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  Discussion on Self-mutilation
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New Member:
Melody12

Posted on Saturday, Sep 18, 2004 - 1:03 pm:

I am in the process of rescuing a 9 year old 29" Mini stallion. The history is he is stabled in a pasture a short distance from other minature mares that he has bred in the past and also across from another mini stallion he is the senior stallion and the father of the 2 other stallions at this facility. The distance that seperates him from the mares is only about a 10 foot road. I was there to buy a mini for my daughter when the owner who is going through a bad divorce and has no time for the horses said she was going to put him to sleep because he is self mutilating himself. He has a 8 inch gash on one side of his flank it does not seem to be real deep at this point but my observation in the 2 hours I was there was one of pure frustration on the poor stallions part as all he does is run up and down the fence line and throw himself against the fence. I told the lady if she gelded him I would take him but I am wondering if you think gelding him and removing him from this enviroment would possible change his behavior. His weight is good but she did mention the fact that he had gone through a serious illness about 5 months back were he was off his food and almost died they never really found out what was wrong with him and the behavior started after the illness one vet had mentioned maybe a brain tumor but that was 3 months ago. From the outside looking in I saw a very frustrated stallion who would be happier just having some attention and maybe a job but I would like to know more about this type of bahavior. I saw the stud reach back two times in the 2 hours I was there but it looked to me that he was getting flies off the wound I only noticed fresh blood after he was rubbing on the fence.
Member:
Redmare

Posted on Saturday, Sep 18, 2004 - 6:57 pm:

Hi Melody-

I know someone whose horse did the same thing. The poor horse was first attacking the walls of his stall, then turned on himself. The owner did not plan to breed him, so had him gelded. It took a while for the testosterone to be completely gone from the system (Dr O can give us the scientific info in regard to that) but the problem was resolved and the horse no longer self-mutilates.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Saturday, Sep 18, 2004 - 6:57 pm:

Hello Melody,
I cannot know if this horse has a serious illness or behavorial condition and a thorough exam by a veterinarian might be wise. But if the mutilation is do to amour, then I think gelding him and moving him to your farm has about a 80% chance of fixing the problem.
DrO
Member:
Melody12

Posted on Saturday, Sep 18, 2004 - 11:36 pm:

Dr.O

What type of illness would cause a horse to self mutilate?
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Sunday, Sep 19, 2004 - 8:17 am:

Any disease which causes pruritis (itchyness) can cause a horse to mutilate itself through biting or itching. The most common reason I see is from culicoides allergy. Mites certainly could be a common cause. However horses are also known to self mutilate as a behavorial abnormality, where no known cause can be found usually with a history of excessive confinement. I believe stallions are more commonly effected.
DrO
Member:
Melody12

Posted on Wednesday, Sep 22, 2004 - 4:26 pm:

DR.O:

COULD YOU PLEASE GIVE ME AN IDEA OF TIME FOR THE TESTOSTERONE LEVEL TO DrOP AFER A CASTRATION. I AM TRYING TO GET AN IDEA OF HOW LONG I NEED TO GO BEFORE I CAN TRY PUTTING THESE`2 HORSES TOGETHER THEY WILL BOTH BE GELDED THE`SAME DAY ONE IS 3 YEARS OLD AND THE OTHER IS 9 YEARS OLD.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Thursday, Sep 23, 2004 - 9:50 am:

We cover behavorial changes following castration (note as you read that testosterone levels do not always correlate with behavorial changes) and times to gelding behavior at, Care for Horses » Particular Situations & Procedures » Castration in Horses.
DrO
PS: All caps is considered shouting and more difficult to read, we encourage the use of proper capitalization and punctuation unlesss, YOU MEAN TO SHOUT.
Member:
Bethyg2

Posted on Monday, Nov 1, 2004 - 10:54 am:

Dear Melody,
Seems to me that the little stallion is freaking out because he has been used to impregnate mares, then is kept very close to his band but is separated by a fence. Of course he is going to try and be with his mares. It's pretty cruel. In nature (assuming minis occurred without our engineering) this wouldn't happen. Breeding farms that I have seen either keep the stallions far, far away from the mares (out of smelling distance) or actually keep the stallions in the field with their mare of the moment, depending on breed requirments, value of the animals, etc. Gelding can only help this little guy, but taking him away from the mares will help just as much IMO. My children play with my 28 inch mini stallion! He is much more gentle than my mini gelding.But rest assured, minis CAN inflict a nasty bite wound and are quite capable of kicking your lights out, even if the result is not as deadly as a kick or bite from a 1000 lb. horse. I have found ( the hard way) that the cute little furry yearlings for sale at the large mini farms DO NOT make good pets for young kids, not right away anyway. They can really kick! It takes a couple of months and lots of patience to gentle them for the kids. -Beth G.
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