Stranger Anxiety

Winnie · 07-06-08, 02:04 AM

One of our horses has severe stranger anxiety, and becomes very stressed by the presence of strangers. Is it possible to help with this, to ease the problem, or should we just keep strangers away?

alexis · 07-07-08, 01:33 PM

How long did it take before the horse was friendly towards you? Is it something he/she has always had (since you got him/her or since birth) or are you meaning random visitors to your place that don't visit often?

MorganManiac · 07-07-08, 03:06 PM

I've found that usually animals with this kind of anxiety is because they were abused when they were younger. Have you noticed if the anxiety is more with women or men particularly? Often an animal that was abused by a man, will not be comfortable with strange men. Or if it was a particular person only, perhaps that person either did something or looks/smells like the person who hurt them.

SaddleSore · 07-08-08, 12:39 AM

I once had a cat who was deathly afraid of the vacuum cleaner-well, the hose at least. Turned out she had been beaten with a baseball type bat.

So it really might benefit you to look into the particulars.

purplefdu · 07-08-08, 02:17 AM

Hypothetically you could slowly get your horse used to strangers using a fear matrix just like for people. You start at 0-no stress/fear and work your way up until the horse has readjusted to the new level. So it would go something like seeing a stranger/hearing a stranger/having the stranger walk towards them/stranger standing next to them/stranger touching them/stranger riding them/etc. It could however take a long time to get anywhere on the matrix.

Winnie · 07-08-08, 03:25 PM

Wonderful ideas here. It doesn't seem to be any particular person or way of dressing. We actually bonded fairly easily, but other than that, my family, she has never responded to anyone basically. There is no history of abuse that we know of.

pickles · 07-09-08, 08:08 PM

Some horses really are just one person horses, just like some dogs and most birds. The problem becomes when you realize you may not live as long as your horse or be able to keep them forever or become ill and its not fair to them to have to deal with strangers taking care of them with no coping skills. Animals who cannot get used to new people are the ones most often not adopted out or purchased.

07-06-08, 02:04 AM	Stranger Anxiety Post #1 (permalink)
Winnie Member Join Date: 07-01-08 Posts: 25	Stranger Anxiety One of our horses has severe stranger anxiety, and becomes very stressed by the presence of strangers. Is it possible to help with this, to ease the problem, or should we just keep strangers away?

07-07-08, 03:06 PM	Stranger Anxiety Post #3 (permalink)
MorganManiac Member Join Date: 03-02-08 Posts: 75	Was he abused in the past? I've found that usually animals with this kind of anxiety is because they were abused when they were younger. Have you noticed if the anxiety is more with women or men particularly? Often an animal that was abused by a man, will not be comfortable with strange men. Or if it was a particular person only, perhaps that person either did something or looks/smells like the person who hurt them.

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07-07-08, 01:33 PM	Stranger Anxiety Post #2 (permalink)
alexis Member Join Date: 08-10-07 Posts: 329 Images: 2	How long did it take before the horse was friendly towards you? Is it something he/she has always had (since you got him/her or since birth) or are you meaning random visitors to your place that don't visit often?

07-08-08, 12:39 AM	Stranger Anxiety Post #4 (permalink)
SaddleSore Member Join Date: 10-12-07 Posts: 233	I once had a cat who was deathly afraid of the vacuum cleaner-well, the hose at least. Turned out she had been beaten with a baseball type bat. So it really might benefit you to look into the particulars.

07-08-08, 02:17 AM	Stranger Anxiety Post #5 (permalink)
purplefdu Member Join Date: 08-12-07 Posts: 236 Images: 1	Hypothetically you could slowly get your horse used to strangers using a fear matrix just like for people. You start at 0-no stress/fear and work your way up until the horse has readjusted to the new level. So it would go something like seeing a stranger/hearing a stranger/having the stranger walk towards them/stranger standing next to them/stranger touching them/stranger riding them/etc. It could however take a long time to get anywhere on the matrix.

07-08-08, 03:25 PM	Stranger Anxiety Post #6 (permalink)
Winnie Member Join Date: 07-01-08 Posts: 25	Wonderful ideas here. It doesn't seem to be any particular person or way of dressing. We actually bonded fairly easily, but other than that, my family, she has never responded to anyone basically. There is no history of abuse that we know of.

07-09-08, 08:08 PM	Stranger Anxiety Post #7 (permalink)
pickles Member Join Date: 07-01-08 Posts: 25	Some horses really are just one person horses, just like some dogs and most birds. The problem becomes when you realize you may not live as long as your horse or be able to keep them forever or become ill and its not fair to them to have to deal with strangers taking care of them with no coping skills. Animals who cannot get used to new people are the ones most often not adopted out or purchased.

Stranger Anxiety

Does your horse need to go to the naughty mat for awhile? Talk about behavioral problems and other issues here

Stranger Anxiety