New horse is fence walking / anxious in the paddock

[Cates123]

Hello everyone,

My new 4yr old TB has been with me 2 days - he's been pretty calm and eating well in his stable, however he's been fence-walking when in the paddock. He's currently out in the day and stabled at night but I want to swap this to fit in with the 2 ponies on the yard (who have currently switched their routine to fit in with this settling in period). Yesterday there were some high jinks, today it's all calm and there are more periods of him eating in the middle of the field, but a good 50% of the time has been at the fence/gate. It seems to start again when there is something that slightly spooks him - eg a downpour - and it's obviously anxiety. He's easy to handle if I go in the field with him but it's seems to be his default to cope with his stress. There are 2 ponies in the field immediately next door to him who he is stabled next to at night.

I know it's early days and it's likely that it'll cease as he gets more comfortable but I've never had a horse do this before and I'm worried about it. I've not had his saddle fitted yet so I can't get him into ridden work just yet but I will start doing some groundwork with him today to see if that helps. I've also started feeding him his breakfast in the field to see if this helps (and he does eat it).

The stables are at my house so I can check on him very often (which may be a bad thing, especially for my stress levels) but the owners of the ponies want to switch back to night turnout asap but I don't feel confident turning out overnight and not knowing what he's doing. I also don't want to annoy my liveries!

Does anyone have any experience with this and did it resolve as the horse settled into the yard? Any tips on how to settle him - he really is fine when out of the field and wasn't bothered when the ponies were out riding when he was in the stable so it does seem to be a turnout-specific issue.

Thanks in advance!

 

[ycbm]

Is he an ex racer? Some of them are very institutionalised and never take to being out long. Some get used to it over time.

I have heard of horses who fence walk in one yard but not another, as well. I think you will just have to give him more time and see how he settles. It sounds hopeful, so far, with him having settled periods.

 

[Clodagh]

I’m very opposed to sole turnout. As you can’t ride him can you take his hind shoes off and turn him out with a companion?

 

[AmyMay]

Has he come straight from racing?

Why don’t you start with an hours turnout am and then late afternoon, and then build it up from there?

 

[Cates123]

Is he an ex racer? Some of them are very institutionalised and never take to being out long. Some get used to it over time.

I have heard of horses who fence walk in one yard but not another, as well. I think you will just have to give him more time and see how he settles. It sounds hopeful, so far, with him having settled periods.

He is an ex-racer! I could build up his turnout but I don't want him stabled at night alone and the other 2 ponies are turned out at night so I need to get him onto their routine somehow.

 

[Cates123]

Has he come straight from racing?

Why don’t you start with an hours turnout am and then late afternoon, and then build it up from there?

No, he spent 6 weeks with a retrainer

 

[AmyMay]

No, he spent 6 weeks with a retrainer

So more or less straight from racing. Did they turn him out?

 

[Cates123]

I’m very opposed to sole turnout. As you can’t ride him can you take his hind shoes off and turn him out with a companion?

I'm building him up to group turnout but I have 2 very aggressive and tiny ponies here and I think it's far safer to get them acquainted apart first. Saddle is being fitted on Tuesday so I'm hoping that will help the situation

 

[Cates123]

So more or less straight from racing. Did they turn him out?

They did - he came from a fairly holistic trainer who did groundwork / schooling and daily turnout

 

[Tiddlypom]

Is it just him and the two tiny aggressive ponies at your place?

 

[Cates123]

Is it just him and the two tiny aggressive ponies at your place?

Yes

 

[Cates123]

They did - he came from a fairly holistic trainer who did groundwork / schooling and daily turnout

He's also been turned away 24/7 for a few weeks before going to the retrainer

 

[AmyMay]

Are both ponies aggressive?

Is he warm enough?

Does he have enough to eat?

 

[nikicb]

Not sure where you are located OP, but the weather where I am in West Berkshire, has been pretty lousy for the past week or so. It's about 8 degrees cooler, has been very wet, and very windy. None of those conditions are going to help a TB who finds himself in yet another new home in the space of two months. Are you able to perhaps borrow a quiet horse that more matches his size for companionship? I have found that a lot of horses don't really 'get' small ponies, so he may not see them as companions, especially if he has only every been on a yard with horses like him.

