What's Up Wednesday

 

It was a quieter horse week since our day off was later than usual. So we only got in one day of jumpies. I could have jumped again over the weekend, but honestly, doing chores on the weekends leaves me kinda tired and I like to be not excessively tired when we jump. Right now especially since we're still re-acclimating to jumping on our own. My helper caught some kind of bug over the weekend too and had to take Monday off. So I had an extra chore day. Made up for the lack of jumpies! Haha! 

Anyway, we jumped on Thursday so enjoy revisiting my Thursday's Threads outfit from last week. We also planned to jump today, but the horses were zero percent into that endeavor. So we may try again tomorrow. So let's talk ponies!

Things are plugging along with Al. He still has good days and less good days, but those less good days continue to be less tense and angst ridden. So I'm still considering it progress. I can no longer say he hasn't spun since being on the Ulcer Guard... But...

We both got smacked in the face with a pebble-y dust cloud

In his defense, I had the old Pivo set up at that end of the ring, and it blew over as we were walking at it. So it was a justified startle. I would like for these reactions to be a bit smaller... But hey. baby steps. At lease we're having them less! What I was most proud of though, was that once he collected himself, he let me walk him right up to the now tipped over Pivo, and he gave it a good sniff. And then it was over. Even though Pivo looked way scary laying on the ground like that, he went back to work and even jumped around a little. We didn't quite string together courses yet, but we did hop over almost everything in the ring. I was proud of him. 

This was a challenging day in the ring because (as evidenced by Pivo) it was pretty windy which is really something Al struggles with. All those trees blowing around and the shadows that move... Terrifying. But he wanted to be a good boy despite all that. I kept the fences tiny, not because Al cares about height or jumps really at all. But I figured keeping the fences small enough to hop over made it easier for me to feel confident and help us work on refilling our trust bank. I don't even think that little spin incident took anything out of it! So that's a huge thing for Al and me. 

He did give me a giggle though when he jumped up extra high over this little oxer. He didn't seem like he was peaking at it, but mid air he boinged his little knees up extra high. I think he thought the little bees on the ice cream cones were real. 

Scary bees!

But then he came back around and jumped it nicely, so obviously he figured out they wouldn't sting him.

I was reading over my Al notes today and noticed I had a few days this past week where I called our ride wonderful. I haven't been able to say that in a very long time. Yesterday, he was pretty perfect. He moved off my leg when I asked, he did some lateral work, he didn't spook the whole ride I don't think! Unfortunately, today was very windy again and he just wasn't into it. He felt a little funny to me today, not lame, just kind of off his game, so I figured we would chalk today up to being an off day and see what we have tomorrow. But what I want to note, is that while he wasn't great today, he still wasn't a mess. He didn't actually spook while I was on him, though he was throwing stink eye all over. He just was really behind my leg and was a little extra angsty today. But really only at the waving trees. Which I know he struggles with. So no NEW scaries, and he did keep his poo together for the most part. Even bad days can have parts that were good. 

Shiny was great for our jump school last week, though she's been a little extra trippy. We have her on the Rebalance which if it's actually doing something can make them a little extra epm-y for a little bit. My guess is that's what's happening. But last week she jumped around great and did the full course. Some jumps were 2' and some were a little smaller, but it all felt really easy for her. Once we work out the tripping and get her trimmed (they all have grown a ridiculous amount of hoof in the last four weeks!) I think we can start putting the jumps up a little for her. Maybe. We'll see. But look how cute she jumped that day:

This one is my favorite

A little clip montage for your viewing pleasure. I didn't add music. I'm lazy. 

Shiny has officially started her crash diet prescribed by her doc. She hates it. I also kind of hate it, because weighing and soaking hay is annoying. But it's worth it if I can her more healthy. Also, we now have a hay tree. I know it's not ideal to pre-soak hay, but I do the morning portions the night before to make it easier for my helper. He doesn't have an extra 30 minutes to soak hay in the morning, and honestly, the horses expect to eat when we walk in the barn in the morning. So far, it's working fine. Shiny would let me know if it was inedible. Trust me.

As for our attempted jump school today... I think the cut back in calories is affecting her energy levels. I could NOT get her moving off my leg today. FOR THE LIFE OF ME! I tried everything I know and she was like, no mom, this is fast enough. (It was not, in fact, fast enough. At all.) We did pop (chip) over a few little jumps, but I decided to scrap that plan for today and just worked on the flat trying to get her to move along a little more. I imagine it will take her a little time to adjust to the change in diet and also it's possible she's feeling that other med a little bit too. We'll see what tomorrow brings. She didn't seem uncomfortable or like anything was wrong, she just was pokey to the fullest extent. But eh, we all have those days don't we?

