Can someone tell me about Headshaking please

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shadowboy

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Went to see other horse today. TBx lovely horse- stunning colour, movement and exceptionally well put together- however he did tend to shake his head at times, now I am not sure if this was headshaking or a tantrum/avoidance issue, I shall post a pic to show you bellow. He doesnt do it hacking but does it when you ask him to go into an outline or stand. Enventually as i worked him he stopped doing it so often, to me it was avaoidance- which I can school out of him, but if its actually headshaking I dont really want to take this horse on. He was soooooo smooth to ride even when not working corectly- I can only imagine the way he will ride when fully schooled. His owner fully admitted she was over horsed and said I made riding him look easy, I can assure you his head movements made it very difficult to gain a constant contact. She said his teath and back have been done within the last month Is it like to be headshaking? or naughtyness?
He is 7 and 15.2
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i did buy a headshaker 2 yrs ago, but the seller didnt tell me, and as i bought him in the winter he was fine until summer arrived, and bang, oh my god it was full on , nose to the floor and wam up it came missing my face but an inch , it was soooo bad, they generally nod up and down really quickly and sharp, i had to sell him in the end , but i sold him as a headshaker and with a nose net he was 50% better, . and perfect in the winter, its like hayfever in humans, ....
 
Jerry went through a phase of headshaking, usually when he was tired at the end of a schooling session, he soon got out of it, everytime he did it I just sent him forwards of my leg and he relaxed into a contact, now he doesnt even try. His was definatly avoidance though, as made no difference if he was ridden in a bit or a hackamore, teeth and back were both fine
 
i have a mild headshaker - and his problems are half and half. firstly he doesnt do it very much at all in the winter its mainly in the summer and he is better wen wearing a nose net - this leads me 2 belive his problem is agrivated by pollen/sun etc, however he does do it more wen stressed/excited and def uses to avoid hard work ie wen im schooling him on a contact but the more work on the flat he has done the less he headshkes as finds it easier now due to correct muscle build up. i believe with my horse the headshking started with a reaction to sun/pollen and has developed into a habit which he uses to avoid work and wen hes stressed out to display how hes feeling. i bought him 3 years ago in winter and his previous owners didnt mention it which am peeved about now but tbh if mild headshaking is my boys only downfall im happy with that
 
My horse head shakes in the spring/summer she is better with a nose net but this year we went bitless and she has not shaken her head since. She has her teeth done regularly
 
hmmm, having read the link Jemayni sent it all sounds like what was happening- wow, if i knew he was in pain poor thing.. hmm, I dont really want a horse that shakes as i want to do dressage- but everything else is perfect- I think the mare i saw yesterday is a better bet.....
 
My horses is now retired due to head shaking, i have countless pictures like the the 1 you have posted.

Her's is due to an deformity with her left ethmoid, causing the sensitive receptors behind the ethmoid to be exposed to the air she breathes in, there is no cure for her, a nose net used to help but even that has no effect now, her's came on over a period of 3 yrs, at first i thought it was a evasion and got her back teeth and saddle checked more than once i then started using gadgets and different bits etc, had it investigated by the vet, firstly we put her on bute for 2 weeks to rule out pain and discomfort, it made absolutely no difference whatsoever, we then went down the route of allergy testing, she did react to a few things, the worst being humans!! But none of the reactions were enough to cause the headshaking so she was scoped, when the vet saw the left ethmoid he got several other vets at the practice (Liphook) to look as he'd never seen it before, unfortunately neither had any of the other vets, he said there was nothing we could do, short of sewing her nostril up, obviously that wasn't an option, did make the vet and i smile though!
He did say he he couldn't be sure if it would stay the same or deteriorate further, unfortunately it has deteriorated so she is now retired and is a pet, i've had her 8 yrs and we've done all our competing together so it wasn't as if she was cut off in her prime but i do feel retiring her at 14yrs old is a waste of a great talent as she is fit and healthy in all other ways but what will be will be, she doesn't know she could still be out SJ and hunting, she is just as happy chilling out in the field with her friends.

Just my thoughts as someone who has dealt with head shaking but i wouldn't take on something who has the potential to become a problem because it is soul destroying.

Any Q's you have regarding headshaking i'd be happy to try and give you any pointers or help/advice.

Clare
 
check to see if he is in pain, get back, teeth tech checked, including the possibility of the season annoyng his nose.

Mine does it if he is asked to work, to attempt to get rid of the contact I have, he calms eventually, just stroppiness,
 
I would walk away from this horse if there is ANY doubt about headshaking.

It matters not how good the horse is, if you have a headshaker you cannot guarantee from one day to the next what sort of behaviour you will get either led or ridden.
 
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