Ideas for solving separation anxiety in the horse that stays in the field

F

feesh

Well-Known Member
Joined
24 September 2021
Messages
86
Visit site
My share horse's pasture mate has fairly strong separation anxiety, and it's making it hard to get any riding done. This was less of a problem in the spring as there was a 3rd horse in the pasture, but 3rd horse left for training and we recently found out she's not coming back. The anxious horse is a boarder, so I'm limited in what I can do for solutions.

The anxious horse stresses and runs the fenceline and calls. I'd be inclined to follow her owner's suggestion of "let her fuss, she'll settle down eventually"... except we know that she can jump the fence if she wants to. She hasn't yet as a result of being separated, but did one time when other horses were going through a gate and she couldn't be bothered to wait her turn.

Ever since the 3rd horse left (June 1), I've been doing the obvious thing of slowly increasing the distance away that I groom/tack up, riding in sight, leaving her sight for a short while and coming back, etc. She's made a lot of progress, and some days barely cares at all (I've gone for rides in an adjacent field out of her sight, while she stands in her shelter where she can't see anything and just calls occasionally)... but other days we're back to worrying she'll come over the fence even when we're in full view. On those days I'm basically limited to riding on a smallish patch of lawn and driveway.

Other possible solutions we've considered:

* Change turnout groups - might be possible in the fall once we PTS an oldie, but not possible right now. Eventually there will likely be another boarder's horse in that field but we have a to build another tack locker, etc before that will happen, and is likewise unlikely before fall at earliest.
* Give her a buddy while I ride - this is the next thing we're going to try, but the horse that's available as a buddy is also the only other rideable horse on the property, so problem remains if two people want to hack together. I don't know if this might eventually make things easier?
* Distraction of some sort - tried this earlier, but while it seems to settle her faster if she's going to settle, if she's having an anxious day then no distraction seems to be strong enough. We may try a lickit if we can get owner permission but I'm not optimistic.
* Higher fences? - not a chance at least until hay season is over.

I do have the farm manager on my side (she owns the two rideable horses that I'm sharing), but has very limited time and energy to put towards this as she has to run the rest of the farm.

Are there any solutions I'm missing, or is it just a case of very very slowly continuing what I'm doing?
 
As the owner of a horse with separation angst firstly - thank you for your concern and for trying to help, if only everyone was so considerate! Its a very stressful thing to deal with. This mare may be different but once mine has got upset he will NOT "settle down eventually" he just escalates and has hurt himself doing so. I have no proven solution (and mine is in his teens now so not likely to change) but he is better in spring/summer when he can be distracted by grass! Hopefully if you continue as you are she might improve and if not, in the short term at least, giving her a buddy would seem the quickest/easiest solution (maybe coordinate your joint hacks for when the owner of the anxious horse owner is riding/doing something with her)?
 
Definitely better if you can provide the companion with a companion whilst you ride. Have you tried giving her a treat ball or a lick or something whilst you ride? I do this with my stabled ones if they are going to be alone and so think they are likely to be stressed. Is there any chance of bringing her into a field shelter/stable whilst you ride? All of mine are fine alone in the stable but wouldn’t be so settled left out in the field.

I once had a mare that used to jump out and I couldn’t leave her turned out alone under any circumstances. I wouldn’t try higher fencing as if the horse is panicking it’s likely to still attempt to jump it which could result in injury.
 
Do you have a stable you could put her in with some hay while you are hacking out ? This works with my two. I couldn't leave one out in the field when I take out the other - they would call and gallop about and work themselves into a frenzy. Somehow confining them for a short period with some food seems to keep them calm and content . X
 
I am in a similar position and feel your pain. Our yard has moved fields around and my pony and another have been paired up. The other is very stressy. I can bring mine in and tie within view of the yard which helps. And the ménage backs onto the field too so if I ride in there the other is OK eventually as can see mine. However, I wouldn’t hack if the owner of the other wasn’t around as he goes completely crazy and is a fine type. I’d imagine coming back to him on 3 legs.

It’s very tricky. The owner told me just to ignore him but I really can’t do that.
 
I had the same problem with the little pony I got from a charity as a “ companion” pony. I tried literally everything from distraction to better fencing and separation anxiety training ( in other words baby steps of removing the horse she was attached to) , finally I got a companion for the companion 😳 and she is still not much better. She is happy to go out in hand herself but goes in to a blind panic jumping out of the field if I take my ridden ( now retired ) horse out for a hack. It is a hard thing to deal with but certainly other company in the field is the most likely thing to work
 
Thank you all!

