i dont know what to do. Please help me

[_daisy_]

JAK - very good points never thought about that.
Shes never been out on her own yet as i feel that as we havent completely got the napping sorted out in compnay it would only make it worse out alone.
She only has a change of saddle to a dressage saddle when were schooling - both the same fit apart from the cut - also i have a quite straight cut GP so not a major difference
good point about the slowly/faster other horse. We are currently hacking out with mums younger pony - yes she walks at a decent pace and it is quite a bit faster than Chantins, even though mum does keep her at a slower pace than she would prefer to go at. There is a lovely cob on our yard that has roughly the same pace as her but even then when were walking next to each other she prefers to slow down even more to be behind. (one of my pet hates)

 

[_daisy_]

thanks for this - will have to try and find an extra long fly fringe fro her

 

[_daisy_]

cheers SN - will have a talk with her when i go to see what she thinks about the hackamore. Our previous youngster used to throw her head when she was tired - she was put in a hackamore for different reasons but it stopped her throwing her head.

 

[_daisy_]

she isnt really stressy as a normal thing but the slightest thing can set her off.
cant really make any opinion on whether its worse in the summer or winter as havent rode her through a winter yet but she ahtes flies!
ill give my vet a ring in the morning to have a chat with him about the allergy thing

 

[_daisy_]

agree with you Kelly - will try the short bursts thing tonight to see if it helps.
she is so infuriating sometimes - wish she was more like Ebi - apart from the rearing and bucking which we overcame rather quickly she was the perfect youngster

 

[JAK]

Could you maybe try letting her 'go behind' for a bit - I know you say it's one of your 'pet hates' but the lesser of two evils maybe?

CB had to be 'in front' & it took months of slowly building up the 'turn taking' of letting another horse/pony go first, initially just for a few seconds & although, he still prefers to be in front (paranoid at being 'left behind'), he will now accept it & can now 'cope' with it!

If any difference in her behaviour, at least you may be able to rule out the possibility of her being a headshaker!

 

[Kelly1982]

It could possibly be that but it certainly wasn't the case for my youngster.

He didn't bat an eyelid at anything and was so laid back it was unbelievable. He even lead an 8yo horse out on his first hack coz it was playing up and spooking when it was mean to be leading him!!!

It just seemed to be a really bad habit he had but the more i kept his mind occupied the less he did it and then in the end he hardly did it apart from the last bit of lane home. I wasn't so bothered about him doing it then though as he could have a got stretch.

It may be stress related in Ebi's case but then i think she still needs to take her out for her to gain confidence and work her through it. I'm by all means no expert though and a lot of people on here have more knowlege than me so i could be wrong but thats what i would try anyway.

I spose its just trail and error and different things will work for different horses.

 

[_daisy_]

thansk JAK - maybe it is what you found with yours. I hope she isnt a head shaker but as i mentioned before this horse has come to test me in more than one way - actually in all ways to be honest.
ill call the physio and try to get an appointment as soon as possible. also call vet in the morning to have a chat with him. Will see if my saddle fitter can come out to see her as well.

 

[_daisy_]

the last few times weve gone out hacking she has been behind - i had to get off and lead her and pony past a scary house last night and when i got back on she decided she wanted to be up front until we met some scary cows.
Maybe i should just realise ill be part of the knitting club for the moment being

 

[S_N]

Been thinking - if all these management/training things come to no good effect (god forbid) could she have a sinus problem/pollen sensitivity? A runny noseand/or sneezing is not necessary for either to be the case......

 

[Evadiva1514]

sorry if i repeat anything that has already been said as i haven't had chance to read all of the replies, but your mare sounds as though she may be suffering from mild headshaking.

My gelding became a headshaker at the age of 13, 4 years ago, and his symptoms started virtually overnight. He would not go forwards out hacking (whereas previously he was a forward horse who never napped). He would then violently headshake and half rear, and twitch his nose.

Have you tried taking her noseband off, the only reason i suggest this is that some researchers have found in some cases nosebands and flashes can in fact put pressure on the sensitive parts of the nose and cause headshaking. I wouldn't try a standing martingale as restricting her movement further might upset her even more. It will be interesting to see how you progress over the next few months and whether she improves as the weather becomes cooler.

My boy is now ridden in an equilibrium nosenet at the height of summer and since moving yards he is a lot better.

Good luck and I hope your mare begins to improve over time.

 

[LauraBR]

I would definitely get the EDT back out. I got Fal's teeth done mid November last year, had planned to get them done every 6 months given his age but in late Jan he started flinging his head about a bit when ridden and dropping his feed.

