CRIB biting, wind sucking and weaving are signs that your horse may be as bored with the dreadfully wet conditions as you are, writes Sara Pawsey.

In crib biting the horse grabs hold of any projecting edge such as the stable door or fence post with his teeth, arches his neck and gulps down air.

Wind sucking often follows on from crib biting where the horse gulps down air without grabbing onto a surface. Crib biters have worn front teeth or incisors while swallowing air leads to digestive problems. Although thoroughbreds, warmbloods and standard bloods are at high risk, any breed is susceptible to cribbing, especially those with a lack of forage and shorter time spent feeding, those on bedding other than straw and those being fed concentrates other than at low levels.

Weaving, box walking and head nodding seem to occur when the horse is frustrated.

Weaving especially is often seen in racing stables, where the horse swings its head from side to side over the stable door.

If your horse is weaving the answer is to get an anti-weave grid and attach it to the door.

Stopping your horse cribbing is slightly more complicated as there are an array of ‘remedies’ on the market.

Experts say some of the more traditional deterrents, such as cribbing collars, may cause more harm than good.

Putting an old tyre across the top of a stable door prevents a horse damaging his teeth when crib biting. Rubber matting on the floor and coconut matting on the inside of the stable door are also useful for horses that paw the ground and bang the door. It is suggested that putting feed stations around the stable instead of always putting the feed in the same place encourages the horse to forage more.

Provide as little hard feed as possible. If extra energy is needed make sure it comes from fat in the diet, rather than starch as this reduces the acidity during digestion. Allow as much access to foraging as possible. Turning out your horse as much as possible helps beat these problems.

Lets hope it stops raining soon