Stable mirrors - do they work

[lilly1]

Hi,

New horse arrived on Monday, settled in stable really well. However since being introduced to the others she has become stressy. Not too bad as she is not sweating up and is managing to eat through a third of a bale, but she is looking tucked up in a morning and unhappy

. Mare has to come in as so do the other two. The stable unfortunately faces the wrong way so although she can hear them she can’t see them. I know its early days and it will take her time to settle but wondered if a mirror may help. Any advice please and also the best place to get one. Thank you.

 

[birchave0]

a mirror helped a lot when we weaned our foal, she still has it in her box now. We got ours from a seller on ebay.

 

[Angua2]

I think they do, I got both mine one as they got really clingy and started to climb the walls when I took one away to school.

I got mine from stable-mirrors.co.uk and was happy with the service

 

[CazD]

Ours had no effect at all on our stressy mare. The first time she saw her reflection in it she had an OMG moment and that was the first and only time she ever bothered with it.

 

[Smurphy]

My horse attacked his stable mirror and kicked a hole in the wall, silly bugger thought it was another horse trying to steal his breakfast.

I have 2 for sale btw lol!!!

 

[Shilasdair]

They do work to reduce stereotypies, alter horses' behaviour to be more similar to feral horses' time budgets....but they don't work for every single horse.
If I were you, I'd probably try it - it sounds as though your mare might appreciate one.
S

 

[Abbeygale]

I brought one of ebay - but I only brought a small one as I originaly planned to put it in the lorry - but then my mare had to go on box rest so it went in the stable. All of my guys like to take turns in front of the mirror. I put my foal in that stable when she was weaned and it seemed to help to settle her to being in her house on her own.

It has really seemed to help settle the 4yo I have at the moment. He had a lovely habit of "sharing" all his hay over the door - but since he has been with the mirror he certainly has spent more time admiring himself in the mirror rather than chucking hay over the door.

I would certainly give it a go!

 

[sunlover]

Defintely worth ago. My mothers horse lives on his own and loves his mirror. Hope it works for yours.

 

[MillionDollar]

I've heard very positive comments about them, but interestingly one of my liveries horses apparently attacked the mirror....violently and from this always kicks the left wall of her stable.......a LOT, because the mirror was on the left!

 

[carthorse]

Rafi loved his ,and still does, Penfold hated his , but they are different personalities anyway.
If you use one put on a flat wall ,not near feed and high up

 

[Madasmaz]

Stable mirror has done the trick for my friends TB mare who did the splits and pulled tendon in top of her leg....6 months box rest so she is going to have a baby. Doesn't help that her immediate neighbour is a moody bagage and attacks her through the bars so poor mare has rugs hung up so he can't see her. Result is she is completely enclosed apart from her dorr opening. She just gazes at herself all the time, even when tied up out side for mucking out, like she's in lurve or something.

 

[Cadaran]

My section C stallion loves his - he thinks it's a girlie for him!!

www.petsinmemoriam.co.uk

 

[jac47]

my boy loves his he stands and sleeps beside his reflection

 

[lilly1]

Thanks for all your feedback guys. Off to go and buy one!

 

[rforsyth1984]

My horse was terribly stressy in the stable. Weaves like mad, and on box rest used to charge round his stable, frighten people by running at his door, lathered in sweat, shouting... etc. The full works.

5 months box rest last winter, after a couple of days I was going home in tears every night as my horse was horrifically distressed, injured and has had stress induced laminitis before, plus all the complaints I was getting from other people on the yard.

Ad-lib forage (soaked hay, haylage and chaff), toys, licks, high dose ACP's were having no effect. As a last resort I bought a stable mirror.

The effect was incredible. He is by no means perfect, but most of the day he stood quietly eating and snoozing, only getting a bit distressed at key times (feeding, others being turned out, busy times and me arriving at the yard, so for a short while morning and evening)

He is back out ful time now, but days he has to stay in (for vet, farrier or worming) he has been fine (for the first time in the 11 years I've owned him I can leave him in for the morning rather than chucking him out early then coming back to get him in for a 10am farrier appointment!). His weaving is practically non-existant now. I dont have to race to the yard to make sure he is the first one out, or fret about bringing him in a hour early. I dont have to co-ordinate my life around other horses being in when he is.

They dont work for all horses, but definately my best buy for mine