# Cribbing/wind sucking why? And the use of shock collars....



## wetrain17 (May 25, 2011)

I look at it as an addiction. I have seen people use the cribbing collars, but I dont think they do much to help. Seems as though if the horse wants to crib, it will. UGH, I hate that sound.


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## Endiku (Dec 6, 2010)

Our filly actually cribbed due to ulcers. I guess it made her feel better. Once we diagnosed and treated the ulcers, she quit cribbing completely.


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## Roadyy (Feb 9, 2013)

When I first got Trusty he was wearing a cribbing collar. He was in a smaller paddock with a welsh, a mini and a huge boar hog. Not much exercise, low diet and seemed rather bored. He cribbed at every turn while finding the ranks of the herd, but has really lessened his cribbing over the last few weeks. I've only seen him do it twice in the last 5 weeks and both times were after being in the stall for over 30 minutes after he finished his supper. That was 3 weeks ago. He still wears the collar while out in the pasture until I have another couple of weeks with no signs of him cribbing.


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## mudpie (Jul 15, 2011)

Horses usually crib because they are in an environment that encourages them to do so. They're most likely hungry, and have an oral affixation, such as a gate or fence. I don't believe that it's a learned or "contagious" behavior, rather, if there is an entire barn of horses who crib, it's because the environment has shaped that behavior.

As for your question, I would NEVER use electrical shock on a horse, as they would not understand what was happening or why. While dogs tend to catch on and figure it out, you have to contrast them to horses in that they are predator animals, and horses are prey animals. All they're going to want to do is run away from the pain.

Cribbing collars are one way to manage it, but their effectiveness varies based on each individual horse.

Make sure that there's no health problems occurring with your horse, and then examine his or her diet. Horses are grazing animals, and their gastro-intestinal system is designed to consume small amounts of low quality forage over the course of a day. The classic "two feedings per day" just doesn't cut it, and because a horse's stomach never stops producing acid, they need to have something to nibble on all day. Try to get a slow feeder, and make sure that your horse isn't getting hungry. Minimize grain. If it's too much of a habit to eliminate through correct, careful horsekeeping, then resort to a cribbing collar. But I've found that giving them something else to chew on (i.e., grass) works.


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## TheAQHAGirl (Aug 10, 2012)

My first horse, Jake, was a cribber. I only leased him and I only had him for about a good year and a half (maybe less). 

Like what wetrain17 said, its like an addiction. I'm not sure what caused him to do it in the first place, but Jake would CONSTANTLY crib. I'd say the source of cribbing can be linked to boredom, stress, changes in environment, etc. 

We used a cribbing collar like this: Weaver Leather Miracle Collar - Statelinetack.com

It didn't do anything, in fact I didn't even see a difference in his cribbing behavior.


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## deserthorsewoman (Sep 13, 2011)

High grain rations, little hay, no turnout, no social contact, stressful environment and work = cribbing
It's almost normal for TB's in training, I've seen lots of jumpers also, in fact, I've seen every possible vice in jumper barns. 

Curable? Sometimes. With always hay, little to no grain, given in several small meals, living in a herd. 
I had only one cribber in all these years, an OTTB, which quit after a month completely, with above measures.
Shock collar? NEVER!


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## Muppetgirl (Sep 16, 2012)

Pretty much what I thought....read something the other day and the woman was spouting off about using a zap collar and that its 100% curable etc.....I know a lot about cribbing, but don know it all so was wondering if id missed the crazy train after I read that blurb! :shock:


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## deserthorsewoman (Sep 13, 2011)

Muppetgirl said:


> Pretty much what I thought....read something the other day and the woman was spouting off about using a zap collar and that its 100% curable etc.....I know a lot about cribbing, but don know it all so was wondering if id missed the crazy train after I read that blurb! :shock:


Probably getting paid by the shock collar maker...:twisted:


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## Golden Horse (Feb 20, 2010)

Well it's obvious what cribbing is, your horse is bored and requires 24 hour a day mental stimulation.

I suggest a brief jog before breakfast, then a light meal, followed by massage and some shopping. Serve a high protein lunch, and take in a movie, in the afternoon.

A healthy supper then off to the gym, bring him home, nice relaxing bath, and put him to beddy byes.

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I only owned one cribber, undisclosed so I actually returned her for a refund, the fact that she was bat **** crazy, was NOT an allowable reason to return, but undisclosed vice, gave me an out.

She was turned out 24/7 in company, she even had some cows for company, and when she was to bored to crib, she would cut the cows, and herd them. With her I believe that it was a vice brought on by her very nature, she was high energy, a worrier, probably would of done better with a full time working job.

I have know very placid laid back cribbers, who just seem to take comfort from the habit, so a bit like human addictions, the roots are many and varied. Given that the ways to control it are many and varied, and hear that all you can do is keep trying until something works.

Some cribbing is learned behaviour, that is proven I think, but some isn't.


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## ponyboy (Jul 24, 2008)

mudpie said:


> As for your question, I would NEVER use electrical shock on a horse, as they would not understand what was happening or why.


