Advice needed for erratic horse!

[EmmaR]

Hey! I’m new on here but looking for some advice if any one has any constructive feedback!
The past couple of months I have had a few issues with my gelding he is 6year old thoroughbred ex racer he last raced march 2010 and I have had him since October he was lovely when I brought him very laid back extremely sweet natured and not your typical ex racing thoroughbred at all then he fell ill he got a bacterial infection in the lower gut which was treated and recovered from fine as it was only minor, I then moved him yards to a stables that was closer to my home but they turn all horses out together where as where I had him before he was on his own and never had any problems when I put him out with a herd of horses he became very playful and instead of grazing would spend all day playing and running around then coming in extremely hungry! From then on his behaviour has got increasingly erratic he almost seems like he’s on drugs and cant control himself he leaps around canters on the spot when leading him to and from the field which he never used to do and when riding him does the same and is so busy throwing himself around leaping all over the place looses his balance and nearly falls on top of me he has also become quite aggressive putting his ears back at me and trying to bite me whilst grooming, tacking up and changing rugs which is totally not him he has just totally changed character and is getting more and more harder to handle I have tried the softly softly approach and he just doesn’t seem to be able to get out of his trance to listen to me and I’ve tried being a bit more hands on and telling him off which reverts to him going even more crazy thinking I’m gonna beat him up which I have never done!!
I have since moved yards again back to the yard where I first had him when he seemed settled he started off much better but has since gone back to the irrational behaviour he seems to panic more than anything. Any ideas I have spoke to a nutritionist about his diet and he is on a well balanced not heating diet and he is on a calmer.
Thanks for your time!!! Oh and sorry about such a long post had to fit it all in!!
Emma x

 

[paddi22]

I had/have the exact same problem as you, my lads an exracer as well. moved yards and in the old yard my lad was very clingy and based around me. In the new yard he is in massive fields with a herd, which he absolutely loves, but it has made him mental! he is like a hyper child at the moment.

I think its a combo of loving his field friends and feeling the spring grass and sun come out.

At the moment i have a broken arm, but i am expecting now to have issues with him having seperation anxiety which i hadnt really had before. at the moment i'm increasing his turnout as if hes happy there it can't be a bad thing and loves it so much.

as regards the bolsyness when leading, i know exactly what you mean, my lad was the same and when i scold him he almost overreacts as if he's scared. before i broke my arm i had done tons of ground work and that helped a lot. i also freeschool and do join up before i ride, so that psychologically he feels less dominant when i go to ride

i'd be interested to see what other advice people give, as i know these issues are coming up for me now.

 

[EmmaR]

At least i'm not the only one experiencing it then!!
I had the excact same thing at the old yard he didnt leave my side was very clingy and wanted to be with me all the time now since he's been out in a herd its the complete opposite doesnt want to know me one bit!
Excactly what i found absolutely loved being out with lots of horses couldnt get enough of it but has blown his brains i think now i cant get any sense out of him! A way i have looked at it is racers dont really get a childhood as there broken and raced from about 2 when they would usually be in a field messing around being a baby where as they didnt get that cause they had a job to do and now we've put them out with a load of horses its almost as if there re living there childhood if you know what i mean and gone back to being a baby.
Mine was getting so bad i had to move him again he was coming in battered and bruised where he wanted to play but the others didnt so would beat him up poor lad didnt get the hint and would carry on!!
Yea thats what my mine does i only have to raise my voice and he soooo over reacts like i'm going to beat him up bless him!
Think i'm gonna have to go back to loads of groundwork with him to build a bit more of a bond again as we seem to of lost it, its a shame cause he was going so well!!
He looks to me like a drug addict and just cant control his body!!

 

[Booboos]

As you say it's probably the herd that has blown his brains, but just in case some of his symptoms sound a bit like ulcers, so might be worth asking your vet about that.

 

[Orangehorse]

BHS magazine this month has an article about Ulcers. Quote "Estimated 100% of TB racehores affected" Also "once a horse has developed gastric ulcers they are likely to hang around for years, flaring up when one of the four conditions above takes hold, often quite dramatically altering the horse's behaviour and performance."

Four conditions being stress, not trickle feeding, training - cantering on an empty stomach, and feeding "unnatural" feeds. It is a good article, I was astonished to see so many different sorts of horses being subject to ulcers in all disciplines.

 

[Nari]

I thought of ulcers too. One of mine had them & some of the behaviour you describe sounds very familiar, if I were you I'd get him scoped asap.

 

[EmmaR]

Thanks so much I'm ringing my vet first thing in the morning as he was at his worst today was working really well then suddenly turned in a split second and went mental couldn't get any sense out of him he was chomping at the bit throwing his head arround and acting erratically nothing I could do to calm him down and was still like it when I put him to bed was running around his stable snatching his food and eating like he hasn't eaten in weeks when he had been out grazing all day really not himself so gonna get him checked out. Thanks again everyone Xx

 

[paddi22]

i know its alwasy said but have you had his teeth checked. i had my lad checked and his teeth were in a complete state.

 

[EmmaR]

Yea had his teeth checked when i got him they weren't great and said to have them done again in 6 months which will be next month so might get them done a month early just in case. Need to eliminate as much as possible!