Calmer Confusion- please help!!

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thehorsediva

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I have a lovely ISH who 90% of the time is calm, collected and super chilled. However if something changes he absolutely freaks out. He never has a little spook at something, he is either chilled as anything or he absolutely over reacts and thinks he is going to die!! This makes for a slightly unpredictable ride. I have had him I have tried a variety of calmers just to try and stop him from overreacting. He is pretty intolerant food wise so he is on a simple straw chaff which he wont eat on its own so I mix it with a tiny handful of fast fibre with extra garlic and mint. I have tried the following calmers

- magnesium (natural horse supplies) and brewers yeast (natural horse supplies) fed at same time
- also tried just magnesium on its own
- james hart v calm (contains valerium)

I am currently trying him on herbal calm (valerium, camomille, vervain) from natural horse supplies http://www.naturalhorsesupplies.co.uk/p/product/0809173346-Herbal+Calm++900g++%A31899/

But have since been recommended this from Trinity Consultants
http://www.trinity-consultants.com/index.php/store/product/52-hydrobase29-1-ltr

I am SO confused! Is it possible that a horse has an adverse reaction to valerium? When I had him on the V calm he seemed even worse for over reacting and destroyed his field for hooning around.

The magnesium/ brewers yeast didnt seem to make much difference, he was pretty calm but again over reacted easily.

Not long been on the herbal calm but I have gone up today and he has been going mental in his field, barely any grass left. Normally when he is out he will just graze and snooze, possibly one trot across the field on an exciting day! It may be coinsidense as given everything I have read about valerian it seems that this should help above everything.

Dont know where to cut out the above and try the hydrobase calmer? Or anything else? I am so confused as getting different advice from everyone and am contemplating just trying him on grass and hay again. He gets plenty of hay day and night but grass in his field is pretty limited so make sure he always has hay available as well.

Can anyone help a very confused person out?!
 
So you had a bit of a problem, added something to the feed and now you have a bigger problem. I would remove the thing you added. There are exceptions to every rule and it seems your horse has an abnormal reaction to valerian (or some other ingredient in the supplement). I don't know much about calming supplements, though I know a few people who have had success with Steady-Up from Feedmark. I suggest you check the ingredients first! You will only know if something works by trying it.

Have you tried bomb-proof training to increase the horses confidence in different situations?
 
In about 30% of people valerian has the opposite effect - it excites and energises rather than calms. It may well be the same for horses too - I can't see why not. So - yes. Your horse could well have had an adverse reaction - or at least the opposite reaction.

Although - they do all go a bit nuts this time of year with the new grass! (If you're lucky enought to have any. We have new mud!)

Valerian is not competition legal. Not only for affilliated shows but across the board - although I grant you small local shows won't blood test. But if you do go out to shows at all you would be cheating if your horse is on valerian.

If he is 90% of the time calm I wonder if trying any sort of calmer is worth the money. These are flight animals - you're never going to entirely elminate the over reaction. Even if you dope him to the eyeballs. You can make it less severe by working on spook busting, trust etc.
 
Yep have decided to remove the herbal calm, I feel convinced its having an adverse reaction and I know its not comp legal but we are not competing.

We are doing tonnes of groundwork etc to build trust as he is insecure probably due to an unsettling year of moving about. I was just hoping to find a calmer to give us the best chance of building his confidence.
 
thehorsediva said:
Yep have decided to remove the herbal calm, I feel convinced its having an adverse reaction and I know its not comp legal but we are not competing.

We are doing tonnes of groundwork etc to build trust as he is insecure probably due to an unsettling year of moving about. I was just hoping to find a calmer to give us the best chance of building his confidence.
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I've just started by boy (three weeks ago) on Top Spec calmer. He's gone from being really quite stressed to being super chilled. I'm a total calmer-skeptic and I keep saying 'nah it must be good management blah blah' mainly because I begrudge shelling out another 24 quid in a couple of weeks but there's no denying he's chilled. Almost fell over on the way to the yard yesterday he was half asleep!
 
Hi. It might be worth getting some professional advice from a nutritionist, as well as from the vet, to investigate if there's something in the diet that could be upsetting him. Sometimes a substance can build up too much as well, if it is in a concentrate and then added as a supplement. Or, as you say, it could be down to the upset he's had recently.
 
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