Blind and Restless
Sue McDonnell, PhD, Certified AAB
June 1, 2004
My 19-year-old horse is 95% blind, and when he’s not eating or sleeping he walks in circles. What can I do to stop or minimize this behavior?
My 19-year-old horse is 95% blind, and when he’s not eating or sleeping he walks in circles. What can I do to stop or minimize this behavior?
When I ride my 24-year-old Arabian mare Western, she tends to want to pick up the pace and wants to look around. How can I get her to slow down and stay focused? She gets stiff and starts to limp on her left hind leg when I am riding her. Another thing she does is pee constantly when I am riding her, but it isn’t pee that comes out, it’s blood. Can you tell me why she does this and if there i
Why do some horses not like having their buddies taken out of their pen when they have to stay in?
We have been struggling with a very particular behavior problem with a young colt. From birth, he’s been a strong and athletic rascal, and has been “full of himself,” with the usual colt behavior tendencies. We have dealt successfully with all the nippiness and rearing when leading him and turning him out, etc. He has occasional relapses, but we feel confident that he’s under control as far a
My 12-year-old daughter’s 9-year-old Welsh Pony gelding (named Taffy) was moved to a new stable about eight weeks ago. Six weeks after the move, Taffy was introduced to the mares and allowed to graze and socialize with them. Since four of the 16 mares had two- to four-month-old foals, we were more than a little nervous that the mares would not take well to Taffy. However, one mare and
My mare just had a colt today and I have a concern about it because she is 13 years old and not broken. She had been broken three times prior to me getting her, and she won’t come near anyone. My question is: How will I be able to mess with the colt without the mare coming after me? She is very protective of the colt, and I am very concerned about separating them when the time comes.
I
I’m worried about my horses’ dependency on one another and any future bereavement of the horse left behind. Should I consider bringing in a third horse sooner rather than later?
I’d like information and recommendations for safe hauling of my weanlings. Should they be tied? If hauled loose, when is it time for them to be tied and confined? What’s the easiest way to proceed for happy hauling in the future?
My pony started tossing his head and cribbing at about the same time. The head tossing has increased to the point of not being able to ride him. He has had his teeth floated and has been checked by a vet for common problems. He has never had any problems before this, and has always been a great pony hunter. I’ve changed bits, used a hackamore, longed him with tack–still with the same
One of our mares rubs her butt on everything, all the time. It messes up the top of her tail, and she always has these big scratch marks across her butt.
We can’t seem to get her to stop it. We have dewormed her regularly and tried all sorts of different wormers. It seems like more of a nervous habit. Could she be rubbing herself like a stallion masturbating? Is that normal?
I hope you are not offended by this question, and that you will find time to answer it if you know anything about it or maybe could refer me to someone else who might have heard of this fairly unusual advice. My boyfriend was afraid to write to you about it, so I will.
Recently my boyfriend met an old-time horseman who found out we had a 2-year-old stud colt. This guy was
We’re seeking professional tips for finding and keeping a pony or miniature horse as a family pet. We’d like your opinion, and any suggestions for books or videos that might help us.
My gelding was vaccinated with no apparent reaction. A week later, he has become impossible to catch in the stall. He pins his ears, turns his rear to me, and kicks. There haven’t been any routine changes. Why the sudden attitude change?
I purchased my horse a year ago knowing he had some aggression problems. He is great around people, just not around other horses. Unfortunately, when he attacks, he goes for the throat just behind the jaw line.
There are several possible explanations as to why a horse might play with his water bucket every night.
We just started using a 3-year-old Quarter Horse stallion for breeding. He is sort of interested and will rub his head on the mare a bit, but he drops about half-way, then up, down, up, down. He doesn’t seem shy or anxious, just lazy, like a gelding. Sometimes he’ll just stand for a long time, even with his head in the mare’s tail, or he’ll ditz around with her tail like a foal does with its
Stay on top of the most recent Horse Health news with
