Woo hoo! I FINALLY got my hay. I have 18 big beautiful bales stacked up against the fence row. I liked being able to look back at my post last year to see when I put my first big bale out. That was on October 29th. Yikes, yesterday was December 6th. I have been feeding squares for a few weeks but the weather has been unseasonably warm so they weren’t as “starved” as they normally would have been this time of year.
When I let the horses out after moving a bale to each pasture they ran around it kicking up their heels. I wanted to show DH just how well Black was feeling so I headed out with a whip and shooed them off. They took off running and bucking. Right about then we noticed that the small gate wasn’t lock (the horses had been locked in while the hay guy delivered the hay). Of course as soon as we spotted it so did Black and she v-lined right for it. Out the gate she went! She hauled ass across the gravel road w/o so much as one off step. Once across the street she just stood there looking at us.
I walked across the street and put my arms around her while DH grabbed a rope. The entire way back home she was “prancing” in front of him like “ha ha ha ha ha”.
This is the second time she’s been out this week. The first time was my fault. All of the horses got out and went for a rendezvous down the road. My dad called to tell me and I prepared myself for dealing with Cat and Lu. Much to my surprise when I got there my dad and the neighbor had gotten them in. As suspected he said Cat was his biggest issue.
We got our first real snow last night. There were a lot of cars in the ditch on the way in this morning. Tomorrow and Wednesday is supposed to be even worse.
Tuff E Nuff Quarter Horses
Lucy
Monday, December 7, 2009
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Silent Night
Not much is going on new here with my horses. We are almost ready for winter but I still have a few things left to get done. I probably should get on that since it is snowing right now.
Earlier this week I had the pleasure of being a “lay over” location for 2 horses. A friend from SD had purchased a new mare from TX and sold one of her horses to another friend in WI. She came down on Tuesday and brought with her the horse she’d sold.
At around 12:30 am Equine Express showed up with her new mare. After unloading her we loaded up the other horse to go to his final destination.
It almost felt like Christmas and the horses were the presents. Not my presents of course, I just got the sneak peek before they did.
One of their “passengers” was a mini burro/donkey. He was the cutest thing! Apparently he was found running down a major highway/interstate in Texas earlier that week and was heading to his new home in WI. I tried telling the driver he could leave him at our place but he decline.
Earlier this week I had the pleasure of being a “lay over” location for 2 horses. A friend from SD had purchased a new mare from TX and sold one of her horses to another friend in WI. She came down on Tuesday and brought with her the horse she’d sold.
At around 12:30 am Equine Express showed up with her new mare. After unloading her we loaded up the other horse to go to his final destination.
It almost felt like Christmas and the horses were the presents. Not my presents of course, I just got the sneak peek before they did.
One of their “passengers” was a mini burro/donkey. He was the cutest thing! Apparently he was found running down a major highway/interstate in Texas earlier that week and was heading to his new home in WI. I tried telling the driver he could leave him at our place but he decline.
Monday, November 23, 2009
New Shoes?
Today we were going to have Equicast put on Black so I took an “extended” lunch hour so I could drive my trimmer nuts by asking him 100 questions. I got out to the farm right as he pulled in so I headed out to get the horses. As I headed out to the pasture to get Black she decided to do some LFR Stage 1 around me at liberty while kicking up her heels and playing “catch me if you can”.
She finally stopped long enough for me to put the halter on her and walk her up to the barn. After watching her run around me my trimmer decided maybe we didn’t need the Equicast after all. He trimmed her up and I walked her off to see how she moved. She moves great in a straight line but as soon as you put her on a circle or turn her you can see that she is still sore. He decided to try some Vettec Super Fast on her to create a “shoe” so he could bring her break over back farther. She did trot a little more forward on the circle but still seemed uncomfortable when at a bend.
I didn’t get any pictures of the after product but I did get a few pics of the mudbug herself.
Even with all of the fuzz and mud I still think she looks like she’s added a few more pounds.
She was not thrilled that DH didn’t have any treats.
And here she is behind the “almost finished” fence.
I still have to electrify the wire to the left and pick up the old post (Cat has been using them as play toys).
She finally stopped long enough for me to put the halter on her and walk her up to the barn. After watching her run around me my trimmer decided maybe we didn’t need the Equicast after all. He trimmed her up and I walked her off to see how she moved. She moves great in a straight line but as soon as you put her on a circle or turn her you can see that she is still sore. He decided to try some Vettec Super Fast on her to create a “shoe” so he could bring her break over back farther. She did trot a little more forward on the circle but still seemed uncomfortable when at a bend.
I didn’t get any pictures of the after product but I did get a few pics of the mudbug herself.
Even with all of the fuzz and mud I still think she looks like she’s added a few more pounds.
She was not thrilled that DH didn’t have any treats.
And here she is behind the “almost finished” fence.
I still have to electrify the wire to the left and pick up the old post (Cat has been using them as play toys).
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Pony Time!
Last night I finally got some much needed time with MY ponies! Last week Lucy some how managed to scratch her eye so I’ve been medicating her daily. I swear she must have a thing for my vet. I never realized how tight she could squeeze her eyelids together. Getting the medication in has posed a real challenge. Well that was until we discovered treats! That horse will do almost anything for a treat!
The girls were going to be playing w/the foals so I loaded up Cat and headed over to the arena. I really wasn’t sure what she’d think of it since she hasn’t been of property very much. It was dark and she was a bit skittish at first but settled down quickly. I spent some time cleaning her up and then we headed to the arena.
She was very good. We did some LFR, C pattern and backing. I’m not sure when I worked her last but the way she acted you would have thought it was yesterday. I do however need to work on her back up to get it straighter. I also need to start asking for more “energy” during LFR. Since she was young I’ve never asked her to go out of a trot on line but I think it is time to move up to a canter here and there.
After I finished working her I tied her up and watched the other girls. Besides a bit of pawing here and there Cat stood a lot better then normal.
The horses are changing so much! Their winter fuzzies are coming in. Black has a dark and beautiful coat. Cat has actually lightened up but even with the winter fuzzies her dapples are still visible. Lu is a dark red and her coat is a nice thickness. Not too much (like last year) but not too little like the year before either. I think she’s finally starting to adjust.
Lu isn’t fond of the small quarters of the indoor so I’m hoping this winter to take Cat over once or twice a week and really fine tune my GW with her so that this spring I can start her undersaddle.
The girls were going to be playing w/the foals so I loaded up Cat and headed over to the arena. I really wasn’t sure what she’d think of it since she hasn’t been of property very much. It was dark and she was a bit skittish at first but settled down quickly. I spent some time cleaning her up and then we headed to the arena.
She was very good. We did some LFR, C pattern and backing. I’m not sure when I worked her last but the way she acted you would have thought it was yesterday. I do however need to work on her back up to get it straighter. I also need to start asking for more “energy” during LFR. Since she was young I’ve never asked her to go out of a trot on line but I think it is time to move up to a canter here and there.
After I finished working her I tied her up and watched the other girls. Besides a bit of pawing here and there Cat stood a lot better then normal.
The horses are changing so much! Their winter fuzzies are coming in. Black has a dark and beautiful coat. Cat has actually lightened up but even with the winter fuzzies her dapples are still visible. Lu is a dark red and her coat is a nice thickness. Not too much (like last year) but not too little like the year before either. I think she’s finally starting to adjust.
Lu isn’t fond of the small quarters of the indoor so I’m hoping this winter to take Cat over once or twice a week and really fine tune my GW with her so that this spring I can start her undersaddle.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Baby Dollz Bar 1994-2009
For those of you who know me, you know what an emotional post this is for me.
Tonight I received news that Tuff passed away earlier today. My understanding (from what I heard through all of the sobbing and tears) is that earlier today, Tuff started to colic, banimine was administered, and before the vet could get out she passed.
Tonight has been an emotional roller coaster for me (to say the least). Tuff meant a great deal to me. Those who know me best know why Tuff was where she was. I know she was taken care of well but it still doesn't make losing her any easier.
Tuff taught me a lot & gave me two wonderful babies. She carried me through many show seasons and now her daughter is carrying my son on. Her legacy will live...............
You will be missed! :(
Tonight I received news that Tuff passed away earlier today. My understanding (from what I heard through all of the sobbing and tears) is that earlier today, Tuff started to colic, banimine was administered, and before the vet could get out she passed.
Tonight has been an emotional roller coaster for me (to say the least). Tuff meant a great deal to me. Those who know me best know why Tuff was where she was. I know she was taken care of well but it still doesn't make losing her any easier.
Tuff taught me a lot & gave me two wonderful babies. She carried me through many show seasons and now her daughter is carrying my son on. Her legacy will live...............
You will be missed! :(
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
A New Horse?
