Head shaking

hellybelly6

hellybelly6

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Please can you knowledgable people help? I think my 16 year old gelding is a head shaker. Its been getting worse each spring/summer and starting earlier.

He rubs his nose on his forelegs, his nose is running as are his eyes at times and his head is shaken up and down, pulling the reins through my hands as I do not want to hurt him. He also rubs his head on fences or hedges if he can. He also sometimes shakes his head and neck from side to side.

It seems to be worse in warm sunny weather.

Can a 16 year old become a headshaker. Is this headshaking and any recommendations/advice would be appreciated. I do not think he would wear a nose net, he wont even wear a fly mask/fringe or collar.

Thanks
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http://www.lincoln.ac.uk/dbs/research/headshaking/

Lots of info on here.
Sounds like headshaking to me. There are various theories as to what causes it including allergy, facial neuralgia, exposure to herpes virus atsome point in life, hereditary and light sensitivity.
It is trial and error for treatments. These can include antihistamines, herbs, anti inflammatories, contact lenses, bitless bridles and magnesium to help the nervous system.
 
Hi I have a 17yo pony who has been a head shaker as long as we have had him 10yrs! Although you wouldnt know in the winter as he shows no signs, but as soon as the good weather comes he starts.
Mine would not wear a nose net, I tried all sorts of supplements, bitless bridle, tights, university trials etc and remedies galore all to no avail!
What I found did work was lavender, it seemed to keep him calmer, I rubbed a very diluted solution over his face also acting as a fly repelent and put drops in rinse water after a bath. I always kept his face very clean as the slightest thing would set him off from flys, pollen and even a runny nose.
Sorry I cant be of more help. Wishing you the best of luck.
 
Thank you very much for your link and the tip with lavender oil. I will have a look at the link and try the lavender oil.

Horse isnt frantic with it as such, but rubs his face nose and eyes a lot on his foreleg and shakes his head 4 or 5 times in an hours hack. It is getting worse though.

Thank you so much. x
 
this sounds like what my boy used to do. I always rode him in an Equilibrium nosenet which stopped the head shaking and it never seemed to bother him.
If that really is a no go, there's lots of supplements on the market these days.
I also found that adding a bit of locally produced honey to the feed seemed to alleviate it a bit.
 
I've recently tried the NAF shake free supplement on my mild headshaker and it has definitely made a difference! He hates the nosenet and only shakes out hacking - however since he's been on the supplement he's been noticeably stiller and hasn't been rubbing his nose at all. Its expensive stuff, but if it works its worth it!
 
I would agree completely, NAF Shake Relief is miraculously good, the difference between a rideable or dangerous horse for me. You mention discharge though which may suggest this is not necessarily a case of Equine TN Disease (commonly the reason for headshaking), but an alergic reaction affecting his respiratory system, triggered by pollen for example? If that's the case then NAF Respirator Boost will help your chap... I'm a huge NAF fan, have used both products and they work v v well!

Good luck to you both.
 
He was discharge free today and still head shaking. Its worse in bright sunlight.

He is having his his vac soon and will talk to the vet about it. I am wonderinf if its worth £27 for the nose nets to try, but can imagine he will pull them off in seconds.

They honey is a good idea. I dont feel so alone now! Thank you, I wondered if it was just my horse and me.
 
This sounds exactly like my share horse! Owner has had vet out etc and they did blood tests but are still not sure what causes it. He's got runny eyes, nose, is sneezy and snorty and headshakes loads when ridden, i was actually gonig to put a post up myself about this so thanks lol. Apparantly he's ridden in a nose net in summer but not sure if it helps or not.
 
it sounds like head shaking to me have you tried a nose net? there are a lot of supplements out there but the one i here a lot about his shake free from global herbs!
 
I have a horse who injured his poll/nuchal ligament and this was then made worse by training. With rest and careful management he is now pretty much headshaking free, except when under stress he will very slighly 'flick'. I found this article you might be interested in. These methods certainly helped my horse hugely, as did changing his saddle (BIG IMPROVEMENT). He was in an Albion SLK which although fitted him didn't suit him and it made him very sore behind the saddle.

Anyway hope it helps http://www.equinecraniosacral.com/articles/hbmag-headshaking.pdf
 
Anyone who suspects their horse to be a headshaker of any kind (there are around 60 causes) needs to become a member of the HEADSHAKING GROUP on YAHOO GROUPS. You need to have a yahoo email but its so worth it. A horse can start headshaking at ANY age but the average is 9 and is more often than not in geldings. One thing to be aware of is that it is very likely that a headshaker is in pain. Awful to hear I know as I own one but the quicker you realise this the better for him/her and you can get set to hopefully diagnosing the problem, although around 80 percent of horses are never completely diagnosed in full. This is because there are so many factors thought to be linked to headshaking. If the problem is found to be a head trauma in the past or an allergy then things can be done fairly swiftly to combat disorder, however if your horse is found to be anidiopathic headshaker ie a headshaker of unknown cause - many unfortunately are - things arent quite so simple and you may go through a million 'remedies' to find that nothig is completely successful. I wish, ultimately that my pony Tom never started to HS but failing that I would have settled for him doing it later in life as when he started really nothing was known about headshaking and so it continues for him 7 years on.
My advice to anyone who is suspicious their horse could be a HS is to do all of the obvious ... ie check back/saddle/teeth/bit etc, and if that is all fine get serious about finding a cause. Yahoo group - headshaking - has lots of ideas to help reduce headshaking with hundreds of members who are feel as sad and helpless about this condition. My pony was once a brill competition pony but showing has gone out the window due to HS. He NEVER headshakes in the winter to the point where I almost forget how bad it gets in the summer. Vets inspections have resulted in him seemingly being one of the most fit and well welsh cobs going for a 16 year old and its been said he will go on to a cracking old age whilst still being ridden but whilst HS continues we have good days and terrible days.. and so it goes on.
I could tell you all I have found out on here but it will take ages. Please register with the Yahoo group and look at helping your horse/pony.
Headshaking is a VERY serious misunderstood disease which it is thought can cause severe pain in the horses Trigeminal nerve in the face, so do your best for your four legging friend as soon as you can.
Kind regards
 
I second the vaseline.

One of my horses had severe throat problems for 9 months which I think affected the nerves in his face as he developed midges induced headshaking in the field as a side effect.

Vaseline smeared over his nose stopped the headshaking and he is now free from both problems.
 
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