I read the long thread from 2/08 about whether to buy a second horse for the sake of the mental health of the horse you already own. I have a mare that was a real pain to work with until I retired and started working with her every day, now I am amazed at how well she behaves. When she was being prissy I started to think that her general attitude would improve if she had a companion, so I have been looking for months for a little farm chunk under 16H and have not found anything so far within 350 miles. We are opening a small dairy but contract out our field work, the horse is for light hauling to a cart. I was reading all these books on horse bad behavior and came across the statement that in Germany one is not allowed to keep a single horse alone, which seemed to confirm me in my opinion. The thread in 2008 was equally divided, if you have a good horse doing well don't take a chance of messing it up by bringing in a buddy, and alternately horses do suffer when kept alone and you just need to learn to deal with the buddy-sour issues for the sake of your horses emotional needs. The issue seems to be that you need to divide your time equally between the two horses and work each one about the same. Has anyone on the list lived to regret buying a second horse under similar conditions?

John, there are probably more horses kept alone on farms and ranches than are have companions. They get stuck out on a place so they will be handy to move stock around. I would guess that the law in Germany was passed like one about wild horses here. Mostly sentiment from people that never had one.
When my dad had just one saddle horse, things were real peaceful. When I brought in another, they foght for about a week deciding who was boss and if one got taken out and used for a few hours, it had to be decided all over again. It was that way until we had 3 of them running together.

I think that a buddy is good for them, but it doesn't have to be a horse. I've seen a dog or goat make a great companion's,and you won't have to work them.
shanen

I guess that law was passed after I had left Germany in 1991. Many people had only one horse. The advantage is that the horse necessarily bonds with the owner much more than if kept with others, the disadvantage is that it may develop obnoxious habits, e.g. such as cribbing. To keep it with another companion, not necessarily another horse, is a smart thing to do.

I checked the law that John Bock referred to, it states that animals have to be kept "species adequately". Based on the psychological needs of horses that was interpreted by courts that horses cannot be kept in tie-stalls all day and not without companions as was customary with many single horse owners, also farmers, for a long time. Obviously in times when horses were used daily for work that was not a problem, but in modern times when most horses are kept for entertainment and/or sport this way of keeping them won't do. It was found that letting them stare at walls for 23 hours, and then being ridden in a walled-in arena only does not correspond to the definition of "species adequate keeping".
By the way, this more in depth interpretation of the
Tierschutzgesetz (law for the protection of animals) has been applied to other species, too, and so cages for laying hens , gestation crates for pigs, etc. are on the way out.

I've never kept a horse alone. It's clear that horses are herd animals and feel more comfortable with at least one buddy, but that's not a herd. When there's at least 3 there will emerge a natural pecking order, and all will find their place in it. I've also heard people say their horse "loves" them 'cuz it meets them at the gate; that's just the horse following its' natural instincts to herd up.
Just my .02 worth.

Kind of depends on the horse. Some horses crave the companionship of others of their kind. Some do fine with just the regular interaction of being worked and cared for. I have one specimen of the latter type. She's always been a lone wolf. Doesn't care much for the company of her own kind.

I've kept horses alone plenty of times, but I wouldn't do it unless I had enough to keep one busy several hours a day. A horse standing around all the time by itself is a sad thing. But, a horse that you are spending a lot of time with, and working together every day, is often the best partner you will have once you get communication straightened out. Given the posts you've shared about the problems with your mare, another horse isn't going to solve anything but will give you something new to have to figure out.

have had several horses that would just stand outside the house and watch the windows for hours. they never minded being by there self. some played with the heeler dogs