Back in the Saddle

I am FINALLY back in the saddle! Thank God! D, the farrier, arrived right on time and had Jack fixed up within half an hour.

First he fitted the shoe to the hoof. But that was a tad too big so he had to go a size smaller.


Contrary to what I said last week about Jack having 3 size 4 hooves and 1 size 3 hoof the farrier actually found that he has two size 4 hooves and 2 size 3. His right side is smaller then his left.

Then he cut the pad to the correct size.


He then pasted the underside of the hoof with a concoction of special things that help heal and harden the hoof and keep all the naughty little stones that like to get in there out. I can't remember the name of the stuff but it has eucalyptus and pine tar in it. It smells really, really good and is incredibly sticky.
He then positioned the pad and nailed the shoe over top.


D's dog Cruise "as in a Cruise Missile not Tom Cruise" hung out with me (between my legs) while I held Jack (dad took the photos).


Once D was finished I finally got on to ride. 30 mins of walking, walking and more walking. Actually Jack decided to have a bit of fun with a few rears but most of the time we walked.


You may notice that Jack is looking a bit on the heavy side of the scale at the moment. He's put on a whopping 30kgs in the last 2 months! I know! Until we weighed him, I didn't think he looked fat at all bit now when I look at him I can see the massive crest on his neck and his huge belly. And its not like any of the weight is muscle. He's been sitting in a paddock for the last month and a half. Its pure fat. What a chubster! Hopefully it will all tone up fast now that we can ride again.

Jack is also a master at ripping and demolishing his cover so he went for a week without a cover and he's faded a bit. I got him a new cover today and as soon as I put it on my friend's horse Rocky, started trying to pull it off. I shooed him away and then put Jack's fly mask on. I ended up tying it to his cover so I would be able to find it easier if he managed to get it off. He looks like a donkey cross mouse with this thing on. Thats Rocky at the side, waiting to pounce.


A couple of minutes later, as I was driving past the paddock on my way home, I saw this...



I had always wondered how Jack got his mask off so quickly and now I knew. It was Rocky. The little mongrel. I yelled at him from the edge of the paddock and he dropped it instantly, looking innocently over at me like he hadn't just been caught in the act. (You can see the peice of bailing twine trailing from Jacks cover to the mask on the ground. In hindsight it doesn't look very safe haha.)


Rocky then picked the mask up off the ground and ran off with it in his mouth. That rascal. The elastic snapped on Jack's mask so it was no longer attached to him. I didn't get any pictures of that as I was too busy laughing at him. I went and recovered the broken mask and then cut the bailing twine off Jack. I'm going to have to come up with a sure fire way to keep that mask on Jack. Any ideas?

So now we're starting from day one with the fitness regieme. For the next three weeks it will be mainly walking with a few trots thrown in the third week and gradually building up from there. I hoping to compete in a Show Jumping competition on the 4th of January but we'll see what happens.

I am FINALLY back in the saddle.

Two's company

You can imagine my shock when I arrived to re-bandage Jack's hoof yesterday only to see that the vet had treated the opposite leg to the one that's been giving us the problems. I couldn't believe it. All this hassle with that dam leg and then the bandage is on the wrong hoof. I went to catch him and he decided to be a prick and try to get away. Unfortunately for him, but fortunately for me, he could only hobble away and I easily caught up to him. It was quite a sad sight to see him limping like that. He was defiantly favouring the hoof that I thought was the bad hoof. I rang my dad to get an explanation and he assured me that he had given the vet my note about what had happened to that leg. He had even trotted him out for her. Obviously she saw something wrong with his left leg and not his right. I called the Vet Clinic but she had already left for the day and they said she would give me a call today.

She rang me about 10.00am this morning and came down to check his right leg. Yep, there was an abscess there too. It was in the same place as the abscess on the other hoof but this one was a bit bigger. She also said that it was more than likely that the previous owners had left the shoes on longer then they should have been and as a result the shoes had pressed down into the corns and left a bruise which then developed into an abscess. I couldn't believe it. All this trouble because his previous owners couldn't be stuffed to get his shoes re-set or even just taken off.

