Is Haircut to Blame for Sudden Aggression?
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I have had my 24-year-old, rescued quarter horse for over a year. He’s gentle and sweet as can be to our other horse; in fact, they are buddies. He is retired, he just eats and walks around the pasture—however, that all changed yesterday when we had his shaggy fur clipped for the first time. Now he is super-aggressive and is attacking the other horse. He would barely even run before, and now he chases the other horse! We are distraught. Is this normal? What can we do?
- Ray
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Ray, clipping a furry coat would make your horse feel much differently, both the way his fur feels against his skin and the way he perceives his environment. I would suggest keeping the two horses on opposite sides of the fence for a couple of days, and then reintroducing them. I suspect all will be fine in just a few days.
- Dr. Weiss