tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65955847007541597032024-02-06T23:29:21.560-05:00From Wingman to Witching HourFrizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.comBlogger128125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-86123091692385116522013-08-11T02:34:00.004-05:002013-08-11T02:37:59.094-05:00Fly-By for Topline!Hey! Salem & I are still alive and well, just ridiculously busy (well, <i>I'm </i>busy; Salem spends his days eating and strolling and converting oxygen to carbon dioxide).<br />
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So.stressed.</div>
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I just wanted to do a quick post for those of you who don't read We Are Flying Solo (which I'm sure is none of you!) and therefore didn't see her review post of my new side business, Topline Leather. My<a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/ToplineLeather?ref=search_shop_redirect"> Etsy shop</a> is officially open, the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Topline-Leather/567118319965397">Facebook page</a> is picking up steam, and I've got a HUGE contest coming up soon!<br />
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Sparkles!</div>
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Contest details will be posted on the Facebook page in the next few days, and you will definitely<i> not</i> want to miss this one, so "like" Topline and stay tuned!<br />
<br />Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-12214943138341614792013-04-30T01:34:00.000-05:002013-04-30T01:37:11.932-05:00The Cougars/Velociraptors/Chupacabras Are Back<br />
:-/<br />
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I honestly don't know what is going on with my horse. It's 2:15 am and I just got back from the barn. Again, I arrived at the barn to find that Salem hadn't eaten his grain. But this time, he was pacing his paddock and looking worried, just like the freak-out episode that he had back in September.<br />
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A few weeks ago, when he had the infection, things were totally different. Thankfully, that was just a minor infection that he bounced back from in a few days. And I am thankful that my BO has actually taken my concerns about the rats seriously and things are greatly improved. I haven't seen a rat in weeks. So I don't think this episode has any similarities/causes as that incidence. That time, my guess is that he had some sort of infection/bug that was caused by the rat poop in his grain bin.<br />
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But this time, it has all the hallmarks of his mystery freak-out in September. I have no idea what caused it that time and I have as little clue as to what caused this one either. It's something in the nursery/grove nextdoor, as far as I can tell. But our last farm was also bordered by a nursery/grove and he was totally fine there. I've thought about moving him, but I have no idea where we would go.<br />
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If Salem isn't better by tomorrow, I'll be calling Dr. F again and having him give Salem another shot of reserpine. I hate to drug him, but I have to do what I can in order to make my horse comfortable.<br />
<br />Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-13059316962054303082013-04-28T18:56:00.002-05:002013-04-29T00:24:22.909-05:00Sneak Peek<br />
Last month, I posted one (fairly terrible) picture to preview the side-project I've been working on. Last week, I was lucky enough to snap some nicer pics on a much better, more willing model (no offense to my beloved Saley-boo, but he doesn't exactly work the camera like the horsey equivalent of Cindy Crawford!). Here are a few to give you a taste:<br />
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<br />Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-75932194706247230712013-04-22T01:27:00.001-05:002013-04-22T01:48:12.151-05:00Warning: Don't Try This @ Home!<br />
Lately, I have been having many wildlife encounters. Just a few weeks ago, I was crouched on my screened-in porch wearing my giant blue leather "falconry" gloves, clutching a phone in one ear, holding an economy-sized Splenda box in the other, staring intently at a tiny little bird that my cat had had in her mouth for about 6 seconds, and whispering to my friend, "Should I poke it? Do you think it's okay? Do you think it needs to go to a wildlife sanctuary? Do I put it in the box? Will it try to peck my eyes out? Should I throw some bird seed at it?"<br />
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And then earlier tonight, I found this guy on the ledge of Salem's stall window:<br />
