Hi There!
Usually a horse does not suddenly start a behavior like this without reason. If he's
not done this before, I'd look for a physical reason ie: pain. You say he does this when
you start to groom his neck. Has he had an injury so that his neck is sore? Horses can't
just verbally tell us "Ouch, don't do that. That hurts!" ... they will let us
know with body language and when we don't listen to the body language, they will come on
stronger. Look at what he does while riding lately. Has he been giving you a hard time
bending, perhaps? What about any changes when you ask for a transition? Does he ride very
stiff necked ... head held high? Any changes at all? How about when you're leading him to
and from somewhere. Any changes in his behavior? Any harder to handle than normal? Are
there any changes in "his" environment? Change in pasture buddies? Has he
recently had any vaccines? A shot to the neck can cause some discomfort. Is he a cribber?
Perhaps his neck muscles are sore from a new stance in cribbing? Try to think of any
reason at all that he might be uncomfortable and take it from there.
I would not treat this behavior aggressively as I don't feel he is offering the
behavior aggressively. He is trying to tell you something and you haven't been picking up
on the clues.
If you can't think of *anything*, then perhaps you could work some light massage on
him. Just small, circular, massage with your fingers that just moves his skin - not his
muscles. I'd start where it feels good to him and as he gets comfortable and relaxed, go
to the neck area that seems to be the root problem. I would also start him on some
"carrot stretches" to help him loosen up that neck.
Also highly effective for a horse that is biting or nipping are massages to his gumline
between the upper lip and gum. Start with the small massages on his face, work down to his
nostrils then to his mouth and lips. Slowly and carefully slip your fingers in the sides
of his mouth at the bars and go to his upper gums. Massage back and forth lightly right
where the upper lip joins the gum. Your left hand will be under and around the muzzle to
help support the head while you massage with your right hand. (Or visa versa if you are
left handed) ... this relaxes the horse because it releases endorphins at the acupressure
points in the gumline.
This massage will work even for an aggressive biter. Something else which is a
tremendous help is Clicker Training - teaching him to stand quietly for grooming. Acting
aggressively with this horse may just make the behavior worse. Yes, I understand the 3
second rule of "punishment" for a biter but, however, as I said, a horse does
not usually just start a behavior like this without reason. Try to ascertain the origin of
the behavior and treat the cause. Once the root of the problem is taken care of, the
unwanted behavior will take care of itself.
*S* Gwen
Go to other Q & A on biting ...
