Grazing Muzzles for Cribbers

[Can_tFindMyWhip]

I have this curse where cribbers always end up in my care. The habit doesn’t bother me, but it makes finding places to keep them very difficult, especially when they cannot wear a collar and after my last horse I put my foot down and said no more. I’m tired of having limited boarding options.

My latest horse started cribbing within 24 hours of arriving home despite being very upfront with the seller that I do not want another cribber. Specifics of the sale and what to do with the horse aren’t what I’m asking about however.

She had an unsafe reaction to a cribbing collar, so I got to thinking about whether or not a grazing muzzle could be an effective way to get her to stop. I’ve never tried it in the past because every other cribber I have had has been a hard keeper and the low man in the pecking order, so I wanted them to have their mouths available to get as much grass and hay down their gullet as possible. I also know that really determined cribbers can find ways of bending the muzzles so they can still do it.

This mare is neither of those things- she is a good eater and can take care of herself in the herd just fine. She is also not hell bent on cribbing all the time. Hypothetically, do you think farm owners would accept a horse like this with a grazing muzzle in lieu of a collar as a way to control the habit?

[Texarkana]

They make cribbing muzzles that do not have much impact on the horse’s ability to eat:

https://www.statelinetack.com/item/basic-aluminum-cribbing-muzzle/BRK60/?

[DMK]

I have a casual cribber whose name is Lardo, I mean Lido, so he wears a greenguard grazing muzzle on PM turnout from about April/May to mid October and it seems to do an OK job. But almost every fence line has a hot wire on it so that probably solves most of the problems (but they have access to the stalls/dry lot paddock and that presents a few cribbing opportunities).

Years ago I used the box collar, but overall I think it made him so sore in the neck area and since he took the early retiree path due to back/neck issues, I couldn’t, in good conscience, continue to use the collar once I knew of his issues.

But the muzzle definitely helps! (I also have a cribbing “cage” but it is just too freaking heavy for me to want to leave it on him for any length of time, so it doesn’t get used at all)

The pros with the muzzle is that even if they want to anchor against something, they can crib, but not destroy the thing they are grabbing on to (I’ve never seen him do it, but I had a cribber years ago who did it with the cage, so I’m sure it could be done)

The cons are that they can’t eat hay/grain with it on, just grazing AND extended grazing with the muzzle does wear down the profile of the front teeth (similar to nibble net wear). So that’s a double whammy for the cribber.

For my guy it isn’t a big deal, he’s casual although he does have some periodic dedicated episodes, presumably when he has some stress in his retiree lifestyle… I dunno, maybe sometimes he has to walk an extra 5 steps to get to the pasture or the hay hut or something equally traumatic… But between the hot wire on the fencing and some judicious use of cheap dishwashing detergent with cayenne pepper on some of his drylot/stall favorite spots that handles it all winter when he isn’t wearing the muzzle or whenever he is in the dry lot sans muzzle

[DinkyDonk]

Try a “Free to eat” metal cage muzzle; does not impede drinking or eating. Spacing is large enough to eat hay and everything else.

[Can_tFindMyWhip]

Are those big metal grates safe though? Couldn’t they harm themselves or other horses with them if they got to play, fighting, or itching?

[Melissa.Van_Doren]

I’ve used a Best Friend grazing muzzle and cut the hole in the bottom large enough for easy grazing of pasture and hay.

[NancyM]

Find a boarding stable who understands cribbers as “addicts”, and does not make efforts to forcibly remove the addiction from the addict, for the satisfaction of human sensibilities. This is the movement in understanding the mind of a horse who has an addiction and why he has the addiction, why he acquired the addiction, and how to manage the addiction, and it is spreading in “horse care”. Most cribbers do less damage to structures than “beaver”-like fence chewers, or most other “issues” that some horses exhibit. And more and more horsemen are understanding the damage that preventing a cribber from partaking of his addiction can do to the horse. These boarding facilities are out there, find one, for your horse’s sake. Humans themselves often have far more destructive and harmful addictions than horses do.

[Texarkana]

@Can'tFindMyWhip

Are those big metal grates safe though? Couldn’t they harm themselves or other horses with them if they got to play, fighting, or itching?

I’ve had no problems with the metal grates on the nylon/aluminum style cribbing muzzle that I linked above. The aluminum is very lightweight and the bulk of the muzzle is soft. I do wonder about the effect on teeth with long term use, but the biggest complaint with them is usually that they bend and wear out too quickly, not that they are too hard.

