Mare that doesn't like to graze?

Question

I have my 17 year old mare...most of you know the horse, that had thrombosis...well anyway it's been about 3 weeks now and since she's got better, she won't graze....at all, i'm giving her so much hay to keep her weight up...i left her for two days without hay just to see what she would, or if i was filling her up to much but she just stood in the corner of the paddock looking interested and alert, but not grazing. and everytime she puts her head down to eat her feed, it's like she spooks, and jumps or crow hops away from her feed all the time, the vet came out to have a look, and said she couldn't find anything wrong with her, and her blood work is now fine. any ideas??

ps the dentist came out two weeks ago and her teeth are great, the chiropractor said her body is fine...it has to be neurological, we can't stable her as she was a rescue and has a massive anxiety attack when she gets stabled....it's just costing so much to keep her looking good without pasture

Answer 1

if she wont eat any pasture and u cant keeep afording hay to keep some fat on her, give her corn oil with her grain. it really gives then some bulk.

Answer 2

maybe she has been mistreated at another home and then abandoned. she also could have been grazing one day and something jumped up at her (snake, rabbit......) and scared her so she might think that when she goes to graze she thinks something bad will happen.

My mare is very nervous. she recently had a capped elbow and we had to put DSMO on it. it burnt her and she didn't trust me with sprays at all. maybe if you pick some grass for her and try and hand feed it to her to see if she'll eat it.

Answer 3

Maybe when your mare was younger she was beaten or hurt for eating the grass(which would be really weird of the owner)

Answer 4

Do you have any pasture you can turn her loose in to see if she grazes there?  I'm assuming you must be north somewhere.  I'm in Florida and paddocks here don't have anything but sand after a horse has been there for awhile.

Answer 5

Could it be anxiety stopping her from grazing? If you think this could be the case - Do you know of anyone who has a small bomb proof pony that could give her some company but not threaten her.

We have a little man here, and our flighty horses are definitely more calm in his presence.

Best of luck, someone must know of a supplement that could help. I know brewers yeast helps give them an appetite, one handful per day.

Sorry I'm not of much help, I'll think on....

would there be anything in the pasture causing her to be nervous - protein too high? Weed?

Lucy Tucker answers nutrition questions in NZ Horse and pony mag.

And Cheski Brown answers questions on behaviour.

I'd trust their advice 100% To contact them I think you go to

www.horse-pony.co.nz

If you're completely stuck I'm sure they would be happy to help they give free advise.

I looked in my vet  book and can't see anything there. If you get completely stuck, I'd ask you vet to contact a veterinary university. My vet had to contact Massey Unniversity NZ, last year, and we got our problem fixed within a few days.

Answer 6

Hi. We also have a TB mare who didn't eat in paddocks and would just stand around all day. (We live in QLD) We couldn't work out why she wouldn't eat and when she did eat, she would just chew it a bit and then spit the grass out. We worked out that she had stomach ulcers after going to a Dr. John Kohnke information evening. Some symptoms of stomach ulcers are; not eating when in a paddock, windsucking (our mare has always done this), grumpy, agitated, and unsettled. We put her on Clean-up which worked really well. It is given as a slurry in a 30mL syringe for the first week  5-10 mins before feeding and then we just mixed it in her feed. Also, there is another supplement called Kohnke's Own Gastro-coat.

Within weeks, she was eating and behaving more like a normal horse. We now make our own version of stomach ulcer medicine which seems to work for her. It is 1/4 brewers yeast, 1/4 slippery elm bark, and 1/2 psyllum husks. We mix it up and give her a heaped teaspoon per feed. Before she goes out into a grassier paddock or is ridden, she gets a dose in a small feed of lucerne chaff.

John Kohnke said that when thay chew, the stomach acids start to flow which eat at the ulcers and gives them pain, which they associate with eating, so they would rather not eat.  Horses that have been sick or injured are more prone to ulcers so that may explain why she has started this behaviour.

You can read up more about it at :

http://www.petalia.com.au/Templates/Stor...  

Hope it helps.

Answer 7

She has gotten so used to hay and being stalled that she does not want to break her routine.  Horses sometimes get like that...afraid to change their routine.  All horses like consistency but some take it to the extremes.  Simply cut back her hay until she starts to graze again.  Yes she may lose a little weight at first but if you want her to graze that is the  only way I know of to get her started again.  Once she starts she will take to it.  

Do not force the change cold turkey.  Cut back on her hay not out until she starts to graze.  Abrupt changes in the horses diet sometimes causes problems.  

Here is what I would do.

First stall her or dry lot her.  

Cut back on hay while giving her one to two hours a cay on pasture.  After you notice she starts grazing then begin to increase pasture time and decrease hay until she is on full pasture in two weeks.

Answer 8

have you given her grass yourself? like fed it to her? I don't know if that would help but it might....