One of the reasons that some people abandon their horses is that the gorgeous galloping horse with the sweet disposition has suddenly become Mr. Nasty. He's gotten nervous about anyone attempting to ride him and he kicks if you try to groom him. You have a 1,200 LB animal that is very angry with you. What have you done wrong?

There are a number of factors that can cause a change in your horse's attitude. Now, more than ever, you need to be tolerant and understanding for the sake of your relationship with your horse.

Horses are very social animals and they bond to other members of the herd. Many horses develop strong ties to other horses and in some cases people, and being separated from those horses and people can cause a large amount of stress that your horse will generally react to by acting out.

Horses also are creatures of habit. The newness of the new faces and new places can take time for a horse to adjust to. Horses need to be allowed to examine new places and people to come to their own conclusion that nothing is going to harm them, then you will see the stress levels in your horse drop considerably.

Rule out physical problems such as a new bridle that is causing chaffing or an ill-fitting saddle. If you have acquired a new horse and he is showing a lot these traits, treat him as though he had never been trained at all. Earn his trust through gentle affection and then work to help him acclimate to his new surroundings. Let him see and smell all his new surroundings as much as possible. This will serve a two-fold purpose, it will assert your dominance to your horse as the one who can show him the way around and also it will teach him that you won't put him in a situation where he might be harmed.