28 August 2008 11:42
My 14-year-old TB gelding has started to get unhappy when turned out – it began when he lost one of his companions, an old mare. When I put him out, he dashes to the nearest fence and then stays there all day until I go to catch him. What can I do to help him?
Answer
By Your Horse
YRC Instructor Alison Ritchie replies:
It does sound as though he’s missing his companion – in herds, horses usually form ‘pair bonds’. This means one horse forms a particularly strong relationship with another. If this bond is suddenly broken, then the horse left behind can pine, as yours seems to be doing.
It would be nice for your horse to have a special companion again, though it doesn’t have to be a mare. Why not try turning him out with one other horse to give them an opportunity to bond? With just one other horse, and not an established herd who may already be paired off, he may start to investigate his new friend and settle with them.If this works, turn him out with different members of the herd individually, and then introduce him back to the herd so he can make up his own mind which will be his best friend, but he will also have a few horses he knows to fall back on if he loses another friend. As with people, time is a great healer, and he will settle back into normal life.