Eros is plugging along with his rehab. He's feeling SO MUCH better since getting his neck done. I still think he'll feel even more improved once we work on the hind end too. But I'm happy with where we are at the moment. We are still cantering to start, but I've split off a few of our laps. So we do three laps each way to start, then we do a bunch of trot work (ten minutes) then we do a couple more canter laps each way, but this time it's more of a collected canter, getting him to lift his belly and use his bum. The early canter is on a loose rein and he can be very up and down and hollow. But I don't think it's fair at that point in the ride to try and put him together. So this is working nicely. After our second canter we do another 8 minutes of trot (4 each way) and finish with a nice walk. It ends up being a pretty long ride, and he's starting to feel pretty fit! I, however, am not feeling that fit, so I've started using some of our trot work (on the non windy/spooky days) to do some no stirrup work.

Working on that fitness. But what am I looking down at?

I imagine after our next recheck and maintenance it might be time to start popping over some cavaletti. We shall see! I hope so. I think E misses jumping. He's been a little sassy lately and I think he's bored. 

In other news, it's been busy around here getting the farm in shape. The plumber was here Monday, but he'll be back next week to finish things up. Hopefully my barn bathroom will be functioning again soon! That toilet hasn't worked in like two years. Also on Monday, the pool got opened! 

And this year it cleared up right away which has NEVER EVER happened before. Not ever. 

It's always taken weeks to get it safe for swimming. What a difference it makes to have a really capable team working on it. Now I just need the new heater to get installed so I can actually go in it. The water is currently around 65 degrees in there, and that is not Stacie temperature. Not in the least. Haha!

This is my favorite time of year. It feels like new beginnings. The start of a brand new season. Now I just need our trainer to get home so we can really get to work!

Truthful Tuesday

 

Today's confession, is that I'm really grateful to Al's people who got him started at a youngster. You may wonder why since we've been going through some real stuff the past many months. But that's not a reflection on his early training. If anything, it's probably a reflection on me and my short comings. Or despite how hard I tried to listen to my horse, I missed something. But whatever the reason, our current issues isn't what I want to talk about today. 

The reason I'm grateful for Al's start is that despite all the bumps in our recent road, I've been able to work with him because he's so well trained on the ground. He's incredibly respectful of the human working with him. (Which is generally me these days.) When he's scared and I'm leading him, occasionally he jumps, but it's always away from me. And he never hits the end of the rope or the reins, or whatever I'm holding him with. When we are walking and I stop, he stops. He doesn't ever step past my feet, and normally he stops behind me. On the lunge line he rarely pulls, and though he sometimes needs a reminder to stay out on the circle, once reminded he stays in his boundaries. He knows voice commands, though I will admit that sometimes the response is delayed. What can I say, no one is perfect. Plus he learned his voice commands in Czech not English. He's allowed to translate for a stride or two. 

So for those reasons, I'm very grateful for Al's previous trainers. I'm also grateful for him. Learning those behaviors obviously comes from good training, but it also helps to have a horse that wants to give the right answers. I really, truly believe this horse wants to do the right thing. It's just hard for him sometimes. But like... me too. Ha! 

Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit Day!!! It's a little rainy today, so we modeled yesterday for outfit day. (How's that for planning ahead?) Al is our model today because he looks fab in our color scheme this week. We'll start right out with him. 

I love him in pastels. And neon. Al looks great in most colors. But I do love him in mint!

Bridle: Joseph Sterling
Brow Band: Dark Jewel Designs

Look how handsome! I know we feature this bridle a lot here, but it really is a nice one!

Saddle: Butet
Half Pad: Stevens

Saddle Pad: Eskadron

I almost forgot I had these pads, but I'm glad I remembered because they are very nice. The camera didn't pick it up very well, but they are glittery. There's like a silver layer underneath the mesh outer layer which gives a glittery appearance without having actual glitter in the pads. Which is nice because it doesn't come off and also it's pretty subtle. 

Boots: Eskadron

I have these in dark green too, and I love them. They have fuzzy on the edges but are mesh everywhere else so they aren't too hot. 

That's what Al is wearing this week, and here's what I had on:

I wasn't feeling overly light colored breeches this time, so I went with these maple colored ones. I think it works!

Helmet: Samshield

None of my helmets have mint on them. So I went with this sort of neutral one.

