Truthful Tuesday: Horses vs Humans

I kind of feel like I'm having deja vu. Romey's leaving this weekend feels so much like when I said goodbye to Ducky a few years ago. They are a lot alike in many ways. They are both really reactive. They both have very strong opinions. Both enjoy the taste of human flesh. And somehow, they both took a tiny, itty bitty, little piece of my cold black heart.

I eventually ran into the same issues with Romey as I had with Ducky. Refusal to work being one of the most frustrating. They both had some soundness stuff too. So for each case, it was time for them to move on when they did. But both times, I was really surprised at how sad I felt when they pulled out of the driveway.

SMILE!

As I was hiding in the barn having a bit of a moment after Romey left, I realized I'd felt these emotions before. Not just when Ducky left, but I've felt it with humans too. Being in a wrong horse relationship isn't much different than being in the wrong human relationship. And here's where it gets interesting to me...
Awhile back, I dated a wonderful man for about a year. I think I knew it wasn't working much earlier on in our relationship, but I kept it going trying to make it work. He was a really sweet guy. He thought the world of me. But I didn't think the world of him. Beyond his being sweet and wonderful to me, there was a side from his past that was less so.  History of drug abuse, children he didn't see, that sort of thing. While I know people change, there were signs that those things were still there. I put a lot of work into that relationship. Tried to get him to see where things went wrong in his past. Why he should reach out to the kids. Etc etc. But my advice went unheard and eventually we had to part ways.

"I want more of dis please. No workies."

 As I sat with my coffee after saying goodbye to Romey, I realized my relationship with him was much the same as my ex. Romey could be sweet (mostly when he was sedated...) and he cared about me (probably because I supplied the food) but our relationship was not a healthy one. We wanted different things. Romey wanted to live in a field and eat grass and not do work. I wanted him to be a show hunter. Very different wants, clearly!

It helped me process my feelings a little better, to see that comparison. I couldn't figure out why I was so sad when Romey left until I saw those similarities. I gave Romey almost two years of my time, energy, and even some love. It's hard to see that pull out of the driveway the last time, whether it's a human or an equine. It might even be harder when it's a horse.
For all the good and the bad, Romes gets to keep his little, itty-bitty, tiny piece of my heart. I'll keep him there forever. The rest of him arrived safe and sound in KY. He's going to have some time off and then see if he'd like a job as a light trail horse.

So after all that, today's confession is that I seemingly can't separate my human and horse relationships. None of them easy, are but all of them have been worth it.

Truthful Tuesday: Romey Edition

Today's confession is that I've given up on Romey. Sometimes you have to know when you've spent all you can spend. Not just monetarily but emotionally too.

Romey hasn't been sound since he came to me. I've given him lots of time, lots of rehab, and lots of vet and body work visits. Only to finally discover he had an old fracture way up high on the right hind. My vet can't fix that. We tried injecting the SI to see if that could help him compensate better. Which it did. For about three weeks. I had the vet back out when Romey decided he was no longer interested in trotting for me. (Let alone canter!) Romey also has kissing spine. And while Doc didn't think that was causing Romey's refusal to work, I can't help but wonder if it's contributing. Add in his not so delightful personality and I finally had to admit this just isn't going to work.

So then what? I love my little farm, but it's far from perfect. My turnout is barely adequate for my working horses, let alone one who isn't going to be ridden. So keeping him at my place would be unfair. Not an option. Romey may not have been a good match for me, but he was a war horse on the track. He's more than earned a decent place to live his life. So I started researching retirement farms. I had no idea the scope of what was out there! They can range anywhere from $150 per month to over $1000. But I didn't really want for him to go somewhere that would pull his shoes, throw him in a field and forget about him. So we're talking in the $450 to -$650 range per month. Not horribly unreasonable, but with Badger in training, it would definitely strain my ability to buy groceries and put gas in my car. (And I'd have to quit shopping cold turkey. Can you imagine?!) The other factor? Romey is eight years old. Other than having a creaky skeleton, he's quite healthy. And he's a little aggressive. All those things mean that his horse will happy and comfortably live in retirement for at minimum 15 years. You guys. That's approximately $90,000.
I like to think of myself as a responsible horse owner. I do the best I am able for my tall kids (the short ones too actually), and if I can't keep them, I find the best home I can for them (not the short kids, they always stay. ALWAYS). But financially, I wasn't sure I could swing this for Romey.

