Catching up.

Whew, the end of a school year can be crazy! When you have tornados that cut the year short by a week - it is even crazier! Finally all of the students and teachers have been sent home for the summer and things have quieted down.

DON

I have been working with Don on his Whoa and body cues from the ground. He is also learning what ground tying is. I think that he is beginning to feel better and definately track better. The newness of being worked daily has worn off, and he can't wait to get back to his "girls". This is great, because it helps instill a work ethic and develop patience. He is still a bugger about picking up his feet, but seems resigned to comply. All in all, things are progressing well. His back seems to be staying looser, but he seems more lame in the left hip now as opposed to the right hip. Still working on the massage, stretches and linament daily.

JAZZ

She is conditioning up well and her cut has healed great. Crunch time to get her ready for the District show in June. Clipper lessons, halter lessons and trailering lessons - Oh my! She has such a good mind and willing attitude. She is fearless about new things and has so much trust. I can hope for great success, but will settle for a positive experience for Jazz. I am still hoping to get her hauled to some of the Playdays before the show to get her accustomed to new and different.

RIDING LESSONS

Start back up this week. Sadie really needs the regular exercise. She is getting so very round. A daily lunging work hasn't even begun to harden her up. I have kept Brandy exercised all year long. She is older and already has some arthritis issues, the exercise keeps her loose and feeling good. I am hoping to fit Colty into the string this year, but he still needs a little work to lighten him up. He is by far the most sensitive to leg cues. The other two have been ridden by little kids and beginners to long to be really sensitive to the small cues.

4H CLUB

We are having a summer BBQ party this week. I think it is a fantastic way to kick-off the summer. Last weekend, the club went to a Horse Workshop sponsored by the Oklahoma Pinto Club. We all had a great time and learned some great tips about grooming for show day. I am now thinking about registering a couple of the horses as Pinto (9 out of 10 qualify) and showing at a few of their shows. Who knows.

05/10-05/12

Whew, what a week! We had a tornado go through our little community Monday night. Our place is fine, no damage and we still have electricity. As with most tornados, we had plenty of warning. I fleetingly thought of loading the horses and hauling them to safety, but there were tornados sprouting up all over Oklahoma. I felt that the safest thing to do was turn them out to the big pastures away from all buildings. They all weathered the storm well, not a single scratch. Once we came out of the celler and checked all the livestock (horses, cows, chickens...) we headed into town. It took a direct hit! Several homes had lost entire roofs, there were uprooted trees everywhere, and there were a couple of buildings blown apart. The last place we went was to the school. It had some damage, but most of it is superficial. The biggest damage is to the ballfields. The boss decided to call school for the rest of the week and begin fresh on Monday. We have spent most of Tuesday and Wednesday helping folks retrieve what they can from their homes, fixing fence and cleaning up. We were so very lucky and I thank God for that!

DON

Don is still favoring his right hind leg but is still continuing to track better. Monday, the weather halted training. Tuesday, we worked on yielding the hindquarters and shoulders, Whoa, bridling and some two-tracking. He still can't work terribly long without soring up, so his training lessons were short spurts with straight-away walking mixed in. Finished up with a linament bath and rubdown. Wednesday, worked on everything from the day before but added long-lining. He maintained a soft feel but walked through the Whoa.

JAZZ

With the injury to her pastern, any conditioning is halted. Worked with her on standing square and patience.

Well, back to helping out. We had another storm come through last night. Lots of straightline winds, but only tree limbs knocked down.

05/07 - 05/09

Don
Still doing much of the same. He gets 24/7 turn-out in the pasture, groomed daily, massage, stretching and a good wash down with Bigeloil/water. He is beginning track a little straighter in the hindlegs and the pain response from manual palpation in his back is lessening. He seems to be more playful in the pasture and more willing to walk out. Weather permitting, Monday I will lunge, saddle and try out the drive lines.

Jazz
Well Ms. Jazz in her curiosity has cut her fetlock. The wound looked kinda nasty upon first look, but cleaned up well. A week of antibiotic salve and wrapping and then on to the Underwoods. This little hiccup though makes it doubtful that she will make the 4H District show. She just will not be fit enough.

Vegas
Caught her Friday and trimmed those awful feet. She stood really well considering all of the activity going on and her not being trimmed in at least a year. While I was waiting on my husband between feet, I put Vegas through some inhand tests. She is really a well trained horse that just needs a refresher course. I think that she will make a fantastic gaming horse.

Playday in Okemah (heavy on the Play)
We took Sadie and Brandy this time. Rendi and Jacob had fun running the barrels and poles. When we first arrived, I saddled Brandy and took her out to warm her up. Rendi's back was bothering her, so she layed down for a bit. After Brandy's warm-up I noticed that Sadie was really becoming agitated. She hates being left out! I put Brandy up and took Sadie out for a warm-up. She was great! So eager to move out and so soft in the bridle. Rendi soon was feeling better so she took Sadie and I took Brandy back. Brandy had been acting a bit resentful, but the minute I showed her the poles, I had to hold her back. She really loves the poles. During the run home, I held her back and she gave me a little buck. The old girl still loves to run. I took her through the trail course and she did well, but the gate took us about 5 minutes, but she finally did it right. It is hard to get her to slow down and go step by step. She did a great job in the box though! Rendi just did the barrels and poles on Sadie at a lope and Jacob did the same. Sadie still had a lot of gas in the tank when we were done. I let one of the 4H kids take Brandy around the poles at a trot. She said that Brandy was asking for more rein the whole time. I guess ponying Jazz is conditioning Brandy as much as it is conditioning Jazz.

