a warning....for gelding owners :(

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stormox

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I have seen posts on here about 2 geldings who lived together or turned out together, one always coming in with 'love bites' as I saw it described on a recent post. Many others replied 'its a boy thing' or 'my 2 boys are like that'. I cant remember if I replied 'yes mine do that too' or just thought it.
I had a mild mannered TB gelding (6), and a bossy ISH (18). who had lived together for the past 18 months. They would graze with their noses touching 90% of the time,then the ISH would suddenly start chasing and biting the TB, playfully but enough to mark him. I always turned the TB out in a rug, to protect him.
Thursday evening I went to get them in as usual (theyr stabled at night) and found the ISH with his tibia sticking through the skin above the knee,totally shattered.When I took the TBs rug off he had a bite on his loins. Not hard to guess what happened.
I am just posting this to warn people of the consequences of what can seem innocent playfulness.
 
So sorry stormox - did you loose him? I hate it when people think the geldings "play" is cute. Not only are the rugs ripped constantly but horses do get hurt. Difficult to stop in some circumstances of course. I have standing instructions for our yard to bring my pair in if they are getting rough. I don't call it play either - they are scrapping. So sorry for you.
 
Oh yes, he was put down immediately. I knew as I walked across the field that the leg had no stability, and when I got close I could see about an inch of the fractured bone sticking through.
The ISH would chase the TB for a few minutes then all would return to normal peace. As the TB always ran away I thought they had sorted their 'pecking order'...... it was sort of rough 'colty' play from the ISH.
 
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So very sorry, and second how brave it was for you to post a warning for others when you're going through such a horrible time.
 
So sorry. What an awful thing to happen. Thank you for warning others. I have a policy now that if any horse is marked, they are separated. Play doesn't draw blood. The youngsters play together at my yard and it can look quite rough but never so much as a scratch on either of them. Horses know how to be gentle. If fur is pulled out or blood, then it is not play.

ETA: It is not just geldings. Mares too.

OP, it is not your fault. I lost a gelding under similar circumstances due to a bully in the herd of geldings (was at livery so had no choice). He was bitten to pieces and then sadly kicked and broke his hock. The bully had been removed and put in with the mares but then was returned without me being told because he was mounting the mares. That day he killed my boy.
 
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I am sorry for your loss, it must have been a dreadful experience to walk across the field almost certain already of what you would find.
We all have to make judgements every day about what to do with our hroses and it is always a balance between keeping them 'safe' and allowing them to ilive as natural a life as possible in a domesticated set-up, so please don't blame yourself for what happened.
We keep mares, without shoes atm and even then there are 2 who can't be kept together because they fight and neither will back down.
I know of 2 horses which died in field accidents when on their own, so it just goes to show that no matter what you do, horses will be horses
 
Sad to read this, and thanks for sharing your story. My gelding plays with another and I'm a bit wary about it, having been thinking about trying to limit their time out together, this has made my mind up.
 
So sorry for your loss, Stormox.

It happened to one of my work charges. A pair of geldings, who had been turned out happily together for many years. One kicked the other so savagely in the sheath that the damage was beyond repair. I've had to break up a different gelding fight in the field before too and these were a pair who had what appeared to be 'playful tussles' in the past but weren't turned out together again after being caught boxing each other with intent on that occasion.

Please don't blame yourself. I know a lot of horses now who 'play' and it only takes that one misplaced kick. It could happen to any of us or ours and as with the first geldings I mentioned above, sometimes without any warning at all.
 
So sorry to hear that. I have two geldings here. One is sold but was separated off for extra feeding before he goes as he lost weight over winter. As he recovered quickly, I popped him back with the mixed herd of 8 youngsters, the eldest being a 6yo mare and the youngest a yearling.

Almost as soon as I had put the gelding back, a scrap started with another gelding in the same peer group. I watched for a while and decided that the sparring was just too serious to be allow to continue. The one who had been on extra rations was removed and peace restored. Glad to have confirmation that I did the right thing. I noticed this morning that the one that had remaimed with the herd had several healed bites on him, so presumably they had been scrapping before. I shall now watch them carefully.

It did occur to me that one of the geldings has been paired up with the 6yo mare and she might be in season. As they are geldings, I didn't pay much attention, but I wonder if that is what sparked off the aggression?
 
I think that horses turned out together will always play, usually in fun and no one gets hurt it's part of their nature, I am just so sorry for you and your horse, this is a truly unfortunate incident and no one is at fault
 
I am so sorry for your loss. It is possible that the kick that caused the break wasn't that aggressive. I had an elderly mare here that broke her leg slipping in the snow. The vet said old horses can get brittle bones as they get older like we can and it then doesn't take much to cause a broken bone.
 
vanrim said:
I am so sorry for your loss. It is possible that the kick that caused the break wasn't that aggressive. I had an elderly mare here that broke her leg slipping in the snow. The vet said old horses can get brittle bones as they get older like we can and it then doesn't take much to cause a broken bone.
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Part of the problem is that horses don't know that their shoes are deadly weapons. They kick in a reasonably measured manner knowing roughly how much damage an unshod hoof will do to a companion and the shoe does far more damage than intended. Of course they know exactly how hard they are biting, so if they are leaving bite marks, they mean it!
 
I have just the two barefoot geldings, who are turned out together 24/7. The older one (about 20) is very dominant. The younger is a bit of a wind up merchant. Usually they are peaceful, sometimes they play and charge around, but the younger one sometimes has bite marks. He's not a kicker- he's also much faster than the older one - so I don't worry about retaliation, but I do worry about slices out of his back. He heals amazingly quickly but I have missed the odd ride due to scrapes innthe saddle area. Blinking horses. Sorry for your loss OP
 
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