Halter phobia 2

[Marty McGee Bennett]

Hi Marty - just saw your newest article on AlpacaNation and it reminded me to write and ask you about a problem I have.*

I have a female here at my farm for breeding.* She has a fear of the halter - the fit was awful on the one she came with although it was one of yours!* She came to me from newbies who bought her from a farm where I know the owner attended one of your seminars because he was at the same one I was.* Apparently newbies didn't receive much handling info - no catch pen and it was a mad chase scene at their farm to catch and halter her for transport.* Joe and I jumped in and helped make a human catch pen for the poor thing.

Anyhoo - the deal is that I've got her to the point that she is very relaxed to be in the catch pen, to have the catch rope around her neck and to stand calmly.* (She also came with eye infection requiring treatment in both eyes!)* I can massage her face - top of her head - around her eyes, administer her eye ointment.* In short, I can do anything I want EXCEPT put that halter on her.* She sees it and just goes "blink" to panic mode.* That nose goes up and her heads twists away and she doesn't even want to look at it much less think about it.

I'm not making much progress with this fear.* I've let her look at it, smell it without trying to put it on her, I've put it on without fastening and taken it off right away, I've put it on and given her treats - see nothing bad happens.* Once I get it on and properly fastened, she calms back down and actually leads pretty well so I've come to the conclusion it is literally the sight of the halter that panics her.* Once it's on and she can't see it, it stops scaring her.* Have you got any suggestions?*

[Marty McGee Bennett]

You have done or are doing... just what I would have recommended. I think what I would suggest at this point is to double check that you are adjusting the halter exactly the way that I suggest that is that the nose band is all the way open when you put the halter on and that you snug up the crown piece as MUCH as you can. So that she knows for sure that it can't slip forward then put it on as efficiently and kindly as you can and take her for a walk.

Remember don't "practice" haltering unless you need to halter her and make sure that it fits when you put it on..but don't ever halter her unless you need to. It is possible to make things worse with "practice." Practice with something she hates can be a bit like picking a scab. Every time she gets haltered she should go out for a walk and get some goodies.

[Alyson Gilman]

You may also want to try the Zephyr Second Chance Halter.
This halter buckles on the llama/alpaca’s right side and allows you to have a second chance to correct previously learned escape and evasion behaviors. If you have an animal that is difficult to halter, he or she may have developed responses to being caught and haltered from the left side. It often helps to re-introduce these animals from the right using the principles of CAMELIDynamics.

Also what about using the grain method of halter acceptance...letting your alpaca get to know the halter in a different way. You can put some grain in a frisbee and lay the halter open on it. If she likes grain, she will place her nose in it to enjoy the bite. This may some of the mystery and fear away from the halter.

See excerpt about difficult to halter animals in the GUILD LIBRARY: http://www.camelidynamicsguild.com/guildForum/showthread.php?p=132#post132