Yearling Groundwork

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maddycj

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I have a wonderful ID yearling who has just turned 1. She is very good with handling except for getting ointment on her nose.

She has a white nose and with living out 24/7 is struggling with sun burn. I am trying to apply filtabac, but can imagine it’s painful to touch which is leading to head tossing and a bit of a tantrum.

I’ve tried smearing it on my hand and starting from her above her nose and petting down, but once she notices, the games over.

Her red nose is making me feel horrible - any ideas on how to desensitize her? Or possibly some other products which will be easier?
 
I would just use a headcollar with a nose cover to stop her burning! I used to have one that would let his paddock-mate lick the sun screen off his nose after i put it on :rolleyes:

ETA picture - I know it looks a little funny but it does the job!

Muzzle-Protector-Square-Web-1.jpg
 
Another vote for a nose cover- if she's happy to wear a fly mask one of those that covers the nose would save you needing to leave a headcollar on.
Does the filtabac have a smell? One of mine used to hate sunscreen until we tried the unscented one from gold label- it's very thick, so needs warming in the hands before applying, but it has a very mild smell so he didn't mind having it on.
 
Agree with the UV mesh guard. But if you want to continue to try with the cream, a molasses based lick can be a great bribe! Mine will do most things for a mini Horselyx
 
Mine once had a similar rash from buttercups. The fields were over-run when we bought this place.

Once they had gone, the problem did too.

One grey was a little sensitive, but he also had a white rimmed eye so always wore a fly mask to protect against eye cancer. The nose irritation then ceased. No headcollar needed.
 
The Fuzzy Furry said:
Are you in the UK op?
If you are, are you sure its sun burn and not from a plant? With the recent weather across the UK, I cant think of anywhere it's been hot enough yet for sunburn.
Click to expand...

Good point. Also check for St John's Wort, it causes photosentivity.
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She needs to feel safe with what you're doing, at the moment she doesn't. She may overall not feel quite as safe with you as you think, or it may be specifically related to this task and of course you need to be sure about the "sunburn" and whether the lotion is actually causing her pain.

I'm not a behavioural expert, far from it, but my learnings have taken me to seeing this as possibly part of an overall emotional regulation/safety issue, understandable in a youngster, but a different slant on it from seeing it as an acclimatisation challenge ie just getting her used to it. Pages on FB that are interesting to follow are Milestone Equestrian and https://www.facebook.com/PETScotland, might give you some rabbit holes of learning :).
 
I would bring in for a few days until it was feeling better, then apply sun cream daily. It acts as a barrier against plants too in my experience. Is there access to shelter? My pink nosed ones will choose to go inside in the heat of the day to avoid the sun.
 
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