Muscle spasm when taking first bite of hard feed.

[shmoo]

One of my mares has been having a muscle spasm when she takes first and sometimes second bite of her hard feed.

She's the kind who dives in mouth open to grab as much as possible, but recently she sort of freezes, turns her head slightly to one side and the only thing i can liken it to is a dog chomping down on a rope pully toy and trying to pull it from you.

After the first couple of bites she's usually fine and settles down to eat her food normally.

She's always fed from the floor, from a big tub trug as she drops so much.

She was neglected for a number of years with no dental work done. Since I've had her shes been treated twice and is now as my EDT tells me absolutely fine. She'd previously been filed too low in her youth.

Has anyone ever experienced this? It lasts no more than a few seconds, doesn't happen every day maybe 5 out of 7 but looks like the start of a seizure in a human. She has other hang-ups involving her mouth whilst doing up rugs and the like and is a persistent chomper when bitted.

 

[JillA]

Stiffness in the joint between her jaws? Try a bute trial and see if it changes things.

 

[Darkwater]

Stiffness in the joint between her jaws? Try a bute trial and see if it changes things.

Exactly this, but maybe consult your vet rather than just trialling bute. My mare has jaw (temporal mandibular joint) problems and eats her hard feed in exactly the way you describe, and cannot be ridden in a bitted bridle - bute makes no difference at all though hence why I wouldn't necessarily say that that would be the first route I went down.

 

[fatpiggy]

One of my mares has been having a muscle spasm when she takes first and sometimes second bite of her hard feed.

She's the kind who dives in mouth open to grab as much as possible, but recently she sort of freezes, turns her head slightly to one side and the only thing i can liken it to is a dog chomping down on a rope pully toy and trying to pull it from you.

After the first couple of bites she's usually fine and settles down to eat her food normally.

She's always fed from the floor, from a big tub trug as she drops so much.

She was neglected for a number of years with no dental work done. Since I've had her shes been treated twice and is now as my EDT tells me absolutely fine. She'd previously been filed too low in her youth.

Has anyone ever experienced this? It lasts no more than a few seconds, doesn't happen every day maybe 5 out of 7 but looks like the start of a seizure in a human. She has other hang-ups involving her mouth whilst doing up rugs and the like and is a persistent chomper when bitted.

Your observation of the similarity to a seizure starting is interesting because one of the most common triggers for a seizure in horses is eating. In my mare's case it was 99 times out of 100 as she took the first mouthful of her breakfast. I always likened it to a child getting really overexcited about a present, then as soon as they opened it, either being sick or crying. Personally I think it was her increased brainwaves, in anticipation of food, then totally relaxing as she got what she wanted and that is when the brain is more susceptible to rogue brain activity. People often think that seizures in equines are the fall over and twitch variety, followed by unconsciousness but in fact these are very rare. Normally they suffer from partial seizures so generally remain conscious and may do things like pause for no good reason, chomp uncontrollably, circle, paw the ground, turn the head and neck to a major or minor degree, have the mouth forced open, muscular twitches. Almost anything really! Having had her seizure, my mare would then return to her food and carry on eating as though nothing had happened. Some last a few seconds, some a few minutes. Funnily enough my mare had big issues about having her rugs done up too which involved getting hold of my sleeve or the bottom of my coat and holding it in her teeth for a few seconds but as she had scars from ill-fitting rugs I allowed her to make this little protest. Actually, if I didn't and tried to push her away she would get really cross and then genuinely bit me. She just wanted to tell me she didn't like it.

 

[shmoo]

Hmm, I met my friend at the yard tonight to show her what she did...and she didn't do it ! She sort of twists her head to the side and does a twisty jaw yawn thing over and over when I'm doing her rugs, sometimes the holding or biting as your mare did fatpiggy, on occassion she bites the rail when she's having her feet done as well. I need to book the vet over intermitent stiffness and possible arthritus so I'll try and film her with her feed and show her. Apart from this she's peachy in herself. Quite strange but thanks for the replies all. x

 

[khalswitz]

My horse does this when waiting for his feed, or when he's tied up - he hates it. I had the vet out to look - says it's an atypical weaving pattern. He moves his head side to side and crosses his jaw, tongue from side to side, rolls eyes, and bends and straightens alternate knees. Looks like he's fitting. Vet said otherwise. It's a stress thing. My boy is an ex-racer and very stressy so fits with him - could fit with your mare if she stresses about getting her feed if she's maybe been neglected.