A birds and the bees question…false rigs

[Mero]

Asking on behalf of a friend as I have no experience of rig-like behaviour. A mare has recently been introduced to a field next to a herd and she and one of the geldings are infatuated with each other (fence line between them). She is ragingly in season and he is acting similarly. Much grunting, squealing and posturing. He has has boy bits on show when near her and although not erect, there is clear fluid dropping from the tip. (He is a horse who is often dehydrated and his urine is concentrated yellow, so for it to be clear urine is a bit unusual, he has been seen to be urinating differently, going over to piles of poo and peeing a little on them). I guess my question is, is that definitely urine or can a gelding produce other…stuff?! Or could this be a sign of something entirely different like a urinary tract issue? I’ve been told he has been blood tested and is not a rig.

Question 2 is, what can you give to a wildly ‘hormonal’ gelding to help them relax around this mare?

 

[HopOnTrot]

I bought a pony who turned out to be a false rig, he slightly improved when on Regumate but in the end I sold him as he wasn't suitable to live with a mare.

 

[saalsk]

The urine on poo piles is urine being used to mark territory. Yes, they can produce fluid, clear, as it is from various glands, that won't contain semen as he has been castrated. The term rig can be difficult to define - sometimes a boy with a bodged castration, so could make a mare pregnant, sometimes a left in testicle, or testicle material, where they may or may not have the ability to get a mare in foal. Sometimes just a castrated male who knows what he wants, and can do anything from posturing, marking, to waving a 5th leg, mounting, covering and can be a nightmare to deal with, if a mare - especially a flirty one, is near by. Various supplements can help - agnus castus is one, valerian another, but I'd rather keep them separate, and not have the issue in the first place, than medicate something that could be avoided. But that is just me, and I fully understand that it is not always possible. Perhaps both the mare and gelding could both have a hormonal calming supplement, and maybe fencing to give more space, or careful use of fields at this time of year so they are not so close, in the spring ? It can be a nightmare, I hope you can sort it.

 

[Mero]

The urine on poo piles is urine being used to mark territory. Yes, they can produce fluid, clear, as it is from various glands, that won't contain semen as he has been castrated. The term rig can be difficult to define - sometimes a boy with a bodged castration, so could make a mare pregnant, sometimes a left in testicle, or testicle material, where they may or may not have the ability to get a mare in foal. Sometimes just a castrated male who knows what he wants, and can do anything from posturing, marking, to waving a 5th leg, mounting, covering and can be a nightmare to deal with, if a mare - especially a flirty one, is near by. Various supplements can help - agnus castus is one, valerian another, but I'd rather keep them separate, and not have the issue in the first place, than medicate something that could be avoided. But that is just me, and I fully understand that it is not always possible. Perhaps both the mare and gelding could both have a hormonal calming supplement, and maybe fencing to give more space, or careful use of fields at this time of year so they are not so close, in the spring ? It can be a nightmare, I hope you can sort it.

The gelding lives fairly peacefully with other mares and geldings, it seems to be that any new horse makes him quite stallion-like and then over time he settles back down to normal, so fingers crossed that with time he will do the same here.

 

[saalsk]

I do hope so - they can be such a nightmare - I know, I had one - and it was difficult to manage, fields, supplements, stables near by, and not helped by other liveries having a pro mare / pro gelding viewpoint - my poor lad was labelled a Difficult Rig, not in charge of his own mind or hormones. The other persons mare was labelled a trollope - they were both just having hormones. Fingers crossed it can be sorted - good luck