REPLY: That is so funny about the confusing cues (just trainer-funny), but not so funny how aggressive he can turn when on mating stance. You know...my first inclination would be to advise you to have the hormone tests to see if he's proud-cut or a cryptorchid -- I go over in more detail about all that here, and what kind of tests you can have done:

Proud Gelded/Proud Cut/Cryptorchid Horse - Behavior when studs are not gelded properly

The reason I would want to go that route first is: if he is proud-cut or a cryptorchid, the good news is: a good vet surgeon can correct that, and then hopefully he'll settle down some.

Until then...you are going to HAVE to keep him far away from any other stallions, because it is pure instinct in studs to fight, especially when a mare is in season. Some do it worse than others. And no fence is going to stop that or keep them apart when he's so blindly on that mode -- as you saw yourself there. It's just: nature. But I think it's worth having the blood test done there to see if he is still producing high levels of testosterone due to being gelded incorrectly. And that would be great if the tests came out positive, because you could have a vet surgeon go in after that, and get him gelded properly now.

If the blood tests come back showing he is properly gelded, then clearly he was used for breeding and was probably gelded too late, my guess.

Sounds like this horse is new to you, if I got that correct. As long as you can keep things safe there (listen to your gut instincts at all times!), he can probably be retrained (after the vet check/test, in that order, I recommend). Is just going to take time and patience and consistency. But seriously, be careful there. Stud-like behavior when training often has a horse fighting instead of flight and you want to read him well, not pressuring more than necessary, yet enough to remain leader safely. If he's confused suddenly during lessons and you see that, back off and give him space, don't pressure too hard at those moments, if you can. It's a fine dance training stud-like horses who aren't respectful from the getgo (haven't been taught properly so far). Use pressure/release, but tune in to read him well as you go along. Try not to go the physical punishment route; that will backfire on you as a stud-like horse is more inclined to fight, and keep fighting, if challenged like that. I don't physically punish horses for wrong answers; I reward for right answers. Stop and relax him before he gets too tensed up during lessons on line, if you can -- finger in the mouth (if that's safe with him) to get him working his mouth, then pressure/release to get him to drop his head, which will produce instant relaxation in him (part of step one of my Whispering Way 12-Step Total Training System program, that I plug horses into, usually after round penning them). And remind yourself as you dive into retraining him: you don't have to get it all at once perfectly. Take his try at first, and leave it at that. And he'll build from that. Don't be too goal-focused, be small-progression focused.

But also...listen to your inner radar at all times and put your own safety first always. When I'm working a horse like that, I usually have someone man the round pen gate, not latching it, but the person holding it ready to open fast if I ever need a speedy exit, to allow the horse to chill if things ever fall apart. I also take with me, sometimes, with a horse like that who may charge: both my 12' lead rope and my training wand with plastic on the end, and keep them going simultaneously if/when needed (the rope spinning and smacking the ground with it, if needed, and the wand with plastic flying around). Something about two visual obstacles going on at once can short circuit a horse's brain briefly and stop the charge. But...I'm a little concerned that this horse had a hard time being stopped even with an ATV!  But then that brings us back to full circle wondering if he was gelded properly and how I personally would want to have that checked out and fixed surgically if that is indeed the case. And then see what you are left with after that. I think it's important!

By the way...one way to back off a horse like your fence-charging, ATV-attacking incident last night, when they're on blind-charge mode like that is: use a good squirt gun, that squirts water. It's non-violent, doesn't really hurt them, but breaks into their manic, obsessive behavior and slows most of them down as you squirt them in the face (while staying safe yourself!). Might try that if you get a repeat incident.

My inclination is to...give him a chance, he's new to you, new to his surroundings, and most horses act up a bit in those new situations. But do keep him away from studs! Until you get his training down better. And always (always!) put your own safety first at all times.

It's a judgment call as to whether or not to put him in with a strong alpha mare, or another gelding. But you might try if you think that'll help. He certainly sounds like he needs some socialization skills built into him. Keeping him alone is only going to make him worse, I fear, when he is then suddenly around other horses. Might play around and try putting him in with an alpha lead mare type horse and hopefully she can teach him some ground manners and respect.