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Eeeeeek!</div>
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Is it terrible that I think he would make a super-cute purse?</div>
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Now, I was about 97% sure that it was just a harmless cornsnake. But I knew that Salem would probably wig out whether it was a 12-foot water moccasin or a baby garden snake. So of course, I did what any <strike>mostly-sane</strike> semi-sane horse owner would do: I boldly charged into the stall wielding a riding crop and the protective fury of a mama cougar defending her young.</div>
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Oh, yes I <i>did</i> just yell "Git!" to a snake. At that point, he looked like he was going to slither into the section between the boards (the stable has double walls and he was going in between them), so I had to keep poking him with the crop and hoping he would vamoose.</div>
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Victory! </div>
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I swear, these horses have NO idea the lengths we dedicated horse owners go to in order to ensure their health, safety, comfort, peace of mind, etc.--NO.IDEA.</div>
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*Lecture about why you should not poke wildlife with riding crops coming from eventer79 in 5...4...3...2...1... (Lol, sorry--couldn't resist ;-D)</div>
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Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-20110958909853401092013-04-06T02:12:00.002-05:002013-04-06T15:46:30.952-05:00My TB Is Morphing into An Appy!<br />
Well. Not quite. But Salem <em>is </em>developing some chrome/bling besides his star.<br />
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Yes, it is possible, I promise; and I'm not just talking about some little white hairs from a scratch or other injury. Nope--I'm talking about Birdcatcher spots.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTCHQrZ2Qjr5giYNWT1HNzT7zZje5y_2BLhEWDmkSDkKJaOrmGoisfyeseiffITCxdkTnSzFmqSy5hOkf2sSM8yeFz5G5O0Ht7OE1zX0g6GnvebhX1bFSa15Xcsz1xaD257fjXbYH2HU4/s1600/Birdcatcher.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTCHQrZ2Qjr5giYNWT1HNzT7zZje5y_2BLhEWDmkSDkKJaOrmGoisfyeseiffITCxdkTnSzFmqSy5hOkf2sSM8yeFz5G5O0Ht7OE1zX0g6GnvebhX1bFSa15Xcsz1xaD257fjXbYH2HU4/s400/Birdcatcher.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Willspynow, a 1991 Thoroughbred mare</div>
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The above pic is an extreme example of Birdcatcher spots; most that I've seen are much more subtle. So, what exactly are these little white flecks? According to <a href="http://www.whitehorseproductions.com/tbcolor3.html">http://www.whitehorseproductions.com/tbcolor3.html</a>, there is a group of markings (Chubari spots, Bend Or spots, Manchado, and Birdcatcher spots) and "these odd patterns of dark and light spots do occur in other breeds, but they
seem to be particularly prolific in the Thoroughbred, which is, of course, why
most of them are named after TBs. The genes responsible for these spots have not
yet been identified, so not a great deal is known about them. They are, however,
entirely separate from the genes responsible for Appaloosa coloration<strong>." Birdcatcher spots</strong>, named for the Irish-born Thoroughbred stallion Birdcatcher (1833), are "patterns of small white spots on a dark coat. Usually, these spots appear once
a horse has reached maturity and eventually disappear. Sometimes, however, they
do seem to be permanent." These are NOT white hairs that develop due to a cut/scrape/injury.<br />
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I've seen these same markings on a Quarter Horse and a warmblood, although not until I moved to Florida (I wonder if sunlight has anything to do with it?). And I think they're simply adorable. :-)<br />
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Salem only has a few so far. But I'm kinda hoping he'll develop more. It would be WAY cool if he was as speckled as Willspynow, but of course the odds of that happening are slim to none. Still, the six little flecks that he has are quite cute--kind of like reverse freckles.<br />
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Left Eye:</div>
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Left Side of Neck:</div>
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Left Haunch:</div>
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Right Side of Neck:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE0V8XD0cIzwuEmjEWW7e9MjUXs-GvYwOUmk2fOoAdcCxn6zxpzylyog2VgcD-0mHLlmu_x-HjHys2wqzPapt2zyqlkCwFEY_n1MCjRGXVeGkdKqMHcgRpJZRK9lZQp_fV8gF4nV1lREo/s1600/photo+%25289%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhE0V8XD0cIzwuEmjEWW7e9MjUXs-GvYwOUmk2fOoAdcCxn6zxpzylyog2VgcD-0mHLlmu_x-HjHys2wqzPapt2zyqlkCwFEY_n1MCjRGXVeGkdKqMHcgRpJZRK9lZQp_fV8gF4nV1lREo/s640/photo+%25289%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Close-up of RSoN spot #1:</div>