Anyway, he now has two beautifully bandaged hooves wrapped in a very fashionable yellow vet wrap.

The pus should drain within the next few days and he should be alright to be shod next Friday. My bank account is looking very, very empty. The things we do for the animals we love huh?

Once, Twice, Three times a... whole lot worse.

I rocked up to Pony Club on Tuesday about 2 and half hours early. I was (as to be expected) the first one there and spent an hour messing around with Jack until other people arrived. That’s the problem with living quite a bit down the motorway when your rally starts at 6’oclock. You’re either stuck in traffic for hours if you want to get there at 5 or you have to leave early so you don’t get in the traffic and consequently hang around pony club for a few extra hours. It comes down to whether you want to wait in traffic for a couple of hours or wait at pony club for a couple of hours. I know what I would rather do.

It was the Dressage and Show Jumping night at Pony Club. I tacked Jack up all nicely in his white saddle blanket and white boots. I’ll have to post a picture of him in this gear because he looks great. One of the instructors who teaches some of the younger kids commented to me on how beautiful he was (we get this a lot). It turned out that she was to be our dressage judge and when Jack and I presented ourselves to her she said “Oh I can’t wait to see this horse! He is so beautiful” to her writer so hopefully we started off on the right foot. Our test wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. I was sure he was going to do his tiny mincing steps but he actually had quite a reasonable trot and canter which I was very happy with. His circles were wonky and he always came late into the canter but I took him deep into all the corners (except one) and collected him back into me. It wasn’t a beautiful test but it was much better than I anticipated, especially since we have done no dressage schooling at all.

I took him to the show jumping next. My friend Simone and her horse Rocky were jumping when we arrived (clear round) and she wandered over to talk to us. Since she had finished she decided to go back and un-tack. Jack tried to follow and we I told him not to, he reared. A big rear. In the middle of quite a large group. I threw myself forward and he came back onto the ground. He tried it on a couple of more times but I told him off good and proper. I decided after that not to do the show jumping. It sounds like I’m wimping out but it seems when I’m getting close to my... er time of the month (sorry TMI) I tend to get more nervous on horses and find it harder to deal with their antics. It usually only lasts for a couple of days but If something happens during those days I don’t deal with it calmly and easily like I do the rest of the time. It happened a couple of years ago when I didn’t want to canter. I had been riding for 3 years and had cantered and galloped hundreds of times but suddenly I was too scared to canter on a horse. Again, it only lasted a couple of days but it was still there. So I didn’t think it would help either of us if we did the show jumping. I’m not ashamed of my decision because I really think that if something else had gone wrong I wouldn’t have been able to handle it and we both could have ended up getting hurt.

The next day I went to see Jack with the good intentions of working on refining our transitions. He had other plans. He was dead lame in the same foot. It was really bad this time. He could barely walk and obviously it hurt a lot. He didn’t want to put any weight on the heel of his foot. Since the stone bruise should have been healed by then I thought that he must have an abscess close to his heel. It was already getting quite late so I opted to soak his hoof in Epsom salts and call the vet today. Unfortunately I had to work so my awesome dad said he would go out to see the vet. The vet confirmed my suspicions. He had an abscess in his heel. So she cut the abscess out and drained the whole. She wrapped it up with poultice and bandages and gave him a tetanus shot. He is not on antibiotics at the moment because she thinks that if we let the hole drain and change the bandages daily he shouldn’t need them. She estimated that he would be alright to ride in a week which falls in nicely with when the farrier is coming to see him. So hopefully this will be the end of his lameness saga in that leg. I was hoping that our first official competition would be at the end of this month but I doubt he will be fit enough what with all this time off. I will have to find another competition for us to make our first. I’m just thankful it wasn’t a major problem and didn’t cost me an arm and a leg. Because really I need both of those limbs to ride.

I promise to put more pictures up!!

Lameness, Show Jumping and more

Again, I am very sorry for being a bad blogger. I promise to be better in the future.

