Wind Sucking

Halfpass

Halfpass

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A horse at my yard wind sucks. Strangely enough never in the stable just out in the field on the fencing. The owner of the horse I have just started to school has claimed that she saw this horse wind sucking on her horses back and neck. She is now also saying that her horse has started to wind suck.

I was always under the impression that wind sucking was not a learnt behaviour, am I right in thinking this? Also has anyone ever heard of horses wind sucking on other horses?
 
I believe it CAN be a learnt behaviour but ONLY in horses who are unhappy in themselves. This is what I have read in quite a few places anyway. If the horses are generally happy then they wont copy.

Although of course, some horses will develop it if they have stomach ulcers which some say is the only reason a horse starts in the first place.... in which case it is not a learnt behaviour.

I had a horse who cribbed (grabbed hold of fencing / wood to gulp air - some people call it cribbing, others call it windsucking!) and she was out with all my other horses including young horses and one horse who was particularily fond of copying other horses etc. however none of mine ever tried it!

This is quite a dodgy subject, some will swear blind it can be copied and that the whole yard will end up doing it whereas others (like me) believe its not. There is no concrete proof to say if it is learnt or if all the horses who do it have stomach ulcers.
 
The horse I had learnt to do it when she was a 4yo (so certainly not a foal at foot!). In her case, she began doing it when she was backed and then turned away so Im not sure if that was the cause somehow.
 
Thats really interesting. This horse is not a 'happy horse' and is always on his own and can be really grumpy. I wonder if that is linked to him copying the wind sucking. I have never seen this horse do it though. The other one definatly does he kind of rests his chin on the fence posts and sucks as opposed to actually putting his teeth around anything. It always seem to be this particular horse that he windsucks on, again I have never seen him do this and I know for sure that if he did it on my OH horse he wouldn't get away with it!!
 
My horse rests his head over the nearest pony's back to windsuck, if I 'm leading him and stop for a chinwag with someone he gets me in a sort of "half nelson" and windsucks on me!
 
years ago there was a cribber /wind sucker on a yard i was on no one ever seemed to see him graze he was always stood happly sucking away on something, but there was 10 other horses out with him of various ages and none ever copied him.
maybe the other owner is just worried this may happen.
 
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