A horse who does not like being out.

by Jessica
(Sheffield England)

I have a 17yr old Mare who is stabled at night and turned out during the day, she has been turned out with a herd and more recently in separate paddocks alongside others. The problem is that after a couple of hours she begins pacing and is desperate to come in. When she does come in she is fine and quite calm, although she does weave around meal times. The other horses she grazes alongside are calm and do not bother her. Do you have any suggestions of what might be the cause and any solutions?
Many thanks


Hi Jessica,
I see a couple of reasons why this mare could be displaying these behaviors. Let’s review what a natural living environment would be for a horse. This domesticated lifestyle of keeping horses in a stall at night and only “turned out” for the day is contradictory to their natural rhythms. They are a herd animal that needs constant movement (which is not provided in a stall environment) and they need to have physical contact with their own kind (not just over a fence). Plus we are usually the ones deciding who their best friends or paddock mates are not them. Hmmmm. Many have incorporated the lifestyle you described for the Human’s convenience not for the well being of the horse. Stall environments are loaded with particles that contribute to respiratory ailments as well as emotional and circulatory system problems. See this page on more natural ideas to implement, Natural Horsekeeping I highly recommend the book Paddock Paradise that you will find on that page.

Horses primarily use their body language to communicate with each other as well as with us therefore we need to become more aware of the non verbal communication they use. More and more horses that are confined or housed in unnatural environments are showing signs of stereotypical behaviors. A stereotypical behavior is an abnormal repetitive behavior such as weaving in a stall, pacing a fence line, chewing fences, licking obsessively to name just a few. Many people seem to want to ignore these behaviors and turn a blind eye to them. Thanks to the many researchers who noticed that the zoo animals in confinement and unnatural settings were showing stereotypical behaviors our awareness has risen yet I would like to see more changes in our horse management practices to address these behaviors before they get started.


Recommended reading is the book, “Animals Make Us Human”, by Temple Grandin
This is a fantastic book that reveals the scientific results of understanding horse behavior, the best way to help them learn and the training methods that are most humane and effective.

Also Animals in Translation is another great book by Temple Grandin.

At the bottom of this page on horse behavior you will find these books

Nutrition plays a huge role here too. Horses have small stomachs (which produce acids continuously) and they are noted to be grazers which mean they need to uptake small amounts constantly. When we only provide specific meal times and not access to hay 24/7, physical (stomach ulcers) and emotional upset are sure to follow. When horses display pacing along a fence line (and in this situation) it often means the horse has created a habitual or stereotypical pattern in anticipation for food and/or that she requires it. She doesn’t find the stall comforting; she finds the food in the stall comforting.

The only way to know for sure if a horse is getting what it needs is by testing our hay source and testing our horses through a hair sample to ensure they are adequately getting, digesting and using the nutrients given.

Elaine Polny
Horses by Nature