The last horse show for this season is quickly approaching & the drill team will be running their last performance at the show. Since the show is on a Sunday, MIL won’t be performing. I hadn’t planned on taking a horse but they couldn’t find anyone to run the flag so I offered.
The weather here has been “iffy” lately so practice was changed to last night in order to avoid the rain. MIL has Sis and Abby at her place and my truck is broke down still so I hitched a ride and took Lu. You can pretty much look back at this blog to see when I rode her last. No, I’m not proud of that.
When I unloaded Lu off of the trailer I heard “OMG, you got a new horse! When did you get a new horse?”
What?
I had a few other people ask me the same thing and I responded with “umm, this is Lucy”.
They were all flabbergasted. I don’t see that she’s changed THAT much. She’s a fat tub of lard at the moment but I didn’t think she’d changed so much that people didn’t recognize her. Maybe this is because I see her everyday?
Needless to say she was “Lu” at practice. We had a nice/lovely trot and then we “ran” (it was running for Lu anyways) the flag in (fake flag – we didn’t actually carry one). She was a good girl. I really couldn’t ask for more from her considering how little I’ve done with her this year.
Black is feeling pretty good. She likes the new pads in her boots. She’s started trotting again to come up to eat. She’s looking great too! I’d like a few more pounds on her before heading into winter but I really can’t complain about the way she looks.
Cat – Cat on the other hand needs to learn the words “exercise” or “diet”. I think she’s going to be an easy keeper like her sister.
I’ve been working on putting in new fence in the dry lot. The electric fence just wasn’t holding up and I wanted something a little more “solid” in case we get another calf. I must say – I DO NOT ENJOY BUILDING FENCE! But what must be done, must be done.
The weather here has been “iffy” lately so practice was changed to last night in order to avoid the rain. MIL has Sis and Abby at her place and my truck is broke down still so I hitched a ride and took Lu. You can pretty much look back at this blog to see when I rode her last. No, I’m not proud of that.
When I unloaded Lu off of the trailer I heard “OMG, you got a new horse! When did you get a new horse?”
What?
I had a few other people ask me the same thing and I responded with “umm, this is Lucy”.
They were all flabbergasted. I don’t see that she’s changed THAT much. She’s a fat tub of lard at the moment but I didn’t think she’d changed so much that people didn’t recognize her. Maybe this is because I see her everyday?
Needless to say she was “Lu” at practice. We had a nice/lovely trot and then we “ran” (it was running for Lu anyways) the flag in (fake flag – we didn’t actually carry one). She was a good girl. I really couldn’t ask for more from her considering how little I’ve done with her this year.
Black is feeling pretty good. She likes the new pads in her boots. She’s started trotting again to come up to eat. She’s looking great too! I’d like a few more pounds on her before heading into winter but I really can’t complain about the way she looks.
Cat – Cat on the other hand needs to learn the words “exercise” or “diet”. I think she’s going to be an easy keeper like her sister.
I’ve been working on putting in new fence in the dry lot. The electric fence just wasn’t holding up and I wanted something a little more “solid” in case we get another calf. I must say – I DO NOT ENJOY BUILDING FENCE! But what must be done, must be done.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Winter Blahs..................
Not really much to update here. DH is gone so finding time for ponies has not been easy.
I’ve spent the last two weeks working with a beautiful, amazing and very spoiled Oldenburg filly. Her owner needed to get her on the trailer for an inspection in TX and wasn’t having any luck. She was a learning experience and a handful but we got her on the trailer and to her inspection where she received high marks. They should be heading home today (providing they got her back on the trailer).
The trimmer was out yesterday to trim. I had him do everyone so that I had them all done prior to going into winter. Black is very sore on her front left foot & he thinks it is due to her thin sole. DH bruised and abscessed her back left so our theory is that she has been putting more weight on the front to take off of the back and in doing so bruised it.
We’ve managed to get 3 feet looking wonderful but the front left seems to be our problem child. Her sole is so thin at the apex of the frog that you can move it with your fingers. I’ve come to the conclusion that while this can be done barefoot we just don’t have things working in our favor to continue down the path we have been. She’s 24, not 7 so we don’t have the time we would have if she was younger. We’ve agreed to try Equicast on her to see if they will help with the sole issue. They are fairly expensive and don’t last very long but I think we need to at least try them. If that doesn’t work I will be applying shoes.
We have one horse show left and I really want it to get rained out (can you tell it’s the end of the year). It is this weekend and the weather is supposed to be nasty all week but decent on the weekend. I’m just not in the mood to be out in the cold.
Update on Precious: They did get her on the trailer and are headed home! Woo hoo! My job is done.
I’ve spent the last two weeks working with a beautiful, amazing and very spoiled Oldenburg filly. Her owner needed to get her on the trailer for an inspection in TX and wasn’t having any luck. She was a learning experience and a handful but we got her on the trailer and to her inspection where she received high marks. They should be heading home today (providing they got her back on the trailer).
The trimmer was out yesterday to trim. I had him do everyone so that I had them all done prior to going into winter. Black is very sore on her front left foot & he thinks it is due to her thin sole. DH bruised and abscessed her back left so our theory is that she has been putting more weight on the front to take off of the back and in doing so bruised it.
We’ve managed to get 3 feet looking wonderful but the front left seems to be our problem child. Her sole is so thin at the apex of the frog that you can move it with your fingers. I’ve come to the conclusion that while this can be done barefoot we just don’t have things working in our favor to continue down the path we have been. She’s 24, not 7 so we don’t have the time we would have if she was younger. We’ve agreed to try Equicast on her to see if they will help with the sole issue. They are fairly expensive and don’t last very long but I think we need to at least try them. If that doesn’t work I will be applying shoes.
We have one horse show left and I really want it to get rained out (can you tell it’s the end of the year). It is this weekend and the weather is supposed to be nasty all week but decent on the weekend. I’m just not in the mood to be out in the cold.
Update on Precious: They did get her on the trailer and are headed home! Woo hoo! My job is done.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
On the Road Again..........
Last night one of my biggest fears turned into reality.
MIL is on River City Roundup, a week long trail ride (insert jealous jester here), so I had to fill in for her at drill. I was going to take Abby, Cat and Lu but decided to leave Lu at home so that Cat wouldn’t have any trailer buddies to stand next to her while I was riding.
On the interstate I noticed the truck was pulling a little different then normal but I couldn’t put my finger on it. As we rounded the exit ramp onto the highway I noticed that my temperature gage was all of the way over on the red. Right about then my “dummy light” came on. I was a very short distance from a friends house so I babied the truck down the hill and then over to the side of the road. When I popped the hood you could hear the water boiling.
So here I am on a busy highway unloading horses. I’m so glad my horses are calm! I had to call DH (I was trying to avoid that) to come get me. I don’t remember what they said was wrong with the truck but pretty much it is toast. We were able to unhook the trailer and had a friend haul it home for us. Luckily I was able to leave my horses in a friend’s RP overnight and she’ll be bringing them home for me tonight.
I’ve seen people on the side of the roads with trailers behind and I’ve always worried about having something happen when I have the horses in tow. I’m just lucky that it happened when it happened and where it happened and not while I was out in the boonies by myself.
Practice ended up going well. MIL has Abby bracing on the bit and has been letting her anticipate the pattern but I’ll give that pony credit – she sure does try. By the end of the night she was tucking her head well and while she was still ducking corners she wasn’t doing it to the extreme she was earlier in the night.
MIL is on River City Roundup, a week long trail ride (insert jealous jester here), so I had to fill in for her at drill. I was going to take Abby, Cat and Lu but decided to leave Lu at home so that Cat wouldn’t have any trailer buddies to stand next to her while I was riding.
On the interstate I noticed the truck was pulling a little different then normal but I couldn’t put my finger on it. As we rounded the exit ramp onto the highway I noticed that my temperature gage was all of the way over on the red. Right about then my “dummy light” came on. I was a very short distance from a friends house so I babied the truck down the hill and then over to the side of the road. When I popped the hood you could hear the water boiling.
So here I am on a busy highway unloading horses. I’m so glad my horses are calm! I had to call DH (I was trying to avoid that) to come get me. I don’t remember what they said was wrong with the truck but pretty much it is toast. We were able to unhook the trailer and had a friend haul it home for us. Luckily I was able to leave my horses in a friend’s RP overnight and she’ll be bringing them home for me tonight.
I’ve seen people on the side of the roads with trailers behind and I’ve always worried about having something happen when I have the horses in tow. I’m just lucky that it happened when it happened and where it happened and not while I was out in the boonies by myself.
Practice ended up going well. MIL has Abby bracing on the bit and has been letting her anticipate the pattern but I’ll give that pony credit – she sure does try. By the end of the night she was tucking her head well and while she was still ducking corners she wasn’t doing it to the extreme she was earlier in the night.
