Help please - separation anxiety

[Ginn]

Until about 3 months ago Tilly had never been on her own except for the odd occasion in her stable.

In july both her field mates had to be sadly pts. A couple of dayson sedalin and she coped just fine on her own.

My YO has just got a new horse which arrived on Sunday. Since then the two of them have been turned out together. Each is ok on their own if they are with someone, however the other which is left in the field/stable literally goes beserk. I have just brough Tilly in as in the 15mins I had Chelsea in for a groom she managed to get herself in a complete state and is dripping!

This cannot go on and they both need to learn how to cope on their own for a few hours and do so without injuring themselves running around!

Like I say I have just separated them for a bit - I will go up in an hour and turn Tilly back out. But what else can I do - this has to stop!

 

[Kelly1982]

I am having the exact same problem with my mare!!!

If i bring her in when the others are out she neighs, scraps, shakes and drips with sweat until you start riding her and then she chills out again.

Her best mate just walks up and down the fence neighing until my mare is turned back out even though there are others in the field.

My mare is slowly getting better so i am hoping it will sort itself out soon although it has been like this for 8 weeks now.

 

[ClareMc]

I had a similar problem when I got my mare, my gelding could'nt bear to be separated from her.

I just had to be persistent and separate them for short periods of time and build up from there.

Like Kelly said I think it is just a question of patience and persistence and getting them used to being separated and know they will be put back togehter.

 

[Salcey]

We had the same problem with our gelding and mare. They would each shout and panic if the other was removed from sight.
We began by tying them up further apart from each other than normal, and when that was ok, to tying up just out of sight (but within 5yrds). We then began to walk one away whilst the other was in the stable only for 5 minutes or so.
We have now got to the point where one can be hacked out for 1 hour with the other in the stable and although the stabled one still shouts we have no stamping, sweating etc. Bascially they both now know that the other will return.
It really is little by little and loads of patience but it worth it.

 

[emma_lg]

I had the other problem of seperation anxiety with my mare recently...she hated coming in from the field early whilst the other mares she is with are still out. She would scream, pace, take no notice of you near her. I couldn't always accommodate her to be out the same as the others all the time due to other commitments..it was stressful for both of us!!
So I had a thought..if she could still see them when she came in maybe she wouldn't be so stressed. The stable she was in was round the back so no view of the fields...I spoke to my YO and she offered me another stable which looked right on to the fields but yet was quiet and she could see the majority of the yard too. She settled in straight away and I have since been able to bring her in much earlier without her getting stressed...she also used to be a bit wild to put out in the field in the morning and it seems to have stopped this too.
In fact, the farrier was shoeing the other day in her old stable and she refused to go in there!!!
I have learned the environment is so important to my horse and I at last cottoned on a little bit to what she was trying to say to me...she is also nosy so probably felt cut off once we were round the other side on our own.
I hope you can sort out your situation so everyone is happy...