At this point, I was basically thinking I should just give up riding and nurse these animals I have through old age as best I can at my farm. But finally, I decided to reach out to his last owner. As they have a no slaughter cause in their contracts, I figured they must know of affordable, decent places to retire these horses. Luckily, this was a great decision. In talking with his last human, she asked what my vet had thought about him having a light work job. My vet very much thinks he can have a job, and that he doesn't necessarily need to retire fully. But he does need some more vet work and will require some maintenance. Previous human has many people come to her for light work horses and/or walking trail horses. Either of these jobs could be great for him. So she agreed to take him back (I pay shipping and a small processing fee). She will give him the winter off, consult with the vets at the University of Kentucky, and then find an appropriate home for him.
I'm relieved that this is all working out, and I hope things go to plan. While he didn't work out for me, I still have a spot in my cold little heart for him. I'm sad that he's leaving, but I'm hopeful he'll find a home that he's happier in. He's such a handsome guy, and while kind of a bitey jerk, I really do think he's more playful than mean. He'll be leaving next week sometime. Oddly enough, I'm really going to miss him.

Safe travels Romes. I'll miss you buddy.

What's Up Wednesday

It was a relatively uneventful week around here. I didn't have much planned for the weekend other than a few braiding jobs and the usual riding at home. And I was a total slacker in the taking photos department so I don't even have pretty braid photos for you. Bad blogger!
I've been looking into replacing my fencing that surrounds the ring, the paddock, and Jampy's walkout. It's REALLY tough to find someone to install fencing that they don't sell you. But everyone around here sells the same stuff and it's not what I've been looking for. I currently have a wooden split rail fence. It was lovely until it wasn't. Wood just doesn't hold up well between the New England weather and the fact that both Rio and Romey are part termite.
There are LOTS of options for fencing: vinyl, electric tape, pvc, wood... But I really wanted something that looked somewhat natural but that would hold up better than actual wood. I'm not a big fan of the PVC fencing. It's pretty common to see it cracked and broken from the cold winters. Vinyl is a little more durable but really does not look natural. I'm not interested in electric. I'm not against it in theory, but I'm very clumsy and would just rather not electrocute myself on the regular. Which led me to some of the composite options. There was one I was considering back when I was building the barn, but they've since gone out of business. After getting some samples from a few places, I found one that actually puts a wood grain on the rails. Woohoo!

AND I found a local guy who will install. I met with him this weekend to go over everything and get a quote. I have one more meeting with him before spending all the money and actually ordering the fence. But I'm pretty excited that it's moving along. I'm going to do the grayish color since it's pretty close to the color of my barn and oddly enough even my footing matches! Very monochromatic at the farm apparently.

Jampy and I have been plugging along trying to get us both stronger and him more sound. In an attempt to help with that, I've been trying him on a new supplement. But first I must give a back story on it. Trainer has a vet that does body work on the horses, and she's kind of into Chinese herbs. I'm not sure I'm super into Chinese herbs, but hey, if it's not going to do any damage I'm willing to try new things. So trainer and body work doc wanted to try Badger on some herbs that build up the hind end. Trainer has used them before and thought they were really helpful. Funny thing about them, once the horse doesn't need them anymore, it can make them a little crazy. So you know to stop giving them, that's for sure! Long story slightly shorter, Badger was a little nutty soon after starting them so we took him off right away. He obviously didn't need them. I figured since I'd already bought them, I would try them on Jampy.

Looks like tea! Kinda smells like  tea too. I bet it's just really expensive tea.

