Does your older horse still dare to lie down?

As your horse gets older, he also becomes stiffer and more rigid. Sometimes there are also noticeable behavioral changes, or your older horse gets a different, lower position in the herd hierarchy. It is important to be alert to this. Do you know if your horse still dares to lie down? And is it actually bad if he no longer does that?

19 January '25 - 3 min reading time

Horses need half an hour of deep REM sleep per day. That is very important for their health. And that REM sleep only comes when they are lying flat on the ground. Half an hour a day lying flat is therefore necessary for every horse. Only standing to rest or doze is not enough.

Unsafe

Because horses are flight animals and can fall prey to predators in the wild, lying down to sleep is a tense moment. In a herd, standing horses therefore guard the horses that are lying down. But even then, the sleeping horse must feel safe enough to lie down. This also means that they must be able to get up quickly enough if danger threatens. An older horse that has some arthritis and/or stiffness will have more difficulty getting up. At a certain point, this may mean that the horse no longer dares to lie down. And therefore no longer gets enough sleep.

Overtired

A horse that no longer gets REM sleep because it no longer dares to lie down, becomes overtired. Horses can sometimes even collapse through their legs from fatigue. This creates dangerous situations for humans and animals. At some point they will lie down in this way, but if they have difficulty getting up you can see that because wounds develop, often on the fetlocks. Sometimes a horse can no longer get up at all.

Check your horse

How do you know if your horse still dares to lie down to sleep? You can see this, for example, from stains or wet spots on the body, straw or sawdust in the tail and mane, or mud on the flanks or blanket. If you suspect that your horse no longer dares to lie down, you can possibly set up a camera to monitor the situation. If your horse does not lie down or lies down very little, try to find out the cause. Is the stable floor too slippery to easily stand on? You may be able to do something about that with, for example, rubber stable mats or other bedding. If you use stable mats, make sure that there is some bedding on them, such as sawdust. Research shows that bare rubber mats are much less popular to lie down on than mats with some bedding on them. You can also check whether there is enough space in the stable to lie down. And does your horse feel safe enough in its box? Or is the herd still safe for your horse? A larger box, different neighbors or a new group may offer a solution. But it could also be that your horse suffers from pain or stiffness when standing up. Then medication to reduce the pain might be a solution.

Not a good sign

It is important to realize that a horse that has trouble getting up is really starting to get old. You may be able to help your horse for a while with various measures, but it is good to remember that your horse's life will not be that long if he has trouble getting up. Not being able to sleep and not being able to get up not only cause physical complaints but also a lot of fear, stress and panic in your horse. As horse owners it is therefore important that we recognize this and draw our conclusions, in the interest of our animals. However difficult that may be sometimes.