I have a mare who very recently started with some strange behavior while eating. She gets forage pellets, no grain, plus Vermont blend and ground flax, all wet to the consistency of oatmeal. In the last few days while eating she has been flicking her nose and throwing her head up like she’s getting an electrical shock. Tonight it was so bad she stopped eating entirely from the bucket, as if she related the pain(?) to the bucket. I hand fed her, and she readily ate from my hand, but still had instances where she would suddenly throw her head up mid-chew as if stung by a bee.
I tried putting the bucket on the ground, same thing. She ended up refusing to eat her meal at all.
I checked back later and she was grazing fine with no signs of the same symptoms. This has been going on for a few days. No change in her diet. It’s been the same if she’s fed in the stall or outside in the field.
It reminded me of a head shaker response, with a sudden rather violent head fling for no obvious reason.
I checked her mouth and she has some mild edges on her teeth but nothing alarming, and she’s not due for a dental until spring.
I’ve never seen anything like this, any ideas?
