my horse is eating wood what is she missing in her diet?

Answer 1

Cribbing is when a horse grabs the edge of a fence rail, stall ledge or post top with his incisors, and arches his neck. Although cribbing and windsucking (gulping air) are often used synonymously, they are thought to be separate behaviors. "Unlike formerly thought, McGreevy (McGreevy, P.D., Radiographic and endoscopic study of horses performing an oral based stereotypy. Equine Vet Journal 27:92-95.) determined that windsucking (aerophagia) does not occur during cribbing." (from Horse Behavior, 2nd edition, George Waring). It has been suggested that when a horse cribs, his body releases endorphins, natural "drugs" which stimulate the pleasure center of his brain so cribbing becomes an addictive habit. Generally cribbing is considered "incurable" because the horse receives a "reward" ("pleasure drug") every time he cribs. Cribbers are usually hard keepers (they would rather crib than eat) and can be prone to colic. It is necessary to use consistent, specific means to deal with a cribbing horse - cribbing collars and possibly surgery or the long term use of pharmaceuticals.

Wood chewing is when a horse gnaws wood fences, feeders, stall walls, or posts. This is destructive to facilities and the horse can suffer colic from eating wood splinters. Some horses really turn into beavers! Wood chewing is common in foals as they test their first incisors and also when their temporary incisors begin to be replaced at 2 1/2 years of age. To keep wood chewing from developing into a life long habit and to prevent a horse from "discovering" cribbing, provide the horse a well-balanced ration with minerals and plenty of long-stem hay for roughage, especially during cold, wet weather. Horses who are satiated with roughage are much less likely to chew wood. Be sure the horse gets plenty of exercise, with time out on pasture if possible.

Protect all wood that the horse comes in contact with. You can do this by covering the wood with sturdy metal edging or use electric fence to keep the horse away from the fence rails altogether.

And yes, you can and should treat wood with various "potions" to make wood less palatable. An effective commercial product is Dyco-Sote, available in dark brown and clear. Even confirmed beavers leave wood treated with Dyco-Sote alone. To deter first-time nibblers, you can try rubbing a strongly scented bar of soap (like Irish Spring) over the area. If you try the commonly recommended home remedy of oil and chili sauce, be careful because if you or your horse get the substance in your eyes or nose, it WILL burn! And believe it or not, some horses chew MORE after chili oil has been applied to wood!!

Answer 2

Cribbing is bracing the teeth on wood or something else and sucking wind into the stomach. It is a bad habit, learned from other horses most of the time, and is an addiction that is almost impossible to break. It can cause a horse to feel full and not eat enough, therefore cause weight loss.
Eating or chewing wod or bark means there is something missing - the horse is hungry - probably is not getting enough hay or grass. (Horses are grazers - need to nibble all day to be natural and happy). Make sure your horse gets enough hay or grass, has a mineral block and has adequate feed and water. If he has all this, chewing wood could be a boredom thing.

Answer 3

Is your horse actually chewing and eating the wood or is she cribbing? There is a huge difference in each. With most cribbers they will have a favorite place that they perform this act on- when that object is removed they'll pick a different place and often plant themselves there to crib or wind suck on that object. With a chewer you will notice beaver like patterns in your wooded objects- this includes large chunks missing without being found on the ground or surrounding area. You may also have to replace chewed through boards and fences.
Alot of people will say that cribbing is a stall vice- it is not. A vice in horse terms is considered an undisirable act that can be corrected with proper handling and training- cribbing is considered an OCD behavior. Your horse can start this from being in a stall or a pasture.

Good ways to reduce cribbing is extended pasture time, getting your equine a pasture mate, figuring out your horses points of stress and try removing it, use enrichment toys or product for your horse, give your horse a higher fat content feed and more roughages, and start handling your equine more and doing more ground work and training so your horse is less bored and more unlikely to crib. You may also want to let your horse have free range hay or grass- some horses kept with empty stomachs throughout most of the day will develop stress which can cause cribbing. There are also anti depressants that reduce cribbing in equines- one is Naloxone. While they don't cure in all equines, they have worked with some. Also you may have to get a cribbing collar- but these don't always work either

Ultimately you'll want to stop this act- it not only causes damage to barns and fences, but also increases health risks in your equine. From colic, choking on slithers of wood, getting splinters in mouth, developing ear infections, teeth, neck, and eye problems.

