Nervous Horse

[TS]

I have a 9yr old cob mare, she is a very kind & loving horse but is very nervous when going out either alone or in company, one day she will be ok the next disasterous. Can anyone suggest any supplements or anything to give her to calm her down a bit and help her relax?

[ros]

Hi

It might be helpful if you could give us a bit more background. How long have you had your mare; does her nervousness make you nervous as well; do you know anything about her background - what sort of people rode her previously, did she do much hacking etc. - how much turnout does she get? Any little bits of information you have could be useful.

In general I think some horses are naturally more spooky than others; whether they get better or worse depends on how their riders react when they spook or get het up; most horses will get better if they have confidence in their rider and if their rider handles difficult situations calmly and patiently, but without letting them "opt out". There are, of course, exceptions to the rules, but I think they're few and far between, and I also think most problems only get out of hand because such horses aren't ridden correctly.

[ros]

PS (sorry!) - how much feed, if any, does she get, and if she's bad one day but not the next, can you think of any common factors on the day's she's bad, or is it totally unpredictable?

[TS]

I've had her about 6 months, she use to do speed classes but I believe hacked out aswell quite a bit, she was very wound up when I first had her but has relaxed alot, previous to that she was quite badly treated I think - she came from Ireland where she was a brood mare. She is kept out all the time and at the moment isn't getting any additional feeds as the grass is so good. No there doesn't seem to be any reason as to why on one day she is good and the next she isn't. She isn't a nasty horse at all and wouldn't buck or rear or any thing to hurt anyone but she is just nervous of anything near her - leaves, twigs, holes, mud etc etc you name it she'll shy at it!! I wondered if there are any herbs or anything that may help her.

[LouiseS]

Hi

I have a very nervous horse rather similiar to yours - unfortunately he has been known to rear and his history had become a bit 'chequered' to say the least. This, I think, was just that his stress levels rose very high when he was confronted with what he considered a scary situation and people tried to force him through it. I have had occasions where he stresses up so much that I can feel his heart pounding and he breaks out in a sweat.

When he came to me he had a tub of Steady Up and was having very little feed. He is now ridden regularly, has appropriate amounts of hard feed and no supplements - I didn't really find it of benefit - to be honest it didn't seem to make any difference.

When we are out (and we ride most of the time on our own) he does shy a lot, I try to watch out for likely problems but otherwise I just live with it. I feel the main thing is that I keep him listening to me, providing his ears are active I can usually talk him through most dramas however if he really gets in a state I will get off and lead him rather than have him stand up - it is not worth it and I feel it is not right to force him as he does get genuinely scared.

At the end of the day I think you just have to accept the character but try to increase their confiedence where possible.

Good luck

Louise

[Outrider]

I can't think of any supplements or herbs that can calm a horse. If you were feeding her sweet feed, I would say switch to plain oats. But since she is on grass, that's out. Some horses are more nervous than others as ros said. It may be that she is a little barn sour as well, with her experience as a brood mare and mistreatment in the past. I would try ponying her with another horse for a while. Sometimes, other horses can have a calming effect on a nervous one. Other than that, I would suggest constantly talking to her in a low, soothing voice throughout your ride, or singing to her. You would be surprised what this can do for a horse. It takes their mind off of their surroundings and onto you. Good luck and Happy Trails!

[floppy]

how about taking your horse for walks?
without tack. just a head collar and lead rope or maybe a bridle/lunging cavessno with one of those lunging clips that goes under the horse mouth and clips either side of the bit...?
Do soem groudwork and gain your horses confidence form groudna dn do some TTEAM with her and take her for walks!gain yrou hroses trust from the ground and then tackl the scary objects from riding her..
just a suggestion

[ros]

You could maybe try Bach Flower Remedies, either Rescue Remedy (4 drops on something like a bit of apple or a sugar lump a couple of times just before you ride) or a more specific remedy like Mimulus or Rock Rose (2 drops at least four times a day over a period of one or two weeks). It may or may not work - I know a lot of folk who swear by the old Rescue Remedy - but a bottle isn't very expensive, it's easily available from Boots or most health shops, and if you're like me you'll try anything once!

As Louise says, it's useless to try and force a nervous horse past something; I know some people say a horse must carry you past anything, and they refuse to get off in such situations, but what the hell! The main thing is you don't make an issue of it or have a fight, and the more casual YOU are about these scary things, the less notice your horse will take of them. I don't usually make a big fuss of a horse (lots of talking and patting and such like) because that can sometimes make them think there's really something to be scared of, but casual chit chat is fine!

[floppy]

i think you shoudl also get hold of the book TTEEAM
i have read snipplets of it and it is actually very good and gives you ways of tackling neverous horses etc.
but like ehm ros said you could try that bach remedies...
i picked up a few leaflets once becuase we tried it on our dog that is scared of thunder storms. IT worked but since then the bottle emptied and the vet gave us tranquilizer paste

[katyptaty]

Hi

if your problem DOES stem from natural nervousness - i have asked a homeopathic friend of mine who says that lavendar is a good calmer as well as a homeopathic remedy called lycopodium which may not actually be available 'over the counter'. Also many people she knows swear by Hilton Herbs who do a good range - maybe try these.

(but i would also advocate walking from the ground as mentioned before as well as making sure you are completely relaxed in the bottom when approaching potential hazards - take a conscious effort to evaluate how your body changes in these circumstances to see if you are in some way giving her signals that things are to be worried about)

good luck!

kate

[floppy]

i thnk you need to do alot of ground work (im repeating myself i know :D)
and maybe start leavign thigns around to get the horse use to them..
for e.g the horse i ride was pertrified of flapping plastic so the owner use to leave some flapping plastic int he field next to my horse and then eventually left a piece here and there aroudn the yard and actually attached to the fence of the field.
tere are lots of things awells as supplement syou can do/use to ge tyour horse more braver. TTEAM, parrelli etc.