Question: My MFT mare will not let us pick up her back feet.  She really  gives the farrier hell, and has even pulled him up underneath her.  She  is fine with her front feet.  she was shod all around when I bought  her. The farrier I got her from said that I had to grab her back foot and step out or she would lean into me until she dropped.  I told my farrier this and he tried it, but she fought him from the beginning. When I first brought her home she would let me lift her back foot about  6-8 inches, just enough to pick her feet, but now she sidesteps, backs  up, or throws her back end into me.  Other than this vice this mare is
great.  My farrier said that he may have to "lay her down" the next time  he comes out.  Any advice?
 

I would try clicker training. I have found it to be extremely effective at such problems. Clicker training was originally developed to train sea mammals. How do you get an animal to do something for you that can simply swim away if it does not want to? Clicker training is the answer. All those wonderful tasks that you see at the sea animal displays are the result of clicker training. It has been adapted to animals as diverse as elephants, to get *them to pick up their feet for trimming, and a pregnant orangutan, to allow her to be safely examined during her pregnancy. It has also been highly successfully adapted to work with dogs. For information on clicker training for horses, go to http://theclickercenter.com/

Annette