How To Train A Horse Not To Kick Other Horses

Introduction

It’s not fun to be kicked by a horse. Kicking can be painful if you get caught in the crossfire, and it’s also dangerous—horses are huge animals with incredible strength and incredibly sharp hooves. Horses kick when they’re scared, irritated, angry, or in a lot of pain. Understanding why your horse is kicking is the first step toward fixing the problem so you can keep yourself and other horses safe around this unpredictable animal.

Keep the horse calm.

When training a horse not to kick other horses, it’s important to keep the horse calm, relaxed and happy. The last thing you want is for your horse to feel stressed or threatened. In order to prevent this from happening, avoid stressful situations with other horses that might cause your horse stress. For example:

Do not allow your horse into an area where there are other horses who could hurt him if they get frightened of him or if he gets scared of them
Do not have any loud noises around when you’re trying to teach him how not to kick during his training sessions
Make sure that there aren’t any scary things in the area where you’re training him (for example, don’t let other animals run past while he’s being lectured on how not

to kick).

Don’t tie up the horse.

Don’t tie up the horse.

This is often a major cause of the problem and should be avoided if at all possible. If you need to tie up your horse for any reason, make sure there’s plenty of room for him to move around when he’s tied. He should also not be facing other horses, as this will only increase his anxiety due to them “being too close.”

Keep the kicking horse away from other horses.

As a general rule, it’s best to keep the kicking horse away from other horses. This can be done by keeping the kicking horse in a separate pen or stall (if you have one), or by separating him from other horses in another area of your property. If you don’t have an appropriate area for them to share, it may be necessary to ensure that each horse has enough space for himself.

If you want your kicking horse to interact with others but he kicks out when they come close, try using an electric fence around his territory that shocks him when he touches it–this should help teach him not to kick out!

Avoid stressful situations for the kicking horse.

Don’t tie up the horse and leave it alone. If you need to leave your horse tied up, do not tie them up in stressful situations like being tied outside in a thunderstorm or being tied while other horses are around that they don’t know or trust.

Use a well-fitted halter on the kicking horse.

You can help your horse develop a better attitude by using a well-fitted halter on the kicking horse. A poorly-fitting halter, or one that rubs against the horse’s nose, face or ears, will irritate him and make him more likely to react aggressively when he feels threatened. If you notice that your horse is becoming agitated after putting on his halter, try moving the position of where it attaches around to see if that helps him feel more comfortable.

If the kicking is due to injury, find and treat the cause of the pain.

If your horse is a kicker, you need to find and treat the cause of that pain. If your horse is kicking due to injury, he may receive treatment from a veterinarian or physical therapist. If he’s just generally nervous and anxious, a farrier can help him feel more comfortable in his environment by trimming his hooves appropriately and making sure there are no sharp edges or protrusions on them that could injure other horses.

Horses kick out of stress or pain.

Kicking is a quick, instinctive reaction to pain or fear. A horse who is in pain will kick out of frustration if he can’t find a way to get away from the source of that pain.

Horses can also kick when they are feeling social anxiety or stress—a type of herd animal behavior. When your horse has too many horses in his field, he may feel stressed out and become defensive by kicking other horses who approach him too closely.

Conclusion

By following a few simple steps, you can help your horse stay calm and prevent him from kicking other horses. Remember that stress is the main cause of a horse’s kicking behavior, so you should try to reduce his stress as much as possible. If it seems like his kicks are due to pain, you should treat the pain instead of focusing on training him not to kick.