Bored/ depressed veteran

L

lucythomas

Well-Known Member
Joined
19 October 2009
Messages
101
Location
aberdeen
Visit site
Any one have any ideas how i can entertain a bored/ depressed veteran who is stabled at night? Shes too highly strung for stable toys and theres plenty of things to look at but does seem to sink into a depression when stabled in winter. Shes only been in a month! HELP!
 
Can she see through to any other horses to keep her company?

Have you tried a stable mirror to keep her amused? Never used one myself, but hear they work for some horses
smile.gif


Does she have to be stabled, or can she be left out with access to shelter and be kept warm/fed?
smile.gif
 
Is it only when she is stabled that she is depressed? If so, can you keep her out 24/7 or ensure she can see and touch other horses when stabled, perhaps making a window with grill between stables? Another alternative is to have the stable door open onto an enclosed area of yard she can wander around to stop her feeling claustrophobic.

Obviously, you also need to make sure she has as much hay or haylage as she can eat (unless obese) and/or a tub of hay replacer if she has problems with her teeth.
 
shes in an american barn which is square & she can see about 15 other horses. SHe has a large container of hay replacer & horslyx that keep her amused for a while. She has an armful of hay that she chews n spits out but she does tend to ignore her hay & stand at the back of stable. Mirror might help. Any supplements any one can think of that might help?
 
What sort of hay replacer do you use? A chaff type or a mash type? I'm just wondering that if she spits hay out her teeth are pretty knackered and she might prefer being out so she can eat nice, soft juicy grass. If she can't stay out, then if she has a chaff type hay replacer which might be hard work for her, then you could try swapping it for soaked grass nuts which she can eat more easily and make her more contented.
 
i'd definitely try a mirror, most horses really appreciate them.
i'd try her on a bucketful of wetted/soaked readigrass or graze-on, see if that goes down better than the hay, i'd be concerned if she's spitting it out after chewing. takes a long time for them to eat too.
otherwise - hang up pillows so they bump her back, some horses like nudging and rubbing against them. you can hang up big strong plastic bottles too (minus caps), she might drive you nuts banging them around though!
 
Echo the Readigrass/Graze On suggestion. My veteran has no teeth problems, and can manage haylage, but she LOVES her Graze On.

Is this something which has developed as she's got older? Only mine absolutely hates being able to see other horses when she's in her stable. And I mean hates it! She actually attacks the others through the bars. We're now in a conventional stable, so don't have this problem, but I used to have to hang up rugs and saddle cloths so she couldn't see the others. Is it possible your mare is feeling claustrophobic/threatened because she can't get away from the others? And she's becoming withdrawn/depressed because of that? Mine used to tolerate it, but as she got older, she wanted her space more.
 
Forgot to add, my friend has a very elderly donkey that seem depressed, but it turned out she was just hungry as her teeth had deteriorated. Friend was giving big feeds of chaff type feed but she took ages to eat it. Swapped to a soaked cube instead and she hoovered it all up and is now much brighter. I think they can get frustrated and depressed when they are hungry but struggle to eat the food placed in front of them.
 
Is there a reason she cant be out? If possible I'd definately leave her out if you can.

Otherwise, is she ridden still? One of my veterans gets really depressed unless I ride him or just take him out for a stroll which then keeps him happy for a few days! Sounds weird, but it just seems to perk him right up.
 
Yes still ridden! Turns into bambi! Shes on Just Grass which she hoovers up. she is much happier out but hasnt wintered out in the past ten years due to her age and the harsh winters living on the NE coast of scotland. might also give the soaked grass nuts a try thou!!

thanks everyone!!!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top