Stalling Versus Turnout During Fireworks

[RoahsGirl]

I am new to this forum and would like some other horse people’s opinion on what I should do with my OTTB…

I recently got an OTTB, (a 5 year old gelding) and I’ve had him for almost four months now.He is a rather laid back guy and is pretty calm about most things. I have had him in full turnout on my property and he’s been doing really well.

There’s a lot going on around my property, dogs barking, random gun shooting from neighbors, wild guinea birds that live on my property etc. and he’s taken all of it in stride, though he has his occasional days where he seems more moody/jumpy than normal. I don’t currently have any other horses to hang out with him, but there is a mini Jersey cow that shares a long fence line with him and I work from home so I’m out to see him all through out the day.

Where I live at now, I have about 10 acres, but there is a new subdivision that basically borders the entire backside of my pasture area. I have had the mini cow here during fireworks, but have never had any horses on this particular property before.

About two nights ago someone decided to shoot off some large, random fireworks right over my pasture and I saw on one of the camera’s I have out in his pasture, that he was spooked by them. I went out to the pasture to see him and let him see me acting like the fireworks were no big deal, but he didn’t seem to really care whether I was there or not. He wasn’t in a total panic, but was cantering around the pasture a bit and you could tell he was on edge. Eventually he settled down once the fireworks stopped.

Considering those fireworks were nothing compared to what I know will be coming (because of the new subdivision behind me, during firework holidays it basically sounds like I am in the middle of a warzone from 6:00PM-3:00AM), on New Years Eve. I am concerned over how he is going to do for his first “firework” holiday here.

I have a couple of different options available for him and was wondering what some other horse people’s opinions were:

Option 1) I have a run in shelter that I could lock him into, with a light and radio on in there and I could lock the cow in on the other side of it. He wouldn’t be able to see her, but should be able to smell/hear her over there and see that he is not alone. My only concern with locking him in, is that since I’ve had him, he’s been in turnout 24/7.

Being an ex-racehorse, I know he is used to being stalled, however, when I sent him to a boarding facility for training for 2 weeks, when they put him in the stall over there it took him about 4-5 hours to settle down. Prior to that he was pacing, sweating etc. And in my run in shelter, he’s still going to be outside to a point unlike at the boarding facility which is more of a closed in barn and, he will not have other horses around him.

I have considered having the vet come out and evaluate the best sedative to give him, giving him that and then locking him in the run in shelter. My only concern with that is that given that New Years Eve falls on a Monday this year, I’m thinking the fireworks are going to be most likely a 5-6 day problem and not just the one night and I don’t really want to sedate him for the entire week.

Option 2) I have a smaller sacrifice lot area, that is only about 1/2 acre and it has 5 ft tall fencing with electric wire completely surrounding the area. This is where I have been keeping him at night time as his run in shelter is also in this sacrifice lot. This is the same lot he was in when the random fireworks shot off the other night. He ran around a bit then, but never went into a full gallop. The ground in that lot isn’t perfectly even, but, I don’t feel there are a ton of places he could really hurt himself from being stupid out there, other than running through the fence. I’m leaning towards thinking that this is the best place to keep him as if he does bust through my electric fencing there, he would still be contained by another fence that borders the rest of my pasture/property. I also have some horse ear plugs I could put in his ears and try to light up that pasture a bit more by turning on all of my house lights which will shine some more light into that area.

Option 3) I could send him back over to the boarding facility where I had him trained. It is only 15 miles from my home, and the daily board is very reasonable.However, I don’t have a trailer large enough for him yet, so I would have to pay them to pick him up and bring him home and while he loads great, he gets nervous on short trips when there isn’t another horse on the trailer with him.

The boarding place is way out in the country and they own a ton of land. I doubt very much that they would have any fireworks out there. My concern with sending him there is that he seems quite sensitive to change. By that I mean, he had a bit of an adjustment period when he went over there the first time, it took him a few days to settle in and again, when he came back home, it took him a few days to settle in. I hate to put him through the stress of that, plus being put in with probably a different group of horses than who he was with before…I think all of that will be stressful, potentially more than the fireworks. And I don’t really see myself sending him over to this boarding facility for every single “firework” holiday we get here, because pretty much all holidays constitute as firework holidays around here.

I do plan to work with him on desensitizing him the best I can to fireworks/ loud noises but given the small amount of time I’ve had him so far and other things I’ve been working on him with, firework desensitizing is a bridge that has not been crossed yet.

So, any opinions on what you feel would be the best thing to do or any tips/ideas that might make things easier that I have not thought of?

Thanks for taking the time to read through all of this, sorry it is so long!

[Texarkana]

My observation- my personal horses seem to get more freaked out during fireworks when they are locked in the barn where they hear the booms but can’t see what’s going on.

When turned out in “war zone” style holiday fireworks, they might spook at the first few fireworks, but ultimately go back to grazing like nothing is happening. While they have the security of friends that your boy doesn’t have, they are a pretty flighty herd of thoroughbreds, a spicy Selle Francais x arab, and the two most melodramatic donkeys you will ever meet.

