What's Up Wednesday

 

So last week, as I mentioned, Al just had the one lesson, on Thursday. It went well, and he was a very good boy. So I was pretty excited for today's lesson since head trainer was back this week. Unfortunately, Al came out a little funny today. So I didn't end up jumping. I don't think it's anything major, and in fact it might still be that "wound" we've been dealing with forever. I keep getting it almost cleared up, but can't quite get it done all the way. And I *think* that's what is bugging him. But I'm not positive. I have him on the vet list now, but of course, the vet was just out yesterday. So it might be a bit of a wait until I can get him back out. Hopefully Al will feel better before then. 

I do think it's possible it's time to start hock injections for Al. Which also may be what I'm feeling. The last time Al saw the vet, he said we should think about doing the hocks soon, but that he didn't need them just yet at that point. (This was early in the winter. Maybe January-ish.) Al jumped a lot of big fences before he came here, so it's not surprising that he'll need maintenance sooner than later. Plus, suddenly, this weekend, the counter canter broke tracking to the right (so cantering left lead, going to the right). It's always been the harder lead for him, but he's never not done it. Sunday, at first he would pick it up, but then either break or swap when we'd get to the turn. The more I tried, the less willing he was to even pick it up. I didn't fight for it much Sunday, figuring it might be a battle for a different day. So I tried it again Tuesday. And he wouldn't even pick it up. I got him to at least pick it up and canter part way down a straight side and then shelved it for a lesson day. I was feeling pretty sure the problem was likely me, so it might be best worked on with some supervision. Today in the lesson, we tried it again, and again he didn't want any part of it. Due to him coming out not so great, we did the same thing, got a few straight strides of it and let it be. It's very possible this counter lead problem and the mild unsoundness are related. 

Also, before anyone gets worked up that I was working a lame horse, I needed to get him unlocked and moving forward before we could really assess if something wasn't right. And the more he worked the better he felt, so I don't think it hurt him any. I don't see any real swelling or heat anywhere, so I don't think this is the type of problem that light work will make worse. Hopefully I'm not wrong in that assessment. 

I've been using the silver/honey ointment on the "wound". (I don't know what to call it, it was dermatitis, but now it's just like.... I dunno... a scab? A scar? It's not actively infected anymore, he's not stocking up from it anymore, but it's always either kind of a hard scab or it's like a sore.) I had been using Krudzapper which worked great to a point, but then it seemed like I needed to dry it out more, so I switched to the silver/honey stuff. I thought that was finally going to clear this thing up, but then today happened. So tonight, I went back to the Krudzapper. We'll see what we have tomorrow. Horsing ain't easy guys!

So anyway, that's what's up with Al. Things at home are pretty good though! Shiny is loosening up some in her neck via lots of hard work. So today I let her jump some fences. 

I kept everything under 2' except for the one little box because I can't put a rail lower than that on top of it. I wasn't planning on even jumping that one, but she was having fun and seemed to be having a great time, so I let her. And uh... there were some antics. 

You see, she was going a little too slow on the way to it, which isn't ideal... And I had this feeling she was going to cut down with her back end a little early. Which is exactly what she did. But Shiny has big feelings about having rails down. I was ready for the scoot and buck like she sometimes does when she has a rail, but instead I got a scoot and a leap. Probably because I grabbed her face when she scooted. My bad. But also, don't do that and I won't grab you! It only lasted about a stride and a half. I had to get off to fix the fence, but then we jumped it again with zero drama. So I let her finish there. She is fun to jump around once the motor gets running. 

Eros is feeling more or less the same. He comes out stiff, and then gets mostly better. But I still want doc out to check him. I was trying to wait for Al to get home to schedule, because I have a better chance of getting him here if I have more horses for him to look at. I'm going to call Monday anyway to get on the vet's list and then however many horses are here when he can come is how many he'll see. Al should be home in about a week anyway. I let E pop over a few teeny jumps today because he does thoroughly enjoy it, and I didn't think they'd do any harm. He actually felt better at the trot after we jumped than he did before, so I'm confident there's no harm done. I iced him after anyway just to be safe. 

OH! But he did almost spook me off before we started...

That was a close one.

The weeds on the other side of the fence have gotten to the height that Eros thinks is terrifying. He's a perfect boy, but not always the brightest. At least he didn't drop me! Anyway, back to the lil jumps. He was perfect, and really seemed to be enjoying himself. We didn't do much, just popped over each fence once or twice. He was ridable and happy so that was lovely. Being in the smaller ring tends to keep the torpedo in check. Not always. But often. 

That's really about it happening here. Things aren't perfect, but they're okay. And really, that's not so bad at all. I feel pretty confident that everyone's creakiness will be patched up pretty easily once the vet comes out. So staying positive! 

Hope all is well with you guys! Are you getting to go on some adventures with your horses? Any shows or clinics? Or fun trail rides?