Anyone Enjoy Playing With Their Horse?

Crazy Mare

New Member
Sep 9, 2005
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Yorkshire
I was wondering if anyone enjoys playing with their horse?

If so, what do you do with them and what is your horses favourite game?

I'm looking for things to do for a bit of fun when I hop off at the end of my schooling sessions so would love to get some ideas and to hear how you guys have fun :D
 
I love messing around with Nim..
We have a loft above our barn so whens he's in there i go up there and start calling him, he gets rather confused. I also sit in the barn with him alot and if he feels like it we do have a game of tag :p he usually catches me though tbh. I'm pretty sure it's only for digestive biscuits to!
:D;)
 
I often play with Frits:) He likes tug of war and we used to play hide and seek with him but have not for a while.

Our favourite game is liberty where he will do things I ask of him and also we dance together:) Very special feeling because he is in a paddock and can walkoff at any time:)
 
Ah, I love playing with my neds!

BB is bit too thick when it comes to games, and when we have a game of tag, she just stands there!

But Dolly loves games, loves her football, tag, apple bobbing, hunt the carrot ~ she really is a funny little pony!

The Shetlands like to play a game ~ I call it "who can take the biggest chunk out of Mummy's Ass!"
 
i had kaiser and his old friend in the indoor school the other day and we had a game of good old fashioned races! needless to say i came last, pretty pathetic getting beaten by a 29 year old pony and a foal with wobbly legs :D:D:D:D:D

its great fun tho, i also just get him to follow me about, makes a good bond for the 2 of us,
 
We play GALLOP *lol* ...
I chase, they run. They stop and face me, I run. I stop and face them, they run ... They seem to like the banality of the game :D!
 
There are quite a few games we both seem to enjoy. The safe easy one are playing with a ball (either a football or a big gym ball) and playing with large dog sqeaky toy (he is getting near to being able to do fetch with this - if I throw it he will go and get it, it's the handing back to me that we're working on :D). He likes the squeaky toy because he can terrorise the other horses with it.

Then we play follow-my-leader. This is simple and just means he follows me over things, under things and through narrow gaps (there are handy trees in the field that grow very close together, as well as logs to hop over and a stream to jump over).

Then we play tag (had a great game of tag this morning :D). This is a lot faster than follow-my-leader (which is at a walk) - tag is trotting and cantering - he particularly likes following me when I do sudden changes of direction. He gets very excited and can leap in the air. This was scary the first time it happened, but I think I understand the rules better now - tag is definitely a non-contact game and he keeps a safe distance. ETA I never chase - he has to chase me. It's a fine line between being a playmate and a predator for human/horse games...

Like Pengapenga says, it is quite a privilege that he will choose to leave the herd to play with me (we often go out of sight of them), so it's both fun and a great way of increasing our bond :)
It is very good exercise for me as I have to run like crazy up and down big hills in the field - it is also useful, as training canter is difficult without a school, so I'm working at adding a voice cue every time he breaks into a canter.
 
Ah, I love playing with my neds!

BB is bit too thick when it comes to games, and when we have a game of tag, she just stands there!

But Dolly loves games, loves her football, tag, apple bobbing, hunt the carrot ~ she really is a funny little pony!

The Shetlands like to play a game ~ I call it "who can take the biggest chunk out of Mummy's Ass!"


Lol :D:D:D
 
Malachy loves to play Follow-My-Leader and if we get the poles out, he absolutely loves running over them when I point to them. He enjoys attention and will happily let you scramble on his back in the paddock and ride him without headcollar etc.
Fox enjoys all in hand games, especially climbing on things, anything which uses her brain. Ridden she likes playing football, herding pheasants, peacocks and sheep (getting them to move away from her) and she loves carrot crunches.
Foaly's fave games are climbing into a huge flexi tub filled with hay and dragging it out with her feet.Same with the wheelbarrow when full of poo.
 
We play 'find the treat'. Someone goes in the stable and 'hides' (stands in a corner of the stable not facing the horse) and the horse has to nudge you until he turns you round and gets the treat. Its a really fun game - but we only play it with one of the best horses we have in terms of his character. :D
 
Sounds like you all have a great time with your horses :D

We played football last night and it was great fun.

I might see how I get on with "fetch" too. She loves picking things up so I think it will be getting her to give them back that will be the hard part.

She has me in hysterics if I have to skip out with her in the stable 'cause i'm constantly having to stop her picking up my poo skip in her mouth :D
 
We play chase. I'll run after him then he turn and chase me back, once he gts close i jump round and shout boo he turns bucking and squealling. this lasts until i'm run into the ground once i stop he keeps pushing at me to get me to do it again.
Only really do that in the summer think i'd end up head in the mud if i did it in this weather. :D
 
Then we play tag (had a great game of tag this morning :D). This is a lot faster than follow-my-leader (which is at a walk) - tag is trotting and cantering - he particularly likes following me when I do sudden changes of direction. He gets very excited and can leap in the air. This was scary the first time it happened, but I think I understand the rules better now - tag is definitely a non-contact game and he keeps a safe distance. ETA I never chase - he has to chase me. It's a fine line between being a playmate and a predator for human/horse games...

Hee hee! I feel better for hearing that.

We played this in the arena after a schooling session this morning and I thought it was great that she was running after me but got a bit scared when she started prancing about tossing her head :eek:

When I think about it this is exactly what she does when I turn her out in the field and she runs off to join the herd so it's a good thing :)

All in all we did have a lovely time but she didn't want to stop and we had too 'cause I had to go to work
 
When I think about it this is exactly what she does when I turn her out in the field and she runs off to join the herd so it's a good thing

I do keep my arms out to make myself as big as possible (and have felt the breeze of hooves whistling past my fingers :eek:) but when I dare to look he's always bent away from me if you know what I mean (i.e. respecting my space bubble). It is fun though and bloomin' good exercise for me (have to go rest against a tree afterwards sometimes...)
 
Curly LOVES to play the 'im a little shadow' game - she follows me like a giant ginger puppy.
Only problem is that when I want her to wait (ie i go ahead to open a gate) she gets very affronted when i shoo her back after she tries to follow me.
 
I had just gotten off after a lesson once and undid my back protector - it's got two massive Velcro strips at the front and immediately RS horse's ears pricked up. He really likes the noise of Velco (he gets all interested when undo my Velcro strap gloves too), so i half-undid it and let him pull the rest off with his teeth - it keeps him entertained for ages! He undoes the strap, and when i do it up again, a nose appears out of nowhere, he undoes it again and give this happy little whicker as if to say 'hey, that's so cool!' He must have the attention span of a goldfish :rolleyes::D. It's nice to see him happy because he can be a bit of a grumpy b****r at times and not many people have a lot of time for him - he's a big softie really :)! He's even figured out how to pop open the press-to-release button so he can get to the Velcro :p!
 
I play with Morse, when the fields and weather allow we go down to the Acre paddock where there are some jumps set up and I put the poles on the ground and he follows me through and over the poles, he really seems to enjoy that. Then we go for a stroll round the fields or I just sit on a log and he chews at the bark etc.,

We don't however play too many games of the chase variety, cos he gets a bit too enthusiastic:eek: but we do also have a game of tug of war sometimes with his lead rope, he is quite gentle with that, he also waits til I pull and he lets go......I am sure he does that on purpose;) He DOES have a sense of humour this boy.
 
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