WW: Old Horse, New Tricks

You're just jealous of his sweet new head twist.

(And yes. He's seeing the vet. Again. BAI MONEY NICE KNOWIN YA.)

PS Wanna play pin the diagnosis on the OTTB? Leave your guess in the comments. Winner gets a prize of my choosing.

Stick a Needle In It

I am not a hippy dippy woo woo person. You start talking about vibes and energy and my eyes have crossed if I'm even still in the room. 

I R BITE THE THING

But the vet said acupuncture might really help C and since dumping bushels of money down a rabbit hole is basically the description of me owning a horse as an adult, I figured what the hell.

Full disclosure: many years ago I rode a horse that someone paid for acupuncture on. The horse fell asleep with the needles in, but I noticed zero change in performance. That is my entire history with acupuncture.

that purple padding tho

This is the same vet who did Courage's chiropractic appointment a couple weeks ago. She rechecked him and said that his previous pain hotspots already felt much better and that he just looked better generally since his shoeing changes and injections. Then she asked what I expected out of an acupuncture appointment.

I managed to leave "hippy dippy woo woo" out of my response and said I wanted to try and change muscle memory of pain and help Courage realize he felt better. She came back with two things that were very interesting.

1) Horses in general are very honest about what hurts and doesn't, which is why we can do nerve blocks on them. They don't just sit around thinking about pain.

2) She doesn't really buy in to the "energy" stuff around acupuncture. She said that more and more, they are finding out that the meridians through the body actually follow fascia lines and very little is understood about them. In her mind, the acupuncture is more about stimulating the fascia and the resulting electrical response, which is why it helps the horse.

needles!

Then it was time to stick needles in him! She used points that were correlated with his various pain issues--a couple in his neck, his coronet band, lots in his SI area, and some down through his stifle. She also stuck one in his head. I thought probably there should be a couple more there, but I was trying to pay attention and be non-distracting instead of turning it to the SB show.

When I say "stuck needles in", I do mean she carefully felt for correct points and had a very deliberate process and everything was symmetrical--one in this side means a matching one in that side.

IS LAPTOP COOKEE

Then she let him "cook" for a while while she made notes on what she'd done in his file for future reference.

pokey needles

Courage stood quietly for part of it, then got restless and started moving around, so she carefully pulled the needles out. Per her instructions, he gets the next day off, then back to work. She warned me he might be fine and he might feel REALLY GOOD, so be alert, haha.

The vet mentioned she gave me a slight discount (for reasons?), so I paid the same as a regular chiropractic adjustment, which wasn't horrible.

so wet

And that was kind of that. It wasn't all magical and woo woo and I don't really know what I think of it. I'm excited to see how he comes back in to work and if I notice any changes.

Everything is (Not) Awesome

We have officially reached the NQR step of "wait and see what happens'.

but this pic is awesome

It is not my favorite step.

I do not like it Sam I Am.

There is just so much in play--scary x-rays and shitty joints and muscle memory and oh yes my horse is a super reactive princess. Oh and my own post-rehab status means sometimes I get excited and DO ALL THE THINGS, which ends up being a bad decision from a human pain management perspective.

But hey--managing my own pain levels helps me be more in tune with his. So like. I get that even when you take away the source of the pain with injections and shoeing changes, there's still the muscle memory of the pain. And the pain from compensating for the pain. And the fear that the pain will come back.

And those things all super suck. But someone needs to alternately hold your hand and kick your ass until you get past it and find what works.

he needs a ninja goddess

The irony here is probably that my technically-non-verbal horse is probably more communicative with me than my stoic self was with my own therapist, but let's not overthink that.

Instead, let's think about the delicate balance this is. I have to give Courage the space to react and express himself and let him figure out what hurts and what doesn't.

BUT

That does not mean abdicating my role as trainer in this relationship.

Just because he can react doesn't mean he gets to tune me out.

So that's complicated.

And then there's things like how he looks freaking phenomenal on the lunge line to the left, but kinda fair-to-middlin' to the right. He's definitely starting to trust it more and look better as we move away from the appointment, but it's not great. I rode Saturday and he turned right like a champion TWICE. That's 200% more times than he's done that highly skilled maneuver since like... March?