I can't say that he magically felt a thousand times better, but he's been much more relaxed. And then all of a sudden he's started to really feel pretty good. I'm not sure if it's the herbs or what. But I'll take it! I really tested him by jumping two days in a row this past week. Just a few jumps each day, but I was curious to see how he'd feel after all that. And he's felt great!
Here are some snaps from our schools:

We're still jumping pretty small, but the oxer out of the combination was almost at 3'. Also note, we jumped toward the scary end of the ring! That's a pretty big deal for us. (Pats self on back.) Also a big deal is that there were no theatrics either day. Not once did we change directions abruptly without my asking. What a guy!

Rio's been feeling pretty great too... you know, for Rio at least. I've been letting him do some lead changes, and he does them so perfectly! They're a little bit extravagant, but he swaps all at the same time, so I'll take it. It's so hard not to point him at some jumps when he's feeling so good. But I'd like him to stay that way so we don't do that.

And then there's Romey... For much of last week I was feeling pretty good about Romey. I was being assertive and he started to give me some really nice trot work. Even our horrid canter transitions seemed to be improving. But really, look at this trot:

Yes, I do have draw reins on him. Romey enjoys a good scoot and spin and the draw reins help to keep that to just a scoot. As you can see they're not holding his dead down, or interfering in anyway when he's behaving himself. There's even a loop in both my reins here.  You can judge if you want, but you do you and I'll do me over here... Anyway, he really was giving me some great work, and I was almost enjoying him. That is until this weekend. He's playing a rousing game of Ducky 2.0 all of a sudden. For those of you that are new, Ducky was my adorable little gray hony who would grow roots and refuse to move for the better part of our rides. I actually had to send him for training to try and break that habit. Romey's not quite as stubborn. He'll happily meander around the ring at the walk. I just can't get him right to trot when I ask. He goes eventually. But it really can't be on his terms, ya know?
At first I was sure that he was hurting. But I palpated ALL over him to the point that he definitely would have objected it something hurt. (Let's be real, he objects any time you touch him, but especially if something hurts.) I got no response to anything. I talked to trainer (she's away or I would have had her out here) and she said some of them do that when they're at this point in training. She had one that wouldn't canter for three months. He was younger than Romey, but right about the same point he's at as far as riding goes. So I guess I just keep working through it. Hey, at least he's not running away and trying to buck me off right?
I think horses are much like riders are with learning. Every time you take a big leap forward, you end up taking a little step back. Hopefully that's all this is. Because he's going to be tough enough to re-home without also being stationary. Horses! Sheesh. Good thing he's cute.

Between braiding and horsing, I did make sure to take the short kids for an evening walk when the ground was cool enough.

They were so happy to finally go somewhere (it's been awhile).

They kill me though! Just before we get back home, there's a grassy area where the road V's off. Every time we get there on our way home, they insist on taking a break there. It wasn't too buggy this time so I didn't mind the stop. I took advantage and got those super cute tongue out photos above. And this one:

I also managed to sneak in a lobster roll at the lake for dinner.... POSSIBLY both Saturday and Sunday night... Don't judge. They're delicious! Sunday there was a band playing down there too so that was fun. I really love living where I do.

Last night I finally snapped some pics of my two extra saddles that I need to sell and posted them on the Facebook and Instagram. I had a neighbor try them today, but they didn't work, so hopefully someone else will come along. I'd prefer not to ship, but if you all know anyone looking, send them my way! Here's what I have:

Hermes Essentielle, 16.5" regular flap, regular tree. The Hermes tree is more narrow than most french saddles, but it is a spring tree so it has give to it. I've used it on all my warmbloods and they've all been comfortable in it. The only horse I had that it didn't fit was my medium pony.  Asking $2000 or best offer.

Delgrange, 16" short flap, medium tree. I think this tree is on the wider side of medium. I've had two people try it needing a wide tree, but it wasn't wide enough, so I'm still calling it a medium. I used this one on previously mentioned medium pony. I'm not sure which model it is, it's pretty old. I bought it used. It's had the panels replaced about 5 years ago, and hasn't been used much since I sold the pony. Asking $1000 or best offer.

