Do you put your stallions in pasture together?

[Horse Love]

Okay heres a question to anybody that owns more than 1 miniature stallion.... do you put them out to pasture with eachother? Theres quite a few people and mini breeders in my area that had little to no problems having their stallions pastured together.

Heres a little background story on why I'm asking this....some advice is needed as well...

I just purchased a second stallion not too long ago, who also happened to be pastured with younger stallions with NO problems at the previous breeders farm(so I was told). I decided to introduce him to our 3 year old stallion(Cash). They hit it off! They were grooming eachother the first night(on leads). We were ecstatic because Cash could finally have a pasturemate.

The new stallion(Picante) spent the next couple days in the roundpen beside Cash's field. After a couple days we put them in the roundpen together, and they did great for about a week. Picante, who is 15, suddenly turned on him viciously. Kicked the snot out of him, wouldnt stop even though docile Cash sumbitted to him, and Picante gave him bites that drew blood. We had to break the fight up and seperate them. Picante stays in the roundpen during the day and the Cash has his field beside it.... Picante viciously tries to attack him through the roundpen panels!!! Kicking, lounging, baring teeth, the whole nine yards. He will pace that side of the roundpen waiting for him to get close. There is no mares even close to them, let alone any in heat. They both cant even see them. Too much testosterone I guess? lol

So I dont see how anyone is having much luck with their stallions being together... because I'm definitely not! I have a new problem coming from my older stallion now.... heres the story. He bit another person at the barn a few days ago. One of the boarders that shouldnt have been messing with him in the first place. He has never once offered to bite or kick, but supposedly ended up biting her, I dont know what the full story is. So I was working him in the roundpen today and he did GREAT! I had a friend bring in my young one from the field beside the roundpen before I brought Picante out and I was at the gate waiting for him to be brought in. I wouldnt let Picante get too close to the gate though, we stayed at a safe distance so he wouldnt try to attack Cash through the panels. Picante was pretty mad I wouldnt let him close, took his anger out at me, and turned his head and bit my thigh. I wasnt expecting it at all! I immediately smacked him and told him no. So now hes getting aggressive with people along with the other horse?

I will probably have to turn them out on seperate times so Picante doesnt end up hurting himself. Any advice on what to do?? & how to calm him down? How about a calming supplement? Hes kind of high strung and Im wondering if that would help any. I really dont want to end up selling Picante.... hes the Falabella stallion I just got, some of you may have seen my other post about it.

 

[dgrminis]

I know not all horses get along together and it sounds like for some reason your new guy is not pleased with your other stallion -- in a senerio like that I would say it is best to keep them apart so one (or both) of them do not get hurt...

We have 4 stallions - all breeding age and they are all 4 kept together when not breeding - they do fine - they will occasionally have spats of squealing at each other or chasing one another away from a gate or fence line (they are not close to any of the mares but can see them across the yard).. But they have never gotten into any actual fights.. The mares actually tend to get in more "spats" than our stallions ever do... Now that being said we did own a stallion for a short while that could NOT be put in with another stallion -- he would have killed them if given the chance -- it was dangerous to even lead him past another stallion as he would lunge for an attack if he thought he could get to them...

Good luck with your new boy..

 

[SilverRose Farms]

I have to say that my mares can have some pretty good spats.

Ive kept stallions together in the past but I have also kept them separate. While I dont mind them being aggressive towards each other (That is NATURAL) I will not tolerate any aggression towards people in any way shape or form.

I have three stallions. A Paint a Curly Pony and a Miniature. Towards each other my Paint has no aggression except to one gelding on the farm (This particular gelding seems to bring that out in everyone. Even my 2 week old filly tried to kick him through the fence) my paint stallion has had my mini curly foals CHEWING on his ears and stuff while he sleeps. (I thought I had my foal paddock baby proofed welllllllllll I didn't apparently. Heart in my throat out I run figuring I'm going to be burring my two best foals. No hes licking them. This stallion is such that Im using him to teach a friend who is a complete beginner how to ride on. He is just that awesome. My curly was the victim of a stallion attack so he tends to be a little jerk when it comes to the other stallions. However theres NO aggression towards humans or his foals or his mares ever. The mini stallion just doesnt care either way he just likes company.

I have gelded some pretty nice stallions in the past from Miniature to full size because of aggression. This is not something I believe or tolerate. There are way to many other stallions who dont show aggression to have one who is aggressive.

As for the boarder who got bit remind them again that they arent allowed to be touching them and certainly not with out you being present as they have their own horses and wouldnt appreciate something happening to them because someone choose to do something with them while they weren't there.

I would also suggest that give your older boy something to do other than just worry about girls. And where your other stallion is.

