The Best Calming Products for Horses

Keep calm and carry on- Keeping your horse happy and stress-free

Do horses get stressed?

There are many things that can cause stress for your horse. There are the obvious things such as fireworks, transportation and competitions, but there are also more subtle things like seasonal changes and environmental challenges.

Stress can not only mentally harm your horse, but can also physically, such as causing stomach ulcers, (stress-induced) colic, and even fighting among other horses.

 What can I do to help?

There are many different herbal and non-herbal supplements out there that are recommended during periods of stress to help balance their behaviour and adjust faster in stressful times.  These also encourage normal behaviour and support neurological health in general.

These come in a variety of liquids, powders, pellets and pastes of all different sizes. This means you can choose the easiest way to give it to your horse, either being syringed into their mouth or mixed with feed. Many can be given once a day, or split across several feeds. They can be used for short, medium or long term support.

Common ingredients

Kava root (Piper methysticum) – This contains kavapyrones, which make you feel calm and relaxed, also relaxing muscles and can relieve pain.

Passion flower (Passiflora incarnata) – This gentle sedative produces a relaxing effect on its own, but also works well when combined with other herbs such as chamomile, hops or valerian to rebalance a horse’s nervous system.

Chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla) – This herb assists with digestive disorders, nervous tension, irritability, and has anti-inflammatory properties.