If you have been reading my blog for a while, then you already know Nemo's dislike of Cierra first became obvious back in our boarding days. More than one person at the show barn told us they knew when Brad came out for a lesson on Cierra. Nemo would be agitated and trash his stall.
It wasn't always this way. I couldn't tell you a single instance between them while she was growing up. Things visibly changed when Cierra went into training. She became Brad's show horse and was ridden more than Nemo. Much to his dismay, Nemo had to share Brad.
At our place, Nemo makes it his job to keep Cierra away. Allowing her to join the herd on his terms. In January, things seem to change between them. I witnessed a softer relationship. She was bred and he seemed to know it.
Things changed again and the aggression returned, and then some.
We needed to restore the peace in our barn and recently moved Koda in between Nemo and Cierra. Incidentally, Koda's sloppy plops have magically disappeared. Nothing else in his diet or routine has changed. One of those things that makes you, hmmm...we moved Koda for Cierra's sake.
Pasture dynamics continued as usual. Cierra has always done an admirable job of staying out of trouble.
I walked past the window yesterday and saw all four horse running up from the pasture into the dry lot. Medium pace. No big deal, probably a deer or whatever. It happens almost daily. I grabbed my camera while "the dancing" continued. Thought perhaps I might get some fun action shots as they settle into eating at the feeder. Instead, I watched a nasty chase ensue. It all happened so fast. I didn't even have time to change camera settings.
Nemo took off after Cierra with a vengeance.
You could clearly see he meant business. But why?? Nemo is usually a milder mannered boss. I was horrified!! He chased poor Cierra all over the lower pasture, then all the way up to the top of the dry lot and back out again. Our Appaloosa geldings are significantly slower than both Quarter Horse mares. Cierra tried to get away and out run him the best she could, with her large swollen belly :(
Nemo slipped in the dry mud and it made him even madder
Normally Cierra would have smoked Nemo and gotten away. He usually gives up issues with any horse, long before things escalated. Mostly because our herd listens to him. She may have sent a signal otherwise, but it is not what I observed.
poor mama has bite marks
Thankfully the chase stopped. I watched from the window and considered taking Nemo out of the pasture. I noticed Cierra paw off in the distance, asking for something. To come back or whatever.
the stare down
neither one of them moved much for over an hour
At one point, Koda left the hay bunk and was staring at Cierra. Perhaps wondering what she was doing waaay out there. Who knows what that unsaid conversation across the field was about.
Eventually Nemo went out to pasture, with Harmony following. She follows him everywhere. Like an old married couple. The next time I looked out the window, Cierra was glued to Koda at the very bottom of the dry lot. No doubt seeking comfort.
Cierra & Koda
Everything went back to normal herd interaction for the rest of the day. All four horses doing everything together. Needless to say, the herd is separated today. Two in the upper pasture and two in the dry lot/lower pasture. A temporary solution. There is no shelter/feeder/auto water in the upper pasture.
Ohhh Nemo...
We are strong believers in an integrated herd. However, it is just not going to be possible for a while.
It is as if Nemo thinks Cierra is holding a part of his herd hostage.
9 comments:
I love an integrated herd, too, but they make it impossible sometimes. When we brought Cowgirl home from her breeding, she fought it out with Foxy and Beautiful and we came out to find her injured one day. In her case, she was demanding to be herd leader again, but things had changed while she was gone. At any rate, she recovered and spent the rest of her pregnancy separated. It scared us to death at the time. She is still separated with Epona because there is some ‘fight to the death’ dynamics between her and Tweed. Since she will be moving in a few months, it isn’t worth the risk of integrating them.
Unfortunately, I think that will be your future with Cierra. Makes life a bit harder, but you sleep better at night. Good luck!
Geldings....
They aren't always compatible with mares, especially when they are dominant. For the sake of the foal, it might be wise to keep Nemo separate from mama Cierra; the last few months of pregnancy are crucial enough without her getting beaten up and/or chased and stressed. For the last month of her pregnancy, keep her in the area where she is going to foal, at least at night so that she will be at ease with her surroundings. Mares can hang on to a foal for a long time if they don't feel secure in their surroundings.
We kept gelding and mares in separate pastures, even segregated mare mules from john mules. One hot wire did the trick.
I agree with Shirley that your sweet Cierra will probably need to have her own space pretty soon. Near enough so she can see the others, but so she won't be bothered by them.
I watched our herd pecking order change after Fred died at Christmas. Our Siera looks like she now prefers not to be with the others. She can be found by herself quite often.
Nemo has it in for her! Hopefully you can find a peaceful solution.
It sounds like you've all experienced similar.
Wow Linda, I sure hope we don't end up with such strong dynamics. I sort of lived it once with the only horse I have ever hated. He even went after me. Nemo saved me and took the brunt of that geldings wrath. True story. So far, our herd conflicts has been pale in comparison to some others. This for sure was the worse.
Shirley, I didn't realize mares could hold onto foals intentionally. Makes sense. We were going to move Cierra into the double stall a couple weeks prior to our best guess. Knowing this, we will change things up sooner than later. She is already big and doesn't need to bake any longer than needed. I am beginning to understand why you prefer mares.
Val, I wonder if Siera feels less protected from the others with Fred gone. Not sure where she is in your herds pecking order. It always amazes me the difference one equine can make.
Nemo seems to have more of an issue with Cierra now that she is pregnant. I stress about how we will manage things with a foal, and more so as it gets older. We are not set up for separate herds, but we will be. It will be a long long time before integration is even attempted. We have to have a foal first!
Poor Cierra. Might be best to keep her away from Nemo for a while. Good luck with the drama.
One other thing, geldings have been known to attack foals. Not saying Nemo will, but given his aggression, it might be wise to keep the foal separate from him for a couple of months.
Thank you Grey Horse!
Yikes! That sounds like an awful nightmare Shirley. I wonder why geldings? Cierra didn't get to fully join our other three until she was around 6.5 months. Thanks for your continued sage advice!
Aurora, I don’t know why they fought it out so much. Tweed seems to love Epona. I think Cowgirl is worried he will separate them, and she wants to keep her dominance. I sure wish they could talk and tell us what they’re feeling and why. But they can’t. On another note, our wolfhound started attacking our lab when she was going into heat. They were best of friends until then. It was really, really bad, and we had to keep them separated for months. We’re going to have Lucy spayed in May. You said you noticed this is new since the pregnancy. It could also be that Cierra is trying to dominate more, in small, subtle ways, in order to be able to protect her upcoming baby, and that has Nemo fighting to protect the herd order. So hard to say.
It does seems like dominance is the driving force behind Cowgirl's actions. As for Cierra, I don't know. I wish she would stand up for herself, although that would just escalate things. Becoming a mom might just be what makes her do it, at least for the sake of her offspring. Nemo is a super sensitive guy, who knows what really set him off.
Sorry to hear about the change between your dogs. That is hard when you have to choose who gets to do what. I truly hope the spaying resolves things between them for good.
I think the unknown/unfamiliar for all animals is upsetting. All we can do is speculate and adjust.
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