As for the confusion with cues, when you see that happen, just break things down into smaller baby steps, giving you the opportunity to release more often for small baby step increments for the behavior you wish. The way I teach foot lifting, and I show all that in my 12-step DVD as well, allows for the pressure/release breakdown into smaller baby steps so that there is no confusion on the horse's part. I get a lot of tried-to-be-trained horses (who flunked out of other programs) and one of the funny things some of them do confusedly is start to climb a mounting block when you get next to one. Which is one of the really stupid "tricks" to teach a horse too early on, in my opinion -- teaching a horse to climb/step up onto an obstacle as a trick for show, but waaay too early in their training learning curve. And honestly is not really a behavior most horses need to have for a long time, if at all, and is potentially dangerous. What I do to undo that is to break things down into smaller baby steps, so I can release incrementally for them doing the right thing, not the wrong thing. If you ask for the whole behavior for something like that at first, they're going to fall back on old learning (what they used to get rewarded for). You want to break into that pattern by asking for far less at first, then releasing the pressure for baby step give right answers in the right direction. For example, to reschool him to pick up his feet without him thinking that means "go down" read this link on my web site:

Foot Handling Problems - Horse tries to kick when asked for back feet

And this one:

Pawing/Foot Handling - Horse paws when asking for the front feet

So you can see how that behavior can be broken down into smaller increments, lots of release/reward opportunities, using a rope like I show there. I also teach all that in more detail in my Whispering Way 12-Step Total Training System DVD set.

As you start to reteach him picking up his feet (for hoof picking/farrier, etc.), face backwards--facing the horse's rear. If you want to keep the behavior for him to lie down, since he knows how, always face: forward for that. He'll sort it out as you reschool there. But if I were you, I'd focus most on teaching him to pick up his feet quietly and only go back to asking him to lie down after his foundation is better built/all foundation holes closed.

I do an awful lot of retraining that involves UNDOING what other people or other trainers have done (usually wrongly) with a horse, so that's how you fix those things as they crop up: break the behavior down into smaller baby steps, with lots of releases, multiple times, for baby step right answer increments and they'll find their way there more easily.

I'm sure you'll figure out as you go along also there what cues someone else used for his circus tricks. Too bad you can't talk to/work with briefly his former circus trainer so you'll know more what this horse was taught specifically, but...that's usually how it goes with most horses that come to us---we don't get to know too much, but in the end, it really doesn't matter, because all retraining should involve: starting over. From the very bottom of the foundation, and build step by step upward from there. I find they do really well in my program, regardless of where they're coming from. It's almost always a reteaching process and pressure/release is your answer there, in baby steps, and ideally in a step-by-step fashion so that everything makes sense to him and each lesson taught builds upward from the previous accomplishment, like my program does. If he's exploding during lessons, or acting out negatively....ask yourself if you might be pressuring him too hard or too fast there. That type of horse is the kind I find who will act out (attack even---fight, not flight!) just because they don't understand our lesson. So...those are the ones I'm really going to focus on breaking things down into the smallest baby steps I can, using pressure/release so they can find their way there, and lots and lots of stroking/scratching/bonding rewards for their every inch accomplishment in the right direction.

He definitely sounds like a project horse, but also...kind of a fun project horse potentially? But, again, keep yourself safe at all times, don't take chances as you go along! And never shut off your radar/alarms when working with him. They'll shut off all by themselves when no longer needed. Ignore the abusive advice around you; that's all wrong. Abuse is never the answer to any horse problem.

But round penning isn't enough...he needs far more. Round penning is only the very bottom of the rebuilding of the foundation. If you haven't already gotten my 12-Step DVD set, think about getting it, because it will show you a clear step-by-step program for turning around/retraining your horse there, while keeping you safer in the process (I'm a fanatic about safety when training and I pass along safety tips throughout the DVD lessons). Without safety as our primary focus in all our training/riding endeavors, we've got nothing; it's that important.

Don't know how much this will help you there, but those are my thoughts and I'm here if you need further support!

Stay safe!