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Close-up of RSoN spot #2:</div>
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Right Haunch:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi49l48hJSlG7HXemV6Qjtf4AxHGqHJE9_egMJPZ62i_ih1SzLdKdrUmZYbOpMPWIislf6LUKgA6kzVyZSnej6YaJsnXyJzo5gaKoiSsClW2mQGsbdK5oSG5cO5bHCyr956ZDUpodhS7as/s1600/photo+%25286%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi49l48hJSlG7HXemV6Qjtf4AxHGqHJE9_egMJPZ62i_ih1SzLdKdrUmZYbOpMPWIislf6LUKgA6kzVyZSnej6YaJsnXyJzo5gaKoiSsClW2mQGsbdK5oSG5cO5bHCyr956ZDUpodhS7as/s640/photo+%25286%2529.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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This one looks near-invisible here, but it's much more clear in person</div>
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Anyone else have a horse with Birdcactcher spots or other unusual markings?</div>
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Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-78450379531954665372013-03-20T01:32:00.001-05:002013-03-20T01:34:38.354-05:00Back to (Quasi-) Normal<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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Since Salem has been back to his usual goofball self since last Friday, I decided it was high time to let him go back to his daily pasture romps with his BFF Cloud. These two are hilarious--Cloud is somewhere between 25 and 30, but he's still pretty feisty and full of spit and vinegar, and he and Salem get along like ebony and ivory. They have a weird May-December sado-masochistic semi-homo-erotic relationship, but it works for them. :-)</div>
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They wander all over the pasture, alternating grazing with a little bit of playing/running/bucking/biting. I've never seen Salem like any horse as much as he likes Cloud. Granted, he does also really like<i> biting</i> him, but the good thing is that Cloud seems to like it. :-) Like I said, they're a little bit sado-masochistic and Salem is definitely the alpha, but they're a very good match.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_3V75xWxQRRdgfwHlX5oqoVt6_a9WmNFgM4YbOTMss7o33lw37u4D4fjJiIBPTzX1GV5BGd5pFJljdamlCZVdgCLra8IeXSPp7FkC3f4B45AXf-qnx5InAuz3prWx1Z33HmR2DX8GVd0/s1600/photo+(2).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_3V75xWxQRRdgfwHlX5oqoVt6_a9WmNFgM4YbOTMss7o33lw37u4D4fjJiIBPTzX1GV5BGd5pFJljdamlCZVdgCLra8IeXSPp7FkC3f4B45AXf-qnx5InAuz3prWx1Z33HmR2DX8GVd0/s640/photo+(2).JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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I also did a really quick impromptu photo shoot with Salem for a little side project that I've been working on lately. Unfortunately, Salem is no model. No matter how many times I told him to "Smize" a la Tyra Banks, most of my pics ended up like this:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYU8Hm5ZRbNhzoMtrpHqrJ4Xj17zQ5huBHyGbuYsV8xQHxoLMc355mRLSSjnAb9EqVIjogliN9rX1_nr-Z3deYwLtluFUBjfivV_wsKVoymJGv4OJ2yCSyuX8D4rQ-9_baE5NGX6tlOCM/s1600/photo+%25281%2529.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYU8Hm5ZRbNhzoMtrpHqrJ4Xj17zQ5huBHyGbuYsV8xQHxoLMc355mRLSSjnAb9EqVIjogliN9rX1_nr-Z3deYwLtluFUBjfivV_wsKVoymJGv4OJ2yCSyuX8D4rQ-9_baE5NGX6tlOCM/s400/photo+%25281%2529.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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Yeah. Not exactly great. Luckily, this was just a little unofficial thing, so hopefully next time will be better! Oh, well. My horse is healthy and happy and I am thanking my lucky stars for that!</div>
Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-32088205159066968732013-03-18T02:11:00.003-05:002013-03-18T02:18:29.434-05:00Out of The Woods<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-nSokH2JD8UN-Jg64zcR0k8WmRe9emovNdbhqGCbCaqsSs2N0gR7cmqt0O-XefQjQDHHxYUHf-XIIWhfeKsmBd1nXzTgRSqhcjF03r0qam8g4pY8D0eIbVQHWUnQ3ZtnvpA-LuUvBpw8/s1600/Salem17.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-nSokH2JD8UN-Jg64zcR0k8WmRe9emovNdbhqGCbCaqsSs2N0gR7cmqt0O-XefQjQDHHxYUHf-XIIWhfeKsmBd1nXzTgRSqhcjF03r0qam8g4pY8D0eIbVQHWUnQ3ZtnvpA-LuUvBpw8/s640/Salem17.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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So thankful that this boy is still just fine</div>
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*knocks on wood* Well, I don't have any exciting updates yet, but fortunately I have a good update after we had a minor scare last week. </div>
