I have a beautiful quarter horse that is a terrible cribber. How can I get him to stop?

Question

Any horse owners out there?

Answer 1

Are you sure he's a cribber or just chewing??
Cribbers are usually doing this out of boredom or maybe the lack sometime from their diet.

If you are sure he is actually wind sucking, then your options are:
A) Get one of the many types of cribbing collars on the market
B) Use some sort of horrible tasting product (like tobassco sauce) to put on the wood, or the products desgined fo this.
C) There are also feed through supplements for the horses with the vitamin/mineral deficiency.
D) Get a toy or exercise your horse more often if he is bored
E) If this is a habit that has been picked up from others, you are out of luck unless you get him away from those horses.
F) Save up and have the surgical procedure done that removes the muscles and eliminates the horse's ability to crib.

I have tried ALL of the collars, even the expensive so called "Miracle Collar". I have tried the tobasco sauce (guess my horse loves hot sauce!!) and the paint on cribbing products, toys, minerals...etc etc...
been there and NOTHING works for her. I am left to believe that my mare either has a physical problem (which has never been diagnosed) or has a "mental" problem cause she even walks away from grain to go wind suck!!

If this is a vice that is just starting, nip it in the butt right now before it becomes habitual and then there is no cure.

Answer 2

You will never stop your horse from cribbing! The only two things you can do is put on a cribbing strap which will or will not work depending on how bad they are. It could work fully and they stop or cuts them down a little bit or does not do anything. Another thing is, take away what you can to help eliminate the cribbing. If they like to crib on there feed bucket, take it out. If they crib on there stall screen, take it off. I hate a cribber as much as I hate a stall runner. If you got electric fence, thats great but if its a wood fence nothing can be done. Deal with it! It is a golden rule that all horses being sold must be alarmed to the fact that there horse cribs. If nobody tells you then you can return him or her, even at sales.

Answer 3

i dont own a horse but i read big time. u can provide ur horse with more to do such as a ball that are sold in lke all tack stores and online or hide carrots in hay for the horse to find. The cribbing is probably caused by boredom especially if the horse lives full time in a stall. Try these ideas and u might wanna look into buying one of the collars to stop cribbing or if its on a stall door u can put a metal covering over the door and it will stop but try to get ur horse out of its boredom. The reason a horse cribs is cuz of boredom and when a horse has a stable vice it does it so its body releases endorphins and the horse gets a high so it can be out of its boredom. u should try these things they should help.

Answer 4

Feed and tack stores carry supplements that you put in feed to help your horse quit cribbing. One is called Quitt. I don't really like cribbing collars because I've seen horses with them on and they chew right through it. I've never had a problem with cribbing. Your horse may be cribbing because he's gaining nutrition through the wood or he could be bored. What ever the cause- it's dangerous seeing as your horse could get a piece of wood lodged in his throat.
Try a inrichment toy- such as LIKITs or Pony pops if you suspect he's bored. Or maybe horse balls. If it's not boredom consult your vet and have blood work done to see if he's missing something in his diet.
Good luck and happy trails.

Answer 5

Try a crib-strap, but if he's a steadfast addict, that won't help much.

The only thing you can do is turn him outside- cribbing is the by-product of boredom, though it can be learned from other cribbers.

Good luck.

PS-- whatever you do, DO NOT buy the spiked cribbing straps, I have personally witnessed horses (yes, more than one) puncture themselves on one because they are so addicted.

Answer 6

Feedstores should have a strap-like item. It is called a Cribbing Collar. Feedstores also carry a nasty tasting substance that you can either paint or spray on the area where the horse grabs a hold of to help.

If it is really bad, you can always have surgery done. But use this as your last option.

Answer 7

I'm sure you have probably tried already, but a cribbing halter sometimes does the trick. Some horse owners have also put hot pepper sauce on the boards.

Answer 8

you should get him a cribbing collar. it is the most effective way to stop cribbers that I know of. Be sure to talk to the store you purchase it from (if you do) to find out how tight it needs to be. If you put it on too loose, its not going to do any good at all.

good luck!

Answer 9

Cribbing Collars are a good suggestion... but there are also other things you can do. There is a spray on product at tack shops that is like Cayanne Pepper in a can. Spray this where he cribs, and the taste will deter it. or if he is cribbing on the top of the stall, you can attach chicken wire to the top rails. just make sure that you have any edges throughly covered. (you wouldnt want him to catch himself on any loose wire)

Good Luck!

Answer 10

The good news is that there are many products and methods to use to attempt to stop a horse from cribbing. The bad news, is that there is no "sure-fire" way to stop the behavior. You can try to prevent her form cribbing, however, there are downfalls to using each of the products or methods, and none of them work on all horses. So, I'd suggest you experiment with each, to see if any work. If any single product or method does not work, you might want to "mix-and-match" to find something that may work.

There are many products that can be used for horses that crib. Some are straps that are placed around the horse's throat area, these are called "cribbing straps". Cribbing straps can be found at most tack stores. The strap does not hurt the horse, and does not interfere with eating or breathing. What it is designed to do is put pressure on the horse's throat when he/she begins to crib. For some horses, this is all that is needed to stop cribbing, as the pressure on their throat becomes annoying to them.

However, I have seen a low success rate with the use of a cribbing strap alone. Many horses are very tolerant to the pressure on their throat and will continue cribbing anyway. So, you can also try a product that is applied to the surfaces that the horse uses to crib. These are usually provided as sprays or clear paints that are non-toxic to the horse, and they taste horrible. So, when the horse puts his/her mouth on (for example) his grain bin to crib, he will dislike the taste and stop cribbing.

There is also a downfall to using this product and that is that you most likely will have to re-apply it to the surfaces often, as it may wear off. You may not even be able to use a product like this if you keep the horse at a boarding farm, depending on the farm's rules. And, it will only stop the horse from cribbing in the areas that you apply it. So, if you take your horse to another stall or area, she may begin cribbing again.

Another method to stop your horse from cribbing is to teach her that it is unpleasant. As of right now, she gets some type of pleasure from it, and that's why she continues to do it. However, to train your horse to stop cribbing is almost impossible (unless you live in the pasture or stall with your horse) since it would involve you being there 24x7 to reprimand the horse every time he tries to crib. If you are not there 24x7 to reprimand the horse consistently, do not reprimand the horse at all...there is no point. It is VERY time consuming, if not impossible.

To teach her to stop cribbing, you must be able to react to her cribbing EVERY time she tries to do it. If you react to her cribbing, by for example, flicking her muzzle with your finger, she learns that when she opens her mouth to crib, she experiences an unpleasant feeling. However, if you do this for 5 minutes while standing with her in her stall, and then walk away and come back the next day, she only learns that cribbing is unpleasant when you are present. So, if you don't have the time to stay with your horse 24x7 until he learns that cribbing is completely unacceptable, then it would be useless to try "training" him to stop cribbing!

I hope this helps clarify the options that are out there, and I hope one of these products or methods work for you and your horse!

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