Horse nipped me

[CharlesPetrescu]

I don't own a horse but I see them regularly on my walks with or without my dog near where I live. I like horses. A few weeks ago I was walking my dog with my partner. We were crossing a field with horses in it. It is a public footpath. We kept to the edge of the field. We weren't being loud and I thought I was being mindful of not seeming like a threat to the horses. The other horses remained on the other side of the field. Our dog was with us.

We had crossed this field a few times before recently. One of the horses approached us. It sniffed our dog but didn't seem to mind his presence. We didn't have any food with us. It then came up to me and nipped me on the arm. It drew blood but the wound wasn't deep.

Does anyone knowledgeable about horse behaviour know why the horse might have done that? Could it be that the horse was being territorial?

People have obviously been feeding it 🙄 That's exactly the reason why you should never feed a horse which doesn't belong to you! Apart from the fact you never know if it's on a restricted diet etc.

Did you have your dog on a lead?

Maybe other walkers have been feeding him so he now expects food from everyone? I might be wrong but I don’t think horses are territorial with humans.

It can often happen if other people regularly feed the horses - they can begin to expect food and get nippy (as well as the risk of inappropriate foods being fed).
Very young horses can sometimes just be little shit though, as they are still learning good manners.

It was most likely expecting food.
It wouldn’t have meant to harm you, just being playful/cheeky.

As others have said it just thought you had something for it or maybe just a bad tempered horse. I’d say stay out of there in future

Thank you all for your replies. My dog was on a lead. I appreciate the point that everyone was making that other people have been likely feeding the horses. I never do that myself as I appreciate that horses may be on a special diet and /or the wrong food could harm/kill them.

I would mention it to the owners of the horse/field as you were on a public footpath.

just to let them know so they can take future precautions.

How can they take precautions? The issue is that irresponsible and entitled people walking across the land have been feeding the horses. Not sure how you take precautions against that, these sorts of people would ignore signs etc.

You know the old saying - dangerous at both ends and uncomfortable in the middle. Some horses are just nobs and enjoy the reaction. Being a previous horse owner I wouldn't walk through a horse field with a dog.

Why are you walking through a horse field in the first place, especially with a dog?

That is likely going to result in some of the horses showing some curiosity and coming to check you out.

As you have discover that can involve an investigating nip...

It is like people who cross fields where they can see that cows are grazing and then complain that the cows chase them or worse..

Common sense please.

The fact that you can walk through this field does not mean that you should.

''@Timeforaglassofwine · Today 09:32

You know the old saying - dangerous at both ends and uncomfortable in the middle. Some horses are just nobs and enjoy the reaction. Being a previous horse owner I wouldn't walk through a horse field with a dog.''

Exactly. I am a rider and I have been on the receiving end of the usual nip, push and chewing of various items of clothing that I happened to be wearing and I certainly would not charge into some random horses' field with a dog they don't know. Asking for trouble.

I love horses but they are fucking dangerous. Personally I would keep well away from that field.

Yep, people will have been giving it treats. For some reason people feel entitled to and object when they are asked not to.

Fair enough. We have never been horse owners and don't ride so we are not that knowledgeable about them. The horse didn't nip the dog or react adversely to him so I presumed he was not the issue from the horse's pov.

If the horse is biting people then it needs moving out of the field or they need to fence off the footpath in some way . It is irrelevant why it bit the OP , you cannot leave a dangerous animal in a field where the public can walk . We used to have a footpath through a field where our horses were and I couldn’t put one of my mares in there as she was an absolute liability .

I disagree, and say this as a horse owner and land owner. It is the land/livestock owner’s responsibility to make sure that the footpath is safely passable.

There’s a bridlepath near me that runs through a horse field. If I enter it on my horse they all come galloping down to try and kick the shit out of him. It makes the bridlepath essentially unusable and there it very little alternative hacking nearby. It would be the easiest thing in the world for the horse owners to run a bit of fencing along the bottom of the field to separate the bridlepath and they are aware of the problem. They just can’t be bothered.

Yet it is the fault of walkers that the horse is now nipping. Owners may not even be aware cos they may not know their horse is getting fed

I couldn’t do any local walks if I never went through fields with horses. I would view it as the land owner’s responsibility to keep access open and safe. The one time I got harassed by a rearing and nipping horse I told the owners and they moved him else where. He was a newer boy - the others rarely give us a second glance.

You've got the reason why you were nipped, I'm glad you understand and don't blame the horse.

In future don't let them get close, walk purposefully forward and if they get too close do a jerky movement, don't aim at the horse just throw your arm into the air or do a skip, it'll probably stop them in their tracks and make them wary of you.

The dog - you're doing your bit, he's on the lead and under control.you still need to be careful, horses can strike out at dogs so again walk purposefully, keep yourself between horse and dog and keep moving.

@twistyizzy we don’t actually know that people feeding this horse is the reason this horse did this , my mare never got fed treats in the field she was just a bit snappy . She also did a good line in standing in front of people and rearing hence why she wasn’t allowed near the public bless her .

Which is precisely why I said let the owner know! 🙄

Any member of the public has a right to cross land on a public footpath, irrespective of whatever's grazing on it. It is the landowner's responsibility to ensure that any livestock that they put in there are not a danger.

Possibly (there are other explanations), but that’s a bit beside the point and certainly doesn’t help the OP’s problem. She’s not the one feeding it! I don’t think it’s fair that she should have to avoid the route altogether.

If owners aren’t aware then they aren’t keeping a close enough eye on things. Fencing off the footpath with eg. high permanent electric fencing could well help the potential feeding problem as neither horses nor walkers will want to reach over it to feed. That’s what we’ve done at home.

To be fair they can't be spending every waking hour looking at the field but yes I agree that if horses are being fed by strangers then wise to fence it off

I’m surprised it drew blood.

I’ve been bitten more times than I care to think about resulting in horrendous and painful bruising but never blood.

I don't suppose you were carrying a poo bag? only the rustling can sound like snacks from the horse's point of view.

I have owned horses and would generally avoid getting in a field with one I didn't know. We had one that was a delight to ride and handle but an absolute devil in her field.