Pinning ears when touched on chest/base of neck

[ramsaybailey]

Apologies I haven't read all the replies but my mare was incredibly reactive to her chest and especially doing up/undoing the front of her rug when she had ulcers. Even happened when there was rich grass or she had some gut sensitivity of any sorts it was always her chest area that was the worst, I always thought it was so odd it wasn't around her belly!
At her worst (ulcerswise) it was almost impossible to pick out her front feet too. Really odd but the behaviour was always gut related!

 

[Hackback]

I have no advice, only empathy, having spent the entire evening yesterday worrying that I am slowly breaking my 4 year old.

My older Arab (with the high-low front feet) does exactly what you describe - always grazes with a wide apart front leg stance, always with the same leg forward. He also has one shoulder slightly bigger than the other. Doesn't seem to have caused him any issues though.

I hope your mare is ok.

 

[Pinkvboots]

I wish I had jumped on them as soon as she moved in. She never looked wildly stressed, just sort of busy and nosy and wanting to be in everyone’s business, but when you add up the time she spent not eating over a few weeks it was considerable.

It's weird Louis will openly display stress and act a bit wild whereas Arabi doesn't so much but because I know him so well I can see subtle changes.

So yeah some are better at hiding it than others.

I have always stuck them on something if I think they will get upset, I use aloe vera juice alot definitely helps mine and they both have oily herbs.

 

[Midlifecrisis]

I don’t really have any insights or helpful words but I am damned sure you are not doing anything at all to “break” your ponies! You re looking into all the conditions which might affect your mare just like many of would do and I’m sure you ll get to the bottom of it and sort it.

 

[Hormonal Filly]

My older Arab (with the high-low front feet) does exactly what you describe - always grazes with a wide apart front leg stance, always with the same leg forward. He also has one shoulder slightly bigger than the other. Doesn't seem to have caused him any issues though.

Those are all symptoms of ECVM.

OP, so sorry to hear about your horses I'd personally x-ray the neck for piece of mind if the ulcer treatment doesn't help.

 

[Hackback]

Those are all symptoms of ECVM.

OP, so sorry to hear about your horses I'd personally x-ray the neck for piece of mind if the ulcer treatment doesn't help.

Had to Google it. Very interesting, but although my horse has a slightly asymmetrical skeleton he doesn't have any of the neurological type symptoms. He's 18 now and still as nimble as ever. I'm very glad I didn't know about ECVM when he was younger though - it would have been one more thing to worry about!

 

[Carrottom]

It might be worth looking at some of Christian Langeder videos on YouTube.

 

[I'm Dun]

It sounds as if she has been quite tense in her early months with you so I guess anything could have triggered it but well done for observing so much in her. This may be quite a useless suggestion because I can't remember where you are based but Helen Coye (massage) and Tom Beech (Osteopathic Vet) often used to work together very successfully on cases like this. I can give you the number I last had for Helen if you would like it but you would probably find her on FB (which I don't do!). I hope you get some answers soon as she sounds like a lovely mare.

these are the people who helped me with leo

 

[BBP]

I have an equine massage person coming next week now, and a masterson person coming the week after, it will be interesting to see how each horse gets on with both. The Connemara is particularly intolerant of hands on work, so I think he will show me a clear preference. With him I’ve had his neck x-rayed and an ultrasound done on his nuchal ligament and neither showed anything, but he very clearly tells me there is a problem there.

 

[lynz88]

Mine has been touchy on his chest in particular on the right side. If I stay there and palpate lightly, I can get a release from him and it feels tight. I know mine is lopsided with a hi-low foot and LH arthritis in the hock (as well as LF arthritis) - the right being the high and quite often he gets "stuck". He's got physio next week so will be interesting what she finds.

 

[BBP]

Thought I would update so that the thread isn’t a dead end, following interesting sessions with Masterson lady and equine massage lady.

Little mare is sooooo tight and sore through her shoulders, pecs and triceps. So we think the savage snake face biting reaction is her trying to guard against anyone messing around that area. It makes total sense with a lifetime of being high/low in front feet, exaggerated split grazing stance etc. When I viewed her on videos and in real life she is a weird combo of floaty behind and bilaterally short in front. So I think this is not an ‘I broke her’ problem, but something that has developed over her young life without anyone realising, and is a part of the dysfunction I knew I would need to unravel (and why I only offered a relatively low amount for her). Okay I hadn’t expected her to come with ear pinning bitch face, but at least she is expressing herself instead of shutting down. She certainly isn’t afraid to tell me how she feels about things! If I can get her to let me in and work on easing her tension through her shoulders etc, hopefully that will make a massive difference. I have already changed a few things to try to improve her side to side balance (like feeding off a slope, raised platform or high haynet, to reduce the split stance when eating) so it could even be that I have made her a bit sore as I am moving her out of her usual compensatory patterns.

My Connemara pony is an even more fascinating case study but one for another time.

 

[LadyGascoyne]

I can’t believe I missed this but Mim got very upset about her chest being touched after we suspect she did what my physio describes as a “bambi” in the field. Basically both front legs going in different directions.

We did rest, then physio sessions with PEMF, some stretches and some massage, and then front leg stretches at home.

 

[BBP]

I can’t believe I missed this but Mim got very upset about her chest being touched after we suspect she did what my physio describes as a “bambi” in the field. Basically both front legs going in different directions.

We did rest, then physio sessions with PEMF, some stretches and some massage, and then front leg stretches at home.

Interesting thank you. I just ordered her a big square balance pad to stand on, plus she is now getting daily shoulder massage or masterson therapy, and if she allows it, working on forelimb stretches and mobilisation. She’s finding it hard to just pick up one front leg as she doesn’t want to/finds it hard to stabilise on the other. There is almost zero movement if you lift a forelimb and try to give it a little wiggle or gentle circle. Poor girly must be very restricted.

Her default ‘spook’ position is basically exactly like this cutting horse:


Which I’m sure isn’t great if you already have sore shoulders. (Also, there is zero chance of me staying on board if she does this under saddle…unless I buy me a western saddle! )