Monday, September 14, 2009
The Xtra Scoop
Just in case you've missed it, I've gone live with my site!
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I'm so excited to be offering these product! Not only am I able to offer all of the Karbo Products but I now have Skode's Horse Treats available as well!
Check it out and join the mailing list today!
Great Labor Day Weekend!
I know, I’m only a week late on this post but better late then never right?
Labor Day weekend we packed up the ponies and headed for Elk Rock State Park. It is a small park but it has nice facilities. The trails are fairly easy so I don’t have to worry about Chase being out on difficult terrain.
Friday night we spent most of the night unpacking and setting up the trailer. Man I love my trailer! It makes it so nice when we do stuff like this. DH had to work Saturday so we had Abby, Lucy and Sis and he was to bring Black down Sunday when he came down.
Saturday MIL started off riding Abby. This was only her second trail ride and if you remember, our first one last year left me with a sore bum. Chase was on Sis and I was finally on Lu! We headed out on our first trail with Lucy in the lead. Abby does not like to be in the back so MIL did a lot of ORS and circles with her. It was nice to be on a quiet horse for once! Sis of course was wonderful with Chase.
It didn’t take long for Chase to tire but we met up with another group and told him to buck it up, we were going on another ride. They rode a bit faster then we do so it gave me an opportunity to work on collecting Lu at the trot. When we got back we had ridden all 8 miles of trail & all of us were tired! We took a short rest and then headed into town and to the lake.
Sunday DH met us down there with Black. This was her first “known” trail ride since we’ve owned her & she was wonderful! Abby was being a bit more of a handful for MIL so I told her to get on Lu while Abby and I had a meeting. Needless to say, after 6 miles of trail and one hot, sweaty pony, Abby still wasn’t ready to come to an agreement with me.
Later MIL, DH and Chase went out and I stayed back at the trailer to work on supper. I sent Chase out on Lu so MIL could ride Sis and Abby could throw a fit at the hitching post. I was told Lu did very well with Chase, this made me very happy.
My parents showed up with Ty and we had a lovely dinner. After dinner MIL and I took Ty on a short ride. He had Black’s reins the entire time and giggled up every hill. He was so cute telling Black “easy Black! Whoa Black!” and moving her over on the trails.
The following day we noticed that 3 of the 4 horses had swollen legs. Upon further inspection it seemed that most of the horses at the park had swollen legs. I think there may have been some sort of weed that irritated them but we decided they had done well enough and headed home.
Labor Day weekend we packed up the ponies and headed for Elk Rock State Park. It is a small park but it has nice facilities. The trails are fairly easy so I don’t have to worry about Chase being out on difficult terrain.
Friday night we spent most of the night unpacking and setting up the trailer. Man I love my trailer! It makes it so nice when we do stuff like this. DH had to work Saturday so we had Abby, Lucy and Sis and he was to bring Black down Sunday when he came down.
Saturday MIL started off riding Abby. This was only her second trail ride and if you remember, our first one last year left me with a sore bum. Chase was on Sis and I was finally on Lu! We headed out on our first trail with Lucy in the lead. Abby does not like to be in the back so MIL did a lot of ORS and circles with her. It was nice to be on a quiet horse for once! Sis of course was wonderful with Chase.
It didn’t take long for Chase to tire but we met up with another group and told him to buck it up, we were going on another ride. They rode a bit faster then we do so it gave me an opportunity to work on collecting Lu at the trot. When we got back we had ridden all 8 miles of trail & all of us were tired! We took a short rest and then headed into town and to the lake.
Sunday DH met us down there with Black. This was her first “known” trail ride since we’ve owned her & she was wonderful! Abby was being a bit more of a handful for MIL so I told her to get on Lu while Abby and I had a meeting. Needless to say, after 6 miles of trail and one hot, sweaty pony, Abby still wasn’t ready to come to an agreement with me.
Later MIL, DH and Chase went out and I stayed back at the trailer to work on supper. I sent Chase out on Lu so MIL could ride Sis and Abby could throw a fit at the hitching post. I was told Lu did very well with Chase, this made me very happy.
My parents showed up with Ty and we had a lovely dinner. After dinner MIL and I took Ty on a short ride. He had Black’s reins the entire time and giggled up every hill. He was so cute telling Black “easy Black! Whoa Black!” and moving her over on the trails.
The following day we noticed that 3 of the 4 horses had swollen legs. Upon further inspection it seemed that most of the horses at the park had swollen legs. I think there may have been some sort of weed that irritated them but we decided they had done well enough and headed home.
Monday, August 24, 2009
1 down – 3 to go
Show season is slowly dwindling down. It feels as though we haven’t really had much of a season with all of the rain we got at the beginning of the year but it has still been a good year. This past Sat. MIL, DH and Chase showed. I opted not to take Lucy because Ty was going with and I know how that usually works. Plus she really isn’t ready and it isn’t fair for her when I have high expectations but haven’t put forth the work. We’ll be ready next year.
Due to a lack of volunteers I had to help the judge so a few good friends helped out with Ty while MIL and DH were showing (thank you Brenda and Terry). Chase got to use Sis in w/t and while she was a bit fast from all of her long trotting during her rehab he still had the quietest horse out there so he placed first. I know MIL placed in w/t and WP but I honestly don’t remember what her results were. She didn’t do as well as she normally does (again Sis is strung out and fast) but she was still in the top 5.
DH didn’t place (not that we expected him to). Black was a bit gimpy in the back end. I almost asked him to come to the center but I didn’t want to call him out. He put her up after the class and that was the only thing she went in for the day.
Chase had a GREAT pole pattern and took first. He got a little “big for his britches” in barrels and while they gave him a 2nd place placing, I told him he wasn’t getting his ribbon because he broke patter. I know, I’m a mean mom but he’s moving up w/the “big boys” next year so he’ll get knocked off of his pedestal quickly anyways. He needs to practice more and quite blaming it all on the pony.
Abby was being a bit of a handful for him though so I popped my saddle on and signed MIL and I up for barrels. It was a good crowd so I knew I’d get the opportunity to “fix” some of her issues. At the end of the pattern she likes to crow hop so as we ran for home I prepared. As soon as I felt her head go down I turned her in and nailed her w/Mr. Crop and asked her to continue running in a circle. I think I caught her by surprise.
After that MIL hopped on. She had a nice run (no crow hopping at the end) and I do think she placed 5th.
I took Carmella back and MIL took Sis and Cat back to her place so I’m back down to 4 horses at home. It is kind of a nice break since DH will be leaving to help with harvest soon.
When we got home, as I was picking out Black’s feet (assuming the gimping was from thrush), I noticed some liquid. She has an abscess on her back left foot. It looks like she bruised her foot on one of our road rides last week. While I’m not thrilled about it, I’m happy that is what the problem was and that it wasn’t another laminitic episode (I was starting to question that too). So for now I’m soaking her foot once a day in Epson salt, ACV and water and I have her in an icthamol wrap. I bought some of the new Easy Care Glove boots for her back feet and so far I LOVE them! I’ve got one over the wrap and she seems to be feeling a lot better now that the abscess is draining.
This means that Lu is going to have to temporarily fill in at drill. I think this will be good for her but we’ll see what she thinks.
Due to a lack of volunteers I had to help the judge so a few good friends helped out with Ty while MIL and DH were showing (thank you Brenda and Terry). Chase got to use Sis in w/t and while she was a bit fast from all of her long trotting during her rehab he still had the quietest horse out there so he placed first. I know MIL placed in w/t and WP but I honestly don’t remember what her results were. She didn’t do as well as she normally does (again Sis is strung out and fast) but she was still in the top 5.
DH didn’t place (not that we expected him to). Black was a bit gimpy in the back end. I almost asked him to come to the center but I didn’t want to call him out. He put her up after the class and that was the only thing she went in for the day.
Chase had a GREAT pole pattern and took first. He got a little “big for his britches” in barrels and while they gave him a 2nd place placing, I told him he wasn’t getting his ribbon because he broke patter. I know, I’m a mean mom but he’s moving up w/the “big boys” next year so he’ll get knocked off of his pedestal quickly anyways. He needs to practice more and quite blaming it all on the pony.
Abby was being a bit of a handful for him though so I popped my saddle on and signed MIL and I up for barrels. It was a good crowd so I knew I’d get the opportunity to “fix” some of her issues. At the end of the pattern she likes to crow hop so as we ran for home I prepared. As soon as I felt her head go down I turned her in and nailed her w/Mr. Crop and asked her to continue running in a circle. I think I caught her by surprise.
After that MIL hopped on. She had a nice run (no crow hopping at the end) and I do think she placed 5th.
