Our rescue gelding is mounting mares

[StarRidgeAcres]

This probably seems like a no-brainer sort of question, but I'm hoping to find something other than putting him in another pasture. He's positively miserable when he's away from "his" mares. He never stops running the fence and he's already underweight. I can't have him all upset because it just makes it that much harder to keep any weight on him. He's been through so much already (he was one of the "KS" minis), he's estimated to be around 20 years old. We gelded him in Dec '07. Everything was fine until recently. Now he's mounting (and penetrating) the mares during their cycles. We immediately removed him from the pasture and had him cultured. Sure enough, he's got some bacteria. Now I have to treat EVERY mare and my stallions! OH! That will be a pain in the you-know-what, but my biggest concern is Wiz. I'm not sure he won't worry himself right across the rainbow bridge if he keeps up his current pace. If I stall him he's miserable. If I pasture him anywhere else but with the main herd, he's miserable. He's lived his whole life in a herd setting and I don't have another appropriate buddy to put him with.

So, anybody had any success with something other than separation? Anyone tried anything herbal to maybe reduce stallion-like behavior? Anything?

 

[Jill]

Some geldings CAN "do it" and I do not mean pretend to do it, either.

My riding horse was gelded before I bought him, but he will mount and penetrate mares. I've seen him do it.

Then with my minis, I have / had 3 geldings who can and do the same, and again, not just pretend. Last year, I caught Derby at it -- with his little sister no less. He was gelded as a 5yo stallion. I've caught Eclipse as a 2yo as well, and he was gelded as a yearling. Most shockingly, I caught a yearling I'd had gelded at 6mos doing it.

With as OFTEN as I have seen it in my own geldings, I think it happens A LOT more than people realize. I mean, 1/2 of my own geldings are little love machines.

The minis are horses I helped geld. I saw the whole proceedure and "they" both were removed. Interestingly, all except Derby act just like geldings. No squealing or stallion behavior other than the ability to do the deed with my mares.

ALSO, this isn't PG to start with, but when we have hand bred our mares, the geldings all watch and they "sport" very noticable interest. They have no shame. Standing along the fence, watching, with (urgh) erections.

The only solution I know of is separation.

 

[Royal Crescent]

It has only been 6 mos, and I thought I heard it take several months for those hormones to drop enough..even a month per year up to a point. You don't have another gelding or older mare to try with him?

 

[Reignmaker Miniatures]

Are you breeding any of those mares? If you had a mare already settled (or two ) you could let him run with the bred mares and just separate him from the open ones. Other option I can think of is to pull mares that begin to be of interest to him but that is a bit of a risk still if you don't know what their cycle is yet. Good luck.

 

[Nathan Luszcz]

Testosterone is out of their system in a matter of hours.

In this case, since its suspected that the stallion was in his 20's when castrated, the mounting is a behavioral, ingrained responce and not hormone driven. Chances are he'll continue breeding if exposed to mares in heat.

 

[Marty]

Parm, for what its worth I think its behavioral too since that is what he has been acustomed to

do all his life. Got a gelding he can go out with?

In answer to your question about herbal things, ask Heather at Mulligans Run. She's an expert on the herbs.

 

[StarRidgeAcres]

It has only been 6 mos, and I thought I heard it take several months for those hormones to drop enough..even a month per year up to a point. You don't have another gelding or older mare to try with him?

My only other gelding is on my show string so he's already in a different area and it's my oldest mare that he loves the most! OH! I don't have any mares that aren't of cycling age or are on my show string.

Are you breeding any of those mares? If you had a mare already settled (or two ) you could let him run with the bred mares and just separate him from the open ones. Other option I can think of is to pull mares that begin to be of interest to him but that is a bit of a risk still if you don't know what their cycle is yet. Good luck.

Unfortunately I'm leaving almost all of my mares open for next year. I do have a couple that may have settled but I don't know for sure yet. This may be an option in a month.

Testosterone is out of their system in a matter of hours.
In this case, since its suspected that the stallion was in his 20's when castrated, the mounting is a behavioral, ingrained responce and not hormone driven. Chances are he'll continue breeding if exposed to mares in heat.

This is EXACTLY what the vet said. It's a learned behavior being driven by his brain not his hormones. I was just hoping that possibly there was some natural or herbal thing I could use that might "subdue" him a bit and then maybe his brain wouldn't be focused on the mares as much. It was just wishful thinking I guess.