But as long as we're overthinking things, our Monday ride was the reverse--tension, constant spookiness, ZERO coping skills or ability to turn right. Does that mean he feels better (hence the spooking) or he's trying to change to subject because he hurts (hence the spooking)? Or even. Does it mean he's starting to feel sore in new places because he's using his body differently and the spooking was just the big storm blowing in?

I have no fucking clue.

that makes both of us

Deep breath.

There are several pieces of good news.

The first is that I feel like shit, so he's not working super hard. We do a couple exercises and call it a day. That works out to letting him get comfortable in his own skin and figure out where he's at.

The second is that he's seeing the acupuncture vet this afternoon. She's great and should be able to give me more feedback about what direction we're headed.

The third is that there is no timeline. By all accounts, injections take a while to hit maximum effectiveness. It's not as if there's a magic pill that will reverse the damage that's done and management will take time to sort out no matter what. If this round doesn't do enough, there are plenty more options to explore.

And we have time.

impressionist art by iphone

Reactions

Courage wraps up his post-injection stall rest this evening when I'm cleared to pull him out and lunge him. I've been hand grazing him every day and he's been a champion patient.

But you know.

Will he be ok? What is ok going to look like for us? Should I stress buy a brown dressage saddle?

Obviously, the #1 thing I'm concerned about is Courage's comfort level. Objectively, I know that we have just taken the first steps in terms of management. I know there are a ton of options left on the table. I know I have a fabulous team in our corner. I know that we weren't planning on showing this year anyways. I know that I'll make responsible choices for Courage.

But I wouldn't be an ammy owner if I didn't have a few he's-crippled-for-life-omg-im-the-worst-owner-ever meltdowns a day, you know?

So those have happened.

jumper show!

I also keep thinking about jumping. Which. Obviously. He will never do again. Part of me knows that we took jumping off the table a long time ago and bitching about that now is just weird. And part of me is glad to finally know why the horse always hated grids (pound those ankles, baby) and jumps (landing sucks) and why I could never get him to use his body correctly (hard pass. don't blame him).

But part of me is profoundly sad that it's gone. Because that is something I miss.

There's also the questions--when I tell people what happened, the first thing they say is almost always "so what will you do if you can never ride him again?"

Which is clearly melodramatic, because I rode him before and I'll ride him again and it's not the end of the world, though it definitely might modify our goals somewhat.

But you know. Just hit that nerve with a hammer, why don't you.

ass. poopy ass, no less.

Though perhaps equally bad is the "well many horses with much uglier legs do much harder things", which again, is true.

But like.

If Courage was one of those horses, we wouldn't be standing here right now. WHERE WE ARE CLEARLY STANDING.

or sitting. ymmv.

As the vet said about the structural stuff going on with Courage, "it's not a problem til it's a problem and then it's a problem".

So it's a problem.

And we're dealing with it.

And bay horses look kind of washed out in brown tack.

But if the right brown dressage saddle came along, it would look fabulous with my new bridle.

I mean. It's not like I need a jump saddle any more.

NQR, Responsibility, and Budgets: An Honest Look

You may have noticed that actual Courage-related content on the blog is sort of disjointed and infrequent.

bridle game strong

That is intentional.

Homeboy is developing well and his muscling looks great and he's getting pretty solid on the ground and blah blah blah. Lunging makes me want to gouge my eyes out with a rusty spoon.

But something isn't right.

He'd get bodywork and then a week or two later, be just as bad as he was before. Under saddle, he'd walk for about 10-15 minutes and then it was just tension, Tension, TENSION AND SIDEWAYS INTO THE WALL. Didn't matter if I rode or my trainer rode. Didn't matter if we adjusted a number of variables. He wasn't "naughty" per se, but he'd get more and more and more upset.

Which is weird.

A+ there captain obvious

But hey. I get anxiety and pain and wanting to murder everyone in the room or running out the door and never coming back. I really do.

And all those things scream I'M NOT OK. Language transcends species.

And thus we begin down the NQR rabbit hole.

Step One:

Routine teeth + sheath with our regular vet and talk over options.
Cost: $150 (but also it's just routine maintenance so whatevs)

I know all the manuals say you should have a relationship with your vet, which is a scary idea if you're broke ass and avoid seeing them. But. Our vet is fantastic and was more than willing to answer questions and educate.