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Wednesday evening, I got to the barn and Salem was out in the pasture with his BFF Cloud. As I walked past his stall, I noticed that his evening grain was still in his feed bin, but I figured he had just been fed and then turned out before he could finish. I shot a text to the caretaker. She answered, "I gave them an hour after feeding before I put them in the pasture." Uh-oh. When it comes to grain, Salem is pretty much the Tasmanian Devil and tears through his food with much gusto. Something was definitely not right. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgie0V-q4P1DdtCjdODvYW7JziPRgBMhyphenhyphenUz74xSAzqu5DzaZu-LwjROba9fiJAgEOZ0vEftVlKhue7tNXbtc9Ne0J_Di3RwLMOW6OnD77yBQBKGCgrYL1fKgn4Qj_CPqhirWlmtFUgtTuM/s1600/Salem12.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgie0V-q4P1DdtCjdODvYW7JziPRgBMhyphenhyphenUz74xSAzqu5DzaZu-LwjROba9fiJAgEOZ0vEftVlKhue7tNXbtc9Ne0J_Di3RwLMOW6OnD77yBQBKGCgrYL1fKgn4Qj_CPqhirWlmtFUgtTuM/s400/Salem12.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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In the pasture, he seemed okay but not great--he was a little lethargic and he wouldn't eat his apple that he usually gobbles greedily. Red flag #2, so I took him in and looked him over. His gums looked good, gut sounds were strong, and his temp was normal (after I had a total blonde moment and thought the thermometer was reading 110.5, which I thankfully reasoned was just my thermometer malfunctioning and started ranting about what a cheap POS it was until I realized it was actually reading 101.5). So, I took a peek in his paddock and there were only three piles of manure out there instead of his usual 10-ish. Red flag #3.</div>
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I was about to call the vet, but after our last false alarm I decided to wait it out a bit and see what we had. I knew immediately that it wasn't a mystery freak-out like last time because Salem was perfectly calm and he had obviously not been pacing. A closer inspection of his grain revealed rat poop, which made me livid, as I have been complaining up and down about the rat problem and the BO is not solving it. Of course, I started worrying about lepto. And EHV-1 (I've been up to Wellington recently and there were confirmed cases there). The caretaker also told me that Salem had barely drank all day, and he's usually a pretty healthy drinker. On the outside I was calm but internally I was a typhoon.</div>
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Since Salem didn't seem to be in any distress, I decided to just give him some banamine and take him out for some hand-grazing and see how he did.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDJCGRRg5Q7lbkwfCjJfJ13f7Z7WSnJHHsSoGX_FEw2xLnD5VD9nc7C8l46tAaGA7jOkRldZ-MS17-OfQ06b6kjitNDLU1Oa9ZR2CDKoT4CbRvvDQuqOlLDrBSUgd43OaeNNBB25JBS34/s1600/Salem21.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDJCGRRg5Q7lbkwfCjJfJ13f7Z7WSnJHHsSoGX_FEw2xLnD5VD9nc7C8l46tAaGA7jOkRldZ-MS17-OfQ06b6kjitNDLU1Oa9ZR2CDKoT4CbRvvDQuqOlLDrBSUgd43OaeNNBB25JBS34/s400/Salem21.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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*Munch* </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigt-iBLE4XkhnCDq9-c0YVfqXIF6stc7eOBA0FnouZP1xSQB3WMsHww0O0iLPFkKLDdSFpzri-3y8D5JRZGxvaZVKDmnOxavC1wuWwsCS-1lTLmZLXa8LhvmZrPu19WggNIzJDWiLDPiQ/s1600/Salem19.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigt-iBLE4XkhnCDq9-c0YVfqXIF6stc7eOBA0FnouZP1xSQB3WMsHww0O0iLPFkKLDdSFpzri-3y8D5JRZGxvaZVKDmnOxavC1wuWwsCS-1lTLmZLXa8LhvmZrPu19WggNIzJDWiLDPiQ/s400/Salem19.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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I love how these little green seed things get stuck on his muzzle. :-)</div>
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After several hours of steady grazing, no distress, and one normal-looking manure pile, I decided that Salem didn't need an emergency vet visit. I stayed until 2 am to make sure he was okay, and when I left him he was eating his nightly mash.</div>
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His goofy personality was still perfectly intact, lol.</div>
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(And, yes, he was wearing a turnout sheet and fly boots/mask, something he has been doing on</div>
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and off since October--we've had WAY more cold weather than usual, but</div>
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unfortunately the flies have never abated. Yuck!)</div>
