Anyone tried the stuff you rub on your hands to calm horses as seen in H&H mag?

[Birker2020]

As above title really.

I read an advert in Horse & Hound recently about a woman rescuing an ex racehorse. Within a day she'd rubbed her hands with this massage oil stuff and it was meant to calm her horse and it worked. The horses rug flew up over its ears as the wind caught it as she was doing it up and it didn't move a muscle, and it was really calm being caught and tacked up.

Has anyone tried it, I can't think what it's called? Is it a load of mumbo jumbo - not this particular oil but any kind of oil (don't want to get done for deflamation of character or anything else!)

Feel free to PM me if necessary.

My horse is very spooky and its really beginning to grind me down. I've just started him (day three today) on 99.99% pure magnesium powder to see if this makes a difference but I'm at the end of my tether with my patience level with him. He's been spooky for the entire seven years I've owned him, and spooks at bird pooh on the floor, a plant in the wind, a log in the verge, fillers in the corner of an indoor arena, grass that's a different colour from the other grass on the XC course, the list is endless. Last week he was spooking at my friends wheel clamp on her trailer despite it being right outside his field and him walking past it twice a day for the last six months! HELP WANTED!!!!

Basically I won't give up and will continue riding him on the roads on hacks I feel he can cope with and won't put myself or him in danger. But I would appreciate a bit of a quite life at the end of the day.

 

[horseless jorge!]

Well, good on you for persevering but after seven months with a spooky horse and I'd be looking at calling in someone else, never mind seven years!!

I'm not sure what the oil might be, but I doubt it works just being on her hands (unless it's a special hand activated smelling sedative!! )

Have you ever had someone come look at him? Such as a trainer who specialises in spookier horses?

 

[Miss L Toe]

My boy spooked a lot when I moved him to a busy yard, but now he is at a quiet place he is OK, I have his eyes checked every year, so far nothing out of the ordinary.
I would try to get another calm, experienced, instructor type person to ride him, I suspect you are getting a bit uptight with him, who could blame you!

 

[Fauvea]

Don't know about the oil but you could have him checked for stomach ulcers.

 

[SusannaF]

I've got an old horseman's recipe here:

http://susannaforrest.wordpress.com/2010/10/19/heavy-horse-week-opium-for-shires/

(although you probably don't need to add the opium )

 

[PooJay]

If it's a pure Mag powder will it absorb properly? Doesn't it have to be blended with Calcium to absorb into the cells as required?

Magnesium isn't the only mineral that when horses are deficient in, cause spookiness. I think Potassium does the same. confused

I know i've experimented a lot with my mare as i had a very similar problem. Mag worked brilliantly for 6 months but then i had a more subtle issue, couldn't quite put my finger on what it was but i knew she was less inclined to work well, constantly evading etc. I tried a very good electrolyte supplement on advice from trinity and my mare is so chilled that sometimes i think someone's swapped her.

You could try someone like trinity consultants for advice or i've heard silver lining herbs are great at advice as well but a lot cheaper (haven't used them myself)

Definitely worth talking through her behaviour/symptoms/general way of being with someone who may be able to help.

Ditto the ulcer suggestion too.

 

[irishdraft]

The stuff you are thinking of is called Pax, i read the same advert. I have 2 very spooky horses one I have had for seven years also, I think its become a habit with her but now have a 4 year old who is also spooky and anxious so am going to try the magnesieum with him, see how it goes.

 

[tazzle]

Has anyone tried it, I can't think what it's called? Is it a load of mumbo jumbo - not this particular oil but any kind of oil (don't want to get done for deflamation of character or anything else!)

I have not seen or heard of the lotions you speak of but I use aromatic oils generally and they certainly helped my hormonal mare .

 

[Tammytoo]

www.paxhorse.co.uk is the website, I think. It's an old horseman's aromatherapy type of thing, which has a calming effect of horses. It works for some, not for others. It's not very expensive so might be worth a try.

 

[onemoretime]

Quite hinestly I have tried 2 bottles of Pax and found it useless. Have you tried a calmer such as Global Herbs Supa Calm. Just a thought.

 

[Sayra]

I tried Pax and my pony wouldn't come anywhere near me! The other horses in the field were also snorting at me and unsure of the smell, it might work for some horses though.