Step Two: 

Chiropractic appointment with acupuncture vet
Cost: $80

This step isn't required, but I wanted another set of eyes on Courage. I'm still so so on acupuncture, but the most valuable thing that came out of this for me was thoughts on where to look for issues. She said front feet and hocks lit up with pain markers.

Step Three:

X-rays and Hock Injections with regular vet
Cost: $290

Initially, I was all "must change one variable at a time like good scientist". But like. If there's pain in one part of the body, the other parts are compensating for it. I decided to do the 1-2 punch and go for it. My vet is consulting with our farrier. Vet also recommended adding in a vitamin E supplement for muscle recovery and Cosequin for joint support. (We can have a separate post for me kvetching about how much I hate feed throughs, but vet said try it, so damnit we will use it.)

Step Four:

Regularly Scheduled Farrier Appointment, now with X-rays
Cost: $80 (standard maintenance)

Once we knew what was going on inside Courage's feet and front legs, we were able to make some informed choices to change his shoeing. This is the great thing about having a solid team in place--the farrier listened to the vet recommendations, looked at the X-rays, and made the changes. He also brings a wealth of experience and presented me with some more options. Basically, we can try this, but if it doesn't work/is not enough, there are other things on the table without getting too expensive or crazy.

Step Five

See what happens.
Cost: free

The nice thing with this process so far is it's not like "OMG LEG HANGING OFF AT FUNNY ANGLE MUST FIX NAOW". We do something, see if it made a difference, and then try something else. Everyone I've worked with has been very upfront about costs and willing to work with me. I'm building my own knowledge base and learning to make educated guesses about my horse.

At the end of the day, I know my horse. I even like him. I know that the way he's acting isn't right for him and I want to know what's up. I get money problems (omg trust me on that), but with the ability to space things out and know prices in advance, I can plan for costs and mitigate them.

I don't know where that leaves us--round one of injections, X-rays, and shoeing is done. Let's see what happens.

Insert Frustrated Sounds Here

 I sort of think I could just drop this meme here and it would cover all my feelings about the past few weeks.

Two weeks ago, we couldn't work because Courage's toes were long and he was kinda on and off.

One week ago, he decided that stretchy trot was too hard and we couldn't work because we couldn't brain.

Oh and then last week, he wrapped up his bell boot-destroying-rampage by NEARLY SEVERING HIS LEG getting a probably-self-inflicted tiny cut and being COMPLETELY CRIPPLED.

Yeah no strikethrough on that one because it's actually true.

pre-treatment

It's a long ways from his heart. It's not serious or scary or even really anything. If he was anything other than a giant princess thoroughbred, it wouldn't be swollen and he wouldn't notice it.

post-treatment

But noooooooo he is most definitely a princess and so I am (not actually a joke) tack walking, cold hosing, and buting him for a TINY CUT that BARELY broke the skin.

and repeat

You might say I'm massively overreacting and I 110% agree with you. IT'S A TINY CUT.

But. I discovered it Thursday morning when homeboy could barely touch his foot to the ground to hobble around because OMG CRIPPLED.

this is what crippled looks like

Gave him two days off with bute+cold hosing and he was still off at the trot. Did a couple more days tack walking but no bute or hosing and yeah, you guessed it, he blew the leg back up like a balloon.

also he wants a glove balloon

So yeah. I'd scheduled some lessons for this week and was hoping we could finally start moving forward again.

 which of you bitches ruined my plan by telling him?

Try and Fail: Follow Up

Because my addictive personality requires that I obsess over everything and because I realize I a little bit sounded like a princess in my post about Courage and I having troubles, I thought I would clarify a few points here. 

this is good

1) I have a plan. In consultation with an actual vet, Courage is getting his teeth done hopefully this week.

In fact, before consulting said actual vet, I consulted Dr. Google, DVM (through COTH, source of all knowledge), and ran across this factoid:

Teeth problems would (maybe) explain a lot of things. Fingers crossed on this one for sure.

1b) I have taken other advice under consideration--we're ruling out teeth first. Might be behavioral and we can address that as well. Might also be something much worse and scarier, but we'll cross that bridge when/if we get there. My money is on teeth.

2) The showing thing.

clearly not showing

I made a comment that there were no recognized shows for me if this doesn't resolve something like instantly.

That comment was made for a very specific reason.

