Horse rearing, pawing at the ground in the stall

Question
QUESTION: Hi Solange,
recently I have adopted a paint filly -  Lily a very smart girl. She has gone through some very tough times from what I could gather. She has scars on her ankles from cuts and is head shy.   I have had her for month and a half. When I first started working with her in the round pen, she joined up with me within 5 minutes, which I thought was great. She stays at a barn thats opened - she has access to 4 acres with 3 other horses. Before I got her, she was in a stall for 8 months due to her injuries and was fine being inside. No she is free to be a horse, however when she is in the stall and the stall is closed -   and I'm not present, she rears, paws at the ground and paces in the stall. for a 45 minutes or more. when I show up she calms down - but the minute i'm out of her sight, she starts all over again. I'm afraid she'll hurt herself, but not putting her in the stall at all is not the answer either. Please HELP.
ANSWER: Hi Daniela!

I'm not quite sure what you are saying, could you clarify?  Do you think Lily is too attached to you or the other horses she is separated from whilst in her stall.

You say she is nervous for almost an hour after you leave....then what does she do? Does she just stop and eat and drink and sleep with no further incidents?  Who told you she does this?  Are they exaggerating?

I have a few ideas as to what her issues could be but, I really need more info.

Thank you!

Solange

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

QUESTION: Hi Solange,
sorry for the chaotic question. Lily only gets worked up when she is in the stall and I guess nobody pays attention to her. She rears up, over and over, paws at the ground and paces around, kicks the doors. It seems when I'm there, in her view, she is OK and stands relatively still. But the minute I leave to get water around the corner, she kicks the walls and the door. When other people come and take the horse that is directly across from Lily out to the round pen, thats when she would go on and on for the duration of the other horse not being there. They did go over to the stall and try to give her carrots and hay to keep her occupied, but the minute she realized it was a trick- she would start up again. I realize they did reward a bad behavior with treats and asked them not to give her anything while she is acting up. However, when I'm in the barn and the other horse is not, Lily is ok - if she can see me.

I guess what I'm trying to figure out is if she is buddy sour or if i'm doing something to cause her behaviour.

Thank you again, Solange, for your time and advice.

Daniela

Answer
Hi Daniela!

Thank you for the additional information.  Lily was probably abused because she exhibited these behaviors before and the old owners felt they could "fix" her by beating her.  You said you have had her only a month but, she has done this consistently from the beginning.  Do you know if she was EVER stalled?  Some horses are born outside and live there their whole lives.  If she has never been in a stall, well, that accounts for her fear of it.

Then, again, sometimes horses are just not right in the head.  Anything with a brain can be mentally off and in this case, I am sorry to say Lily might be one of those.  Was she born this way or made this way by irresponsible humans?  I cannot say.  But, now that she is most likely damaged from it, the cause is no longer important, the treatment is.  Trying to divert her attention from being in the stall with food, attention or anything else will never work.  She is so caught up in the drama in her head that she will never calm down long enough to understand what you are trying to accomplish.

You said she is fine out in pasture with other horses.  Why not just put her on 24/7 pasture board?  I would eliminate the stall all together or better yet, put her in a stall with a door to the pasture that can be left open all the time and she is free to go in and out.  Now, that would not necessarily fix her forever but, you would not have to watch her become unhinged everytime you locked her up.  She is a horse's horse and feels only comfortable with them.  You cannot fight this, trust me.

You said you adopted her....was it from a rescue organization?  You could always give her back and have them place her in a pasture only home with other horses and she could be a pasture pet/buddy.  Don't feel bad that you could not give her what she needs.  Let someone else better equipped to help her have her and adopt another one who needs you can understand.  There are so many horses that need good homes.

I feel if she is this unhappy and shows it through such a physical manner, she will probably not be safe to ride.  She will probably show her stress and inability to form a riding partnership with you through acting out under saddle as well.  Rearing, bucking, spinning and just blind running until you are off her back.

I seriously advise you to stop putting her in a stall, find her a pasture home either with you or another owner who fully understands her special needs and to do this as soon as possible....before she hurts herself or a human.

My heart breaks for Lily and her inability to understand the world around her and her place in it as a human's companion.  She would be best off as a horses only companion and in that situation you would most likely see a whole other horse.  One that is calm and happy in her herd.

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

Solange