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  Discussion on Erratic/Moody Mare
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New Member:
Poncho

Posted on Thursday, Sep 8, 2005 - 8:31 pm:

I have this mare that I rescued from going to the auction, and at a loss for what to do.

She is a 6yo QH, she came to our barn two years ago from a previous owner, a man and she was the only horse for 4 years. From what I know he had a quick temper. Since coming to the barn, she is very erratic when shoeing, some days are good, and others not. When you approach her she always puts her ear back. When one of the trainers was working with her he pressed on a sore on her leg and she went to kick him. Another time a male was petting her on her neck and then all of sudden she kicked the door to the stall. The owner of the barn decided to breed her, she took on the first try. When it came time to leave the stud she didn't want to leave him, they worked her with a lunge line in a circle and then she was fine. When she was in foal she was a sweetheart, but nobody did much with her. I would go over and brush her in the stall and she would whinny and come over to me. After she foaled she has gotten worse. The foal is now 3 months old, and when you approach her she always pins her ears back, and last week she didn't want me to touch her eyes she bit at me. On Sunday some people came to look at her and she was eating her lunch and she lunged with ears straight back at the women and ripped her shirt. Well the women did not take lightly to this behavior and then tried to discipline her. When she lunged at her again she tried to discipline her she collided with her mouth and broke her finger. I never seen this mare have this type of aggressive behavior before. Then today, my farrier who has been working on her for the last year showed up and she was whining and letting him touch the baby just like the sweetheart she was before she had the baby. He told me that one time when he was shoeing her, she got so excited that she peed on him or started her estrus--can this happen?

I had a trainer work with her one day and he got her away from the baby and into the round pin. At the end of a half hour she was licking her lips, head down very submissive. I was amazed..I know she needs training for aggressiveness but she so erratic can this be hormonal as well. Also, should I get a male or a female trainer. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,
Karen
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Friday, Sep 9, 2005 - 7:41 am:

Hello Karen and welcome to posting,
This is most likely just this mares personality but because hormones are possible the first step is a thorough exam for it. See Equine Diseases » Reproductive Diseases » Trouble Settling Mares & Stallion Infertility » Granulosa Cell Tumors in Mares for a common cause of hormonally induced behavorial problems.
DrO
Member:
Poncho

Posted on Saturday, Sep 16, 2006 - 10:20 pm:

Dr.O
I just wanted to update you on my mare. Here we are a year later. Over last winter she was fine not a perfect angel but tolerable. When spring came, March, I brought her to the vet and we ran all kinds of tests, blood work, ultrasound, and the only thing that we found is that she had a uterine infection everything else was normal. Treated her with antibotics, etc. OK, we thought that could have been her problem. Well it didn't help. Slowly getting worse with each passing month finally July came around again and she started again with really aggressive behavior, not wanting to be touch, squealing and kicking. It was hard to find out when she was in heat, since she always seems to be in heat constantly so we started her on Regumate and just planned on spaying her. Well she was spayed on Friday. When the vet took out her ovary on the right side he said that it was fairly small and the left was impressively large, he made a 5 inch incision and had a problem getting it out, but he did. She is resting comfortably but still exhibits that squealing behavior. I understand that it is going to take time for the hormones to level out and am hopeful that this will solve her problem. We didn't send the ovaries to the lab, but with what I have been reading on this site it is likely that it was GCT. From what I understand this mare's mother had aggressive behavior for a few years and then mellowed out. This would go with the theory that GCT can correct itself over time.I am wondering if you know if GCT is heredity and now that her ovaries are removed do you know when I would notice a change in her behavior?
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Sunday, Sep 17, 2006 - 11:08 am:

I have not heard of a hereditary component and several weeks should be enough time to show remarkable improvement if this is the problem.
DrO
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