). So there is at lease some similarity to the whole package.

When you take a new horse to a new facility, there is no similarity and there is no bond or trust with his new owner/trainer, new surrounding, new feed, new water, and everything else for that matter. Give him a few days to at least acclimate to something and relax.

Now that I look at it on paper, I see his point. Hmmmmmm.

[John]

I agree with Bell 4 .

[CowGirlUp1833]

LOL.

This is a funny thread, I've almost posted this topic before actually. I always wonder why people are so weird about that too...

[Karen Horse]

I agree with belle4 and also with iridehorses because even if you go to a new place like a show... a horse should see that YOU haven't changed, tack is the same, oh, and guess what... when you get in the saddle at the show... its WORK time!!! Thats how a horse should think about it.
When I unload my horse at a new show he looks around, then I try him up and give him his hay.... he's fine. He knows its work time.

[Jenje!]

I agree that a horse should be sane and capable of dealing with new things as they come.

My point was more that you shouldn't judge a horse completely based on its first couple of days in a new home... it's a new environment, new handlers, and you haven't had a chance to check each other out yet. While ideally a horse should be able to come right into a new place and be itself within a few minutes, not all of them are capable of that... some stress for days before they're back to "normal". You see it a lot in boarding barns, or at least I have.

I don't see it as an excuse persay- if I bought a new horse and it kicked me in the pasture on the first day, it would learn pretty quickly that that's NOT a good idea. But I wouldn't take something small like that and go to the old owners asking them to take the horse back- I would attribute the problem to the horse's being a moron because changes can be stressful, tear into it for kicking me, and move on.

[imacowgirl2]

I disagree, to an extent...while I expect MY horses to adjust in seconds no matter where we go, that is because they know me, and know they can trust me. However, whenever I buy a new horse, they don't know that they can trust me...throwing that on top of the stress of a new herd, new routine, new everything, I find its safer for me to give them 24 hours to adjust to being with me instead of their old environment.

Every horse I've ever brought in (granted, I don't buy show horses...just low-end trail horses that dont always have a lot of experience going new places and usually only 1-2 previous owners) is always more spooky and skittish the first 24 hours -- I'd rather let them deal with that spookiness without me trying to work with them, as IMO its just easier on everyone involved.

That being said, I don't just throw them out in the pasture for the first 24 hours...I usually do a little bit of ground work in the form of leading and grooming, just to see what training they actually have and what I'm up against. If they aren't terribly spooky or riled up I may even saddle them up and ride for a short period...but I usually leave that for the second day.

So, in short, the 24 hour "adjustment" period I give all new horses I buy is more for my safety than them...and once they are mine and past that 24 hour period, they are expected to gain their trust in me and "just deal" with any new situations after that.

[iridehorses]

Originally Posted by Jenje!

if I bought a new horse and it kicked me in the pasture on the first day, ..... But I wouldn't take something small like that and go to the old owners asking them to take the horse back- I would attribute the problem to the horse's being a moron because changes can be stressful, tear into it for kicking me, and move on.

If referring to an older post, you need to look at the circumstances in their entirety. In that case you have a young inexperienced girl, and the horse not only kicked her once but took a second shot at her. I would not contribute that to nerves on the part of the horse and I would not want a young inexperienced owner to have to deal with that. In that case I would return the horse.

I just took in a 9 year old mare that will turn her back to you as you approach her. If you press her she will raise her right rear leg in warning. I know that horse has trust issues and I also know that I can overcome them - but I've had 30 years experience and I'm pretty sure I can read a horse well enough to know if I have a renegade or a trust issue and how to deal with it. I would not expect a new owner to know how to deal with that and would never sell them one. This particular horse is exceptional under saddle and is a fantastic sorting /penning horse but not for a beginner or a new owner.

[Jenje!]

Originally Posted by iridehorses

If referring to an older post, you need to look at the circumstances in their entirety. A young inexperienced girl, and the horse not only kicked her once but took a second shot at her. I would not contribute that to nerves on the part of the horse and I would not want a young inexperienced owner to have to deal with that. In that case I would return the horse.

I did look at the circumstances in their entirety, actually.

In fact I suggested that she work with a trainer, because as a beginner she's going to need to learn how to handle this horse (and others). The "not getting close enough to be kicked that hard" rule is a pretty basic one, and a trainer could help her with that, as well as show her while tying up a brand new horse to work with it on the first day is a good idea.

I like to think I can get a good read on a horse too, but I won't work with one in the pasture (including brushing or more than a quick pat) without a halter when they are brand new to me and their surroundings. I believe you should take more safety measures than that and not give the horse the opening to take advantage of you.

We could talk about that situation more, but in the interest of keeping this thread on-topic, I'll just say that yes, a situation like that could absolutely be attributed to nerves- and we just don't know whether the horse warned her at all or repeatedly. Some horses are flakes in the pasture and need to wear a halter during handling until they're broken of that. It doesn't make a horse bad or malicious.