A Final Journey

" Sweetie"

There is some sad news to report today.  Our Arabian mare Sweetie is no longer with us.  She has been failing for the past few months and it was time to ease her suffering and let her go.  Sweetie could hardly walk anymore; her legs were crippled by her DSLD disease and she was very uncomfortable to the point where she did not want to go out with the herd anymore.  So, we’ve been leaving her loose around the barn, she had access to any stall she so chose to go into for hay and water or lie down for a nap, which she did quite often.  There was also access to grass for grazing.  It was the best we could do for her given the circumstances.

Our vet was out to check on some of our other horses and we asked him directly to let us know when he thought it might be Sweetie’s time, as we were afraid we couldn’t be objective about such a difficult decision.  He told us it was past time and we should consider making arrangements as soon as possible.  Even though we did not want our time with her to end, it was the best choice for her.

Princess Nibar, aka “Sweetie,” came to us two years ago from a bad situation; she was 25 years old and in desperate need of good care.  If we had left her where she was, she would have been put down.  When she nickered to us to come back and not forget about her, we had to take her home with us.

It has been two years of getting to know and care for a very charming, smart, sensible and classy mare, and it would be impossible not to love her.  She made us smile every day we knew her and she taught us so much about the impressive Arabian breed.  Sweetie was one of a kind and our lives have been enriched for having known this gentle soul.  She has shown us through her indomitable spirit that no matter how dire the circumstances, one should never give up on life.

We have heard that in her younger years as Princess Nibar she was a National English Pleasure champion, and I do not doubt it.  When she was 10 years old she was sold to a breeder and this woman bred her quite a lot.  So, suffice it to say, I do not think she had a very happy life.  We are content that for the last two plus years of her life she got to be a horse and spend time with the herd grazing and grooming each day.  Sweetie was very appreciative to us, her human friends, for the care and love she received and deserved.  We do think she thoroughly enjoyed herself.

It is never easy to make this kind of decision but it is a necessary evil of being a horse’s caretaker. Last night she spent her time outside with Sami, her son, under the night stars. She had access to the paddocks and could rest in the shed when she needed to.  We led her through the barn this morning to say her goodbyes to the rest of the herd and then let her meander slowly with us to the back field. Sweetie snacked on carrots, apples and her personal favorite ‘Stud Muffins’.

Sweetie will always be with us as she is on our property resting peacefully on the hilltop overlooking the farm under a grove of shady trees.  We gave her the best end we could and she left us with the dignity that she has exhibited while she was with us for the last two years.

Although this is a sad time, we would like to think of Sweetie not in pain any longer, but whole again, running through green meadows, tail flagged up in the air and feeling like a young filly once more.  There is a picture in my mind of her drinking from a crystal mountain stream, occasionally lifting her head, ears alert and perhaps meeting horse friends from her past that she can forever roam green pastures with again.

Goodbye little mare, we will miss you; it was an honor and a privilege to have know you, if only for a short time. We will always remember your sweetness and your spirit forever.

Until next time

Quote for Today

There is something about the sight of a fallen horse that strikes one's heart in such a way, even for those who are not particularly a horse lover...the significance of something so sacred, powerful, beautiful, intoxicating as the horse...when a fallen horse is seen overcome by life's obstacles, fallen tears and a jolt to the heart and soul can never be prevented...
    - Stephanie M Thorn

An Entertaining Day

"Cast of Characters"

( These are pictures taken in previous training sessions in outside arena)

" Donnie"

Our day started out with the usual feed and turnouts, then whichever horses were being worked were readied for their lessons. We have been acclimating some of the more ‘special needs’ horses to the indoor by hand walking and lunging them a few times before they are ridden inside.  Donnie had the number one slot on the dance card today.  He’s still a little nervous about indoors since a German Shepherd attacked him in an indoor a few years ago (which also resulted in his first “girthy” bucking incident.)  As a result, he doesn’t care much for dogs or indoors, so making him feel secure in the indoor is a priority before eventually mounting up.

