First pony questions- opinions please

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kellyb

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Hi, I have just joined this forum so HELLO to everyone!

After a few years of thinking about it and lots of reading (and lots of riding lessons for our daughter) we have finally got our first pony. She is on loan to us. We have learned SO much in the past 5 1/2 weeks that we have had her but we do have a couple questions that Im hoping some more experienced people here can help with.

Brandy ( New Forest Cross, 9 years old) has had a sensitive spot on her tummy for awhile now. When I touch it gently, she kicks her leg out. The skin around it is rough. The vet came out today to give her her injections and she touched the spot and Brandy kicked. The vet said that the spot was actually her "belly button" :o but that the rough area around it is what was causing the sensitivity and that it was probably due to flies of sorts, advised Hibiscrub (although I am not looking forward to trying to rub the area, even with a hard hat on!) The vet felt around under there and didnt mention anything else....but when I went over again today I rubbed some mild tea tree cream under there to help sooth it (she hated it and did not want me touching there AT ALL) and I went back towards her teat area (is that the proper term?) and felt that they were all rough and crusty with a dark dirt like substance.

So, question #1 is: The rough area on the belly might be from flies/irritation but would that account for the nasty dark and rough stuff around the teat area?

She then mentioned a couple of rough patches on Brandy's chest and looked closely and said it could be mites (because of dark dirt like specks all around the rough areas) and she said that we should worm her with Equest (she is due to be wormed) because it would kill off any mites.

I did alot of internet searching but could find no info about Equest helping with mites.

Question#2: Has anyone had any experience with Equest with regards to it killing mites?

Any help is much appreciated...
 
What's on her tits is probably just dirt - need swashing.
Equest might help with mites, but it is time of the year to worm for tapeworm as well so I would go for Equest Pramox.
She probably needs a good bath and groom and then assessing all the rough patches again. I'm not suggesting you are not keeping her clean, just that it is easier to work out what's what once they had a good bath:)
 
Hi, thanks for the fast reply.

We do want to bathe her but I was concerned that it was still a bit cold, vet said it would be fine so we are doing it this weekend. We groom her everday but must admit that even after grooming she is not looking her best so we are really looking forward to seeing her really clean! Her owner said she has not bathed her so I did wonder if the "dirty" teat area was just that...dirt and grime!

Have you heard anything about the wormer killing mites?

Thanks again....
 
The bugs that infest a pony's body are likely to be lice rather than mites. Whatever product you use - injections, shampoos, topical applications - you MUST repeat it after about 10 days. Louse products kill the adults but leave the eggs unharmed. The eggs hatch out in abou 10 days and bingo, the pony is infested all over again. You also need to wash grooming brushes, numnahs, rugs etc as the little buggers can live there too.

Re the "dirt" on your mare's udder, it's probably biting flies. My gelding Sunny is just recovering from an attack! The first I knew about it was that his sheath was covered in tiny dried specks of blood, which of course are black by then and look like dirt. (You can check if it's dried blood by carefully dabbing the "dirt" with a damp white tissue. It will stain pink if it's blood.) I gently rubbed a hand over Sunny's sheath area and zillions of dried specks of blood fell off. The biting flies like the unprotected areas where the hair is thinner or non existent. You need to tackle it 2 ways - first soothe the bitten area with a cooling vet gel, secondly, try to stop repeat attacks. But you can't use fly repellent products on such sensitive areas so I'd recommend gently applying thick vaseline or even udder cream or zinc oxide (for babies!). Re-apply regularly so the flies can't land and feed. Hopefully your mare will realise how soothing it is for her when you apply gels and such but if not you can use a "false" hand/arm eg an old plastic egg slice or kitchen spatula. Dollop the cream on the end of the spatula and apply gently - you should be safer then.
 
Hello and welcome :D

Others have give good advice :). If you bath the pony this weekend and then apply said ointments (the false 'hand' is a good idea - hopefully save you getting your head bashed; also long sleeves and glooves! Maybe try distracting with a feed), you should have a much happier pony :)

Sorry, I haven't heard of mites being controlled by wormer - maybe worth giving the manufacturers a call?
 
Agree with BOF about the biting flies as my mare gets these around her udder and has done for the past 5 years.

I do use fly spray there - I spray it on after cleaning the area with a damp cloth. I last did this on the 10th (so almost two weeks ago now) and she is still clear now.
 
Great advice everyone, thank you so much. I am trying to find out who the manufacturer is and will post back when I have some info about it.
 
Ivermectin (Equvalan) kills lice, it would need to be repeated in two weeks as this is when any eggs laid today would hatch.

It would be unusual to have lice just on the belly though, it's more likely to be biting flies.
 
Well, some very interesting info from the manufacturers, Fort Dodge. They were very helpful. The lady I spoke to said that Fort Dodge has not done any studies into wether or not Equest (Moxidectin) has any effect on mites but that a study was done in 2006 (by Osman et al) that did show improvement and recovery from mites after one dose.

Fascinating!