I took Carmella back and MIL took Sis and Cat back to her place so I’m back down to 4 horses at home. It is kind of a nice break since DH will be leaving to help with harvest soon.
When we got home, as I was picking out Black’s feet (assuming the gimping was from thrush), I noticed some liquid. She has an abscess on her back left foot. It looks like she bruised her foot on one of our road rides last week. While I’m not thrilled about it, I’m happy that is what the problem was and that it wasn’t another laminitic episode (I was starting to question that too). So for now I’m soaking her foot once a day in Epson salt, ACV and water and I have her in an icthamol wrap. I bought some of the new Easy Care Glove boots for her back feet and so far I LOVE them! I’ve got one over the wrap and she seems to be feeling a lot better now that the abscess is draining.
This means that Lu is going to have to temporarily fill in at drill. I think this will be good for her but we’ll see what she thinks.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
It’s been a while
It’s been a while since I’ve updated my blog, but it seems like a lot of stuff has been going on (not all horse related). The horses got some much needed time off after the Carson Rodeo and MIL has been keeping me (and Black) busy with parades. They aren’t my favorite thing in the world but I can’t let her go alone. I have decided that this is Black’s calling. She just loves the parades! Walk, stop, yawn, and repeat.
This was taken at the Sweet Corn Festival:
Abby was a bit of a handful for MIL but the more she does the better she gets.
These were taken at the State Fair Parade in Des Moines. I love that you can see our gorgeous Capital behind us.
Notice Black’s tongue?
Last week the boys were gone for a week so I was actually able to get some ride time in on MY horse. I’ve been lunging Lucy on the 22’ line and watching her move. She seems to be improving and her cross-firing is becoming very minimal now. If I give her a minute to go into the lope, she has more time to think and set her self up and go into it correctly. Clockwise is still her worst direction but at least I’m seeing improvements.
On one of the nights MIL, DH and I all went for a road ride. Lu was perfect. Her alignment issues seem to be getting resolved and I barely had to move my hand at all. She is also moving out more willingly as well. If finances are available I’d like to board her this winter so I can actually work with her.
On a positive note: Sis is improving and the vet no longer feels that surgery is in her future. MIL has been able to kick her up into a trot and was even able to use her for the State Fair Parade. It is still going to be a long recovery but it looks like it will be a promising one.
In addition to the above I’ve decided to become a distributor for Gomers Inc., the manufacturer of Karbo Combo. This has been very nerve wracking and exciting at the same time. I feel this is a wonderful product and that it does sell itself but at the same time, I’m not a born entrepreneur so it will take some time to get off of the ground.
Chase started school on Monday and I have about a month and a half before DH leaves for his vacation up at the farm for 1 ½ months so things will be dwindling down and I have a feeling my horse time will become less and less.
This was taken at the Sweet Corn Festival:
Abby was a bit of a handful for MIL but the more she does the better she gets.
These were taken at the State Fair Parade in Des Moines. I love that you can see our gorgeous Capital behind us.
Notice Black’s tongue?
Last week the boys were gone for a week so I was actually able to get some ride time in on MY horse. I’ve been lunging Lucy on the 22’ line and watching her move. She seems to be improving and her cross-firing is becoming very minimal now. If I give her a minute to go into the lope, she has more time to think and set her self up and go into it correctly. Clockwise is still her worst direction but at least I’m seeing improvements.
On one of the nights MIL, DH and I all went for a road ride. Lu was perfect. Her alignment issues seem to be getting resolved and I barely had to move my hand at all. She is also moving out more willingly as well. If finances are available I’d like to board her this winter so I can actually work with her.
On a positive note: Sis is improving and the vet no longer feels that surgery is in her future. MIL has been able to kick her up into a trot and was even able to use her for the State Fair Parade. It is still going to be a long recovery but it looks like it will be a promising one.
In addition to the above I’ve decided to become a distributor for Gomers Inc., the manufacturer of Karbo Combo. This has been very nerve wracking and exciting at the same time. I feel this is a wonderful product and that it does sell itself but at the same time, I’m not a born entrepreneur so it will take some time to get off of the ground.
Chase started school on Monday and I have about a month and a half before DH leaves for his vacation up at the farm for 1 ½ months so things will be dwindling down and I have a feeling my horse time will become less and less.
Monday, August 3, 2009
Blast from the past
Sat. night we headed up to Carson for the rodeo. It was a long 2 hour drive and we had to be there early to practice (the drill team was performing). Abby is getting better and better with each run. This is just what she needed & MIL is enjoying her more and more all of the time.
Black was a bit off when we arrived so I booted her all of the way around. When we hit the arena she was off and running so I’m not sure if adrenaline took over or what. We ran our run during the middle of the rodeo and all-in-all they had a good run.
We decided to stick around and watch a bit of the rodeo after the performance and to my surprise one of my old college professors was running. I knew she ran barrels but she was a little ways from home. She had a nice horse and a nice run but I don’t think she was in the money. Seeing her face brought back a lot of memories. Unfortunately I didn’t get a chance to talk to her as we wanted to try to leave so we didn’t get caught in the traffic. It was nearly midnight before we pulled in the drive to unload the horses so I’m glad we left when we did.
Sunday was kind of a lazy day for all. MIL loaded up Sis and Cat and headed home and DH and I started to lay out the fence for the drylot. Luckily the tractor was broken so we couldn’t actually work on the fence like planned.
I got Lucy out and worked her on the long line for a while to watch her movement. She seems to move better on the 22’ line vs. the 14’ line. I did a lot of long trotting with her in both directions until she was fairly warm and then took her out to the hot walker & tied her up (using it as a patience pole). Around and around she went. She kept it moving (who needs a motor).
Mom had fixed supper so we headed in. I looked out and notice the walker wasn’t moving anymore. Woo hoo! She’d finally decided to stand still! I looked out again about 5 minutes later. It was in the same spot so I started looking to see where she was and guess what? She wasn’t on the walker anymore! I walked down and found her in the barn happily munching hay. Little snot!
I grabbed a cross tie and took her back out to the walker and tied her up. I sat and watched her. When she gets mad, she reaches for the middle of the rope, bites and pulls down. This is exactly where the quick release snap on the chain was.
While she was throwing her fit Chase hopped on Abby. We’ve been working bareback in the round pen to get Chase’s balance. He did much better this time sitting Abby’s trot. She’s not very easy to sit. He says he wants to ride her every day this week. I guess we’ll see if he holds true to that.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Road to Recovery
MIL took Sis back for a recheck yesterday and the vet was amazed with her results in the last week. We are hoping this means that surgery is no longer even on the table. I think it has helped a little bit having her back at my house as she really wants to keep track of the other horses so I think she’s moving more. She’s back to some of her old antics so I know she’s feeling better.
The vet gave MIL the go ahead to start riding her for 20 min. a night at the walk for 10 days. I think after that she can gradually ad in 5 min. of trotting and work up from there. He told MIL to keep an eye on her and if she felt she was doing poorly to call him first but he didn’t feel he needed to see her again anytime soon.
Lucy went to the clinic with Sis too. It appears she had issues with her TMJ. The vet had the dentist float her teeth and remove 4 caps (we knew these were there but when we had her floated in May they weren’t ready to come off). We’ll keep an eye on her to see how she’s eating and how she’s collecting now.
If I didn’t know better I’d think Black gained 10 yrs. here recently. I took her to drill Tues. night and she was full of P & V. I never thought I’d see the day where I had to hold her back but I had to.
We have a rodeo Sat. night about 2 hours away and then she’ll get some much deserved time off until Sept. I’m going to try to focus my time/energy on Lu. My next show is Aug. 22nd and I’d really like to have her ready for the w/t class at least.
The vet gave MIL the go ahead to start riding her for 20 min. a night at the walk for 10 days. I think after that she can gradually ad in 5 min. of trotting and work up from there. He told MIL to keep an eye on her and if she felt she was doing poorly to call him first but he didn’t feel he needed to see her again anytime soon.
Lucy went to the clinic with Sis too. It appears she had issues with her TMJ. The vet had the dentist float her teeth and remove 4 caps (we knew these were there but when we had her floated in May they weren’t ready to come off). We’ll keep an eye on her to see how she’s eating and how she’s collecting now.
If I didn’t know better I’d think Black gained 10 yrs. here recently. I took her to drill Tues. night and she was full of P & V. I never thought I’d see the day where I had to hold her back but I had to.
We have a rodeo Sat. night about 2 hours away and then she’ll get some much deserved time off until Sept. I’m going to try to focus my time/energy on Lu. My next show is Aug. 22nd and I’d really like to have her ready for the w/t class at least.
Monday, July 27, 2009
Where to begin?
