New foal questions about Legs

[notadumbld]

She is quite the spirited little filly. Loves to have her neck scratched - stretches her neck waaay up and flapps her gums.

Do I need to be concerned about, as in trying to discourage, these behaviors?

Nibbling on people.
Trying to chew hay which then gets stuck in her mouth.
Bucking at people.

I figure these are all just normal behaviors but I also don't want to ahve a bad-mannered mini. Mini-zilla?

Also, she measures 24" at the shoulder. Any ideas how tall she might get? Lucy is 33 or 34.

[Heather T]

www.lilbeginnings.com/links/info/misc/

Here's a good link for the height issues.

As far as nibbling - it's okay now, but try to discourage it because as she gets teeth it's gonna hurt!!!

Bucking is not acceptable, but if you know how to stop it let me know because Shanza's filly is a kicker...little bugger. I don't want to make it worse - and she's still a fainter...sigh.

The hay is fine - she's going to eat and experienment - wait til she starts eating mouthfuls of dirt......gotta love that one.

[Golden Girl]

As you know I LOVE foals, all foals. They can do no wrong.......wait, they don't know they are doing wrong.
It is up to you to set the boundaries, your personal space. The best word for a foal to recognize when repremanding is "NO" make it firm & unpleasant sounding. Your normal voice when talking to them is sweet & loving, but the "No" word is not.
For the nibbling issue, oh yea at first we think 'how cute, he/she loves me' Then the teeth come in a "OUCH!" The way I have taught all my foals, full size or mini, is to take that upper lip and give it a squeeze quickly with a "No" attached. Quick repetition is the key, and very quickly the foal understands that "no" means not to nip. Lips are okay, but the foal needs to learn the difference. This really works, and doesn't make the foal scared to approach you.

Bucking, rearing, general play aggression is also normal. Mom tolerates it mostly, we should not. If your foal turns her rump to you, scratch it, she should like that and stand for you to do it. If she starts to kick, quickly say "NO" and firmly push her away. You are rejecting her choice of play. When she faces you, talk sweetly to her, scratch and love her, but any ruff horsing is not allowed toward you. Teach your foal your
space is not to be invaded the wrong way.

Reward with love & attention that the foal craves like scratching, and the sound of your voice. I suggest not to hand feeding your foal, as she will start to nibble any & all hands, pant legs, pretty much everything looking for that yummy treat. For minis we use a butter tub for treats. If she is good, then go get the tub, and give the treat ;D yummy!

Hope this was helpful for you, injoy Leggs, she is a beauty! ;D

[erikasbackyard]

I dunno... the butt scritchies reward *seemed* like a great idea, and it was especially nice when training Rowdy to go in harness, but now that he weighs 1500 pounds, it's a little inconvenient at times. Not to mention terrifying to people who don't understand why he keeps sidling around and pointing his butt at them and backing!

[Golden Girl]

Erikasbackyard.....This training is only for one of the first techniques that can be used. I would hope as the animal matures you would have other ways to reward him All though my Appaloosa will still left his tail to the side the get a scratch in there
As your foal gets older, so does his ability to accept more & new things. For grown animals a good 'ol pat on the neck & a "Good Boy!" seems to be enough ;D

[erikasbackyard]

Laura - well, I've had horses 35 years, and have trained all of my own since I was 13, no problem. None of the others have this obsession. Rowdy is now 11, and he certainly does like other rewards and praise. But he still thinks that humans are best used as butt scratchers, and when being petted or groomed he will make every effort to communicate that fact, to the point of nearly sitting on me. If it seriously bothered me I'd stop him. As it is, it's funny, and nobody messes with my horses without me around, so it's also harmless.

[Golden Girl]

Hey Erika, hopefully you horse won't catch you between the wall & his rump, you might just disappear! (that was a joke)
Oh yea, I started riding lesson at 8 years old, I'll be 48yo June 15. Soooooo thats 40 years in the saddle, with only a 8 month break for a fractured tail bone. OUCH!
I by no means KNOW IT ALL, but when someone ask for help, and it is something that I have been doing successfully, than I don't mind passing it on; Free of Charge ;D
At ago 13, I was crushed under my own horse. My life actually passed before my eyes!(& it was too short) A horrible accident for anyone to go through. Fortunately the accident didn't 'turn me off' form horses, & they are literally my life. Go to our web site & meet me, you even like what you see goldenspony.com

[doublefc]

I think Legz is also doing all this because she hasn't been outside yet. The weather is just so rainy and the paddock is a pond...Even my big mare doesn't want to leave her stall! As soon as the rain goes away and the paddock dries up a bit she and Lucy will be allowed to go outside.

[erikasbackyard]

Yup, Laura, been there, done that, too! I've somersaulted a horse and had it land on me, did it with my ponies on several occasions, too. It's... err.... interesting. :-) Since I'm pretty much a two-legged Belgian myself, I can withstand minor squashing. Besides - I rarely keep my horses up in stalls, so there are fewer corners for him to catch me in!

[Golden Girl]

There is one of those emotion guys running around the tree. Wish I could post it here, that could be Leggs running in circles around Lucy in the stall ;D

[ediee]

Well you sure got some great advice and i was tickeled to find out she is so spunky, babies gotta love em she sounds like a happy little girl ans full of spunk she is.have you decided on a name for her?