A. First of all there is no excuse for a poorly behaved stallion, other than poor training and handling. There are many breeding stallions that are just as well behaved, if not better, than the average gelding. It is simple a matter of training and discipline. Socializing a young colt with other horses is VERY important. He should be turned out or housed with other geldings as much as possible. You cannot allow him to hang out with fillies or mares, from the time he is a yearling on, because he can and will breed mares.
As for breeding, first off, I would recommend NOT breeding him until he is 3 or 4. Sometimes breeders will do "test" breedings of a young stallion as a 2 or 3 year old and breed to one or two mares.
Also, consider what you are offering to the breed of horse you are dealing with. I know many stallions who are okay studs, but would have made excellent geldings.
Be very firm and very disciplined with him and give him lots of training early on, so that you can fall back on this training as he matures. Lots of round-pen work and lead-line work will be beneficial in developing a relationship with your colt in which you are clearly the dominant one.
Seek the advice of a professional in your area on this too, because too much round pen work can cause injury. Be very consistent in enforcing your behavioral rules for the colt and he will learn from an early age to follow the rules.
Q. What specifically are the horse's instincts and how can we use these to our advantage in training?
— Linda A., St. Louis, MO.
A. There are two primary instincts that everyone should consider when working with horses: the flight response and the herd instinct. As a prey animal, descendant of plains animals, the horse has a strong flight instinct that over-rules all other instincts. When threatened the horse is programmed to run away from danger and he is well equipped for this activity.
There are just too many instincts in horses to talk about fully in this space. I would advise you to start doing some research and reading on the subject. One of my favorite books is by Tom Dorrance. It explains a little about the connection needed between a human and horse to form that full partnership.
Q. Mark, I have my first colt on the ground. He is a late season baby and was born out in the pasture. We didn't do very much of the classic imprinting techniques before he got up after being born, but we did do some, and every day since then we've been petting and scratching him all over, with particular emphasis on the areas where tack will be and down his legs for the farrier. He's also been wearing a halter since he was a day and a half old.
He seems to like people--he'll leave his mom and come to the stall door when someone opens it. He will be a show and trail horse, and if he’s good enough we will stand him at stud. Things are going well now, but what else should we be doing?
— Susan M., Carlyle, ILL.
A. Imprinting can be a great thing and it can also be painfully overdone. It is probably good you did not do a lot at first because you never want to interfere in any way with the bonding between mare and foal in the immediate hours after birth. In my experience, foals are often over handled, particularly when they are treated like pets. This results in a spoiled, pushy foal that has absolutely no respect for humans.
Be careful not to let a horse control your actions and elicit the scratching from you. When this happens, you are teaching the horse to be dominant over you because he can control your actions. You can go overboard on desensitizing a foal to the point where he is oblivious to any touch, or worse, learns to lean into pressure. That will come back to haunt you.
Your colt would have to be in the top 1 percent of quality AND bloodlines to be worth keeping a stallion. Stallions are challenging to handle and there is added responsibility and liability associated with owning a stud. And besides, you will never make money on a breeding stallion. Put your money in mares if you are interested in breeding.
Meet Mark Schwarm
Mark is a graduate of Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Illinois. He was raised on a horse farm working side by side with his father and granddad raising and training thoroughbred horses. At a young age he was galloping racehorses and assisting in training techniques.
By the age of seventeen, he took over his Granddad's foaling and breeding operation. He started with ten mares and expanded to managing over fifty mares and five stallions as well as a full stable of racehorses in Kentucky and Illinois. Over time Mark began to gain a greater respect for the gentle soul and sensitivity of the horse and thought there must be a better way to communicate.
Working with horses is a way of life for Mark. He found that with time, thought, opening the mind and heart to communication, watching the horses body and mental expressions, and what actions and reactions occurred, a whole new connection immerged. This is the same connection that he believes can occur with every living creature. Although a recognized horseman, he realized that there was more. Mark found that letting go of pride and opening your mind was the first step.
Mark shares his experiences and the lessons he has learned with clients and students nationwide. He concentrates on working with clients and their horses in dressage, jumping, eventing, polo, racehorses, and ranch working. He also works with ranchers to help them handle their cattle quietly, safely, and more effectively.
He has had the opportunity to work with Joe Wolter at the famous Four Sixes Ranch in Texas and the C.S. Ranch in New Mexico, and whenever possible, seeing Master Horseman, Ray Hunt, as Mark's schedule allows.
Mark and his wife Carole, sons, Jacob and Jeremiah reside in Illinois.
Mark Schwarm
(618) 993-5014
Win-Thru Farm
Marion IL
www.markschwarm.com
