weird teeth thing

Question
3 months ago i bought an 8 y/o tb gelding.The woman that I got him from had aquired he and another gelding from a person that had been in the "racing" business but was losing his farm.  Both geldings were very underweight and looked to have been neglected for some time.  I have been doing some light riding on my boy and have been making some progress turning him into a western pleasure horse.  He is boarded at a large farm with my other horses.  A 20 y/o arab gelding, 27 y/o mustang mare, and another tb. A 4 y/o mare that my daughter adopted 6 months ago. There are only 4 other horses on this farm in another field.  Our horses have a run in and we put them in a barn if the weather is bad.  now, for my question.  when i go to see my horse which is at least 2x day. (they are 2 mins. from my house) i find him at the fence doing strange things with his head/teeth.  its like he is chewing on gum or something.  he has had a dental and okayed by the vet.  i do not hear any grinding and it does not appear that his teeth are touching.  Of course he did not do this when the vet came.  he moves his head around like is is trying to get something out of his mouth.  He eats and drinks like every meal is his last.  he gets lots of water and hay at all times.  he has a great disposition and i think with some work he will make a wonderful friend but this teeth thing has me baffeled.  can you help.  thanks,  k

Answer
Hi Kay!

I would have to say if he was cleared by a vet and eats just fine.... that this issue is his "inner dialogue" you are seeing.

OTTB's have many and varied odd habits that are produced by the odd lifestyle they live.  I have seen lots of things....tongue rolling and then sucking on it just to name one.

He may be doing it by the fence because he is not used to long periods of T/O and wants to come in to his stall.  It could be he is simply bored because he has no idea how to relax like a "real" horse in T/O.  I like a pasture rolling toy that dispenses treats to get a horse interested in good behavior through positive reinforcement.  Check out an online tack shop's toy category and see what they have.

Lastly, you can do allot to help but, you may never stop him from his little odd affectations.  Just ignore it and be happy he is good for everything else  :-)

Good luck and remember to always wear an ASTM/SEI approved helmet!

Solange