Why Shouldn't I Feed My Horse by Hand

I know...It is such fun to give your horse a treat from your hand. It seems harmless, as long as you're careful, right?

Well, yes, you can feed your horse from your hand fairly safely, without getting bitten...most of the time. However, getting your hand or fingers accidentally bitten while you are feeding him is simply the beginning.

When you start giving your horse treats by hand, he will start to look for it, even when you don't have any treats. Then, when you put your hand near his face for any reason (let's say you're putting his halter or bridle on), he might start to nip at your hand, not trying to bite you - but trying to find the treat. If you had been hiding the treats in your pocket, he may even start nosing into your pocket and push you around a little bit. This can be the beginning of your horse not respecting you or your space. This is definitely something that you don't want.

(By the way, there's nothing worse than a horse who doesn't respect you. He can start to be pushy, nippy, and even crabby. I've seen a number of people who've lost their horse's respect, but they don't even know it. When you're leading your horse, and he bumps into you, that's disrespect. If you're dragging him behind you, that's disrespect. If he's dragging you behind him, that's disrespect!)

It's easier to earn a horse's respect right from the beginning than it is to try to gain respect from your horse after you've lost it.

So, to avoid this problem, I suggest putting the treats in a bucket or on the ground. This will allow you to reward your horse w/out promoting bad habits.