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Post by mrbsmum on Sept 5, 2014 21:12:51 GMT 1
Hi All! Wonder if anybody out there has any advice for working with a headshaker? I'm currently sharing a gorgeous cob who has recently developed a bad headshaking problem. I already knew he had the problem when I took him on, so it's not a shock - he belongs to a friend who does not have time to work with him regularly, and I am currently horseless, so I figured half a headshaking horse was better than no horse at all. He started headshaking last winter when he came back from a previous loaner and started working at the local riding school. The problem made him unsuitable for the school, so his owner took him back, and asked if I'd be willing to help out with his exercise while we looked into the problem. He's had his teeth & back checked, and all the usual stuff, but nothing really showed up. So far we are having trouble pinning down triggers though. He was obviously unhappy with the riding school work, as he was visibly cross and not his normal easygoing self when he first came back. At first we thought that it might be stress/anger that triggered his episodes, as he always seemed to get most shakey when you asked him to do something unusual (eg trying to get a gate open on a hack would normally trigger a big episode, or for example when I once rode him back down the road to assist a friend whose horse was napping and then asked him to go back up the road again once we'd established a bit of calm again - he clearly thought he was going home and was cross about that too). More recently we'd changed him out of the pelham bit he had been put in, and had him back in a hanging cheek snaffle (his original bit), which he also seemed to prefer. He had been gradually getting better - the frequency of episodes reduced, and the severity of the shakes reduced too (little twitches, as opposed to full on headswinging). Last week you would not have even known he'd had a problem, and we felt that perhaps by establishing a regular routine he was feeling happier and more relaxed in himself, and thus the problem was starting to resolve itself. This week though it is back with a vengeance. Today I think it was probably the worst I have ever seen it. Although he didn't do as many huge nose crushing swings as I have previously seen him do, he was all over the place, and clearly not at all happy. It's the first time I've been on him since I've been riding him where I have felt like we might not be safe. He was twitching so badly that he almost off balanced himself on a couple of occasions. Normally he doesn't seem bothered by it, its just this twitchy little thing he does, but he seems to enjoy his work. Today he tried to wipe me off on the gate, run out of the school, and then when I capitulated and decided we'd be better off leaving the school and going for a short bimble (which normally soothes him and reduces the shaking) he went along with his nose in the air, mouth open and head waving about everywhere. It was not the most fun I've ever had. I felt awful for him. It was so out of character and he was so obviously upset I just got off and walked him home again. Earlier in the week I thought it may have been the wind that set it off, but today was very calm. He also reacts badly to heat, (eg if left rugged too long on a warmer morning it can trigger an episode), and today was sunny - but then the last time I rode him it was actually quite chilly, and that made no difference either! He has previously been tried in a nose net, and I was told this was no help, although I have never tried it myself, and have just ordered myself one to see how we get on. I don't think anyone has tried a face mask though - he has a HUGE forelock which goes right down to his nose, and it was always presumed that that would do the trick against the light, but today I decided that it is probably worth trying the mask too to see if that helps him at all. For those who have had headshakers before - how did you pinpoint your triggers? Is it just a case of adjusting things, and trying new tricks to see if anything gives him any relief. Also, when do you say enough is enough? I know many headshakers go on to have full riding careers with careful management, and I hope this boy can be one of them, because he does genuinely enjoy his work on his good days, but today I felt like I was being awfully cruel even trying to ride him in that kind of state. Is there anything obvious I am missing that I could do to see if it helps?
