Tree Cribbing

[kckatt]

Hi,
My horses are cribbing on my trees. I know its not good for them but I dont know how to make it stop. I dont want to paint every tree in the yard!! And I dont like cribbing colars. Can any one help me??

[Manda]

It just sounds like they're bored. Do they have grass or hay out there? Food is always a solution, or maybe something they could play with.

[Max]

work em every day and then they're more interesting in sleeping then cribbing :)

[Walk_On_Cowgirl]

They could be bored or their body could be lacking something. The reason a lot of horses chew on wood, trees, or even eat dirt is because they're bodies need mineral and if the owner isn't giving it to them in either their feed or in a block then they have to find other means of getting it. So first off are they on strickly pasture or are you giving them grain too. If you're giving grain, depending on where it's made, some feeds have the mineral already in them (such as purina and dunmore). but if you're feeding something else, ask your dealer if they have the mineral already in it, and if so how much is required to feed per feeding/day. The other option you have is to make sure they have a 12:12 horse mineral block. at first they will eat these like candy, so if you get them make sure you get a couple to put out. Once their bodies get what they need then they will back off of the block and eat it like a salt block. The other thing a lot of people don't know is that trace mineral blocks are basically useless when it comes to giving mineral. they only have enough mineral in them to change the color of the block. If you feel the texture in the 12:12 blocks and the trace mineral and then a plain white salt, the trace mineral and the white salt feel the same....salty. whereas the 12:12 blocks are actually gritty....it has a lot more texture in it. Try this for at least a month. They should quit chewing completely if it's a mineral problem!!! Hope this helps!

[DixieGirl]

Maybe you can get them a pature toy or something. :)

[hoovesfirst]

i'd give them something else to do ther are these great treats that you can hang up and the horses are kept busy trieing to get also if you are going to leave them hay trie a small neted hay net i would also recomend a feed for your horses work lode because it will have the minerrals he needs or maybe trie sours its a great supliment!!!!!!! :) :D

[kckatt]

Thanks guys, there feed does have minerals in it. They are used to having a round bale of hay, but right now all i can find is sq bales. So im only giving them a few flakes a day, where they eat on a round bale all day, now they eat it all and there is nothing else to do.

I have a barrel (like a racing barrel) in the field with them they like to nose it around. So that has helped a lot! Thanks!! :)

[Fells_4_ever]

Buy a few play balls, fill it with oats or a mix of some sort and they'll just kick it around all day. Also, if there arent too many horses in there, take a few whole seeds, coat them on mollasses and roll them in oats and hang them off the trees. They'llbe too pre-occupied with trying to get to the swede than destroying your trees.

[DixieGirl]

Maybe a jollyball would help them or a lick-it. :)

[Fells_4_ever]

i didnt mean seeds, i meant swedes, silly me!

[mandyicequeen14]

wrap the trees in chicken wire, i have goats that like to chew on the trees and thats what we did and it worked, it will work with horses too.

[DixieGirl]

wrap the trees in chicken wire, i have goats that like to chew on the trees and thats what we did and it worked, it will work with horses too.


or put fence around it.

[longrein]

I had a horse who used to crib on anything he could find, trees, stalls, the wooden shelter in the paster, fencing and I couldnt figure how to stop it. I got this spray on stuff called Chew Stop and since everytime he cribbed he always lick the wood before hand, (as if he was tasting it to make sure it was just right) he decided it wasnt that great anymore and stopped cribbing on certain things. Its just a mixture of stuff that isnt so good tasting to horses, kinda spicey almost. It helps with some horses, and others not so much. Also your horse may be bored, a jolly ball is great for a toy he can absolutely trash in the paddock, also lick-its or salt-licks could give him something to do in his stall. Also, if you feed out in the pasture, a good trick is to spread his hay out. Like put some in a certain spot and more in a different. So he has walk around to get to his food. Hiding bits of apples and carrots around the pasture is also something fun for him to do, instead of cribbing. Increasing your hacks or lessons also take up a bit more time and when he is tired he'll have less time to think about cribbing, and probably just want to take a nap :) These helped with my horse, they might help with yours too!