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How Can I Help Calm My Horse?
Unwanted behaviour in horses can be associated with diet, management routine, environment, and breeding/genetics. Dietary support and supplements can be used to help manage these behaviours, acting as a competition-safe method for supporting calm behaviour.
Life for the modern horse is very different to that of a wild horse. Factors such as stabling, lack of company, lack of exercise, competition demands, and the intake of high starch and sugar feeds can all adversely impact behaviour.
The 3 Fs: Freedom, Friends and Forage
When considering “stress” behaviours, we should ask ourselves if our horses’ 3 Fs of good equine welfare are being met in our current management system: Freedom, Friends and Forage. Our horse’s happiness is determined by these 3 Fs.
A high starch and sugar intake may be the direct cause of the over-excitable behaviour, or it could exacerbate “stressy” behaviour in an already nervous horse. All adverse behaviours have the potential to negatively impact performance, handler safety, and the overall quality of life for these horses.
What Are the Signs of Stress and Anxiety in Horses?
Interpreting equine behaviour is difficult even for the professionals and only time will allow you to get to know what is “normal” for your horse. Behaviours that seem out of character or present a threat to handlers should be investigated and managed appropriately.
There are many behaviours that could be signs of stress and/or over-excitability in horses, including:
- Over-reaction to external stimuli and inclination to flinch/spook at minor things
- Lack of focus (particularly when competing)
- Resistance to training/handling/riding
- Frequent urination and defaecation
- General unsettlement e.g. pawing the ground, kicking stable doors, whinnying
- Stereotypic behaviours e.g. box walking
- Aggression
What Can Trigger Stress and Anxiety in Horses?
There are many different causes of anxiety in horses, but some common predisposing factors include:
- High carbohydrate/sugar diets (excessive intake = excessive energy to burn, plus exacerbation of adverse behaviour in anxious horses)
- Little or no pasture turnout (freedom to move)
- Access to other horses (friends)
- Inadequate exercise
- Temperament (which can be related to genetics)
- Exposure to new or unnatural situations (for example clipping, shoeing or travelling)
- Competition/training demands
- Pain e.g. gastric ulcers or arthritis (if you suspect your horse’s adverse behaviour may be related to discomfort/pain then you should contact your vet immediately)
- Hormones
How Can I Help?
Investigating unwanted behaviours may lead you to a cause that you can reduce or even remove, e.g. reducing pain levels in an arthritic horse can help them work with less resistance; getting hormonal therapy for a stroppy mare could alleviate her negative behaviour; and increasing your horse’s exercise levels may make him more content.
Diet may directly or indirectly be the cause of your horse’s unwanted behaviours and maintaining a low starch and sugar diet either way will reduce over-excitability and the exacerbation of other stress/anxiety related behaviours.
Often there may be multiple factors at play when dealing with these horses and one quick fix is not always easy to find. The following are ways that you can take direct action to help alleviate your horse’s unwanted behaviours:
Feed a Low Starch and Sugar Diet
When a horse is taking in excess energy, they can often show nervous and over-excitable behaviours. Where necessary, a high starch concentrate feed should be avoided three to four hours before exercise. Read ‘A nutritional approach to behaviour management’ for more information.
Match Energy Input With Workload
Horses, when appropriate, should have a consistent daily exercise routine. Increase turnout to allow for exercise and interaction with other horses, and avoid providing excess energy — feed what is required for work and to maintain condition.
Supplementation
Supplements such as Nutri-Calm can help to promote calm behaviour and restore focus.
Get a Buddy Horse
Some naturally anxious horses settle well once they have a buddy. A buddy works particularly well for young horses, such as weaned foals, as it can help them to feel calm and safe.
Give Them Time to Familiarise Themselves With New Environments or Experiences
This helps them build confidence in a time frame suitable for them and in turn can help reduce their anxiety.
Get Help From Your Vet
Sedation: If your horse exhibits unsafe behaviour during specific experiences e.g. shoeing or dental examinations, your vet may decide sedatives are appropriate. Sedation can have complications in rare cases, so decisions to sedate are normally based on the need to ensure horse welfare and handler safety are optimised.
Hormone therapy in mares: When anxious or over-excitable behaviour in fillies or mares is thought to be associated with their reproductive cycle, a veterinary surgeon may prescribe progesterone treatment e.g. Regumate, to prevent the mare from coming into season. If you think your horse could benefit from sedation for essential events or hormonal therapy, then ALWAYS get in touch with your vet. Progesterone treatment is not suitable for competition horses.
How Can Nutri-Calm Help Stressed, Nervous or Anxious Horses?
Nutri-Calm is a dietary supplement that may help to alleviate stress and anxiety related behaviours by providing optimised levels of specific nutritional factors known to promote calmer behaviour, allowing horses to better maintain focus and concentration.
It is available as both a liquid calming supplement, to be mixed once daily with feed, and as an easy-to-use calming gel which can be given to horses one to two hours before an event that may trigger stressful or anxious behaviour.
L-Tryptophan
An essential amino acid required to form the neurotransmitter serotonin within the brain. Serotonin is associated with a reduction in feelings of stress or anxiety, and the overall promotion of feeling settled and calm.
B-Complex Vitamins
B1 or thiamine is included as it has been demonstrated in humans to reduce anxiety and improve concentration, and the same may be true in horses. B1 also has a direct role in the transmission of nerve impulses. B6 is an important co-enzyme acting as a catalyst in the conversion of tryptophan to serotonin. Niacin (B3) has a tryptophan “sparing” effect ensuring a plentiful supply is available for the production of serotonin. B12 inclusion helps to support appetite, which is commonly reduced in nervous horses.
Magnesium
A common ingredient in calmers based on its involvement in normal nerve transmission.
If you are looking for more advice on calming supplement products, why not get in touch with one of our equine nutrition experts?
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