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Discussion on Introducing a horse to electric fencing
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Member: Hev1
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Posted on Thursday, Aug 31, 2006 - 9:27 pm:
I have just imported a horse and she had to spend 14 days in quarantine, confined. Well, needless to say, this horse is now wound tighter than a golf ball! She is used to 24/7 turn-out with very stout stone wall fencing. I have 4 strands of electric tape fencing (and have NEVER had any problems with horses even testing it!). Well, I put her out in my small "learning" paddock so that she couldn't get up to much of a head of steam before realizing there was a fence there, but she still just bolted towards the fence like there was nothing there, hitting it and struggling thru it (getting shocked all the time). I decided to keep her in and just hand-walk her until I get some helpers to try her again. I honestly think that she will just bolt so fast after being cooped up for so long that she will go thru the fence again. Does anyone have any suggestions? Changing the fence is not an option!!
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Member: 36541
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Posted on Thursday, Aug 31, 2006 - 10:19 pm:
Can she go out with someone so she would be more interested in what is happening inside the learning pasture? I have also used the electric tape on the inside of my stall doors for horses who lean - maybe that would be a safe place for her to give it a nose... Stacy
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Member: Erika
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Posted on Thursday, Aug 31, 2006 - 10:57 pm:
I was taught to feed a horse through the electric fence. I know, sounds bad, but they hit the wire with their nose and they never touch it again!
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Member: Hwood
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Posted on Thursday, Aug 31, 2006 - 11:04 pm:
I always walk the fence perimeter with a new horse, and tie surveyors' tape I(several inches long) a couple of times between every post . . . I had thought of your suggestion, Erika . . . and have fed the horses near the fence . . . If there is another fence-wise horse in the pasture, it will teach the new horse "the ropes" with its body language . . . We just went through this with our horses. Some of them had only ever been in metal pipe pens . . . and one has always pushed her head through the pens to eat the grass outside her run . . . Well . . . she doesn't do that anymore
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Member: Kthorse
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Posted on Friday, Sep 1, 2006 - 6:39 am:
I always do as Holly does walk the perimeter, what about making her tired first taking out the extra steam by lunging her first?
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Member: Frances
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Posted on Friday, Sep 1, 2006 - 10:02 am:
You have plenty of good ideas above - and I'd like to add a suggestion to put a couple of piles of hay out too.
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