I just recently purchased an imported Warmblood gelding who seems to be struggling keeping focused in and out of the arena, he’s always worried and spooking at other things going on. We are having him scoped for ulcers, but looking for supplements that might help with his anxiety and focused. He definitely had some past trauma from his first trainer that comes up from time to time. Was going to start with a good magnesium, but wondering if anyone has specific suggestions for products that might help us.
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Sorry!! I accidentally flagged your post and I can’t figure out how to undo!
Sounds like your guy probably just needs some help settling in, as his entire life has been recently uprooted and changed. I really like SynChill Daily. I don’t use it (or anything) any longer, but when I did, it was great. I still keep some on hand for fireworks, trailer rides, and such.
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Mine is spicy even on 24/7 turnout. It helps but sometimes they need a little help when learning how to be.
Look up the Warwick Schiller method. It works. Its harder to do in a boarding barn cause people think you are crazy.
I’d start him on ulcer meds,and see if they help, as they can’t hurt anything. Importing has to be stressful for them.
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Positude or Synchill Daily
Not what you were asking, but, if you or anyone in your barn has Ride IQ, there are some lessons for improving focus, etc.
Without writing a novel, (ETA: looks like I wrote one anyway! Sorry!) I’ll preface my suggestion with the fact that my gelding is 17 and I’ve owned him for 16 years. He is not an anxious or energetic horse by nature. Not at all. So when he starts to be spooky and/or unfocused, I know something is up with him.
Ulcers will always be the first thing I suspect and address if he starts getting uncharacteristically spooky, though their presence usually also brings out some other symptoms in him…namely avoiding grooming and ear-pinning when I brush his flanks. Normally he loves being groomed and doesn’t care where. He’s not sensitive at all.
Feed wise, I did try magnesium for a long time and had okay results. He’s getting a little now just because I had purchased some quite some time ago then stopped feeding it and then decided to just feed the rest of it up. He’s kind of tight across his back in general, so I figure it doesn’t hurt anything.
A month or so ago, he had a total freak-out meltdown while I was riding. As Warwick Schiller would say…his rabbits stacked up and he could no longer deal. But the thing was, some of those “rabbits” wouldn’t be “rabbits” for him if he were himself. It was a huge reaction (I barely kept the lid on him so I could stay on and get him to “safety”) and I immediately went for the Ulcergard. Did a few days of full tubes, then tapered, then stopped to see how he was. He had no other signs of ulcers, but I figured it wouldn’t hurt.
He was fine after that, still a little worried about things he normally ignores, but nothing major.
Then I purchased and started him on Mad Barn’s B-Vitamin Pack for an unrelated reason. Lo and behold, after just about a week on that, I realized he’d chilled out back to his “whatever” normal attitude.
I know they’re supposed to be able to produce all the Vitamin B they need themselves, but I think he may have been struggling with that for one reason or another (he has several systemic issues, allergies, skin stuff, anhidrosis), and I just decided to give it a try to see if I could boost his overall well-being. His relaxation and focus came as a bonus.
So…I’m kind of amazed at B Vitamins and how helpful they can be. It’s a pretty inexpensive thing to try too.
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