Mareish behaviour. . . help!!

[basilcob]

Having recently purchased a laid back TB mare Ive been quite shocked to see a dramatic change in her behaviour when she was in season. It wasnt the usual moodiness that I was expecting. She remained friendly but has become very attached to a mare in the neighbouring field. She is out with two geldings and another mare who she is not bothered about but she is screaming at a mare in tge adjacent field. She does not want to leave the yard to hack and is being generally difficult to handle.I intend to do a bit of dressage and show her so I'm now worried about getting in her in a trailer due to this sudden separation anxiety. I'm assuming it's due to her season. Would appreciate any advice on managing this behaviour including supplements. . . Do they only work on the moody side? Might they help to work on her anxiety/attachment? Also thought it was strange that it's another mare. She seems to have calmed down a bit now her season has finished but I'm worried this is going to be a frequent event over summer. It's not possible to separate the field more.

 

[poorchickens]

Mine is the same. Will choose one horse to attach herself to - a horse who usually couldn't care less about her! This year her best friend is a mare.

On the positive side, my mare does this for about 5 days only during her first season. She will be a pain to catch and then will scream and nap when ridden. I can't tie her up as she breaks free So I put her in her stable for 10 mins to chill. I took her to a show and was really worried about it, but she was fine when she got there. As the summer goes on, she (and I) deal with it better

I've tried calmers with no luck so I just get on with it really. I think if it went on for longer or with more frequency, I might try something else. My YO suggested marbles, but that sounds scary!

 

[lornaA]

It might be worth trying her on an agnus castus supplement. Thats what i have my mare on and i feel it is helping. Look at naturalhorsesupplies.co.uk or go on ebay and look up ebay shop progressive earth, theses are the companies i have used and find reliable.

 

[starryeyed]

Oooh I'll be keeping my eye on this thread! My mare isn't at all moody when she's in season but gets quite difficult to handle as her already existing separation anxiety gets a million times worse and she clings to the horse that hates her and gets so upset when he's not there (or even when he's there but not gazing adoringly at her)! She also seems a lot spookier than normal and gets worked up over the tiniest things.
I've noticed all supplements seem to target the "moody mare" and was wondering the same as you as to whether it settles them generally or just addresses grumpiness.

 

[flipthelid]

I had a similar problem with my old TB mare. She would become fixated on one particular horse and was a complete nightmare to handle, ride etc! She also seemed to be in season very frequently, even through the winter. It was horrible! I tried loads of different supplements and nothing seemed to work until I spoke to a global herbs advisor. She recommended Frisky mare and also their specialist thoroughbred calmer. I was very dubious but decided I had nothing more to lose, and within 2 weeks she was a completely different horse! Focused, calm and back to her old self

 

[basilcob]

Thanks for recommendations. Will be giving them ago. Glad to hear it's not unusual behaviour, it's mainly the anxiety when separated, otherwise she seems to remain kind.Wonder if it was the frisky mare or tb calmer that worked flipthelid?

 

[flipthelid]

I definitely think it was a combo of the two - the FM calmed down her hormones and 'tarty' behaviour and the calmer helped with her separation anxiety and obsessions.

 

[Sammie&Spoilt]

It could be that the other mare is shwoing good leadership skills therefore she doesn't want to leave her, meaning you'll have to show her that you're a better leader than the other mare, it could also be she's clinging on to the other mare because she's recently moved.