aggression in the field

Question
QUESTION: I have an enquiry about my pony. I bought a pony 2 years  ago with severe behavioural problems, he was unrideable and incredibly aggressive to handle. OK so your probably wondering why i bought him!?! Simple... he was off to the knackerman and I thought he deserved a 2nd chance. Anyway it turns out he use to be a childs pony at a riding school and was sold on purely because he was difficult to catch ( he was turned out on 60 acres!). The people I had him off were quite open about the fact he had been severely punished by them - "lunged down to his knees" regularly and locked in  a stable and beaten (which is what they recommended I do as soon as I got him home!)
Needless to say I didn't! I turned him out with my 3 other ponies and played join up with him. Since then I have been working towards the parelli partnership level. He is now a poppet to lead and handle (with myself). Unfortunately he has a severe aggression problem at pasture. He wickers at me and is very friendly but in noway pushy or bulshy. However, yesterday my uncle came up to see the horses with me, came into the field and was talking to my gypsy cob when 'puk' flattened his ears and flew at him at close range, knocking him to the floor and requiring him to have 6 stitcheds behind his ear!
I cannot and will not separate him from the herd as they are closely bonded (though each of them are easily handleable with or with out the herd in view).
I think the problem is that he treats 'intruders' as another horse and needs to learn how to realise he must be far gentler with people - any ideas??

ANSWER: Debbie,

Yea, you do have a pony with a lot of issues but I would have done the same thing in your shoes so don't feel guilty at all.  You are a compassionate human being which there aren't enough of in this world.

Anyhow, you are on the right track with the Parelli work, congrats on that!  But, suggest you take him back to the round pen and work on introducing him to new people and making sure that they join-up with him too.  I think you may wind up doing this for a while.  He needs to learn that other people are also ones he can trust.  Given his history he's learned the hard way to trust no human until you.  

Ponies are very smart; smarter than horses.  Only horses I've found that come close to pony smarts are Mustangs.  So it won't be hard to convince him but you just have to start very slowly.  Once he gets the idea he'll come along for you.  After a while you won't have to "introduce" him to new people in the pen but you may have to do that out in the field to show that you say it's OK for them to be there.  He needs to learn that if you say it's OK that he has to respect and listen to you.  

You have a lot to work with here and have come a very long way in the time you've had him.  You just have to keep on.  

Good luck and let me know how he comes along, please.

Lyn

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi, thankyou very much for your help. Unfortunately Puk's reputation goes before him and I think i'm going to struggle to find victims (i mean volunteers!!) to go in with him! At the moment I am concerned that his reactions can be so severe with strangers that I wouldn't be happy letting anyone other than an experienced trainer go in with him loose. I would be happier to find 'parelli type' people to do the 7 games with him on the end of a line but again its difficult to find helpers.

Soon after i had him i got an equine ethologist out to give me some ideas - she wouldn't even come into the round pen!!

Answer
Debbie,

I have some suggestions.  One, no one would be going into the round pen alone.  You would be in there with them.  At least until the ground rules had been established and you knew Puk was working with you, not against you.  

Try putting the word out on the Internet.  You must have some sort of groups in your area, maybe animal rescue people.  Other Parelli trainers.  In the meantime keep working with him.  Cement your relationship with him enough that he will respect your decisions on who is allowed to come see "his herd".  You are combatting both instinct and prior experience here so it is a double problem.  

If you can get a few brave souls at first the word will spread.  Good luck and keep me posted.  Always happy to give some help and encouragement.  I don't know where you are actually located so have no suggestions as to where to start locating victims.

Lyn