Box rest, what are you thoughts

[doublebusy]

Hi

My horse has to go on a months box rest.

I feel really guilty leaving him in when the other 2 horses are living out 24/7

He doesn't look stressed, he laid down last night, ate all his feed and hay.

I put the radio on this morning, groomed him and hand grazed, will do the same tonight, he will have the chickens are wandering around during the day also.

Im even thinking of getting a window put in the back of the stable so he can see the horses in the fields, or am I worrying over nothing if he is not bothered?

If you have been in this position would love to know how your horse coped please

TIA

 

[be positive]

Honestly I think you are over thinking it, if he is relaxed, resting, eating and showing no signs of being stressed leave him be and be thankful he is so sensible, he may be worse if he can see the others and not be with them so I wouldn't change anything, most of mine are relatively happy to spend time in alone and I tend to do so once in a while just in case they ever need to stay in as too many horses are not accepting of being stabled and it can cause huge issues if ever they have to be.
4 weeks will soon pass especially if he remains so chilled.

 

[doublebusy]

Honestly I think you are over thinking it, if he is relaxed, resting, eating and showing no signs of being stressed leave him be and be thankful he is so sensible, he may be worse if he can see the others and not be with them so I wouldn't change anything, most of mine are relatively happy to spend time in alone and I tend to do so once in a while just in case they ever need to stay in as too many horses are not accepting of being stabled and it can cause huge issues if ever they have to be.
4 weeks will soon pass especially if he remains so chilled.

Many thanks that's nice to know, not being in this position before, I kept waking up last night worrying.

 

[OlderNotWiser]

Be able to hand graze should make a huge difference. My gelding did 6 months box rest after a tendon injury. As long as he got his grazing he was fine, the days when the weather was awful or the grooms didn’t have time were the days he stressed. I know it feels horrible but they do cope.

 

[doublebusy]

Be able to hand graze should make a huge difference. My gelding did 6 months box rest after a tendon injury. As long as he got his grazing he was fine, the days when the weather was awful or the grooms didn’t have time were the days he stressed. I know it feels horrible but they do cope.

Many thanks for replying, I will hand graze him as often as I can, unfortunately I work full time, so can only be twice a day during the week, he will certainly be getting as much attention that I can give him.

He has always liked his stable and not fussed with the other horses, so actually may prefer it.

 

[Hormonal Filly]

Don't worry, mine was in for 5 weeks on his own. Usually no sight of other horses and he was chilled a cucumber! He is quite nutty but accepted it so well.

Don't stress

 

[Pinkvboots]

A month is nothing at least his happy in on his own that in itself makes it so much easier, I have 2 at home one will stay in on his own no problem the other one has a melt down so has to be sedated everyday!

 

[hopscotch bandit]

Hi

My horse has to go on a months box rest.

I feel really guilty leaving him in when the other 2 horses are living out 24/7

He doesn't look stressed, he laid down last night, ate all his feed and hay.

I put the radio on this morning, groomed him and hand grazed, will do the same tonight, he will have the chickens are wandering around during the day also.

Im even thinking of getting a window put in the back of the stable so he can see the horses in the fields, or am I worrying over nothing if he is not bothered?

If you have been in this position would love to know how your horse coped please

TIA

Has someone a snackaball you can borrow? If you stick some apples floating in his water he will enjoy that too.

 

[MotherOfChickens]

you could try a mirror, both of mine seem to appreciate theirs plus you could cut willow/ash and put them in with his forage and/or cut nettles and thistles and let them wilt for some enrichment-lots you can do.

 

[AUB]

If the horse is ok with it I don't think you should feel guilty. But you can of course do things to keep him a little busy, I'm thinking activity/enrichment toys like hay play balls, apples on a string, carrots hidden in the hay and so on. He might enjoy that.

 

[doublebusy]

First week over and he seems very happy, doesn't care if other horses are in or not.
I try to amuse him twice a day whilst there, hand graze, groom, been giving him treat balls, apples in water, lick it, radio on during the day.
In fact I am beginning to think he prefers his stable and alone time

 

[Jellymoon]

Gosh, you are so lucky, mine is also on 4 wks box rest and he’s really not very happy. He’s eating very little and pacing about. He is next to another horse also on box rest, so is not alone. He just hates being in a stable. It’s a real pain.
Enjoy your calm one, it will soon pass.

 

[Melmarie]

you could try a mirror, both of mine seem to appreciate theirs plus you could cut willow/ash and put them in with his forage and/or cut nettles and thistles and let them wilt for some enrichment-lots you can do.

Which company did you get your mirrors from, and are they hard wearing or do they scratch easily? I'm hoping to get one for my boy who is a bit stressed in his stable x

 

[dogatemysalad]

Sadly it's a fact of life, just like when people have to go into hospital. I hate box rest, but when it's a necessary evil, I try to ensure it's as good as it can be. Nice clean, fluffy bed, cut apples in the water and lots of TLC. If they're up for grooming, they get a groom in their favourite spots, massage and hot clothing. In hand walks and grazing and generally spoilt a bit. The upside is it improves the bond you have, the downside is that it's exhausting.

 

[MissTyc]

When mine needed boxrest in summer, I built a stable-sized woodchip paddock (he needed soft ground), and that kept him super happy. It even had a tree in the middle to hang up haynets. He moved to the stable for the worst nights, but thankfully was allowed restricted turnout by the the winter hit.