I’m not even sure where to begin with this weekend. Saturday I got up, headed to the ATM to get some money as we had two shows to head to. One was for a drill performance and the other was to actually ride/show. When I got to the ATM I got a message saying “card restricted” and no money. It was too early to call the bank so I headed to the barn to finish cleaning up ponies.
While finishing up I got a call from the bank asking if I had authorized two internet purchases. No I hadn’t. So needless to say my card was cancelled & I will be watching my account closely. Thank goodness for mom and day (I had to borrow cash from them).
We finally got the ponies loaded and headed out. The performance was less then perfect (our worst of the year). Black did great (we have an easy job) and I do think she really enjoys it. Abby popped her butt up once but MIL was quick to whack her. She is getting a little bit better with each performance. I’m not sure what happened but someone got out of place. When you get out of place it is very hard to get back in and it messes up everyone else. Needless to say they managed to make it “look” ok but we were all pretty embarrassed. Thankfully, most of the crowd had no clue what happened.
We loaded up and headed over for the show. I had to do registration so I needed to be there early anyways and I wanted to have a chance to ride Lu a bit before the show. I decided to go ahead and take her in w/t at least. She really needs to get the experience even if we don’t do well. I had been having issues bending her but she was doing great! Her head was low and soft and her trot was to die for. She was getting a bit nervous when the other horses would get around her (looks like I need to take her to a few drill practices) but for the most part she was great. I rode for maybe 20 min. or so and then took her to the trailer until closer to my class.
Once the classes started I saddled Lu back up and headed over to wait. Chase was in his w/t class and he was as stiff as a board but somehow managed to come out with the first place ribbon. There were two more classes before my class and Lu would not stand still. She’d either back up or want to walk off so we did flexing and bending but she still refused to stand still. By this time she’d started to sweat and laid down on me. I hopped off and kicked her and then whacked her w/the reins until she got up. We then went for a “behind the trailer” session. Nothing big, just some LFR to let her know that wasn’t a good idea.
I mounted back up and headed in for my class. By now she’s dripping with sweat (I think it had more to do with nerves vs. heat) & I could tell the sand arena was very appealing to her. The class was so bit they split it in half. I tried to keep Lu moving so she wouldn’t go down. The class finally started and she was moving beautifully. Her head was low and tucked and her knees were flat and flowing. She was getting annoyed (by the sweat) so she tossed her head and as she did my headstall came flying off (the new one DH just got me). I got it back on and we continued w/the class. After lining up and backing I dismounted so she wouldn’t go down with me again. They called for the second batch so I left the arena and headed back to the trailer.
At the trailer I put on her halter but did not untack her. For those who have followed my blog and have followed my “adventures” with Lucy you will know that when she gets hot (even if I’ve only worked her 15 minutes) she will try everything in her power to lie down, even if she is tied. A lot of those times she’s succeeded so it has ingrained the behavior even more. This was one of the reasons I refused to unsaddle her. She needs to learn how to deal with it.
I walked her behind the trailer and anytime she’d tuck a knee like she was going to lie down I’d back her a few strides (I had my crop ready in case she actually went down), nothing hard or fast but just me saying “no”. She was fidgety and would not stand still. She tried several times to tuck her knee so she could go down. When she got close to the trailer she’d throw herself into it to try to rub/scratch my saddle off so I’d move her back over (another reason why I didn’t just tie her up).
I had already decided that *if* by some odd chance I was called back in from the split that I wouldn’t be taking her in. As expected, I wasn’t called back in so it was no big deal. This is when things started to get fun. Another participant decided to come back and offer me some advice. She politely (using the word politely very loosely) suggested that I needed to untack Lu. I thanked her for her concern but assured her that she was fine and told her that I would not be untacking Lucy. She again politely (again using the word loosely) told me (this time she didn’t suggest) to untack Lucy. I again assured her that Lucy was fine and informed her that I would not be untacking her.
I was then informed by her that she has been in the consulting business for over 40 years and knows when a horse is tying up (Lu’s abdominal muscles were tight but so where about 50 other horses at the show). She then proceeded to threaten me that if I didn’t untack Lucy that she would call the Humane Society on me. I encouraged her to do so (by this time my patience was gone).
Now – as for the “concerned citizen”, let me give you a little bit of background on her. She is IDK how old (50 or so). She has trust money (and lots of it) so she hasn’t worked a day in her life. She buys OTTB, uses them up and then dumps them. I’ve rarely seen her keep one more then a year. NO ONE can stand her! The only reason they put up with her at the shows is because of her money (which I think is bullshit). She can not keep workers because she is such a xxxxx that no one can stand working for her. I was ok with her concern until it became a threat.
Needless to say about 5 minutes later I had about 10 people at my trailer looking over Lucy. ALL of them had seen her pull this before (getting hot and laying down) and they all knew I wouldn’t put her in danger (still not sure how untacking her would have kept her from tying up if that is indeed what she was doing). I stood my ground and they stood behind me. 15 min. later when the sweat had started to dry Lu was being a pain in my butt trying to get hay and treats. After she had fully dried off I untacked her and let her stand at the trailer the rest of the night happily munching on hay.
Now while this “concerned citizen” was all over my ass about Lu she never once said anything to the gal who was riding a weanling (gal said it was a 2 yr. old but it looked like a small yearling at the most).
I’m still very irritated that she felt the need to threaten to call the HS on me. How would you have handled this?
I forgot to mention - I was told by the ring steward that the judge REALLY liked Lucy but that she didn't feel like she could call me back in due to my tack mishap. She said she debated over and over because she really liked her. I guess that is good to know once I get her to quite laying down with me. :-)
While finishing up I got a call from the bank asking if I had authorized two internet purchases. No I hadn’t. So needless to say my card was cancelled & I will be watching my account closely. Thank goodness for mom and day (I had to borrow cash from them).
We finally got the ponies loaded and headed out. The performance was less then perfect (our worst of the year). Black did great (we have an easy job) and I do think she really enjoys it. Abby popped her butt up once but MIL was quick to whack her. She is getting a little bit better with each performance. I’m not sure what happened but someone got out of place. When you get out of place it is very hard to get back in and it messes up everyone else. Needless to say they managed to make it “look” ok but we were all pretty embarrassed. Thankfully, most of the crowd had no clue what happened.
We loaded up and headed over for the show. I had to do registration so I needed to be there early anyways and I wanted to have a chance to ride Lu a bit before the show. I decided to go ahead and take her in w/t at least. She really needs to get the experience even if we don’t do well. I had been having issues bending her but she was doing great! Her head was low and soft and her trot was to die for. She was getting a bit nervous when the other horses would get around her (looks like I need to take her to a few drill practices) but for the most part she was great. I rode for maybe 20 min. or so and then took her to the trailer until closer to my class.
Once the classes started I saddled Lu back up and headed over to wait. Chase was in his w/t class and he was as stiff as a board but somehow managed to come out with the first place ribbon. There were two more classes before my class and Lu would not stand still. She’d either back up or want to walk off so we did flexing and bending but she still refused to stand still. By this time she’d started to sweat and laid down on me. I hopped off and kicked her and then whacked her w/the reins until she got up. We then went for a “behind the trailer” session. Nothing big, just some LFR to let her know that wasn’t a good idea.
I mounted back up and headed in for my class. By now she’s dripping with sweat (I think it had more to do with nerves vs. heat) & I could tell the sand arena was very appealing to her. The class was so bit they split it in half. I tried to keep Lu moving so she wouldn’t go down. The class finally started and she was moving beautifully. Her head was low and tucked and her knees were flat and flowing. She was getting annoyed (by the sweat) so she tossed her head and as she did my headstall came flying off (the new one DH just got me). I got it back on and we continued w/the class. After lining up and backing I dismounted so she wouldn’t go down with me again. They called for the second batch so I left the arena and headed back to the trailer.
At the trailer I put on her halter but did not untack her. For those who have followed my blog and have followed my “adventures” with Lucy you will know that when she gets hot (even if I’ve only worked her 15 minutes) she will try everything in her power to lie down, even if she is tied. A lot of those times she’s succeeded so it has ingrained the behavior even more. This was one of the reasons I refused to unsaddle her. She needs to learn how to deal with it.
I walked her behind the trailer and anytime she’d tuck a knee like she was going to lie down I’d back her a few strides (I had my crop ready in case she actually went down), nothing hard or fast but just me saying “no”. She was fidgety and would not stand still. She tried several times to tuck her knee so she could go down. When she got close to the trailer she’d throw herself into it to try to rub/scratch my saddle off so I’d move her back over (another reason why I didn’t just tie her up).