Answer 4

As long as she is on a healthy diet and has a mineral block available, she may just be a termite! Seriously, so many horses eat wood that it's a wonder any barns are standing! I bet it's more of a boredom ritual than anything else. Is she stalled alot? Even if she has free turnout she may continue to eat wood. You can try spraying bitter apple, all kinds of pepper, etc, and she may still eat wood.

Good luck, my wood eaters have cost me plenty in siding!

Answer 5

There's a difference between cribbing and simple chewing. In cribbing, the horse wouldn't actually chew or ingest the wood, she would just huff or suck at it. Regardless, both chewing and cribbing are considered bad habits or stall vices, but they don't necessarily have a root in diet. More likely, they're a result of boredom. Horses that spend most of their time in stalls as opposed to turned out tend to develop these types of stable vices. If your horse is cooped up for long periods of time, you should see if there's more turnout available. If she's already turned out, she might be lonely. Does she have regular contact with other horses? She doesn't have to be turned out in the same paddock as them, but at least if she's around them she might feel more stimulated. You can also find ways to amuse her in her stall. Some people hang jolly balls, salt licks, or toys in their horse's stall. Some horses play with them, others ignore them, it depends on their personality. You might also want to make sure that fresh hay is available to her throughout the day. Not only is this a staple of a horse's diet and necessary for their health, eating also provides them with something to do beyond just standing in the stall being bored.

Answer 6

Here is a real answer for you. When a horse "CRIBS" chewing wood off the fence post or railing, it is for a couple of reasons. 1) is, the wood is in fact vegetation (trees) and that's what they eat vegetation. 2) they have been known to crib out of bordem when tied up to the fence or just on they're own. most typical type of wood that is attacked is pine, they like the sap or pitch. if you have a horse that cribs and want it to stop. try Cayenne pepper, Tabasco sauce or the local feed store does have products that you can buy and put it on the chewed spots and the area of the spots. more times than not, a horse will go back to the same spot where he started on.

Answer 7

Chewing wood has many potential causes, horses can start because of a diet change, they might be bored or it might just be a bad habit that they picked up from another horse. You can try putting things on the wood, Apple Cider vineager or Tabasco, other things like that, there is a cayenne pepper and shortening mix that you can paint onto the wood. There are also more expensive things that you can buy like Quitt. hope this helps

Answer 8

If your horse is chewing wood, like picking it off of tress or sticks then that is one thing, but if you horse is putting their teeth on a fence and sucking in air, that is another thing, cribbing. cribbing can be caused from many different reasons but needs to be stoped ASAP. Not only can is cause colic but can ruin a horses teeth. Many things have been invented to help a horse stop, but once a horse starts, it is very VERY hard to stop. Collers sometimes help but remember horses are quite smart and find ways around them. One thing that may just be the answer to your problem, not only if they are cribbing but also if they are chewing wood. BITTERLICKS, http://www.bitterlicks.com/. an apsolutly horrible tast, the worst on the market, but unlike other sprays that you could apply to your fences, this is none toxic, won't harm you horse and any way, only make them believe that all wood tast just like that horrible tast. TRY IT.

Answer 9

Normally, eating wood is just a habit for horses when they are bored or sometimes nervous. My thoroughbred does it and it is rather unsettling to see him bite off huge splinters of wood-- eating wood can be very dangerous to a horses digestive system. However, if it is not a habit then you should try and give him/her more hay-- try to find out if she prefers first over second cutting or vice versa.

*** to solve the habit try buying the bitter spray from a vets office or pet store. You can spray it on the fences and it tastes incredibly disgusting and will surely stop him/her.****
OR
you can put a grazing muzzle on her so she wont chew ANYTHING-- however on the down side it does not allow her/him to graze either...

Answer 10

She is likely missing nothing from her diet. Most horses that chew wood do so out of boredom. The suggestions of a stall toy, or more turnout time would most likely help. Sometimes a horse who has picked up this habit will continue to do so in a pasture, and at that point, enrichment of their enviroment and more training/play time would help, but likely won't completely eliminate that habit. Best of luck with her.