Horse behavior question

jennigrey · #1 08/09/10, 05:19 PM

Hey, this is a new one on me. I was wondering if anyone can give me some insight on this odd behavior I have been witnessing.

I have a couple of Percheron mares who are a team. They are both around 12 years old and have been together for about 4 or 5 years. The gray mare is pretty dominant and a maiden. The black mare is subordinate and has had a few foals. When I first put them together, the gray mare ran the black mare through the fence a couple of times before they got it all sorted out. Nowadays there is the very occasional bite in the pasture, but they otherwise have everything settled.

I have moved them to a friend's pasture for a few weeks. They've been in this pasture many times before, but this time the next-door-neighbors have a couple of mares in *their* pasture. So my two mares are sharing a fenceline with the neighbor's two mares. The neighbor's two mares are a bay and a dun; saddle horses.

The neighbor's mares nicker and nicker and nicker to my black mare. The black mare comes to the fence when they call to her. They hang out at the fenceline together. The dun mare speaks to my black mare in low nickers. Very vocal horse. All the while, my black mare does the submissive foal-mouthing thing with her head held as low to the ground as possible. She is also peeing!

My gray mare isn't all that interested in the neighbor's mares. She came up to say hi when I first put them in the pasture, but the dun mare squealed angrily at my gray mare and spun and pointed her butt at her. My gray mare just turned away and started grazing. Since then, she has completely ignored the neighbor's mares. She is not intimidated, just disinterested in horses that aren't friendly.

Sometimes my gray mare will go up to my black mare while the black mare is visiting at the fenceline. The dun mare will squeal and point her butt at my gray mare. My gray mare just ignores the dun. The dun hasn't followed through with any more-physical displays that I have witnessed (no kicking, pawing, biting).

My big question is WHY, if my black mare is so intimidated by the dun, WHY does she spend all her time as close to the dun mare as possible? Why does she seem to love their company so much if she is so worried at possibly causing offense? Is this horse-flattery? Anyone else have a horse that seems to kowtow to another, and simultaneously follows them around like a lovesick puppy? I have never, ever, seen my black mare mouth at another horse before; not even back when my gray mare put her through the fence.

malinda · #2 08/09/10, 05:42 PM

I haven't witnessed the amount of baby-mouthing like you've described in adult horses, but I do know many, many horses that I would compare to an abused spouse who keeps going back to an abuser... the herd instinct is just that strong.

bergere · #3 08/09/10, 06:45 PM

She's in Season.

Many mare's will do this, specially if they have a strong cycle.
My wonderful wee Maggie... is an hussy shorts and will do the same thing when she really wants a stallion around and there are none to be had.

Makes me love my Icelandic mare's who don't show seasons. No mare worries with them, Thank goodness.

jennigrey · #4 08/09/10, 07:09 PM

Huh! You think so, bergere? I've had her for about 5 years now and she's never shown this behavior before, or any other in-season type of behavior. But then, I don't let her hang out near other people's horses either. Not casually, I mean. Just under saddle, in harness or in-hand.

I wish I could put up an additional hotwire to get my mares further from the neighbor's horses. 4' away would be good, but the shared fenceline is very long. I don't have enough fence posts to put up a strand of wire or hot rope the entire length.

I guess my black mare knows better than to proposition my gray mare. That horse is, for all intents and purposes, pretty much asexual. Maybe my black mare is asking the dun mare if she has a cute brother.

bergere · #5 08/09/10, 07:21 PM

Yes, behavior can change.
The Rescue mare I have here, pretty much acted like all Icelandic mare's I have had in the past, didn't show. Couple of months ago, she got violent, striking out at Dyfra and me for that matter, peeing all over the place and so on.. had to take Maggie out so she would not hurt her.
Vet came out and popped a small cyst off one of her ovaries. Also put her on Raspberry leaves once a day, so far, no repeat performance.

I have also had mares of other breeds that did not show to each other when is season because they were around each other all the time but if a new mare came in, even across the fence.. Some of them would go in ranging season. Think they were just getting their hopes up for a little action.

These same mares, at shows, knew better. But free in a pasture... all bets are off. ;O)

Whip Hussmann · #6 08/11/10, 08:23 PM

I have a mare that will do just that ever' time she comes into season. She started doing that since she was seven. She comes in quite often, more than a normal cycle. First couple of times she came in and was around a gelding, I felt sorry for her the way she acted. When she wasn't close to them she was fine. Work the horse that showed up and you'll both be fine.

Whip Hussmann · #7 08/11/10, 08:28 PM

Bergere, what are the raspberry leaves for? Sorry for getting off track here.

bergere · #8 08/12/10, 01:56 AM

A friend told me about it, didn't think it would work but it is. Kind'a surprised me.
Raspberry leaves helps keeps a mare calmer during her seasons.
Using this on the rescue mare and now Maggie with pretty good results.

http://www.smartpakequine.com/produc...ctClassid=4738

malinda · #9 08/12/10, 06:11 AM

A few of my clients also use Mare Magic, and they tell me they have had good results.

RLStewart · #10 08/12/10, 06:20 AM

I have all my 3 and 4 year old fillies on the Mare Magic which is basically just raspberry leaves and I was shocked at how well it worked too. I have one filly that was pretty stupid and it seemed like it was about 1/2 the time she was in so frequent and long. Within 2 weeks of starting the Mare Magic she is alittle goofy about 1 day every 3 weeks. Huge, huge improvement.