Ellietotz
Well-Known Member
The sun finally came out and thought it would be lovely to get a quick ride in after work now that it's getting dark too, I want to make the most of it before evening light disappears again for months.
Since a couple of months a go when the pigs from the farm down the lane got into the field next to ours and my mare lost her nerve which resulted in not even being able to ride her up the track going out our field and having to lead her up and down every day for a week so she learnt the pigs weren't there anymore, she has just been a nightmare with going passed this particular farm now.
I am assuming she can smell them and she hasn't gone passed there without playing up since, even when they are out of sight, normally can't get her passed pigs anyway, she will spin trying to run away and do little rears while backing up with her ears back. I now just get off to lead her passed most times while she snorts like a dragon after trying and failing to push her on. She was getting better though but now, we are back at the start.
Today, there were sheep around the farm. Straight away, she saw them, freaked out and starting pulling her usual cr*p, it's hard enough getting her passed with nothing there but when she sees something, she assumes the worst. She reared so high today that she hopped on her back feet. It was scary, infuriating and upsetting. I got off, led her passed and got back on to continue. I didn't do the whole route as I wanted to go back that way and I made her walk passed the sheep, this time she was fine.
Her spooking has just gotten worse. She was very spooky to begin with so I started feeding Dodson and Horrell Placid, after about a month, I wasn't sure it was doing anything so I bought magnesium oxide to add and continued on both. She was great after this, stopped spooking at every single cow pat, patch of mud, puddles etc. I assumed it was the mag ox and stopped the placid supplement. She was fine for a bit then went back to being an idiot again. I carried on the mag ox until I ran out and wanted to try a balancer first to see if that may help so got the progressive earth one. Been on it a week or so and she has been even worse. Not her usual ridiculous spooky but now dangerous spooky. She won't swerve at things like she used to, she stops suddenly and spins away now like really exaggerating.
I started the Dodson and Horrell placid again a couple of weeks a go but if it did work last time, it took a couple of months to really kick in.
I'm thinking I'll probably go back to just the mag ox after the balancer as well as I know it worked.
Kudos if you got this far! I needed to rant!
So what shall I do? Any ideas what it could be? The new shoot of grass? The supplements being changed?
And should I just stop going that route for a long while so she forgets?
Thank you!
Since a couple of months a go when the pigs from the farm down the lane got into the field next to ours and my mare lost her nerve which resulted in not even being able to ride her up the track going out our field and having to lead her up and down every day for a week so she learnt the pigs weren't there anymore, she has just been a nightmare with going passed this particular farm now.
I am assuming she can smell them and she hasn't gone passed there without playing up since, even when they are out of sight, normally can't get her passed pigs anyway, she will spin trying to run away and do little rears while backing up with her ears back. I now just get off to lead her passed most times while she snorts like a dragon after trying and failing to push her on. She was getting better though but now, we are back at the start.
Today, there were sheep around the farm. Straight away, she saw them, freaked out and starting pulling her usual cr*p, it's hard enough getting her passed with nothing there but when she sees something, she assumes the worst. She reared so high today that she hopped on her back feet. It was scary, infuriating and upsetting. I got off, led her passed and got back on to continue. I didn't do the whole route as I wanted to go back that way and I made her walk passed the sheep, this time she was fine.
Her spooking has just gotten worse. She was very spooky to begin with so I started feeding Dodson and Horrell Placid, after about a month, I wasn't sure it was doing anything so I bought magnesium oxide to add and continued on both. She was great after this, stopped spooking at every single cow pat, patch of mud, puddles etc. I assumed it was the mag ox and stopped the placid supplement. She was fine for a bit then went back to being an idiot again. I carried on the mag ox until I ran out and wanted to try a balancer first to see if that may help so got the progressive earth one. Been on it a week or so and she has been even worse. Not her usual ridiculous spooky but now dangerous spooky. She won't swerve at things like she used to, she stops suddenly and spins away now like really exaggerating.
I started the Dodson and Horrell placid again a couple of weeks a go but if it did work last time, it took a couple of months to really kick in.
I'm thinking I'll probably go back to just the mag ox after the balancer as well as I know it worked.
Kudos if you got this far! I needed to rant!
So what shall I do? Any ideas what it could be? The new shoot of grass? The supplements being changed?
And should I just stop going that route for a long while so she forgets?
Thank you!