Hi all. I found out about the PMU horses and set up an adoption for a friend of mine who lives in the country, while I live in the city. She says we co-own the horses, so I spend weekends helping out. The mare is a 2 yr old belgian/paint cross and is pregnant. The filly is a draft/paint cross. Monday the filly, Gypsy got colic. Fortunately the vet came out and she is doing much better. After working with her she is completely docile and loves being touched.

The mare Razza; however, is very frightened of contact. She desperately needs her hoofs trimmed, but until she can be handled we want to wait. I have a woman, Christi Rains, a third level Perelli instructor coming out Monday to work with her and us. I can tell Razza is curious and wants to connect, she's just afraid.

This weekend I'm going to follow Christi's advice and sit in the pen with Razza, read a book and let her come check me out. She has laid her ears back at people and has kicked when one guy approached her and tried to pet her.

Does anyone have any other suggestions or words of encouragement? I really love these girls and want to make their experience and ours as wonderful as possible.

Hello Jeannette,
I thought I would give you some helpful training advise if you would like to hear it.
If you have a penn you could put Razza in. round penn preferred, take a soft rope that is long enough to reach her while you are in the middle of the penn. Start having her go around the penn in circles upon your comand. It does not matter at this time, if she walks trots or canters, but have her move out. If she refuses to go, throw the rope towards her, not hitting her, but enough to give her encouragement to move. Work on this until she goes in the direction you are wanting her to go ( if you want her to go right, move to her left hip, while you are out of kicking distance, and encourage her to move her hind quarters, opposite for the left direction )then ask her to stop.Hold your head down slightly and body stance should be submissive. Hold one arm out and say whoa. If this does not work, have her go in the circles more, but don't let her stop on her own, have her yield to your comand.Work on this for a couple of days and until she will stop for you and let you walk up to her and pet her without a attitude.Also work on having her walk, trot, canter as you ask her too. She will become submissive to you and should follow you in the penn without the lead rope.
Good luck and if you accomplish this and would like more advise, let me know.
Horsecrazee

Thanks Horsecrazee. There's a guy who has worked with horses and he's been doing this with her. She responds well,but still putting her ears back when he goes towards her. I've watched Perelli, Craig Cameron, Pony Boy, Down Under guy, and more, so I know your advice is good!

Definately go the Parelli route! it isn't a gimmick or training 'method' its psychology, simple and true. It will take time but don't give up. It took me almost 6 months to halter my PMU mare! Good luck to you.

Hi!
First off, congratulations on your adoption and kudos to you for all your hard work!
There has been some great advice here. You are very wise to pursue help with the Parelli instructor. Natural horsemanship techniques work wonders with PMUs because they help you speak to the horse in a language they understand. PMUs, especially the mares, understand horse talk so well because they are actually quite well socialized when turned out into their pasture each year.
I bought a round pen and read all of John Lyons and Pat Parelli I could get my hands on, and also went to a few clinics. Also, check out rental videos in tack shops.
If I had to sum up what worked in just a few words, it would be: round pen work, food, scratches & rubs, just hanging out. I too sat out in the paddock with a book and let the mare come to investigate me. This really worked! Also, once you can touch them, a few well-placed rubs (withers is a good place)and scratches really get that horse interested in you. Also, learning how to do very basic round pen work is essential because it helps the horse to accept you as its boss.
Have fun with your adventure, and be sure to document your progress.
Also make sure you keep your mare in a small paddock, where you can get to her easily. I kept a break-away halter on to allow me to catch her without a lot of trauma.
I adopted 3 appy mares in May 2005. All were quite wily (wild as March hares, as my husband put it). One mare I could not get within 15 feet of (even in a 16 foot paddock!). That mare is now just like a regular horse, she adores people, my 10 year old daughter handled her safely, and we are starting her under saddle.
One more thing: I *strongly* recommend you do not wait long to get those feet in better shape. It is important to the comfort and well being of the animal. You can have a vet out to sedate the horse and then pay a farrier well to take his time and trim as best he can. You can also sedate the horse yourself with drugs dispensed from the vet. It is OK to do this a few times while you work on the horse's foot skills, something you should do at least daily. I am still working on my mares' foot skills, but it is getting much better, and they have not had any traumatic experiences with frightened/rushed farriers. I offer to pay the farrier by the hour, not the job, to get a slow, patient job.
Good luck!
Katie

Jeannette - just read your post and all the replies. I was nodding and smiling the entire time - our stories are very similar! We got Princess (9 year-old mare) and her filly, Lily (7 months-old, now) back in October. Lily is doing really well with her ground manners, but her mom is still quite apprehensive. She too is in need of a hoof trim. We have not had success getting the vet AND the ferrier here at the same time! We've got the Lyon's magazines, and, after reading these posts, I can't wait to sit in the round pen w/her (just not tomorrow, since it's not supposed to get much warmer than freezing!). I'm so glad I read your post!
One thing that I'd like to know more about, and that is how these horses were treated in the PMU farms. I get the feeling that Princess was abused - yet everything that I've read about the farms states that they treat their horses well. I'm not convinced!
Anyone know anywhere on-line that this info could be found?
Thanks and good luck to you and Razza!

Great news to report! Razza and I are making wonderful progress. We attended a Perelli workshop, level 1 by Christi Rains in Texas...what a difference!! While we were standing in the arena with the other horses, Razza reached over and very gently nuzzled me. She also had an itch in her eye and directed my hand over her eye to rub it for her, talk about trust.

She has major issues with ropes, but we're working on that one. I can pick her feet up, but I'm not sure how she will do for the ferrier. He's coming out to check the other horses, so we'll give it a try. Last resort, we will sedate her.

We are attending another Perelli weekend soon and in May she will have her baby. I am so proud of her!

Thanks for all the support.

That is great news. I'm really glad things are working out for you and Razza. Good luck with the ferrier.