Thank you for your feedback.
Don’t take it personally. He is still immature and uncertain and insecure.
I would try to find someone who starts young horses to show you the best way to handle young horses.
Warwick Schiller has some very good videos on YouTube that you could watch to get some pointers.
Getting someone to help you is no reflection on your abilities. It is wisdom to admit when you are in over your head.
I’ve known plenty of horse women who admitted they would have been a lot better off if they had sought expert help at the beginning instead of trying to go it alone.
Hope this helps.
Good luck to you.
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Has he been gelded yet? If not, I would begin there.
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Thank you! I appreciate the advice.
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Neither are gelded, yet. We plan to have them both gelded at the end of this month. I hope it helps! Thank you for helping.
I don’t actually have experience with starting young horses but wonder if the colt is not afraid of you as much as he just doesn’t want to be bothered. He has his buddy and he doesn’t need you. They are like Lord of the Flies - making up their own rules and following them without adult intervention.
Can you separate them into stalls each day so that you can work with them both regularly? I also agree that gelding them will help.
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You need a trainer to help you. In the flesh, not on a video. Someone who has much experience bringing along youngsters not one that just watched videos.
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Please get a trainer. It’s difficult to learn from videos when dealing with a situation that requires confidence that can’t be given from videos. Geld them ASAP and get someone with experience with young horses.
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Remember at this stage in his training and in your relationship with him, best not to think of him as your “friend” but rather think of yourself as herd leader and he’s a herd member. Too much buddy-buddy with him at this point isn’t really helping him be the horse (and friend) he can be 
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Vision problem?
I agree with the following - gelding (glad it is already planned) and getting a trainer with young horse experience. I got a 3 yo last year, and am working with a trainer. Young horses are quite different from adult horses, and need more attention to every interaction, like human toddlers in many ways. A good trainer can help you identify their individual body language “tells” and work on timing your corrections to be most effective in a way videos can’t.
And yes, you don’t want to take things personally, or try to be his “friend”. Horse friends gnaw on, chase, bite and kick each other. You need to be the leader. You can both correct his misbehavior and reward his good behavior as the leader. My guy loves attention and being scratched on his poll and face, so that is his reward for good behavior. Usually when he gets “that look” where he might be naughty, a well-timed stern “Uh-uh” is enough to get him to relax. As soon as he relaxes he gets a scratch. Being young, sometimes the verbal reminder doesn’t work and he misbehaves. In that case the correction is physical, such as two sharp tugs on a lead. Then immediately off you go again as if nothing happened.
Gelding will help, but I have to ask, how experienced are you?
Young horses require professional training. This isn’t anything negative about you, simply a fact.
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The jack donkey is a big problem…they are VERY dominant and the colt may be scared to death of his “buddy”!! JMO after years of dealing with donkeys and horses!!! Gelding both will help…but you may want to fence the donkey away while you deal with the horse’s current issues.
It could even be something as silly as the last time you haltered him you gave him a static electricity shock. Are you able to put him in a stall for a bit until you can safely halter him regularly?
IME young horses need to be handled frequently.
It sounds like this one primarily lives out?
They can still live out, but regularly [like twice a day, even if just for 15 minutes each] handling them will certainly be a wise investment.
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You need some help here. You got a couple of young thugs, one a bully, the other a victim who in turn pushes you out of the way and neither one accepts you as their leader. Right now the jack is the leader, the colt is his gang and punching bag and you are a nuisance except for the food part.
Thats how their hierarchy works. Gelding will help but you need help becoming the leader. The colt has learned he is bigger and stronger then you so think it’s best you seek some hands on help from a pro to correct that. Doesn’t help he was not weaned and introduced to basic handling at 4-6 months, longer you wait, more ingrained that is going to get.
I’d seperate him from the donkey for sure. That’s your basic toxic relationship.
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