Top: Luyaa

I really need to purge my riding shirt drawers again. I pretty much just wear these now.

Belt: Tory Burch

The saddle pads have a gold piping on them, and this belt is the perfect match to tie it all together.

Breeches: Romfh

These aren't quite as orange as they're coming acrss in this photo. They're definitely more tan. And funny fact: my car's interior is almost exactly the same color as these breeches.

Boots: Celeris

Okay, confession time. I actually only wore these when I rode Shiny yesterday. I LOVE these boots, but these are the ones that the dye wasn't sealed on, so they bleed all over my saddle. I need to look into sealing them so I can finish breaking them in and wear them more. I don't blame Celeris for this. I ordered them during the Pandemic and they had tried a new leather supplier and sometimes things just happen. They offered me a great deal to make it right, so no hard feelings there! 

That's it for today! Any favorites? Do you like in mint green?

What's Up Wednesday

 

We had a busy week over here! Kind of... I mean, I think I went a solid 10 days without leaving my property with the exception of walking the dog... But horse wise, we were busy. I had thought doc was coming out Friday but when I hadn't gotten a call with a time estimate I called them Thursday afternoon to check in. And they said, oh we have you on the schedule for the 7th. I was kind of irritated. Partially because I had been waiting since the 15th for my appointment, but more so because no one bothered to let me know I'd been moved out another week. But these are the types of things you can't control. When you only have three horses, the larger barns end up taking priority. Fortunately, they called back on Friday and said they needed to move me to Monday the 3rd instead, and so I was able to stop being grumpy. It also made my Friday easier. My worker had asked to have Friday off instead of Memorial Day, so I was able to be my slow self doing chores without having to worry about what time the vet was coming.  So all was well that ended well. 

Speaking of my slow ass self. I'm getting too old for three 12 hour days in a row. Ha! I was so tired by Sunday night! Or maybe the issue is that I'm not fit enough for three 12 hour days? Probably that one.

I love that he's napping so frequently again!

Anyway... let's chat vet appointment! We started with Al since he's the one I had the most questions about. Overall, Doc was happy with where he's at soundness wise. And I agree. For the most part, he feels pretty good in how he's moving. Flexions were all good, and Doc was also happy with his body condition. Which I was expecting him to say Al was under muscled since we haven't been doing the hard work since his meltdown in December. But we had lots to talk about regarding Al's emotional well being. I hadn't been able to tell Doc the full story about what happened in December until now where the walls don't have ears if you know what I mean... So I caught him up on all that we had been dealing with, and I told him about my experiment with the Ulcer Guard. He thought it was definitely a significant response. But because I was just dosing mid day with a quarter tube, he thinks it might be more of an acid problem versus an actual ulcer problem. He didn't think that level of dosing would touch him if he had ulcers. Which, I can relate with Al if that's the case. I have GERD which is acid reflux on its own, no ulcers. And if I don't stay on Omeprazole, I am miserable. Unlike Al though, I would prefer to curl up in a ball when I feel like that than bolt out of my own skin like he does... But to each their own. We discussed the regumate shot he'd been getting also, and I said I wanted to stop it since it didn't seem to really make a difference. Doc was fine with that. Which is GREAT because that stuff is ridiculously pricy. 

We also talked about the positive changes since the EPM treatment but that some of the symptoms returned after stopping. He suggested at first to put him on a different medication for a little longer, but then we decided to wait a bit before starting that. It can be hard on the stomach, and so we want to give the omeprazole experiment a little more time before we stress his tummy again. So that's not off the table, we will likely do that in a few weeks. But for right now we are just going to stay the course with the Ulcer Guard. Also are doing a round of Adequan to keep him feeling good soundness wise. It was a good appointment. I felt like we talked about a lot and are on a good path forward for Al. We will re evaluate in a few weeks and see what we want to do with him as far as continuing to treat the stomach and/or add some epm stuff. 

Eros went second. Time wise, he's due for hocks but I was more interested in how the recheck on his front leg was going to go. He's been VERY stuck through his neck, and I couldn't tell if he was feeling off on that bad leg, or what I was feeling was his inability to bend to the right. Tough call since it was the right front leg that was off. So Doc watched him go, and then did flexions. His conclusion was that yes, the hocks are due, and left stifle. But he was also thinking neck. You can't inject all of those things in one day though, that's way too much steroid in one day. So since he's still working through rehab we decided to wait on hocks and stifles a few more weeks, and do the neck now. Which was a great call. He's feeling SO much better already. He had Tuesday off but we rode today and he could bend both ways. Right was still harder, but he could do it, and he felt a million times more sound already. Phew! Also, Doc was really happy with how both front legs looked. If you recall he had the one very lame one with the question mark diagnosis, but also the left front had an inflamed suspensory. Likely from compensating for the other side. Both are looking good now, so that was great news! We're going to keep adding more laps of canter each week and then we'll have another recheck and do the other joints in a few weeks. 

