Horse Bit

[jtbakv]

I have an 8 yr old gelding a wonderful roping quarter horse. This is what happened, I was adjusting his brest collar when I walked around in front of him to the other side I was about 4 ft away from him and he all of a sudden he reached out and bit me on the right shoulder.I yelled and he jumped back. after i checked to see how much I was bleeding. I went back to finish putting his saddle on but alot more cautiously no more problems. why in the world would this horse do this?

 

[Isomade]

How long have you owned the horse? And how much time have you spent with him?

 

[jtbakv]

i spend atleast :30 min everyday with him brushing and feeding him however I have only had him about 3 weeks. would this be the reason trust issues?

 

[MistyMorning]

i spend atleast :30 min everyday with him brushing and feeding him however I have only had him about 3 weeks. would this be the reason trust issues?

My take is that it isn't a trust issue, it's a testing you issue. Did you clock him one right in the face after he did it? I know I would have!

 

[Isomade]

i spend atleast :30 min everyday with him brushing and feeding him however I have only had him about 3 weeks. would this be the reason trust issues?

My take is that it isn't a trust issue, it's a testing you issue. Did you clock him one right in the face after he did it? I know I would have!

:nod: right on the soft part of the nose. He must learn immediately that there are consequences for his actions. Next time he takes a chunk out of you.......

 

[chippie]

As a previous poster said, it is not a trust issue but a Respect issue.

There is a honey moon period after getting a new horse. It can last as long as over a month or it can last only a couple of weeks. During this time, the horse is usually on good behavior until it feels secure and comfortable in it's surroundings and you.

Once that happens, the horse's true nature will come out. Namely if the horse has any vices, you'll find out about them.

With discipline comes respect and affection. I'm not saying that you beat your horse, but you should discipline it. You can't baby one into liking you.

Also having the horse's respect on the ground is very important, because if it does not respect you on the ground, it won't respect you when you are riding it.

On the other hand, your saddle may not fit right I'm not saying that it is OK for the horse to bite you to let you know that the saddle hurts, but that may have instigated it.

Good luck.

 

[jtbakv]

I would have smacked him in the nose if he hadn't of jumped backed when I yelled.
He has attempted to I would say nibble at me once or twice before and I did smack him in the nose. but this wasn't a nibble it was an open mouth large bite. I felt his teeth in my shoulder. only a small break in the skin but a softball size black bruse. I will keep the respect aspect in mind for sure. Thanks for your advice.

 

[Farmerjon]

A buddy of mine had his posse horse kick him one day before a parade. This horse was used daily for over 10 years, had never kicked before or since.

 

[Suzie Q]

One reason that horses bite is if they are given treats every day and then you turn up with out a treat. You don't know that the previous owner did.

But an open mouthed bite on the shoulder sounds massive to me. As above it is about respect and every single time you handle this horse you are training him. There is no just throwing out a biscuit (flake) of hay or rugging him. You are training him. You have been training him for a month.

Horses pick things up extremely quickly. They can pick up good or bad habits. So train for good habits and the bad ones won't rear their ugly head. If you don't know what you are doing you are training for bad habits without knowing it.

 

[cowman]

A mule will work for you patiently for ten years for the chance to kick you once

 

[LazyARanch]

Could also have been that he was cranky about being cinched up too snugly or too quickly....

I'd sure keep the biting in mind anytime I'm around him, and YEP... he'd get a solid punch in the nose if he came at me again! Been there, done that! (got the scar)


edit: oops, was thinking you had just cinched him up, did a quick re-read and noticed you were just adjusting his
breast collar. Either way, he was being testy about something he thought you did or DIDN'T do.

Don't trust him, and don't give him the opportunity to do the same thing to some innocent soul that just happens to be standing there.

I'd sure check with whoever you bought him from and see if they had the problem. Good Luck!