Help please - generally nice horse kicking out - pain or naughtiness?

T

Tash88

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As I posted about on Christmas Eve, my horse has a small injury to his coronet band (off hind) which was probably causing him some pain, but fortunately it has practically healed now. I am still putting a barrier cream on it before I turn him out as the fields are so muddy.

But the problem is that he is still very sensitive and won't let me touch it more than once - he kicks out and has caught me a few times. He has now developed a touch of mud fever on his other hind leg and so I need to treat that as well, but he won't let me touch the other hind leg either. He won't even let me put anything on his front legs - before the coronet band injury I was putting keratex powder on all four legs to prevent mud fever and that was working.

He is a bit of a wuss when it comes to injuries anyway; a few months ago he had a nasty cut on his hock and the vet had to sedate him before he could clean it, and then he was funny about me touching his back legs for a few weeks. Unfortunately this time he is much worse; normally he is a really sweet horse and easy to handle, but I can't put anything on his legs without him kicking out. I actually asked my YO for some help (she used to own him and I bought him a year ago) and she just growled at him and he was fine, so I'm thinking it could be naughtiness. She said that he was just being a brat today as well, but I can't seem to be able to get him to behave, and I feel quite pathetic. :(

However he will let me groom his legs before I ride him, with no issue. He actually enjoys being groomed and finds it quite relaxing, he just tenses up as soon as I stop brushing him and leave to get the powder/cream that I want to put on his legs. I don't know what to do, as I don't want his mud fever to get any worse and I want to be able to help him, but I don't want to put both him and myself through any more stress than necessary, and I don't want to get kicked any more.

FYI he is a 6 y/o WB x TB, fine to ride and tack up etc. In at night and out during the day with no recent changes to feed or routine.

Thanks in advance,

Tash x
 
The first thing that comes to mind is that something you are washing the wound with or putting on it stings and he REALLY doesn't like it.

He should be better mannered but his protest is understandable. I'd get your YO to help until he realises that he has to behave for you too.
 
As he has been funny with his back legs before he is maybe being a bit bratty, or anticipating pain. Could you hold another leg up whilst applying? Or brush his legs at the same time, try and fool him, or at same time as picking feet out? Had to fool a pony I ride this way or would be kicked in the head. Or get someone to shovel polos in the front end whilst you dealing with the back end, bit of bribery never hurts.
 
I suspect it does/did hurt, and there's a fine line, but I think I would be patient and insist, with all the time in the world but work deftly not hesitantly. I would start with using a long whip to stroke down his legs, start at somewhere he doesn't mind on his body and work towards hoof a bit at a time. Read his body language and approach and retreat before he kicks out. Progress to using hands but from a safe handling position. You'll be fully aware by now what range those hindlegs have! Bribery and corruption would be fine to use too, especially as it is probably currently painful for him. A firm growl or NO when he goes to lash out is also fine.
 
OP, don't despair it will improve. I recently had exactly the same problem.

A 19 year old horse, real gentleman who has never so much as lifted a leg in nine years of ownership. The poor horse was not well in the autumn and suffered 2 septic feet at the same time (one front one hind) and mud fever both hinds. He had also just come out of 11 months box rest.

You can imagine how much faffing that horse had to put up with when we did his treatments. He began to kick and it took 3 of us to handle him. He kicked me across the paddock one evening which was a bit of a shock as I had not been kicked for 20 years !

I could not get near his legs for sometime after he had recovered and even just bending down by him caused him to move away and threaten me. They are not stupid animals and soon associate what may cause them pain, in his case it was me bending down or carrying a little tack tray which I used for the poultice kit etc. Rightly or wrongly, I simply left his legs/feet alone after he recovered from the problems. Even trying to pick his feet out caused a big struggle (he is 17.2). Never under estimate the horses ability to reason or associate. My horse would stand by his paddock fence talking to anyone but as soon as the vets car arrived he was gone.

After a week or so of not touching him, I tied him up and groomed from the top down, including legs and then feet, he still had a protest but I was firm with him, even using a slap when he was rude and he returned to the gentleman that is actually is. I am not suggesting this is the way to deal with your problem as only you know your horse, but it worked for mine.
 
I would change your routine so you put the cream on while brushing. Do a bit of brushing put a bit of cream on, more brushing etc. Then he won't get in a state hopefully. Don't make an issue of going to get stuff, have it ready so he doesn't anticipate it happening and get distressed.
 
Thank you all for replying - all useful advice that I will definitely use in the next few days.

I think that it definitely was painful for him, and I know that he can be a bit of a worrier so he is definitely associating it with pain, so his reaction is understandable to an extent. But he is also worse when I have ridden and he is waiting to be turned out, rather than when I am grooming him before he is ridden. So there could be a bit of impatience on his part as well, in which case it is a manners issue.

I think tomorrow I will put all creams etc. on before I have ridden him, when I am grooming him and he is more relaxed, and see how that goes. Then post-work it will only be positive things for him i.e. a carrot and being turned out.

I have asked people to help by giving him a treat and holding a fore leg up when I am putting cream on, and that does work but he is still fidgety and it is still a struggle, so I think I'd rather treat the problem at its source so that I can do everything myself. I need to get this sorted for the future as well so that I'd be able to treat him if he ever had a really serious injury that required long-term care.

Thanks again, Tx
 
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