The Show that Almost Wasn't - Part I

Well that was a roller-coaster of a week!  Warning; TLDR possibility.

On Tuesday Huck came in with a cut on his right forearm.  We are thinking Ledger kicked him, but can't be sure.  This is a risk we take by putting our shod reiners in turnout.  We know this.  We also know we do not like stalled horses.  We like free-roaming, socializing horses with lower colic risk.  I've already gotten a lecture about this, thank you.

Anyway, so B calls Tuesday morning to say that there was a lot of blood but he wasn't lame. She said she'd clean it and when she called back she said it was worse than she thought.

I headed out and took a look and decided we were going to need professional help or this thing would not heal properly.  It was too deep and too wide. Luckily our vet was able to come pretty quickly.

The vet cleaned it out and stapled it shut.  Two days in the stall on bute but take him for walks, and then we can go back to work.  He even said the show would probably be okay but maybe not do the reining..... great.  The biggest reason I wanted to get him to a show before our first circuit show was reining.  Poop.

The only reason I was upset about not showing was that this was the ONLY show before we do our first Ranch circuit show in May. New horse, new sport, and I knew I'd be super nervous.  I wanted to get that first one out of the way BEFORE we were going for year-end points.

We go from bad to worse...

Wednesday it was swollen and a bit stiff.

Thursday Afternoon

Thursday the leg was even bigger, even down to his hoof on the interior side and he was hot and lame.... and spewing pus from the wound if I touched his leg..... another vet call.  It was disgusting (seriously like projectile pus) and terrifying.  I mean, the vet wasn't terrified, but you know the name of this blog.  Also, while I was walking him, the 6 vultures circling overhead were unhelpful.  They just live here, but still, they weren't helping.

It's hard to see in the photos, but there were zero tendons visible on the interior side of the leg.  Though, to be fair, you know the name of this blog, so I may have been more frightened than necessary.

Thursday Afternoon

The vet returned to drain and flush and he left a few staples out.  We added antibiotics to the regimen.  I was convinced the show was a no-go and also pretty much convinced my horse was going to die.  I didn't sleep well.

Then Friday morning B texts to tell me the swelling is much better and he's not lame.  I go out midday to give bute and walk him and it looked SOOOOOO much better!  I could see tendons! I sent photos to the vet letting him know there was still some drainage.  He said good and that it'll get better with work.  I asked when we should go back to work and turnout and he said "Now.  Show okay if he's sound."
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REALLY!?!?!?!

Friday Afternoon

And he was sound.  Just like that.  Well shit.  I would have been spending this week preparing for the show but I didn't!

I made a second trip to the barn Friday night (I had to go back to work in the afternoon) to see if he was sound to ride.  He was, and he seemed happy to work.  By the end of our ride his swelling was down further.

Okay, so now I have to make a decision about hauling to a show on these Overanxious thoughts:
New horse, hasn't been shown in over 2 years...
No idea how he is in a show/crowd situation...
Or tied to a trailer...
He's got an open would on his leg...
Will we insult the judge taking him in Ranch Conformation with that wound?..
Will I hurt him if I put him through the trailering and showing?

So I decided to go because of these thoughts;
This is a "dress rehearsal" show - it's schooling. (It's a real show but not one of my circuits)
I NEED for my own sanity to know what he's like at a show before we go to big show May 7.
Vet said he should work.
We can do just a few classes.....

....To Be Continued...

Part 2 is here.

Scarface

A quick update on our facial laceration. It's looking really good!

The scar is much easier to see now that we've been body clipped, but it's really not as unsightly as was expecting, and it'll probably continue to get better.

Body-clipping was a necessity because this boy sweats like nothing I've ever seen.  Even a 30 minute ride in 55 degree temperatures causes him to be soaked just like he was here.  I did a modified bib-clip myself but that really wasn't enough so we went all out.  I didn't do a bridle-path, the inside of his ears, or have his whiskers cut.  I've always trimmed whiskers, but I've been reading a bit about how some people are re-thinking the importance of whiskers.  That being said, I have yet to find something that looks like a scientific study giving strong evidence one way or the other.  The ranch people seem to like them.  I'm undecided.

My friend/former student/former barn manager did a great job clipping, and aside from now looking like a scarred-up dun, he's looking rather slick. I can see his muscles now. I'll have to get a better picture to compare to what he looked like when I first got him and he was a pasture potato.

