Ex Racer anxious with high-pitched noises!

[Megan.saunderss]

Hey all.

I have had my 17hh ex racer since May last year. He is an absolute gem to handle, kind with others etc. We have taken him jumping quite a few times and isn’t phased by fillers / the show atmosphere (wasn’t even phased by the polo horses darting around next to him) and he is absolutely bomb proof in traffic (gets a bit funny about things in the distance moving like a tractor for example when he isn’t sure what it is).

He hacks out reasonably settled, occasional spook but nothing that un-seats you. The majority of the time you can ride him on the buckle and he is like a donkey (yay).

However recently he has started getting suddenly / randomly agitated (will be walking like a donkey and then suddenly like a deer in headlights) and I think this may be triggered by high pitched noises in the distance? (kids screaming in school play ground, sirens, weird sounding birds etc). Potentially a throw back to his days on the tracks?

He will suddenly stop, not want to go forward, head up, ears pricked, and then when he does go forward he’ll start marching and then it will get to the point where he noticeably just wants to run and gets even more agitated when you try to hold him back (i’m worried he’s going to uncontrollably bolt / chuck me off to avoid the situation). Due to me not being the bravest of riders (fell off last year and was concussed / couldn’t remember a thing for 3 days) at this point I jump off and hand walk him. He settles back down again after 5/10 mins, and already noticeably more settled once i’m off, and then I find somewhere to get back on and he’s fine after this.

I wanted to jump on here to see if anyone else has this issue? And if so, what to do about it? Have ordered sound reducing ear bonnet so will see if this helps… it’s so annoying as he is good in all other ways and it’s so unpredictable, some hacks he’ll be good as gold and then this week for example it’s happened twice.

All advice welcome & TIA x

 

[Glitter's fun]

Hi Megan, welcome to the forum.
Can't answer your question, just putting it back up the list for the 'early to bed early to rise' people to notice it. *



* It's meant to make me healthy, wealthy and wise. I guess one out of three aint bad?

 

[Carrottom]

In my experience if dismounting and leading for a few minutes works then that is the best thing to do
Hopefully, over time, he will become less reactive and quicker to come down again.
I still occasionally dismount mine and I've had him about 5 years. He gains more confidence from his human on the ground than on his back.

 

[PinkvSantaboots]

I'm guessing your hacking alone I would try and find another safe horse to ride out with for a while just to give him some confidence.

Acoustic ear bonnets can help definitely worth a try.

Edited to add there is nothing wrong with getting off for a while I did it with mine that can nap.

 

[ycbm]

He was fine for 6 months, then changed? Can you identify what has changed in that time? Is he fitter now? On different food? Doing less work?

Is it random places/noise or always the same ones?
.

 

[Megan.saunderss]

In my experience if dismounting and leading for a few minutes works then that is the best thing to do
Hopefully, over time, he will become less reactive and quicker to come down again.
I still occasionally dismount mine and I've had him about 5 years. He gains more confidence from his human on the ground than on his back.

This is what i’m thinking. Just a bit of a faff when he’s 17hh so very hard to re-mount from floor lol x

 

[Megan.saunderss]

I'm guessing your hacking alone I would try and find another safe horse to ride out with for a while just to give him some confidence.

Acoustic ear bonnets can help definitely worth a try.

Edited to add there is nothing wrong with getting off for a while I did it with mine that can nap.

Thank you for replying. I actually have with one other horse but for some reason he doesn’t take a lot of comfort from them! Wouldn’t care if she was there or not! Will try the bonnet, a calmer for his anxiety and hopefully this will help

 

[Megan.saunderss]

He was fine for 6 months, then changed? Can you identify what has changed in that time? Is he fitter now? On different food? Doing less work?

Is it random places/noise or always the same ones?
.

Yep so he didn’t do it at all in the summer, and then recently i’ve had to dismount maybe three times?

Once was because of a huge industrial scale tractor / sprayer in the next field, but that is understandable…

Then the second time i’m not 100% sure but a car was driving down a gravel driveway behind him then disappeared behind a hedge, and then a truck came out in front of him on gravel and he just lost it (think it was the sound on gravel again) so had to get off.

And then yesterday there were distant noises (kids and a siren), but we also took a new route to the one we usually did (left instead of where we usually go right) so not sure if that un-nerved him too?

Another time was a school playground with lots of kids screaming but you couldnt see the kids as they were behind a hedge. Both horses wouldn’t go forward so we turned around and trotted back (I know the worst thing to do, but we were on a road), didn't have to dismount on this occasion but could feel his heart he was so anxious and he was trotting away fasttt.