I have tried distractions, somewhat - when this first started, they were still on dry lots with round bales (each dry lot opens up to a larger grass paddock for summer/fall - we were late opening this year), so I'd give her a few flakes of nicer hay when I took my share out. This was effective if she was having a calm day, but useless if she was having an anxious day. I do plan to dig out our Lickit to see if that helps, assuming owner gives permission.

Annoyingly, there doesn't seem to be much pattern to whether she's going to have a calm or anxious day. She has friends in the next door paddock that she plays with over the fence, and it doesn't seem to matter if they're close or way down the other end. Weather, flies... doesn't matter. The only thing that DOES seem to change even a little bit is that if I groom & tack up in good view of her, she *might* settle enough that I can later ride out of view... but she'll DEFINITELY be extra anxious if we leave her view immediately.

Sadly I can't coordinate rides with her owner as I ride about 3-4x as often as her owner does. And she has a shelter, but no stall I can put her in, as she's an outdoor boarder (grass livery?). If she does settle down, she usually puts herself back in the shelter and just yells occasionally. I do think, based on her behaviour/history, a higher fence would be effective - I suspect in the past/at other barns this was solved by having a nice high fence and letting her "run it out." Unfortunately we have patent rail a-frame fences so hard to add height without rebuilding.

Adding-a-buddy-while-riding trial has been postponed to next week as we had tornado warnings today, and tomorrow is farrier.

On the plus side, things do seem to be getting better overall: Monday I tacked up in her direct sight, but a fair bit further away than I usually do, and she was fairly calm for my ride, even when we left her sight. Tuesday I moved across the driveway to tack up, to a place where she could see us, but only if she stood in one particular spot, which she did NOT like, and I ended up having to do a very frustratingly limited ride. So today (Thursday), I moved back into good view but bit further away, and she was noisy but reasonably calm, and we were even able to do some schooling in the field that's (mostly) out of her view.

So I guess it's more teeeeeny baby steps. I desperately miss tacking up in the barn, but at least I've now made myself a little cart setup so I can bring out all his paraphernalia at once.
 
Is there nowhere you can safely stable the other horse while you ride? A safe and secure stable (with a distraction "lickit" available if necessary) might be the best option. You might still come back to find a stressed horse on her bad days, but less chance of her either jumping out of the field and/or injuring herself and ruining the field and or fencing.
I have a friend who ended up with 4 horses so she can exercise two with ride and lead - but now she has 4 she has to keep on top of!
When I was a teen back in the 70's, we got a donkey to keep the pony company, but then found out about lung worm so had to separate them, and ended up with 3 donkeys in one set up (donkey had a foal!) and got a second pony to keep the pony company .... it could get rather expensive!
 
Is there nowhere you can safely stable the other horse while you ride?
Click to expand...

Not really, as she's an outdoor boarder (grass livery, I think?). Farm manager is fairly strict about maintaining the division (eg farrier does outdoor boarders outside, even though we currently have spare stalls and it would be easier to do all horses in the barn), and we also don't actually know if she's ever been stalled. I'm also hesitant about handling a horse that's not mine, especially bringing into our barn - bringing in horses individually has to be through a dark narrow passage with two doorways and a wooden bridge, and to go in a stall the horse has to go over another small wooden bridge over a gutter in the floor (or "jump" it, which some horses prefer to).

Eventually, if we can't manage to get her company by fall, and she doesn't get calmer by then either, I may be able to get gates built across the shelter front, but it's a long shot. Setting things up so I can ride is pretty much the last priority on the farm - nice to have, but comes after all the other "real" work.
 
My yard isn’t near my field so what I do is to bring both in, feed and then put the one that’s staying back out with some hay. When I had my TB he could cope with being “first out” but would lose his mind over being “last in”.

But then I have two mature ponies so their “anxiety” is never worse than calling and fence walking.
 
Small update: Have been putting a buddy in with her when I ride, and that has been... slightly successful? The buddy's opinion of being chucked into a different field is "ok, sure, there's better grass here anyway," and he heads off to the far end with the good grazing. It does seem to comfort the anxious horse a tiny bit? But I'm not 100% sure she really registers that he's "with" her (he would normally be about the same distance away, but with a fence between them). I'll keep doing it, as it doesn't seem to cause any additional problems, and is easy enough, but...

Luckily, the anxious horse is moving at the end of the month, as the owner is moving. So I guess I will just continue hauling all my gear out and tacking up next to the paddock for the rest of the month, and limiting my riding to the driveway and the field that is in view of her, and look forward to tacking up in the barn and trail rides in September!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top