Also, a little change in how we warm him up. When I first got on, Doc acknowledged that E looked off even at the walk. And I said, yes, he always is off until he canters. So Doc suggested we start out right in the canter and do our trot work after. So that's what we've been doing and it's wonderful. I'm not sure why I haven't always done that with him. Oh, to be clear, we walk for 8-10 minutes first. So I don't just get on and go cantering off. I think once we have a few more minutes of canter I'll do half the canter to start, then do the rest a little later. Just to break things up a little. So also a good appointment for E! I'm starting to get excited about his recovery now that he's feeling so much better. And it's always reassuring to get doc's eyes on him too. 

Shiny went last. I actually think she's feeling pretty great these days, so wasn't sure she would really need much done, but figured we would probably do a shockwave on her neck since that's really been helping her the past year. Doc was happy with her too. I told him about how since we finished the EPM meds I really feel a difference in how she's jumping and that she's been more supple through her whole body. He thought her warm up shuffle was a lot less shuffle-y which I kinda think he just caught her on a good day... but I'll take that! Haha! 

Look at that BIG TROT!

He had a lot to say about her weight, and thinks that some of what we're still seeing and dealing with might just go away on their own if we can get 200 lbs off her. She's definitely put on a little weight since she's been home, which I don't fully understand. All I can think is that my helper is maybe giving her more hay than he should be. So unfortunately for Shiny, she's going on a very strict diet starting as soon as my mini size hay nets get here. I'm going to be soaking her hay to get the excess sugar and some calories out of it. And also I need to weigh it (dry) and distribute it out equally. Doc did a bunch of math and told me she needs to eat no more than 16 lbs of dry hay per day. So I need to weigh out 16 lbs, then divide that by feedings and soak it. Soaking it will also help her feel more satiated. He explained it in depth to me, but basically having wet hay will make her belly feel more full since it's heavier. Or something like that... I'm sure I'm not explaining that properly, but it made sense when he told me. So I just ordered some mini horse size hay nets. She gets hay 5 times a day (breakfast, turnout, lunch, dinner, night check) so I figured I'd measure it out all at once. That way my helper won't accidentally sneak her extra. (Hopefully.) I figure the mini horse hay nets would be perfect since she's getting less than a flake per feeding and the smaller holes will make it last a little longer. Plus they were $6 each at Chewy. 

Doc didn't want to inject anything on her. She flexed well, and she's feeling pretty good, plus with her weight, we wouldn't want to use steroid. Prostride maybe, or an alpha-2, but he didn't really think she needs anything at the moment. She's still very stuck through her lower back (always has been though!) but he doesn't think injecting the SI would really help it. He thinks it's more weight related. (Holding up that belly...) I don't like to inject when it's not necessary either, so I was happy with that call. We did decide to do a round of Adequan for her (which is nice, she and Al can share the big bottle which saves a little money). And she went on that secondary EPM med also for a little bit. I'm not sure how long she stays on that (it's called Rebalance) but I think for a month maybe? I'll ask when we recheck the others and/or I get low on it. It's a pita though. It's liquid but she won't eat it if I put it in her grain. So I have to just dose her in the mouth. 32 ml's though, so it's very messy. I end up wearing a fair amount of it. It smells like Karo syrup which is pleasant now, but won't be once the mosquitos are out! The things we do for our horses. Also, Dear pharmacy's, liquid meds and horses really don't mix. Give me a paste please!

Overall, it was a very positive appointment. Unless you're Shiny. She's not so positive about this new diet. 

As for the rest of the week? Things were pretty good! We didn't have any rain days which was lovely! Tomorrow doesn't look great, but I'm hoping to be able to ride anyway. As long as it's not pouring buckets nor lightning we should be able to get some work done. 

He keeps trying to stand under these trees
like he'll get shade from them.

Al continues to be much more chill. And I don't mean that he doesn't spook anymore. That would be some kind of religious experience if that happened. Ha! But when he does spook lately, it's more of a startle than a panic. 