Sorry about the lack of pictures, but I have misplaced my camera charger. I tore my house up this weekend looking for it. I guess it will be off to Wal-Mart to get a new one.

05/05 - 05/06

DON
More of the same - massage & stretches. Some inhand walking. The "tightrope" walking is improving, but the left leg still steps in. I think the central point for the soreness is the right hip. He strides shorter on it and the left whither muscle is showing some signs of soreness. He is moving more freely in the pasture and is utilizing more of the pasture.

JAZZ
She has had the last couple of days off.

VEGAS
New horse that was given to us. 11 yr old Paint mare. She seems like a real sweetie, but is in serious need of a trimming, worming and feed.

Plans for the weekend include a Playday tomorrow with the 4H kids, seeing Mom on Sunday and working horses. Sometime in there I need to mow, weedeat and continue with demolition and remodel on the sheds, barns and tack/feed trailer.

05/04/2010

DON
I brought Don up from the pasture and groomed him. He is still walking stiffly in his back. His back legs walk as if on a tightrope. I palpated his back with my hands with no pain response, but upon mechanical palpation (folded knife), he had a marked response. I massaged his pressure points and had him do some stretches (belly lift, shoulder, neck, etc.) He was a little confused by several of the stretches, but really seemed to enjoy the massage. I was hoping to keep him good and relaxed so I turned him back out into the pasture. He stuck around for some more belly scratches and soon ambled off. We will repeat the treatment again tonight and see if there is any improvement. I might include some heat therapy to hopefully get some deep muscle response.

JAZZ
Ponied Jazz again tonight and worked up to a 20 minute walk with about 5 minutes of trot mixed in (1 minute each). She still isn't terribly happy about working, but seems to enjoy the attention. I think her attitude will improve when we begin ponying her on the trail.

I am still working on the demolition of some of the old sheds. I am so not the carpenter and pulling every single nail is very tedious work! I keep telling myself that it is good for the soul and important for protecting the horses. I can't wait until the property is completely in our name so I can finally tear down the barn shed. That old eyesore has been patched so many times that I don't think there is any original parts left.

Training 05/01 - 05/03

Saturday, Don came in for training. Don is a gorgeous black and white gelding. He is 5 years old and came to me to be green broke. His owner wants to use him as a trail horse so she wants him as bomb proof as possible. I put Don in the pipe lots when he first came so he would be in a safe environment to meet the other horses. He stayed there for most of the afternoon and settled in quickly. Later that evening, I gave him a quick grooming and moved him to his own paddock. He has some stiffness in his hindend which I think may be from the trailer ride. He spent some time checking it out and started munching his hay.

Sunday morning, after church, I got him out and throughly groomed him. He did not want to lift his hind hooves, but other than that was a perfect gentleman. I then began a short assessment of his training level. I should mention that his owner had started him previously but was unable to complete his training. From the ground, he will do a great hips over, but does not understand the cue for shoulders over. He is gives his nose easily, but is a little stiffer to the left. I then began to lunge him and he showed marked stiffness in his haunches. He was dragging his toes and had difficulty in quick changes of direction. I palpated his hip and loin and found no abnormalities. His hips do seem a bit unlevel, but the way his paint markings are it is difficult to be sure. I put Don up for the night with turnout in his paddock. Is the stiffness still from the trailer ride? I will check him out tomorrow to see if the problem is resolving itself or if it gets worse. Don is a very level-headed horse and eager to please. He loves contact and listens well. I believe that he will be a very easy horse to train and make a great trail horse.

Monday afternoon, I got Don up and throughly groomed him. Still the perfect gentleman except for the back hooves. Now this makes sense due to the stiffness in his hips. I again palpated his back and hips and he still showed no pain response. He was walking stiffly so I hand walked him a bit to see if he would loosen up. He did a bit, so I again worked him lightly from the ground in hand. Flexing, bending, sacking out. He stood like a champ and maintained softness. I began to lightly lunge him on a very long line, and he was reluctant to walk. He wanted to immediatly trot. I would bring him back to a walk, start him off, then in a couple of strides he would trot. I do not know if this is a learned behaviour or if trotting is more comfortable for him. He did seem to move more freely through his hips, but still a little off. We lunged for about five minutes (w/t) and then I wanted to see how he felt about saddling. He could have cared less. He was more interested in playing with the saddle pad and saddle. I lightly cinched him up, walked around, unsaddled him and called it a day. I groomed him again, checked his back/hips, and turned him out into the front pasture (5 acres). I am hoping that maybe increased movement will help aleviate his stiffness. I caught him a little later and he was walking much better. Tomorrow morning, I will turn him out to a larger (10 acre) pasture for the day.

We have begun ponying Jazz to help condition her. She is growing quickly, but has gotten a little soft. Sunday, I ponied her for a short time off of Brandy. Other than trying to bite Brandy and I, she did well. She did not want to trot, but did for a few minutes. She was throughly upset about having to work, but did behave. Wanting to end on a good note, we quit when she was following along on a slack lead. I was proud of Brandy, she took Jazz's bumps and bites with grace. We then moved Brandy and Jazz to a new pasture across the road because we had moved the calves onto their pasture. The clover is exploding in growth and the horses will not eat it but the calves love it.

Monday, ponied Jazz again. She did well, but tried to run out a time or two. We worked for about 15 minutes.