Helping a Barn Sour or Buddy Sour Horse Become Calm

In this video, I will discuss barn and buddy sour behavior, and the truth of how this can be solved (spoiler alert… there’s rarely a quick fix).
Learn more about horse behavior in my Free Mini-Course, Understanding Your Horse: www.horseclass.com/understand...

[@kidstuff44555]

What worked for my gelding was working (trotting circles) near his buddy (in a pen next to the paddock), then going away at a loose rein walk. If he turned back we'd do more circles and "work". Eventually, because he is a lazy horse, he voluntarily wanted to go further away from his buddy and the "work area", so then we would walk out of sight of his buddy up the driveway and maybe stop and eat some grass before coming home

[@horsesensetv1259]

Always think it's important to let horses be horses in a field as much as possible, enrichment of stable if stabling in winter or for long periods of time with visuals of conspecifics who get along with each other and finally just being with the horse at times and not asking it to do something each time you visit. All of this helps with physical and mental health of the domestic 🐎

[@hmmm2183]

I’ve tried taking one of the guys out of the pasture and grooming till the issue resolves. They will dance around but will see a benefit to being with me... Then I add time under saddle nearby... Doing more for longer periods of time. The grooming routine says it’s time to get in a working state of mind ... The riding in a controlled state relaxes the body. In the end they are returned to the heard in a calmer state. This routine gives them an expectation of what’s expected and rewarding good behavior...

[@riasheart111]

My horse is barn sour but I’m constantly working on it. She is getting better . I take her for a lot of walks where I’m beside he on the ground. We are both enjoying that plus my dog joins and so that’s ok. I don’t expect much of her anymore because we are both getting older☺️🌹and now are just enjoying each others company

[@lise-r3788]

Short version: lease has started showing serious signs of being buddy sour and I started spending time with him and working with him in his pasture. This week I started to slowly practice going towards the barn while only moving forward once he feels comfortable, good behaviour gets rewarded with verbal praise and food. Longer version: My lease horse has recently started showing obvious signs of being buddy sour. He’s fine until we go out the last gate from the pastures to the barn. Then he just starts screaming and, not really listening and wanting to run away. In the pasture he’s his old self as I know him, but outside of his pasture he’s just gotten so stressed and anxious. (owner got him in november last year). For me, it frightened me because I have never worked with a horse that behaved like this and I started thinking that the problem was me, which left me with prety much losing more than half of my confidence in working with him as the owner and others thought he had no respect for me and that’s why he was acting like that. After a week I talked to his owner about it because his behaviour had worsened and that day he tried to jump out of where he stood for grooming and I really wanted her to see his behaviour as it was almost 2 weeks ago she had come by (she’s pregnant), she came to see him and agreed that his behaviour was not good and called the vet, got his blood checked. His pasture buddy is a mare that is recently pregnant. He also tends to react to mares who are in heat. But nothing came out of his bloodresults. I looked some things up and I really feel like it’s buddy sour. I’ve started spending more time with him in his pasture and grooming him there for almost two weeks now and this week, I started working with him on the ground in his pasture and just going towards the last gate to go to the barn and back while doing some small exercises. I was really pleased with him today and decided to end the ‘exercise’ there. Next time I’ll try to go just past that last gate and do some small exercises and rewarding with food, and then return back. And I hope we can eventually get to the barn with no screaming or other signs of stress. 😅 I’ve never dealt with behaviour like this so this is all new to me. His owner is also going to talk to the BO about maybe moving him pastures. Your video definitely helped. Thank you! Any advice is obviously welcome haha 🙈

[@reiner2nonpro]

I do this with every young and every new horse I bring to my house. I go for trail rides with friends or just one person and separate over a little hump in the terrain or a sand hill for very short time and then longer and longer periods of time. I also change up where my horses live with others and without. Seems to work for them. Thanks for your input on this.

[@riasheart111]

I am struggling with my mare now, I finally have time to work on this and boy it’s been challenging because my horse is very attached to the stallions one on each side of her. So she will whirl around while on the path and do a crab walk all the way back really fast it’s so annoying , as soon as I get back to the barn we work then we leave again takes like 3 times then she gets it but now when we come back to the barn the closer we get she does the crab, so now I know I need to work her and then tie her first least an hour and I’m going to try that now. Hopefully this will be better. She’s an Arab and difficult to get tired

[@margaretburckard6684]

This is a difficult issue to solve! I have an Arab cross gelding and he has done a lot of work going to herd cattle a few kilometres away, but is still a problem. Even if he has another horse with him he still fights and gets all flighty wanting to get back to the other horses. Working on the issue but not making much progress.