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Late the next morning, I got a text that Salem hadn't finished his mash from the night before, and he had taken a really long time to eat his breakfast. I decided to swing by my vet's office to pick up more banamine, see if Salem could be squeezed into the schedule, and pre-pay a bit so I could stay ahead (we all know vet bills are never cheap, although thankfully mine is quite reasonable).</div>
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Thank goodness for my vet--soon after I got to the barn, I noticed that Salem hadn't touched his afternoon grain, and I was just getting worried when he called and said he was coming right over (I LOVE that he lives 5 minutes from Salem's farm!). Dr. F looked Salem over and said his TPR were normal, he had excellent gut sounds, there was nothing going in his mouth, and basically he looked really good. He said that he's seen quite a few colics lately from the weird weather, but Salem didn't appear to be colicky at all, so he gave me a week's worth of GastroGard to see if that would help anything. He said he could pull blood but didn't expect it to show anything; I decided to have him pull it just in case.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJUAN6Psl619Bk3bOwrBUcvUsL4GESrOOSotIhXop0TxnD8vqHrfy7fV4l0TSwS19svDg53w0AUgshxpC82CNo8v87nkROOQ4GbFki3U12ZDrFKr_S24IY5ExVjlbL90w9KabOcLjbhQo/s1600/Salem29.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJUAN6Psl619Bk3bOwrBUcvUsL4GESrOOSotIhXop0TxnD8vqHrfy7fV4l0TSwS19svDg53w0AUgshxpC82CNo8v87nkROOQ4GbFki3U12ZDrFKr_S24IY5ExVjlbL90w9KabOcLjbhQo/s400/Salem29.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Goodbye, Money</div>
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On Friday morning, Dr. F called and told me that, surprisingly, Salem's white blood cell count was a bit low. He said Salem most likely had some sort of infection (viral, probably), but since he didn't have a fever it was most likely minor and "we [could] just coast on this one." Thank goodness! :-) He said I should keep a close eye on Salem, have him take it easy (which is not to worry, as that is pretty much what he *always* does), and let him know if Salem wasn't getting better. </div>
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That evening, I was quite pleased to see that Salem's feed bin was empty and he had nine piles of manure in his paddock. I wanted to make sure he was okay, so I dumped another quart of grain in his bin to see what he would do. And thankfully:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIyjrUVIQMDu_YP9OJ9osPUbgUkCe6gt1WeNbE0CJ6SVtO5kvICaXZiW6t2xGGno0AIV7LZzhdi1AfmXuKlWlWaHQgo1-WTBr9hrb3Gy5azNBEm5F_pk6DUWYG3a25fFl8IiSJG1Vpa9M/s1600/Salem11.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIyjrUVIQMDu_YP9OJ9osPUbgUkCe6gt1WeNbE0CJ6SVtO5kvICaXZiW6t2xGGno0AIV7LZzhdi1AfmXuKlWlWaHQgo1-WTBr9hrb3Gy5azNBEm5F_pk6DUWYG3a25fFl8IiSJG1Vpa9M/s640/Salem11.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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*Nomnomnomsnarfnomnomsnarf*</div>
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I've never been so happy to see him being such a pig! He looks like he might have dropped a pound or two, but luckily he has plenty to spare. And *fingers crossed* he has been back to his usual self all weekend.</div>
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So, I think it's safe to say that my boy is just fine. Although he gave me a little bit of a scare, in the grand scheme of things it's pretty inconsequential. After watching my last horse drop dead from colic, I'm understandably a bit on edge every time there seems to be something a little off with Salem, but he's luckily still healthy as a horse.</div>
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Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-90746729214866732512013-02-16T20:38:00.000-05:002013-02-16T20:39:17.356-05:00Helmets Required for Dressage Riders<br />
<a href="http://www.dressage-news.com/?p=19719">http://www.dressage-news.com/?p=19719</a><br />
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From the article: <br />
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<strong>Helmets only will be the rule for ALL United States Equestrian Federation events, including for senior riders in Grand Prix and small tour events, effective April 1 this year, though senior riders in International Equestrian Federation (FEI) CDIs will still be allowed to wear top hats.</strong><br />
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This is great news and a real step forward for the sport. It's terrible that it took such a tragic accident as Courtney King Dye's to change the rules, but at least something positive came out of it.<br />