 

[Horseysheepy]

As above.

I had a fence walker and I did try everything like rug him in case he was cold, fly rug in case he was agitated by the flies, hay in case he was hungry.

I swapped companions about, individual turnout in case he was being bullied. I changed paddock, I layed shall branches along his 'pace route' to put him off, he just made a new route!

I do not envy you, OP. Its a tough one to deal with and as he was kept at home, I became more anxious about him as I could see just how much he was doing it and the trenches he created.

Maybe try some of the things I have and others have suggested and experiment a bit.

 

[Bellaboo18]

An ex-racer on individual turnout- he needs company.

 

[Barton Bounty]

As I have an ex racer and he is on individual turnout Id be inclined to leave him to it at the moment as long as he is not getting stressed out. It takes weeks for them to settle in fully.
If however you want a companion, be prepared for the constant napping trying to get back to the field with the friend and all the rest that goes along with separation anxiety. Not all ex racers have that I will say but most do.
I tried with a companion but I was not prepared to foot my friends vet bills im afraid so as long as your horse can see another horse, it will be absolutely fine.

Take it in and out the field for short times and that way it will always get to know it is coming back.

BB likes to see other horses but will savage if in the same field. Its not pretty.

 

[ycbm]

If however you want a companion, be prepared for the constant napping trying to get back to the field with the friend and all the rest that goes along with separation anxiety. Not all ex racers have that I will say but most do.

This isn't my experience. I've probably owned 15 in my time, none of them with separation anxiety.

I also don't think separation anxiety is a reason to deprive a horse of company. The separation anxiety is, after all, a sign of desperation to have company. Many people would recommend keeping 3 together in that situation so the anxious one is never left alone.

 

[Barton Bounty]

This isn't my experience. I've probably owned 15 in my time, none of them with separation anxiety.

I also don't think separation anxiety is a reason to deprive a horse of company. The separation anxiety is, after all, a sign of desperation to have company. Many people would recommend keeping 3 together in that situation so the anxious one is never left alone.

That might not be but OP was asking.. everyone is different!!

BB kicking ten bells out my friends horse is not a sign of anxiety, just appreciate that everyone is different and has different experiences

I would not have the time to ride 3 horse ffs BB takes all my time as it is. I have a VERY HAPPY SETTLED horse as you well know

 

[ycbm]

That might not be but OP was asking.. everyone is different!!

BB kicking ten bells out my friends horse is not a sign of anxiety, just appreciate that everyone is different and has different experiences

I would not have the time to ride 3 horse ffs BB takes all my time as it is. I have a VERY HAPPY SETTLED horse as you well know

You made the statement that most ex racers have separation anxiety. I made the statement that isn't my experience, having owned probably 15 who did not suffer from it.

I made the comment about 3 to counter you cautioning the OP against allowing her horse to have a companion, when he is clearly stressed without one as he is fence walking.

You've made it perfectly clear why you have to keep BB alone. I was not commenting about BB.
.

 

[Barton Bounty]

You made the statement that most ex racers have separation anxiety. I made the statement that isn't my experience, having owned probably 15 who did not suffer from it.

I made the comment about 3 to counter you cautioning the OP against allowing her horse to have a companion.

You've made it perfectly clear why you have to keep BB alone. I was not commenting about BB.
.

Yeah but I was responding to OP

I was never at one point telling her not to get a companion, merely giving my experience, not everyone agrees and not everyone’s experience is the same.
Your more than welcome to give yours as well

 

[JackFrost]

Last time I took on a newbie, I followed what I thought was best practice and separated new horse from my others with electric fence so they could all get used to each other without antics.
The new horse didnt settle and I could see it looking for a way to get out to a neighbour's horses in other fields. On a hunch I took down the electric fence and let the new horse in with my others and the problem was immediately solved - new horse just wanted to be in a herd, not a neighbour.
I know you say the ponies can be troublesome, but you could try putting them in together and seeing what actually happens - it might not be what you expect.

 

[Zoeypxo]

Mine isnt an ex racer but used to fence walk terrible on individual paddocks, made huge trenches then just would smash the fencing down to get out.
Moved yards to herd turnout 18 months ago she hasnt fence walked or jumped out/escaped once.

