The Buddy Sour horse........

[angelsdream]

Ok so since I have not had my girl Lakota to ride I went a few weeks ago to get a gelding I used to ride about 3 years ago. I rode this guy everywhere and in everything for 3 years and he was fine and calm. Would go off alone or with a crowd. He was a good guy and one of the few boy's I have enjoyed riding BUT since I've been gone, he's not been rode as much and there's been kids coming over riding him around in the pasture to which he is barn sour and turns and goes back to the barn with them and gets away with it. So the day I went and got him, I rode him that evening figuring Id have things to work out before I went out on a ride and sure enough, he was spooking at everything (which I can understand that to an extent) his solution to get out of going forward was rear up and turn around or back up then rear up when I Wouldnt let him turn around. We trail rode a week later and same scenario, he spooked at everything and reared up more than forward most of the time just trying to get out of stuff or if the other horse got too far from him he panicked. Well not only that, but I got him out a few days after that and tied him up to groom,e tc and he was pitching the most awful fit Id ever seen...rearing up, pawing, hollering, pacing - you name it he done it..anything to get back to his buddies - needless to say he stayed tied for 2 hours until he calmed down then I untied him. This has been the story for a week now.

This is not the same horse I rode - so my question is, how do you prevent geldings in particular, since that's there tendacy from what I've seen from most geldings I've been around, from becoming this way. This is the #1 reason why I love mares because they are much more independant and have a more willing and pleasing attitude and are much more mature.I just see geldings as being lazy minded and just like to follow and not think much which is why they make great kids horses. Don't get me wrong, I have seen some great geldings that aren't this way and some mare's that were hellions and I wouldnt have but does it take constant work?? constant handling to prevent this behavior? I know horse's are herd horses and all will be this way to a point but I went thru 2 gelding's and both were like this and from the trainer's I spoke to, it's a hard behavior to break, it can be done but takes a lot of work and even then, they are quick to revert back to that. Most trainer's Ive spoke to prefer mares or stallions. Each have there own pro's and cons and we have to know what we can deal with but this is one of my biggest pet peeves that annoys the thingyens out of me. That's why I loved lakota so much, she is so willing to go alone and tries to please, yes she will try to stay with the other horses at first but doesn't take nothing to keep her going, she's just asking me "are you sure" and I say "yes lets go" and shes' fine...where the geldings Ive seen break out in a sweat, holler, freak out...and there's no getting thru, there brain in a one track thought and it's to the other horses....

I don't want to bash all gelding's, like I said I know there are some great ones out there - there is good and bad, but my question is from everyone's experience, what did you do to preven this behavior from the beginning? However, this horse was not like this when I rode him and he was 3 when I started riding him so he would have been 6 when I quit riding him..so he got this way after being a great non buddy sour horse...

[Michelle Clarke]

Two things...you've got "kids" riding him, probably making him miserable by being rude, plus not following through on stuff that he does not feel like doing and tieing in with that, not consistant riding. The not consistant part is fine, but when the riding does happen, it's not enjoyable for him and he gets away with stuff. Even if its' little stuff, to them it means alot and soon they have a full laundry list of things they won't do anymore.

Yes, geldings can get lazy quickly. With the absence of hormones, the sun rises and the sun sets and in between they eat. That's it; everything else is a nuisance. Since humans basically become care givers, their buddies mean everything to them and the human is not longer "part of the herd", much less taking a leadership role. Even if you raise them right, build a solid work ethic on them and they have a good start, it does not take long for someone who buys them to let them gain weight, set flimsy boundries and let them get lazy. It happens even to the best of trained horses...

He should straighten up with you back to riding him and reminding him that life is about working and putting out an effort. Just remember, you probably haven't seen the worse of it yet...he's gonna really rebel with regular workouts! It'll get worse before it gets better, just stick with it!

[pepper]

Seriously ladies....check the stats & you'll find most champion endurance horses are geldings.Work ethic is not gender related.This guy hasn't been worked on a regular basis & may have been allowed to be spoiled .If he were mine I'd just work thru it with consistent training & handling.If he starts acting up under saddle,go back to ground work,voice commands & going forward.If he acts up,refusing to move forward or shying,get off & lead him,remount & go forward till he trusts & listens to you again.Be patient,firm & consistent.Has worked for me..good luck & don't blame the horse,or his gender.This is a human caused problem.

[angelsdream]

I'm not going to argue and say there are no good geldings, as I said before, there are good geldings out there but a good question is do you have to work and maintain that relationship more consistantly with a gelding rather than a mare? I'm trying to get other's opinions on what they've experienced. From the majority of horse's Ive seen and been around, I prefer the girls. Everyone has there preference of boys or girls but from what I see, gelding's revert to that behavior more quickly if not rode and worked regularly. Like I said, when I was riding him regularly for 3 years, he was the perfect horse and I loved him but from the time off, this is what he has become. The kids do ride him, not all the time,maybe once every few months from what the owner said, but you're right Michelle - any horse really, if no boundaries are set, they become more opinionated. I prefer a horse that I can put out to pasture for months and not have to worry about this becoming an issue, but again, this is MY preference and to some, this behavior may not bother them.

And there are difference's in Mare's, Geldings, and stallions - why do you think people prefer one over the other. Not everything is human caused, each gender has pro's con's. I've seen a lot of people who don't like mare's because of there heat cycle and how they are during that.

[zingomom]

First off, I wouldn't trade in my three geldings for anything, and two of the three had a history of abuse before I got them. Since they are cared for consistently and fairly, they are a dream to work with. Any horse with loads of different riders--especially kids, and no consistency is going to act up. I see that all the time with a lot of the pony club horses where I live. This most definitely isn't a gender issue. Sounds like this poor boy hasn't had a leader to trust in about three years, so your job will be to spend lots of time on groundwork for awhile to remind him that he can trust you and your judgements when you're out together. The ride's never going to be very good if the trust isn't there, and since you've been apart for quite awhile, you just need to remind him he doesn't need to be scared of everything anymore. If you're serious about working this out with him, don't rush it. He'll remember what he had with you eventually, and watching a horse relax and trust again is a beautiful thing. Best of luck to you. --Carol

[Michelle Clarke]

Okay...I never said anything about gelding being bad. I have geldings.

[fantasykiger]

my experience with geldings has not been all bad mostly just that they are goofy. I am stuck with a big john mule because honestly I don't have the time to try again for a molly, as it is I will about 50 by the time I am riding Super regularly. I have never delt with barn sour geldings only barn sour and buddy mares because I ride mares. The last gelding I owned and rode until he passed away was several years ago and that was not his issue.
The majority of my friends ride geldings, wich of very few can keep up with my mares on the trail. At home in the pasture my mares and fillies are very boring creatures. They don't play, fight and argue amongst each other very little. They eat, nap and once a month admire the geldings next door it is so nice.
But ...just about every evening my daughter's gelding starts picking and poking looking to start a fight. His victim of choice my old mustang mare, she will tolerate him only so long then they go at it. No one gets hurt but he is just a goof' and a pain.