Good luck. Its never easy. Specially when we cant simply talk to them and explain things to them or even have them tell us exactly whats wrong.

 

[Horse Love]

Thank you guys! The new one came from a farm where he was not messed with for 3 years besides brushing and breeding... I believe all stallions should have a job, so I bought him as a project and for future breeding once I get a mare for him. My younger stallion also came from the same farm, bought him at 4 months old and hes an absolute gentleman. The short time Ive had Picante his ground manners are 10x better than when I got him. Started jumping him today and he does great, and seems to enjoy it. Planning on starting to ground drive him too. This aggression towards people is new.... and I dont know why hes started it. The farm where he came from told me straight out that they didnt do hardly anything with him besides breeding, but they wouldnt tolerate aggression towards people. Neither do I. The whole hour I worked him in the roundpen today he didnt try to bite me once, he worked wonderfully, though he tried to lounge through the panels a couple times. Right when someone else started handling my younger boy and he was watching, he just turned on me. Im gonna start working him every possible day that I can now, because like I said, I wont tolerate it. I think I will look into a calming supplement though.

As for the boarder handling him, Ive already talked to her. Im going to be putting a sign on his stall too. I will keep you all updated, would love to hear others opinions as well. Im open to any advice.

 

[Field-of-Dreams]

We don't run our stallions together at all. Too many things can go wrong.

As for your guy biting you, to me, it doesn't sound like aggression, but frustration. He wanted to get to that other horse, you said no, and he just needed to vent....unfortunately, on you! You need to keep the other one out of sight when you work him.

 

[Jill]

We do not keep our stallions in the same paddocks. It's just not a chance I would take. They do socialize and groom each other through a gate, however, I just would be too leary to leave them together for fear of fighting -- and stallion fights can be serious.

 

[Riverrose28]

We have three stallions, and no we don't allow them to be together, ever, although I do have two stalled next to each other that socialize over stall doors. I once had one of my stallions break a stall latch and get out and went straight over and started to pick a fight with another and kicked in his two front teeth. Luckily they were not his permanent teeth and the new ones grew back in straight. The worst fight I ever had was two mares, I thought they were going to kill each other!

 

[Magic]

I don't allow my stallions to be together except for when they are young and have not yet begun breeding mares. Once they do, they are separated. If I can keep a mare or two in with them to keep them company I will do that, otherwise they are kept next to mares so they can socialize through the fences. Stallions can get aggressive with geldings too so the geldings are kept apart as well. All of my geldings live great with mares but I put them in groups that aren't right next to any stallions since I want the stallions to not have to stress. I've experienced a bad stallion fight (got mine separated before any bad injury) and heard of others from people I know and it just isn't worth the risk to me.

I also had two mares that simply could not stand each other so had to be kept separated from each other. It can really make setting up groups highly interesting, lol!

 

[mshasta88]

I didn’t read through all of these but I only pastured stallions together only in the winter. As soon as I saw my first mare come into heat, whether or not the stallions could see or touch them, I separated them immediately. I also had some stallions that just didn’t get along with some stallions but were ok with others. I had one stallion that didn’t get along with any stallions. It’s all in being able to read their personalities and it is very risky, It was just easier to feed in the winter with 3 ft. of snow when they where bunched together.

 

[Boss Mare]

There's a lot of controversy and I am aware why.. The risks are great.

I personally ran three stallions together year 'round for years. However, they were raised together from weanlings and I only used one stallion for breeding which was always in hand breeding. They played far less rough than some of the mares that I keep together and they all got along even sharing during feeding time.

Not common practice, but it can work depending upon circumstances and temperament of each individual, etc.

I am down to one stallion now (other two deceased) -- had an unknown virus? Go through my herd years ago killing five horses and left the rest gravely ill. I now keep that stallion alone, he can see all of the others and is perfectly happy and content.

 

[rabbitsfizz]

I run all my boys (geldings colts stallions) together BUT only in the winter when the testosterone has died down. I have one stallion I cannot run with anything, but all the others have alwasy been fine form September on to around April (ish)

It's never a question of "dangerous" they just do not fight!

 

[supaspot]

I tried it once and they fought big time , when one got the other on the ground I seperated them and never dared to try it again , Ive since sold one of the stallions so it doesnt arise anymore

 

[Dontworrybeappy]

I have kept up to 6 stallions together at a time with no problems and fewer injuries than the mares do to one another! That included 2 mature breeding stallions who were both being used for hand breeding as well as 2 and 3 year olds and yearlings. They were very sweet and all used to sleep in a big pile together!

No mares immediately nearby that pen, though - and I wouldn't try it with a mare next door in any case!