I had already decided that *if* by some odd chance I was called back in from the split that I wouldn’t be taking her in. As expected, I wasn’t called back in so it was no big deal. This is when things started to get fun. Another participant decided to come back and offer me some advice. She politely (using the word politely very loosely) suggested that I needed to untack Lu. I thanked her for her concern but assured her that she was fine and told her that I would not be untacking Lucy. She again politely (again using the word loosely) told me (this time she didn’t suggest) to untack Lucy. I again assured her that Lucy was fine and informed her that I would not be untacking her.
I was then informed by her that she has been in the consulting business for over 40 years and knows when a horse is tying up (Lu’s abdominal muscles were tight but so where about 50 other horses at the show). She then proceeded to threaten me that if I didn’t untack Lucy that she would call the Humane Society on me. I encouraged her to do so (by this time my patience was gone).
Now – as for the “concerned citizen”, let me give you a little bit of background on her. She is IDK how old (50 or so). She has trust money (and lots of it) so she hasn’t worked a day in her life. She buys OTTB, uses them up and then dumps them. I’ve rarely seen her keep one more then a year. NO ONE can stand her! The only reason they put up with her at the shows is because of her money (which I think is bullshit). She can not keep workers because she is such a xxxxx that no one can stand working for her. I was ok with her concern until it became a threat.
Needless to say about 5 minutes later I had about 10 people at my trailer looking over Lucy. ALL of them had seen her pull this before (getting hot and laying down) and they all knew I wouldn’t put her in danger (still not sure how untacking her would have kept her from tying up if that is indeed what she was doing). I stood my ground and they stood behind me. 15 min. later when the sweat had started to dry Lu was being a pain in my butt trying to get hay and treats. After she had fully dried off I untacked her and let her stand at the trailer the rest of the night happily munching on hay.
Now while this “concerned citizen” was all over my ass about Lu she never once said anything to the gal who was riding a weanling (gal said it was a 2 yr. old but it looked like a small yearling at the most).
I’m still very irritated that she felt the need to threaten to call the HS on me. How would you have handled this?
I forgot to mention - I was told by the ring steward that the judge REALLY liked Lucy but that she didn't feel like she could call me back in due to my tack mishap. She said she debated over and over because she really liked her. I guess that is good to know once I get her to quite laying down with me. :-)
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
New Pictures (Karbo Combo/Lucy)
On August 2nd Lucy will have been on the Karbo Combo for 60 days and I will be able to lower her to the maintenance dose. I think I’ve seen a HUGE improvement in both Lu and Black but I think the pictures tell the “real” story. I probably won’t post anymore before/after pics after this unless something drastically changes (that doesn’t mean I won’t post pics).
For those of you who have decided to try the KC too I’d love to hear what you think of it.
Rear View:
Right side:
Left Side:
And just for fun! Here is the new headstall DH bought me.
Up close (can you tell she was thrilled):
Tied to the patience pole after our short bareback ride. Look at her glow!
For those of you who have decided to try the KC too I’d love to hear what you think of it.
Rear View:
Right side:
Left Side:
And just for fun! Here is the new headstall DH bought me.
Up close (can you tell she was thrilled):
Tied to the patience pole after our short bareback ride. Look at her glow!
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Ready to run!
Here is the video of the Friday night performance. Sorry there is no music. I had to mute it due to the camera man forgetting that everything he said could be heard.
Karbo Combo Update
I know I never really took any "before" pictures of Black but as I was posting a picture today I saw an old picture of her in my photobucket account and I guess I didn't realize she'd made such a drastic change.
These pictures were taken May 30th. I wasn't trying to get full body pics. I was trying to get pics for a friend to show her how much Black dropped off behind the withers (muscle atrophy due to age). But I think they still give a pretty good idea of her "condition".
Can you see her ribs and lack of topline covering over her hips?
This looks like an old horse to me. She was always tucked up and "gant" in her flanks.
This was last night (Abby had to sneak in).
Look at how filled out she is in those hips and the flank! I can also tell you that her ribs are getting more and more difficult to see.
I managed to talk another drill member into trying the KC. Her horse is a TB that is always thin. She's taken him to several different vets (including ISU). She has him on daily ulcer meds and still he looks like death warmed over. She started him on the KC almost 2 weeks ago. The first week she though she saw results but like me didn't want to admit to it. The start of the second week he quit eating. She took him to the vet and his teeth had locked his jaw closed. The vet unlocked his teeth and he will go in for a float but she said the vet commented that he'd never looked better.
When I saw him last night there is no denying that the KC is helping him. It will be interesting to see how getting his teeth done helps too.
Lu is still doing well too. We have a busy few weeks ahead of us but one of these days I will get new pics. She's kind of leveled off but her movement and attitude are still improving.
These pictures were taken May 30th. I wasn't trying to get full body pics. I was trying to get pics for a friend to show her how much Black dropped off behind the withers (muscle atrophy due to age). But I think they still give a pretty good idea of her "condition".
Can you see her ribs and lack of topline covering over her hips?
This looks like an old horse to me. She was always tucked up and "gant" in her flanks.
This was last night (Abby had to sneak in).
Look at how filled out she is in those hips and the flank! I can also tell you that her ribs are getting more and more difficult to see.
I managed to talk another drill member into trying the KC. Her horse is a TB that is always thin. She's taken him to several different vets (including ISU). She has him on daily ulcer meds and still he looks like death warmed over. She started him on the KC almost 2 weeks ago. The first week she though she saw results but like me didn't want to admit to it. The start of the second week he quit eating. She took him to the vet and his teeth had locked his jaw closed. The vet unlocked his teeth and he will go in for a float but she said the vet commented that he'd never looked better.
When I saw him last night there is no denying that the KC is helping him. It will be interesting to see how getting his teeth done helps too.
Lu is still doing well too. We have a busy few weeks ahead of us but one of these days I will get new pics. She's kind of leveled off but her movement and attitude are still improving.
Monday, July 20, 2009
A fair affair
Thank god the fair is finally over! I’m exhausted! I’d like to relax but unfortunately that isn’t going to happen.
Thursday night Black was great as she entered the arena before the drill team carrying the flag. If I didn’t know where she came from I would swear she was an ex-barrel horse. As soon as we entered the ring she immediately turned sideways and did a flying side pass down the back of the chutes (but close to the cutes, she wasn’t afraid of them).
Unfortunately I can’t say the same thing for Abby’s performance. She decided humping up and offering to buck was a good idea. Since MIL hasn’t ridden her enough she wasn’t sure what to do. I told her next time to knock the snot out of her!
Friday night as we were preparing for our practice run our drill captain mounted up and noticed her horse was very sore/lame. She asked if I felt I could fill in with Black and I said I’d give it a try but I couldn’t guarantee she could make the entire run. Typically we don’t get a practice run before a performance but we were able to get one in. Black did great! I didn’t push her because I wasn’t sure how much she had to give. After the practice run we decided to give the performance a try.
I have to say, we had a lot of things stacked against us (her age, her feet, her lack of conditioning, her dislike towards other horses, etc.) but when it came time to perform I can guarantee no one knew any of those issues existed. She was wonderful! I only had to “ask” her to speed up a few times. And even better she didn’t act stiff or sore at all afterwards! Our performance is almost 8 minutes long too!
Abby was better this time. She didn’t hump up but she did kick one of the horses during one of the maneuvers. MIL was pretty upset. I tried to explain to her that Abby has just been thrown into this and she hasn’t been eased into it like the other horses have. ALL of them kick at one point in time (including Max). The difference is, in practice you can correct them. Abby had only had 3 practices (one with MIL) and then was thrown into the two performances. I’m not trying to dismiss the kicking but at the same time I do feel MIL should cut her a little bit of slack.
I have a video I’ll post as soon as I can figure out how to edit DH’s comments.
Thursday night Black was great as she entered the arena before the drill team carrying the flag. If I didn’t know where she came from I would swear she was an ex-barrel horse. As soon as we entered the ring she immediately turned sideways and did a flying side pass down the back of the chutes (but close to the cutes, she wasn’t afraid of them).
Unfortunately I can’t say the same thing for Abby’s performance. She decided humping up and offering to buck was a good idea. Since MIL hasn’t ridden her enough she wasn’t sure what to do. I told her next time to knock the snot out of her!
Friday night as we were preparing for our practice run our drill captain mounted up and noticed her horse was very sore/lame. She asked if I felt I could fill in with Black and I said I’d give it a try but I couldn’t guarantee she could make the entire run. Typically we don’t get a practice run before a performance but we were able to get one in. Black did great! I didn’t push her because I wasn’t sure how much she had to give. After the practice run we decided to give the performance a try.
I have to say, we had a lot of things stacked against us (her age, her feet, her lack of conditioning, her dislike towards other horses, etc.) but when it came time to perform I can guarantee no one knew any of those issues existed. She was wonderful! I only had to “ask” her to speed up a few times. And even better she didn’t act stiff or sore at all afterwards! Our performance is almost 8 minutes long too!