A couple of weeks ago Jack went un-explicably lame. I was warming him up in the arena at a walk and he was fine but as soon as I put him into a trot I felt a hopping motion. I got off him straight away and trotted him out and there it was... a big fat limp. Something was obviously wrong with his right hind leg and as I walked him back to un-saddle him it got worse. He was really lame at the walk when just minutes before he had been fine. I searched his leg up and down for an obvious problem but I couldn't see anything. There was no cuts, swelling or heat and no muscle pain when I pushed and prodded. I decided to give him a day and see if it improved since he was still eating alright and I couldn't see an obvious cause to his lameness. The next day he had improved a lot and it got better everyday after that. I gave him a week off just to make sure and then started riding again. We did Show Jumping at Pony Club a couple of days after coming back into work. We started off with flat work which Jack hated and told me so in no uncertain terms but I did manage to get him to do a nice big trot when I over exagerated my rise. He also took the contact which I was very happy with. Usually when I ask for a large trot he bowls along with his neck scrunched into his body and his head in the air. When we went on to jumping he was just spectacular. You could tell he loves it. We flew around the course and his listened to me the whole time. I was really proud of him. I didn't work him too hard though due to the fact he had just been lame and he is still unfit.

The next day Jack was lame again. It was the same leg but this time his whole leg was hot and he refused to put any weight on it. It happened that a nice (and rather good looking) farrier was shoeing a horse at the Pony Club so I asked if he could take a look at Jack's hoof. He did some pincher tests and came to the conclusion that Jack had a stone bruise. So off I went to the supermarket to get some Epsom Salts. I soaked his hoof once a day for 20mins for about 5 days and now he's back to being sound again. Jack is currently un-shod. He arrived that way and his previous owner assured me that he had very strong feet. So i didn't get him shod immediatly thinking that I would do it when I started competiting and doing harder work. But it seems Jack does get rather ouchy when walking on stones and two lamenesses in as many weeks seems to indicate that he needs shoes. Unfortunately the earliest I could get him booked is the 14th of November (my birthday) since the Farrier Nationals are on this weekend and according to my farrier anyone wanting a farrier this week will find it very hard. I've never used this farrier before but my friend who is a great eventer uses him and I really like his work. Hopefully he'll be right for us. He was also very friendly and assured me he wouldn't be late. In fact he said "I am never late. If I don't show up, watch the 6 o'clock news and you'll see that a farrier has died in a fiery car crash." He seems like a decent bloke and I have high hopes for him.

Unofficially our first competition is tonight. We're having a show jumping and dressage night at Pony Club. I only found out about this last night and I distinctly remember this same thing happening last year. So today I'm going to be learning a very difficult dressage test and getting ready for it. Jack will probably need a bath too.

As I said earlier my birthday is in a couple of weeks. I'm not really feeling like a big birthday this year. I'm thinking of going to Woodhill Forest with my riding friends for an awesome ride and then a picnic once we're finished. It will be Jack's first outing with me so it will be interesting to see how he goes. I have no idea what I'll do with the rest of my friends.

Hoof Update #2

Well I went away soon after Reds hoof problem but txts from my AuntieSue kept my updated. Unfortunately I had no access to the internet hence this late post.

Anyway I got up early on Saturday morning after 4 hours of sleep thanks to a night of salsa dancing. I trudged out to Reds paddock and gave him another injection and then went off to camp. Another injection was due that night but my auntie REALLY did not want to do it. So she called the vet. I can't remember if she said the vet came out (I think she did) or if they just talk on the phone but she said that Red could be taken off the painkillers and antibiotics on Sunday. My auntie managed to convince one of the PC mothers to give Red his last injections.

The farrier was then called out to give Red new shoes. Reds feet were getting very overgrown because of the massive amount of grass growth here at the moment. The farrier shod him and declared him sound for riding again. Auntie Sue can correct me if I'm wrong, but the vet said he would be fine to ride if he was re-shod.