It was raining, but the noise was less than I thought it would be on the metal roof and we were pleasantly surprised that Donnie was doing so well. My daughter was lunging him and I was sitting on the mounting block.  Out of nowhere I noticed Grady and Blue, two of our nosier horses who had the day off because they were ridden yesterday; their two heads were perfectly framed side by side in the window as they watched Donnie work.  Grady called out to Donnie: “Whatcha doin’ Donnie, wanna come out and play?”  Donnie nickered to them, “I’m almost done here fellas, just let me finish this circle - be out in a minute.”  Of all the times not to have a camera... not that I could have taken a great picture anyway, I was laughing pretty hard.

"Sami"

Next up was Sami; he did very well even if he was a little nervous.  The resident pigeons flew in out the windows a few times distracting him, but he’s surprisingly sensible and all in all he had a good lesson.

"Nate"

Dusty is still on the disabled list.  I took her for a walk in the indoor yesterday and did a quick assessing lunge.  She’s still a tad off on the outside of the circle.  In the past Dusty has been ridden in an indoor only a handful of times, so she’s skeptical and very alert to say the least. I’ve been trying to familiarize her by hand walking and feeding treats so she thinks indoors are fun – kind of like going into a giant walk-in treat dispenser.  Her main squeeze, Nate, was along for his orientation and to keep her company. They have been missing each other so we thought some quality time together would be nice for both of them.

We have 4ft. doors that complete the wall on the lower half of the arena that can be placed over the large opening on the end, but since this is where we come in with vehicles, etc. we’ve been leaving it open.  I also thought it might be nice psychologically for nervous horses to leave it open so they wouldn’t feel too claustrophobic while getting used to being inside; this way they’d always feel like they had an escape route.  But we thought it might be nice for Dusty and Nate to explore on their own, so we decided to block the openings and turn them loose.  After putting a board across the smaller man-door entrance and stringing a thick, white lunge line across the huge doorway at the end, we let them loose to play with each other.  Some trotting side by side and head tossing ensued and they were having fun cavorting and snorting.  At this point Nate decided a nice canter was in order and made a beeline from one end of the arena towards the front entrance where we were watching their antics.  We were standing in front of the lunge line to reinforce the boundary a bit when Nate came bounding toward us.  Sure he would spin out at the last minute, my daughter and I simultaneously raised our arms to turn him and moved to either side of the entrance to avoid the big last minute turn and possible buck we were expecting from him.

But this is Nate we’re dealing with here.  He never does what you’d expect a normal horse to do.  Instead, he kept right on going and we became the human standards for what has now been dubbed “the lunge jump.”  That’s right, all 17’2 hands of goofy Dutch Warmblood jumped over the lunge line, knees snapped up by his ears, in an amazingly effortless jump and proceeded to take a galloping tour around the outside of the arena.  The top of the wall where the lunge was attached is 4ft, and the jump took him onto a bluestone road for a stride then up a steep bank to the top of the hill.  He never missed a beat.


Color us surprised!  Nate has been semi-retired and hasn’t jumped for about 5 years now - and fully retired for the last 6 months - because he has so many mysterious health issues my daughter didn’t want to add stress by working him.  She’s now rethinking this decision after his dazzling jumping display.  This isn’t the first time we’ve caught him in the act of jumping random things for his own entertainment, even in his retirement.  So who knows, maybe he’s bored and a little work might do him some good.  If he can happily canter the length of the indoor, casually step over a 4’ longe line and canter up a near vertical bank in one stride, maybe he can manage a little walking around the field under tack...?

"Dusty"

Dusty, the more sensible of the two, followed him up to a point, and then she stopped, ears forward looking out the doors and windows.  Finally, I think she actually shrugged her shoulders: “Stupid boys; they sure know how to ruin a good time.”

Until next time

Quote for Today
A stubborn horse walks behind you, an impatient horse walks in front of you, but a noble companion walks beside you.

It Wasn't Me !

" Dusty"

This morning upon arrival at the barn for morning feed, Dusty was standing in the grooming stall, which is next to her stall.  As she stood there looking as innocent as she could, we had a Vulcan mind-meld and the telepathy that passed between us was nothing short of amazing.  She was telling me how she had no idea how she came to be in the grooming stall; all she remembers from last night was she twitched her nose like Samantha in the old TV series “Bewitched” and, lo and behold, she was magically teleported into the grooming stall. She’s a little fuzzy on the details but she thinks this is what may have happened to her.

