It’s raining in Manhattan today. Meteorologists are calling for more storms throughout the day and I’m sitting in my office watching it all from 30 stories up. I can imagine Eclipse is watching the rain from his run-in stall, keeping his precious nose warm and dry inside.
He hates water.
When I first brought him to his new home (our last barn) I was sure he had zero vices. Within that first weekend I realized how very wrong I was to think other horse owners' definition of "bomb-proof" was different than mine. I had taken Eclipse on a non-eventful trail ride when I went to meet him in New Jersey, but I suppose he had been on those trails more times than would warrant a spooky reaction from anything.
But when he arrived at the barn I discovered he was deathly afraid of water—puddles, streams, sprays, etc. After a rather interesting first trail ride in the park on his second day with me I gave him a bath to wash away all the “stress sweat” that had dried on his shoulders and neck. That did not go well. I had him tied to a post in the wash area and decided to avoid cross-ties. Within two seconds of turning on the water hose he had already broken the lead snap and bolted away down the paddock. I was standing there with the hose in my hand in completely shock and disbelief. I had never had a horse afraid of a bath!
I emailed the owner and she said he had never shown any kind of behavior like this and promptly dismissed my concerns. I’m not sure what she had done with him up until this point, or if he had even ever had a bath in her ownership, but he was NOT having it! It took a long time to get him calm enough to allow the hose to come close to him, but getting him back on the rubber mats was a completely different story. I got to the point where I was honestly afraid of giving him a bath in fear he would hurt himself or me to get out of it. Needless to say, it took a long time for baths to become more comfortable—and it’s still not 100% there.
I thought we had the bath time jitters out of our system until this weekend. As I mentioned before, we recently moved to a new barn. The wash “area” is at the side of the barn next to house with a very loud set of kids running around throughout the day. There’s a concrete section and a fence rail to tie up to. I gave him a bath there a couple of weeks ago without too much trouble, OK he pulled back once, but I calmed him down enough to finish hosing him down.
I thought everything was fine until Saturday. We had an amazing workout together and the heat really put Eclipse in a lather. I had him completely hosed down when one of the kids next door screams frantically from behind the privacy fence. No matter how soft my voice was or firm I held the rope to help him give to the pressure, he was determined to break away. He knows he can do it, so he did.
But it wasn’t the lead snap that broke...it was the actual fence and it came down on me. Granted, it was an old wooden post with feeble slats on each side, still, it hurt as it crashed into my knees. Despite the ache, I walked him around the area the best I could and tried to soothe him and help him see the water and the hose weren’t the issue. His mind was already gone though, and I wasn’t sure what else could be done at that point.
Puddles and streams and sprays are another story all together, but this bath thing has REALLY got me wondering about his past and what on earth would trigger such fright in him. I understand the little girl screaming probably set him off this time, but it wouldn’t have spurred such a strong reaction in him if he hadn’t been in water, I think.
I’ve used the tarp techniques, rubbing it on him, having him walk over it, crinkling it up around him—it doesn’t bother him! I’ve stroked him with the hose, walked him over the bath mats dry and wet and he still freaks out over bath time.
I’m really not sure what to do about it at this point aside from just bathing him 5 times a day to get him used to it. What do you all think? Do you have any similar situations or suggestions?
So, here I am, reflecting on how I can help Eclipse get through this and I didn't even notice my gigantic bruise from the fence as I was putting on a dress for work. At least it's not hoof-shaped.
Horse for Lease or Sale
12 years ago
Will he stand tied in other places?? It almost sounds like since he's learned he can get loose by pulling back, that he's just doing that to get out of it. The way you describe it it seems he's not really afraid of the water anymore.
ReplyDeleteI'd maybe test tying him in other locations other than the wash rack. Tie him, then show him something kinda scary and see what he does. If he pulls there too, then you'll know you need to brush up on standing tied and that it's not just the water.
He stands tied quietly UNTIL he hears or sees something scary, then he pulls back. Most of the time I can quiet him fast enough and he settles down. I remembered just now, actually, that a couple of weeks ago he was able to break loose when I had him loosely tied in the arena as I was setting up some ground poles. I wonder if that refreshed the pulling back action in his mind? He's definitely schitzy around running water, but puddles we've gotten over completely. He usually calms down once he's broken free. I wonder if he does it just because he can? It's like he's acting more scared merely because he constrained in some way...which would also explain his trailer hesitations.
ReplyDeleteWhat would be a good way to reassure him when tied?
I'm looking into "The Clip" or blocker tie ring or some similar device with some give. Arabee does not tie well - she similarly will stand fine until something scary comes up and then she will pull until she's free - NOT good. But she learned that first time she could get loose, and now she does when she wants to badly enough.
ReplyDeleteI actually don't even have a place to tie by my hose, so I just hold her anyway. I've made sure she knows "whoa" means stop moving her feet, and "stand" means to hold still. I never say whoa over and over again because it desensitizes to the word, and emergency brakes (a good whoa) is nice to have in the saddle! So now she is great at standing still. But she wasn't at all at first. It takes a lot of repetition....if she moves her foot, I move her until she puts it back, and with consistency a horse will learn to happily stand still, tied or not.
But you may not want to take advice from me...my horse doesn't really stand tied all that well! I just know that with Arabians being so clever, I bet Eclipse has your number - he knows he can get away from you when he's around water. He probably was afraid at first, but with all the work you've done with him he's probably not afraid anymore, just knows he can use it as an "excuse". It is nice to have a breed that is so intelligent, but they can really work against you at times, too!
He definitely has my number, and a larger part of our problem in the beginning was respect. We're working on all of that now and have really come leaps and bounds from where we were...just these little set backs are discouraging, ya know?
ReplyDeleteLet me know if you try "the clip" and how it works!