Here are a few good links from the horse blogging world.
7 Tips For Being a Better Competitor Among Friends from Zen and the Art of Baby Horse Management
I love this. I'm somewhat competitive, and I often ride among friends, but all these tips apply to anyone who's showing - they'll help you be a better competitor and person.
Thermal Imaging from The Adventures of a Floppy Ammy
I loved seeing the pre and post saddle reflocking images - such a great argument for reflocking regularly, even if your saddle fits on paper.
What to Consider Before Using Alternative Therapies on Your Horse from Racing to Ride
Thoughtful, clear, and transparent post about things to think about when you're going beyond standard vet care. I myself use massage for Tristan regularly, and would consider chiropractic. It's important to note here that by "alternative therapies" Jodi means more things like that and not, say, Chinese herbs or homeopathy.
A Hard Diagnosis to Take from Paradigm Farms
Again! Thoughtful, clear, and transparent writing about how sometimes the best thing you can do for your horse is absolutely nothing. I tend to be guilty of the "TRY EVERYTHING!" approach to Tristan; in the last few months I've made conscious decisions to let him resolve some problems on his own, both for my mental health and for my bank account.
Flying Changes from Forging Fiction
Truly outstanding lesson write-up with diagrams and thoughtful analysis and clearly described exercises.
Bel Joeor: Life + Horses
Saturday, January 31, 2015
Friday, January 30, 2015
TOABH: Sugar Mama
I mean, beyond the small hobby farm + live-in help, of course!
I'd buy a new truck and trailer, first off.
Trailer: custom Hawk 2h straight load goose neck. I'd expand the dressing room a bit so there was plenty of room for tack trunk as well as my own stuff. I'd make sure it had a water source underneath the goose neck, and would plan the high portion so that it made a comfortable bed.
Then I'd replace my truck, which would go in honorable retirement to my parents where it could live out life as a weekender truck.
I'd get a brand-new, kitted for towing 3/4 ton GMC Sierra. I like GM trucks for towing. I'd get the extended bed, and not the full extended cab - just the king cab. Seats in the back, but not separate doors. 4WD, without question. Honestly? I want exactly my same truck, brand new, with 4WD. I love my truck.
I'd find a reputable storage place to garage them both over the winter so they don't get wear and tear.
Other than that...?
Both of Tristan's saddles fit him and me, and I love them. Ditto his bridles. His blankets are all in good working order. He gets the food, supplements, and medication he needs. I might consider doing blood work quarterly, instead of bi-annually.
If he pooped money, I'd pay down my mortgage faster and build up his emergency fund. I'd increase my cash flow so that I could take lessons weekly over the spring, summer, and fall.
I'd probably seriously consider investing money into my current barn. Maybe I'd be some kind of partner in the business so that they could do some major capital improvements. I honestly think the property is marvelous as it is, and they do a nice job maintaining it - but I also know that more money in a horse property is never a bad thing! Or maybe I'd invest in a fancy horse for my trainer, and fly down to Florida to see it in the big classes. Who knows?
Finally, I'd sink some money into improving equestrian sport. I'd either establish a regular fund or regular donations for a couple of horse rescues, and I'd set up a decent sized scholarship for young riders. Probably through Pony Club, aimed at New Englanders.
Thursday, January 29, 2015
Winter Part Eight Million
So I can ride today and tomorrow, hopefully, and then never again. Grrrrr.
Tuesday, January 27, 2015
Mental Health Decisions
I think I've finally made peace with the riding obstructionist part of winter. Somehow, in the last week or so, I managed to just stop feeling guilty on days I can't ride. I'm lining up indoor projects instead: lots of cleaning & cooking, some very initial organizing with the anticipation of moving later this spring. I will drop all of it like a hot potato as soon as the weather climbs back out of the Arctic.
In the meantime, I'm averaging about two rides a week. Last week, Friday and Saturday. Friday was a terrific schooling session under saddle. Saturday was a really productive longeing session.
Sunday, the temps were only into the double digits...when there was a clinic in the indoor. Monday I had to travel for work during the only double digit temperatures. Today I'll be at work. Wednesday it won't climb into double digits at all. Thursday and Saturday look the most promising this week.
We're not getting hardly any snow from the blizzard. It's hitting southern New England. Vermont is getting sort of spitty little haze right now, and we're probably not going to accumulate beyond 8". So basically a normal Tuesday here.
I did check on Tristan on Sunday amidst house-viewing. The edema is gone, thankfully, and he was happy and chipper and providing good babysitting guidance.
In the meantime, I'm averaging about two rides a week. Last week, Friday and Saturday. Friday was a terrific schooling session under saddle. Saturday was a really productive longeing session.