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Post by amandap on Sept 5, 2014 22:34:39 GMT 1
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Post by janwilky on Sept 5, 2014 23:10:59 GMT 1
Definitely have a look at the calmhealthyhorses web site (the link to it on the thread Amandap recommends no longer works). I'm trying to help a friend whose cob has the same problem at the moment, his is triggered by sunlight and I suspect the underlying cause is her rye-grass and clover pasture. It's awful, it turns her normally safe and sensible happy hacker into a crazy beast who's trying to canter along whilst wiping his nose on his lower leg. It's so obvious with her horse that if the sun suddenly appears from behind a cloud he starts head-shaking immediately, and stops again if the sun disappears. It's enough to completely put her off riding on sunny days, summer or winter but worse between spring and autumn when the grass is growing. We're having an autumn flush of grass growth here, that could explain why your boy has suddenly got worse again if he's grass-affected??
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Post by mrbsmum on Sept 5, 2014 23:16:19 GMT 1
Thanks for that! He is just out on grass at the moment, so it is possible he might be mineral deficient - especially given the quality of grass up here. I will speak to his owner about the possibility of putting him on some hard feed with a good quality balancer to see how that does.
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Post by kafee on Sept 6, 2014 8:33:51 GMT 1
As a result of reading the thread on salt, I've been adding salt to my boys diet every day since last summer and this summer has been a lot better for him. In the past year he's also been diagnosed with Cushings and put on 1 mg Prascend a day, and put back on Cortaflex (instead of Codlivine supple joint supplement) for his arthritis, so 3 things have changed.
He's been wearing a nose net on his bridle noseband for about 10 years which stopped him headshaking when ridden. He was involved in an trailer accident last year and from the scrapes on his face, could well have received a significant blow(s) to the face. As a result we took the noseband off the bridle when he returned to being ridden. He's now fine ridden without the noseband on the bridle, headshakes with one on, and takes fly masks off.
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Post by jill on Sept 6, 2014 8:50:19 GMT 1
Jenny Paterson who is the lady behind the Calm Healthy Horses website refers to it as paresthesia, and advises that one cause can be lack of calcium uptake due to vitamin D deficiency - Becky Holden has a horse who is pretty bad and she has been working with Jenny. Is he rugged or a dark colour? That will reduce the action of vitamin D on the skin - it is suggested that 6 to 8 hours a day is the normal requirement, more for dark horses. Jenny is very approachable and likes to help where she can, email her and ask her advice.
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Post by mrbsmum on Sept 6, 2014 10:58:54 GMT 1
Thanks everyone. There is so much to look into with this condition, it is hard to know where to start.
I will be trying out nose nets on our next ride - it is definitely his nose that seems to bother him most, so perhaps having something hug it will help. I really doubt his shaking is photic, as he started this winter, and we only get two or three hours of proper daylight here in the winter (however I still have an eye mask on order - just in case). Vitamin D deficiency is a possibility though. He's not normally rugged in the summer - only during winter, and he lives out 24/7, but he is black, and with our low light levels up here, Vit D deficiency is something that people suffer from a lot - so why not horses too?
I also suspect that there might be something in it with the grass. The times he has been worst recently have all been 'fat days' where he is a bit bloated and I can't get the girth done up on first try. Mind you - he does blow out something terrible sometimes, as once its on the girth is actually a bit too long, and goes up about 5 more holes, so that might just be his way of trying to tell me he doesn't feel so great and would rather not work today.
There seem to be so many possible triggers for him - hot days or being overheated, windy days, too much grass and generally being stressed or upset about something. I wish I could pinpoint what it is that's causing him the bother so we could start to try and make it better for him.
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Post by mrbsmum on Sept 9, 2014 17:28:49 GMT 1
Took the boy out today with a nose net on for the first time. No joy. He tolerated the net very well, and for the first couple of minutes heading out he seemed to be ok. A little bit of twitching, but nothing very major. Unfortunately that only lasted a very short way into the ride, and after five minutes he was very bad, throwing his head about and generally acting quite distressed, so I decided to call it a day, dismounted and led him home again. As soon as I got off he shoved his nose into the small of my back and was quite happy there. For those who have had a shaker before, is that something they do if its a photic reaction? The only thing I've not tried now is a full face mask - still waiting for that to come. If that doesn't work then he will have to be taken out of work for a while so we can try adjusting his diet, as at the moment I don't think its fair to be riding him in his current state of distress. So frustrating though as he had been improving so much recently, and only the week before last seemed to be almost twitch free.