So she took him out for a ride and he was completely sound! He then spent a fun 1/2 an hour galloping around his paddock trying to protect one of 'his' mares from another horse so I think hes totally fine. Thank goodness, it means I can compete at the ODE on the 3rd of Feb.

Anyway I've got a few stories from camp I'll share with you in the next few days. So keep a lookout for those.

Hoof Update

Reds foot has been dug into to get the nail out and to leave a hole for drainage. We're hoping an abcess doesn't appear otherwise things are going to get even more complicated. His hoof is bandaged and hes wearing a boot.

Well we rushed up to the Saddlery Warehouse this morning to pick up a boot and some flyspray for Red. The flies were annoying the heck out of him so something had to be done. On they way up Auntie Sue called to ask that we bring bandages too because Reds one was starting to come off. Unfortunately they didn't have flyspray, only fly repellent wipes. We rushed to the pony club with our bag of goodies and started working on Red.

We soon realised that the boot was far too small to fit over his hoof with the large bandage on. So while I waited over an hour with Red my mum and Auntie went back to the saddlery shop and got the next three sizes up. When they finally arrived back I wrestled with Red to get the shoe on and then went through the complicated process of tightening it.

Then it was time for the injection. The vets had shown my aunt how to give the injection but she wasn't too keen on actually sticking the needle into him. She told me how to do it and one of the other pony club mothers stood with me for moral support. I held the needle next to his skin for a couple of seconds trying to compose myself while she gently encouraged me along. I took the plunge (haha) and then pulled the syringe back to make sure I hadn't hit a large blood vessell (I didn't) and then injected the penicillan in. It took awhile as the liquid was quite thick. Thankfully Red barely battered an eyelid.

Hes on twice daily injections, with twice daily feed laced with pain killer. The vet will be coming to see him on Monday, and thats when the injections can stop. Since the rest of my family won't inject him it will be up to me. I'm supposed to be going away on Saturday and I've offered to stay home and do it, but the general consesus is they want me to go and they'll pay someone else to do it.

Breaking News!

Big dramas today Auntie Sue went up for a ride this morning only to find Red had a twisted shoe. He was incredibly lame and we spent ages trying to get hold of a farrier to come pull it off. Unfortunately none of the local farriers could be contacted we called the vet. Two vets came down and pulled the shoe. A nail had entered the sole of his hoof and they had to do a bit of digging to get it out. Red didn't like that.

Red was given a tetanus shot and he's on a course of antibiotics. I'm leaving in 10mins to buy him a boot to protect his hoof. Poor boy, its been one thing after the other lately. I'll keep you updated on his condition.

Something new on A Girl and Her Horse

Recently I've been trying to make this blog a little more user friendly. Before it was all over the place and everything was a bit helter skelter, especially with the tags. And so I've tidied everything up a bit. You can now access all the stories in my 'A Story for Another Day' series straight from the sidebar and some of my better posts are easily avaliable under the 'Recommended Posts'. But probably what I'm most excited about is the new 'Resources' section. Right now there is only one resource avaliable to you, which is my 'Horse Information Template' that I talked about in my post Horse Records. The template will work best if you copy and paste it into Microsoft word. The boxes will need to be deleted and appropriate pictures added. More resources are on the way.

Just to finish off I would like to announce that Red is no longer lame!! I'm so pleased. We have a theroy about his lameness that I'll share about in the future, but we have to wait to see if the theroy will prove itself first.

Oh also here are some pictures of me and Red at rally. I don't know how he does it but Peter, the photographer, always takes pictures of me with funny faces! Oh well, its hard to be vain when you are a horse rider! The first one (the picture with Melissa on Gilbert) is especially bad. And the one of Red and I jumping was taken before Red started refusing every show jump I put him in front of. And yes I agree, I do need to release more when I'm jumping.

Still Lame

Reds still slightly lame. Nothing to really worry about but every 12th stride or so he does a little hop. It looks like his hooves have grown extra fast and the shoes are starting to slip. The shoe on his left hoof has slipped quite a bit and is pressing on his corn which could have been the reason for his lameness all along. Its only been 4 weeks since he was last shod. Usually he needs work done every 6 weeks. But the grass has been growing really fast lately and apparently when the grass grows so does the hooves.