So with that said, I’d go with option 2 and leave him in the sacrifice paddock that he’s familiar with and give him plenty of hay.

It’s a good idea to ask the vet for sedation, just in case.

[mlb722]

I tend not to lock mine in stalls for fireworks but rather keep them in a smaller paddock. I think the more you change the usual arrangements the less settled they are.

[Texarkana]

@mlb722

I tend not to lock mine in stalls for fireworks but rather keep them in a smaller paddock. I think the more you change the usual arrangements the less settled they are.

Totally agree.

[Highflyer]

The smaller paddock would be my first choice as well.

[TCA_Arabians]

You might also think about adding some solar lights to the paddock area - so he can see the fence and his cow buddy. And, a radio to dull the percussion sounds. I would hesitate about extra food. My guys sort of go on alert with fireworks - loud noises. They don’t go berserk. Berserk would call for something to calm him.

[SusanO]

I would leave him out in the paddock area. Mine are less worried about fireworks if they don’t feel closed in and can see what is going on. I would buy a bale of the best alfalfa hay I could find and give some of that to him as soon as the fireworks start. Mine get over scary things pretty quickly if they have their favorite things to eat. Maybe give the cow some too. If the rest of the “herd” is eating things cannot be that bad…

[TCA_Arabians]

All that is involved with solar lights is to buy them and put them in the sun tp charge. They’re not expensive. Some are meant for accent lighting. We also have some that throw a good amount of light if needed.

[RoahsGirl]

@TCA Arabians

All that is involved with solar lights is to buy them and put them in the sun tp charge. They’re not expensive. Some are meant for accent lighting. We also have some that throw a good amount of light if needed.

Thanks; I was meaning to see what all would be involved in getting some poles put in his pasture to mount a few lights out there before New Years Eve. His run in shelter already has lighting all on the inside and that shines some into the pasture, but I’d like to get some more light out. Do you have any particular brand of solar lights that you’ve found work better than others?

[RMJacobs]

With my last three horses, I had to go against the conventional wisdom of a horse being better off when it can see what’s going on. When I first got them, they were OK with fireworks, then a jerk neighbor fired stuff right over my poor horses’ heads one year. That was it–we had full blown panic every time fireworks went off. I didn’t have a barn at my horse property, but my next door neighbor did, and he would lend me a stall when we expected fireworks to be bad. It really helped. I guess my horses were afraid of the bright lights, but didn’t mind the noise.

When I was down to one horse, I moved him from Colorado to South Carolina with us. Luckily the barn where I boarded had little to no fireworks around it. There were plenty of guns, but my horses got used to guns by having someone set up a firing range close by where we lived in Colorado.

Fireworks are a whole different thing at my house versus at the barn where I boarded–my neighbors think every occasion is a fireworks occasion.

OP, where are you in South Carolina? I’m in Little River.

Rebecca

[CL_Moonriver]

I leave mine out. They will race around for the first few minutes. But they quickly realize the fireworks are not attacking them, and thus the fireworks are not a threat to them. Once they realize that, they just ignore them entirely.

My experience has been that horses are pretty good at quickly determining whether something new to them is an actual threat or not. And once they realize it’s not, they will just ignore it.

P.S. Keep in mind that horses are built by evolution to run from threats and also quickly learn what is and is not a threat. So anyone who tells you that you need to pamper your horse by locking them inside the moment you anticipate they might be exposed to something a bit scary? I personally wouldn’t listen to people like that. The reason horses still exist today is because they are very good at running away from threats and quickly learning what is and is not a threat. Again, it won’t take your horse long to realize the fireworks aren’t chasing him. And as soon as he realizes that, he will probably just ignore them.

[wildlifer]

I think you have a good plan with the paddock. I wouldn’t worry about adding lights, remember horses have much better night vision than us. Radio is a good idea too to just even out the noise a bit.

I leave mine out, they are fine. Especially if you live in an area where gunshots are common, as annoying as I find that, it is helpful for desensitizing. I can also recommend Tchaikovsky’s 1812 overture (arts geek so I have it on CD) if you want something to practice booming, lol.

[Peggy]

My horse is at a large urban boarding facility that backs up onto a well-traveled bike path. Fireworks are legal in the city across the “river” that the bike path runs along. So we have a medley of “safe and sane” fireworks, illegal aerials, and M-80s that people start setting off several days before the actual holiday.

My horse is in a stall and has no alternate accommodations. Putting out hay, using earplugs, sedation (various years I’ve used ace tablets or calming cookies), and UlcerGard are all things that I’ve done. He has gotten better over the three Independence Days he’s been there. The horses that are in the adjacent pipe paddocks don’t usually react.

[SLW]

I have Yahoo “By God this is our 5 acres and we’ll damn well do what we please” neighbors who have lived here 5 years. Each 4th of July they put on a 2 hours firework show however the ENTIRE afternoon is spent lighting M80’s, firecrackers and any other noise makers they can find.

In a perfect world I could rent at Huey Helicopter and at dark on July 4th as the Yahoo’s started firing off things, the helicopter could hover over my place with a large spotlight to light up the sky and kick up enough dust to ruin their party. (My horses are helicopter proof, long story.)

