sensitive to touch

[clairekat]

Hi I'm looking for advise on whether there are any supplements or herbs for a sensitive to touch horse. She does not like her legs to be touched and can only be groomed on them with a body brush to get mud off. I tried a herbal supplement early in winter which really helped but I have been unable to remember what it was called to get more.
She is currently fed on hay when stabled at night and a small feed of Dengie Hi-Fi with some seaweed, airways supplement and a glob of linseed oil
Has anyone else got a super sensitive legged horse, what did you do to overcome brushing legs which are constantly trying to get away from your brush?

 

[PurBee]

How is she with the farrier?

 

[NOISYGIRL2]

use the pimple rubber floppy gloves you can get, or magic brush or cactus mit

 

[clairekat]

How is she with the farrier?

she anticipates and picks her feet up ready for him

 

[PurBee]

Is she okay with you touching her legs with your hands/fingers? Scratching her legs with your fingers?
Presumably so if she deals with farrier fine..?

It could just be the brush your using, she doesnt like for some reason....too hard/stiff? I have a very stiff mud brush both horses prefer me not to use too heavy on them, but another dandy brush with long flexible bristles theyre fine with. The difference of giving a slight exfoliation compared to scratching their skin hard.

Check the base of the hairs...any dandruff? Bright pink skin suggestive it being sore?

 

[Pearlsasinger]

I would stop the HI-Fi, we have had horses, specifically mares, who became very sensitive to touch when fed alfalfa.

 

[clairekat]

Is she okay with you touching her legs with your hands/fingers? Scratching her legs with your fingers?
Presumably so if she deals with farrier fine..?

It could just be the brush your using, she doesnt like for some reason....too hard/stiff? I have a very stiff mud brush both horses prefer me not to use too heavy on them, but another dandy brush with long flexible bristles theyre fine with. The difference of giving a slight exfoliation compared to scratching their skin hard.

Check the base of the hairs...any dandruff? Bright pink skin suggestive it being sore?

Thanks for replies, no soreness or pink skin, no dandruff. Shes even like it when I use my fingers. She doesn't allow her mane to be pulled either. I tried to clip her but she was petrified, I did approx 1 inch square which next day swelled up like a balloon and went down again a few days later. I'm going to try swapping Hi-fi to something else as suggested by Pearlsasinger to see if its possibly food related. I originally had her on Pure Fibre and don't recall her being this sensitive, but she didn't enjoy eating it

 

[Pearlsasinger]

Thanks for replies, no soreness or pink skin, no dandruff. Shes even like it when I use my fingers. She doesn't allow her mane to be pulled either. I tried to clip her but she was petrified, I did approx 1 inch square which next day swelled up like a balloon and went down again a few days later. I'm going to try swapping Hi-fi to something else as suggested by Pearlsasinger to see if its possibly food related. I originally had her on Pure Fibre and don't recall her being this sensitive, but she didn't enjoy eating it

You could try giving her a dried grass chaff, such as Emerald Green or Graze-on (I prefer those to the rye-grass mixes), or we use Agrobs hay cobs which, although they are cubes, are very loosely cubed and break up very easily.