I was supposed to have a lesson with Jacqui on Saturday but she was the one who saw the hop in his trot. She said he could be lightly hacked but not to do any work until he was re-shod so our lesson didn't happen. So this week hes getting re-shod and hopefully he'll be fine for the ODE on Sunday.

In other news it seems like the electric fence in the paddock where the Hacks are grazing went a bit crazy. Somehow electricity was being put into the ground underneath the gate and was giving the horses an almighty shock as they walked in and out of the paddock. The water was also alive so the horses weren't able to drink. Only the horses were affected because of their shoes. My Auntie Sue said when she was bringing Red out he suddenly bolted through. She didn't know what had made him do it. Someone must have figured out what was wrong when the other horses reacted too. The electricity has been turned off now. The poor horses! Its must have been a powerful shock to make them react like that. Imagine if a human had been been shocked. It could have caused someone a lot of damage. Thankfully everyone is alright.

Lameness Update #2

Red and I didn't ride in the Pony Club rally last night due to his sore leg but I went up anyway to check on him and watch my group ride. I'm please to annouce that hes much better. His limp has all but gone and his swelling hasn't got any worse. Hes short stepping slightly with the sore leg but otherwise hes great. I'm very pleased. Auntie Sue will check on him tomorrow morning but it looks like we won't need a vet.

It looks like it will be all good to enter into the Henderson ODE. If his swelling and limp is gone by Friday evening I'll possibly have the lesson with Jacqui on Saturday but I'm going to talk to Sue about it.

It looks like the injury would have come from him fighting with the new gelding at the pony club. A few people have seen them have impressive all out fights complete with rearing battles and nashing of teeth. I was wondering why Reds neck was continually covered in bite marks. Hopefully that will settle down and they'll sort themselves out soon so Red doesn't get any more injuries.

Lameness Update #1

Red had some slight swelling in his knee last night when I checked on him. Its very minor and he doesn't seem to be sore in or around his knee in anyway. Two of the more knowlegable people at PC poked and prodded all around with no reaction.

The conclusion is that something is sore in his hoof area and hes over compensating with his knee so he can keep the pain to a minimum which is resulting in the swelling.

We're going to wait a couple of days to see what happens with it. I'll check on him tonight and my auntie will check on him tomorrow night and then we can make the decision about whether to call the vet. I was supposed to be having a lesson with Jacqui Williams on Saturday but at this point it looks like that won't be happening.

Hopefully he'll get better soon and won't be in pain. Wish us luck.

Oh dear! Hes lame.

Well here I am. Sitting at my desk trying to figure out WHY RED IS LAME! Yes hes lame. When I was leading him in the paddock I saw it, but then again I always think hes lame in the paddock because of the un-even terrain. I walked him over to the rails, tacked him up and as soon as we walked off I felt it. That totally evil, time wasting, money wasting limp. I trotted him out for one of the instructors at the club and she said it was in his left fore. There was no heat or swelling otherwise I would have seen it when I checked him over while grooming.







Lisa, a vet in training who rides at PC, looked him over and did a hoof test but she couldn't find anything. She said it could be an abcess that will burst in the next couple of days. If he's still lame on Wednesday I'm calling the vet. Hopefully its nothing too bad, I hate him being sore!



It seems to be one thing after another with him lately. Last weekend he was bitten by a White tail spider (we think) which can affect humans quite badly. My poor guy was swollen up in patches all over his body and anytime I put my hand near the spot where we think he was bitten he attacked with menace. I left his cover off since the heat generated from it seemed to make the swelling worse and when I checked on him the next day he was fine.


Hes also been having trouble with jumping, hes refusing jumps that we did easily a few weeks ago. I don't know whats up with him but hopefully it all stops and he gets back to his normal soon.



Anyway heres a cool little thing that Maddie over at Pony Tail Club posted about... You upload a photo and suddenly your in a gallery! Check it out!