[Equibrit]

http://www.researchequine.com/is-you...pic-behaviour/

[SaratogaTB]

Thanks for sharing this. My gelding cribs and is moving in a couple weeks to a barn that has him on five acres of grass turnout. His current turnout doesnt have grass, but has hay supplied on a schedule. I think that this article supports my theory that being able to forage on grass all day will help him, and ultimately reduce his grain intake. Since I've gotten him a nibble net in his stall, I've seen a reduction in his cribbing. It will be interesting to see if that continues to be the trend once on grass most of the day. (the grass has low nutritional value right now so we will supplement with hay as needed)

[Simkie]

Is this a surprise to anyone? I've always known that horses crib in anticipation of and after grain, and are worse about it if they don't have free choice hay.

[Derby Lyn Farms]

My mare only cribs after she eats. She goes to the same spot on the wood fence and gets her fix.

This article is not surprising to me. Horses with ulcers will crib, and grain will irritate the ulcers making them want to crib more.

[alto]

You might read Wickens & Heliski Crib-biting-behavior-in-horses-A-review (& then the referenced articles if you r.e.a.l.l.y want to fill in some hours ) - a summary of the RAC article was published in the June 2011 Horse & Hound (more detail than the Research Equine summation).

[Nezzy]

What is Crib biting? do they mean Wood Chewing? or do they mean Cribbing which is Wind-sucking?

[JB]

I too think that's a "duh" article and that info has been around a long time (relatively speaking).

They used meals that were high in starches. They made no mention of analyzing these horses for ulcers. They didn't say what the 'forage meal" was - was it just hay? Was it a forage-based feed product? There are several "duh" points there and a lot of unanswered (and maybe untested) questions

But it is a valid article - high sugar meals don't have any place with horses. Horses with ulcers who have the genetic predisposition can easily start cribbing when fed high-sugar diets, or are left without forage for too long, etc.

[Texarkana]

What is Crib biting? do they mean Wood Chewing? or do they mean Cribbing which is Wind-sucking?

"Crib biting" is the UK term for what we commonly just refer to as "cribbing" in the US, aka wind sucking while grabbing onto a solid object with their teeth.

I think this article was just reaffirming what we've already known about cribbing for some years. Now if anyone could get to the bottom of a definitive WHY and a definitive HOW TO STOP IT, I'll be all ears.

[ToTheNines]

LOL, word origins? They bite their cribs (stalls)? Maybe the slang word "crib" is older than we think!

[Texarkana]

LOL, word origins? They bite their cribs (stalls)? Maybe the slang word "crib" is older than we think!

It's exactly derived from the word origin. A "crib" is a small area for confinement and used to be used to refer to livestock stalls. The only agricultural use that lingers today is maybe "corn cribs."

[deltawave]

The word "crib" still means "a small area to confine things" (think of babies, LOL) and it is only the post-modern mangling that equates "crib" with "home" or "house".

[chestnutmarebeware]

My TB mare gets 12+ hours turnout per day with ample grass (and hay in winter), plus her 2 best friends for company and free-choice hay when she's in her stall, but she'd still rather crib! I bought a Weaver cribbing collar with 2 attachment straps and fleece, and the BO finally told me not to bother because it didn't make a difference. Thank god he's got a sense of humor! P.S. She's been checked for ulcers--vet says she's just contrary....