I am looking at a 5 year old OTTB that has completed the TB makeover and is ready for a new home. His stall cribbing is controlled with a collar. They do not have big pasture turnout so seller is not sure if he would crib out there also. This seems like this wouldn’t be unusual for for an OTTB. Is that a deal breaker?
Will you be keeping him at home or boarding?
Boarding with full access to large pasture solo turnout then home with 24/7 turnout as appropriate.
The biggest problem would be whether the boarding barn would be OK with it.
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Well… if he is kind, intelligent, great mover, lovely jumper, correctly put together, nice feet, sound, and in my price range, yes, I probably would. Cribbing isn’t a deal breaker for me. I have two right now, one started as a foal, out in the field with her mother, for no known reason (other than that she’s a sensitive flower, and a high drive overachiever in every way). The other had soundness issues at the track, which were not her fault, but were definately stressful for her at the time. They both live out with the rest of the herd, and both crib at will. Both are fat, healthy, happy little addicts. None of my non cribbers have ever “learned” from either of them. IMO, humans have more issues with cribbing than cribbers have. Check that your barn owner doesn’t mind having a cribber in the barn, and/or is OK with the horse wearing a strap- if that is what you want to do about it.
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Nope, one you already own may start cribbing then you manage.
Buying a cribber, not so smart, sorry.
Cribbers are hard to live with and manage, if you have to be around them all day long.
If you board and just show up to ride and go home to the rest of your life, a cribber someone else has to live with is ok, if you find a place that is ok with that.
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While I wouldn’t say I’d NEVER buy a cribber, I think I’d keep looking. I’m sure you can find an equally nice OTTB that doesn’t crib out there somewhere. I think I’d almost never buy one - it would have to be a perfect horse for my situation in every other way for me to overlook that. I don’t like dealing with complicated things to manage.
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agree with Bluey, we had one that cribbed…he was sold with full disclosure about his habit (and his cribbing collar)… he was an excellent competitive trail pony that my daughter had… buyer knew the pony and wanted it for their kid
But never again, never ever
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Just because he is controlled by a collar now doesn’t mean he will be forever. Plan for him to crib.
Ideally, this horse horse needs ample turnout, 24/7 access to forage, ample enrichment, etc. It’s what every horse needs (the forage thing is so case by case though), but it’s so incredibly important for a cribber.
If you can provide him the care that he will need, won’t panic when he cribs through the collar, won’t have a barn owner that will bust your sh*t because you have a cribber etc… If he’s a nice horse otherwise, I’d go for it.
Also, cribbers don’t teach other horses to crib via observational learning, IE just watching them.
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Sure. I actually did. She was a chestnut Otto mare, too. My other two horses never picked it up— it’s not a monkey-see, monkey-do activity. It’s the equine version of biting your nails or thumb sucking—anxiety relieving— and they have to be prone to it.
Cat didn’t destroy her stall, wear down her teeth, or stay underweight. And I never made her wear a collar. I think they’re barbaric. You actually create more stress by blocking the self-soothing behavior.
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Does a cribber damage the stall? That’s what I’m assuming.
Decades ago we received an OTTB broodmare, own daughter of Princequillo, beautiful mare that ran nicely, that was a cribber.
Our winter mare pasture was two miles long and turned out with the broodmares, they would go off and roam and graze and do horse things all day, she never left the fence by the barn, stood there cribbing on the top of a wooden fence post.
They had warned us she would colic if using a collar on her.
She was surprisingly in good weight, for hardly ever seeing her graze, she did come to eat when we fed their supplemental alfalfa hay, but her teeth were showing wear and in a few more years she would not have any left.
Cribbers are different from wood chewers. Cribbers plant their teeth on a surface and suck air in. It doesn’t damage the surface.
My opinion of this has changed over the years. I used to be firmly in the “no cribbers” category, being a BM that inherited many. They are destructive. What I found worse about them is it is upsetting to witness them being so upset. Looking back, there are things I would have tried harder to change about their management to better help them.
Now, if the horse was perfect in every other way, yes, I’d buy a cribber.
But caveat emptor; boarding cribbers is very difficult. If you can’t provide them 24/7 turnout, full access to hay and/or grass, and a copacetic herd situation… you may not ever be able to reduce the behavior even with a collar.
Personally, I am anti-collar. I think denying the horse the ability to engage in the behavior/stereotypy is cruel and makes it worse.
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What they choose as a surface to crib ON will often get some wear, a dent (if it is wood). Not as bad as a wood chewer. But some wear… so yes… “damage”. I had one that came to me to board because no one else would take him. He did substantial damage to some fences, but not to our fences (at our previous boarding farm)- they were 5 inch steel pipe rails with big bolts, and impervious to his attempts. So no problem for us. The cribbers I have now usually use a tree as a cribbing surface, since we have lots of those. And one likes to use the big rubber tire I use as a hay tub (way too heavy to move or shift), which works really well, both for her, and for me (because the tub is completely indestructible and stationary at 400 lbs, and the rubber does not wear her teeth down at all). So we are both happy with this solution.
I also quit using cribbing collars 40 years ago now. Taking the drug away from the addict does not make them happier, calmer, or not an addict. The drug is an endorphine release that makes them feel good, calm, etc. Sometimes sensitive types need a little something to help them cope with life, and the things that life throws at them.
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Not as long as it’s controlled with a collar or whatnot.
I hate horse shopping…
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No cribbers here. Would not buy one knowing it cribbed. I do not want to have to listen to it, try to keep weight on it, fix the stuff it uses while cribbing. Some things are just totally unacceptable in a horse lIving here.
Any of you try grazing muzzles instead of the collars? They could not hook teeth on stuff to suck air, still able to graze with the group in muzzles.
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My homebred started cribbing at 3 despite a basically no stress life.
Luckily, I don’t really care.
But… the freaking annoying part is that everyone else cares.
Boarding was a real headache. You would be surprised how many barns have “no cribbers” policies. Even when they accept cribbers, you still may be dealing with a lot of attitude directed towards you and your horse. You get blamed for damage, even when it had nothing to do with your horse. Everyone has an opinion on cribbing they feel compelled to share with you.
If you want to sell the horse, it will be a deal-breaker for a significant percentage of buyers.
Would I buy a cribber? If I otherwise liked the horse, absolutely! But only if I knew I wasn’t going to be dealing with boarding barn headaches.
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I have a sometimes cribber who has never cribbed in the stall or worn a collar in the stall. He was pulling down fence boards for a bit, so I did put a collar on him out side (Tack Shack collar, the only one I’ve ever seen reliably work). I took it off for some reason I can’t remember and haven’t seen him crib again since.
Other cribbers I have managed with the same collar, as needed. Most were never destructive, the noise annoys me worse than anything.
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