Burnout is a condition in which the patient is emotionally and physically exhausted. As a result, it becomes almost impossible to perform normally. There is often a lot of tension, and it becomes difficult to cope with it. Especially the feeling of having no control over your life contributes to burnout. This can be related to work, but also to health or relationships. When you suffer from burnout, it becomes difficult to relax. In people, burnout affects things such as sleep, focus and memory. You feel tired, downhearted and have little motivation for anything.

Burnout in horses

It may not be an official diagnosis, but horses can also experience a form of burnout. They appear tired and listless, respond little or poorly to aids, do not interact with other horses or people, and often stand in a corner of the stable or paddock. These horses are no longer curious about their surroundings and seem to have little energy. Even when other horses are startled, these horses show very little reaction. They also tend to learn poorly. Many of these symptoms in horses are also described using the term “learned helplessness.”

Learned helplessness

How does a horse learn this depressive behavior? It is the result of a long-term process in which the horse is not being heard. A simple example is no longer responding to aids. Imagine you constantly apply leg aids to a horse—something a beginner sometimes does on a riding school horse—and those aids do not stop when the horse responds by moving forward. Eventually, the horse will stop responding to the leg aid altogether. It has learned that responding does not help and that the leg aids will continue anyway. The horse will therefore shut itself off from the aid. The same principle applies to many other behaviors. If the signals a horse gives about, for example, physical discomfort, excessive training load, an unsuitable herd, pain or stress are not recognized and nothing is done about them, the horse will eventually withdraw into itself. Just like people with burnout, the horse experiences little or no control over its life. The result: a listless horse that some people perceive as obedient or lazy, but which is actually deeply unhappy.

Prevention is better than cure

A deeply unhappy horse is something nobody wants. However, horses usually mask discomfort because they do not want to appear as the weakest in the herd. That can make it difficult to recognize the early signs of burnout in horses. So how can you prevent your horse from entering this dark tunnel? It starts with careful observation and providing a good living environment, proper management and appropriate training.

Tips to prevent burnout

• Ensure proper management with sufficient high-quality roughage, plenty of free movement and social contact with other horses. This is the absolute foundation.
• Always observe your horse carefully and watch for small signals that things may not be going well.
• Occasionally observe your horse within its regular group: does it seem content in this herd, does it display social behavior such as mutual grooming and playing, does it have friends?
• Watch for signs of pain caused by issues such as digestive problems, dental problems or poorly fitting tack. Have your horse checked annually by a dentist and a saddle specialist. If there are signs of mild lameness, consult your veterinarian or physiotherapist.
• Provide routine and predictability in your horse’s daily life. Fixed feeding times, a stable group of companions and daily free movement give your horse a sense of control.
• Keep your horse’s immune system strong. Intervene in time if your horse looks tired, struggles with coat condition or has a slight cold. Give an extra day of rest or use a natural supplement to give your horse a boost. When in doubt, consult your veterinarian.
• Provide appropriate training suited to the age, level of education and breed / conformation of the individual horse. Do not ask too much, but also not too little. Educate yourself and seek good advice.
• Provide variation in training and avoid doing the same thing every day. Not only can this be physically demanding and lead to injuries, it is also simply boring. Go outside, place a pole on the ground or practice groundwork. Gradually expand your horse’s horizon without exceeding its limits. A naturally nervous horse should perhaps not be confronted with a full course of scary obstacles at once. Start with something achievable and build from there. For a young and inexperienced horse, a challenge is very different from that for an experienced competition horse.
• You can also enrich the paddock or pasture, for example with partly different footing, a small hill, a bundle of willow branches or play balls filled with hay. This allows your horse to express exploratory and curious behavior.
• Support your horse with the right vitamins, minerals and herbs. A horse that experiences additional stress—for example due to relocation, intensive training or recovery after illness—can be supported with magnesium, clove and calming herbs. This can help the horse climb out of a slump again or, even better, prevent a serious dip.

Look closely at your horse!

In summary, it is especially important to know what signals to look for. A horse that appears calm on the outside is not always in balance on the inside. Give your horse the space to display natural behavior, including social interaction. A mentally healthy horse is generally curious, cheerful and social.