She has no idea why Mellon’s stall looks like an army of soldiers marched through it in the night, or why he is all lathered up.  He’s really such a baby. Maybe he had a nightmare? (And that nightmare couldn’t have been named “Dusty”…?)

And I should disregard those hoof prints in the freshly dragged arena; they weren’t her hoof prints and she was definitely not roaming around investigating things last night.

Dusty has no idea how piles of manure got sprinkled around the outside of the barn on the lawn.  Maybe it was the deer or the foxes or an errant dog perhaps?  Or maybe it just fell out of the wheelbarrow on the way to the dumpster?  You know how messy humans can be.

Oh and she has no idea how pansies taste either.  There is absolutely no way she would have gone into the gardens in front of the barn and tore it all up and then snacked on the pansies.  She would never do that!  The footprints in the mulch are also from those pesky foxes.

If there is any lingering doubt in my mind that she had anything to do with the destruction in the night one needs only to look at her stall and the innocent expression on her face. As she has so meaningfully pointed out to me, her stall guard is still up and do I seriously think she could fit under it?  The only rational explanation is she must have had an out of body experience or perhaps been beamed-up by aliens and re-deposited in the wrong stall upon returning to earth. How else could she have mysteriously wound up in the grooming stall? Really, it’s the only explanation.

Sounds good to me, how about you. Are you buying any of this?

Until next time

Quote for Today

A little horseplay... the way best to enjoy a summer day!

 

Laser Therapy

" Melon"

As everyone who reads this blog knows, Mellon, my daughter’s 23 year old Trakehner, has injured his tendon. Actually, it’s more like he’s almost severed it in half by his knee.  Mellon may be getting on in years, but if you were to see this horse moving and interacting with the herd you would definitely not put him above a 12-15 year old, and neither would he. Perhaps this is because he was a jumper who attacked the jumps, or because being the herd leader for the past twenty years has kept him fit. I should also mention he has quite the attitude and acts like a youngster still.


The vet also checked on him the other day when he was here and cannot believe how well he is healing and how quickly for a horse his age. We originally thought he would be in his stall for at least 4-6 months. It’s been about 2 months since his injury. He can be turned out with Dusty in a small grass paddock near the barn - much to Dusty’s dismay, as she really detests him and his egotistical attitude. She’s not one for being told what to do and clearly resents his domineering ways.  We feel we can attribute his speedy recovery to cold therapy, laser boots, wrapping and general good all around care.  In Mellon’s case, stall rest has been of little help because all he does is weave and pace, putting more stress on the injury than his light grazing in a small paddock.


However, we seem to think, along with the vet, that the laser boots are helping. When we had a small boarding/training operation we took in a lot of rehab horses, many from the track.  Their injuries usually included some sort of ligament or tendon injury, splints, etc..  We used laser boots because they did seem to speed the healing process.  I’m not sure why, thought there are many theories.  Among other things, it could be that they increase circulation, which seems to benefit most injuries.  It is also said to increase nitric oxide production which is important in tendon healing especially.  We often apply an ice boot first to remove heat and calm any inflammation before treatment.
 

What I like about this particular laser equipment is that it automatically cycles between frequencies and automatically shuts off after 15-20 minutes, so there is no fear of over-doing it. So far we’ve only got the hock, ankle, knee and tendon savers.  They are quite expensive to begin with, but I feel that they are worth the price because they do work in speeding along the healing process. They are also easy and convenient to use, unlike traditional cold laser units that are hand held and can only be applied over a small area at a time.  If you’re interested at all in this form of therapy here’s the site where we purchased our equipment: Bio Scan.


I’d love to have all of their equipment but for now we’ve got enough going on around here costing a leg and a hoof so more equipment will have to wait.


Until next time


Quote for Today
If a horse stands on you it’s because you’re in the way.

Award Time

Kacy and her wonderful Washashe mare have honored me by bestowing this prestigious award.  I can't thank them enough.  Kacy and Washashe from All Horse Stuff are one of the sweetest horse and rider teams in the blogosphere.  I'm thrilled to get this award and follow along with them on their many adventurous trail rides. 

