I have a young 2 1/2 year old
quarter horse gelding. He has been trail riding, etc. and is a very
nice horse we paid $2,500 for and has a good line behind him. My question
is he layed down 3 times under little stress-- once with trainer pushing
him for about 5 min., once while getting his front feet tangled in rope
while tied, once at his feed dish not tied. We have had him check by
vet a couple times they said he needs taught manners. This horse is
not agressive and in fact low man on totem pole by far. He does not
kick or anything, just a sweethart. I was talking to a girl about this
and she came up right away with the horse has no confidence in himself.
This is first I heard this even from trainer, vets, etc. Does this make
sense? What is your opinion on a horse that lays down (and eats grass,
not upset at all) when something doesn't go his way?
Reply from trainer Tracy Zadow:
It sounds like he reacted to a stressful
situation. It's not so much the single act of being worked or being
tangled. His stressful situation is a new home. I usually give a horse
a full week to get to know the routine, sounds, smells, and aquainting
themselves with the other horses before I add anything else to his day.
A horse that is low on the totem pole can take a little extra time to
adjust. He's just one of those horses that does a quirky thing when
overwhelmed. He is young and his mind is still maturing so I'm seeing
that with maturity he'll be able to deal with stress better.