I don’t love the metal basket/metal cage style muzzles-- mainly because I received a concussion from being cold-clocked to the point of unconsciousness by an aggressive horse wearing one. But that was an atypical situation. Otherwise, they don’t fit as closely to the face as the nylon style. I’ve seen horses get them hooked on things, which makes me nervous. Other people like them quite a bit, so your experiences may vary.

My own cribber wears a grazing muzzle much of the year, although not for cribbing, but rather because she is an easy keeper. I personally think it’s hard for many horses to eat adequate rations of hay with a grazing muzzle. Some horses master it, but others never quite get the hang of it.

It can be so annoying trying to board a cribber. Some barns won’t even take them, others have all sorts of outdated misconceptions about it, etc. I hate collars; I think they rarely work and pose way more risk than benefit. When I was boarding my horses, my cribber used to wear just a fat leather strap to appease my barn owners. It did nothing to deter her cribbing (it blows my mind that some reviewers say it works), but I also didn’t have to worry about unsafe situations with it. You couldn’t even over-tighten it the way the buckle was configured.

[Can_tFindMyWhip]

@NancyM

Find a boarding stable who understands cribbers as “addicts”, and does not make efforts to forcibly remove the addiction from the addict, for the satisfaction of human sensibilities. This is the movement in understanding the mind of a horse who has an addiction and why he has the addiction, why he acquired the addiction, and how to manage the addiction, and it is spreading in “horse care”. Most cribbers do less damage to structures than “beaver”-like fence chewers, or most other “issues” that some horses exhibit. And more and more horsemen are understanding the damage that preventing a cribber from partaking of his addiction can do to the horse. These boarding facilities are out there, find one, for your horse’s sake. Humans themselves often have far more destructive and harmful addictions than horses do.

At this point, 100% of the horses I have owned have been cribbers- they just find me somehow. My last guy was happiest when he when he was allowed to crib and I finally found a barn owner who didn’t care. I’m still at that barn, and I don’t want to leave, but I am aware that this new horse is going to outlive the barn owner by a lot. Said barn owner is in his mid 70’s, sliced his hand open last week, and refused to get stitches even though it kept bleeding for a couple of days, so he is like actively trying to die on me. My main concern is over what I am going to do when the barn has to shut down. I live in a part of the country where traffic is heinous, so the barns I can get to within an hour are extremely limited. Barn managers know this, so they start getting really picky about what horses they take on. Finding boarding for a mare is almost as challenging as a horse being a cribber- do you believe that? So having a mare that cribs is a serious problem. I am certain this is the only barn in a 1 hour radius that will allow a mare to crib uninhibited. So I will take the next opportunity I have to get out of my city, but major moves are never fun.

I was once booted from a barn because a lady who owned several horses there (and therefore generated more money than I did) woke up one day and decided that my horse would definitely teach her horses how to crib. The barn manager conceded that he knew that’s not how it works, but rather than have that conversation with her, it was easier to tell me to leave. It was a crappy spot to be in, and I don’t want to be there again. I do have a fantasy though of opening a barn specifically for horses with undesirable habits like cribbers and calling it “The Island of Misfit Toys” and then I remind myself how stressful it is caring for other people’s horses.

[NancyM]

@Can'tFindMyWhip

So I will take the next opportunity I have to get out of my city, but major moves are never fun.

Move. To a more “horse friendly” area. Major moves happen, and are quite survivable. BTDT. Hopefully your current barn owner is tougher than you think, and will last long enough for you to reposition yourself adequately! I feel your pain. The few times in my life that I have been a boarder at someone else’s facility (with or without a cribber), I have done nothing but heave a sigh of relief when I was able to move home again. Find a way.

I currently own two cribbers. They live out with my other horses, and no one wears straps, or muzzles, or other crap like that. Cribbers need to have a nice place to crib, I like it when they choose the huge rubber cut tires that I use for hay feeders, or when they have a nice tree trunk or stump available (I have lots of those LOL). They are happy, healthy cribbers, and easy keepers. I take cribbers as boarders, no problem, but I refuse to have them wearing straps. There are far worse issues to deal with than a cribbing addict, when dealing with boarding other people’s horses.

[Schatzi09]

Like NancyM I allow my cribber to crib. I bought her as a long yearling and tried collars and muzzles to make her stop. I finally conceded and allowed her to crib. She’s now 23 with very little left of her upper incisors but is fat and happy. She has been an amazing horse to own and ride. I would happily own an entire barn full of horses as nice as she is even if they crib.

I also bred the above mare via embryo transfer and have a nice mare that does not crib - even though she grew up watching her biological mother across the aisle.

Thankfully, most of the boarding barns in my area don’t mind cribbers. My horses are now at home but I have had no problems boarding them in the past either.