Headshaking questions - vetting etc

Archangel

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Help!
A friend is possibly buying a lovely horse that ticks all the boxes but... he wears a nose net to be ridden.

Apparently he is not a headshaker he just doesn't like flies up his nose. When he is first sat on that he has a few dips and snatches but once underway he is relatively steady with the odd flick.

To me it looks like established behaviour, albeit controlled with a net and I would possibly class him as a headshaker :confused: He doesn't need a net in the field, only when ridden so that suggests a bit of anxiety under saddle.

So questions
He is being 5 stage vetted - is this something that comes under a vetting and is it an automatic fail?
Can you compete (dressage) at riding club level in a nose net?
How much of a problem are headshakers? - it seems to be behavioural rather than allergy

He is such a lovely horse, my friend has asked for advice but I have no experience of headshakers so am no help at all!

Thank you in advance :)
 

natalia

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Not sure, as have this same problem myself! I have a mare who is very sensitive to dust and flies, she is a warmblood but has a very araby head hence very wide nostrils. She HATES midges and flies near her face and will flick, its only slight, but she's so much happier with a net on. She is also unhappy when worked in a dusty school, but fine out hacking. She will be for sale soon, and obv. I have to tell people but unsure of how it would go down on a vetting.
 

bexwarren24

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A headshaker would fail a vetting as a vet cannot determine the cause. We had a headshaker for sale once but we were completely honest with new buyers and vet who did the vetting and obv he failed. I'm not sure though the vet sould have known he was a headshaker unless they actually saw him do it. He only did it very occasionally so chances of them seeing it is unlikely.

Yes, horses competing in dressage can use a nose net, there is a top BD rider with a horse that always competes in a nose net, think its carl hester. Think it may have to be a particular type of nose net used tho.

If the head shaking is controlled by a net I wouldnt let it put me off but it would de-value the horse as his re-sale wont be so easy.
 

Rowreach

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The problem with "headshaking" is that it can have one or more general causes - physical (like a sore back or poll or sensitivity to insects, ill fitting tack etc), allergic (pollen or dust), or neurological (reaction to light/photic).

Headshaking that can be cured by having a back problem sorted, tack changed, or alleviated by a nose net in the case of insects would not be a problem.

Allergic reactions can be more difficult as it is important to work out what is causing the reaction (ie a specific type of pollen) - alleviants can be nosenets, vaseline, piriton, beconase, various supplements, steroids etc etc or removing the allergen, but an allergic reaction can become either better or worse over time, a bit like in humans.

Photic headshakers are the most problematic in that the problem usually gets worse, but on the other hand they can be the easiest to diagnose - just ride them in the daylight and again at dusk/fading light, and there will probably be a marked difference in behaviour.

Sometimes however you can get a mix of all three of the above, in which case it can be nearly impossible to determine the cause.

If everything else was alright with a horse I would not necessarily discount it if the headshaking is managable.:)
 

BigRed

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I guess the bottom line, is whether the fact it has this problem is reflected in the price. Personally I would not buy a horse with this problem because I would worry that it might get worse. I have just lost a horse that had sweetitch. If I had a choice between a new horse with the same problem, and one without it, I would go for the horse without it. It's not life threatening, but it is another one of those things that is a nuisance to deal with.
 

posie_honey

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mine needs a nose net over summer months - she'd need on in the field too if she ever lifted her head for very long lol! (she'll twitch if she's resting ;))

if shes not intending to show then you can do most things with a nose net nowdays. alas my mare has proven herself good at workers - but i can only do early spring shows :(

i must admit i'd not buy a horse i knew headshook... but i'd equally not get rid of HRH becuase she does it - she's my perfect horse in every other way :) at least its manageable with a nose net - if it wasn't i'm not sure what i'd do with her....
 

Archangel

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Thank you very much everyone for taking the time to reply. I will send them on to my friend - there is a lot for her to think about. She has been looking for a horse for a long time now and this one ticks all the boxes, then out of the blue a nosenet appears!
 

wench

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if a nosenet works I wouldnt be to concerned - if its just flies that cause it, again I wouldnt be overly worried.

Mine isnt great this time of year, but if he has either his nose net and/or anti-histamines hes much better. The little flies found in hedgerows go up his nose and he doesnt like it.

He doesnt do it in the field. However, if potential horse was doing it in field/stable, wouldnt touch it with a bargepole
 
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