Wizard had a little unplanned time off because he managed to throw his left front shoe twice in three days. My always-patient farrier tacked his shoe back on both times. My friend and I found the shoes in the paddock, one up on the hill and one in a galloping footprint. My best guess is that he was running with Buck when his paddock buddy Cisco was out for a ride.
On Saturday, he had all four shoes back on, and we went for a short hand walk in the Assunpink, accompanied by Kris and Sunny. We walked up the “bowling pin” hill and back down the hill, past the hunt club, and back home. At the barn, I longed Wizard in the indoor with our customary two lines. On the longe, Wizard was REALLY soft and relaxed. His trot was stretchy and his canter might be the nicest I’ve ever seen, cadenced and balanced. Now if only we can translate this to his under saddle work. That is, if the saddle EVER gets here.
Sunday, 3/10/13
On Sunday, we repeated our same trail walk with Kris and Sunny, and then I set up one line of trot poles all the way across the indoor arena. This meant that with each rotation around the ring, he crossed the pole twice. Wizard free longed the walk, trot, and a little canter. Knowing that it tires him more quickly than the regular long line work, I kept the session very quick. He flubbed the canter over the pole a few times, but once he got the hang of it, I saw him relax and settle into a rhythm.
On Monday, he got a new set of shoes (we waited til seven weeks since he was not growing a ton of foot over the winter. The farrier was very happy with how the sole and heel looked on the left front, and, as expected, the right front was not as impressive, but looked pretty good.
I started Wizard on a month of omeprazole at the beginning of the month (made SO MUCH EASIER by using this method)- I wonder if that could be part of what I’m seeing in our wonderful ground work. Only time will tell, and hopefully that saddle is being shipped by plane and not on the Titanic.
Many horses eat the harmless, flavorless granules with no problem if they are sprinkled on a serving of grain. But sometimes, there are horses like Wizard, who object to the texture and decide that the pop rocks are poisonous.
For a while, I added a blob of molasses to his feed and dumped the pop rocks on the molasses blob, but then my friend Christie came up with a brilliant, less messy idea:
1) Buy a bucket of Stud Muffins, or similarly delicious, large, and SOFT horse treat.
2) You will need one muffin per sachet of granules. Put the first muffin in a small Dixie cup- the little bathroom ones work great.
3) For added softness, microwave the treat for a few seconds or add a few drops of water.
4) Make a hollow pocket in the muffin with your fingers, pressing the edges of the treat onto the walls of the cup. The deeper a pocket you can make, the better.
5) Pour one sachet of omeprazole granules into the hollowed-out treat.
6) Using the walls of the cup, mold the treat back into its original shape. This will conceal the omeprazole granules and make the treat look normal.
7) Remove the treat from the cup and feed to your horse. Yum!
On Monday, May 7, the farrier shod Wizard. We are trying leather rim pads on his front feet.
On Tuesday, May 15, I began Wizard’s 28-day treatment with UlcerGard. On May 16, I shot a few video clips of Wizard trotting on the longe. Bad news: he’s still losing weight. Good news: whatever unsoundness he was dealing with has shown improvement. I spoke with the barn owner, and we’re going to make a few changes and see what helps him. We bumped up his grain (short-term solution to him worrying off so many calories when Sunny is separated from him) and are slowly increasing his grass intake.
On Friday night, Wizard and Sunny were moved from their quarantine paddock to a small grass paddock. During the day, they are turned out on a two-acre grass paddock, and at night, they have grass in more limited amounts. We are still acclimating them to 24/7 pasture. Wizard’s cribbing has not stopped. On the 2-acre paddock, he cribs very infrequently, but in the smaller paddock, he still cribs with some regularity.
I tried another jogging video on Friday morning, this time down the pea gravel driveway. He looked pretty good. I think it’s a combination of the time off and him doing less of a freakout when Sunny is separated from him.
Saturday, 5/19/12
I should have seen this coming, but I didn’t. The move from the quarantine paddock to the new grass paddock basically put Wizard back to Square One with his stress level. He was just as bad as he was when he arrived at the farm a month ago. I tacked him up in the outdoor tackup area, and he paced and whinnied each time Sunny called to him. Sunny must have also been stressed, because she did not stop calling for him for my whole ride.
Our ride was one of the worst rides in my 3 1/2 year history with Wizard. It took 15 minutes just to get him quiet enough to get in the saddle. I did not want to longe him because I was afraid to twist or strain whatever is wrong with his leg. I’m treading a delicate balance between wanting to keep him focused/working and resting whatever soundness/stiffness/arthritis issue he is having.
