Pawing

Question
Rose is a pinto/quarter 2 1/2 year old mare. She has a good head on her and learns quickly.  I have been using John Lyons methods of training her and she has done very well.  The problem I am having with her is that she paws the ground at feeding time.  I always stop and give her a quick pet to greet her and her I when I come into the barn. I hed to the feed area of the barn to get her feed and she begins pawing the ground.  I turn and tell her ah ah ah and she stops. Then she will start tossing her head in small circles.  With everything that I have read about this behavior she is showing disrepect to me at feeding time.  This will also occur if I work her in the morning on the weekends before feeding.  She will stand tied nicely during saddling and her training/riding session.  After she is unsaddled and left to stand while I put up her tack and other items she will again begin pawing.  Sometimes it is so vigirous she begins digging to China.  I do board my horse so there are other people who ofcourse give advice or try to take things into their own hands with methods I would NEVER use with my horse.  With this being the case with other boarders I choose not to leave her stand to long even if she is pawing.  I do wait until she is standing still before ever untieing her and taking her to be fed.   I have tried making her back away from her feeder and stand in the middle of her stall until I get the feed and put it in her feeder.  This seemed to be effective till about 2 days ago.  She has once again started pawing and swirling her head.  I have been trying this method for about 2 weeks now.  Any advise would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Lisa

Answer
Hi Lisa!

This is a non-problem with a non-solution....do nothing.
Ignore, ignore, ignore.

Now.  I know this will be hard for you.  The other boarders are butting in and it's bothering you in a "Hey, I'm in control, Rose!  Listen to me!!"

She is a very young horse exhibiting typical impatience and if you validate it now, it will only worsen.

Think of her as she is deep down inside....a young horse trying to find her place in her herd of 2, you and her.

You must treat her as any Boss Mare would when a youngster is annoying or out of her place.  Ignore her until she is right up in your space.  Then, you may whip around with ears flattened, hoof stamping threateningly and growling "NO!" since you should not bite her in the neck.
THIS is what a Boss Mare would do and it would be understood immediately by any submissive horse.

Saying "ah ah ah" and looking back at her when she is stepping out of her place in the herd is treating it as a game, like a lateral horse would, like another young horse with no authority would.

While she is young and impressionable, decide what you want to be in her life.  As her Boss she will trust and obey you with undying respect that will eventually form into a bond we humans would call "love".  OR be her equal and fight her constantly to assert yourself over her in every situation...because she will challenge you on everything.  That is what horses do.

She sounds as if she ia a well behaved baby that has her hooves on the right path.  Keep them there by speaking to her in a language she understands...even if the other boarders do not.  Who cares about them?  Are they carrying you around the trails or ring?  No?  Then, they have no reason to interfere.  Just smile and ignore them too  :-)

Good luck and remember to always wear an ASTM/SEI approved helmet!

Solange