Question: My 6-month-old colt paws the ground, digging a hole while he eats. He will not paw while I am standing there but will as soon as I walk away. I really want this little guy to be a good citizen and digging holes in my stalls and fields is not OK. – Suzanne Lipford
Clinton’s Answer: Like people, horses develop their own little quirks. If your horse pawing while he’s eating is a problem, the best way to fix it is to let him commit to the mistake and then correct him.
After you feed your horse, step out of his sight. When you hear him pawing, chase him away from the feed. Then ask him to give you two eyes by applying pressure to his hindquarters and releasing the pressure as soon as he looks at you. Wait a minute to let him have a think. Then let him go back to his feed and rub on him. After rubbing on him for a couple of minutes, leave the stall and position yourself where he can’t see you. If you hear him pawing again, repeat the lesson.
You want the colt to figure out that anytime he paws, he’s going to lose his feed. It’ll likely take a few repetitions before he realizes that as long as he doesn’t paw, he can keep eating.
The trick with this is that you have to be consistent in order for it to work. You can’t just correct the colt whenever you feel like it or only if you’re having a bad day and his pawing is getting on your nerves. If you’re inconsistent—letting him paw sometimes and other times not—he’ll never make the connection.
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