herbal mare supplements - raspberry leaves, chaste berry ect..

Hello everyone, I am a mom to a horse crazy girl and I am a 1 year newbie to the horse world. Having spent my first year at a barn, following the advice of the owner and got "mislead" (to put it nicely), I now try to educate myself and make my own decisions, right or wrong, from the advice of the trainer and barn owner. Blah, Blah Blah ...Anyways.... we have had this mare for about a year now, she just had a foal in March and weaned in July. My daughter has just started riding her, she seems very sensitive and nervous. Before I got her they had her in a Double Twisted Snaffle (which I didn't know that was harsh, until I had to go purchase a new one when I left old barn - it was theirs), anyways, she is in a 'D" ring now. Trainer just thinks she is a little mouth scared, and suggested that maybe I put her on sompthing for hormonal imbalance. Ie depo. While researching this I've read alot of good this about rasberry leaves, chaste berry, chamomile and lemon balm. I have learned that the dose of rasberry leaves are 1/4 cup once a day. My questions is this. If I want to mix all these for each of there benefits, whats my ratio of each?

Sorry for the babbling .... it's actually the long story short

Thanks for all your help

There could be several different reasons for the mare's nervousness and equally as many ways to fix it

First and foremost:
1. Have her teeth been checked to be sure the bit isn't interferring with some tooth issues?

2. Some horses have thick tongues and/or low palettes so are sensitive to many bits, including ones that aren't severe. Has she been examined by someone that knows what to look for in that area?

3. Regarding calmers. Was the mare always this way or just since the foal was born?

3.1 If she's had a foal and she is genetically predisposed, she might possibly be dealing with metabolic issues, regardless of her age.

3.2 If she's not dealing with metabolic issues, she might be dealing with hormonal issues.

The supplements she would receive would depend on which issues.

Magnesium Oxide is an excellent calmer that also has huge benefit for metabolic horses.

I know a lady that put her mare on pure rasberry leaves after the foal was weaned and she started riding the mare again. Said the rasberry leaves did more than "Mare Magic" and were cheaper.

I don't know about Chastetree as regards equine hormonal issues. I feed it very successfully to my gelding who has Equine Metabolic Syndrome.

The bottom line is that I would have a vet examine her (teeth, mouth, evaluate the nervousness as to what might be the cause). While your trainer means well, I am sorry, it doesn't sound as if she has the answer either. Wait and here the vet's words before making any tack changes or adding herbal supplements

I am probably the biggest supporter of herbal supplements on this forum, but I do not "just add them because someone says to, nor do I make up a recipe.

I have a wonderful herbal equine nutritionist in Memphis, TN that does that for me, free of charge. He has been supplying the herbs for my two metabolic horses and my horse that has mold/dust/pollen allergies for the last four years.

He also makes products for mares but again, knowing if your dealing with teeth, hormones, or metabolism (in the sense that insulin/glucose/ACTH levels are affected) are important before going any further

Hope this helps

Thanks for the info, I'm not sure how the "quote" thingy works, so please bare with me

1. Her teeth was just done today and vet thought maybe it could be some of her problem - they were severe but needed.

2. Her tongue - no idea - will have to ask some people, vet, trainer, barn ppl. About that one.

3. I thought she was always that way, maybe more nervous or spooker before - but I was newer to this then and now a lot more comfortable with the horses. So not really sure on the answer to that.

3.1 I don't understand "metabolic issues" - sorry - she is 9 yrs old Would that be a blood work thing?

Thanks again

Julie

Lol you are doing just fine without the quote thing

Great that her teeth have been looked at. Someone with a lot of experience looking a horse's mouth should be able to help with the thick tongue or low pallette. Experienced farriers generally know what they're looking at, believe it or not

My friend got the shock of her life when she looked in her long 3 yr old's mouth and saw his tongue had been nearly severed by the "trainer" the Seller had sent him to. The Seller had no idea either but my friend's also a lifelong rider and just knew something in that young horse's mouth wasn't right. She ended up calling the Myler Bit company, who spent over an hour on the phone with her, getting details. $80 later on her credit card, she had a bit on the way that would work for his very scarred tongue.

He also is one of those rare horses who had FOUR wolf teeth come in
Her vet took them out, even though they weren't causing problems. He said with tongue the way it was, he didn't want them to maybe decay in later years and surgery would be a lot worse, plus having that tongue to deal with as he gets older. Four wolf teeth is not a common thing - it could only happen to my friend
Sometimes mares can develop insulin resistance if they produce a lot of foals. IR is essentially Type II diabetes in a human. It never goes away but, as in humans can be managed in a horse. One of the signs of high insulin levels in a horse is anxiety or a higher level of anxiety than the horse used to have.

This link talks about what a mare goes thru "after the stallion walks away". Like us humans, mares-in-foal are saints

It doesn't specifically talk about insulin resistance, but it will help to understand what changes the mare's body goes thru and how IR could develop if it's in the mare's gene pool.
Eating for Two

If you can't afford to have the vet do blood tests to check her insulin level or the vet thinks that is just plain stupid (you'd be surprised at the vets that do), you can always put her on Magnesium Oxide.

Formula 707 makes a Calmer that does work. I let my regular mag ox/chromium order run out because I didn't think it did anything for my two metabolic geldings. Boy was that dumb. Both their anxiety levels went up just a tch --- nothing that anyone else would notice but I sure did - lol

Anyway, I bought the Formula 707 Calmer at the local Equine Pharmacy and I have been feeding each of them 1/4 dose twice daily and it is working.

At least with the Magnesium (there's also tryptophan in this Calmer) you would be addressing the anxiety whether it's brought on by mare hormonal issues or insulin issues.

Magnesium is good for reducing muscle stress/tightness too.
Formula 707 Equine Health Products | Nutritional Supplements for Horses

If you do buy this Calmer, I would start out with a smaller dose and work my way up to the full dose. You may not need a full dose and would just be wasting your money orrrrrr you may have a horse that needs a double dose and I really would be asking the vet to do blood work, if that's the case

Sounds like we have very similar horses! My mare is a former broodmare and when I brought her home she was very uptight; pacing the fence line, whinnying constantly. She could also be difficult to ride. I had her teeth checked and they DID need to be done which solved the riding issue. Then I put her on Mare Magic to level out those post-partum mare hormones. She is a different horse! MUCH MUCH calmer, and happier, focused yet alert when I ride her (even around the "boy" horses.) I'd highly recommend Mare Magic after of course getting her teeth checked out. Good Luck.

I agree with the other post that mentions finding the cause first , then you are in a better position to treat the symptoms. In my 13 years experience with herbal remedies for horses we have found the combination of chaste tree, chamomile and lemon balm to be very helpful with mares that are suffering from hormonal issues. The Chaste tree is a natural hormone re-balancer and the chamomile and lemon balm are nervine relaxants which work nicely together to soothe an up tight mare.
You need to find a reputable supplier so you know you are getting a good blend that is effective and you need to give the herbs a good few months trial to really get good results as they are not a quick fix but are well worth the effort.