Off now to make the fake hand for washing her undercarraige:D
 
Ditto the biting flies, I've been seeing them around a lot lately (they do tend to bother one of my geldings more than any of the others but I am not sure why they pick on him). The vet sold me a paste called VetSalve, but the ingredients were just vaseline and pink dye, so next time I would just use the vaseline you can pick up at any supermarket. Works a treat, it keeps the flies off and sooths the affected area.
 
Well the bath didnt go so well. She was very unhappy about it, particularly when we attemtped to wash her underside. She was continuously kicking sideways and generally scaring the heck out of us but there was no bucking or rearing. We told my little girl to stand well away from anywhere near her back end/sides but while concentrating so much on that, she reached over and gave my little girl (11 years) one hell of a bite on her arm. She broke the skin but only a very tiny bit, the rest just looked swollen, teeth marks etc. We plunged her arm into the cold water and it seemed to help immediately with the swelling. Considering what it looked like earlier, it looks great now. After we got daughter settled down, we had to rinse off the hibiscrub so I held on tight to the headcollar and spoke agressively and sternly to her to keep her attention while hubby rinsed.

daughter and I went over to feed tonight. We tied pony up and gave her just the briefest of a grooming, really just be in contact with her and see how things went. She stamped her foot a bit and attempted a few more nibbles on both daughter and myself! Because we were both watching for the signs, we didnt get bit but it was a worry as was her kicking when I tried to very gently brush the flies off her belly area. Obviously she must be tender down there but I need to be able to check it out without taking my life in my hands...

I wanted to use a "fake arm" but nothing I made really worked, couldnt get it in the right nooks and crannies and it kept falling off.

When the vet came out the other day she had me hold up Brandys front leg so that she couldnt kick out when the vet touched her sore area but she is a well balanced pony I guess and managed to kick sideways while balancing on 2 legs!...so I guess that option isnt going to work.

Maybe the hibiscrub will help things to feel better but I dont mind telling you I have lost a bit of confidence and I feel quite sure my daughter has too. Someone told us that we should be having an easier time with our first pony (Brandy is not a push button pony but seems to be a safe ride, daughter has ridden and jumped over small jumps without any big problems) and it makes me wonder if we made the correct choice with her. I am worried that she will not be good for our daughters confidence levels.

Sorry to ramble, just looking for experienced opinions.
 
I'm sure she is just grumpy because she is sore and once she is feeling better she will be nice as pie. I'm assuming she isn't usually a cross patch.

Is there anyone who could help you when it comes to putting on the cream? Lots of horsey people are used to being kicked at and having teeth nashing round their ears and might be happy to help out? That way your daughter doesn't have to get hurt in the process. If you were closer I'd be glad to come and help so don't feel like you can't ask people if they're available to you.
 
jesstickle said:
I'm sure she is just grumpy because she is sore and once she is feeling better she will be nice as pie. I'm assuming she isn't usually a cross patch.

Is there anyone who could help you when it comes to putting on the cream? Lots of horsey people are used to being kicked at and having teeth nashing round their ears and might be happy to help out? That way your daughter doesn't have to get hurt in the process. If you were closer I'd be glad to come and help so don't feel like you can't ask people if they're available to you.
Click to expand...

Hi, thanks for your very kind reply. Although there seem to be lots of horsey people around I dont really know someone who I could ask. I am hoping that Brandy will calm down soon and then I will be able to try again and hopefully work up my confidence again.

We have had lots of ups and downs with her over the past 6 weeks that we have had her. When we went to see her orignally one of the things that made us go for her was her calm nature and friendliness.

She didn't travel well (loaded fine though) when she first arrived and the very experienced driver told us she was the worst he had taken anywhere among the hundreds of horses he has dealt with. He said he would be hesitant about putting her with a child! This was the first day got her so we were very worried and anxious but she hadnt travelled in a long time and although the journey was short, he didnt use a panel or have a haynet for her so maybe this added to her anxiety.

She was very hard to handle but as she had just arrived we gave her time to settle in and did not make any judgements right away.

We learned alot very quickly because no matter what you read and talk about with other people you never really learn as much from books etc as you do from experience.

She certainly wasn't as calm as she was when visited her. Straight away she jumped fences to get in with the other 2 ponies in the field. She continued doing this for some time until we gave up and let her stay with them after we made sure they were ok together. She let them know she was dominant in no time though. She is extremely food oriented and at first was a bit aggressive about food but I have worked on that and its ok now, not perfect but ok.

She was due for an appt with the farrier a few days after arriving, with hindsight I probably should have cancelled that and given it at least another week but anyway, it didnt go so well and he had to use a twitch on her which I had only read about in books. It wasnt nice but eventually the job got done. At this point I was really worried we had made the wrong choice- however, I just hung in there and felt determined to teach her as well as I could, while learning myself.

We had a few other glitches along the way but her behavoir did improve and she did settle. Our daughter has ridden her many times, mostly around the field but also out on the road where Brandy seems to be very good with mostly all traffic, just not with cows which is something we will work on. She is going over jumps too. I think she needs some proper schooling though as we have a hard time getting her to come to a complete stop when lunging, getting her to trot when asked instead of cantering and then cantering instead of trotting!

