What causes horse behavior problems? 

Was taught when I started with horses 60 years ago that 'whoa' means all four feet still, and nothing else. It doesn't mean slow down, it means full stop. It takes a while for the horse to understand that, but it's like having an emergency brake.

New sub here. I have also seen way too many owners come out, saddle up, work horse hard, put back in paddock. No other interaction! Really sad, in my opinion.

Thanks for taking the time to share this video. Your horse isn't a vintage vehicle you randomly take out. Even still, they don't behave well either if you treat them that way. Horse ownership is a consistent guardianship that takes time and money to nurture for best results. It breaks me to see a perfectly good horse traded in because the time and medical care wasn't invested. Great guidance you provided. Anyone considering a horse should watch first. Take care..

my trainer kept telling me , do not groom you're horse so much! you make him a prince ! i didn't understand it , untill this year! i put to much time in grooming before riding , i backed down from it , make him clean , saddle up and groom after work like a treath . for lunge work i no longer groom before , i do it after , so he knows it is spa day or work ! this all fell in to place just right now! waaw! so now he is injured and gets lot of treathment for his leg/ health, it's more fun and no work ! need to keep it in mind once we go back to working routine! it is setting his mind right! never thought that trough like that! thnxs ! i like to see you're playday routine also !

My horse seems to know what we are going to do by which halter I use. I have his trail halter, and his grooming halter. He walks up to me when I have his grooming halter, and I have to walk up to him when I have his trail ride halter. 😅 Best horse I ever owned.😊

I’d love to see how you prepare for a play day vs a work day. Thank you for this video!

Once again, excellent information! I will admit I’m guilty of a couple of these things. Sometimes you just don’t know any better until someone points it out. I never get offended by anyone giving me advice. I just file them away until I can research it. Thanks for the video and we’re looking forward to the next one!!!

I just love common sense. Very well applied here!! Great job. 😀👍👍

Wow, that is well thought out. You obviously take good care of your animals, thanks for the info.

Point number 4 is really crucial. You need regular and balanced exercise to build up your own body and your horses body as well. If you do long rides with long intervals in between you are set up for an accident. But I have a different opinion about treats and grooming. I spend some quality time with my young horse before riding and it creates a special bonding which is good for the relaxation and confidence. I give my horse 1 kg carrots while grooming and preparing him for about 30 minutes. He is happily eating the carrots from the floor. When he is done I shorten the rope and he knows work time starts. We live in a hot place. Carrots contain 90 % water. And it is not really a snack, but a way to "have tea together". He gets hydration and comfort. His fur starts shining. He associates me and riding with something fun. He is a good hard-working horse. He loves to make hard efforts and be pleasing. I feel the carrots are his coca cola before the hard ride. We have a wonderful bond. He loves me and I love him. To me horses are 50 % about sport and 50 % about love. This NOONE will change in my horse Life. 😊❤️‍🔥❤️❤️❤️🐎

You are one of the most educational trainers I’ve watched in a very long time. You talk about and demonstrate what some my take as unspoken common sense subjects which are totally new to beginners and non horse people getting into Horses. Your demonstrations are first rate. Thank you for your teachings. Wishing you the very best. From 74 year old use to ride grandma. 💕🫶👏

Just love how your horse is listening to you while you talk.

Well done! Every horse owner should watch that!

Thank you, great video.

Thank you, making it all very easy!

very informative video, thanks for sharing

Every one of these suggestions is excellent and every one (except the health and well fitting tack issues, which I’m on top of) are reminders that I needed. Thank you so much!

WoW, you are right on!!!! This is the best video for educating a new horse owner. It was clear, smart and helps correct the unintentional problem new owners do to their horse. Keep these coming!!!! ox

Very useful tips!!

Great advice a lot of people just don’t know.

Just view for the first time. A great one to review from time to time. My guess is these basic understandings work with kids and dogs also. 😊

Thank you for this informative video. Could you do a demonstration in the future please showing how you prepare for a play day verses a work day, the signs of improper tack fitting, what to do if your horse won’t pick up its foot, etc?

Thank you for this video! I never even thought about teaching them how to know what you're going to do each day. For all of the videos I've watched about keeping them healthy, mentally, this was never discussed. Definitely going to share this one on Facebook. ❤️🌵☀️⛈️🌈☮️🐎

Hey,....Thank You.

As a beginner rider, little over one year now, number 6 is me. I also feel this applies to who I am as a person.

I love this!

So helpful

Having turnout stable year round and having open access to food (with slow feed nets) for the horse herd, giving structure is not so easy. There is structure for behaviour at the gate. I'll put my mind into what else I can do to add structure. Thnk you as always for mindful insights.

Absolutely true!

Always a good idea to test fields not only for grass to grown but to also give enough time for bacteria and any things like worm eggs to die naturally.

Great video.

How about show prep? You want your horse looking good, so you spend a lot of time making your horse look its best. How do you make that different than a spa day? After show prep, you're horse is going to have work pretty hard.

Teeth. Maybe not such a biting issue if you ride with hackamore style bit BUT can definitely affect nutrition. Good info. Thanks from UK

I would emphasize on giving them plenty of exercise. I see so many horses getting out for 30 min max.

You have great, quick to the point videos! Wonderful and so helpful! Thank you! PLEASE do a diet, hay, grain, feeding schedule video. I am trying to learn more about how much hay with forage, how much grain and when to give it and when not to.

