Boxer and Horses?

[kellikelli]

Hello all,

I have a question concerning your experience with your boxer around horses. I am taking my 4 month old male to our ranch for a big thanksgiving family hoopla, and I am curious on how boxers in general seem to act around horses? (11 horses, 4 great pyrness, one great dane, one mixed boxer, my 4 mth old boxer and 28 humans)

Without fail, all my boxers have acted like nutcases, trying to PLAY with the horses, all my other type of dogs ( Great Pyrness, Great Dane) will just sniff and stare at them for hours, possibly run with them out in pasture (at a safe distance) NOT SO WITH THE BOXERS I HAVE HAD.

Its such a stressful " where is the boxer" experience... because of fears the horses will kick out of defense to a wiggly boxer trying to jump and play.

So its always a situation of putting boxer in his own pasture while we ride the horses. I always feel so bad because the other doggies will walk right next to us and the horses having the time of their lives. And then we can hear the boxer woo woo song and serious whines to come play from the other pasture.

Just curious! and thanks so much!!!
Kelli


:eek: :eek:

 

[tanya22]

Ava has grown up with the horses. 48 to be exact. To be honest she is a bit too casual for my likeing. She does not seem to grasp the size and power concept.
My previous boxer was much better. Of course that dog was older when I moved here and she was stepped on once so that put some respect in her.
I think you are smart to be cautious. My boyfriend has lost 2 GSD to horse related accidents. If Ava gets too interested in the horses she is put in the kennel until we finish riding.
Ava's best friend is a minature donkey. I try to discourage the mutual friendship because I know the damage a kick (accidental or not) can do.

Have a great Thanksgiviing. Sounds like fun.

 

[Kimber & Mac]

Mac just can't figure them out. The 1st time he saw them he ran and barked at them, but then one stomped on my sister's dog Molly right in front of him (she's ok). Now he get sclose and kind of sniffs but doesn't do much.
K

 

[Tango's Mama]

We are down to one horse now. Ive had Beau(the horse) since he was a year old..he will be 19 this year. He is a very high strung Arab and I was worried he would hurt Tango. At first Tango was all jumping and running, now he kisses Beau's nose and they are good freinds. I wouldnt want him around horses that were prone to kick tho just in case. Our other 4 horses were all calm around him too. They didnt like Tango i beleive because of his coloring, but they never offered to hurt him and mostly ignored him.

On another note, My second boxer Chance was such a good boy we used to take him riding with us. Until he got kicked by a friends horse. He wouldnt listen to me he was so scared, he just took off running into the woods and it was two days before we found him. I was so upset over it. i realized that taking him with me wasnt really a good thing because there is so much to be cautious about and when your riding your attention needs to be on the large animal your controlling not what your lil furbaby is doing while your riding. My horse dosnt kick and Chance was safe around him, but i never thought about the other people in the riding party :( , luckily he wasnt injured and made it back safely. But he never went riding with us again after that. Plase dont think im lecturing you about taking your dog with you tho! I just thought I'd pass along my exp in case it helps you decide how to handle your trip and keep it fun ..:p

 

[blurble33]

we don't have boxers but their our 3 accross the street, our girls just stare through the window at them and bark when they start running and "horsing" around. however, the lil blue heeler pup on the other side of the pasture gets out there and tries to run them. i hate this b/c i am so afraid she will get stepped on or kicked or worse shot!! the man who owns the horses can't stand having her over there. good luck with your thanksgiving adventure though, it sounds like fun!! we are wanting to take our girls with us to our parents house for thanksgiving but aren't sure how they would react. it is a 4 1/2 hr drive home to memphis and neither one of them have been in the car that long. does anyone have any suggestions??

 

[kellikelli]

Thanks for your reply. All my boxers love the car (after about 30 minutes) I think its the car that makes them so sleepy. We put the seats out of the SUV and put blankets down and they are out cold. We also give them one benadryl a peice for drives over 4 hours (like for T-day). Our vet suggested it, it makes them sleepy!

We also use the seat belt harnesses for short trips, but they go major stir crazy in them after about one hour, so we just have resigned to the making the SUV a full bed situation.

Whilst mom(moi) am cramped up in the front seat. Sigh.

 

[Kimber & Mac]

Mac and my boyfriend and I have gone 4 hours in a 2-seater car. mac got to stretch across both of ou r laps and was totally happy I wasn't real comfy but he was. He LOVES car rides

 

[GovDeacon]

All of the hiking trails around our house support horseback riding as well. The two times Deacon (4 months old) has encountered horses he has cowered behind his daddy with his head cocked to the side. I dont think he can figure them out

Deacon's Dad

 

[Debbie Magon]

I have horses and boxers and I personally would not have a young pup near a horse.
Pups are unpredictable and not all that quick at reacting.
Horses are big and strong and a young pups body fragile.
I have seen the end result of a young dog that was kicked and it was death.

 

[SkippyToo]

Our boxers are not interested in our horses; however, I would not allow them to be in the same pasture with them because you never know when one of them will kick. Even a horse that doesn't normally kick can be unpredictable. We have 3 female horses. From time to time they get a little edgy and I do not think a boxer, nutty as they are (God bless them), would know to be alert to the horses eyes, ears, body language, etc... .

Our boxers are more interested in frantically hunting our farm cats and chickens, ha! Now, if a chicken gets out of the pen and the boxer gets loose in the same area, oh my! It's frantic until we catch one of them.

Good luck!