Abby was better this time. She didn’t hump up but she did kick one of the horses during one of the maneuvers. MIL was pretty upset. I tried to explain to her that Abby has just been thrown into this and she hasn’t been eased into it like the other horses have. ALL of them kick at one point in time (including Max). The difference is, in practice you can correct them. Abby had only had 3 practices (one with MIL) and then was thrown into the two performances. I’m not trying to dismiss the kicking but at the same time I do feel MIL should cut her a little bit of slack.
I have a video I’ll post as soon as I can figure out how to edit DH’s comments.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Isn't she lovely..................
Sunday I had planned on getting a few pictures of Lu but the stormed moved so I was unable to get any. Last night I decided to try again.
These aren't quite what I was hoping for but I still thought they turned out decent so I'm going to go ahead and share them anyways. She has this AMAZING sheen to her (it doesn't really show in the pics). I wish you all could see it! I'm not sure if it is the Karbo Combo or if it is just her natural coat since last year we only had about 2 months of a nice coat between the hair loss and the "mysterious" bumps.
So what do you think?
These aren't quite what I was hoping for but I still thought they turned out decent so I'm going to go ahead and share them anyways. She has this AMAZING sheen to her (it doesn't really show in the pics). I wish you all could see it! I'm not sure if it is the Karbo Combo or if it is just her natural coat since last year we only had about 2 months of a nice coat between the hair loss and the "mysterious" bumps.
So what do you think?
Monday, July 13, 2009
Busy, busy, busy
Last week MIL took Sis and Cat back to her house until Sis is healed up. Saturday we loaded up the ponies and headed over to the arena to ride. I wanted Chase to get on Abby before the show on Sunday and MIL needed to practice too & for once I got to ride my own horse!
Lu was great! She was soft, she was tucking her head and she was moving great! I joked about taking her to the show on Sunday. MIL was having a blast on Abby. A friend was there and they “raced” around the arena. MIL almost fell off when Abby turned but she managed to squirm back into the saddle before slowing down. She had a smile from ear to ear and she needed that after the news about Sis.
After that Chase got on and rode her around a bit while I got on Black and worked on carrying the flag on her (we might be opening up for the drill team at the rodeo on Friday night). DH hopped on Lu and I just looked the other way. I told him to watch her because she would probably try to lay down with him (when she’s hot she wants to roll). The next thing I notice is Lu on the ground and DH kicking my saddle (next time honey, kick the horse). I really wanted to say “I told you so” but instead I gave him back Black.
Chase was having issues with Abby so MIL hopped on Lu while I worked with Chase. We worked on post to post and Chase looking where he was going vs. looking at Abby. It made a HUGE difference in Chase’s riding and Abby worked a lot better for him.
I had decided not to go to the show on Sun. so Sun. morning DH got up and loaded up. DH called me to tell me he’d thrown Lu in the trailer so Ty and I headed to the show to keep an eye on Lu. When I got there DH was riding her in the arena w/Chase (we are going to have to have a discussion about him riding my horse). I took her back to the trailer and tied her up.
We put Abby in a one handed bit for walk/trot. She’s not fond of them but I’m trying to teach Chase to follow rules. The young kids do not know how to spread out and I could see trouble brewing with one horse before the class even started. Abby would trot and then walk then trot then walk and on one occasion she went ahead and popped into a lope so I knew Chase wasn’t going to place. I know this is not Abby’s strong suite so we’ll have to work on it. When going the second direction at the trot one of the horses started bucking (bronc style) so I yelled at Chase to stop Abby. The announcer must have heard me because he then FINALLY directed the other children to stop their horses as well. Luckily no one else was hurt.
I decided with no preparation to take Lu in walk/trot. She did great for what little I’ve done with her. She wanted to have her head up but when I asked she tucked it nice and low. Her trot was a bit fast but she looked amazing in my show bridle! The arena was packed! We didn’t place but I was happy with her performance.
Chase did great in poles. He watched where he was going and placed 2nd. By the time we got to the barrels it had started to rain softly. Chase went in and did a great pattern as well. He placed 2nd again and he was happy with his “paycheck” from the show.
This week is a busy one. Tomorrow we have drill practice, Thursday & Friday we have the rodeo & Saturday Chase shows Dozer.
Lu was great! She was soft, she was tucking her head and she was moving great! I joked about taking her to the show on Sunday. MIL was having a blast on Abby. A friend was there and they “raced” around the arena. MIL almost fell off when Abby turned but she managed to squirm back into the saddle before slowing down. She had a smile from ear to ear and she needed that after the news about Sis.
After that Chase got on and rode her around a bit while I got on Black and worked on carrying the flag on her (we might be opening up for the drill team at the rodeo on Friday night). DH hopped on Lu and I just looked the other way. I told him to watch her because she would probably try to lay down with him (when she’s hot she wants to roll). The next thing I notice is Lu on the ground and DH kicking my saddle (next time honey, kick the horse). I really wanted to say “I told you so” but instead I gave him back Black.
Chase was having issues with Abby so MIL hopped on Lu while I worked with Chase. We worked on post to post and Chase looking where he was going vs. looking at Abby. It made a HUGE difference in Chase’s riding and Abby worked a lot better for him.
I had decided not to go to the show on Sun. so Sun. morning DH got up and loaded up. DH called me to tell me he’d thrown Lu in the trailer so Ty and I headed to the show to keep an eye on Lu. When I got there DH was riding her in the arena w/Chase (we are going to have to have a discussion about him riding my horse). I took her back to the trailer and tied her up.
We put Abby in a one handed bit for walk/trot. She’s not fond of them but I’m trying to teach Chase to follow rules. The young kids do not know how to spread out and I could see trouble brewing with one horse before the class even started. Abby would trot and then walk then trot then walk and on one occasion she went ahead and popped into a lope so I knew Chase wasn’t going to place. I know this is not Abby’s strong suite so we’ll have to work on it. When going the second direction at the trot one of the horses started bucking (bronc style) so I yelled at Chase to stop Abby. The announcer must have heard me because he then FINALLY directed the other children to stop their horses as well. Luckily no one else was hurt.
I decided with no preparation to take Lu in walk/trot. She did great for what little I’ve done with her. She wanted to have her head up but when I asked she tucked it nice and low. Her trot was a bit fast but she looked amazing in my show bridle! The arena was packed! We didn’t place but I was happy with her performance.
Chase did great in poles. He watched where he was going and placed 2nd. By the time we got to the barrels it had started to rain softly. Chase went in and did a great pattern as well. He placed 2nd again and he was happy with his “paycheck” from the show.
This week is a busy one. Tomorrow we have drill practice, Thursday & Friday we have the rodeo & Saturday Chase shows Dozer.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Tough times
Getting news that your child is ill is never easy. For a lot of us our horses are just like our children so when they are sick and don’t feel well it is just as difficult.
If you recall I posted that Sis hasn’t been feeling well. She slipped in a hole Memorial weekend and has been “off” since. MIL consulted with her vet shortly after the accident and he suggested time off with bute. After some time off she was as little better but still wasn’t “Sis” so I suggested that MIL have a chiro look at Sis to make sure she wasn’t out. The chiro was out and found lots wrong with Sis. She felt heat in the buttock area and suggested 1 mo. off as she felt Sis had a pulled/torn muscle.
After some time off Sis slowly got worse so I suggested MIL take her to her vet. Below is his diagnosis.
slight raise of the right hip at the trot. Slight stiffness and response to palpitation of loin, xrays showed-right hock-narrowing tarsametatarsal and distalintertarsal joint space. ordering surpass cream --put 5 inch ribbon along area, rub lightly can wrap or not
Basically he told MIL that Sis was getting arthritis and the treatment for it was to work her and then put the surpass cream on her hock after she was exercised. This was great news to MIL as she really didn’t want to be without Sis for a month. I had my concerns about this diagnosis since arthritis doesn’t explain heat in a muscle. MIL was so excited though that she started riding her slowly and that weekend we had our show. The following day MIL and Chase left for Utah for 2 weeks so Sis was in my care.
That Tuesday I took Sis to drill practice. I had only planned on trotting her through the routine but after warming her up I decided I wouldn’t even do that. She was so stiff that even the gal who rides her gimpy horse ever practice noticed it (her horse could be bleeding and she wouldn’t notice). When I got home I had a talk with DH and we decided to seek a second opinion. While neither one of us disagree that she might not be getting arthritis, neither one of use feels that this is due to arthritis.
It took over a week to get her into another vet. Horse vets around here (good ones that is) are few and far between. The vet we currently use is supposed to be one of the best. Since we are busy at work I was unable to join DH yesterday when he took Sis in. The results were what I expected but not necessarily what anyone wants to hear.