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Post by jill on Sept 10, 2014 13:48:53 GMT 1
Paresthesia is, I am told, a burning tingling sensation, so it isn't surprising he would seek refuge. Contact Jenny or Becky for how they are getting on?
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Post by mrbsmum on Sept 15, 2014 20:49:24 GMT 1
Full face masks arrived today. Tried him in it. Not much change to be honest. He seemed calmer than the last time I rode him, but no less shaky. I'm not really surprised, but I'm a bit disappointed as I was hoping we'd find an easy solution to help him out. Oh well. Just waiting for his owner to get back from a business trip, and then I will discuss making some changes to his diet, and perhaps getting the vet out to look at some of the other suggested treatments out there.
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Post by kafee on Sept 15, 2014 20:58:48 GMT 1
Someone tried a piece of cut short stocking/tights over the nose to stop pony snacking, might work to stop pollen etc. causing discomfort. Worth a try as it wouldn't cost anything. I can see the pony might not tolerate it though.
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Post by mrbsmum on Sept 15, 2014 21:52:17 GMT 1
Already tried it kafee - no joy. He is an absolute star, and has tolerated me putting all sort of things on his nose this last few weeks - including what I was calling the 'full nose nappy' - which consisted of a thick nose pad on the top of his nose (to stop wind), and then covered with tights which cupped the whole of his muzzle (he likes to rub his nose, so I wondered if something in contact with the lips might comfort or provide distraction. No joy at all unfortunately. I suspect that wind/air in contact with his face aggravates his condition, but it does not trigger it, poor boy. I think our best bet is trying to find a way to lessen the nerve sensation and help reduce the nerve misfiring as much as possible.
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Post by holi on Sept 16, 2014 8:46:53 GMT 1
Try also a cranio- sacral osteopath - May have a trapped nerve?
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Post by kafee on Sept 16, 2014 20:54:26 GMT 1
Already tried it kafee - no joy. He is an absolute star, and has tolerated me putting all sort of things on his nose this last few weeks - including what I was calling the 'full nose nappy' - which consisted of a thick nose pad on the top of his nose (to stop wind), and then covered with tights which cupped the whole of his muzzle (he likes to rub his nose, so I wondered if something in contact with the lips might comfort or provide distraction. No joy at all unfortunately. I suspect that wind/air in contact with his face aggravates his condition, but it does not trigger it, poor boy. I think our best bet is trying to find a way to lessen the nerve sensation and help reduce the nerve misfiring as much as possible. Oooops sorry, missed that. Good luck with finding a solution, and let us know when you do. My Raffles won't wear a fly mask at all, and I've bought him 3 different ones with nose nets to try to find the answer. The only thing that helps is hiding in the shelter all day, with his nose in a corner.
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Post by mrbsmum on Sept 17, 2014 19:08:12 GMT 1
At the moment we're looking at moving his grazing from our current place which has quite stressed grazing, to a field a little further away. The new field is rough pasture, which is more like what he used to be on previously prior to him starting badly with the headshaking (he always had a tiny 'nod', but the big stuff coincided with him arriving at a new yard when he came back off a previous loan). We'll give him a few weeks to settle there before we start looking at feeding things like salt, magnesium & selenium if he hasn't shown any signs of improvement. His owner thinks that taking him off grass entirely & stabling would be a bad idea as he gets quite stressed when boxed and that seems to make his shaking worse. Keeping our fingers crossed that less rich/sugary grass might start to help a bit.
Holi - we will look at seeing if we can get that kind of thing done too - trouble is where on a small island, so we only get access to that kind of thing if one decides to travel up for a clinic. We do usually get a steady stream of folk through though, so you never know when we might be able to follow that up.
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