As the owner of 'Natural Horse Supplies', I am often asked for advice from owners of anxious/nervous/spooky horses. There are many calmers on the market and it can all be a bit overwhelming!

Firstly, I would always suggest taking a 'whole picture' view of the problem. Many horses are simply not doing the work horses used to. Many horses are being fed hard feed, stabled overnight and perhaps some of the day, and only ridden for short periods, a few times a week, if that!

***Give horses as much turnout as possible*** with room for them to burn off excess high spirits, ideally with company. It is not surprising that a horse kept in a stable for 2/3rds of the day (if turnout is 9am-5pm), may have some pent-up energy.

***Reduce the sugars in their diet*** Most horses do really well on a high fibre/low sugar diet, such as grazing (not too rich), hay (if needed) and high fibre feed such as chaff/alfalfa/unmolassed sugarbeet/high fibre nuts. If grazing is too rich, and your horse is putting on too much weight, try to reduce it by strip-grazing or using a grazing muzzle.

***In season or riggy gelding*** Often behaviour can be affected by hormones, and a mare with PMT symptoms can often be difficult to handle. Agnus castus is a herb that has been used for centuries to help women with PMT symptoms. It can help a mare regulate her hormones and ease the uncomfortable symptoms. It can also help settle the homrones of a riggy gelding or stallion.

***Magnesium deficiency*** can cause nervous and excitable behaviour. In these cases, supplementing magnesium can have a calming effect. Magnesium is not a sedative, and if a horse is not magnesium deficient, or their behaviour is not caused by a magnesium deficiency, magnesium will not help. However, if magnesium deficiency IS having an effect on their behaviour, a magnesium supplement can have a dramatic effect. See calmag and magnesium oxide.

I hope this has been of some help. It can often require a bit of trial and error to see what works for your horse. Many owners find that with the help of a calmer, they can often work through their horse's anxieties, so much so that the calmer is no longer needed!

Best wishes, Nikki

Natural Horse Supplies