Noisy Mare

[GreenTea70]

Please can anyone offer me some advice. Was at a recent grid work clinic and my mare just wouldn’t be quiet. She does calm down having greeted everyone and had about 30 mins with the odd whinny but then she started up really bad - not helped that a stallion was being lunged in the nearby warm up arena! Any ideas how I can try and tame this a bit. Going to try an ear bonnet next time and someone has mention Vic rub on her nostrils.

No to the vicks in her nostrils, that is horrendous! Put it up your nose and see how much it burns.

She didn’t mean IN her nostrils

It will still sting and the nose is incredibly sensitive.

I had a mare who did a lot of shouting. So bad I even made a thread on here about it years ago, not sure how to find it now. She was always quite vocal but it got a lot worse around her seasons and also dramatically worse when she and another mare on the yard got very bonded to one another and started incessantly calling whenever out of one another's sight.

Sadly she had a lot of health issues and ended up having to be retired in the end (I don't think the shouting was related to the health issues but could have all exacerbated one another) so I can't say I ever truly solved the issue. But what I would say is I'm convinced anxiety was at the bottom of it. I had lots of people telling me she was just being naughty/needed a smack 🙄or trying to assert dominance or lacking concentration on her work (and TBF it did get very loud and annoying at times so I don't blame people for getting fed up with her/me!). But the shouting was much worse whenever anything made her more anxious e.g. being away from home, being separated from her buddy, spooky things going on in her sightline etc. she was much better when calm so regumate for the hormones, a light dose of calmer, a hood and ear plugs, quiet/relaxed riding and giving her something to focus on without bullying her all helped at least a bit, as did resolving the overbonded issue with the other mare.

I'm not surprised the stallion being lunged set your girl off, was that in a strange environment too? I think my poor girl would have lost her tiny mind at that combination, so it's quite to your credit yours did any work at all. I'd try and keep a diary of when she's worse and better with the calling to see what triggers it and your suggestions seem sensible aside from the Vix (what is that meant to do if it's not an aversion thing??).

I was only questioning the Vic so please don’t have a go at me. I have only had her since Sept so we are still getting to know each other. The last clinic we did she did quieten down but we were the last session of the day and so no new arrivals warming up and distracting. Think I just need to try and keep her mind busy on the job in hand and will keep a note.

Calmer before you go? Has she had a recent season? One of ours came into season last week