[Horsebrat20]

Ok as some of you know i have an Irish Sporthorse that we can't sell. So we're going to keep him for the winter and do some major ground work training. Mostly Monty Roberts stuff. My question is: When we do the round pen stuff, he's great. He knows exactly what to do and listens and watches your body language. He does everything i ask perfectly (except for a few things, but that's what we gotta work on him with), but in the paddock, if you start petting him he's obnoxious! He thinks "oh she's petting me, i guess thats ok to use my head like a hammer!" He just swings his head every which way he pleases and doesn't even care if you happen to be in the way. He trys to push everyone with it. Me not so much cuz i try not to stand for it, but i really don't know how to stop a hundred pound thing from hitting me. He's pushed my mom into the electric fence before. Didn't hurt her one bit, but Magnum thought he hit it so he jumped back. (horses) How do i stop this. No amount of poking his nose out of my face, or waving my hands in his face gets him away. He's just there being rude. It's like trying to stop a sludge hammer in mid air. But again, he's great after i do join up with him, he follows me around and backs up, walks forward, all that on command. I can even tell him with my voice what he can or can't do, such as what person he can go see and who he can't. I just don't know. How do i stop him from using his head as a way to get his way. He uses his dumb head in the pasture too. He runs out there swinging his head around like he's mad at the air, or he's trying to dominate the grass or something. He looks really dumb. I just don't understand him. Any advice would be appreciated.

[Blistering Winds]

Smack him!! You need to be HEAD BOSS in the Pasture. He knows the roundpen is Your area, the pasture is his. When he swings that head....smack that NOSE. Before he starts Getting even WORSE!! This can develop into a very dangerous situation with biting, striking, kicking, etc.

Already your mom got shocked...

It should only take a few times. When that head goes a swingin, smack him. He'll probably run off the first few times. Just make sure when you work him, rub on him on his head so he doesn't think it's an all the time thing. Only when he swings his head to bop you.

[Horsebrat20]

Smacking doesn't phase him a bit. I've tryed poking him with a crop, hitting him with a crop, smacking him in the face. I'm not strong enough to even make him think i hurt him. And he does this so often without even realizing it. He just acts like we're not even there most of the time. Sometimes he does it on purpose, like when he pushed my mom. I'l try smacking him harder, but i don't know if it'll work. Thanks

[Open_the_Gait]

i have a couple things you could try with him. first one: if hes just doing it cuz he wants your attention, ignore him. the second he tries to hit his head on you, just walk away. but, this might not work depending on how u train him. if you usually leave him be when he is doing good, this method will just reinforce his ideas. if thats the case then you can try making him work when he tries it. just go up and pet him a little. try to stop petting him before he pushes on you. but if he does manage to push you before you stop, or if he does it after you stop, quickly, quickly, quickly turn and face him and make him run (you should be in a round pen). when he tires out a little, and is willing to submit, have him stop and come to you. then try petting him again. maybe you can pet him somwhere he is used to and slowly work your way towards the problem area? every time he swings his head at you or leans against you, make him run. he should figure it out that he doesnt even want to push you around.
i hope u get this figured out. its dangerous! i had a horse who was being pushy and he swung his head around and his jaw ran smack into my skull. that hurt so dang bad, im lucky i didnt blackout or somethin.
i wouldnt suggest hitting him, cuz sometimes that can make them headshy. good luck!

[Horsebrat20]

When i hit him he just gets angrier and more pushy. I'll try this. I've done it before though. I've done this chasing away thing so much i'm sick and tired of it, and i still got a problem horse. The prob is with my mom though. She's the one thats home with him all day so she gives him hay and lets him out in the feild. He's fine with hay, but when she lets him he gets all excited, and if you turn your back to him he'll probably try to dominate you, swings his head around threatens to rear. But if you keep your eye on him, he doesn't try it. My mom isn't a horseman so she deosn't know how to get him off her. So even if he is good with me, most likely he won't be with her. Do i punish him for doing this swinging of the head? i was told it's a dominent gesture. How do i punish it? He doesn't seem to know why i chase him away when he does this. Thanks.

[Dawn]

Can you work with him in a round pen? In a turn out all you can do is chase him away, you can't make him work. Do it in a round pen and then make him work for at least 10 minutes everytime he tries it.

[spyro1]

Try using some of your round pen techniques in teh paddock, provided it is not too large or too small. Also, how much out time does he have? You may not want to hear this, but another solution is to ignore him while he is out in the paddock, keep loving times to when he is restrained on crossties. Head strong horses can be a real challenge to work around, you always have to stay one step ahead of them From your post, it sounds like when he has a job to do, he will behave and focus (round pen) and when he has his free time, he feels like he can be a goof. This sounds like bad manners in the paddock to me and like I said above, if you can do some round pen work in teh paddock, it may show him that you are still teh boss, no matter where you are

[Horsebrat20]

He doesn't do it in a round pen. I work with him quite often like that, and he knows not to do it. It's just in the paddock. He hasn't seemed to have gotten the clue that he's not allowed to do that with his head. He does it everywhere but the when i'm working with him. In the crossties, in his stall, in his paddock in the pasture. As long as i'm not working with him, he does it. He also does it when you ride him. He hates to do anything you tell him, and he puts up an enormous fight with his head while your riding. When you ask him to canter he starts bucking. No matter what kind of rider is on his back asking him to do stuff, he bucks at the canter. He's a big pain in the you know what. Thanks for all the advice.

[Blistering Winds]

If he bucks at the canter, you need to take him back to trot training. He isn't advanced enough to ride at a canter just yet. May want to round-pen him before cantering, let him get his kicking up done with before riding.

If the bucking is a NEW thing, and he has worked great before, VET CHECK time. He might be in pain, and trying to tell you. Check his mouth, back, and legs. Biggest problem areas.

But either way, when you are with him, YOU are in charge. You need to Remain in charge.

[Horsebrat20]

We're not even riding him at the moment. We're doing strict ground manners with him. He seems to have been forced to do a lot of things in his previuos life. He has the attitude also to put up a fight. So we have to start from the biggining and slowly work him up. I just wonder what to do with his head while in his stall and on the crossties. You can't chase him away when he's in his stall or on the crossties. We have a Dually halter (Monty Roberts) that he behaves well in, so we're prolly not going to have much problems with him in the cross ties. But in the stall, my mom only handles him in the morning to feed him, and to lead him to his paddock. He can't have his specail halter on over night and she has a lot of truoble getting any thing done with him in the morning becasue he's so obnoxciuos. She has no one to help her either. Is there something she can do to get him off her long eneough to do what she needs to do? He's not real bad or anything, he's great when you lead him to his paddock. And when she gives him his food he's fine, it's the process of either putting a blanket on, or putting a halter on, or just plain walking up to him while he's got his head hanging over the stall gaurd that he's a little pushy. It doesn't help at all to throw your hands up to get him away or yell, cuz he comes right back. Hitting doesn't do any good either cuz he just gets mad. I know your prolly gonna suggest to either not have mom handle him or have her do some training exercises with him, but it's not that simple. My mom doesn't have time to do anything with him (with me or my dad) and she can't not handle him. This is why we needed to get him sold, we were afraid he was going to hurt someone but that didn't happen. Any advice would be appreciated.