Spring is really, really here. Wizard has been shedding for a few weeks already, and tonight, I heard the frogs screaming in the park. And the horses are nibble-nibbling at the new spring grass.
On our walk, Wizard encountered a group of about 10-12 horses picketed in the parking area, on some sort of overnight campout. He was astounded to see all these horses, and gawked and craned his neck like a giraffe, but he behaved himself while he stared. The horses were all very well trained, and just watched him with quiet curiosity.
When we returned to the barn and after he had a pick of grass, I longed Wizard in the indoor arena for a little while. So far, I really like the bridle. Wizard was much less fussy in it, with less chomping and no curling behind the bit. We just did a quick session, warming up at the walk and trot with one spiral in each direction and 2-3 laps at the canter each way. I really wanted to ride, but I want to make sure he does not get sore with all his new work and the new saddle. His gaits were good- I wonder if the Pentosan has having any effect yet. I gave Wizard his snack, turned him out, and enjoyed the bright moon and sounds of the frogs. Ahhhh, springtime.
Before work, I headed to the barn to enjoy the streak of unseasonably mild weather we’re having here in New Jersey. Wizard and I hiked for about 30 minutes on the trails, without the excitement we had on Sunday when we encountered the hunt club.
When we got back to the barn, we did a 20-minute longeing session including warmup. I worked him woth two lines again. I might never longe with one line again. The training benefit is huge, and it’s not as hard as I expected. I did, however, goof up and accidentally hook one line to the outside bit ring and one line to the inside cavesson ring instead of one or the other. Oddly, interestingly, Wizard was amazing with this odd setup. He accepted the contact of the outside rein (hooked to the bit) and was able to bend with cues from the cavesson on the inside line. Maybe I’ve stumbled onto something interesting. Or maybe I just goofed and he was feeling really honest. Either way, he was balanced, responsive, and happy. And SOUND. Very sound. He was going so nicely that I asked for just a few circles of canter, and I was rewarded with a really lovely canter in both directions. Hmmm. Maybe I need to start riding with goofily-attached reins, too.
I got in touch with my regular vet last week and we had a good chat about what she saw in the x-rays (see previous training blog). She also talked with my farrier about a shoeing plan.
First of all, and this may or may not be related, but his Lyme Disease levels are much lower now than they were when we tested and treated him a year ago.
Basically, she has seen way worse on many horses, and she is optimistic that corrective shoeing and work will help quite a bit. She saw some very minor arthritic changes in the right knee. In the right foot, she did not think there was coffin bone rotation, per se. She said there was a change in the angle, but she was looking more at the whole picture, including the broken-back angle of P2 and P1. I was glad to hear this, because my farrier agrees with this assessment. My vet saw some very minor sclerosis of the navicular bone. It sounded to me like whatever issue he has/had was affecting the whole foot and the angles. Shoeing, injury, etc. Wizard’s body compensated, and we are seeing the long-term results in the x-rays.
Since we were between shoeings, my farrier came out and put aluminum shoes on his fronts, set well back for heel support, and a size larger to support his whole foot (aluminum because the larger size would make regular steel shoes heavier). He put snow rim pads on him. And the day we put the new shoes on Wizard, I saw him land consistently flat on the footing for the first time. He always tends to be toe first. It wasn’t heel first, but I was pleased to see flat!
So the short-term training plan is to let him get used to the new shoes and gently work him until my saddle arrives. I’m trying not to do too much circling, but when we’re stuck indoors due to the weather, it’s tough to avoid it.
Wednesday, 12/26/12 We worked indoors in long lines, and upon suggestion, I tried a little flash noseband attachment thingy, as an experiment. Wizard is very chompy on the bit, and the suggestion to try the flash was not in order to crank his mouth shut, but instead to steady the bit. Some horses don’t like bit movement, and a flash can help to keep things steadier. Wizard was NOT amused. He stuck his nose out, and leapt around a little when he felt rein pressure. We kept the session short, mostly doing bending exercises at the walk and a little trot work.
I’ve been at the barn for a lot of grooming sessions and sometimes quick hand walks in the park, but these are the actual work sessions he has had recently:
Thursday, 12/27/12
Years ago, when Wizard was doing more of his spinning and occasional rearing routines on the longe, a friend suggested longeing him in two lines. It seemed too complicated for my clumsy self, so I never tried it. Now that we’ve done more long lining work, it seemed like something worth revisiting.
