For those of you who muzzle your Horses. A question.

LaurenBay

LaurenBay

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How long did it take for your neddy to get the hang of eating with it on? I have had to put one on Ruby and I felt horrible watching her trying to suss it out and get it off. I fed her through it so she understood she can still eat. But wern't grazing too much.
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Mine didnt take very long at all, First i got her a horrid one that had no rubber with a hole , instead was just a wedge of webbing which she couldnt get any grass through! she gave up with this and didnt eat- i then got her the version with the rubber and hole and she figured it out in an hour- however I have modified mine a lot by cutting out a section at the chin as it rubbed her raw- now fine, and cut out nose holes as she struggled to breathe in the hot weather! using a flame to melt the webbing down to stop it fraying.

Glad she has it on now as the field is huge and with only two ponies in it- the rain and sunshine has got the grass literally up to their knees- it is phenomenal!! looks like a sea of grass and you have to wade through it- the length of the grass actually stops her eating so much as its harder to get through the little hole.
 
mine not long at all, 5 minutes LOL

A friends horse really struggled and we poked grass up the hole and lowered it down till his head was on the floor then poked a few bits up while he had his head down then he understood :)
 
Thanks :) I'm hoping shes figured it out by now. She followed me to the gate for the first time today, think she was thinking "you can't leave me like this!" lol shes out with 3 hours on 2 acres on the grass thats in the photo. Do you leave your ponies on 24/7?
 
feed grass thru the hole , and splash water on her lips - they do soon get the hang of it - they are designed to eat quite a few hours a day ;)
 
Mine got the hang of it straight away, its a green guard. It did rub his chin bald though.
 
Mine figured it out in seconds she just got it off believe it or not with her own hoof! Have failed to find one that she can't remove. Clever girl or what?:D
 
Fat Lad has a Shires and is in it 24/7. Or he was, it has rubbed round the top of the bucket, and also just under his eye. I am looking for something in the house I can pad it with, if I can't find something I will have to buy some fluffy material to make it more comfortable for him. He doesn't mind wearing it and eats well with it on, but it is the rubbing that I am concerned with.

I bought him a Dinky muzzle but it is too small and I don't like that the webbing on it is where the hole is on the Shires. He would have to push the muzzle to one side to eat.
 
I found mine wearing hers as a necklace this afternoon, she normally doesn't bother getting it off, but was obviously feeling hungry today.
 
could you attach the muzzle to a headcollar - hang on I have a pic.......The Darth Vadar..

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Once he realised it was there to stay, he accepted it, and now just has the muzzle on.
 
Mine got it straight away, my friends never got it. She just looked sad and wouldn't even drink with it on.

Does anyone have any tricks to stop a greenguard rubbing on the chin though?
 
I had to give up on the GG - he could get it off before it has a chance to rub. My only suggestion is to use Surgical Spirit when the rub has healed itself, to toughen the skin. I used this with Shy and it's worked a treat, plus his muzzle is padded out with thin sheepskin.
 
Ebony straight out, head down and eating :eek: others took about a week, and we have one that just refuses to eat just stands there with a face like thunder has not even put her head down to try :confused: Give it time they are all different and some do take longer than others :D
 
I'm really worried incase she doesn't get it :( if she doesn't will make the hole bigger and see if it makes a difference.
 
Mine took it as a challenge to prove it would not slow him down at all. He had a greenguard which rubbed under the chin at first but then I adjusted the straps and it didn't. Once I had the exact position worked out it lived on the headcollar so it got put exactly the same every time.

She might also be look sad while you are there and there is a chance you'll take it off. YM's mare did alot of hanging around the gate looking pathetic when she was watching but when I used hack past the field in the evening she had her head down grazing.
 
It's thin stuff, almost like what they make pet bedding out of - you should be able to get it in fabric/ material places ? I can take a pic tom if it helps.

We use two pieces - velcro on each side, and then place them over the chin area (where the muzzle rubs), and attach the velcro thru the muzzle holes. This has stayed on until washed, and no more sore bits. x
 
LaurenBay said:
I'm really worried incase she doesn't get it :( if she doesn't will make the hole bigger and see if it makes a difference.
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If you have to make the hole bigger & many owners do with those type of muzzles then it proves that it has been either badly designed or is the wrong type for your horse. The greenguard ones are expensive, but they are properly designed & horses don't take long to get used to them. One of my horses wears a greenguard for around 6 months of the year. He gets plenty of grass through it. He is at a good weight & we dion't have to chop the muzzles about to achieve this.

One of the biggest problem with muzzles is taking the time to get it fitted correctly & the attitude of owners to them, They don't give the horse long enough for the horse to get used to them. Some horses get used to them straight away & others take longer but impatient owners don't give it enough time & remove the masks & then wonder why the horses balloon in weight or get laminitis.
 
I have for the first time this year crossed over to the dark side and muzzled my 2. :eek:
I started off with a shires one with the hole cut larger, then a normal shires one, then found the dinky ones, that I really like. They seem much less obtrusive, lighter and don't cover the nostrils, so they can breathe more freely. Just ordered a 2nd one, so they can both have them.
I found one of my horses took a while to figure it out, the other one I put straight into a dinkys one and she sussed it pretty much immediately.
 
Amazing invention!!
Our girl didn't take long and we could see her head bobbing up and down so we knew she was eating. We gave her a few carrots through the hole. It did rub her last year so she ended up with Sudocrem smothered on her bald bits!!
K x
 
My Greenguard is lined with sheepskin from a car polishing mitt I bought in Halfords, there was enough to line where the chin goes and make sleeves for the headcollar
 
I will keep a close eye and if she still hasn't figured it out soon I will look into a different brand. She is currently in a Shires one.
 
My pony cannot possibly eat when I am around, or anyone else for that matter, just stands looking miserable at the gate.

However his field backs onto the road so I have been up to check him a few times and he was happily eating then !!!
 
my horse didn't take to the shires one at all so got a greenguard one along with the headcollar to go with it and hey presto he is happy with it grazes and drinks fine, can even eat hay through it
he is now out overnight for 12hrs with it on comes in for a few hours in the morning for brekki and some hay then back out for 5 or so hrs for a break in the afternoon and gets ridden then too he gets 30mins without the muzzle in the field to get a bit of grass
 
I don't know if Chloe got used to hers the other day. She was stood looking sad when I left (with the odd pawing at the muzzle with her hoof) and was stood near the shelter when I got back 6 hours later. No sign of grass inside it, either. The hole is cut slightly larger and Henry has used the same muzzle fine. Who said mares were smarter?!?
 
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