That being said, some years my horses are fine. Other years they are angst. This year my donkey lost her little donkey mind. I had showed her at Carriage Driving show that Saturday and when returned home at 6:00pm the noise makers were going off. When it got dark the fireworks above the dry lot bothered her- she had not eaten or had anything to drink since arriving home from the show. I gave her ace so she would chill and at some point overnight she nibbled and sipped.

Earplugs, radio blaring in the barn, flood lights turned on to reduce the contrast in the sky and ace as a last resort. That is how I work through a problem with fireworks if the horse is upset. *Ace needs to be given PRIOR to the horse becoming upset to achieve a good result.

[TCA_Arabians]

We have solar lights that clip right on the top of a chain link. We also have magnetic ones - steel barn so they quickly attach aim to wherever you want light. Your voice is also going to calm your horse. Home Depot, etc. carry them.
You can’t have fireworks here. That doesn’t stop some folks. Know your local regs if you need to call the Sheriff, etc.
Here, it’s a big fat fine.

[cnd8]

My horse is more calm outside during any of the following:
hurricanes with 80 mph winds
heavy rains
thunderstorms
fireworks
other horses running around in other paddocks

If he is in his stall, he paces circles and gets strung out because he can’t see what he hears going on outside. It used to confuse me that I’d bring him in to his stall during hurricanes and he’d get all stressy. Then, one day I gave in and braved the torrential rains to put him out in the storm. He ran out to the bale with the other horses and was perfectly calm then…even though I could hardly see him out there it was raining so hard. He did not care. I think the pastures are just comfort zones for some horses. I know it is for mine.

[clanter]

regarding lights, those would be more useful for the human to see the horse then required by the horse as horses have excellent night vision

[2DogsFarm]

@RoahsGirl I am on my 3rd set of geldings on my farmette (5ac) in almost 15yrs & live where fireworks are not only legal, but permitted for a week before & after any holiday & until 10PM < a limit regularly ignored.
4th of July, Christmas & NYE can sound like WWIII.

I have had neighbors shoot bottle rockets into my pastures - same folks who were concerned that motorcycles on the road would upset the horses. :rolleyes:
When parents were away, other neighbor teens had a 4th fest with what sounded like 1/4 sticks - roughly 50’ from my front door & until past midnight. :mad:
There is no point calling LEO, they have enough to do.

I leave my horses loose - they have 24/7 free access to stalls if they want.
And can go into either of 2 pastures.
Only once in all this time, have I had a couple of geldings that ran themselves sweaty on the 4th.
But it was an unusually hot Summer & when I caught & stalled them, they were so much more upset I ended up leaving them out.
I know people have had horses injured on the 4th, but leaving them out where they can see what is going on seems the best option.
I’ve also had the same 2 that ran, stand & calmly watch the fireworks.

Now a HIJACK:
Mini JERSEY COW???
I did not know they had lowline versions of that breed.
After Brown Swiss, I think they are so lovely & would seriously consider adding one to my farm.
Probably needed like a 3rd eye or hole in head, but…
Can you post a pic, or do you know who/where the breeder is?

[RMJacobs]

@RoahsGirl

Sounds like we have the same neighbors…must be a South Carolina thing. I’ve lived in a few different states and I have never seen people as obsessed with fireworks as they are around here…I just don’t get it. I don’t want people to feel like they can’t celebrate or do what they want to do, just because I made the decision to have animals. That said, showing a little courtesy and manners regarding their celebrations would be nice and not drawing out the fireworks all throughout the night wouldn’t go unappreciated either. I’m located near Lexington…I think I’ve passed through Little River before, it sounds awfully familiar…is it somewhere around Myrtle Beach? I’m thinking I might’ve driven through that town on a vacation down that way a few years back.

Little River is north of North Myrtle Beach, right on the NC border.

I just don’t get the obsession with blowing stuff up. In the county I lived in in Colorado, fireworks were supposedly strictly prohibited, except for sparklers and the like. Nothing that made a bang or left the ground was allowed. So what did we get around each holiday? A month solid of illegal fireworks imported from other states, and law enforcement totally ignoring the whole thing. Most years in July there was at least one fire caused by illegal fireworks. Fires are such a huge problem there that I don’t understand the total lack of will on enforcing the law.

I worry about it a lot less in South Carolina because it’s so much wetter. Since my horse is no longer an issue and I don’t have a dog, it’s just annoying for me. But all my neighbors complain that their dogs become nervous wrecks. At least here, people aren’t breaking the law when they shoot this stuff off. But I agree, a little courtesy would go a long way.

Rebecca

[wildlifer]

@RoahsGirl

Tchaikovsky’s 1812 is a great idea! (I’m thinking I could also rent some loud speakers and play this on repeat from my pasture with the speakers pointed at all my neighbor’s houses the following morning at the crack of dawn )

I absolutely used this “revenge” strategy long ago when I was in college & annoying dorm neighbours would play loud music through the walls in the middle of the night, heh.