Loss of use because of behaviour?

MeganLindsx

MeganLindsx

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My mares behaviour has gotten so bad that she is unridable!!

We have ruled out pain, taken her to be re-schooled many of times, horse whisperer, you name it i have done it!

She seems to take one step forward and ten back. The final straw was when my yard manager was riding her and she would not stop rearing (no reason for it) and then fell backwards. I then got on and she constantly bucked. The vet said there is nothing wrong.

I need to sale her but my yard manager suggested claiming loss of use for her as her behaiour is so bad and then have her as a companion or brood mare.

Is this possible?:confused:
 
She is worst when the other mares are still out and trying to bring her in during the middle of the day is horrid and she rears and rears big and right on top of you! Even on the good days she wont concentrate for love nor money and i am wrecking my brain to know what to do. I have had three different vets look at her already!
 
99.9% sure that insurance does not cover behavioural problems, only physical.

Know someone with a pony who turned unrideable. couldn't get to the bottom of it with vets fees as nothing looked physically wrong. Vet wanted to refer him to a hospital for scans, but insurance said they would only pay if something was found wrong. ie it was not behavioural. They couldn't afford it so went for loss of use. Again told no, because it was behavioural not physical. Pony now field ornament.

Have you had him referred to a hospital for scans?
 
You'll have to check with your insurance but I think you can as long as your vet agrees and writes a letter explaining this to the insurance people.
 
Definitely won't get LOU for behaviour, tried it myself and failed, even though my vet agreed he was a danger to himself and others.
 
MeganLindsx


It is interesting that one minute you are asking for help because your mare is short behind and now you are saying she is too dangerous to ride.

I do not think an insurance company will go for LOU for a behaviour problem

I would say get a proper diagnosis, then get someone that is really good with muscular skeletal problems, then you could try getting a Recommended Associate (Monty Roberts) to come and see her.

AS others have said there has to be something wrong somewhere
 
MeganLindsx said:
I need to sale her but my yard manager suggested claiming loss of use for her as her behaiour is so bad and then have her as a companion or brood mare.
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Gosh, if she is dangerously behaved, then I don't think selling her or breeding from her is a responsible way forward. :(

Have you tried advertising her honestly on "project horses"?
 
I think we all owe it to our horses to find out what is wrong, and I agree - there is definitely something wrong. Behaviour like this is not normal for a horse - she is shouting as loud as she can to make someone hear, please don't dismiss her pleas for help as bad behaviour.
She will not want to come away from the herd b/c that is where she feels secure and nothing hurts when she is with her own kind. When she is with humans, something you are doing hurts her - can you blame her for objecting so strongly:eek:
Has this come on gradually or was it a sudden change in behaviour?
Has she been checked for kissing spines? It sounds to me like something is wrong when she has pressure put on her body.
Does she roll in the field? Have you observed her getting down and up?
I would do all I could to get her under a thermal imaging camera to find where the hot spots are.
 
I think i have just come to my whits end with the horse and i do feel bad for saying that but she just doesn't give anything back!

she gets so attached to other horses that noone on my yard will touch her as they are all scared of her.

Have tried every medical option for her and they have found nothing, they havent scanned her ovaries yet though.

Do you reckon pain in her ovaries could also have something to do with back pain or why she some times comes up short behind?!?!
 
muff747 said:
I think we all owe it to our horses to find out what is wrong, and I agree - there is definitely something wrong. Behaviour like this is not normal for a horse - she is shouting as loud as she can to make someone hear, please don't dismiss her pleas for help as bad behaviour.
She will not want to come away from the herd b/c that is where she feels secure and nothing hurts when she is with her own kind. When she is with humans, something you are doing hurts her - can you blame her for objecting so strongly:eek:
Has this come on gradually or was it a sudden change in behaviour?
Has she been checked for kissing spines? It sounds to me like something is wrong when she has pressure put on her body.
Does she roll in the field? Have you observed her getting down and up?
I would do all I could to get her under a thermal imaging camera to find where the hot spots are.
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When i got her she used to rear when bringing in but although she rears big i could deal with it and she made up for the fact that she was good and gold to ride and in the stable etc. but then she slowly started napping towards other horses while ridden and then would go crazy if she saw other horses until it got to the point where now she just goes straight up.
She has improved this year until she reared with my instructor and fell backwards, we then had vet and physio and osteo out for her and they said they can find no reason why she is in pain or that anything is causing her to behave like she has.
In the field she is rolling and cantering and looks fine but she often stays close to the mares.
I havent gone down the route of having scans just yet as feel really alone on the yard and feel pressured to sale her as everyone is terrified of her... i recently had a baby and it was a nightmere finding people to look after her while i couldn't! It gets to point when its very soul distroying!:(
 
I think you should think about professional help with her , I do not think as a new mum you should be coping with this when the vet has exhausted all avenues then that's what I think you should do ,ask around you and see who's in your area if there's no one suitable although I have no personal experiance Richard Maxwell has a good reputation with difficult horses, Of course it all costs money and that's difficult because the costs mount up quickly so perhaps someone might take her on ad a project horse I would hate to have to do that but needs must and it is supposed to be fun Good luck it's not a nice place to be but you will get though it.
 
I have a horse that is dangerous please please do not sell her to some other poor person they dont deserve that. Do the right thing or keep her. You wont get loss of use because of behaviour iv got endless letters from vets and teachers and experts no luck.
 
traceyann said:
I have a horse that is dangerous please please do not sell her to some other poor person they dont deserve that. Do the right thing or keep her. You wont get loss of use because of behaviour iv got endless letters from vets and teachers and experts no luck.
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Agree with this.