There are so many horse friends in the blogosphere that are deserving of this award and since the rules state that I can only give it to one person, I thought that I would like to give it to Valentino's mom.  She is recently come back to riding after a long time off. And is also starting her own horse business. I like that she takes the time to get it right for her and her horses and is a caring individual. I can't imagine traveling 3 1/2 hours to a lesson but she takes the drive because that's where she found the perfect trainer for her and her horse Valentino. Hope you enjoy your award you are most deserving.


Below is the description of the award that I have shamelessly plagiarized from Kacy's blog:

This Award is dedicated to those Horse lovers and riders that inspire others to go deeper in ability, knowledge and understanding of the Equine(s) they have been entrusted to.The good of the horse is the ultimate goal apart from pressures to achieve ribbons and fit into lesson schedules.

~Some of These riders are fearless, when it comes to weather conditions and the forecasting of them...being with their horses, fills these folks' soul and takes the cares out of daily routines.

~They are unconditionally loving to the horse and may have rescued it from known ailment or living condition.

 
~Others have researched and purchased/ acquired their horse, to find a difficulty in temperament or a physical burden within the animal. Yet, Being dedicated , they have persevered to proudly be in partnership with their horse, lovingly striving for deeper awareness's between them.

~Some horse lovers may have been riding for years and suddenly, had an accident that takes them away from the great joy and freedom they have, being aboard such a magnificent animal. ~They have allowed the healing horse to rise in their hearts once again, and beckon them back!

~INTREPID RIDERS FACTION ~We strive to go where others only dare to go with our horse loves...healing,being respectful of the horse, riding, playing, camping, jumping, swimming and traveling down the trails of life. . . . with the horse in Heart~Overcoming many obstacles and sometimes weather, to ride!

There are not many rules with this award...JUST :

1)that you give it to only one person

2)link back to this post, so they may have an understanding to it's true nature

3) You may use any or all of the above written descriptions, with the award picture

And to my further surprise I received another award. The Sweet Blog Award from Stephanie at The Aspiring Equestrian.  So I'm doubly honored this month that I've been the recipient of  these awards.  Over the years I've been called a lot of things but sweet isn't the first adjective that comes to mind, but hey, I'll take it. Thanks again Stephanie, hope your leg is healing quickly.

The rule for this award is to bestow it on 10 bloggers who in turn give a link back to you. I'm not going to name 10 bloggers who deserve this award because it's too hard a decision and I think any one who is nice enough to stop by and read my blog is a deserving candidate. Please feel free to take the award if you want it and pass it on. 

Until next time

Quote for Today

I wake up every day determined to both change the world and have one hell of a good time. Sometimes this makes planning the day difficult. - E. B. White

Coming Along

'Blue'

Blue and I are making progress together, but for now it seems to be slow with little triumphs here and there.  As I’ve always said, there is no such thing as taking the fast-track when training a horse and oneself.  He is a very talented horse with a very set way of going and on occasion he either gets confused or just downright refuses to do what you ask, I haven’t decided which yet.  Then again, you could be pleasantly surprised that he does listen to all your cues perfectly at other times.  It all comes down to riding the horse you have today. And by “today” I mean that he came out and was trying to be a good boy. For a smaller horse (15.2 hands) he feels as though he has as big a stride as my 17.2 hand horse Erik did.

Today he was very animated and covered a lot of ground in trot.  One of the things we have to work on is his body language.  Blue loves to get out of proper work by either over-bending to the inside or popping his shoulder in and turning his head to the outside.  This is made even harder to ride by his insistence on falling on the forehand with his nose doing an imitation of a snowplow in the dirt. To get his head up I will gently lift one or both reins.  Usually lifting only the inside rein and releasing the outside or visa versa works better than lifting both, but it all depends on which one works best in the given situation (or which he feels like listening to at the moment.)  We used mostly the outside rein aid today and it worked well on getting his balance up, as he was more prone to his over-bending evasion today, and the outside rein was not only helpful in straightening him, but lightening his forehand, both of which helped rebalance him.  I should mention that as soon as he comes up he gets a release, and this rein aid lifts the bit straight up into the corner of his mouth, and not back onto the bars or tongue at all.