Sis has a pulled muscle but worse yet due to all of our pissing around this muscle is starting to ossify. If she doesn’t respond well to his treatment it could require surgery. The muscles affected are the popliteus muscle & gracilis muscles on the inside of the stifle. He injected the muscles with several different injections and did shockwave therapy on the leg. He also had his chiropractor look at her while she was there and he did find that she had popped her shoulder back out.
This was the good news. The bad news was that he thinks she has EPM again. This didn’t come as too much of a shock to me but it still wasn’t something I wanted to hear as I know treatment is very expensive. Unfortunately the meds he used on her leg will make it worse if it is EPM so I can’t try the Karbo Combo on her so DH is picking up the treatment today so we can get her started.
What I’m finding out about EPM is that it seems a lot of horses have it but it is so mild that it can/does go unnoticed and that stress, injury or an illness can cause the protozoa to become active (assuming this is the case with Sis). It sounds like cancer – everyone has the cells that make cancer but not everyone gets cancer and those who do get cancer don’t get it to the same degree (different stages). The chiro that was out said that a lot of the reiners/cutters were finding that when their horses were “off” they had EPM and after treatment they were better. With EPM the only 100% way to diagnose is through a necropsy. All a serum test does is show that the horse has built up antibodies to the protozoa. This doesn’t mean they are infected. A spinal tap can be done but it is expensive and those results aren’t 100% either so most diagnosis are based off of a clinical examination.
If you recall I posted that Sis hasn’t been feeling well. She slipped in a hole Memorial weekend and has been “off” since. MIL consulted with her vet shortly after the accident and he suggested time off with bute. After some time off she was as little better but still wasn’t “Sis” so I suggested that MIL have a chiro look at Sis to make sure she wasn’t out. The chiro was out and found lots wrong with Sis. She felt heat in the buttock area and suggested 1 mo. off as she felt Sis had a pulled/torn muscle.
After some time off Sis slowly got worse so I suggested MIL take her to her vet. Below is his diagnosis.
slight raise of the right hip at the trot. Slight stiffness and response to palpitation of loin, xrays showed-right hock-narrowing tarsametatarsal and distalintertarsal joint space. ordering surpass cream --put 5 inch ribbon along area, rub lightly can wrap or not
Basically he told MIL that Sis was getting arthritis and the treatment for it was to work her and then put the surpass cream on her hock after she was exercised. This was great news to MIL as she really didn’t want to be without Sis for a month. I had my concerns about this diagnosis since arthritis doesn’t explain heat in a muscle. MIL was so excited though that she started riding her slowly and that weekend we had our show. The following day MIL and Chase left for Utah for 2 weeks so Sis was in my care.
That Tuesday I took Sis to drill practice. I had only planned on trotting her through the routine but after warming her up I decided I wouldn’t even do that. She was so stiff that even the gal who rides her gimpy horse ever practice noticed it (her horse could be bleeding and she wouldn’t notice). When I got home I had a talk with DH and we decided to seek a second opinion. While neither one of us disagree that she might not be getting arthritis, neither one of use feels that this is due to arthritis.
It took over a week to get her into another vet. Horse vets around here (good ones that is) are few and far between. The vet we currently use is supposed to be one of the best. Since we are busy at work I was unable to join DH yesterday when he took Sis in. The results were what I expected but not necessarily what anyone wants to hear.
Sis has a pulled muscle but worse yet due to all of our pissing around this muscle is starting to ossify. If she doesn’t respond well to his treatment it could require surgery. The muscles affected are the popliteus muscle & gracilis muscles on the inside of the stifle. He injected the muscles with several different injections and did shockwave therapy on the leg. He also had his chiropractor look at her while she was there and he did find that she had popped her shoulder back out.
This was the good news. The bad news was that he thinks she has EPM again. This didn’t come as too much of a shock to me but it still wasn’t something I wanted to hear as I know treatment is very expensive. Unfortunately the meds he used on her leg will make it worse if it is EPM so I can’t try the Karbo Combo on her so DH is picking up the treatment today so we can get her started.
What I’m finding out about EPM is that it seems a lot of horses have it but it is so mild that it can/does go unnoticed and that stress, injury or an illness can cause the protozoa to become active (assuming this is the case with Sis). It sounds like cancer – everyone has the cells that make cancer but not everyone gets cancer and those who do get cancer don’t get it to the same degree (different stages). The chiro that was out said that a lot of the reiners/cutters were finding that when their horses were “off” they had EPM and after treatment they were better. With EPM the only 100% way to diagnose is through a necropsy. All a serum test does is show that the horse has built up antibodies to the protozoa. This doesn’t mean they are infected. A spinal tap can be done but it is expensive and those results aren’t 100% either so most diagnosis are based off of a clinical examination.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Off to the rodeo
With MIL gone and Sis out of commission I’ve been taking Abby to drill practice in MIL’s spot. I think it has been very good for Abby. For one thing she’s had to run & we all know how much lazy Abby likes to run. But it has also helped her get used to having horses next to her, behind her, in front of her and coming at her from all directions (this was the one thing I did like about drill).
We have been practicing in the arena that Chase shows in (the only arena Abby has been in) so I asked if we could go to a different arena last night. The team will be performing next Thursday & Friday at the rodeo so I wanted to try to get in that arena to see what Abby would do. When we first got there she was a bit nervous but not too bad. We’ve been working on vertical flexion so she had her head almost between her knees (she’s an over achiever). One of Abby’s biggest issues is that she is very aware of her footing & if she doesn’t like something on the ground she won’t move. I’ve been working on that through groundwork but there is still room for improvement.
She was very aware of her footing last night and refused to move a few times. When she did she was quickly greeted w/Mr. Crop. After that she decided it wasn’t so scary. In the arena she got tense. I wasn’t sure what she was nervous about but quickly discovered it was the stands and the noise from them. I asked a gal in the stands to make some noise while I did rollbacks on the fence and she finally decided they weren’t very scary when she had to work so we proceeded to move around the arena.
She was fine with everything else in the arena including the chutes but it will be interesting to see what she’s like next week when the stands are full, there are little kids running up and down the sides of the arena and there are bulls in the chutes. This is another reason I like drill, it gets them exposed to lots of different places/experiences that I wouldn’t be able to expose her to by myself.
One thing that keeps surprising everyone on the team is how fast little Miss Abby can go. Just because she’s a pony doesn’t mean she can’t run! She can keep up with the best of them (although the crop does help with that). MIL gets to practice with her next week prior to the rodeo so the boys and I will be making lots of noise in the stands!
We have been practicing in the arena that Chase shows in (the only arena Abby has been in) so I asked if we could go to a different arena last night. The team will be performing next Thursday & Friday at the rodeo so I wanted to try to get in that arena to see what Abby would do. When we first got there she was a bit nervous but not too bad. We’ve been working on vertical flexion so she had her head almost between her knees (she’s an over achiever). One of Abby’s biggest issues is that she is very aware of her footing & if she doesn’t like something on the ground she won’t move. I’ve been working on that through groundwork but there is still room for improvement.
She was very aware of her footing last night and refused to move a few times. When she did she was quickly greeted w/Mr. Crop. After that she decided it wasn’t so scary. In the arena she got tense. I wasn’t sure what she was nervous about but quickly discovered it was the stands and the noise from them. I asked a gal in the stands to make some noise while I did rollbacks on the fence and she finally decided they weren’t very scary when she had to work so we proceeded to move around the arena.
She was fine with everything else in the arena including the chutes but it will be interesting to see what she’s like next week when the stands are full, there are little kids running up and down the sides of the arena and there are bulls in the chutes. This is another reason I like drill, it gets them exposed to lots of different places/experiences that I wouldn’t be able to expose her to by myself.
One thing that keeps surprising everyone on the team is how fast little Miss Abby can go. Just because she’s a pony doesn’t mean she can’t run! She can keep up with the best of them (although the crop does help with that). MIL gets to practice with her next week prior to the rodeo so the boys and I will be making lots of noise in the stands!
Thursday, July 2, 2009
My ass!
I've been wanting to do this for a long time but I either don't always have all of the horses here or something else gets in the way. Last night DH was gone but I decided to try anways and here are the results!
The line up!
Sis
Black
Lucy (can you tell she was hot?)
Abby
Cat (I promise her back leg isn't that messed up, she was kicking flies on her belly)
Nikki
The gang!
The End(s)
The end!
The line up!
Sis
Black
Lucy (can you tell she was hot?)
Abby
Cat (I promise her back leg isn't that messed up, she was kicking flies on her belly)
Nikki
The gang!
The End(s)
The end!
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