Please HELP! Usually sensible horse gone crazy?

[Jackson]

I am sat here with two black eyes and slightly swollen nose after another fall today, my 'bombproof hack' of a year has gone mad I think, and I can't work out what's wrong with him

He is getting no feed, one (large) haynet per night because there is very little grass in his field, and is turned out as much as possible, although when he gets himself in a sweaty mess like today, he stays in for the night. He is ridden daily or as often as possible, if he isn't then he gets silly.

He has never been a plod, and is generally pretty foreward going, but at the moment, our ride is pretty much me jumping on board, doing his girth up, we trot on and pretty much fly round in a circle for however long it takes for him to settle and calm himself down a bit and realise that actually, I am in charge!

He has also started to drop his shoulder and spin or duck out with me, and will use whatever as an excuse to do so.. even another horse being ridden towards him.. or as in todays case, some rain landing on the roof a bit louder than usual!

I am not soft with him, and he requires pretty tough but sympathetic riding as although he is 16, he basically has a stop and a go button and that's it, but this is such a contrast to his usual gentlemanly self that I can't help but think that something is going on...

He had the physio out not so long ago and he was fine, saddle fits, have lowered his gag down a hole a few weeks ago when all of this started to give me a little more control he is very happy and healthy in every other way?

Someone suggested that someone could have been feeding him extras over his field gate?

Anything I might have overlooked?

 

[Wagtail]

It does sound like a pain issue to me. The fact that he has very little grazing and only one haynet a day may mean that he has developed gastric ulcers. This can make horses act as you describe.

 

[Tammytoo]

It does sound like a pain issue to me. The fact that he has very little grazing and only one haynet a day may mean that he has developed gastric ulcers. This can make horses act as you describe.

It's worth getting him scoped for ulcers as it does sound pain related. If he finishes his haynet fairly quickly he will be standing for a long time with an empty tummy.

 

[Jackson]

Ulcers? I never even gave them a thought, thank you, something else to look in to, although he is never stood around with no food in his field, when I say there's not enough grass, if he wasn't being worked, there would definitely be enough out there for him to go without the hay and proably get fat!

(Also, our haynet is probably equivelent to one and a half ordinary nets, and if he is in the field, he won't have finished it by morning!)

Does it definitely sound pain related? One of my other thoughts was that he is getting pretty fit at the moment, and he could just be feeling well.. I was hoping for that, anyway

 

[JFTDWS]

do you have lessons with him?

 

[Jackson]

do you have lessons with him?

Yep. Mum was an instructor so gives me regular lessons, she also rides him roughly once a week and he is the same for her, except she is a little more sticky than me Up until he started to get silly, we were working on getting him streight! He is very wobbly/unbalanced but he was improving so much.

 

[Jackson]

Just realised that I have also missed teeth off of the list, I think he last had them seen to before I had him, about a year and a half ago? he's not head shaking or anything like that so I just didn't consider it, could that cause any of this?

 

[Paddy Irish]

Yes definitely get the teeth checked especially as you are feeding from a haynet and not off the ground , his teeth are probably not being worn down evenly and this would definitely cause him pain...

you could do a quick check yourself by holding your hand on the top of his nose and with your other hand move his bottom jaw side to side , if it clunks or is hard to move freely then definitely get the dentist.

 

[paddy555]

your hay. I am struggling with some of my new hay. It is fine for most of them yet sends one of them crazy. When I changed him back to old hay (which I knew he was fine on) then he became an angel again.
For him it is the sugar content of the hay.

Can you relate your horse's behaviour to when he changed hay? Can you find some different hay to change to and see if things are improved.

Someone could be feeding him over the gate, carrots and apples are higher sugar.

I would try the sugar question to start with. If not then I think you may be on the pain route.

What about if you long rein or lunge him? Does he misbehave? you may be able to get further away from him so you can stand and watch how he behaves and hopefully work out if he is over the top and being naughty or being difficult due to pain.

 

[Cadfael&Coffee]

sounds like a pain issue to me im afraid. couldnt say what though lol

 

[figgy]

hiya, My lovely sensible horse went crazy , he had gastric ulcers. xx

 

[lottie940]

There's very little grass in the field that my two stay in over night. They generally have a bucket of hard feed each (Big one for the anglo arab, ration for the fat cob) and they then have an armful of hay on the stable floor between them (they share) and I also put at least two hay bags up in the field (tonight as its a hard frost they have 4 as they cant graze).

It could be any number of things but I would take the advice and go down the medical/pain route first and if that's all ok I'd get someone to come and help you with him and take you both back to basics. Do some groundwork with him and get some respect back. Good luck.

 

[LiveryList]

My first thought reading your post was that he was getting a bit full of himself, probably as too fit but then this doens't really fit as you are not feeding him but as suggested abouve may be due to changes in hay/ grazing etc!? Personally i dont think it sounds pain related, more behavioural but as with most things unless something really obvious presents itself - as you say you have already had his back, saddle checked and is happy with his bit- it can be difficult to decide what other causes there may be and can often lead to costly vets bills resulting still in a big question mark. If it were me i would change his routine for a week or so, swap from ridden work and lunge or long rein him, see if this makes any difference

 

[Jackson]

Okay thanks everyone. On the lunge he is like a posessed beast, but then he has always been, so it's difficult to tell if theres anythig weird about that.

Apart from lunging, he is an angel on the ground, with long reining and free schooling; yesterday I free schooled, jumped him, etc and he was loving it, definitely not in pain!

I think for the next week, I am going to cut out all of the sugar that I can in his diet, soak hay? and give him a bit more of it, as I'm off, he will be getting a bit more attention and work! (Will also have a feel of his teeth and get them seen to asap either way as that can't do any harm?) and if there is no improvement, then further investigations with ulcers and stuff.

Out of interest, how are ulcers treated?