Page 56 - November 2016

The Stableizer is an easy to use humane restraint that puts pressure on the poll and under the top lip, releasing endorphins and making
the horse feel pleasure. The horse does not resent it, remembers the situation as a good experience, and is more cooperative in the future. It can also be used in many situations, such as medical procedures, grooming, shoeing, breaking, training, etc.
in 5 sizes to fit foals and miniature horses and on up to large draft horses. It works on donkeys and mules, zebras and llamas. We created it through trial and error with help from veterinarians, vet schools, horse- shoers, trainers, equine dentists and many other great people,” he says.
The next step was to get people to try it. In 1996, Wheeler showed
it to racehorse trainer D. Wayne Lukas, who used it on all his Kentucky Derby entrants. His Derby winner, Grindstone, wore it while being led to the saddling paddock and starting gate for the race. Another horse
he was training, Editor’s Note, who was notorious for acting up, also wore it and was the calmest he’d ever been - wearing it on his way to the starting gate before winning the Belmont Stakes. After that, more train- ers and horse breeders started using it.
Wheeler has demonstrated the effectiveness of the Stableizer at many equine events with all kinds of horses, including spoiled and dangerous animals and unruly mustang stallions fresh off the range. At first, many vet- erinarians and farriers had doubts about its effectiveness, but now they are his best customers, and the Stableizer is used in many veterinary hospitals.
The reason it works is the feeling of pleasure it gives rather than pain while wearing it. The animal remembers the foot trimming, clipping, etc., as a good experience rather than something to fear, and he is more cooperative next time. Many horses resent reapplication of a twitch but don’t seem to mind having the Stableizer put on again, and they often stay calm and relaxed for up to 10 minutes after it is removed. Many horses get to where they tolerate the activity, such as clipping, wound care or whatever they are restrained for, so much better after a few ses- sions that they no longer need the Stableizer.
It’s also handy as a training device. “A horse doesn’t learn anything when drugged, but remembers everything you do with the Stableizer,” says Wheeler. The animal remembers the first leading lesson, first saddling, first shoeing, first trailer loading, etc., as a pleasant experience since he feels so relaxed while you’re doing it and never has any suspicions or fears.
Training and desensitizing usually takes many hours, getting a horse accustomed to every new thing and gaining his trust and dispelling his fears, so he won’t react adversely. But when the Stableizer is utilized to introduce him to something new, it enables him to accept it with im- mediate tolerance. When the animal hears the clipper, he associates it with pleasure rather than alarm since he had such a good feeling while you were using it the first time with the Stableizer.
A few years ago, Buck and Karen moved to Kentucky to breed racehorses. Now, he is more adamant than ever about the importance of starting these young horses correctly, with no stress and no hassle. He uses the Stableizer on them from the beginning. He recently sold
a 5-month-old Thoroughbred filly for $100,000. “We’d just weaned her when the new owners came to pick her up. She’d already been on the walker and taught to tie. We’d bathed and clipped her and loaded her in the trailer. She’d had all that done by the time she was 5 months old and was easy to handle. We sold our other filly in the Fastig-Tipton Select Sale last July for $80,000. These fillies were perfect to handle. I will never start another young horse without the Stableizer. When you handle them from the beginning, it makes a huge difference,” he says. “They learn total trust with the Stableizer. During the training process, I take them out of the pen and drive them with a saddle on through and around trees and bushes. With the Stableizer on, noth- ing bothers them. So it’s no big deal when they get to the racetrack
and there’s lots of noise and activity in the barn,” he says. Wheeler also handles many mares at breeding time and uses the Stableizer routinely for every mare that’s palpated, ultrasounded, or bred.
Dr. Marvin Cain, world-famous veterinarian acupuncturist, endorsed the Stableizer early on, recognizing its ability to stimulate endorphin release utilizing important pressure points. “He saw me demonstrating the Stableizer when we first came out with it the year Grindstone won the Kentucky Derby. Afterward, he asked me to participate in his clinic and demonstrate it again at an international symposium at his farm in Kentucky.” Used correctly, the Stableizer is a good way to calm a horse.
The Stableizer is used by
many racehorse trainers and veterinarians, at equine events, and with all kinds of horses because of its effectiveness. It is a method to work with a horse without causing stress and
to gain their trust.
54 SPEEDHORSE, November 2016
EQUINE HEALTH