Multiple calming supplements

[keenkick725]

Anyone have their horse on more than one calming supplement?
I saw on Smartpak different calming agents can be used together (specifically mare harmony and quissence). In this specific combination it falls under the max allowance for magnesium. I try to compare different supplements but I’m finding what one has the other one lacks so wondering if combining may be helpful with heightened anxiety.

Anyone use more than one calming supplement and notice a difference compared to just one calming supplement?

If so, which supplements?

[hybriseris]

I can’t specifically answer this question, altho I noticed excellent results with SmartCalm Ultra alone with my mare. She had been on others in the past, but nothing seemed to have an actual effect like SC Ultra did.

What I wanted to add was, nothing helped with her anxiety more than treating for ulcers did. The SmartCalm helped, but what really settled the issue was treating her belly, if that’s not something you’ve already tried with yours.

[JB]

What is the “max allowance for magnesium”?

“Calming” is too subjective. Magnesium only helps calm a horse if a deficiency - which isn’t common - exists. Same with B1/thiamine.

Valerian has more potential to help quite a horse as it’s not a nutrient.
Mare Harmony (I assume you mean SmartMare Harmony?) has raspberry leaves (a source of magnesium) but also chamomile and passion flower, both of which may (enormous MAY) help with some stress/anxiety, just as with people

There is definitely no black and white when it comes to calming supplements. You try one and see if it helps your horse.

SmartCalm Ultra has 10gm Mg, some taurine, inositol, a bit of B1, and tryptophan. All of those have the potential to help, but still, it all depends on what the underlying issue is.

It’s less about “more than 1 calming supplement” and more about dialing in which ingredients actually impact that particular horse.

[luvmyhackney]

The only thing that has helped calm down my horse is an increased workload and now he is diligent about conserving energy and enjoying a rest.

Plus cutting back grain to next to nothing after treating for ulcers.

[keenkick725]

What anxious behaviors did your horse exhibit? I considered treating for ulcers but she just seems anxious undersaddle. I am not opposed to treating for ulcers but I guess I didn’t think her behaviors were ulcer characteristics. Can you share what behaviors you saw before and after treating ulcers?

[hybriseris]

Sure thing! My mare was also only anxious under saddle. Totally fine being led/in her stall/in paddock. She is currently on month five of rehab for a front suspensory strain, and is not a horse who copes without a consistent hard-work job, so I think it’s been hard on her mentally to just be tack walking.

She was very reactive to quick movements or sound, and sounds she’d hear every day on a daily basis. The sound of a broom being used in the aisle, barn equipment being started up, the microphone one of the trainers uses, they’d all set her off - sometimes just feeling like I was riding a bomb, sometimes causing her to scoot off (no bolt, but a quick burst of speed). When I was using the outdoor, she was easily distractable and on alert. There was one morning one of the workers came around the corner of the barn to dump a water bucket and mare stopped dead in her tracks when she startled - really unlike her. In terms of performance we really struggled with a consistent contact and she didn’t want to work from behind, I think engaging her core was too ouchy.

About five days in to treating for ulcers, ALL these symptoms disappeared and have stayed gone. I’m currently tapering down from a full tube of Gastrogard for 30 days, now on a half tube and then quarter tube.

[keenkick725]

That’s quite interesting. Those are actually the same behaviors my horse exhibits. I guess I thought they would be very girthy or kick out when you put leg on. But the biggest issue is consistency with the contact and being really reactive under saddle but everywhere else is completely fine
Definitely sounds like it is worth looking into. Did you just start ulcer medication or was your horse scoped

[erinmeri]

I don’t have any suggestions for calming supplements, but my mare was pretty hot and reactive when I got her. Nothing dangerous, but she could be a handful to turn in and out, and she was spooky/tense and quite reactive to sounds or things out of the ordinary. She would lose her mind if anyone touched a rail in the arena, so I hated flatting during jumping lessons.

She is now a different horse, is relaxed, and not very reactive at all, IMO. People comment on the transformation a lot.

Because so many things happened at once, it’s hard to pinpoint what helped the most, but the first thing we did that made a difference was putting her on Regumate. It’s pricey and you have to handle with caution (I do the compounded injections to minimize risk to barn staff and self). I know others have had success with Mare Magic, but I haven’t tried it.

If that hadn’t worked, we were going to scope her for ulcers, but the change happened very quickly.

It also turned out that she is asthmatic, so treating that and moving her to a shedrow and soaking her hay and increasing turnout also seems to have helped a lot too. She is VERY happy in her new set up, is not as fearful of barn cats and general goings on as she was before. I think she likes to watch the world go by!

I also think my energy fed into things. I don’t react to her anymore, so she trusts me and feels safe.

Long story short: she is now workman like and gets going to jump, but isn’t tense or anxious or fresh as a rule. Has her moments, but they are far between.

[hybriseris]

It was both my opinion and my vet’s that scoping would just add stress for mare, and $$$ on top of what is already an unfortunately expensive treatment lol. So we just treated! I pulled her off the SmartCalm as well once it was obvious the GG was working and she’s still happy as a clam.

[endlessclimb]

@erinmeri

I also think my energy fed into things. I don’t react to her anymore, so she trusts me and feels safe.

Ding ding.

You need to have the ability to put icewater in your veins around hot ones. Ice water in your seat too. You also need not feel bad about putting boundaries on anxious behavior “this is an ok way to show your feelings, that is NOT an ok way to show your feelings” - obviously done in a cold methodical manner, so as not to feed into the anxiety and instead redirect it.

Some owners are not cut out for hot ones. That’s ok. There’s lots of horses who are not like that, go find one.