Wood Chewing and Door Banging

Madeleine wrote to us with the following problem:

My horse is a six year old cob. He is stabled at the moment due to foot and mouth grazing restrictions, but gets ridden every day and turned out into a lunging pit for over an hour every day. My main problems is that when in the stable he constantly bangs on his door for attention the minute I leave him.

If there is no one in the yard he is settled and quiet. However when I turn him out in the pit instead of galloping around like the others to use up some pent up energy he just chews the wood and is costing me a fortune as I have to pay for any damage that he does.

He is being fed a very low calorie and non heating diet consisting mostly of hay so over feeding is not the cause. Please help

 

We forwarded Madeleine's query to Dodson & Horrell and their response is:

Horses are naturally sociable and active and may become stressed if turnout and exercise are restricted. Signs of stress include stable vices, weight loss, excitability and behavioral problems. The following tips can help to minimise stress in stabled horses:

* Establish a regular routine; horses are creatures of habit.

* Walk out and graze in hand daily to provide physical and mental stimulation.

* Feed plenty of long fibre (hay, haylage and chaff) to provide occupational therapy; in their natural state horses would graze for 16 hours a day. A high fibre intake will help to maintain a healthy digestive system.

* Groom regularly; your horse will probably be unable to roll and will appreciate the massage!

* Try putting some Pasture Nuts in a feed ball to relive boredom. * Provide plenty of succulence; tie up turnips or scatter carrots to keep your horse busy.

* Try a herbal blend such as Dodson & Horrell Placid to help maintain an even temperament.

Continue to feed a low energy diet such as Dodson and Horrell Pasture Nuts or Leisure Mix. Leisure Mix is high in slow release energy; oil and fibre and contains elevated quantities of vitamins and minerals. It is ideal for horses that have access to good quality forage and are inclined to be excitable. You would need to feed 1.5kg of Leisure Mix for a 500kg horse a day in order to provide a fully balanced diet.

Pasture Nuts are a high fibre, low starch cube that is fully balanced with vitamins and minerals. You would need to feed a 500kg cob about 3kg a day in order to ensure optimum vitamin and mineral requirements are being met. You may like to add Fibre Blend to his feed each day. Fibre Blend is an alfalfa and oat straw chaff that will provide additional bulk in his diet and encourage him to chew his feed thoroughly. The oat straw in Fibre Blend effectively 'dilutes' the alfalfa making it the ideal chaff for horses that need a limited calorie intake. Begin by adding a good double handful of chaff to each feed and gradually increase the quantity up to 1kg per feed as necessary.

 

Forage Analysis Service - Dodson & Horrell offer a forage/grass analysis service. Check out their website for more details.

You can contact Dodson & Horrell on 01832 737300
Website: www.dodsonandhorrell.com

 

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