I am renting an Amish farm house where the Amish farmer keeps about 8 horses. He rotates them on and off the farm as they work for him. I am new to horses - I am about 6'7" 320 lbs - would like to make friends with the horses but I am unsure how to approach them. What is the proper way to approach a horse to express friendliness ? I mentioned my size because perhaps I may be imposing as a larger human being - maybe not - but worth noting since I am new. I have had solo horses come to the fence curious about me while I use the well pump very close to the fence. I have noticed that all the horses appear to be perpetually bothered by flies. Especially around their eyes. Is it appropriate to look them in the eye ? wipe the flies from them? what to do to make friends? Oh.. one minor note... last night one of the curious ones jumped a bit as if startled while I was pumping water and made a somewhat quick gesture. He/ she didn't run off, but just appeared to jump when I moved a little to quickly.
Any suggestions appreciated
Do horses go into a kind of half sleep state when eating? They look really relaxed, eyes mostly closed, like a baby nursing.
I have a colt foal that will be 2 weeks old tomorrow.
He was born out in a clean field unassisted and is still in the field, his mother is a raving lunatic in the first few days after foaling (protective mother from hell, but she's fine otherwise, great horse and great mother) so I couldn't dip his umbilical cord, I couldn't get within 15 feet of him or she would literally kill me. Its only in the past few days I'm allowed to rub him. I noticed today he was peeing not only from his willy but from his bellybutton. He's perfectly fine otherwise he's a way bigger than a foal that's in with them with her mother that was born a month before him even taking into consideration his dam and sire are a hand bigger than her dam and sire, he's growing like bamboo. He was bigger when he was born than she was at a month old and she's not particularly small. He's fine and active and already putting on good muscle on his neck and hindquarters. His bellybutton is healed and its not irratated or swolen he's just peeing from his willy with a smaller stream coming out his bellybutton with some drips coming from his bellybutton before and after.
I googled it and while its quite common (but has never happened to me, or my mother who's bred hundreds of horses in her lifetime) no cases are like mine. Apparently its where the urine comes out when a foal is in the womb and sometimes it just happens but resolves itself after the first few days of life, sometimes it becomes infected and can require surgery but there's no cases in a foal 2 weeks old with no infection and swelling that I can find. Has anyone ever experienced this? He seems completely unaffected and is absolutely thriving. He wasn't premature he was actually over due, but its weird and I've never experienced this.