Sunday, the temps were only into the double digits...when there was a clinic in the indoor. Monday I had to travel for work during the only double digit temperatures. Today I'll be at work. Wednesday it won't climb into double digits at all. Thursday and Saturday look the most promising this week.
We're not getting hardly any snow from the blizzard. It's hitting southern New England. Vermont is getting sort of spitty little haze right now, and we're probably not going to accumulate beyond 8". So basically a normal Tuesday here.
I did check on Tristan on Sunday amidst house-viewing. The edema is gone, thankfully, and he was happy and chipper and providing good babysitting guidance.
I'll try to get more interesting things posted this week, but I'm really struggling with motivation when it's so cold and I'm seeing my horse so rarely!
Saturday, January 24, 2015
A Case of the Winters
Last night, for the first time in mumblety days, it was warm enough to ride, AND not snowing, AND I wasn't working until late at night. It was like I hit the jackpot!
So I headed to the barn, and groomed, and...Tristan's ventral edema is back. On the other side, in a different shape, and softer and pitting. $#@$#@!!!!!! But not bilateral, or spreading, or really soft and squishy - anything that would point to more dire things. Just weird, mostly.
I called over the barn manager, who is infinitely more patient with me than she really ought to be, and we both examined and finally shrugged. He is looking and feeling the best he has in a long time. It wasn't sore in any way. We jointly decided that I should get on and see how he felt. So I saddled up - the edema was back of the girth area - and hopped on.
He actually felt ok at the walk; not great, but not out of the spectrum of normal, either, for a horse who has had sporadic work while his turnout has been a sheet of ice and oh yeah he's turning 20 this spring. So a bit of a hitch, but he was willing enough to keep walking. I gave him a nice long walk warmup and incorporated a ton of lateral work to try and get at his flexibility. I also did some bending stretches, and spiraled in and out, and tried some tighter circles - all with the dual purpose of really warming up his whole body and doing a bit of a stress test to see if he would tell me if he was obviously hurting in some way.
Nothing jumped out, so we picked up the trot, and he felt great. More even, more solid than he had at the walk. Basically 100% normal, if behind the leg and fussy in the bit. (So, normal.) We did about 8 minutes of just stretching loose trot around the entire indoor, with only an occasional 20m circle. Nothing dramatic, just keeping him moving and getting him warmed up.
We took another walk break, and the barn manager came in to longe a Paint mare who's in for training. She came in as a sort of Western Pleasure horse, very daisy cutter without being that pretty efficient look that a nice hunter gets. Just flat and lazy. She's already looking dramatically better.
Apparently, said Paint mare is also a hellion to longe, and is used to more work/turnout than she's been getting. She spent the next 15-20 minutes rearing, bolting, spinning, you name it. Holy mackerel. God bless Tristan, you guys. Even when the mare came galloping sideways, head in the air like a giraffe, barn manager trying desperately to keep her reined in, on a circle, sane - anything! - the worst he did was scoot for a few strides, mostly to get out of the way. The most I had to do was pick the reins back up and sit deep to get him back.
Don't get me wrong, he was very alert and up and paying close attention to what the mare was doing, and I had to do a more hands-on ride than I was hoping for in a walk break, but I was also able to channel that energy into some really terrific work after the break, once the mare calmed down.
If anything, he was too light in the bridle, too quick in his legs and not through enough, so we had a different sort of problem to tackle for once. I worked on getting him deeper, with more push from the hind end, more uphill, more solid. He was fussy in the bridle until I really, really focused hard on keeping my hands still, consciously opening and closing my elbows. He seems to have gotten a bit fussier with the bit as the years have gone on, and I often find I can fix the ducking in and out of contact by simply being better about my own hands.
I had not intended to canter, really - well, it was in the original plan for the day, but not in the modified, what the hell is on my horse's stomach plan. But he felt so good in the trot I couldn't resist. And wow. His canter felt light years better than it has since, what, June? He was not stiff and resisting. I could get at his hind legs and ask him to bend and be uphill. He almost felt like a real dressage horse!
We finished with 10 more minutes of walking, and poor abused pony was a little bit sweaty! Ever-so-slightly damp around the ears and at the girth area. So half of his final walk was in hand with a loose girth, and then I layered up some coolers. It was high 20s, so considerably warmer than it has been, but not exactly warm and cozy. I went with his cotton wicking sheet under his fleece - thinking the cotton would bring moisture out, and the fleece would still keep a measure of warmth.
I tidied up and hung around for 20 minutes or so, and at the end of that he was dry and about 85% cool, so I swapped his coolers for his regular blanket, since the temperature was starting to drop precipitously.