She does seem to have at least learned some respect for me, she will walk by grass now without pulling me around like rag doll to get it and she seems to know that most of the time I am the boss so I guess I am getting there...
 
You could always try asking on here or at your local tack shop for recommendations for an instructor that is happy to help and advise you on the ground as well as riding. That would get you some help untill you get to know more horsey people in your area. Or join the Pony club or a riding club.
 
Whereabouts in the country are you? I agree that you should probably get someone more experienced to give you a hand for a while. Did she come from a dealer?
 
We are in the Salisbury, Wiltshire area. She did not come from a dealer. She is on loan to us from a nice lady who lives fairly nearby. I dont think alot was done with her though and the lady had her from last June until about 6 weeks ago. She said she bought her for her daughter but her daughter is younger than ours and not as confident and the lady said her daughter needed something smaller to help build her confidence...

I am not sure if we would need a trainer or an instructor (probably both would be beneficial I guess) but funds do not allow that at the moment. We have thought of putting her in our daughters riding school for awhile , for a week or 2 of schooling but can not afford to do that just yet.

We have bought books about training techniques etc and are really doing quite well with it all I think however I did feel bad last night about being harsh with her after her biting my daughter because she usually seems to respond better with a gentle approach but in the heat of the moment I thought maybe It was best to be very dominant and scary. I am hoping I have not undone the good work I have done up to this point.
 
The stuff on the teats is likely to be dirty teats - they can get a black greasy type substance on them - sheath cleaner will do the trick to clean them.
 
Don't feel bad for telling her off. That sort of behaviour isn't ever acceptable and she needs to know that. It sounds like your very fair with her so the least she can do is be fair with you. Biting is a nasty habit and you really don't want her to think she is allowed to do it. You were perfectly right to tell her no.


It sounds like she became very unsettled from being moved. Some horses are just like that. My mare was a nightmare for about 2 months after picking her up even though she was as quiet as a lamb in her original home. I'm sure yours will settle in time just as mine did.

I honestly think your best bet is to try and find some help. Who owns the ponies Brandy is sharing a field with? Could they help? Or possibly the lady you loan her from as the pony knows her and might react well to a familiar face? If not you might just have to be a bit cheeky and ask friends of friends or forum users or anyone you can think of. I hate asking favours but plenty of people don't so I doubt anyone would think anything of it apart from you (and me when its myself involved!).

I don't want to sound dramatic as I'm sure she's a lovely pony but you mustn't let her think she can be the boss of you and do as she pleases or you might find she gives you a proper run around as a result. If someone experienced could come and show how they would deal with her you might feel more confident in tackling the issue yourself
 
Thank you so much for your advice and reassuring words. Yes, I do think she was unsettled by the move. There were 2 ponies in the field with her and although she was very dominant with them both, she took a fancy to the little gelding. He went out on loan a couple of weeks ago and the farrier told us he thought she would be much better when he left. I dont really know that she has changed since then but it could have unsettled her a bit. Her owner has emailed me and said she would be happy to come around tomorrow and give some help so that will be great.

I want to build up a trusting relationship with her so that I feel I can trust her with my daughter and that is where my confidence has dropped a bit after yesterdays events. I feel sure that this will come with time and experience though and other than the "glitches", we are enjoying it immensely, even poo picking!
 
It's sounds to me that for relative novices you're doing a great job, getting books, asking for help etc. She sounds like a bit of a monkey and all horses take time to settle after a move. You're right to take a firm approach, they'll soon learn to walk all over you if you let them. Also, it is spring and mares can be rather hormonal this time of year! Lots of horses are funny about their bits being faffed with, consistant handling will improve this. Work on it over time and using a fake hand is a great idea. I use a stuffed rubber glove on the end of a stick! I'm not sure about the mites, if they have lice or mites thay are usually very itchy. As others have said, test the specks with a damp paper towel and if they are blood they'll stain red. This time of year I'd have thought it more likely it is scurf/dirt! Agree that the manky boobs sounds like normal build up and can be cleaned with sheath cleaner. Unless urgent I would leave until she's more used to you handling the area! Best of luck x
 
I also think you are doing fine and being a bit hard on yourself. Good for you asking for help and not just muddling through. It takes time for a horse to settle, way more than 6 weeks. New people, new horses, new surroundings. Remember they are prey animals and have heightened sensitivity to new things. Also, it is the first seasons happening just now and lot's of mares are really struggling with the old hormones just now.
Take a damp sponge between her udders if you can and the gunge will come out. it is a really satisfying job actually lol
udder cream on her sensitive bits will stop her getting bitten and is really soothing.

Are you on a yard where you can get a bit of help or advice. Sometimes there is a knack to doing things that is easier if you are shown rather than told.

Give your wee mare some time and I am sure you and your daughter will have tons of fun with her.
 
All sounds right to me - My New Forest mare came off the forest and was a mucky pup! The flies used to bother her just the same and after a bath and some Sudocream or MSM to help with the dried up crust sore spots all was well.
Dont worry about the legs flying, its ouchie! - False arm works a treat, either that or distract with food and hope that a swift ninja swipe works well!
 
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