Horse that doesn't like having his saddle / rug put on ?

[Horseback Rider]

I have had him for over 2 yrs he has had physio/reiki/vet/teeth all done recently. He is fine in himself it's just when I put the saddle on him or rugs his ears go right back and he throws me a big evil look !

The physio thinks it may be the case that he has had pain there in the past and still associates rugs/saddlesetc with that pain .....just wondering if there is anything I can try to break the cycle ?

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I've had 2 that came to me like that. The first one was rising 4 when I got her and was always difficult to rug/saddle. Many years later we discovered that she was very sensitive to feed and couldn't eat cereals/sugar because they made her skin very sensitive. When we took these out of her diet, she was more comfortable being rugged etc but was never perfect no matter what we did, even though she lived to be 24.
The second is much older, has not been with us a year yet but is already much better. I have been very careful when tacking up. I put the saddle-cloth, saddle and girth on separately for a few months. I put everything on from the off-side and give a treat for every step without a threatened bite (she never has actually bitten). I can now put the saddle on with everything on and can also do it from the nearside. I think the problem probably stems from when she was in a RS/treking centre. I guess that novices were allowed to tack her up and were rather clumsy. She is a big girl, so quite a stretch to put everything on properly. Then I think matters were compounded in her last home, where she was just tied up short to stop her biting, rather than being taught that there is no need to bite/threaten.
So I think your approach will depend on whether your horse's problem is learned behaviour or pain-related.

 

[Archiepoo]

My ex racer does this !he hates to be touched- he even throws a buck and kicks the stable wall sometimes when the numnah/saddle or rug goes on him,ive tried putting them on his neck and sliding back -no good. ive tried massaging his back for a few minutes first -he hates it and even squeals with his ears flat back! . hes soooo grumpy in the stable but such a fun ride! as soon as the saddles on hes ready to go and have fun! sorry i dont have any suggestions to help-but your not alone and you are probly right its memory of pain.

 

[JessPickle]

My boy does this and always has done, the saddle he came with was an awful fit and all the experts have said it's most likely that. He's 19 now and is generally a very chilled out fellow but hates it still. He mainly bites his own chest though! unfortunetluy haven't found a solution.

 

[Horseback Rider]

Forgot to mention he is an ex racer, when I am doing the girth up or put his rug on sometimes his back legs come up as well not so much to kick out as he has never kicked out at anything he just kind of brings them up then stomps them down. I have wondered if it's because in his racing days they have chucked the tack & jockeys on his back quite harshly previously that he will just always associate it with that ?? He is good as gold once its on and the same with doing up rugs he just stands there quietly it's just when I first put them on.

 

[MiCsarah]

My boy is very sensitive to touch. Hates being groomed, rugged and saddle on. Always has been, I just have to try and be quick but gentle

 

[Archiepoo]

I know its been done to death lately but have you checked him for ulcers? mine had very bad ones so that might be the pain he suffered before,but racers are sometimes quite roughly handled and some tbs are very sensitive so all you can do is be as gentle as possible, i also found doing things the opposite way to the way it would have been done when they were in racing works well !

 

[Oberon]

I know its been done to death lately but have you checked him for ulcers? mine had very bad ones so that might be the pain he suffered before,but racers are sometimes quite roughly handled and some tbs are very sensitive so all you can do is be as gentle as possible, i also found doing things the opposite way to the way it would have been done when they were in racing works well !

I thought ulcers too.

 

[muddygreymare]

My mare has just started with this as well. Has always been a bit tense with the saddle because she has had an ill fitting one in the past, so that is understandable but its been confirmed her saddle fits and she's in no pain by both saddler and physio, but has recently started tensing up when her rug surcingles are done up as well. I think I might try pearlsacarolsinger's technique. Hope you find a solution or some form of improvement with your horse

 

[Jess66]

my boy has also started doing this in the last few weeks, sometimes with the saddle/girth, sometimes with rug (and sometimes neither) i put it down to winter as he can get a bit grouchy over winter, but did consider ulcers? is there a home test you can do e.g to look for the symptoms not to diagnose! to see if it is likely to be ulcers?

 

[Ginger Bear]

My mums mare is just like this, another ex-racer.. Had her looked at by physio & back person found to b in no pain even though very grumpy.. Sent her to vet, X-rays showed kissing spine. Has now had osteopathy & accupuncture & is now much happier.. We always thought it was just her way as had so many specialist back ppl/physios say she was fine! Also sometimes when a horse is touchy it doesn't have to b muscles/bones causing pain, can sometimes b organ problems.

 

[Inchy]

This was the first obvious sign of ulcers in my boy, he used to turn round and pull faces when you put on a rug/saddle/roller. He stopped this with in two days of being treated (gastroguard) for them.

 

[Slave2Magic]

My mare hates grooming, rugging and girthing. I did consider ulcers but she has never had colic and doesn't loose weight. Could it still be ulcers? She has a high fibre diet and no cereal.

 

[Cocorules]

I am afraid I do not have any suggestions for breaking the cycle really, but I would suggest being ultra gentle on a permanent basis with a horse like this.

For example put the rug on from the 'wrong' side so that you can make sure the surcingles do not bang against his legs. You can also do the girth up in stages, one hole at a time and move him a pace or so in between doing the girth up each hole. If the rug has leg straps keep the leg straps done up when you put the rug on to save teh metal hitting his legs or sides.

I would also double check the fit of the rug (as well as the saddle) and that it is not rubbing at all both across the chest and if it has leg straps inside his legs too.

I have a pony who is very sensitive to her girth being done up and to rugs and doing this gently worked for us. I should think it would be much harder with a big tb especially if there is an element of 'throwing' the rug to reach up enough. My friend had a massive tb and she was very short and the horse hated her throwing the rug up as the surcingles and leg straps used to end up in a tangle under the rug which always looked horribly uncomfortable.