There are two (count 'em) recognized shows in my area. One is in May, entries due ASAP and the other in in June, entries due shortly. So while I have no doubt we'll have this whole thing sorted out this summer sometime, there exists a very real possibility that it won't be sorted in time to make either show worthwhile for me. Plus, May show will be a very large chunk of change for me and I simply can't justify it if Courage is a wild card.

Which he is. More than normal. Right now.

3) We all know it's not proper obsessing unless it necessitates a tack change.

hm

So we're trying that too. I can't make the dentist happen any faster than the current rate (glacially slow, if you're wondering), but I can try new toys.

How are y'all feeling about the drop?

Teach Me Tuesday: Joint Injections

Here's a fun topic! How, when, and why do you choose (or not choose) to inject your sporthorse?

I used to get Cuna (late teens, hard-used OTTB gelding with a weak hind end) injected every 6 months and it did WONDERS for him. Seriously. He went from basically unable to use his back end to swinging and free and happy. Once I put it off a couple months because he needed $$$ joint help, but I felt like a pretty terrible human when we finally did make it in and his hocks were inflamed and uncomfortable.

I know Courage got plenty of injectable help on the track and I'm in no way opposed to that. It just means that I now own an 11 year old high mileage thoroughbred and especially in the cold winter weather, I'm starting to wonder if he'd benefit from some inter-articular relief.

So help me out. What sways you for for against injecting a horse's joint at any given time? Have you done it? Would you do it again?

Teach Me Tuesday: Oinment

The best at green wraps

Here we go with this week's round of Teach Me Tuesday! As per the usual, I pick a topic that I cannot seem to wrap my mind around and do not understand.

This week I'm curious about ointment. It seems pretty universal--a horse gets a cut and the owner is immediately all "LET'S PUT SOME GOOPY SHIT ON IT!!!"

Why?

I don't put ointment on myself when I get a cut. Hell, I don't even usually use a bandaid. I realize I'm a bit of a minimalist in the personal care department though. I understand stitches for bad cuts and I'm all about wrapping when something needs to be covered up. I even get using some SWAT (or similar) to keep bugs away from cuts in fly season.

Put a bridle on it. That's my motto.

I just don't understand what the attraction is to trying to improve the built-in healing function of a horse. Are we somehow improving that? What is the idea here? I really have no idea.

So why when a horse gets a cut do owners want to put stuff on it?

Don't forget to enter my sweet contest for personalized bling for your horse!!

Never a Dull Moment

Dental day started out kind of fun--I chatted with the vet about the sedatives he was using and then was duly impressed by what a lightweight my little man is. Seriously. He pretty much just sniffed them and was under. His girlfriend took twice the dose he did and she was still quasi awake.

Once his teeth were done, I literally left Courage standing in the stall with the front and back doors open because he was so put of it that I knew he couldn't go anywhere. I mean, his head was about 2" off the ground and he was snoring. Loudly.

I paid the vet, chatted with friends for a bit, then closed the stall doors and rode another horse at the barn while Courage recovered enough to go to his own stall. By the time I got off the other horse, he was sort of clumsily wandering around the stall so I pulled him out. He was all dopy and cuddly. I stuck him in the cross ties and hosed him off to clean up the dust he accumulated in the dry weather.

He didn't like the cold water, but it was 70f and sunny, so I scraped him off and stuck him in his run to dry in the sun while I picked up my stuff.

But he started shivering. His hind end was shaking uncontrollably and his front end was twitching. His skin was ice cold to the touch. I put his halter on and hand walked him in the sunbeam, but he back end was super stiff and he was still shaking.

If that wasn't weird enough, then his nose started bleeding.

Yikes. I put in a call to the vet, let the BO know that he was having some trouble, put a fleece on him, and hand grazed him in the sun for a while. (Noted: at this point, he was awake, just really, really cold.)

Poor little man. :-( It took a crazy long time, but he warmed up slowly wearing both fleece and standing in the sun. The vet got back with me and said that as long as he perked up, it would be ok. By the time I left, Courage was muching his hay, though now wearing his 220gram medium winter blanket in the nearly 60f weather.

He seems fine now. My BO checked on him overnight and I'll be out this morning. I've been around plenty of sedated horses before, but I'd never seen a reaction quite like that.