We worked indoors again (%&*$%&$ winter &%*^&*% rain), and it was mostly successful. The biggest issue I had was him sucking back off the bit and geting behind the driving aid (whip) from time to time. I’m going to try a longeing cavesson next time out. Other than that, the two-line method was pretty neat.
Friday, 12/28/12
Wizard was tacked up in a bridle, surcingle, and longeing cavesson for this session. We were indoors (again). I used two longe lines, with the clips attached to the rings on the cavesson instead of on the bit. It worked much better. He was feeling a little fresh from all the rain and not a lot of work, and threw some pretty wild kicks when the longe line got too tight around his hind end. At one point, it also got shimmed up under his tail for a minute, ending in another kicking spree until his tail loosened and he got back to normal. We also experimented with the outside line draped over his back. I like the two-line method quite a bit, because it is closer to riding, and I have more control of his shape. On a regular longe line, I have no outside “rein” so he can pop his shoulder whenever he wants.
Thursday, 1/3/13
OUTSIDE- finally! The rain cleared, and a strong wind blew for a few days, drying things up nicely. I was going to go for a walk in the Assunpink, but I forgot to renew my permit, so we stayed at the farm and worked in the outdoor arena. I swapped bits to a fat loose ring snaffle, trying to make it as mild as possible for our groundwork. Over the bridle, he wore his cavesson. We warmed up at the walk on long lines, with me walking behind and also working from his hip. Then, we did a little light trot work, all with the lines snapped to the cavesson. The cavesson is basically as mild as a halter, and Wizard started to play, breaking from a big trot circle to a loopy, bucky canter festival. I was able to slow him down, but the force of him against the lines was hard enough that I was running pretty quickly to keep up as he slowed down. Okay, I guess he can handle a bit now! So we went on to the bit. He did his curling routine again, backing off the bit. I asked for a few transitions, which helped a lot. After a little gentle work, he began to stretch into the bit at the trot. YESSSSS. My goal with the long line work is to patch up some of the holes in his training, especially getting him to accept contact and loosen his back more. Today, I saw him doing a little bit of that. Now if only that saddle would arrive…
On Friday morning, the vet examined Wizard in the hopes of diagnosing the cause of our under-saddle issues. The last time she did an evaluation was May 2009 (click here to read it).
She did some simple neurological tests, and she did not see anything that raised any red flags for her. She also pulled blood to do a Lyme Disease test, and we’ll get the results in a few days. She watched him on the longe line, and said she did not see any lower limb unsoundness. The plan is to do further diagnostics of his back and SI (sacroiliac) joint if he comes back negative for Lyme. I really like my vet- she is very open-minded and thorough. I am hoping that we can get to the bottom of this.
On Sunday night, I longed Wizard in the indoor arena, and Kris and Sunny longed in the other end of the ring with us. It was a chilly night, in the 30s when I got there. Wizard worked in his bridle and surcingle. He walked and trotted without side reins as a warmup (video above), and then we did about 10 minutes of side rein work, trotting and working on one spiral in each direction. He was very willing to do some work. For the past few visits, I’ve been letting him run and play loose in the arena. He got just a little sweaty and I cooled him out by walking him in hand. I put him to bed, and will continue waiting for a call from the vet’s office.
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?
The arena was freshly-watered and groomed, and the footing was really nice. My friend Kris rode and longed her mare Sunny while I longed Wizard. We followed our typical routine: walk with no side reins as a warmup, then trot with no side reins, then trot with side reins, then canter with no side reins. During our side rein work, I asked for a spiral in each direction. Wizard was perfect. In our last longeing session outdoors, he was cross-cantering, on the right lead in front and the left lead in the back. I see him do that at play sometimes, as well as in deeper footing. In the nice indoor footing, he picked up both leads perfectly.
Monday, 11/14/11
Another nighttime longeing session. I did a little pre-workout stretch work with him, including belly lifts (video here) and butt scrunches (video here). He longed really nicely again. He did a little cross-cantering again, but I was able to get him on the correct lead. It happens mostly on the right hand side.
I noted the sweat pattern on his saddle pad with the new saddle. It is straight down the panel on the right side, but a little patchy on the left. I think it is a combination of his crookedness and uneven muscling. He does seem less snarly about the saddle, so maybe he’s getting used to it and his back is loosening up. I asked for some more stretches after our longeing session, and he did them nicely.