What next? Ride tonight (Saturday) since it's going to be in the 30s. I'll try to ride Sunday afternoon after house hunting (no farm properties, all city houses), but the rest of the week - through Thursday - will be in the single digits or well below zero, so probably no riding for me. :(
As for the edema? Wait and see, I guess. It's now officially more concerning than it was, but as I said: one side only, one spot only. He could just be sleeping funny (maybe on top of a hoof or something) or moving less. The last one disappeared after a few days of bute and rest. We'll see what this does. I didn't notice a huge change after riding, and he felt fine, so fingers crossed? If there's any progression or if he starts acting funny for any reason the vet will be out immediately, but for now...wait and see.
So I headed to the barn, and groomed, and...Tristan's ventral edema is back. On the other side, in a different shape, and softer and pitting. $#@$#@!!!!!! But not bilateral, or spreading, or really soft and squishy - anything that would point to more dire things. Just weird, mostly.
I called over the barn manager, who is infinitely more patient with me than she really ought to be, and we both examined and finally shrugged. He is looking and feeling the best he has in a long time. It wasn't sore in any way. We jointly decided that I should get on and see how he felt. So I saddled up - the edema was back of the girth area - and hopped on.
He actually felt ok at the walk; not great, but not out of the spectrum of normal, either, for a horse who has had sporadic work while his turnout has been a sheet of ice and oh yeah he's turning 20 this spring. So a bit of a hitch, but he was willing enough to keep walking. I gave him a nice long walk warmup and incorporated a ton of lateral work to try and get at his flexibility. I also did some bending stretches, and spiraled in and out, and tried some tighter circles - all with the dual purpose of really warming up his whole body and doing a bit of a stress test to see if he would tell me if he was obviously hurting in some way.
Nothing jumped out, so we picked up the trot, and he felt great. More even, more solid than he had at the walk. Basically 100% normal, if behind the leg and fussy in the bit. (So, normal.) We did about 8 minutes of just stretching loose trot around the entire indoor, with only an occasional 20m circle. Nothing dramatic, just keeping him moving and getting him warmed up.
We took another walk break, and the barn manager came in to longe a Paint mare who's in for training. She came in as a sort of Western Pleasure horse, very daisy cutter without being that pretty efficient look that a nice hunter gets. Just flat and lazy. She's already looking dramatically better.
Apparently, said Paint mare is also a hellion to longe, and is used to more work/turnout than she's been getting. She spent the next 15-20 minutes rearing, bolting, spinning, you name it. Holy mackerel. God bless Tristan, you guys. Even when the mare came galloping sideways, head in the air like a giraffe, barn manager trying desperately to keep her reined in, on a circle, sane - anything! - the worst he did was scoot for a few strides, mostly to get out of the way. The most I had to do was pick the reins back up and sit deep to get him back.
Don't get me wrong, he was very alert and up and paying close attention to what the mare was doing, and I had to do a more hands-on ride than I was hoping for in a walk break, but I was also able to channel that energy into some really terrific work after the break, once the mare calmed down.
If anything, he was too light in the bridle, too quick in his legs and not through enough, so we had a different sort of problem to tackle for once. I worked on getting him deeper, with more push from the hind end, more uphill, more solid. He was fussy in the bridle until I really, really focused hard on keeping my hands still, consciously opening and closing my elbows. He seems to have gotten a bit fussier with the bit as the years have gone on, and I often find I can fix the ducking in and out of contact by simply being better about my own hands.
I had not intended to canter, really - well, it was in the original plan for the day, but not in the modified, what the hell is on my horse's stomach plan. But he felt so good in the trot I couldn't resist. And wow. His canter felt light years better than it has since, what, June? He was not stiff and resisting. I could get at his hind legs and ask him to bend and be uphill. He almost felt like a real dressage horse!
We finished with 10 more minutes of walking, and poor abused pony was a little bit sweaty! Ever-so-slightly damp around the ears and at the girth area. So half of his final walk was in hand with a loose girth, and then I layered up some coolers. It was high 20s, so considerably warmer than it has been, but not exactly warm and cozy. I went with his cotton wicking sheet under his fleece - thinking the cotton would bring moisture out, and the fleece would still keep a measure of warmth.
I tidied up and hung around for 20 minutes or so, and at the end of that he was dry and about 85% cool, so I swapped his coolers for his regular blanket, since the temperature was starting to drop precipitously.
What next? Ride tonight (Saturday) since it's going to be in the 30s. I'll try to ride Sunday afternoon after house hunting (no farm properties, all city houses), but the rest of the week - through Thursday - will be in the single digits or well below zero, so probably no riding for me. :(
As for the edema? Wait and see, I guess. It's now officially more concerning than it was, but as I said: one side only, one spot only. He could just be sleeping funny (maybe on top of a hoof or something) or moving less. The last one disappeared after a few days of bute and rest. We'll see what this does. I didn't notice a huge change after riding, and he felt fine, so fingers crossed? If there's any progression or if he starts acting funny for any reason the vet will be out immediately, but for now...wait and see.
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