The moment I settled into the saddle, Wizard was cantering in place, snorting, sweating, champing on the bit. My plan of quietly walking the short sides and trotting the long sides was thrown out the window. The only way I could keep him under control was to work him. We kept the ride to walking and trotting, but it went longer than I wanted, and we did more turns than I wanted. He never truly settled. Every time Sunny called to him, his entire body tensed. He threw a few tantrums when we rode away from her, and I could feel the gravitational pull when we rode toward her. He was so amped up that I could not tell if he was sound or not. I can say, though, that he did not feel lame, for the few stutter steps that I could count out a tempo and feel straightness.
When I untacked him, he fought his tie. He was “checked out”, mentally. When a bug landed on him, he threw several bucks in place. When the lead draped over his head, he reared up a little. I am still using the Blocker Tie Ring, so hopefully if he really gets himself in trouble, it will release as needed.
I hosed him off, gave him his ulcer meds, and put him back in his paddock. My arms were sore, my arms were bruised, and my hands were blistered.
Sunday, 5/20/12
The TDN fates were on my side on Sunday, and I slipped out of work well before dark and headed to the barn. I had two human/equine pairs for my ride this time: Cathy/Miss Tuesday and Kris/Sunny. We all tacked up in the indoor arena since there was a chance of showers. Wizard was very anxious from the very beginning, pacing nervously when he was tied, swinging his hind end from one side to another and swiveling his entire body. He could see Sunny, but he was still stressed. He was worse than he was when we first moved to the new barn.
I let him swing around for a few minutes, for my own safety. Cathy suggested longeing him, but I was trying to avoid stressing whatever issues he has with soundness. As he got more and more worked up, I relented and asked him to trot a few rotations on the longe in each direction. His lameness is subtle, but I definitely saw it more on Sunday than on Saturday. His head dips just a bit each time his left front foot hits the ground. Despite my misgivings about the physical strain, the longeing helped him mentally. He was able to stand reasonably quietly while I tacked him up.
He stood WAY better when I got in the saddle than he did on Saturday, and walked off much more quietly than his performance the day before. But with Sunny in the arena, he began to throw little tantrums when she was out of his sight or passed him in the opposite direction. He does not outright buck or rear, but he leaps around, cantering in place and jumping imaginary jumps. Now that I know him, I can sit his antics reasonably comfortably. If they got worse, who knows ;^)
It took about 15 minutes for him to settle and focus on me. By the end of the ride, he was actually pretty good, seeking contact with the bit and responding well to my leg. His canter was NICE. His trot was pretty good, too. I tried to avoid tight twists and turns and do some of our original plan of walking the short sides and trotting the long sides.
After our arena work, we all decided to take a quick walk into the Assunpink. I hand walked him, since he has a freakishly fast walk. If I had ridden him, I would have had to circle him around or stand a lot while the horses caught up with him, and that would have rattled his fragile brain. Wizard surprised me with his calm demeanor in the park. He strided out confidently, and nothing spooked him at all. The waist-plus-high grass had me wishing I had ridden him after all! He had one mental blip, and that was when he lost track of where Sunny was for a moment.
When we returned to the barn, it was just about dark. Wizard was able to stand quietly while he was tied, resting one hind leg, with one eye always on Sunny. We untacked in the indoor arena and I put Wizard out in the paddock before Sunny went out. He circled at a frantic trot and canter, calling and snorting until Sunny was back in the paddock with him.
All I could imagine was him twisting an already strained leg. I don’t have any diagnosis on what his problem is yet. All I know is that it’s subtle and consistent. It seems to get a little better with rest. It does not bother him at all- he’s very forward and responsive under saddle. I need to try to get a better video of it so the vet can see it. Normally, I’d have the vet out right away to look at something like this, but I just shelled out big bucks for our ulcer scoping, Lyme Disease treatment, etc etc etc, so I’m monitoring it for the moment and will talk with the vet and see what she thinks. I’m happy to rest it if that is what he needs.
