new home transition

[Janet Estes <zestes@sd69.bc.ca>]

Hi All,

I've only had geldings before, but yesterday we welcomed our first mare
into our family. Her name is Summer. She's been here for 24 hours now and
we're a bit concerned because she has very little appetite.

She has only moved a 2-hour drive from her previous home, but she has left
behind her beloved pasture mate (another mare). When she first arrived here
she was curious and had a great appetite. We have one other horse (a
gelding) and though they've been able to touch noses we're keeping them in
separate side-by-side paddocks until it feels comfortable to try them
together.

Maybe any other horse I've dealt with have been too food-oriented to lose
their appetite over a move. If her appetitie doesn't pick up, at what point
should I be concerned. I don't know what a normal amount of output is for
Summer, but she creted one healthy-looking stool pile in the night and I
saw her urinate this morning.

Am I being too much of a worry wart? Does she just need more time to adjust
to her new surroundings (and the loss of the ther horse she was with for
the 2 previous years)? Should I take her for a short ride today or just let
her lay low and settle in?

Trying not to worry... Janet
zestes@sd69.bc.ca