Cribber- tips?

[TaylorBug]

Hey all.

I have a 20 year old Paint gelding who has cribbed his whole life. I have owned him for about 5 years and he has cribed the whole time. When we bought him, the previous owners gave us a hinge-style collar but I didn't want to put it on him because I didn't have any experiences with cribbers and didn't want it to hurt him (he is palomino with sensitive skin), and because it hasn't really been a problem. I'm only now getting concerned because he is getting up in his years and I want to ensure he won't have any problems eating now. Does anyone have any tips for deterring cribbing? Now that I put his collar on him, he seems to not be as interested in it but I may just be because he remembers wearing the collar from before and because I was keeping an eye on him.

 

[Baymule]

A cribbing collar won’t hurt him. Does he only crib in his stall or is it anywhere there is a board fence?

 

[TaylorBug]

A cribbing collar won’t hurt him. Does he only crib in his stall or is it anywhere there is a board fence?

I did put his collar on him but I had never had to use one before, so I didn't want to bother with it and possibly do it wrong up til now.
We have wire cattle/electric fencing. He cribs on his hay ring and water tanks. My old hay ring fell apart because he wore it out and he lives outside and is never confined to a stall. He has plenty of sights and cows to run around with so I doubt he's very bored.

 

[Baymule]

So he is not chewing on wood, he is sucking air. As old as he is, you are probably not going to stop him. I found a good article that explains things well.

New thinking about cribbing

As researchers gain insights into this mysterious behavior, new approaches are emerging for handling horses who crib. Also called wind sucking, cribbing is a stereotypy—a repetitive, compulsive activity that seems to serve no purpose—and it poses some health risks. Horses who crib may be at a...

equusmagazine.com