Hi Corbengra,
About the rolling. I have seen horses roll as soon as you bring them into an arena. Some with lead rope still on some without.
I don't see a problem with this because I know why they do this.
Sometimes it re-aligns thier back. Sometimes they have an itch and sometimes it is right after they have been groomed and the sand gets between thier hairs and this causes air for them between the hairs.
I cannot explain it too well but I will try.
For her touching her nose on you, that is good. As long as she is not pushing you.
If you go on Horseandcountry.tv channel on youtube, you will notice Kelly Marks horses doing this a lot.
My horse STAR does it with me as well. I love to play with her mouth, gums and tongue, it calms her.
Perhaps other will tell you some more information,
Ronda

Hi corbengra

I think it comes down to a personal choice: I tend to teach horses that it is not ok to roll/grass grab etc. while on a halter and lead rope so that they don't suddenly think they can do it under saddle or with you on board! However, what I do with mine is turn them loose in the school so that they can run about/roll in the sand/let off steam for 10 minutes or so and then ask them to come to me, halter back on and no more rolling! If you can teach your horse the difference then fine, but I think its important that you are in charge of the decision i.e. if for some reason you don't want her to roll at that particular moment can you stop her?
Regarding nose touching - I agree with Ronda; if she's not nipping or pushing you around all is well :-)

IF the horses roll and/or yawn - you have the BEST reward You can get! A more content horse is hard to find - CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!

Thanks for your responses. I wasn't really sure what to make of the situation because I've never had a horse do that before! :O I'm pretty sure that she would have stopped if I asked her to...if she ever attempts it again, I will definitely see whether I can or not? I agree with the not letting them eat whenever they want on lead. I do how ever take them occasionally to the front lawn where the yummy grass is and just enjoy a peaceful moment with them while they're grazing :) As for the nose touching, it is a gentle touch almost as if to say "ok, you're still here with me"..atleast that's the "feeling" that I get when she does it. I do find that sometimes she gets a little too close to me...not in a pushy aggressive way, more of a just over crowding. When she does that, I gently push her back a step. Whenever she does the nose thing, I rub her on her forehead :) It's kinda a nice feeling when she does that, no tension. I just wasn't sure if that was appropriate or not...thanks again :)

It sounds perfect corbengra, you have a lovely relationship with her. As Ann points out, it is lovely when the horse feels relaxed enough to roll when you are around, it is only my personal choice that I'd rather they didn't do it on the halter/rope, but I love it when they do it loose with me in the school too (I think I may try joining in one day and see what happens!!)

:) I just purchased this horse in the fall, so I've only started working with her. I'm very happy that she is feeling that comfortable with me! Must mean I'm doing things right :)

My neighbor had a little head shy mare that she wanted me to work with and I managed to gain her trust. She was really funny because she would bury her nose in my hair right next to my ear and just sit there and breath in my ear. The first couple of times she did this I wasn't sure what she was doing and although it was very sweet I was always thinking "Please don't bite my ear"! She never did, I guess she just liked being close to me.

awww...that's sweet! I used to ride this draft cross when I was a teen. When I would go in the field, he always came up behind me and put his nose on my shoulder. He would follow me all the way back to the barn with his nose there. Isn't it great when you take a horse that's afraid, and change that fear how lovey dovey they can become, once they realize it feels good! :)

My previous horse, a mare, always had a good roll after a bath - ended up dirtier than before and undoing all my hard work! When I first got her I was riding in a cheap synthetic saddle for a few months until I bought a nice properly fitting leather one. She rolled three times whilst wearing the synthetic one, each time with me on board (I managed to jump off before being squashed) - one of the times it was in the shallow water at a lake edge. Once she had the new saddle she never even tried rolling with it on, I guess the synthetic one just didn't fit properly. I have never had this happen since on any other horse - out of interest, has anyone else had experienced this and what would be the right thing to do? She would sort of pause, then drop to the ground so quickly without warning that it was hard to spot she was going to do it.

I was at the local show here, and a lady and child were getting ready for the Tot lead line class, and the pony decided that it wanted to roll with the child on it's back!!! Everyone around started yelling for the mom to look! Mom was quick and stopped the pony from rolling!!! phew!

I've heard of this but I have never seen it, with a saddle, amazing.
Good point about a not so great fitting of a saddle.
I think STAR'S legs are too long, it seems she takes forever to get to the ground to roll. Wonder what it would be like if someone were on her back. I wonder if she would be faster to get them off???
Tried yesterday to get a different type of rope wrap around her middle, she was Ok with that but as soon as I put the long lines on she took off.
She didn't roll, though.
Very interesting post. Can't wait for some more information on this.
Have a good day,
Ronda

My previous mare was a short heavy set native British Fell pony, only 14hh and with relatively short, solid legs. Even in the paddock she would drop to the ground very suddenly and land with a thump and a loud grunt, not very graceful at all! Once or twice she gave people a fright thinking she had collapsed. However, my gelding is finer in build and with anglo-arab bloodlines. Watching him in the paddock he spends ages picking a spot to roll, sniffing the ground, pawing it, and sometimes going to drop, then changing his mind and moving to another spot. He too takes forever to get to the ground. Not much fun when they do it with you on board, but I love watching them roll when they are free, it looks like they enjoy it so much.

Well, I took her out to the ring last night for a quick bout of ground work. She right away as soon as her feet hit the soft sand started thinking about rolling. Her nose dropped LOW to the ground, her knees started to wiggle...so, I corrected her, to see if she would respond. She stopped immediately and started licking. I walked around and did the rest of our work and then gave her the freedom to roll. She again, wanted to. But, she wouldn't!!!!! I felt so bad, she responded so well to the correction, that even though she REEEEEEEALLY wanted to..she didn't! I kept telling her "go ahead girl...roll!!!" heehee. I would love to let her loose, but there is no rails yet on our rings. Posts and sand are all in and ready, just have to get the time to put the rails up...THEN I will let her free to roll!!! :)

The first time I got on Princess, she didnt move so I turned her head to see if she would, and she laid down. I stepped off, looked down at her and she looked up at me like well, is this what you wanted? I told her no, not at all, now get up. She did. I had just bought the saddle online, and when she laid down, the cinch broke, so that put an end to any riding lessons for that day. The saddle didnt fit right either. I sold it and got one that did. She hasnt tried to lay down with me since, but it was a surprise as well as being funny. The look on her face was priceless. Why is it that when something like that happens, you never have a camera handy? But I will never buy a saddle online again. I think it might be fun to teach her to lay down when I want her to, but dont know how to go about that. She is such a smart little thing that it doesnt take much to teach her something.
My mustang stallion, Phantom, was quite a character, after I worked him, I would brush him and comb out his very long mane and tail, turn him loose, and he would promptly roll. Of course, that undid all the brushing and combing. When he was a colt and I first started brushing him, he would roll his eyes up to watch while I combed out his forelock, and he did that the rest of his life. He liked to give me hugs, and if he wanted me to ride him, he would come over and stand just in the right place for me to get on, whether he was saddled or loose.

Sounds like my daughter's pong...it NEVER fails, after a good ride, a bath and being turned loose..guaranteed he'll roll!!! I went out last night to start getting the rails up..I still feel bad for not letting her roll heehee