This separation anxiety with Sunny has me getting pretty anxious myself. At the old barn, Wizard was the OPPOSITE of a typical herd-bound horse. He could be the only one in the barn, the only one outside, ridden alone in the arenas, ridden alone on trails, without a peep. He was turned out with geldings and they played quite a bit. The last month that he was at the old barn, he was turned out by himself, and was surrounded by mares. I heard from the people who had to work with him that he was a bit of a handful. I’m wondering if he might need to be out with geldings only. I don’t have a lot of evidence, but it seems like mares cause him to lose his mind. I have a particular distaste and lack of tolerance for herd bound horses, so this needs to be nipped in the bud. I can put up with a lot of quirks, but we need to fix this one.
For now, we’re keeping him with Sunny and slowly introducing him to other pasture buddies. So far, it’s a non-event. Cisco was in the same paddock, and they barely even looked at each other after they were introduced. The barn owner is hoping that once he’s in a small herd (4 horses), he will not look to Sunny so much for everything. Since the move to the new barn, she turned into his security blanket. We used to ride all over with Sunny at the old barn and there was zero attachment. This all started with the move a month ago.
My training plans are vague. Balancing a physical issue with a training issue is very difficult. Wizard does well with more work and handling, but the work that he needs involves circles and transitions. Quiet walking is not in his vocabulary right now. I really would like to get a diagnosis on what is bothering his leg so I could figure out how much work we can do. If I leave him alone to hang around with Sunny, he will just get worse, I fear. He had last weekend off while I went away for a quick trip, and he was pretty anxious when I worked with him after I returned. It’s a delicate balance, and we’re working hard to find it.
My friend stopped by the barn and watched Wizard ride. Before our ride, I longed him with the SW saddle on. It looked like it slipped forward a little bit on the longe line, so I fixed it before riding. Like a switch, Wizard swished his tail, pinned his ears, and kicked up with his hind leg whenever I put him on contact or gave him leg, and was fine when we walked on a loose rein. I walked and trotted, and he was just as unhappy as he has been for the last few rides. We began a dose of Robaxin, which is a muscle relaxer.
On Tuesday, I turned him loose in the outdoor arena and let him trot and canter at liberty. He had a great time stretching his legs, but was still backsore when I groomed him.
Wednesday, 10/19/11
I longed Wizard in the indoor arena on a mucky, rainy day. He was happy to work, and went great in both directions. He’s still goosey with grooming, but maybe not quite as much.
On Thursday, I turned him loose in the indoor arena to play.
Friday, Oct 21 is Day 11 of magnesium, and Day 16 of omeprazole. Day 7 of the nightly Back on Track blanket. So far, I see no difference with either supplement, or the blanket.
After work, I longed Wizard in the indoor arena. Before he worked, my friend did a little massage work on him. She said he’s VERY body sore- still. It’s not just on the topline or on the saddle area, but extends all the way down the rump. When he longed, he was really good. He has gotten SO much better about going to the right. He used to be mentally incapable of walking to the right (always broke into a nervous trot), but now he can do all three gaits quite willingly. I put him through his paces, and he did some work in side reins as well.
Saturday, 10/15/11
I got two saddles from the tack shop on consignment. One is a Hampson & Scott Jimmy Wofford model, and the other is a Smith-Worthington Danzig. On the tack shop bucks, the Hampson & Scott felt much better to me as a rider. The twist was a little wider, and it had that flat seat that I really love. The Smith-Worthington has a lot more puff to it- it’s like a puffy cloud :^)
I brought the saddles to the barn and tried them on Wizard. The Hampson & Scott looked like it did not have enough withers clearance, so I rode in the Smith-Worthington. It took some getting used to for me, because I have ridden in simple, flat Stubbens forever and ever. The saddle is comfortable enough, and Wizard seemed better in it than he was in the County and my current saddle, the Stubben. He began the ride with his recent habit of ear-pinning and tail swishing and kicking up at his belly. But as we rode more and more, he stopped tensing up and snarling so much. The ride was not very long, and we just did a little cantering, but the saddle seems like a winner.
After our ride, my equine massage friend was doing a little evaluation on Wizard, and while she had her hands on him, I heard the loudest C-R-U-N-C-H! I assumed it was one hoof stepping on the other, but my friend said it came from high up in his pelvis. It was SO loud. But Wizard barely batted an eye. I wonder if something was out of alignment?
Sunday, 10/16/11
I tried the Hampson & Scott saddle, just in case it suddenly fit Wizard better once it was on his back. Boy, oh boy, do I LOVE that saddle. SO, SO, SO comfortable. And Wizard rode pretty nicely in it. He snarled again, with kicking and pinned ears when we were walking, but then really stretched nicely at the trot. But when I checked the gullet, I could only get one finger in the front, and then it stopped where the top of the saddle was crushing his withers. The panels looked good, but without that clear channel down his spine, the saddle was not going to work. What a shame. Someone is going to get a really nice saddle.