Our first ride after the clip was probably the best ride we've had so I'm sure it's the haircut.  We did lead changes on a loose rein!  I might be learning how to ride my horse after all!

He looks really dull in the after photo, but after just a day he's starting to have a bit of a shine... which is good because.....

...our first show is Saturday..... Yikes!

Before...

During...

After!

When in Rein...

When in Rein....ing, you get sliders!


Since I have a reiner, someone suggested I actually DO the reining thing and put sliders on my horse.

So I did.

It's a whole neeeeeeeewwwww wooooooooooorld!!!!!

We just got the shoes on March 8th and we've had limited rides since then because 6 days were spent on a work trip.

Our trainer/farrier spent a few hours with us after the shoeing to make sure we felt comfortable.  He helped us with some exercises for stopping and lead changes.  Mostly that day we were lead changing in the corner out of a counter-lope, but today I was able to do a few straight along the long-side, and even a REAL flying change from one circle to the next without him charging or cross-firing (or BOTH!). Still loads of work to do, but there's a glimmer!

I am LOUSY at stopping but we are getting better.  I know Huck knows how and he's much more in shape than August, so it's truly a matter of me learning how to ask him and how to SIT it.  Each of these two photos is of the last slide during a ride after many failed attempts each.  When he actually sticks both feet evenly it feels pretty darn cool. When one slides and the other bounces it feels like I'm going to be launched across the arena.  I have to remember to keep him straight, look ahead and SIT DEEP.  When he truly sticks it, he gets to be done for the day.

So, maybe there's hope for us yet!

Spring Cleaning! Blog Hop! Product Review!

Who loves spring cleaning?!?!

I do!

Allie over at Rocking E Cowgirl invited me to do a blog hop about spring cleaning.  When I first got the request I simply wasn't inspired. It didn't feel like spring yet.

Luckily, Tuesday was 100% SPRING in central Ohio!!!

There's something so satisfying about shaking off the dark damp dust of winter and preparing for the "summer."  Summer in this context means those glorious months in which you can ride without worrying about driving in the dark on snowy country roads to get to the barn, or your horse spooking because it has a week's worth of pent up energy, or whether or not it's possible for your fingers to actually fall off.

My favorite thing to do for Spring Cleaning is the first bath of the season.  I'm spoiled rotten that we have a Insta-Hot in the barn and we had a perfect day for a good long ride (more on that later) and a real bath. It was 70 degrees, sunny, and a warm breeze was blowing.  It was a PERFECT day for a Spring Cleaning Bath!  Huck is the sweatiest horse I've ever known. For weeks we've been going through towel after towel and our cooler has gotten a ton of use.  I gave him an amateur kindofa "bib clip" a few weeks ago which helped a little, but not a ton.  Other than the small area I clipped, he's got a full fluffy winter coat.

Sweaty boy!

In addition to loving baths, I love grooming tools. This winter I splurged on a pair of Hands On grooming gloves from Schneiders.  I couldn't believe someone convinced me to buy a $25 grooming tool, but they were worth it.  I used them for the bath today and I LOVED how I could work the lather into his coat. I discovered I could use the side of my hand as a squeegee and relocate suds to where they were needed. Just as promised, I was able to open bottles and use the hose with ease while wearing the gloves.

Only two things make them not-quite-perfect.  First, that the smallest size is still pretty big on my puny hands and I'd like to have a closer fit so they wouldn't slide around as I worked.  Secondly, that I wouldn't dare use them on his mane or tail.  They have just enough gription that they would most certainly stretch or break the long hairs.  Easily enough problem to avoid, so no big deal. I discovered I like them better for bathing than for normal daily grooming, though they did take a good amount of hair off of one of the resident Basenji's and she seemed to enjoy it.

Overall, the gloves are a winner, and I'm really glad to have them in my grooming arsenal!

I could not believe how milky-white the first spray water was as it began to loosen months of salty sweat from his blanketed coat! I hated all those days that he got sweaty and I couldn't hose him off, only towel and brush, towel and brush.  Crusty.

Huck seemed to enjoy the bath and was standing quietly (he is known to paw and disturb all the mats in the wash stall), licking his lips the whole time.  He even let me spray his face, like his WHOLE FACE just like you see the racehorses do.   He lowered his head and closed his eyes.

After the bath and a good spritzing with coat moisturizer, he got to spend his drying time out eating new spring grass.

Snackin' in a Bathrobe like a Boss

What is your favorite part of spring cleaning?