Separation anxiety in stable

[[59668]]

New mare, had her 6 weeks now.

Yard layout is 2 boxes on a bottom yard, and 4 in a row on the top yard about 15m away. Can see the top yard from the bottom yard.
I had my 2 on the bottom yard. New mare was fine with this as long as my other one was in. If I hacked out the other one she would scream and box walk even though she could see the top yard.
My second horse has retired and is now out at grass. I tried having New horse alone on the bottom yard but she won't settle. Been trying for 2 weeks. It escalated to occasionally her rearing in the stable.
So I've moved her to the top yard which means she is happy as long as at least one of the others is in. But if they both go out we are back to screaming and box walking and it means I can't bring her in alone first in the mornings. Which is a real pain. Sometimes the other 2 stay out too which means she would be alone. I could leave her out but she still needs to come in for me to ride etc. Which is a nightmare trying to tack up etc.
I've bought her a mirror for her stable. Does anyone have any thoughts/experience with this? I really hoped she would just settle. At her last home she had a box where she couldn't see others but they were in boxes sort of behind and to the side of her. So it seems she just has to know someone is in and really close by.

 

[Arzada]

I'd keep her out with your retired horse and bring her in as and when. Starting with short periods, maybe only to the gate depending on how she is coping and building from there.

 

[[59668]]

I'd keep her out with your retired horse and bring her in as and when. Starting with short periods, maybe only to the gate depending on how she is copinand building from there.

Hi. Retired horse is no longer on the same yard and they were never turned out together anyway. She always has horses around her or within sight though

 

[fredflop]

Is your turnout single, paired or herd?

imo paired turnout more often than not caused issues when they are separated.

 

[[59668]]

Is your turnout single, paired or herd?

imo paired turnout more often than not caused issues when they are separated.

It's single turnout

 

[Antw23uk]

You need to get in some help. I watched interesting results with the TRT Method guy and had a gent out fairly local to me to do some similar techniques with a horse i was having trouble with and he worked wonders. I imagine he would apply the same methods to stable and separation anxiety.
You can do the whole time, short periods, trying to pander to her needs but i found getting in help and teaching them to stand on their own feet and think rather than panic is the best course of action. Good luck, horses like this are a pain in the butt and dangerous, i cant tolerate them!

 

[brighteyes]

I have 'individual turnout' they are closer and more able to touch and groom than when stabled, so I'm not sure I get this. Bizarrely, they prefer to be stabled on their own than out with others. They all settle out in the field eventually - we just need to do it for short periods and manage it a bit.

 

[Annagain]

I'd just keep plugging away at it. Bring her in for a few minutes, maybe for a feed, and then put her out again with the others. Gradually increase the time and then once she's happy in for a while, bring the others in to join her and do the reverse - take them out and a few minutes later put her out and increase the time between them and her going out. It's important you don't put her back out unless she's calm - she needs to learn that it's not the fuss she makes that gets her the result she wants. Ideally you need to time it so she goes out before she gets upset but if you miss that opportunity, you need to wait for a calm moment before doing it

I take it she's ok when you ride her away from them?

 

[[59668]]

I'd just keep plugging away at it. Bring her in for a few minutes, maybe for a feed, and then put her out again with the others. Gradually increase the time and then once she's happy in for a while, bring the others in to join her and do the reverse - take them out and a few minutes later put her out and increase the time between them and her going out. It's important you don't put her back out unless she's calm - she needs to learn that it's not the fuss she makes that gets her the result she wants. Ideally you need to time it so she goes out before she gets upset but if you miss that opportunity, you need to wait for a calm moment before doing it

I take it she's ok when you ride her away from them?

Yeah totally fine if I ride her away. Hacking alone etc....no issues at all

 

[Bernster]

Interesting as my new horse also has attachment issues with his neighbour. He’s about 4 weeks in this new yard. I’m hoping it will improve as he gets more settled. He is now in a herd of 4 and isn’t alone in his stable block, which seemed to be the issue. He’s still a bit distracted when others come in if he’s in the tie up area And not in his stable. I’m not doing anything else right now but if this doesn’t work I might move him to another stable and/or do some ground work exercises to try and help him.

 

[AUB]

It took me about 18 months to get my mare comfortable with being brought up to the stable alone. During that time I would just avoid riding when the rest of the herd was out (easy enough) and when the farrier came I’d bring up her bestie as well as support. Then slowly she’s learned that it’s ok and that she’ll see her friends again.
Riding alone has never been an issue, it was only being in the stable that stressed her out.

Now I’ve moved her to the nextdoor stable and it’s back to square one, even though we haven’t even moved yards.

Some horses just take a while to really settle.

 

[Annagain]

Yeah totally fine if I ride her away. Hacking alone etc....no issues at all

My new boy was similar, fine to ride. He was fine when I first had him over the summer and then when they started coming in during the winter he didn't like to be in alone. It was circumstances more than anything as we have a rota for putting four horses in and out. We take them in pairs to save time so he was never on his own. Work means ours are always the first out and the last in so we couldn't do much to address it over the winter so I'd get everything ready, bring him in, brush where I had to, tack up and go before he had a chance to get unsettled. He was better tied up outside the stable than inside.

As soon as they were out 24/7 we started working on it and by increasing the time we got to the stage where he'd stay in happily for a few hours. Now though, there's another horse on the yard on box rest so there's always someone in with him and I suspect we'll have the same issue when he starts going back out. He might not as he seems to have really grown up this summer but if he does we'll just start again with the process.

 

[Identityincrisis]

Have a look at the video TRT does with his dressage horse who won't settle in the new field. My horse has been at his current yard for 10 months and is stressy in his stable (having been fine in his last yard) i applied the technique that TRT used and it seems to have had an effect but it's still early days

 

[[59668]]

Have a look at the video TRT does with his dressage horse who won't settle in the new field. My horse has been at his current yard for 10 months and is stressy in his stable (having been fine in his last yard) i applied the technique that TRT used and it seems to have had an effect but it's still early days

Where can I find this? I can't see it on YouTube?

 

[Antw23uk]

Where can I find this? I can't see it on YouTube?

Google TRT method, they are on his website.

 

[fredflop]

Have a look at the video TRT does with his dressage horse who won't settle in the new field. My horse has been at his current yard for 10 months and is stressy in his stable (having been fine in his last yard) i applied the technique that TRT used and it seems to have had an effect but it's still early days

did you use the video of the horse in the field?

 

[Pinkvboots]

It sounds like a new yard stress rather than a true separation anxiety I would just carry on with your routine and she will probably settle in time.

 

[Illusion100]

What is she like if you go into stable to handle her during one of these episodes?

 

[Caol Ila]

My old mare stubbornly clung onto an immutable and abiding hatred of yards where stable blocks were all separated in a higgledy-piddledy way. When most of the horses were stabled together, you could bring her in alone (even when the others weren't in), ride, do whatever, but God help you if she was in a block with one other horse and everything else was in separate blocks. The TRT method looks very good indeed, and I've been using some of it when working with my (significantly less neurotic) 3-year old, but I watched his fencewalking video and thought, "Mate, you've never met Gypsum." The only thing that worked was moving her to a more American-barn style set-up, and also a place where she felt like she had slaves.