And that's all that's up this Wednesday! What's up with you?

Truthful Tuesday: Romey edition

Well... You know how you say you want answers when your horse is NQR? Yeah. Sometimes the guessing is a little more fun. As you may recall, Romey has been not all that sound pretty much ever since I got him. Initially we thought it was the "ankle injury" (which was really a suspensory because of course it was) that he got on the track that ended his career not being fully healed. So we did light flat work all last summer to keep him sane but still allow for healing. The vet came back in the fall for him because he was noticeably unsound behind. Which we figured was maybe there all along, but masked by him being more lame on the front leg which by that point was much better.

Unfortunately for Romey, the day the vet came out in the fall he took second fiddle to Jampy and HIS mystery lameness. By the time we were done with Jamp, it was getting pretty late. Romey presented much like Jamp had. Neither blocked out sound anywhere from their foot all the way through the stifles. This does not make for easy diagnostics my friends! Unfortunately, we ran out of hours in the day and vet and I decided that since it was almost winter to just rest him early, and see what we have in the spring. Ok by me! He continued with daily turnout but we stopped riding.

Also in the fall, I had someone come out to do some body work on both boys. (Poor Rio can't have that done, not recommended for neuro horses.) Figured it couldn't hurt and maybe she would find something my regular vet and I couldn't see. No surprises on Jampy, but we did find that Romey may have kissing spine. Of course something like 80% of thoroughbreds have it, so it's not surprising. But it did leave questions. Does he have it and it's causing the lameness? Does he have it and it's not actually of consequence? Maybe he doesn't even have it?! She agreed that since he's having the winter off anyway, unless he seems uncomfortable hanging out, it was ok to wait until spring to really dig into diagnosing that. So all of that brings us to last Friday when my regular vet was back with lots of time for both horses. We'll save Jampy's info for tomorrow though, as his isn't that exciting.

Romey presented (as I've been feeling all spring) as pretty sound to the left but very unsound to the right. We did some flexions but nothing really made it better or worse. Thus, we moved on to the fun part: Ultra sound! ($$$$$) The ultra sound found that he has a great big tear in his meniscus, BUT he has no edema surrounding it. Due to that, Doc wasn't convinced that's the problem. He said it's really hard to believe that's making him so acutely unsound with no fluid or inflammation surrounding it whatsoever. Can't argue that really. So we moved on to x-rays...($$$$$$$$$$$$$$)

Doc started with stifles because that's really what he was thinking after watching him go under saddle. But those came out clear. We then moved on to hips which also looked pretty good. So lower we went, to some part of the femur that I can't remember what it's called. And low and behold... My horse has a broken leg. YOU GUYS. MY HORSE HAS A BROKEN LEG! Doc says it's old, definitely happened years ago. But that is like 99% why he is so unsound to the right. Excellent.We also took some pictures of his spine to see about that kissing spine, which yes, he has that too. But like the meniscus, Doc doesn't think it's causing him any duress at the moment.

Where does that leave things with him? I don't really know for sure. Doc has seen this injury a few times in the past, and he says they never get worse. (Ok, well he's lame though, sooo...) He said that we could have some success injecting his SI to see if that helps, but that we can't inject away the actual injury. So we did the SI, and he's coming back in a few weeks to see if that helped him at all. He doesn't think he's really in pain, but rather mechanically, he has a hitch in his git-along (if you will). So he's rideable, if you don't mind an uneven moving horse. Will he ever be a show horse? Likely not. Will he jump? Probably. But not higher than 2'6" most likely. I'm holding off on making any decisions until we see if the injection makes any difference. But I imagine I will be looking for a place for him to live out in a field somewhere. Or a home that doesn't care if he's uneven and just wants something to play with in the back yard. He'll be tough to place for that though since he's not friendly and cuddly. I guess if you guys know anyone who might want a pasture pet that bites, but is really pretty, send them my way!