He's not looking to spin and run away so much. And the dragon breathing is considerably less intense. I feel like our trust bank is filling up a little each ride which is nice because that thing was EMPTY. We even managed to pop over a couple fences one day last week. Literally just two. We still struggle when the wind picks up and lately it's windy every freaking day. But it's a start. And I'm still feeling positive. 

We have a LOT of work to do to get back to jumping bigger fences and real courses and what not. But hopefully we'll get there. We have some time. My trainer won't be back until July as she's having some medical stuff she needs to deal with. Bummer for us both! But hopefully she'll be feeling great when she gets back and we can all hit the ground running. In the meantime, we are going to keep chipping away and hopefully filling up that bank.

Eros has been kind of an ass. I rarely say that, but every so often he gets a little annoying. He's spooky at the end of the ring but I can't figure out what he's spooking at. I honestly think he just needs a good gallop but he can't do that just yet. He's not spooky like Al, and I don't think he even really means it. So I'm not concerned about it. I'm sure once he can do more intense work and maybe get to jump some stuff he'll settle in. He spooks when he's fresh, and I can't blame him for feeling fresh. He's still perfect. Even in his a-hole era. 

Shine's been so good you guys. She's jumped around a couple times this week and just gets better each time. She seems to love the new jump decor. Thank goodness, because her being a perfect princess is keeping my confidence up. I'm not sure if she knows how important she is to this team right now. She's the real MVP. I'm not sure where my head would be with two spooking warmbloods if not for her. 

I mean, she's not PERFECT or anything. She still doesn't have a lead change. And still does this when I demand more canter than she cares to give:

I got this from both angles! 

But still. She's wonderful. And just so ridiculously fun to have around. I love her opinions. You never wonder what she's thinking, she tells you straight out. She's brave, and she's polite (mostly). And yes, she's also adorable. 

I'm not sure if I've mentioned it, but you might have noticed I have media from both ends of the ring. A few years ago I chipped into Pivo's kickstarter campaign for their upgraded Pivo Pod Max. They had a lot of trouble getting it working the way they wanted and I kind of forgot all about and figured it wasn't happening. But a few months ago it showed up! So I figured I'd run both the other day, which was fun. The Max Pod works really well and if you're thinking about getting one, I'd go for that upgrade. The old silver pod lost us a bunch of times and then just stopped recording while I was riding Al. But the Max stayed with us really well. It drains the phone battery faster than the old pod, but there are work arounds for that. I made sure the phone was fully charged before I got on and had plenty of juice left after my 30 minute ride. If you're doing an hour or more you could attach a battery pack. The pod itself held its charge well though. I rode all three horses on one charge for the pod. (The phone I plugged in between horses.) 

So that's about it from here. Did you all have a good week/weekend? Do anything fun with your horses? 

Truthful Tuesday

 

So this year, I am doing my own weekend chores. I actually enjoy doing the chores, but the reason I hire that task out during the week is my confession today. And here it is:

  I AM THE WORLD'S SLOWEST STALL CLEANER

There. I said it. And it's true. In my defense, I've never had to be quick. My horses have their turnout time during morning chores. While yes, I wish my horses could be out 12 hours (or 24 even, but Eros would probably petition for a new home), I just am not able to provide that. Shiny has her own paddock in the back, but the boys turn out individually in the ring. I just, sadly, don't have the land to have paddocks for each of them nor shelters. So we do the best we can. 

All of that rambling to say that I have three hours AT LEAST to do the morning chores. So it's always been a leisurely activity. Which isn't a problem or anything. I manage to fill that three hours by cleaning the three stalls, doing some laundry, and scrubbing all the buckets. But somehow, by the time I've done those things, turned the horses both out and in, and dumped all the manure buckets, it's usually a four hour job. Also fine, and nice even if they get extra turnout time (though, as mentioned, Eros may disagree because there are BUGS outside, the horror). The only trouble with the four hours, is that I then have to work all three of the horses. And now that it's summer that probably means also rinsing them off and getting them at least partially dry before tucking back in their stalls. And that's another like six hours. Plus the cleaning up after. I have a bit of a compulsion about my barn floor being clean. I sweep it constantly while doing chores, each time a horse comes out of its stall, and then at the end of the day it gets swept once more and then blown. I have rubber pavers so you really have to do both to get all the shavings and hay out of the cracks. 

So I get out there around 7, and next I know it's somehow like 6 pm and where did the time go? I mean, I probably took a few minutes to pee once or twice... And while they were drying I get some sit down time... But still. It's a long couple of days in the barn. Thank goodness it's my favorite place in the world to be!