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Concerned about my horse, looking for some input.

3K views 23 replies 11 participants last post by  Magic Melly 
#1 ·
Hi there my name is Mel, im 28 yrs old and live in British Columbia, Canada. I have had my half Arabian gelding since he was born, he is currently 11 years old. He has lived for the past 9 years on my parents farm. He had a few different companions through out the years but lived alone for approx 6-9 months before the move. Due to unforeseen events they had to move. I moved my horse to a boarding barn with 12 other horses. My horse went from a 5 acre grass paddock into a tiny turnout... The person who owned the barn had their horses down on grass fields while mine was up alone in dirt. They dont turnout any horses together, they dont like herd bound animals. His behaviour became so neurotic. He was constantly calling, pacing the fence, even running himself sweaty. It got to the point that he had dropped about 100 lbs. I moved him again after about 1 month to a different boarding stable with larger grass fields, where he gets turned out with other horses (which he loves). He seemed to be settling in well and i was relieved. Now after a couple weeks he is pacing the fence line, calling again, while turned out with another horse. So again i find myself worried sick... This is a horse who has been mr mellow since he was born. He loves people and has a dog like personality, he has never been an "uppity" horse. Any input or feedback on this extreme change would be so appreciated. If any other info is needed let me know. I just dont know what to do. He hasnt put weight back on and this extreme behaviour change has me so concerned, this is not my horse! Is there anything i can do to help stop this neurotic behaviour before it gets to bad? Thanks so much for any help.
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#3 ·
i changed him from a cob type feed to just a pellet and he gets a grass local type hay and a bit of alfalfa, which he has always been fed. He gets turned out on about an acre and 1/2 with one other horse, every morning and only in a smaller turn out off stall throughout night.
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#4 ·
No such thing as "just a pellet"- they can be very healthy or just as high in sugar as wet COB. Do you know the NSC content of the one you're feeding? How much is being fed daily?
 
#5 ·
I never said just a pellet i said he is on an all purpose pellet, standard horse pellets... my problem is 100% NOT due to his feed... He is 11 and been fed the same food for his ENTIRE life... It is a neurotic stress type behaviour, i believe, just dont know what to do to curb it before he is a total basketcase.
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#6 ·
Your last post says, "just a pellet." Do you know if the feed has molasses in it? You say he was on COB then switch to a pellet, but then say he's been fed the same feed his entire life? I'm just a bit confused. Who does he get turned out with? Is it the same horse he's stalled next to at night? He could prefer his stall buddy to his pasture buddy if they are different horses.
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#7 ·
yeah what kayella said, that confused me too. I agree with her on the preference to another horse thing, he might be calling to his best friend.
 
#8 ·
Even the most mellow horse can form an attachment to another horse and only want to be with that one horse. You might find out which horse he's being turned out with and if it is always the same or not. I have a mare that is very attached to a young filly that is not hers. She flips just like a mama would if we get that filly where she can't see it.
 
#9 ·
It could be a feed issue, yes. You said yourself that you recently switched her feed and as others have said a 'pellet' can mean a lot of things. Even the same type of general pellet from different brands can have different levels of sugars, etc. that can drastically affect a horse. So what's the brand of your feed?

You should hope it's something to do with her feed, then it's fairly easy to correct.
 
#10 ·
Ok what i meant was this, clearly there is a communication issue... He was fed Cob his entire life, i have switched him to a blander food, the pellets are not high calorie or anything. I wish the issues where food related, but i know that they are not it... He has been moved twice recently as i stated above... He cant be attached to the other horses as he has only been at this barn for 2 weeks... As i previously stated the behaviour changed began with the initial move and got so bad i had to move him yet again... He is turned out with his stall mate... Its horrible to see him this way, but i dont know what to do to make the stress easier for him or help him settle better. And like i said his behaviour is getting more and more neurotic since moving him from his lifetime home.
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#12 ·
He cant be attached to the other horses as he has only been at this barn for 2 weeks... Posted via Mobile Device

heh heh. As someone who has a horse that moves frequently, and thus gets herdbound sometimes, a horse CAN and WILL get herdbound or buddy sour in a matter of days. Believe me, I have experienced this plenty of times. If your horse likes his stall buddy more he will definitely throw a fit if he is pastured with someone else.

