[Rising Star]

Flint has a huge issue with getting his hooves picked up. When he was a couple years younger he had a bad farrier who picked up his hoof while he was unbalanced and he almost broke his leg when he fell. Hes still really touchy with his hooves now. He hates having his front left picked up and also his back. The front he just wont move and when you pick up his back he will try to kick out. Ive been working on him with it but nothing really seems to help. Does anyone have any ideas on how to get him to know he wont be dropped and im not a huge scarry monster?

[doubleatraining]

What are you doing to try to get him to pick it up?

I would try 2 different things.
1. Get a dressage whip or a stick long enough to keep you out of kicking range. Start lightly and tap his leg (near fetlock) and tap harder and harder till he picks it up. STOP tapping and rub him. Repeat until he will hold it up for a long period of time. Then start holding it with your hand.

2. Get a rope. Loop it on the ground and have him step in it. Squeeze until he lifts his foot. Apply pressure everytime he puts it down until he is holding it up for a long period of time. Then start with your hand.

[Rising Star]

Originally Posted by doubleatraining

What are you doing to try to get him to pick it up?

I would try 2 different things.
1. Get a dressage whip or a stick long enough to keep you out of kicking range. Start lightly and tap his leg (near fetlock) and tap harder and harder till he picks it up. STOP tapping and rub him. Repeat until he will hold it up for a long period of time. Then start holding it with your hand.

2. Get a rope. Loop it on the ground and have him step in it. Squeeze until he lifts his foot. Apply pressure everytime he puts it down until he is holding it up for a long period of time. Then start with your hand.

I have just been rubbing my hands down his legs and then asking by trying to pull his leg up while putting pressure against him. With his back he pretty much picks them up himself but as soon as you go to hold it and move it out thats when he tries to kick out, so I just go really slow with him. His front right is perfectly fine though. Im not used to horses being so picky with their feet so I didnt really know what to do than what Im used to.
Thanks though. Ill try both of those. Im not sure if him will like the whip idea. He hates whips. Then again it might because he knows that as soon as you bring it out your serious and he better work and/or listen.

[horse345]

First of all, How high are you picking up your horses' back legs? Sometimes horses do not like to have their legs picked up really high...so when you do it try to keep them as low as possible. If he tries to kick out tell him "quit" or "whoa" very firmly. Also...I would start slow. You can do as much as just leaning into him on the left with your hands on his legs. Again, try to keep his front legs low, only pick them up for a second and eventually you can do it for longer and longer. How does the farrier do his hooves now??

[#1A]

With the front, try giving the chestnut on the inside of his leg a bit of a twist - he will pick his foot up very smartly then.
As for the back, persevere the way you are. If he kicks out, smack him on the bum, and tell him firmly, "NO!" He must understand that this is not the way he ought to behave.
He has a bad experience. You need to make things more pleasant for him. You could try the clicker method. Get a clicker, and make it click, pick up a foot, only quickly, then put it down and give him a treat. Repeat this until he makes a positive association between the clicking sound, what you want him to do, and a pleasant treat.
I used this method on a percheron that had never had his feet done. At first we had to tranquillize him to do his feet, but it didn't take very long using the clicker method before he happily lifted his feet, and then looked for his goody.
In short, make the experience a happy one for him.

[PoochtheMighty]

What kind of horse is Flint? Drafts and heavier breeds generally have more trouble with this, for some reason or another- maybe the weight.

Also, how old?

I don't recommend smacking the horse with a whip- it is an effective tool for teaching a lazy, disrespectful horse to pick up his feet, or just get the **** irritated out of him, but with a horse who has had a bad experience and ALL READY kicks out... I would pick my battles wisely.

First, let me just say that persistence is SO important. My horse was like "pick up my feet? WHY?!" when I first got him, but after many many many sessions on the ground picking up his feet, putting them down, and rewarding him, he picks them up on his own as I run my hand down along his leg to give him a heads-up.

So be consistent with whatever method you choose.

The rope is a safe bet for his hind legs - it is safer for you and you can release pressure quickly and reward him. For the front hoof, make sure that you give him plenty of heads-up time so he can start to think about picking his feet up ahead of time...approach his leg, deliberately, and slide your hand all the way down, giving him a little pinch above the fetlock or pinching his chestnut (that trick works well). As soon as he even shifts his weight, back off and praise him- let it be a pleasant experience. Repeat, repeat, repeat.

Expect more from him over time, expect him to pick his hoof up readily, and allow you to clean it out. Don't just DROP it when you're done, set it back down gently.

For the hind feet, don't let him get away with kicking out. If he kicks out, do your best not to drop his foot- and make sure he isn't kicking out of pain (some horses are really sensitive, if they have stifle or hock issues- his stifle might be getting STUCK and he's trying to unstick it). If you are sure he isn't kicking out of pain, warn him when he starts coiling back or thinking about kicking, then growl or snap at him when he kicks out. This is a bad habit- I don't really think punishing him for habit will be effective.

So, try and change the habit. Pick his hind hoof up and set it down quitely before he gets a chance to kick out. (if this means not raising it up all the way, ok) Reward him thoroughly, give him a carrot EVERY TIME he doesn't kick out. Gradually, you can expect more.

This takes so much patience to rewire a habit. Sorry so long-winded...good luck

[Chantal.]

I agree with what most have said so far. It's a process. First you need in happy and comfortable, and trusting you while your down around his legs, then start touching, then gently lifting, getntly putting back down, work on the amount of tim he needs to keep his hoof up, and reward reward reward. goodluck.

[mommadoc]

Also, if he won't pick up his front left, try using the handle of the hoof pick and tapping on the back of the fetlock while asking him to pick it up, have a hold of this leg though because eventually he will pick it up. If not, tap harder. This is the way our ferrier does it on things that won't pick up their feet.

[4hooves4me2]

If the horse has figured out to keep them planted on the ground, asking him to let you have his feet and him not is just being a stubborn boy! LOL!!

Lean into the shoulder as you are trying to pick up those fronts-it pushes them off of that leg enough you can get a handle on it.

[Rising Star]

Originally Posted by horse345

First of all, How high are you picking up your horses' back legs? Sometimes horses do not like to have their legs picked up really high...so when you do it try to keep them as low as possible. If he tries to kick out tell him "quit" or "whoa" very firmly. Also...I would start slow. You can do as much as just leaning into him on the left with your hands on his legs. Again, try to keep his front legs low, only pick them up for a second and eventually you can do it for longer and longer. How does the farrier do his hooves now??

I pick them up a bit higher just so that I can have it leaned on my knee. Ive always done that and its easier for me to clean them out when they are really bad and mucky. If they arent bad then i hold them lower since it will take less time. I do go really slow with him since he is a new horse and I know that he is scared when it comes to his feet. As for the farrier, he knows his farrier very well and trusts him. Thats one thing Im worried about though since Im switching stables at the end of the month.