After all that blabbing... Here's my confession today:
I bought a horse for $2800. I spent another $2800 on the prepurchase. And somehow I STILL wound up with a horse with a broken leg. Who bites.

Have any of you been in a similar situation? Any suggestions on a retirement home? He's only 8, so I need something pretty affordable, as I imagine he'll be living the retired life for a VERY long time.

What's Up Wednesday

Happy Wednesday everyone! I'm writing tonight from not so sunny Florida! I was hoping to get this blog post done on the plane, but I'm too cheap to pay for the faster internet in flight. So here we are.
It's been a fun and busy week with the holiday on Thursday. I spent Thursday morning with the ponies. They each had a turnout, Rio had a lunge, and I rode Jampy. Then it was off to my brother's house for the rest of the day for Thanksgiving! There were 15 of us, and more than enough delicious food to go around. It's nice to spend a day with family just eating and catching up. I was home by 6:30 to feed the boys and relax with the Puggers. A great day all around!
Friday was pretty much a free day for me. I got up around 7 to feed the horses and do barn chores. It was unseasonably warm out, in the mid 60's! I was able to give Jamp a bath after we rode and Rio loved hanging outside eating grass.

After a full day playing with ponies, I took the pugs out for a walk on that beautiful day. They were so excited to get a good mile walk done!

And then they were pooped and cuddled with me the rest of the evening.

We went to bed early Friday because Saturday was going to be a VERY big day! My new horse Romey was due to arrive between 5:30 and 7:30 am. I got a call at 4:55 that he would be at my house right about 5:30. It was early, but I was so excited I jumped out of bed to go meet him. (The Pugs opted to stay asleep.) Romey was pretty calm about getting to his new home. I think he was exhausted from traveling all night. I got him settled, hung out for a half hour or so to make sure he was ok, and then went back to sleep for an hour. I'm just not good at mornings.

I couldn't wait to head back out to the barn after my nap and let Romey out in the ring. He was very calm during his turnout. He took one walking lap around the whole ring checking everything out, rolled, and then hung out and ate hay. And that was it. Poor sleepy boy!

After turnout, I gave him a good grooming and then let him be for the rest of the day. I rode Jampy quick and gave Rio a little lunge and then hurried off to FINALLY get my hair done! It's been FOREVER. My age was showing all over my head....

Yay for new hair!

I ran home after the hair appointment, fed all the four leggeds, and then met some friends for a quick dinner. The best thing about pregnant friends? They are more than happy to call it a night at 8:30. (I'm so old.)
Sunday morning I tortured the ponies with turnout pictures:

I rode Jampy and was hoping my neighbor would be home early so I could maybe sit on Romey, but she didn't make it back before dark. Bummer! But probably for the best, Romey deserved a few days to get settled. Instead of riding, I tacked him up and did a little ground work with him in the ring. He was very receptive and still pretty quiet. Hopefully he stays that way!

After the very warm weekend, Monday was chilly! But I still got a ride in with Jampy after work. I have no intention of getting on Romey for the first time in the dark, so he and Rio settled for some grooming. Tuesday rained all day and all night, so let's just say, my horses are really clean.
Which leaves us here, Wednesday. I flew to Florida this evening for a nice long weekend. It's going to be pretty rainy, but I'm hoping to go ride my trainer's horses and hopefully show this weekend! We shall see!
How was your week? Did you have a nice Thanksgiving?

Truthful Tuesday

I have a secret I've been keeping for a couple of weeks now...



Surprise!



I bought a new horse!

Everyone meet Ancient Rome, aka "Romey". He is a 6 year old thoroughbred, about 16 hands tall. He is currently in Kentucky and is being gelded today. I'm not sure yet when he'll get here, but I can't wait!

Romey was very successful on the race track, and has been hanging out in a field for the last few months. He just started back to work as a hunt seat horse, so he's VERY green. I'm excited to see what his future will hold!