Before making my final-final decision on the saddle I had on trial, I took one more ride in it. Wizard’s demeanor has improved. He’s still a little grouchy about grooming, but not as sore as he was. Every night, he gets his Back on Track sheet on him, and I longed him before I rode to let him loosen up on his own before riding. I did not put side reins on, just let him carry himself how he wanted to carry himself. They had just dragged the arena and the footing was really nice. He went both right and left on the longe really nicely. When I got in the saddle, there was much less fuss and pinned ears than in the past few rides. I got a few cranky faces and swishy tails, but there was a marked improvement. He trotted left and right, and as we did more work, he got better instead of worse. I kept the ride short and sweet, and checked the sweat marks after our ride. The sweat was perfect down each side of his spine, with great spine clearance. Wither tops are not getting pressed by the saddle. The hair looks different behind the withers, but I’ve heard mixed things about that. I made up my mind to keep the saddle (and sell all of my other ones that don’t fit him). Fingers crossed for more improvement. I could really use some nice October rides!
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.
The Blonde. I borrowed a western saddle for JR and rode him twice in it. The first ride was OK. Not much girthiness (cinchiness- ha!), longed fine for about 5 minutes, walked and trotted a little tensely but OK. The following day, he was backsore again. He was fine on the longe line (another quick 5-minute spin to see how he was moving in it) but was resistant as soon as he stood at the mounting block. His tail was swishing and his neck was tight throughout the ride. I walked him on the trails with Mary the Morgan for about 20-25 minutes. He was tense at first but relaxed toward the end. He just did not feel right. There were ruffled hairs under the saddle and it looked like the saddle was bridging. I think I need to move on with my saddle options.
The Bay. Wizard is enjoying his vacation already. As soon as my car pulls into the driveway, he hollers for the apple he knows I have for him. After he finishes the apple, he hollers for his alfalfa. After the alfalfa, he hollers for his beet pulp/supplement mix. Every day after his snacks, I groom him and graze him as long as time permits. He is fat, sassy, and happy. When he was outside all night, he was great to groom. The day he was in his stall, he was more reactive to grooming.
And what of the grey in your title, Sarah? Who is that pretty thing in the photo? Meet Selena, a Thoroughbred mare. She is sweet and well-schooled, but she has had a long vacation and I’m going to start getting her back in shape. On Monday and Tuesday, I started with grooming, hand walking Selena around the property, a few minutes of clicker work, and a little grazing.
After a relaxing and enjoyable long weekend in Georgia, it was time to get back to business with Wizard. Yesterday, the veterinarian did a lameness exam and floated his teeth.
The exam began by watching Wizard trot on a longe line. I probably should have anticipated that Wizard would be a little fresh since he is fit and has had so much time off, but instead I was surprised when he came close to pulling me off my feet as soon as we began longeing! The halter with the longe line snapped to the chin ring is normally just fine for control but he was feeling his oats yesterday. The vet pronounced him sound in both directions. I asked her about his high action and she said it’s likely a combination of animation and a loose, flexible way of going.
She performed flexion tests on all four legs and the prognosis was good. She heard a little creakiness in the right front knee when she folded it, but it is probably a touch of arthritis and nothing that should keep him from the level of work we’re doing. His left hip is dropped a bit, which is in line with what the chiropractor mentioned about the tight muscle tissue in his hamstring and pelvis. I’ve known horses whose hips are dropped far more than his and they have gone on to perform well with correct strengthening work. The vet recommended more work with ground poles to help Wizard’s topline and hind end strength. His right hind leg also showed a little stiffness with one of the flex tests, but nothing that caused concern for his current workload. Wizard quite enjoyed the jogs on the dirt road and was arching his neck and throwing his head playfully.
The vet examined his back and carefully went over his acupressure points. No back pain and just a little tightness in his pelvis. She evaluated my saddle fit and said it looks good.
The veterinarian’s advice? Get back on Wizard and try riding again. If he still is showing signs of distress under saddle, treat or test for Lyme Disease. She also suggested doing another 4-day bute test (as a diagnostic tool, not as a treatment). If both fail, further evaluations will be needed, like x-rays or blood tests. But so far, everything looks good.
Wizard also had his teeth floated. All of the hooks have been fixed and more corrections were done to his wave mouth. She was pleased with the way his mouth looks and said he can have his teeth floated next in a year- hooray!
While Wizard was under sedation, I cleaned his sheath, clipped his bridle path, and pulled his mane. I LOVE how he looks with the pulled mane- it does my hunter/jumper heart good :^) I did a combination of traditional mane pulling and a little thinning with scissors by teasing the mane up and cutting the excess vertically with scissors. I did not want to subject the poor guy to an entire mane pulling- he had almost a foot of hair and now it’s the length of a pulling comb.
Thursday, Wizard has a farrier appointment. I hope to be back in the saddle very soon.