Just a few occasions, doesn’t happen all the time but annoying when does!

It did happen once at the start but this was when we took him to an XC schooling and he could hear the horses splashing in the water and that worked him up, b-lining for the box x

Strange that it’s only recently gotten worse and the smallest things trigger him. Hoping the ear bonnet & calmer will help the situation x

 

[Megan.saunderss]

Hi Megan, welcome to the forum.
Can't answer your question, just putting it back up the list for the 'early to bed early to rise' people to notice it. *



* It's meant to make me healthy, wealthy and wise. I guess one out of three aint bad?

Thank you! X

 

[Megan.saunderss]

He was fine for 6 months, then changed? Can you identify what has changed in that time? Is he fitter now? On different food? Doing less work?

Is it random places/noise or always the same ones?
.

Also, definitely not fitter as he finished racing last March (hurdles, he’s 9), and we ride out 3/4 times / week. Food wise Baileys Ease and Excel. Which my vet said shouldn’t be heating? Used to be on A&P Calm & Condition but didn’t help with putting weight on him.

 

[Flowerofthefen]

Definitely try soundless ears or ear plugs. Hope you get the issue resolved.

 

[Megan.saunderss]

Definitely try soundless ears or ear plugs. Hope you get the issue resolved.

Will do an update soon! Thank you

 

[humblepie]

It’s strange that’s it’s recent but perhaps time of year and getting his feet under the table with you. Mine isn’t over keen on hearing vehicles on gravel that he can’t see and generally I think if they can’t see the source of the noise worse for them. I use the Protechmasta sounded ears and rate them. Hope you get the bottom of it. Unless he really needs hard feed you could try for a while just chaff though see you say about putting weight on.

 

[Megan.saunderss]

It’s strange that’s it’s recent but perhaps time of year and getting his feet under the table with you. Mine isn’t over keen on hearing vehicles on gravel that he can’t see and generally I think if they can’t see the source of the noise worse for them. I use the Protechmasta sounded ears and rate them. Hope you get the bottom of it. Unless he really needs hard feed you could try for a while just chaff though see you say about putting weight on.

Yes I think when they cant see where the sound is coming from & when the sound is from behind always worse. I would do only chaff but he’s still bulking. He was so underweight (racing fit as they say) when we got him, still a way to go but hoping the summer grass will be a great help!

 

[Squeak]

Did you meet the same sort of things in the past that have caused him to spook and he behaved or is it possible that you've just been unlucky recently and met quite a few spooky things rather than it being his behaviour that's changed?

Pretty much all of the things you've mentioned he's spooked at seem like things a lot of horses could find spooky and possibly you've just been unlucky and met them all recently rather than it being that they're all high pitched noises and a recent change in behaviour.

 

[Megan.saunderss]

Did you meet the same sort of things in the past that have caused him to spook and he behaved or is it possible that you've just been unlucky recently and met quite a few spooky things rather than it being his behaviour that's changed?

Pretty much all of the things you've mentioned he's spooked at seem like things a lot of horses could find spooky and possibly you've just been unlucky and met them all recently rather than it being that they're all high pitched noises and a recent change in behaviour.

 

[Megan.saunderss]

Yes quite possibly! Will see if it happens again and the circumstances surrounding it

 

[Carrottom]

A possible reason for this behaviour to be showing recently is that some racehorses in training can become a bit shut down.
It can take a few months for them to come out of themselves. Also, if he is filling out he may be feeling better in himself which is making him more alert.

 

[marmalade76]

Also, definitely not fitter as he finished racing last March (hurdles, he’s 9), and we ride out 3/4 times / week. Food wise Baileys Ease and Excel. Which my vet said shouldn’t be heating? Used to be on A&P Calm & Condition but didn’t help with putting weight on him.

They do a less heating one now called Care & Gain, less than 10% starch & sugar combined.

 

[humblepie]

A possible reason for this behaviour to be showing recently is that some racehorses in training can become a bit shut down.
It can take a few months for them to come out of themselves. Also, if he is filling out he may be feeling better in himself which is making him more alert.

Yes that’s what I meant about getting his feet under the table. He’s now got his new lifestyle sorted and feeling well.

 

[Megan.saunderss]

A possible reason for this behaviour to be showing recently is that some racehorses in training can become a bit shut down.
It can take a few months for them to come out of themselves. Also, if he is filling out he may be feeling better in himself which is making him more alert.

Quite possibly yes!