My Horse was Kicked - what should I do?

[LincsHorseOwner]

Hi Everyone,

I noticed yesterday that my mare had a mark on her front shoulder. It is a red curved sore line but it doesn't bother her when I touch it and isn't swollen.

I spoke with the yard owner and he told me that he saw his 5yo TB kick my horse when my horse went to groom her. The new horse has come from a race yard and been with us for about a month..

Anyhow, I'm sorry to sound stupid but I'm really worried that it will happen again and could cause serious damage if there is a next time... what do you all think?

My mare is a 4yo 15hh Cob x ISH. Extremely quiet and is the friendliest horse I have ever met. She loves other horses and just wants a fuss but is sometimes a bit slow to react around her field buddies who are both TB's. Sometimes they get on fine and groom each other but it's just the odd time that they turn and it is now worrying me that she has actually been caught

I'm probably over worrying but just wanted some advice. Will she be ok to stay in the field with them or should I move her? It would mean moving yards so a very big decision but I just want to do what is right for her.

Thank you very much x

 

[be positive]

The only way to totally prevent the odd kick or bite from other horses is to keep them alone which is not fair as they need company and to be able to socialise properly, if one is particularly aggressive it makes sense to segregate them but usually if it is a one off minor incident things settle down and never happen again. I would monitor the situation, your mare should start to learn when to keep out of the other horses space if he doesn't want to be groomed, they need to be in with others to learn how to read the signs and as she gets older and wiser she should get quicker at reacting to warning signs.
I would not panic over one incident, the YO seems to be keeping an eye on the situation, you could end up moving to a far worse place or having her alone which is not ideal, once the other horse settles down more they should be fine.

 

[Exploding Chestnuts]

You could ask YO to remove hind shoes........

 

[Shay]

Don't worry! Horses do get kicked in the field sometimes - it is really just part of being a horse. If the new TB is being particularly antsy atm then you can ask the YO to make sure he has his back shoes off so he does less damage. But if you think your mare is being targeted and bullied that is a different matter but a single one off kick is nothing to worry about.

It is worth monitoring though. Kicks in the field can occasionally cause serious damage -my Appie had his cannon bone cracked by a field kick last year and another horse in our yard actually had his leg broken. One horse came in hopping lame recently from damage to the radial nerve in the shoulder from a kick. But that makes it all sound like our fields are fill of dangerous lunatics but that is far from the case. Serious damage from kicks is rare - but worth watching out for.

There is no need to move her yet just because of one kick. But do monitor the situation. If things look to be getting worse then speak with the YO. Mostly new horses do settle down. If you do end up having to move - and I very much hope you don't - see if you can find somewhere where mares and geldings are turned out separately. In my experience that makes for more peaceful field mates.

 

[LincsHorseOwner]

Apologies for any confusion but just to clarify, mares and geldings are turned out separately so the horse that kicked her is also a mare. Thanks x

 

[smja]

I'd ask YO to let you know if he sees your horse being kicked again, so you know and can check her over. But other than that, horses will be horses and the odd kick does happen, even in established herds, so I wouldn't worry too much!