Yes they would. It is the same kind of association used in virtually all horse training. It's true that generally speaking prey animals are not as smart as predators, but horses _are_ definitely smart enough to make the connection between two closely timed events – if they weren't, we couldn't train them to do much at all.

Not that I would necessarily use a shock collar in the case of cribbing, I'm just saying that a horse could understand it.


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## mudpie (Jul 15, 2011)

ponyboy said:


> Yes they would. It is the same kind of association used in virtually all horse training. It's true that generally speaking prey animals are not as smart as predators, but horses _are_ definitely smart enough to make the connection between two closely timed events – if they weren't, we couldn't train them to do much at all.
> 
> Not that I would necessarily use a shock collar in the case of cribbing, I'm just saying that a horse could understand it.


Pain as a training mechanism is never a good idea.


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## Casey02 (Sep 20, 2011)

I actually wondered about this a long time ago, I have never owned a cribber. But we do have an electrical fence, so maybe if you got the timing right the horse would think the post is shocking them? and not touch it (just as an electric fence) just a thought, not saying im advising the shock collar haha


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## verona1016 (Jul 3, 2011)

I believe there's an inherited predisposition to cribbing. I read somewhere that it's like gambling addiction in people and I think that's a great analogy. There are people with a predisposition to addiction that will never even attempt whatever that addictive behavior is (be it gambling, drinking, or whatever) but the ones who have the predisposition and attempt it have a hard time quitting it. Horses begin cribbing for a reason: physical pain or mental stress. If you can fix the problem quickly, you have a better chance of keeping the cribbing from becoming a habit, but the longer they do it, the harder it is to stop.

My horse is a cribber, but he doesn't fit the profile of a "typical" cribber. He's very laid back and is an easy keeper. He started cribbing before the first person bought him from his breeder at age 3. I'd be willing to bet he started as a weanling. Feeding sugary/starchy grain at weaning is a big risk factor, and I know that the breeder doesn't stall his horses, but he does feed them all-stock sweet feed (ick).

The research done on cribbing has brought up more questions than it has answered. Horses tend to crib the most around feeding time, whether they have ulcers or not. A common theory is that cribbers get "high" from endorphins released when cribbing, but an endorphin-blocking drug stopped cribbing behavior in experiments; this was counter-intuitive as they were expected to try and crib much more on the drug since they wouldn't be able to get their high. There's not even a consensus on whether or not the horse is really swallowing air. Some evidence shows that they draw air into the esophagus but that it is immediately expelled; my own personal experience is that my horse is much gassier when he's allowed to crib so I suspect that at least some of it makes it into the intestinal tract. What they're _not_ doing is burping. Horses lack the physiological capability to burp (just like they can't vomit).

There's no scientific evidence that horses learn to crib by mimicking other horses. The barn where I board has 76 stalls and at any one time has several cribbers in addition to my own (including a school horse that has been there for years) The cribbers aren't segregated in any way and they've never had a non-cribber pick up the habit.

There are a lot of extremes that I would never go to in an attempt to stop cribbing- not just shock collars, but also "cribbing rings" put through the horse's gums and even surgery. I'm lucky that a collar stops my horse (though I haven't used it in a long time because it causes rubs) and though you can tell from his teeth that he cribs, he's not like some horses whose teeth are worn to the gum line from cribbing.


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## AlexS (Aug 9, 2010)

It depends, on the horse. As with any other vice such as weaving or walking in a stall etc. Can be removed by turn out and environment, or can just be the way the horse is. 

Horse at my old barn cribbed with a collar, she was given a 2x4 in front of her feed bowl, and always a good sized piece of wood in turn out so she didn't get the fence. 

Horse at current barn, doesn't crib with a collar on. So it all depends.


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## Foxhunter (Feb 5, 2012)

It can have something to do with environment, but I believe this causes stomach ulcers and that causes the cribbing. Treat the ulcers change the environment and the horse will lessen/stop cribbing.

I also agree that it can be a predisposition. One of the worse cribbers I ever had started as a yearling. He was out 24/7 with other youngsters, He was not bullied nor was he stressed in any way. At that time there was no way to test for ulcers so no telling if he had them or not. 

I would not use a shock collar but try to discover the reason why.


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## Muppetgirl (Sep 16, 2012)

Thanks for all your replies....I'm glad the consensus is that shock collars are a big no no!!!


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## kiwi79 (Nov 11, 2011)

When I was looking at buying a horse that cribbed I researched some collars and found called the Barclay anti cribbing collar which may be the one you are talking about. I'm not sure how they work because they don't need batteries but they give a mild 'static charge' which is triggered by the horses throat actions they make when they go to crib. I'm assuming they are quite effective because it comes with a 30 money back guarantee but I still didn't like the idea of it. I didnt like the standard metal cribbing collar that he wore either, there was a very obvious dent in his throat caused by it which you could see when the collar wasn't on. I passed on that horse anyway in the end so didn't look into it any further.


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