Mares in Season

[majobgeorge]

My beautiful calm, kind pony has turned into an evil witch. She is in season and her behaviour is appalling. Firstly she became hard to catch then she kicked one of he geldings tied up on the yard. She is squirting all the time and has become really hard to ride. I can't get on her she spins around and runs backwards then when I am on she leaps round trying to buck. My confidence is taking a nosedive very quickly. She has been a bit more lively in previous seasons but nothing like this. Does anyone else have this problem. I am having her back checked on Thursday and she has just had her teeth done. I would be grateful for any advice.

[valerie n scout]

oh sorry I have a boy, I hope a girly owner pops in soon X

[harveydales]

Dolly can be like this but not as extreme. I've had many mares before in the past but non as "mareish" as Dolly is. We also went through all the usual back/teeth checks etc and have come to the conclusion it is just how she is and made worse by living with geldings with strong stallion like instincts (Frankie and Harvey)!

Dolly is better when in hard, regular work but that's not always possible. I will be interested in what others have to say.

[heathera]

Tola can be a bit like this when in season. She's not quite as bad though and, like Dolly, is better when in work all the time and fit. Both my girls are better when there's no boys about but it's not always easy to keep them in a mare only environment.

If she's really grumpy we make sure we keep her warm, treat her kindly despite the grumping, perhaps just go hacking rather than schooling or do groundwork instead of riding, make sure we give her more space when tying her up and we warn people she might be less forgiving of their mistakes than usual. Think of how you would like to be treated if you had really bad PMT

I would suggest you have your vet do an internal check of her reproductive organs. You can do scans to check the state of her ovaries. Some mares have cysts or other conditions that mean being in season is very painful for them and can continue of for longer than necessary.

There's all sorts of solutions you can try varying from cheap to lots of money but your equine vet should be able to advise.

[mickey]

I'd get her scanned too- we have one on the yard who is unrideable in season. She's just had her scanned and there is an issue which would be causing discomfort so is on a regumate trial.
Scanning isn't too horrendously expensive- ours is £45 a scan plus call out

[majobgeorge]

Thank you for the replies. I do think polly is better when she is kept in work. I was working a lot last week so did not get to exercise her much so I don't think that helped. I have researched regumate and all the other things on offer and have decided to get the vet out to check her ovaries. Hopefully will get a couple of months break now that winter is on its way? I am sure geldings must be easier however I do adore polly and hope we can sort this out.

[maggie]

Very pleased to hear that you're getting the vet, as she really is uncomfortable and not just being naughty or wilful. The solution/correct treatment depends on what hormone or combination is having the effect.

Regumate can be very useful, but be careful handling it. I've also used Monks Pepper (I think it's called Vitex Agnus Castus?) with some success in regulating seasons, its much cheaper!

Is she a young mare? It often takes a while for their seasons to settle down. Don't be sorry you have a mare, they (I think) have more to give than any gelding once you've got a good relationship, but you have got an 'entire' and will always need to negotiate with her!

[cadeby]

I second what everyone else has said about getting the vet to take a look. It certainly sounds like she has very extreme hormonal reactions. Let us know what he finds.

I have had good results with Vitex agnus castus (Monk's Pepper / Chaste Berry) with 2 of my mares. As Maggie says, it's much cheaper than Regumate and seems to be well-tolerated. Allegedly good for human PMT too

[newbie]

My mare was misbehaving when in season, kicking out and squealing when she met geldings and generally being an old slapper! But nothing dangerous when being ridden, i must add. I was concerned about taking her out in company so my vet suggested regumate to check it was hormonal rather than behavioural. The regumate worked very well and did serve to confirm it is hormonal rathervthan naughtiness. Could be worth a try, it worked out at around £20 for a 10 day course, so not too bad...