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  Discussion on Temperament and Behavioral Changes- Late Gelding
Author Message
Member:
ekaufman

Posted on Friday, Dec 12, 2008 - 7:49 pm:

Hi all,

Ann started a thread this summer about what she might reasonably expect in terms of temperament and behavioral changes if she gelded a 9 year-old breeding stallion.

I thought I would post my observations post-castration of my 6 year-old breeding stallion.

I chose to geld him (after successfully freezing 500 straws) mostly because he had a persistently high anxiety level around other horses, in spite of a great deal of consistent mannering and a lot of travel etc.. He knew right from wrong, was a super nice guy, but became enormously stressed when other horses become active or anxious around him. He paced his feet to nubs in the summer, and essentially fretted himself and me to a rag.

I don't expect to know what I have at least until the summer, BUT here are some observations from the last 5 weeks:

1) He lies down now to take a nap in the late morning, which he hasn't done since he was coming 2.

2) He watches me move the mares while continuing to eat-- he hasn't once since the surgery charged the fence, screamed his head off, etc..

3) He's maintaining his weight.

4) The persistent obnoxious biting (and persistent re-direction and correction) has not been evident at all.

So it may be that this is all a fluke, and I have my wild man back in the Spring. But I can't tell you how nice it is to see him sacked out snoozing in the sun.

I'll update as we go along, for reference.
Member:
dres

Posted on Tuesday, Dec 16, 2008 - 10:46 am:

Thanks for the update... I am glad he is doing better , i was told by a few local vets that older boys gelded does take longer to heal ..

I will interested to know how he does in early spring ..

On the first day God created horses, on the second day he painted them with spots..
Member:
ekaufman

Posted on Saturday, May 9, 2009 - 1:24 pm:

Here's my spring update-- I definitely hit the lucky end of the gelding curve. We have come through spring, foaling, mares cycling with absolutely no stallion behavior at all. He acts like a young horse, but the explosiveness and aggression have not reappeared. I suppose I still might see something when I start hauling him around, but I'm skeptical.

He has gained weight, developed the habit of napping in the sun, and can now be allowed to reach his buddy and be turned out safely to graze.

I'm hesitant to put him in with another horse-- he nearly killed his pasturemate as a stallion (I intervened)-- so I'm taking baby steps to ensure that everything stays calm.

Overall, a wonderful outcome, and a horse that can now be managed much more easily, safely, and with an eye to his quality of life rather than just the safety of everyone around him.
Member:
sdms

Posted on Saturday, May 9, 2009 - 11:40 pm:

Elk, that's wonderful news! Always great to hear positive updates. Can't wait til the time comes that we can see pictures of him calmly grazing with a pasture mate!
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