Wizard had his first chiropractic adjustment on Oct 29. His second adjustment was on Dec 20. I asked the chiropractor to watch his movement before she adjusted him. She said that he looks perfectly 100% sound in the front end (and he’s barefoot- yay!). The hind end is not uneven, but she saw weakness in the back and legs. Wizard stands cow-hocked and he’s a bit sickle-hocked . The chiropractor also noticed what looks like an old hamstring injury on his left side- he sort of lifts and slaps down his hind foot on firm footing after work. I was concerned about the looseness of his joints and the weakness in the hind end, but she said that he should be just fine for low level work, including jumping. She said that Wizard’s hind end will benefit from the work that I’m doing since his balance and strength will improve. I told her what kind of work we’re doing (very light!) and she said it’s time to step it up a bit- yay!
The adjustment went really well. The biggest adjustments that she needed to do were in Wizard’s withers and his neck. The neck alignment is possibly from needing more work done to his teeth. I had them floated but they still need more work. Wizard was a little concerned about the acupuncture needles but he responded to the entire exam and chiropractic workover really well. He was really willing to work with her, especially when she was working on his neck and hind end. I saw him relax and chew several times, as well as several huge YAWNS at the very end. I’ve read that yawning can indicate a release of toxins in horses.
The chiropractor also examined my saddles and how they sat on Wizard’s back- she agreed with my assessment that my jumping saddle fits better than my dressage saddle. This suits me fine since I prefer to ride in the jumping saddle anyway! She suggested a pommel pad to help with the fit of the saddle. The saddle fits well enough for regular work, and since he’s not my horse, I’m not exactly ready to go custom yet ;^) The saddle is the correct width but the pommel sits a tad low on him.
It was a relief to hear a respected veterinarian give me the go-ahead to do more work with Wizard. She also complimented the work I’ve done with him- he felt far more relaxed and willing than he was in his first adjustment. The first time, while he behaved himself fine, he was a little more reluctant and resistant to the adjustments- this time, he was like a puppy dog. I’m really proud of all of our progress.
I’ll call it a “session” since I did all groundwork with Wizard tonight. Rides 1-9 involved me actually climbing aboard ;^)
Since Wizard’s feet, teeth, and general alignment have all been adjusted recently, I decided to back up a few steps and start at the verrrry beginning with him. I want to work with his “buttons” and see how much training he has.
I applied Seashore Acres Sole Paint to Wizard’s soles in hopes of keeping him barefoot this winter. He has no trouble with the footing in the indoor arena but I see him get a little tenderfooted when we walk on the driveway to the arena.
When I groomed Wizard, he was sensitive at his poll and at his flank and the top of his lumbosacral joint. He was also goosey about having his belly touched. I happen to be a naturally brisk and firm groomer, so I have done my best to be gentle with Wizard’s Thoroughbred sensibilities. Hopefully this tenderness is at least partially related to my grooming habits. I also have only used my jelly scrubber and softest finishing brush in hopes of not tickling him too much. I noticed that Wizard is far less ticklish after he is worked.
Our goal was to determine the level at which Wizard can yield to pressure. Training green horses involves sensitization to certain cues and desensitization to others. You want a horse who is light to the leg and hand aids but who will not react to a flapping rein or a dangling stirrup.
Once he was tacked up, we went to the indoor arena and began our groundwork. We walked a few brisk laps around the arena (good exercise for me as well!), down the long sides as well as across the diagonals. Twice down each diagonal, I halted Wizard and asked him to move his shoulder away from me. I cued him with a dressage whip, gently tap-tap-tapping his shoulder while I verbally cued him with a cluck. No fear of whips in this horse! He just stood his ground and eyed me. I resorted to a poke with the butt end of the whip before he complied and moved each foot away from the pressure. I immediately stopped and praised him and walked forward. We did this a few times in each direction. He was far more responsive on his left side than on his right. This translates to his longeing abilities since he is fantastic to the left but stops and practically stands in my lap to the right. I need to have him reliably moving away from the whip in order to improve our longeing.
We also transitioned from a walk to a jog several times. I noticed Wizard lifting his head a few times in the upward transition- it appeared that he was using his neck as a balancing rod. He was quite happy to jog alongside of me. He leads beautifully. I wish I had a good pony horse to ride because I am sure that Wizard would also benefit from ponying work. And since he was a racehorse in his former life, he probably can pony quite nicely.
I asked Wizard to walk two rotations on the longe in each direction and guess what… he did not turn in on me! Good enough, end on a good note. Back to the barn, untacked, groomed, and fed him a few apples and carrots. I learned that he is not terribly responsive to pressure but he improved in just one session.
His winter coat is getting thick, which is great for him but more grooming for me. I decided to leave him unblanketed since we will not be doing anything too demanding this winter. If we had a more athletic work plan for the winter, I would have considered blanketing him.
So it was a good return to work for him. I hope to get back out to the barn this Thursday for our next adventure.
Rock and Racehorses: Sarah K. Andrew 