horse chewing line buckles

[Tom Coughlin]

does anyone have any ideas to stop a kinda nervous horse from chewing line buckles , when asked to stand while i adjust an implement or put something on the wagon or whatever if we stand to long he will get the buckle in his mouth and chew it .mostly the inside line i guess the angle makes it easier to get but he will do both .if i tie them up so there is no slack he will back to loosen it and the other horse will back some to and then i correct them and get them to take a step forward but that creates a fed back loop and he gets more nervous with each correction. i thought of using an antichew spray but none of them say safe for leather and don’t want to weaken the line although he is doing a good job at that, but i can see the damage he does. as i write this i had the idea of switching to a synthetic ie beta or something but that is not my preference . i don’t know if he likes the taste of the leather or just wants to chew , he is a big baby. any thoughts, thanks Tom Coughlin

[Livewater Farm]

try using a jockie stick between the horses he will not be able to get his head around to the buckle

[Tom Coughlin]

thought of that,
he has very dexterous lips and tongue he doesnt really have to turn his head that much thanks though i am thinking hot sauce

[Brad Johnson]

Tom-
Does this horse have access to salt on a regular basis? Sometimes they will chew harness to get salt lacking in their diet…
-Brad

[Tom Coughlin]

yes salt block in paddock and stall and i see him using it way more than all the other horses. Tom

[dominiquer60]

If he is attacking the salt more than the others he may be deficient in something else and consuming too much salt in the process? Ours were wood chewers until we started giving them free choice minerals along with white salt. Even if he is deficient in something, the line chewing has become habit and solving any potential deficiency will likely not solve the problem without correcting his behavior.

Just out of curiosity what type of bit do you have in him and how does he respond to it?

[Tom Coughlin]

the salt block is a mineral and salt block combo plus they all get Fertrell horse balancer witch has minerals and kelp 2 oz a day is the recommendation dose for a 1000 – 1200 # horse he is1800so maybe i’ll up that. he is in a straight bar liverpool which is what came with him although i went from a 6 to a 6 1/2 because i thought the 6 was to tight he is not a very responsive horse kinda goofy i have noticed that on turns where he in on the inside of he turn he will turn his head but his body will go straight until his teammate bumps him into the corner ,he is very submissive to his teammate almost ,it seems waiting for her to go first i also can’t keep him up to her speed he is always 1/2 step behind thats where the mare wants him . i can encourage him and he will go ahead but sometimes the mares ears go back and he slows .she has a long fast stride ,i like it , he is all up and down alot of action but he goes slow . so in order to keep up he will break into a trot then almost get ahead then goes back to a walk and falls behind again.he is not avoiding work, on heavy pulls he is right there he just seems afaid to be infront of the mare, wow alittle off topic , maybe or maybe not. thanks for help . Tom

[carl ny]

Just a thought on the laying back, have you ever tried switching sides? I remember that a friend did that and it cured the laying back. Might even help on the chewing. JMHO

[dominiquer60]

If he is hitting the salt block hard something is out of whack. We used to feed brown blocks and kelp too. Since giving them free choice of 5 different mineral sources, they seem to have balanced their own needs and only go through 60% of the salt that they used to.

The mineral mixes are good, but they can easily cause more problems. For example (made up scenario), say he needs more cobalt and keeps eating more and more salt/mix to meet that need. Only now he has eaten too much copper, and that has a negative impact on vit E absorption, mean while the water retention from the salt is making his heart work harder, etc, etc. It can snowball fast with out us realizing it.

Sam had a horse that used to chew his lines bad (beta too). I don’t know if he grew out of it, or if by meeting more of his needs (better minerals and different bit) he just gave it up.

Minerals and herd dynamics may seem off topic, but it is all related in some way, shape or form. Ours have their faults too and part of figuring them out is what makes it all interesting to me. We have a team that sounds similar to yours in some ways, they are very good to work, but difficult to get them the way that you would really like them.

[Tom Coughlin]

wow thanks for all the info. i do switch sides one way goes better than the other but still the same dynamic. what are the 5 free choice minerals you use. Tom

[dominiquer60]

White Salt
Calcium : Phosphorous 1:1
Calcium : Phosphorous 2:1
Kelp Meal
Mineral Clay
There are lots of other options too

Our soil is high in Phos, and low in Calicum, we figured they would hit the 2:1 one hard, but they surprised us and gobbled the 1:1. They also will kill the kelp from time to time. No more licking and chewing trees, rocks, etc.

[Donn Hewes]

Hi Tom, I know you started this thread about the chewing, but I hope it is alright if I throw in a few thoughts about the horses other behaviors. Chewing might be related anyway. Many teamsters (maybe all of us) have at one time or another worked with two animals that don’t want to be side by side. I think this usually reflects on the relationship between the two horses. The one in front is being dominant and the the one behind is being submissive. Chewing is sometimes a submissive behavior. These can be hard teams to balance out. Folks often ask the horse behind to keep up with the other horse and what I try to do is create space that the submissive horse to work in. Turning is a great example of this. I never let the pushy horse rush us through a corner. I slow a little if necessary and make the horses maintain the space between them as they turn. This will usually move the behind horse up into the turn.

Is the front horse also “up on the bit”? Adjusting the bit pressure is another way of creating space for the submissive horse to move up into. This can be as simple as biting down a liverpool more on the front horse than the rear horse. Another way to accomplish a similar effect that I have used is to use a couple drop rings for the submissive horse. By running the lines through a drop ring (a ring added to the hames ring to lower it a little) you can lengthen the lines to the submissive horse. If this horse only needs a lighter touch on the bit it may well move up where it belongs.

Finally I don’t encourage dominate behavior between horses in a hitch. I don’t hold with a dominate horse dishing out the training for me. I try to keep them in their place and I will do the training. This can be a huge challenge. I know.

The chewing may well require a little of all these things. The minerals is a good idea, and just trying to correct the behavior will be time consuming and frustrating but will start to have some effect. Finally making the horse feel more calm and comfortable (less submissive) could help too. Good Luck. Donn

[j.l.holt]

Seen this chewing thing time on driving horse..Owner never could figure out why and put a piece of fancie chrome chain on end of lines. Horse did not like chewing the chain and after a while gave it up. Might be a last resort for you.

[Tom Coughlin]

thanks Donn I like the idea of trying to give the sub. more room i think he is very gladly at the bottom of the order i think he would be sub. to a lamb . the dom. mare is not up on the bit she is right where i want her and she is gentle in her domination she does what is asked and the gelding just does not respond quick enough ,not all the time but half the time she i think gets frustrated by his apparent lack of attention he is a heads down worker and get suprised alot and she is the opposite the do like each other always together she will share her grain bucket with him only him all the other horses cant even look at it or they get pushed away .they are like an old married couple . i am going to try to do alot of single training with him- lungeline and round pen to see if i can boost his confidence in me w/o the mare around and i will try the drop rings to lighten his pressure . man these threads can really cover alot of ground. let you know how it is going thanks Tom

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