Help my 4 year old has just started windsucking and cribbing

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I have had my 4 year old ISH for 6 months and during that time have never seen her windsuck or crib bite, she now seems to be doing both is there any way I can nip it in the bud!

She doesn't have any hardfeed, she has plenty of turnout and hay is always available to her, why has she suddenly started to do it? she has settled in well at the livery yard and doesn't seem overly stressed although she was shipped from Ireland so I can't seem any reason why she would start doing it, she also passed a 5 * vetting.

I have spoken to her previous owner who states that she has never known her to do it.

I do have her on a supplement called 'Frisky Mare' but I don't suppose that has caused her.

Is there anyway I can stop her doing this before it grows into a full vice.

I have heard that giving her Rennies may help her..
 
she makes a noise like she is burping usually when she is being brought into the field and recently as she is being ridden when she gets stressed.

Only just noticed crib biting as the horses are strip grazed and seperated by electric fencing, however a wooden post has recently been put in and its been chewed never seen her do it, although last night she did crib on the rug last night when it was hanging over the door as all the stables have metal as its American barn stabling and the only wood in the stable is the bottom panel which hasn't been touched.

I noticed she also went to chew on the plastic jump post when I was putting a jump up the other day.

Another major problem is that she is at a livery yard and they are yet to notice that she does this but when they do I may have to move livery yards.
 
Chewing wood is quite natural behaviour and doesn't indicate cribbing.

The gulping you describe could be attributed to bloating or ulcers.

I certainly wouldn't be getting my knickers in a twist just yet....
 
It could very well be her teeth. My 4 year old has just started doing the same thing and i was worried too as i was thinking - why on earth has she suddenly got these bad habits (no other signs of ulcers!). The dentist came the other day and he said that two of her front baby teeth, one to each side (sorry i am sure there is a technical name) will fall out shortly and that she may well chew at things because they are irritating her.
 
Thats what happened to my boy, both end ones have come off!

I would have a feel and see if they are sharp or wobbly and even get him back out. teeth should be checked every 6 months on youngsters!
 
Hello
I also have an ISH and he also started to crib and windsuck when he was about four, he is seven now and i have never had any problem with it. We believe it may be stress related and also a lack of vitamin/minerals. He is also on a very large yard and large barn with other horses and it has no effect on them. My boy was doing it all the time and he has his teeth checked regularly and a hard feed twice a day. He is now on a very strict routine and also has a vitamin/mineral supplement in his feed which has reduced the amount he does it dramaticaly.
I hope this helps! I wouldn't panick though as i have no trouble with it.
:)
 
Cribbers are usually at their worst just after a hard feed - I've never heard of one doing it (or WS) when they were being ridden, and we had a cribber who would crib on your shoulder if you stood still beside her!
I think you might be jumping the gun - your YO will tell you pretty soon if s/he sees the behaviour - or maybe you could ask their advice and put your mind at rest.
 
I was under the impression it could be genetic or hereditary which is an unsoundness rather than a vice.

I know four horses that do this even when access to forage or grass is available. Nothing has stopped it even collars or foul tasting sprays. Ulcers have been blamed but no ulcers at all. They just like doing it. Biz-arre!

Good luck though - I think wasting money on collars is a waste of time, you just have to accept it. All the horses I know compete and do well under saddle, not one suffers with it.
 
Problems arise with cribbing long term normally and not short term, it can cause colics and problems with the teeth so yes horses can compete and work normally with the vice but it is always better to try and stop the problem (not the symptom).

There are many things to look at when trying to help a cribber or windsucker like managment routine, stress levels and feed. IMO it is always worth adding a supplement which reduces the acidity in the gut as even though Ulcers may not be showing there could well be acid build up which could eventually cause the Ulcers and is still uncomfortable for the horse. There was a study done years ago on windsuckers\cribbers and it was something like over 90% had ulcer issues.
 
Allover said:
Problems arise with cribbing long term normally and not short term, it can cause colics and problems with the teeth so yes horses can compete and work normally with the vice but it is always better to try and stop the problem (not the symptom).

There are many things to look at when trying to help a cribber or windsucker like managment routine, stress levels and feed. IMO it is always worth adding a supplement which reduces the acidity in the gut as even though Ulcers may not be showing there could well be acid build up which could eventually cause the Ulcers and is still uncomfortable for the horse. There was a study done years ago on windsuckers\cribbers and it was something like over 90% had ulcer issues.
Click to expand...

If it's the same study as I'm thinking of, it pretty much proved that horses that were more likely to colic were more inclined to crib/w/s rather than cribbiting causing colic. THe one we're looking after atm has almost stopped on a forage (no cereal) diet, just a few gulps after feeding (Soaked Unmolassed SB & lucienuts)
 
She is bound to be stressed after a move. What might she be missing that she had before? A soul mate? Free grazing rather than strip? I would venture that she is under-stimulated in her current keep and if you could adjust the management a little and spend as much time as you can on calm but varied exercise to stimulate but avoid stress e.g. lateral work on line, long-reining, circling over obstacles etc. Avoid lungeing or similar repetitive mindless exercise. Vary her meals - give smaller and more often if you have to stable her but I would be inclined to stable for the minimum time possible.
 
Thought I would drag this thread back up rather than start a new one!

I have a 5 year old (just) ex racer TB who will occasionally crib bite and windsuck. Generally when expecting/just after food. She has caused quite a bit of damage over the last week and, understandably, my YO is getting a bit miffed. Her teeth were done on Tuesday and dentist found no problems. Vet is coming in a couple of weeks for her jabs so will have her checked for ulcers then. Her diet is 1/2 chaff, 1/2 fast fibre, 1 nuts and a mug of lo-cal twice a day. She is out overnight in a summer field with grass, and comes in for a few hours when the weather is really hot with a net of haylage. Any ideas on getting her to stop?!
 
It was actually suggested to me by a natural horseman that Rennies may help with the windsucking and decided to give it a go as I knew they wouldn't have any harm on her and they did work however not practical really as the amount she needed would have cost as she needed at least 8 a day so I took her off them and she continues to windsuck but not nearly as much as before.
 
My horse was a ferocious crib biter/windsucker when I got her. I immediately changed her diet, she has no cereals of any kind now. There are very few hard feeds which offer the energy required for competition AND have no cereal at all, even the ones that claim not to usually have a bit if you check the ingredients. So to save you some time and effort, I only feed Top Spec Cool Condition Cubes and either Alfa-A Oil or another low sugar chaff. In summer I cut down the cubes and give a handful of chaff plus supplements ie a broad range vit and mineral and Protexin. You will know how much work your horse is in and how much energy it needs, of course.
Protexin is my wonder stuff, in fact my horse is featured on their testimonial page as its the one and only time I've been so impressed with something that I wrote in to thank them. It is a pre and probitic and allows her to get the most goodness out of her food as after a bout of colic the vets at Leahurst told me she has poor gut motility so things don't get processed as they should, this can also affect her cribbing. They have a product that has the pro and prebiotic AND stuff to help calm stomach acid but I never needed to use that one, my horse has gone from constant cribbing on anythinig to everything to only cribbing on her door at mealtimes, she doesn't even crib at all in the field now.
Oh I should say, although it doesn't recommend it I always soak the cubes, try just covering them with water and see how much they swell! Not good for a horse with a slow moving stomach lol!!
Hope that helps, good luck with your horse!
 
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I worked on a polo yard where one of my horses was a serious wind sucker and crib biter. We used feedmark Settlex and the difference was amazing! It took about 6 weeks before we noticed a difference but it definatley worked for him. If you have had teeth checked and have gone down the ulcer route then I would recommend the Settlex
 
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