Hormone Level High

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user 3234

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How long after being Castrated does it take for the hormone levels to drop (go from stud to gelding in attitude)? My 2 year old took 2 months after being gelded. With the two new 5 y/o that were recently gelded I was wondering if it would be the same. Can anyone help me with this?
 
The hormone levels start to drop immediately after castration. But the levels drop gradually over a period of six to eight weeks. With older horses just having the hormone levels drop will not always cure their behavior. Older horses tend to retain some of their attitude far beyond the point where hormones are nil. Then there are some really nasty boys who never get over it. The older a horse is the higher the risk that some unwanted behaviors will remain forever.
 
It really depends upon the individual. For about 2 months after being gelded (at tje age pf 4-1/2 years), Mingus was much more hormonal than when he was a stallion. Then his behavior made an abrupt U-turn. He has all of the energy and spark, but the need to dominate disappeared (well, except for at mealtime!).

I've been told that studly behavior can go on for 9 months in some horses.
 
Among oldtimers like me, there is a rough 'rule of thumb' that it will take 'about' a month for every year the horse remained a stallion for him to 'get over' stallion-like behavior. Remember, I said"rough"!!
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I have had a fair number of horses gelded over time, and have found this to be generally the case.
 
I had a 4 year old stallion gelded, it took him a year and he remained crabby,always sour
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. I had a ten year old gelded,it also took him about a year and he also remianed crabby,niether were every happy agian. They always wore their ears back and just stood around like a mad child. I will never geld another older stallion, it changed the attitude of the two i did.
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I have gelded several young colts and never had a problem due to the fact they had not been with mares yet. My vet says some horses just have good memory. but I will never do it agian, they were sour and still would fight with other males.

On the other hand i gelded a 20 year old big horse and he did fine, ramianed talkative and happy.
 
We (well, not US, but you know what I mean) gelded a 7 year old QH stud, and he still acts like a stud until this day, and he's 12 now. I think it's just habit for him to act that way. He still squeals at mares, and just acts studdy. Also, there are some "geldings" out there that are not actually true geldings, they are proud cut, which means they still think they're a stud, but they can't breed a mare (or get her bred, I should say, they'll still try). Whoever cut these of horses didn't do it correctly, and have basically left parts still in there that needed to come out.

I've heard that if you do castrate an older stallion, if you work him hard and exercise him daily for a month or two, the hormones eventually will get burned up out of their system...but who knows?
 

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