My only complaint about this video is the order. I think #8 should be #1, #7 should be #2 and so on. We all have to learn these, I agree. Some are lucky and grow up learning them and some had to get a job first. I was a bit of both. Until we understand #8 and #7 etc, we won’t know how to figure out a structure and a plan. That’s the only way we know the difference between work and play for the horse, I think. Most of us work in order to afford these creature features so for me anyway, time with my horse is fun no matter how hard I work. But they always have to behave themselves whether it’s spa day or ride or just grazing for a bit. I like to hand graze versus treats. I don’t give treats because I think it teaches the wrong thing but I realize I am in the minority on that. I just prefer hand grazing when possible because I like to spend time with them and they don’t get pasture. I think it’s good for their tummies which is good for their health. Most people I know get bored with that and I understand that too. My feet hurt. I just figure it’s something I can do for them that they truly appreciate. Thank you for taking on this topic. Another great message! ❤

Much appreciated; always like to hear the basics on being a great horse person and what areas could use improvement. Currently have an issue on regular hoof care with a professional / trained farrier due to the remote area we live. I am starting to learn how to trim, so I can keep a routine and my horses will have good hooves (no hoof, no horse).

Horse training is 1) Teach your horse what you want him to know and 2) Don't teach him what you don't want him to know. They learn both, whether you mean to do it or not.

Nice barn renovations too.

As someone who is new to working with horses I loved your part on indecisiveness. You're right, no decision is the worst decision. I can't learn from doing nothing. So I need to choose an action and go forward with it with confidence. I'm still learning about their behavior and use of space. I feel like my confidence will come from learning about when I'm in a position where they can bite me/kick me/run me through and how to position my body to get out of that. That's what scares me the most, when they start to get nervous or upset and the only thing I can do is back away. I don't feel like thats the best thing to do because it teaches them they can get away with their behavior with me, but I don't exactly know how to position my body in a way to assert myself but also not put myself in the line of fire.

Great video. Horses lives would be so much better if they followed these guidelines. I have a couple more. Too many treats. Horses get nippy and pushy because they want more and its not cute. Another, personal space. While the horse needs to know you have a space hes not allowed to invade. But you as the owner can invade his space to groom, tack and medicate. And the last one is remembering your horse is not a dog. They of course love you and want to be your buddy. Playing games, running from them and thinking it's fun to chase you and chase them.....uh don't. You will get hurt eventually.

Would be good to encourage people to analyze poop before deworming for worm identification and count rather than just automatically reworm and strip gutt from good bacteria. After all dewormer is a pesticide. Because horses live in herds they can also share worms as they are in close proximity. Best to test the poop and know your horses load and only deworm if needed as per your vet. Also the vet will tell you the best dewormer to use as they aren’t equal.

What you are describing is knowledgeable horsemanship compared to ignorant horsemanship. My interaction with my horses is work/play.

Mr. Anderson, saddle pad you always use a 1/2" or 3/4" saddle pad and what brand or where can I get one similar? Thank you!

When I'm not working with horses, I work in small animal medicine; the same rules apply to dogs, folks! And, to a lesser extent, to cats as well. Put some time & effort into your pets and you will see a difference.

Horses are a whole new world and they are not “My Little Pony.”

When mounting don't walk off immediately. Teach your horse to stand still until you give the command to walk. I see people whose horse walks off leaving them or stuggling to pick up a sturrup. Just stand still for 10 seconds, sometimes more, when mounting.

Off topic question, what size are your stalls? Your barn is gorgeous, did you design it?

The only thing I disagree on is work/play/structure. I find that if you keep a routine they start to anticipate what comes next and behavioral changes are more negative. Ex- if they know they go to pasture after riding, they get gate sour. I live by never let them know your next move. Sometimes they get treats, sometimes they don’t. Sometimes we ride first then lunge, sometimes we lunge first. I intentionally change it up.

Question: I used to work out a horse on a line for about 10 to 15 mins. To let them work out any glitches or I used to call it the boogs, before a ride. Is this a good idea.?? Or if I didn't have time to ride a lot, a little longer work out, hopefully to keep the horse tuned up. Thank you so much. For your guidance to all horse owners.

I have a question can you show how to fit a saddle pad I don’t know how high it should sit and my horse has a shark fin

Definitely have made the treat mistake. It’s amazing how quickly they go sour when fed treats

Do you have a video on proper tack placement? Thank you

Respectfuly disagree, but then I don't deal with other people's horses like you do. Thanks for sharing!

General horses management always good to at least test blood & poop from at least one horse in each herd. As our earth is depleted of its nutrients mainly due to farmers using artificial fertilizers it’s important to know that our horses are healthy and receiving the nutrients they need as do humans.

Ok

I had a horse that would nloat her stomach when tightening a girth. Is kneeling the horse in stomach the correct thing I do? I had a mare that bloated once on me and as I was in show at canter the saddle slipped to the side and I plowed through snow fencing head first.

I wonder about dirty bits that could make horses sick. I never see people clean bits before using.

Thanks Tim. Great video. Question: What ulcer treatment do do suggest? I try to educate myself but I would like to have some real world experience from you if possible. Thank you.

So, if you work 40-50 hrs a week at your job, then dont own a horse? From the horse’s point of view, this would make sense.

Teeth! Please keep an eye on the health of your horse's teeth. Try to avoid feeding them high sugar snacks regularly. Lettuce and cucumber are great for the odd reward, many horses love them and they're much lower in sugar than apples and carrots

What a comparison. Horse and a car 😂

I don’t understand. If a horse is well trained, why would one need to use an hackamore?

You don't need to be mechanical Engineer to buy a car.

ride without a bit & y'all don't have to worry about it "fitting right". metal does not belong in any mouth...horse dog cat or human.

Bad analogy. Horses aren’t human.