We’re also working on steering.  Blue is one of those horses that feels comfortable falling in and not staying on the track; sort of cutting corners and being a tad lazy is his MO.  We fixed this by using an opening outside rein aid. It works well for him.  By using the opening rein to lead him back out to the track he will stay there for a few strides and then we repeat when necessary, releasing the inside rein to avoid confusion.

I would like to add that some of this is unorthodox riding and I am in no way saying I have the credentials to be a trainer.  I do what works with my horses and don’t advocate anyone else taking my methods as gospel. This is simply my diary of how I’m coming along with Blue.  It will give me something to look back on to see where we started and how far we have come when I check back at a later date.

Until next time

Quote for Today
Just knowing we have both learned something when I have finished riding is enough for me!

And So...

" Dusty'

Our vet examined Dusty today and she will be laid up for at least two more weeks.  Her toe reacted to the hoof testers letting us know that she is still sore.  For the past few weeks she has been wearing Soft Ride boots to ease her pain and make her more comfortable walking. I would definitely recommend these boots for any horse with an injured hoof.  These boots can also be worn (according to their site) for riding, but I’m not sure how well that would work.  Even though she was measured correctly for the proper size, she still manages to leave one behind now and again. The boots are a great medical innovation for injuries and other foot issues, and I like that they sell orthotics that can be inserted into the boot depending on what type of injury the horse is recuperating from. They have enabled her to be relieved of the boredom of constant stall rest and have allowed her to graze in a small grass paddock with Mellon, who is also in rehab for a torn tendon.  I feel like I’m running a MASH unit here on the farm with all the injuries lately.

The vet recommended that Dusty be shod in natural balance shoes pour-in pads to help ease the pain of having a coffin bone rotation of about 5 degrees and a possible bruise.  We knew nothing of the rotation until she had x-rays and, even though it’s not much, it’s still there and has to be dealt with.  She may have had this for years and it’s just coming to our attention because of her soreness now.  Dusty’s always been a very stoic mare and never complains, so when she started limping, we knew it had to be bothering her quite a bit.  It could be that since it’s been so dry and her hooves were so hard she may have stepped on a rock and bruised her sole.  Regardless of how it happened the vet has decided to treat the rotation as a new injury. He’s contacted our farrier and they discussed her options and what would be best for her.  I think it’s a plus that the vet and farrier confer on cases.  Dusty will get her new shoes tomorrow and in two weeks will be checked and x-rayed again to see where she is and when she can get back to work. Our vet seems to think that she will return to normal with the proper shoes and should be as good as she always was.

Last night we had a saddle fitter out who had previously taken a tracing of Dusty for a custom saddle.  Since she is wither-deprived and very round, there are no saddles that fit her off the rack so to speak.  This girl sent the tracings to the company she works with in England and they sent her a tree.  Well, lo and behold, it fits her perfectly and as an added bonus it fits Blue perfectly too.  Now the only question will be whether or not I go ahead and buy it. I was pleasantly surprised when she told me the price of the saddle; it was nowhere near how expensive I thought it was going to be.  My Albion dressage saddle (off the rack) was much more than this custom saddle.  Thinking of that Albion saddle, I’m probably going to have to sell it because it doesn’t fit any of the horses we have now. It was Erik’s and the shame of it is I only used it maybe a total of five times before he died. Still, it’s classified as a used saddle and I’ll probably get a lot less for it than it’s worth.  Secretly, I think I just held on to it because I’m a pack rat and never get rid of anything, with the “hey you never know when a horse will come along that can use it” attitude.  In the meantime, I’m waiting for the next set of x-rays and diagnosis before making any sort of permanent decision on Dusty’s saddle.

Until next time
Quote for Today
EQUINOMIC$ - The distribution and depletion of a large percentage of a horse owners cash flow.

Busy Days - Nosy Horses

 We’ve had lots going on around here lately.  The barns and sheds are being painted.  The paddock fencing is under construction.  We are moving some paddock fences and replacing some gates with metal ones.  The vinyl gates sag and are unbalanced making it hard to open and close them properly.  Especially, when you’ve got a handful of horses on the end of lead lines. 

