Help! Pony needs earmuffs!

[FlyingSwap]

I have a pony that I am rehabbing from an injury, who is in the middle of 6 months of stall rest. She is a very spooky, skittish type, and I'm told that she was that way before she was injured. To make a long story short, she is driven absolutely crazy by sounds. It can be anything from a big sound from the barn isle to me dropping a mint into her feed tub. EVERYTHING startles her. Her vision is normal and everything else checks out, it just seems that she is very, very sensitive to noise. She doesn't like raised voices, and if you accidentally skim your hand across the nylon shell of her blanket, she goes into orbit. That kind of stuff.

I think she would be helped with earplugs--and this morning, I put my nice (real fleece) ones in her ears---and noticed an immediate change! My question is, how long can I leave them in her ears? Like I said, they are real fleece so they are very soft and I checked them for any particles of hay or whatever that might bother her ears.

This may be a big step for her---all the unnecessary jumping around and scooting away from sounds is not helping her heal. I almost think I should get a wee jumper bonnet to keep the puffs in her ears!

What do you think about length of time they can stay in, and do you have any other suggestions?

Thanks! :D

[theoldgreymare]

Good question. One of our ponies used to wear plugs from the minute he hit the showground until he left (even stalled). I always changed them daily and washed them in baby detergent to avoid bacteria build up. He is also prone to getting ear plaque when he wears them for more than a few hours so I was extra careful about keeping them clean and changing them as well as checking/cleaning his ears regularly.

As an aside, blood work showed he is slightly hypothyroid and after starting on ThyroL his over reaction to noise has diminished greatly. Still a bit jumpy at sudden, loud noises but does not need earplugs anymore. Unlikely that your pony is hypothyroid but maybe a calming supplement or magnesium supplement while on stall rest might help too. I also like to play soothing music in the barn when I have one on stall rest. Seems to help. Good luck with your pony, stall rest stinks!

[SkipHiLad4me]

The magnesium supps are cheap so it's worth a shot to try one and see if it helps. Magnesium can make a big difference in some horses and if it doesn't work for yours, you haven't lost much money. :yes:

[FlyingSwap]

Thank you very much for the input!

I had sort of planned to take them out at night---I know she relaxes enough to lie down and stuff when there is no activity in the barn. Maybe she can just wear them during the day and I can keep them really clean and check her ears?

She is on the Quietex powder while on stall rest. I just started that a few days ago and haven't noticed a difference. I'll look into the Magnesium. Thanks!

[buck22]

my morgan was hypersensitive as you describe, to sound, sight AND touch. the zzzzzz sound of a windbreaker sent him skyward, the sight of a squirrel darting at 60 yards sent him running in panic, and a light summer misty rain would tickle him to the point he was ready to go through fences if he couldn't escape it. I reduced his diet to nothing, he lived out 24/7, was worked hard 4 days a week, and he was still a danger to anything within 30' of him.

I treated him for ulcers and he's a changed horse, still very alert but a laid back clown that thinks first (most of the time :) ). perhaps try a tube or two of gastro guard and see if anything changes for the better?