[@marysinclair897]

Currently, I have 2 horses at home with me. My 13 yr warmblood has arthritis in both back fetlocks. My 2 yrs old that I will be doing the very thing you mentioned in this video this summer. I have to make sure the footing is good. I'm going to gradually start walking my 2 yr old in the forest and around the area this summer. My warmblood is okay leaving a horse with me. I've raised him since he was yearling but he is bad when his buddy leaves. Due to his arthritis, I worry about him running around. I'm going to do exactly what you suggest first to see how it goes.

[@billknapp3477]

We have two mares that are buddy sour and that’s why I’m watching your video, I am new to horses and I don’t know what to do,,, I can’t even ride one without the other going crazy, I need help lol

[@deborahelmore8777]

I still struggle with this - even after getting another gelding and another mare. Seems they all bond together more! My dude ranch horse used to go GREAT out on his own, but now is buddy/barn sour. My little heart horse has some "pony" in him and backs up....rears and turns around or just stops completely, no matter how LITTLE of a ways away from the house we go. My goal is to just be able to ride away from barn/house on the dirt roads and come back.

[@horsesensetv1259]

Can you do a vid on prevention of this rather than cure? Love your work !

[@hallhv01]

My horse since 6 months stall rest followed by ulcers last year hasn't been the same. He's high anxiety in his stall and crossties in barn aisle rearing and kicking unless all the horses are in with him. This includes if I groom and tack him. I have to hold a whip now and that seems to get him to be still but not relaxed. My bond used to be good and now it's gone. He does better in the arenas but not sure it's related to seeing the horses from there. He's also way more spooky than he used to be. Anything can send him into a 180 spin out of the blue. Ideas? He even spooked in his stall just at a person quietly walking by. Ideas?

[@jnew1785]

So good

[@sketchalater4656]

I work with a couple of my neighbor's horses. Both twh geldings, who are totally fine and content being with me. But the one that get's left behind will whinny. The older one usually gives up quick, but the younger one was screaming almost the whole time I was riding the older one. Again, this younger one is totally happy and content when he's with me. They are bonded with me and have done well individually, so I suspect jealousy is a factor. He thinks the other one is getting special treatment and he wants it too. I'm gonna try this method, 1) give the left behind horse some grain, horse leaves=treats. 2)Ride the other horse nearby, and when the younger one starts showing signs of panicking, ride back to that horse. (This method is mentioned in the video) Also I'm gonna turn out the horses separately in two adjacent pastures.

[@jeaniemacdonald3935]

Another problem is horses who aren’t together or really don’t like each other until they get trailered to a show and then are suddenly inseparable. This has been accommodated by having the trailer mate grazing near the show ring. Any other tips?

[@mahdis6208]

Where are you from? Nice

[@netajones4582]

Hi I live in Florida half of the year then in tenn in the summer in Florida I board my OTT and tenn we have a place with lots of pasture in Florida he is never with other horses they are in smaller paddock they can see each other but there is a hot wire to keep them separate he seems ok with it they are in the barn at night are if weather is bad he absolutely has no problem being in the barn when I get to tenn there are 2 other horses a mare and a gelding he gets along with just fine I ride him away from them no problem but when I put him in the stall he gets very upset I have him in by himself it is very rare we bring the others in he will walk into the barn with me but not the stall so much what I have been doing is put his food in the stall and leave the door open so he can go in and out he seems better but if I close the door he gets upset so my question is is it barn sour because of being in there alone are what ? We went through this last year I was concerned about going back to fl but when I got him back there he was just fine trying to figure out the behavior and best was to handle it

[@lizappel5458]

I would think he feels trapped. Leaving open so he can come and go makes sense. Mine weaves if locked in a stall and gets very upset, therefore he gets pasture 24/7 =much more calm creature. His buddy screams when we leave to ride but thankfully my guy couldn't give a hoot.

[@netajones4582]

@@lizappel5458 thank you what I don’t understand is when he is in Fl unfortunately he is in his stall a lot more than here and as far as I know he is just fine with it not so sure he is just fine with it lol but he does not act stressed are like he is trapped so weird I just allways want to try to figure out the behavior I am new to horses so I am still learning thank you for your response

[@lizappel5458]

Hmmm, closed in during day in Florida? If so,maybe he likes that to protect from sun and bugs?? Otherwise I am out of ideas.