This message is from: "Anneli Sundkvist" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
I agree with Jean! Let the older gelding teach the brat how things work. I got Cider home as a weanling and Tina tried to chase him through the fence the very first day. Cider, who has always been a very self-confident guy, didn't mind very much - he just ran. At that time, we had a 6 yo grey dun gelding by the name of Totte. He actually protected Cider from visious Tina the first weeks, placing himself between her hooves and Cider! After some time, Tina and Cider made friends (and they still are - he's 8 and she's 16 now) and Tina, who is a really KIND horse once the new herd-member is accepted, tolerated A LOT from the young, self-confident and VERY bratty Cider. At that time, Totte must have decided that the youngster needed to know who was the boss and that Cider had to learn good manners! Totte never used more 'violence' than needed, but he was very successful in his work indeed! The funny thing is, that now when Cider's not a youngster anymore, I see so much of Totte in him! Cider reacts just like Totte when it comes to a lot of things, which is very good, because Totte is a very well-tempered fjordhorse. Calm, confident and very responsive. He was also very kind to new horses and helped them to be accepted by the herd - Cider's just the same. He actually NEVER fights with other horses. I think he was 3 years old before he pinned his ears back for the first time and that was when a horse new to the barn attacked HIM! Not much choice, eh?;o) But of course it's important to have the horses in a large field so the brat can escape when the 'schooling' starts. Regards Anneli P.S. Totte was sold 5-6 years ago and now takes care of Cider's old mama who is 23! He has a great personality and is much loved by his human family too. D.S. ***************************************************** Anneli Sundkvist Department of Archaeology & Ancient History Uppsala University St. Eriks Torg 5 S-753 10 Uppsala Sweden Phone: +46-18-4712082
