Separation Anxiety-Jigging-Trailer Sour

by Marcee
(Clovis)

Our history to present:

I have an 11 yr TB Mare, Jabez, never raced. Bought from a horse trader to save her about 5 years ago. I have grown up on a few handfuls of horses. All very different. My mare was in bad mental shape to put it mildly. We started over and have accomplished a great deal. First we did ground work, tons of ground work. I took her all over, different barns, events, flat lands, down the road, foothills and mountains. We did so much ground work you would think nothing would bother this horse. Sometimes we were with another horse, but most of the time we were alone. I would say an equal amount out of sight and in sight of other horses. I learned a great deal about pressure and patients. We started trail riding and then I had her bred (her first foal). She was a dream while pregnant! After the foal I continued her training, and started the filly. We started showing in training hunter/jumper classes and trail trials. She just wouldn't connect with me for very long while I was on her. I put her on Regumate and it made a huge difference. I had a lot of fun with her at training shows, at practice ropings we would ride around, work the chute and sometimes move the cows. We helped move cows around my Aunts ranch and had to hold a bull in a corner once. Then we took basic dressage lessons to teach both of us to "wait". I took her off the Regumate per trainer request. I was ready. Things went fine for a while (then all the med was gone from her body) I tried for about 3 months to deal with this at 3 to 4 times a week, with no luck. I put her back on the Regumate. Her problem still exists, yet at a rideable level. Now we are trail riding many places; flat lands, public parks, orchards, parades, lakes (even swimming), mountains (back-country stuff minus cliffs and over nights) and foothills. I think we ride everything but down the side of the road and the side of a "true" cliffy hill. With all that said.. we still have a deep set problem that I just don't know how to handle.

Here is our typical scenario:

We go out for a trail ride. 3 to 8 horse and rider combos. Everything is good. Yes she is excited, but very well behaved. She is walking quietly and content. In the front, middle or last, she doesn't care. She walks faster than most horses, yet isn't complaining that I keep asking for her to slow down. Every once in a while she gets worried that the horse in front of her is leaving. The horse is only 5 feet in front of her. I wait and ask and am patient. Then she gets it and calms down for a while. She sometimes does it again before our resting point. She looks like a dead-broke horse when tied at our resting points. Now when we get ready to head out again she is fine if she gets to lead. If not then she tries to trot, I tell her no, she tries to jig, I tell her no, then she starts to throw her head and move all over. At this point I my patients are gone, I get mad at her and get off her to make her use up energy that - from what I think - she must have "too much" of. I know this isn't helping. I know it is the typical on our way home thing along with possibly separation anxiety if behind a horse. Yet, I either canter her in big circles, to and away from the group (until her canter is totally calm), or because space doesn't allow her canter circles, I get off of her and make her move. She figures it out, after a few steps after the exercise she calms, literally drops her had a walks the rest of the way. I have tried the turn and leave twice with her. The first time I ran out of time (we were working on 2 hours), the second time she could care less that we left the others, yet when I turned her back there was not even the slightest bit of difference in her forward attitude after many attempts. So I stepped up the work-- she had to canter away. She noticed a difference. It took about 25 minutes and many turn backs for her to understand she was supposed to walk, even if it's a fast walk, back to the trailer and the horses. She does not do this with me when we are alone or with one other horse. The people that I ride with are great and wait for me. I have and would do the same. The turn back worked, but that can't be done everyplace we ride. One of the things that is really confusing me is that as soon as I step off of her she is a different horse. Any suggestions?

Thank you
Marcee





Hi Marcee,

What was the reason and time frame your vet recommended the Regumate to be used for? Was it to alter her behavior? I would look further into her lifestyle (is it a natural one?), diet, blood work and possibly consider a homeopathy direction.


“Regu-Mate ® (altrenogest) Solution 0.22% is indicated to suppress estrus in mares. Suppression of estrus allows for a predictable occurrence of estrus following drug withdrawal. This facilitates the attainment of regular cyclicity during the transition from winter anestrus to the physiological breeding season. Suppression of estrus will also facilitate management of prolonged estrus conditions. Suppression of estrus may be used to facilitate scheduled breeding during the physiological breeding season.”

Here is the significant part where I feel your relationship is strained. “She just wouldn't connect with me for very long while I was on her.” Many of the things you "do" with her appears to be one sided, “I had a lot of fun with her at training shows etc,”, great for you, but what was in it for her? When we participate in “shows/competition” it is always for our own ego sake and not for the best interest of our horses. We are against the use of bits (are you using one?) and any competitive sports with horses.

“I learned a great deal about pressure”, yes I would agree that all your methods are based upon pressure (negative reinforcement) which is also straining the communication process. You have noticed that taking her away from the other horses and having her work harder isn't effective. The reason is because she will not make the connection of the work to what you were trying to achieve. She feels punished for a natural behavior (wanting to be with other horses) which is only going to have her want to be with the others more than ever. It only makes her tired and often creates more anxiety than alleviating it.

What is needed here is a different approach for understanding and it comes in the form of positive reinforcement. Here are a few other examples as well.

Some of the information seems to conflict as to if she is a leader or a follower. But because you have indicated more leading than following, let's work more with her natural and instinctual leadership quality than against it. Having a horse that is willing to lead is a great quality, one that I would not want to take away from any horse. It's the horse that is unwilling or unable (usually due to lack of confidence in themselves and the rider) that I would help to become more comfortable leading a group. We need to acknowledge and respect their natural herd order and a new one can get established even on a trail ride. So for the sake of all the horses involved, why wouldn't we allow them to establish their places and work with them instead of against? I wouldn't be relinquishing leadership; on the contrary, I would be leading the group effectively! What seemed to be happening on this trail ride since she was fine in the beginning was establishing her order. She decided it was too much to have this lower ranking horse in front and “needed” to do something about it. Here was your moment to positively reinforce her, “Then she gets it and calms down for a while”. The moment she was calm, I would have rewarded with petting/words/clicker training and then a further reward for her would be to move ahead of the others. But make no mistake even if I was on the lead horse leading the group, I am the one making the decisions as leader as to where we go, where we stop and how fast or slow we get there. (I never relinquish this responsibility to the horse I am on) To create a respectful game for the horse I could turn my horse to the end of the group with the intention that we (my horse and I) are going to make sure our herd is together and sort of pushing them from behind like a lead horse would do and then re-establish our position back at the front.

“One of the things that is really confusing me is that as soon as I step off of her she is a different horse. Any suggestions?” Yes, this is a huge tell tale sign that she understands you better from the ground than in the saddle. It is very common because horses are extremely “sight specific” and read body language far quicker and with more accuracy than people do. When we notice that being on top of them eliminates their visual contact with us, thus now they need to feel and hear their way through communication it makes sense. But it also indicates “relief” from a stressful situation. I am not feeling a reciprocal relationship between you two. Ask yourself, “If I was my horse, am I really enjoying our time together?”, “How can I make our time more playful from my horse’s perspective?”

Trailer Sour is really, Trailer SWEET! Wants to go home! To the safety and comfort it supplies. Horses are not adventurers, we are. That's why even trail riding (especially to places they have never been) can be very stressful for many horses.

Elaine Polny
Horses by Nature