I'm not sure what else it would be, honestly. I don't see a reason for a horse to act out like that, save for he's upset - calling out and pacing the fenceline says to me he is trying to get to someone or something not in his pasture. Can he see his stall buddy from his pasture at all?
 
#11 ·
If you think it is neurological, I would suggest getting a vet out to do some tests on him, including a blood panel to see if he's missing a vital mineral or vitamin. Sometimes it takes just a slight difference to cause a big change.
 
#13 ·
Thanks... Believe me, i have been going over it in my head for days... And honestly all i can come up with is that he just cant handle the changes in his life.. But what to do about it is whats causing me grief... None of it adds up, i have owned him since birth, when i say his behaviour has done a 180 i mean it... Hes turned out with his stall mate but doesnt seem to want anything to do with him... The other horse will be across the field grazing and mine just paces the fence line, calling... Who or what he is calling for baffles me, as he lived alone for the past 9 months... We are talking about a horse that for the past 11 years has been the most mellow laid back attitude you could ever dream for in a horse, and honestly its pretty upsetting to see this kind of behaviour. It just isnt adding up, He is clearly displaying signs of being stressed and rather then settling in over time, the behaviour is simply escalating, and i fear for his wellbeing, on a long term basis.
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#14 ·
He could indeed not know how to handle the changes - Clementine had a major crisis when I first moved her too. She did get over it, though, after a bit of time.

If he was all by himself for so long, he may just be longing for the herd. Sure he's got one friend, but he can see all the others down there, and he's lonely. Maybe two isn't enough herd for him, and he sees what he's been missing for so many months.

If you're that concerned about it get a vet out and get him checked out.
 
#15 ·
Welcome to the forum, I am from BC too, 100 Mile House. Your horse sounds herd bound and couldn't handle the changes from a place he lived his entire life to moving around. He needs something else to keep his mind occupied. He needs regular work with other things to think about. Haul him to different places for rides, lessons, clinics. Ride him with different horses, set up a trail course and get his mind on other things. He has too much free brain space to wallow in his sense of loss for his buddy and his old security of old home, fill his brain with other exciting things. Good luck.
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#16 ·
He may very well have a mineral deficiency. Moving pastures= different soil content. A new feed, possibly new hay. He could have a magnesium deficiency, which can make a horse go nuts. It could definitely explain the sudden a attitude change.
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#17 ·
Thank you all for your thoughts, its appreciated.. Its just so unnerving and upsetting to see him so blatently unhappy, and not getting better over time... I suppose he has gone from a very low sensory environment to a much busier place with a lot going on... I just hope he adjusts soon... We dont have a vet readily available where we live so if on the next visit to my town my horse hasnt improved then i will get him vetted... Any one familiar with any kind of herbal remedy or something i could maybe give to calm him? i dont want to drug him or anything like that and im not at all familiar with herbal remedies for horses or if they even exist and or work but I hate seeing him a nervous wreck and if i can help make the changes on him easier then i would like to.. Plus i dont think the owner of the farm is appreciating him digging a trench in her nice field from his constant fence pacing and other boarders are bothered by his behaviour. Thanks again :)
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#19 ·
Try 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar on his grain. I have seen this stuff work wonders before. Start out with a little bit and make sure the fumes dissipate before feeding it. Gradually increase it until he develops a taste for it, once they do, they love it. Worth a try and it's cheap, give it 2 weeks to work.
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#20 ·
I have found that many horses are not necessarily herd bound, but home bound. Some will try to escape by any means to get back to the place they called home previously. Some will run themselves ragged over a change.

Try to get him tired. Work him as much as possible. If there is someone you trust at the new place, maybe they could ride/work him, on days you cannot get there. Ride him away from the new place as often as possible, taking him obviously back to his new home. Have a few treats for him each time he comes home. Hopefully, he will look upon it as 'his' place soon.

There are some herbal remedies you can give to calm him down a bit. Do a google search.

And it could be that he's just happy to see others, after being along for so long.