Finally, the electric fence will be taken down and we will be able to use the two-stall shed, which was previously unavailable for the past two years because of the indoor construction.  So it’s all coming along.  Today the workers took down the boundary fence to reconfigure the posts/fencing going up to the new shed.  This left a good chunk of the property line exposed with no fencing.  While the herd was in the back grazing it was no problem, but of course, whenever they decide to make an appearance up by the shed this could lead to a problem with loose horses.  We tied a lunge line across the gate opening to contain them.  And not a minute too soon, once the line was tied they all came galloping up because they are a nosy bunch.  I was amused watching the guys have lunch under the tree line inside the paddock while most of the horses were over there milling about, more than likely looking for a handout. 

It always surprises me that non-horse people would not event think twice about doing things that I consider dangerous to my horses.  Like leaving the property line unguarded and open.  It would never occur to them that the horses could get loose and run down the road.  Since we have a huge hay field next to the paddock I’m talking about, they more than likely wouldn’t have gone as far as the road, but you never know.  My motto is “better safe than sorry!” 

Until next time

Quote for Today

Poverty is another word for owning a horse...

The Big Squeezy

                                         

' Blue'

Over the weekend we had a young girl (11/12?) stop by for a visit to play with the horses.  I was in the process of tacking up Blue for a ride and, as I was pulling up the girth, this girl told me an astonishing fact: she had heard from her trainer that if you pull the girth too tight it can suffocate the horse and they could die. Even at her impressionable age, she had her doubts about this theory of her trainer’s, so asked me if I thought it was true. I stood back, smiled and pointed out as tactfully as I could that where the girth is located in relation to the air passages makes it reeeaaally unlikely that the girth can choke a horse, and the ribs and muscles do a pretty good job of protecting the lungs from girth pressure.   In fact, I have on several occasions seen horses expand so much they break their girths when they reach their limit during a big effort, for example, over a large jump.  To me, that makes the idea of tightening a girth enough to kill a normal, healthy horse seem even more unlikely.  I just didn’t think that was a viable possibility.  I explained that I had heard of girthy horses acting strangely and even collapsing or fainting when the girth is pulled up, but this is usually because of extreme pain, panic, or pressure put on a particular nerve that could be compromised if the girth was pulled too tight.  [I have even heard of horses tensing up so much they hold their breath until they get lightheaded or faint,] but suffocation still probably wouldn’t occur.

 I found myself pondering this further during my ride which, by the way, wasn’t all it could have been due to the fact that Blue is hardest horse in the barn to ride. Besides being lazy and unmotivated, he’s also exceptionally uncomfortable. But I digress.  I decided to check out this suffocating phenomenon online. After much research the best I could come up with was the following article.  If anyone has ever heard of or been witness to a horse suffocating from a too tight girth, I really would be interested in knowing the details, because I simply don’t think it’s possible this could happen.

Belly Bands: Girth Strap Tightness

From The Horse.com

by: Katherine Walcott
April 01,2001

Every time you saddle a horse, you tighten a girth. But how tight should you make that girth? Just enough to keep the saddle on? With space to slip a hand under the girth? As tight as it will go? Furthermore, how well does a horse breathe with this tight band strapped around his lungs?

John Bowers, BVSc, MACVSc, and Ron F. Slocombe, BVSc, MS, PhD, Dipl. ACVP, Chair of Veterinary Pathology at the University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, recently investigated this question in a study involving eight ex-racehorses. They found that most grooms in the Australian racing industry tighten the girths to a point that could have a detrimental effect on their charges' performance.

For the rest of the article please go to this link:  The Horse.com

We really like our Le Tixerant girths because they relieve pressure on the most sensitive areas under a girth while allowing the horse’s chest to expand more naturally.  As a result, they seem to be able to stretch out and relax more.  [In addition, they grip well and don’t seem to require as much tightening as traditional girths.]  We’ve also used the string girths and find the horses really like them for comfort and breathability.  Over the years we’ve tried most of the standard girths and they worked fine.  Of course, we’re careful never to over-tighten them, to the point of sometimes leaving them too loose!  I found this study interesting and informative, but I still don’t think a horse can suffocate and die from an over tightened girth. I’d be interested to hear your thoughts on this subject?

Until next time 

Quote for Today 

If the horse does not enjoy his work, his rider will have no joy.
    - H.H. Isenbart