Tag: head flicking

Head Flicking in Horses

5 August, 2024

Head flicking in horses (or head shaking) is characterized by some or all of the following: There are a variety of conditions that will ‘trigger’ head-shaking episodes: Important: Head-shaking/flicking is not ‘naughty’ behavior. Forget trying to physically restrict the horse with any kind of ‘tie-down’or trying to ‘school’ him out of it. It is a debilitating, painful condition, see below. The Trigeminal Nerve It has been established that head-shaking/flicking involves the malfunctioning of the trigeminal nerve in the horses head. The trigeminal nerve originates behind the horse’s eye and has branches down to the mouth, nostrils and up to the…

Feeding Grass Affected Horses

8 July, 2021

If your horse has diet related issues, what you feed in the way of hard feed can either reduce the problem or add to it. So, for the horse’s metabolism to ‘rest’ and ‘reset’ their self-regulating mechanisms, we keep hard feeds as simple and basic as possible. Over the years we have realised that potassium, crude protein and soluble sugar content are the nutrients we need to be mindful of. When there is an excess presense they place undue and cumulative stress on the horse’s metabolism. Green feed like lucerne/alfalfa, fresh herbs, willow or poplar leaves and other items such…