Calmers

[solomon]

Anyone use them? Are they just a gimic? Never needed to calm Pete bless him but was just reading about them and wondered what they actually do to the horse.

[racaille]

No experience myself Sol but tend to think a hysterical horse is best managed by adjusting feed and turnout.

[hazelin]

Ive always used Steady Up which seemed to work well but since Hazels been on just Happy Hoof and hay shes a lot calmer anyway. I thoink there is a lot in whta Rac says above.

[zara]

Think AJ has tried them all and none have made a jot of difference to his outlook on life!

[fleabitten]

I dont think you can really change a horses temperament and i would agree with rac as well - a lot has to do with feeding and management (including enough exercise). But i think its probably useful for a horse that tends to get very stressed or anxious about things (like travelling or shows) but not as a day to day supplement. It would be a bit like rescue remedy for us!

[brigadier]

I bought a pack of three naff calmers because they were on promotion and Frank gets a bit stressed in the horsebox. On the day I gave him one it made no difference and actually now he is doing well in the box as Im a bit of a flat capper when it comes to driving horses. But it rather depends on the horse and situation I would think and actually getting a combination of ingredients and a situation is all rather hit and miss I would suspect so best not waste money!

[fimacg]

I used naf magic on Brave for the first year after I bought him. I have found every single horse I have brought here has gone a bit nuts for at least a few months. With Brave it definitely had an effect.

I had a chat with the vets about this and the essence was:
*Stressed/spooky horses use magnesium
*Magnesium acts as a buffer between the nerve synapses
*If there is less magnesium the synapses fire faster and the horse uses more magnesium so the horse uses more so less is laid down to act as a buffer and a viscious cycle is created
*If there is less magnesium available in the soil/grass, the effect can be such that the cycle above is triggered
*therefore if you feed a magnesium based supplement this can be enough to break the cycle, and in those situations it is likely to have a positive effect.