Wednesday, 11/16/11 and Thursday, 11/17/11
I’m lumping these two days together as one since I basically just turned Wizard loose in the indoor arena and let him go bananas on Thursday. On Wednesday, we had a little more of a planned routine, with some clicker work and free longeing. It rained for two days, so the horses were pretty stir-crazy in their stalls. Wizard was so cute when he was turned out in the arena- the footing was perfectly groomed, and by the time he was done, it looked like I had ridden him for an hour with all the hoofprints in all directions.
Friday, 11/18/11
Wizard had a VERY busy day on Friday. One of his paddock buddies was swapped out for Gatsby, a handsome Camelot Auction graduate. Wizard and Gatsby have very similar personalities, and got along like peas and carrots. They played all afternoon with no excessive biting or rowdiness. With JR, they played hide and seek, tag, and “who can rear up the highest”. After romping all afternoon, Wizard was pleasantly tired for the chiropractor- she was not my regular chiropractor, but she did a nice job and Wizard loved her. He really enjoyed the body work, and was quite receptive to her. She said his atlas was the worst area on him- worse than his back, pelvis, neck, etc. All the crookedness she felt in his pelvis felt old and fused, so she was actually not too worried about it. She said he had a decent amount of flexibility in his pelvis, spine, etc. She was amazed at his Gumby-like ability to stretch his legs, and asked if he had any ligament issues (knock on wood). She also asked if he was definitely 15 and definitely a Thoroughbred. I think she was wondering if he was older due to his teeth and maybe gaited due to his limber movement :^P She looked at the saddle fit and thought it was reasonable fit. She did not think it was too wide or narrow, but recommended shims for his wither pockets. After his adjustment, I lightly longed him to help him hold his adjustment. I put his sheet on him, since it was COLD out, and put him to bed.
Saturday, 11/19/11
The weather was milder on Saturday. I longed Wizard for just a few minutes to loosen him up. Then, I saddled him up… AND RODE! Hooray! Wizard went out with Zeke and Lily on the trails. For the first half of the ride, he was doing his same ear pinning, belly kicking, tail swishing routine. But about halfway through the ride, shuffling through the dirt and leaves, it subsided. We even rode to the hot dog truck, and he was very good. The only thing that caused concern is that he’s still tripping/stumbling on occasion- he did it maybe 4 times during the trail ride. When we got back to the barn, I brought him into the indoor arena for a little ride. There were trailers and people bustling around the arena, preparing for barrel racing. All the activity was PERFECT- it distracted Wizard enough to forget about his ear pinning and fussing :^) We rode for about 15 minutes at a nice, swingy trot, across the diagonals. He was perfect, he stretched into the bit, and I tested him with a good amount of leg. He was responsive and happy.
So was it the three weeks off from riding? The new saddle? The longeing? The new shoes? The chiropractor?
And, more importantly, will it be the same tomorrow?
Rock and Racehorses: Sarah K. Andrew 