For the past couple of days my new pony has been living in the picadero. I couldn’t put him in with Minnie and Cassie yet. I wanted him to be wormed, checked by a vet and as he is absolutely crawling with lice, he would need to be treated for that too before I let him anywhere near my mares. But first, I must be able to catch him. That, as it turns out, is easier said than done. When I got the pony home, the first thing I did was take his head collar off. I didn’t even think about it. The head collar was way to small, and it has actually left marks on his face. So it was not really surprising that once it was off, the pony was disinclined to let me put anything even near his head; when he saw me approach with a (new) head collar in my hand, he took off and bounced around the picadero like a furry ball with legs. If I don’t have a head collar in my hand, I can walk up to him and stroke him. When I come in to skip out he follows me around and he can even get a bit pushy, he is not shy; but as soon as he spots a rope or head collar he takes off. I never considered that catching might be an issue, because I never have to actually catch my horses. If I want them, they usually come when I call and I can walk up to them anytime, anywhere and slip on a head collar. I just took it for granted but this pony needs convincing.
I want to do things in such a way that it will give the pony only positive experiences, so I decided to start him with clicker training straight away. Like most ponies he is incredibly motivated by food, and it didn’t take long before I had him targeting the head collar, even if it was a bit tentatively. He also let me put my arm over his neck and pat him on the other side after a few click and treats. I thought things were going really well and I expected to have the head collar on in a few more days.
This evening I was just putting on the coffee after dinner, when my husband said: “Is that your pony?” I looked up just in time to see something furry streak past the window like a cannonball. We went outside and sure enough, the pony was out celebrating the first bit of freedom and liberty in his life by racing around, bucking and kicking. He had figured out how to let himself out of the picadero. Smart pony! But I was not happy, because we hadn’t really sorted our little catching problem. And if you can’t catch a pony in a 20 meter picadero, what hope is there to catch him in 8 acres?
I decided to leave him for a while to calm down. It didn’t take long, all that grass was far to tempting after spending the last couple of days in the picadero on a diet of hay, so the pony soon settled, and when I came back outside he was grazing peacefully besides Twinkle. I walked up to him and held out my hand. He sniffed it. Click and treat. I brought my arm up and stroked his neck. He stood still. Click and treat. I showed him the head collar, he sniffed it, click and treat. But as soon as I lifted the head collar, he turned around and shot away like an arrow from a bow. Sigh and retreat…
I thought he might follow if I led Twinkle away, so I led her to the yard and put her in a stable, but the pony had other ideas. He had hopped on the bank that divides the front fields from the back fields and stood there like a goat. Of course Minnie and Cassie immediately and unhelpfully discovered him and I only managed to get the pony off the bank just in time before he hopped down and found himself trapped behind the electric fence that keeps Minnie and Cassie away from the bank. The pony whirled around and galloped off and by doing some fast running my daughter and I managed to head him in the direction of the yard. After a few panicky moments when Minnie and Cassie threatened to come over the fence, we managed to drive the pony into the yard. I decided to try if we could lure him into a stable, so I gave my daughter a bucket of food and positioned myself to the side to block the pony if he tried to whirl around. My daughter shook the bucket and every time the pony took a step in her direction I clicked, and he got to dip his head in the bucket and get a mouthful. My daughter would step back and wait until he followed and so with baby steps and lots of food, we managed to get him into the stable. Just as well, because by this time it was getting dark. Inside, we gave the pony the bucket, and while he had his head in it, I sneaked on the head collar, took it off, let him eat and put it back on again. Well, it’s a start.
The pony is spending the night in the stable. He has been wormed. I’ve treated him for lice. It wasn’t exactly the way I wanted to do it, but the opportunity was too good to miss. Tomorrow I’m getting the vet out to check him. After that, he is going back into the picadero until I can walk up to him at anytime and put the head collar on. But I’ll put a padlock on that gate!
Any more suggestions for names? He is proving himself cheeky and spirited, we have deleted all the gentle, cuddly names from our list!
Two horses 
deleted all the gentle and cuddly names from the list. ha ha. Ponies have LOTS of personality and are impish. Puck is an impish character in Shakespeare’s “Midsummer Night’s Dream”
Oh he is definitely impish! I’m going to have lots of fun with him.
Sounds like he’s going to be okay with the head collar. I think it’s a good idea to click and treat with it and he’ll get the idea. He sounds like a handful at the moment but with proper training I’m sure he’ll be a welcome addition to the family.
As for names. I think “Puck” is very cute. We once had a pony at a farm we boarded at and he sounds a lot like your guy. His name was “Little Bit” unfortunately some people took the B out and added an SH instead. I think you’ll come up with something that fits him after you get to know him better. Good luck.
How mean of those people to call your pony Little S..T! I am hoping to stumble upon a name that fits him, after all, he’s only a baby, so he’ll have to wear it a long time.
Brain block on names- all I can think of is Short Stuff and that probably won’t work. BTW- I absolutely agree with you that two horses aren’t enough, you can’t leave one in the pasture and take the other out.
I am delighted this pony arrived on the scene. As soon as I can let them in with my mares and they are settled, I’ll actually be able to get Cassie going! All I need is for Minnie to fall in love with him, so hopefully she’ll find him as charming as I do.
For some reason I thought “Chess” when I saw his picture (I like “Puck,” too, except you might have similiar “Little Bit” problems with that name!). I don’t know. Chess could be short for Chester? Or Cheshire? I had an abused Paso Fino show up at our place a few years ago, and I
had the same problem with how to move him around–I’ve never had a problem catching any of my horses, so that’s something I’ve always taken for granted. I’m so glad this boy has ended up in your barn! Look at that amazing mane!
I think once he has been fed properly and his manky lice ridden coat has shed, we might have a little stunner! Chess…hmmmm, well he certainly nearly had me check mate last night!
Finn, or Fitz? No. I’m stuck on Mudge. It erupted in my head the second I saw your first picture of him. He’s a character, all right.
I like Fitz, it sounds fizzy which would suit him. I haven’t had a name erupting in my head yet, but he is showing more of himself every day and oh boy, is he full of beans!
I’ve been fascinated to follow along on your rescue process! Way to go with keeping your patience and perseverance!
Thank you! Looking at these two little animals blossoming and coming back to life is incredibly rewarding
He’s a smart one. And I’m sure he’s smart enough to figure out one day that the head collar isn’t all that bad. And you have enough wisdom and patience to educate him. I’m curious to see the name you’ve chosen for him (I’m sure you have one by now). He’s a lucky boy to be living with you now.
Arrow is a very clever boy, I’m so glad he came to live with us, I’m going to have a lot of fun with him. (I’m thinking trick training to occupy his busy mind!)