When we were done longeing, Kris brought Sunny into the indoor arena to play with the big toy ball (pictured above). Sunny handled it well, despite her obvious lack of amusement at the large and strange toy. It reminded me of my wintertime soccer games with Alibar- video here: http://youtu.be/M6jV18C5OwU I need to find that clicker…
I did another longeing session with Wizard, this time incorporating a trot pole into the workout. We worked in the indoor arena, and did some spiraling, plus work with side reins. I saw him trip one or two times, and it looks like he grew a lot of toe. I put a call in to the farrier to come out a little early in the shoeing cycle since he grew a lot of toe.
The farrier shod Wizard on Saturday (11/5). Our typical shoeing cycle is 6 weeks, but in the summer I do 5 weeks when it looks like his feet are growing quickly. The farrier did a lot of work on bringing his toes back. There was a really interesting recent discussion about negative palmar angles on COTH, and I’m wondering if working on his toes might help the hind end issues.
This is what caught my attention…
Here are some “diagnoses” that are highly suspect of negative hind palmar angles:
Sore back
Sore stifles
Sore withers
Sore hocks
Other signs:
Mild hind lameness defying diagnosis
Stopping at jumps
Missing leads
Cross cantering
Heavy on forehand
These are some areas that can either be caused or exacerbated by negative palmar angles behind.
Even more signs:
“My horse needs regular hock injections”
“My horse gets regular chiropractic/acupuncture/massage therapy”
“My horse needs a saddle fitter”
“My horse needs regular Adequan/Legend/(Other) injections”
M.W. Myers, DVM
Wizard also get a set of shoes that are lighter in weight and appeared to be smaller. On Sunday, my friend came out and massaged him. He was REALLY touchy in the beginning, but in more specific places. Last time she worked on him, she said he was basically sore all over. He was really resistant in the beginning on Sunday, but once he got into “massage mode”, he was back to being his usual responsive self. I’m going to do a few more longeing sessions and see how he feels to get back in the saddle.
I took another shot at riding Wizard, and put him on the longe line before I rode. Same as all the other rides… looks okay on the longe, is okay on a loose rein with no leg, but gets all riled up when I give him leg or rein contact. Ears pinned, kicking toward the girth with his hind legs, and swishing tail. He’s been on the omeprazole for over 20 days, and I’ve seen no difference. Next step is a visit from the farrier (he’ll be at 6 weeks at the beginning of Nov) and a visit from the vet.
Friday, 10/28/11
At night, on my birthday, before my hot date with Mr. Andrew, I longed Wizard outdoors. He did some leaping around when I first asked for a canter, but was otherwise perfectly behaved. He worked in his surcingle, without side reins during warmup and cooldown, and with them for about 10 minutes.
Sunday, 10/30/11
I longed Wizard at night again, in the indoor arena. He worked with his saddle on, and I had a quarter sheet on him to keep his muscles warmed up. The air is CHILLY, after a weekend featuring snow, and two nights of temperatures close to freezing. Wizard did the same little leap when I asked him for a canter, but then picked up his lead perfectly. I only asked for a few rotations at the canter, since I don’t want to stress his joints on a circle. He longed in side reins for about 10 minutes, and the rest of the time during his warmup and cooldown, he did not have his side reins on.
I only featured the song “Spooky” because it’s Halloween :^)
Ride? Did I say “ride”? Yes, I did!!! It’s been way too long- over a month, to be precise. I turned Wizard loose in the indoor arena to let him stretch his legs since he’s been stalled quite a bit due to rain recently. I then tacked him up and longed him indoors. He was a star. He WALKED and trotted like a pro in both directions. I noticed him stretching down into the bit more than he has in the last- it looks like he’s losing some of the tension about longeing to the right. Maybe his brain has successfully rewired itself again about longeing.
After he longed about 20 minutes at a walk and trot, I got on and cooled him out at a walk. He barely broke into a sweat, so it seems like he is getting fitter. It was SO NICE to be back in the saddle. I was dying to trot, but I knew I should take it easy. Dismounting was the toughest part. I did not want to jar my back by landing on my feet with a hop, so I slid down from the saddle as slowly as I could. My barn friend called it “the dangle”.
Wizard had just a little bit of nasal discharge, and I’m watching to see if he has a cold. His temperature is normal. Hopefully it’s nothing- his appetite is good and he is acting like his usual quirky self.
Another night of longeing, and Wizard is showing improvement. We worked again under the arena lights outdoors, still keeping the session short. Wizard trotted in both directions, but broke into a tense canter twice to the right. I worked him back down to a trot both times. He walked left, but could not walk to the right- that is our next challenge.
Rock and Racehorses: Sarah K. Andrew 