Did he have friends to turn out with at the previous yard? Usually the more friends the better.

 

[Cates123]

Thanks for the responses. He's currently in his stable having a snooze whilst the others are out and out of eyesight and he's totally relaxed, so I don't think he's got separation anxiety oro that he'd be clingy with a companion, and I would look into finding a loan if they'd cover bills in exchange for care. From experience, I think it's too early to put them all together and I'd rather have him in work first and get a routine established to see if that helps. One of the ponies (the alpha) goes to pony club camp in a few weeks and we think that would be a good time to let mine and the other one bond. In the meantime, I think I'll be bringing him in and out as suggested and see if that helps. I'm hoping it's just a phase as in every other way he's been pretty calm and incredibly sweet.

 

[Cates123]

Last time I took on a newbie, I followed what I thought was best practice and separated new horse from my others with electric fence so they could all get used to each other without antics.
The new horse didnt settle and I could see it looking for a way to get out to a neighbour's horses in other fields. On a hunch I took down the electric fence and let the new horse in with my others and the problem was immediately solved - new horse just wanted to be in a herd, not a neighbour.
I know you say the ponies can be troublesome, but you could try putting them in together and seeing what actually happens - it might not be what you expect.

I'm actually a bit concerned that my 'pretty heavy set for a TB' 16.1hh could damage one of the ponies

 

[JBM]

It’s only been 2 days he’s still settling it’s definitely anxiety but time will help
I’d spend time with him in the field feed him his hard feed there and try some ground work in there
Make it a safe fun place
Try a hayball with carrots stuffed in it or anything too keep him occupied
A friend froze apples and carrots in a block of water was great fun for horses and took ages for them to get through
He just needs to relax

 

[Cates123]

It’s only been 2 days he’s still settling it’s definitely anxiety but time will help
I’d spend time with him in the field feed him his hard feed there and try some ground work in there
Make it a safe fun place
Try a hayball with carrots stuffed in it or anything too keep him occupied
A friend froze apples and carrots in a block of water was great fun for horses and took ages for them to get through
He just needs to relax

Some great suggestions that I'll definitely try!

 

[Caol Ila]

Just reading this thread makes me want to drink. I had a fencewalker. Owned her for 21 years and at times, got to the point where whisky (for me) was the only answer. In one of my least classy horse ownership moments, I may have caught her from the field, a muddy sweaty mess from walking for God-knows-how-long, and shouted, "What the f*ck is wrong with you??" It may surprise you to hear that this was not effective. Nor was groundwork, putting crap on the fenceline for her to walk around, or anything else. I once asked the vet if she could have Prozac. He laughed at me, but in the US, they do prescribe SSRIs off-label for horses with horrendous stereotypies and it has shown some efficacy. It wasn't a totally nuts question.

It's a stereotypy. Basically the horse has OCD, or it's an alcoholic. It probably started as self-soothing behaviour during a traumatic weaning or some other traumatic event when it was a baby, then the wiring has gone awry as it has grown up, and now it's what the horse does when stressed. It's a feedback loop. They get stuck in the repetitive behaviours. Once they start, they don't stop. My current two horses do not do this, and you can see that the way they process stuff is totally different than my fencewalker.

All you can do is try to identify the triggers and mitigate them as best you can.

I knew some, but not all of my horse's triggers. Most of it seemed related to the set-up and general vibe of a livery yard. When the pacing kicked off, the only solution was moving to a place where she didn't do it, or at least did it in a slightly more predictable way so you could control for it a bit.

 

[Goldenstar]

OP it’s early days with your horse and it’s been in training , turned out full time and been to a retrainers before arriving with you it’s a lot .
Be calm your self don’t feed the stress .
If he’s calm inside don’t worry to much if he‘s in a fair bit at first I would try two sessions of turnout a day and see if that helps and turn him out hungry .
I understand your worry about keeping him out in the dark atm it would bother me as well .
Good luck with him .

 

[Michen]

No suggestions re turnout but I’d definitely be doing a course of Gastroguard. Extremely likely given his history and current state of anxiety that he has ulcers and that won’t be helping. Or try Abler, a cheaper option.

It seems much more common here in the states to treat horses ie when they move barns, or have been competing or whatnot.