I put the Smith-Worthington back on Wizard, and we rode for a while. It was not a ride with a plan, more of a test drive. He was pretty good, but got really wound up by the end of the ride. He threw a few kicks at the canter, and pinned his ears during a few trot exercises. The reason I kept riding was to check the sweat pattern on his back from the saddle. There was no bridging, which is wonderful- there were two perfect strips of sweat down the panels on the sides on his spine. There were dry spots on the sides of his withers, but I’ve read so many different opinions of that. I think the saddle fits better than any other saddle I can currently find, and I’m pretty sure we’re going to keep it. And once I’m comfortable with the saddle I have, I can go back to slowly bringing him back from whatever is causing this body soreness.
I have been putting his Back on Track sheet on him overnight for the past three days. Sunday was Day 6 of his magnesium. Sunday was Day 11 of his Omeprazole treatment. I wish I could have isolated each treatment to see which were working and which were not, but at this point, I really want SOMETHING to work.
Wizard was goosey again while I groomed him, and was very tense under saddle. We did a long walking warmup, followed by some trot work, but he just could not get comfortable. He was pinning his ears and kicked up toward his belly a few times when I put leg pressure on him. I know when to call it a day, and I did. I’m pretty sure the saddle officially does not fit him. It is not giving him enough wither clearance.
Saturday, 10/8/11
I tried a Crosby Lexington on Wizard. The panels sit pretty well on him, but the sides of the withers cutback were jabbing his withers. ARGH. We just did some walk and trot work and caled it a night.
Tuesday, 10/11/11
I put Wizard’s surcingle on him and he had a nice little longeing session. I think it was about 25 minutes with warmup and cooldown. He was a little tense when he was warming up, but worked out of it. He got wound up again at the canter, but then relaxed. I started him on Mag-Restore, a magnesium supplement. I also tried a bunch of other saddles on him, including western saddles, and all of them sat LOW on his withers.
Wednesday, 10/12/11
I tried a County Eventer saddle on Wizard. The fit was not perfect, but it was better than any other saddle I’ve tried. He was totally miserable when I rode him, flattening his ears, and kicking up toward his belly with any leg pressure at all. We did not even trot, just walked. My friend was at the barn with me, and she did some massage work. She said he was VERY tight across his back and down his hind end. So while the saddle is an issue, it sounds like he is working on some other sort of issue. He has been on the omeprazole for a week, and I don’t see any difference yet. Keep experimenting, watching, and waiting.
I left work pretty late, and met up with Kris at the barn. She longed Sunny while I rode Wizard in the outdoor arena. While we were grooming, Wizard was very grouchy about currying- this is the second or third time I’ve noticed him recently being so unhappy with grooming. It’s a good thing I ordered the magic “blue Pop Rocks”, aka Omeprazole granules. I’ve long suspected ulcers in Wizard, and did some treatment with Ulcergard until I ran out of funds.
Through the wonders of the Chronicle of the Horse forums, I’ve discovered a MUCH cheaper Omeprazole treatment, with the enteric coating that is designed to handle stomach acid. Wizard got his first three sachets tonight, mixed with molasses and a little grain as a treat. He did not have any problem with the taste. Hooray!
Wizard was also goosey under saddle- he flattened his ears a few times when I put leg on him. It will be very interesting to see if the Omeprazole helps.
The arena was holding some moisture, but there was only one really wet section. Wizard did not handle it quite as nicely as he handles drier footing, and I never really got that schwung that he sometimes gives in better footing. We walked and then did a few halts, followed by the trot. I let him trot loosely for a few laps, then asked for a little stretching, and then asked for transitions from walk to trot to walk to engage the hind end. As we continued with the transitions, he started to use himself a little better and maintain more contact. The contact was not as good as it was a few days ago, though. We trotted a few times over teeny, tiny cross rails and verticals, which woke him up and got him moving better. He cantered out a few times, and I let him. Once we had done a few of the little jumps, Wizard was able to open his stride a little and give me a nicer trot. When we were done, we cooled out at a walk, and I put him to bed with some hay. Let the blue Pop Rocks begin their magic…
Rock and Racehorses: Sarah K. Andrew 