Can't think of anything else. Sorry.

Lizzie
 
#21 ·
If this horse is 100 lbs underweight, I do not think that working him hard is a good idea.


Magic Melly- if your horse has been alone for the majority of his life, he may also be suffering from sensory overload and the inability to communicate with his kind. He may be excited to see others of his kind, but he may not know how to interact correctly with them and so he is fretting. This is sort of what our TB filly is going through. She's had a tough life and needed to be quarantined for a few months due to a virus, then a bad injury, and I don't think she had any companions at her old home. She grew up virtually alone, with no communication, no friends (she was also an orphan, and missed the vital teachings that a mother gives it's foal). So when I started trying to introduce her to other horses, she'd be over the moon with excitement, whinnying to them, dancing, pacing, etc., but as soon as she got to where they were, she had no ide what to do. She'd just stand there, eyeball them for a few minutes, and walk away dejectedly when they chased her away (due to her lack of ability to 'talk' to them) or ignored her, and start focusing on a new horse in another place that she could see, and start calling to them, pacing, fretting, etc.

Your horse's behavior reminds me of her's though maybe a little more extreme due to whatever personality differences, environment differences, etc that they may have. With our filly, we've just tried to introduce her slowly to being with other horses of her kind. We're starting with a docile 'everyone is my best friend' type mare, and slowly introducing her to more dominant, demanding herd members. It overwhelms her sometimes and she'll 'freeze up' and sort of zone out to ignore them, but she is slowly learning to exist with other horses.

This, ofcourse, may not have anything to do with your gelding, but I figured it was worth sharing just in case he might have similar problems. Think of it as him being a socially awkward kid that needs some help adjusting and learning to communicate. If that IS his problem, moving him constantly, or switching his herd mates up won't really help solve the problem. He needs to feel comfortable in his 'home' (HIS pasture or a neutral grounds, don't bring him into another horse's field and expect him to fit right in) and have others introduced to him slowly.

Of course that's all assuming he was alone when he lived with you at his old home. If he grew up in a herd, this is very unlikely to be his problem.
 
#22 ·
At his old home, was there a particular type of bedding ? a dog or cat that was his buddy ? Endiku has a good point, about not knowing how to become part of a herd. Maybe another horse would help, or goat etc. I would be careful adding minerals etc to his diet,without a blood test. Also be careful of herbal remedies as mixing certain herbs together can cause toxicity.
Maybe you should add some cob back to his diet , since he was on it prior to the move, and this made to many changes for him to mentally handle.
 
#23 ·
I don't recommend working the horse hard but I recommend working the horse mentally. You have to get this horse's mind on other things to get his body back, as with ALL horses. I like to take the approach of working them smarter rather than harder, a method that hasn't failed me yet!
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#24 ·
Thank you all for your insight... *AN UPDATE* ... Hes put back on some weight, some days he acts like his old mellow laidback self, then the next day, Hes back pacing the fence line calling.. Still not interacting with the other gelding he is turned out with... I lunged him a few days ago and after a little while he was responding well and focusing on me and what we were doing. I thought i had had a break through... But yesterday the ferrier came and we could barely control him under halter, until the ferrier had had enough of his behaviour and smacked him, only then did he calm down and stand like he used too.. We have used the same ferrier for the past 10 yrs so basically Kassanovas entire life. When asked what he thought of the horses behaviour he simply said he saw a thoroughbred 1 time take an entire year to settle after it was moved. I sincerely hope that isnt the case with my horse... You know im starting to wonder if he is proud cut?? I mean i watched the vet geld him as a 2yr old... I had two paint mares that he was stalled and pastured with, never once even when they went in to heat did he display any signs of this behaviour.. And before the mares as a stud colt he lived with a gelding in the same field and after the mares he again lived with geldings. At this new place however he is stalled and put to pasture with another gelding and the mares are in the next field over.. Hes acting studdy, which in 11 years i have never seen him exhibit these behaviours... Like this is madness, like someone took a clone horse and is literally swapping them, complete different horse. I just dont know what to do. Maybe im grasping at straws but im at my wits end, wondering if i am going to have sell my life long friend.
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