I agonised what to do with mine.
I did advertise mine, being brutally honest but when somebody came to see him, I realised I just couldn't do it.
Although he was only 9, I couldn't have it on my conscience that he may kill somebody, so I did the honourable thing :(.

I did everything I could prior to making the sad decision. He saw 2 different vets practices and was referred to hospital.

Hand on heart, I did the right thing but it certainly didn't make it any easier :(.
 
quirky said:
Definitely won't get LOU for behaviour, tried it myself and failed, even though my vet agreed he was a danger to himself and others.
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I think it depends what kind of 'dangerous to himself and others' this constitutes. I got loss of horse NOT loss of use (as wasn't covered for LOU) on my policy for my previous horse. But he had late onset wobblers (CVM) and had extremely ataxic episodes which meant he was a 'danger' to him and me and he could fall at any time when leading.

Not sure where you'd stand on behaviour, I'd just ring and ask your insurance as a general question.

I'd also agree with what others have said, it would be totally unfair on her and on others to sell her on, unless it was someone who knew 100% what her problems were and you got them to sign a disclaimer.
 
Has she ever been blood tested to check her hormone levels?

And I wouldn't keep changing your vets, you need to work with one that has a full history.

Interesting that she is short behind - that would be a primary point of investigation, because if she has tendon or ligament damage then clearly working will = pain.

Of course if it is behavioral, and she is genuinely dangerous, then of course you can't pass her on, and should have her put down.

Let us know how you get on.
 
We had one and the riding school i was working at the time , she was worst round her cycle. We had to put her on a drug to stop her cycle . she bucked and bucked couldn't ride her..

Have they thought of this is she worst round her cycle?

I would get a http://www.penniehooper.com/ to check her out,

Horses dont normally behave like this , especially as you say she getting worst .
could be trapped nerve.

or neurological
I would dig a little further 2nd opinion is always worth its weight in gold


failing that Glasgow vets go that one step further second chance http://www.gla.ac.uk/schools/vet/
 
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I would immediately stop trying to ride her, and decide what you are going to do,
Is she insured for a full work-over at vet hospital, if not why not.
Are you prepared to shoot her if she continues to suffer, this is better than passing on the problem
Find a senior vet who is willing to take this on, one who will give you the OK to pts if it is needed, make this clear before you start.
I hope your insurance company is communicative, not Elective and Lazy.
 
You say you have tried all medical options but you haven't scanner her ovaries. Eh scanning the ovaries would be one of the simplest and easiest checks to do! What exactly have you done? Are bloods done...full blood lab work up for hormone levels etc., Full nerve blocking to ascertain what is causing the hind end issue, urine sampling, further bloods when in season to check for any particular hormone spikes. Unless you have done even these basics you have not exhausted all options and if your YO seriously thinks she is a candidate for breeding from I would stop listening to her opinion!!
 
You posted once before
"My mare is constantly being short behind! It started when she fell over when rearing up in the field and fell over" " (doing her usual stallion impression!) "
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^this is my suggestion


I have had the vet out and they have been no help, have had her back done numerous times and saddle checked etc.

She is not lame and shows no irregular steps she just wont track up and is constatly short no matter who is riding her.
Can someone please suggest something!!!
Why is someone riding an un-sound horse which is rearing, what is the point?

Can someone [else] please suggest something!!!
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I would certainly be taking a very good look at her ovaries and I definitely wouldn't be considering breeding from her. My mare used to get very touchy in her back in the week before her season started. Going out for a slow (walk only) hack was all she could cope with. Sadly, I have heard of two cases that were not dissimilar to this and both turned out to be brain tumours.
 
So... seems to me you have two options as selling or breeding from her are not options to be fair to her.
Option 1; If you have the funds or insurance cover, carry on going down the vet investigations route to find the problem - and I am still certain there is a problem, something hurts when she is ridden so she associates humans with pain - so she wants to be with her own kind, they leave her alone.
Option 2; If you can't afford, or have run out of time to deal with this, you must have her pts - I do not envy you this decision but it will be the kindest thing for her, she must be very unhappy when she inevitably has to have human contact. Be very brave and do the right thing for her.
Good luck, please keep in touch, we all feel for you.
 
It will be worth getting her scanned

I've got a challanging mare she's 19 and has been with me for a decade - My OH can not understand how I can say that I will PTS rather than sell her but it is how I feel, I wouldn't risk her on someone else full time or just ship her off I'd always be worried I love her dispite her issues and I'd hate her to end up at turners or worse hurting someone

A girl I knew tried very hard with a very expensive pony and worked with the vet but in the end the vet said - It isn't fit for purpose, you don't want someones kid getting on it and getting hurt and the horse is clearly in distress, cut your losses and PTS - she did and now has a brilliant horse that she has an amazing time with. I hope one day I get my perfect horse but for now I have Lina.
 
It is totally normal for mares which have a lot of their wild instincts left not to leave their herd. Your mare tells you that she does not want to be brought in whe you take her out during the field, so start listen to her better. You can only solve the rearing problem by working with her in the field on this issue. Gain her trust, spend time with her and work with her so that her thought of leaving the herd is not associated with discomfort. Also if she bucks and rears while riding their is either a physical problem or training methods or equipment used does not suit her. So I would check all of this out.
May I ask what you have tried to do to sort her behaviour out? Which "horse whisperers" have you used?
 
have contacted Donna and also got the vet out today, he behaviour on the ground has improved so much but still needs help with loading and other little things. The vet said that her doesn't think its her back but something in her right hind and he doesn't know what. Do you reckon its worth sending her to Donna's or to have her treated by my vet for nerve blocks and scans in the leg to see whats wrong?!
 
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