A horse that bites can be a real problem. Most people handle this problem incorrectly and smack the horse when he bites, in many cases this will simply teach your horse to bite quickly and then move as it becomes an enormous game to your horse.

Some trainers will subscribe to the belief that you should threaten to kill and scare a horse to death for biting you, while this may scare the horse into submission - for a while- it's not a positive nor effective way to train your horse not to bite. Not to mention that your horse will lose respect and trust in you and you'll have to start from square one again.

The easiest and most effective way to teach a horse not to bite is to be the smarter animal in the relationship and use your horse knowledge to get around what is making your horse bite. Some tips on handling a biter of a horse include:

Keep your distance and don't let him too close until you have established he isn't going to nip you. Teaching your horse to go back and forth and teaching your horse to back up will encourage him to respect you more as he has to trust you in order to follow your commands. Lack of respect is the number one reason a horse will bite you. Fear is a second big factor but that's only to create a diversion so he can get away from you.

If you've ruled out fear as a factor in your horse's biting habit, you will need to work with him to respect you. Working with him as often as possible, daily is best; grooming and feeding him treats when he obeys is a good way to show him that you mean him no harm and you are in fact, top horse.