Took about a month to get an appt but when the EDT came his teeth had grown LOADS and were really sharp, would have been bothering him. EDT did say he had the fastest growing teeth he had seen in a long time but it just goes to show how much a youngsters teeth can change in such a short space of time- I was amazed.

Fingers crossed it is his teeth... easily sorted

 

[seza]

I hate to say this but have you considered it may be a mild case of head shaking syndrome. I had a four year old with very similar symptoms and I think it may be a good idea to ask your vet to have a look at her. some cases of headshaking can be improved if the underlying cause can be found. Good luck

 

[_daisy_]

could be a possibility SN - will discuss this with my vet tomorrow

 

[_daisy_]

cheers benji for this. I have tried her without her flash and it didnt help was a bit worse but this was before i bought her the crsuader ride mask. Ill give it another go.

 

[_daisy_]

thanks Laura - was thinking about some of yours posts and it got me thinking about some of the problems youd had with Fal. Ill give Sally a ring and see if she can book me in where possible

 

[_daisy_]

Sarah - it could be that she is a headshaker - what else could she possibly be but a pain in the arse. This horse has seriously been sent to test me. Maybe when my ex boyf said "do you really want me to buy you that foal?" i shouldve said no

ill speak to my vet about it tomorrow - he might be able to shed some light on it

 

[henryhorn]

Sorry I know virtually nothing about headshaking but from what I do know, they do it in the school as well as out hacking.
The owner of the local tackshop had a mare and they tried everything possible to sort it, from nets to being tough. Some things worked for a while, then stopped.
What may work and I doubt this is your answer is moving the horse to a different area. We retired a horse here from Oxfordshire who had severe problems, runny eyes, swollen face etc.
Within a couple of days all his symptoms have disappeared and not returned.
have you got rape fields near you? Perhaps try the horse at a yard miles away for a couple of weeks just to see?
I would as you have eliminate all possible causes such as teeth/back/saddle etc, and one other suggestion, provided the horse is quiet enough, try riding bareback to see if it still happens.
I do hope you find the solution...

 

[_daisy_]

Sue, thanks for your advice. She went to my instructors from May-end June and not once did she throw her head when i hacked her out. Her yard is a good 13 miles away from my yard.
Could it be that as she was stabled the majority of the day and now she is out 24/7 this is not helping?
Unfortunatley i cannot afford to keep her there as i was payign £150p/w for livery - the cheapest would be DIY at £30 but then it would be a struggle with 5 near where i live and 1 over there.
We have a few rape fields but they are quite a way away from the yard
Bareback riding - nah ill give that one a miss - 17.2hh 4yo unpredictable, shall i go on? anywho how the hell would i get on her????

 

[_daisy_]

well after this post today i decided that something must be done so thought id try a few of the easier less invasive options open to me.

<span style="color:red">one very happy owner thanks to you guys. it might only seem to be a little step forward but its a giant leap forward to me and Chantin - i felt more relaxed and she mustve felt so much better with me more confident</span>

Went out hacking on said beast with, mum on Flighty and my friend on her cob Taz. Went down the track and kept having bursts of trot. No head shaking till we had to walk a longish way down an overhung path. Of course then the flies swamped us which didnt help. On the way home we did the same thing but introduced a bit more trot and some canter work. No probs till we were again on the last stretch home so walked the way back. She started again.
I was behind mum all the way round (not that bad really) Flighty was up front all the way round with Chantin stuck up her backside most of the way, and Taz behind. She was well behaved and didnt mess around. Her walk was even better tonight than it has been - no constant nagging her to walk on (think it help when Taz the cob kep getting a bit too close for her liking so she marched off)

thank you everone who replied. I will certainly be calling my vet to discuss the options that you have raised regards the allergies. Im also going to call my EDT and physio to make sure nothing synester has happened since she returned home.

 

[Evadiva1514]

Oh im pleased you had a better ride this evening, hopefully it is onwards and upwards and she is just having a few baby issues instead of the dreaded headshaking... Good luck and i hope she continues to progress even further..

 

[altia]

Hi it could be that she is not willing to knuckle down and do the work that is asked of her. Don't know if I am explaining the right. I know that when I was backing and schooling my yongster at the start she was not going to do the work that was asked of her and the longer you perserverd with her the more she was dug her heels in. Untill one day we went out and she did the work that was asked of her without all the tantrums. I f it is the same as what I went through then the only thing you can do is perservere. Tey and keep her in a snaffle with no martingale as this can make the problem worse.

hope this helps

altia

 

[hoofsculpture]

ge sombody who can handle a horse to ride her, take no nonsence from her,see how she goes. does she do it on the way home? same as on the way out. if nothing comes of this, look for sore feet or teeth