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(Sidenote: Yes, Salem and I are still alive. Just don't really have anything terribly exciting to report (yet!))Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-14535402606107404092012-11-12T01:55:00.000-05:002012-11-12T03:42:01.882-05:00A Murderer Walks Amongst Us<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Nope, it wasn't Salem. And it wasn't Professor Plum in the conservatory with the dagger, either. It was Oliver in Salem's stall with his cougar fangs and/or bear claws.<br />
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Now, I don't think I've ever officially introduced Oliver. He's been lurking in the background of many of my videos/pics, so you've probably seen him already. Oliver is a scrappy little terrier mix that I picked up off the street as a tiny puppy, about two weeks before Salem came down here from Chicago. A lot of people think he has rat terrier in him, maybe some Chihuahua, and goodness knows what else--I call him a Redland Terrier because I found him in the Redlands. ;-) I'm not a little dog person, but I guess the universe is trying to teach me a lesson. Because, really, how could you not fall in love with this guy?<br />
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His victim? One Ben Templeton (that is what all rats are named, in my mind). Time of death was around 10:45 pm. I was just finishing up grooming Salem when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a small animal moving right underneath Saley-boo. I assumed it was a frog, but a half second later I realized it was a rat and started screaming bloody murder. Salem hit the roof, I started doing the "Omg, it's gonna run up my leg!" hippity-hop dance whilst continuing my blood-curdling scream, and Oliver jumped up like a rocket and chased the rat into Salem's stall. About two seconds later, I heard a squeal and assumed Oliver had chased it off, so I peered around the stall door.<br />
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This rat has ceased to be</div>
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Luckily, it didn't take Salem long to settle down after all the commotion/murder. Of course, <em>he </em>didn't have to deal with cleaning up the crime scene. Lucky bastard. :-) </div>
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"Sorry, can't help ya, Mom. Don't have opposable thumbs."</div>
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"I killed it. You clean it up."<br />
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Now, I'm a pretty tough girl--I've jumped out of an airplane twice, gone cliff-diving in Jamaica with some people I kind of thought might kill me, and done a million other ridiculously dangerous/stupid things without batting an eyelash. However, when it comes to doing things like cleaning up potentially disease-carrying corpses, I am a total pussy. I did manage to suck it up and unceremoniously scoop the rat and all surrounding shavings into a wheelbarrow, and that's as far as I got. Mr. Templeton is still in the wheelbarrow and he will remain there until someone else deals with his cold little corpse.
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I thought Salem might smell rat corpse fumes (?) once he got back to his stall and wig out again, but fortunately he was totally chill.</div>
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He still always yawns like crazy before I let him eat his late-night snack. It's now just his routine.</div>
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Oliver, however, had to give the stall a once-over to make sure that Salem was safe and sound before we left.</div>
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I will, of course, call my vet's office tomorrow, but does anyone know if Oliver will need any sort of preventative treatments since he just had his mouth around a dirty rat? He's just about due for his shots, but I'm wondering if he could get leptosperosis or something. ??? Fingers crossed that he will be okay.</div>
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Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-42688455152521566282012-10-20T00:30:00.000-05:002013-03-18T03:09:21.094-05:00Micklem!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
For the longest time, I have read rave reviews of the Micklem Multibridle and Micklem Competition Bridle--people say their horses are softer, less fussy, more accepting of contact, and so on and so forth. They're both very reasonably priced, but for someone (like yours truly) who barely has two dimes to rub together, they're completely out of budget. So, when I found a brand-spankin' new black oversize Competition Bridle on ebay for a steal, I jumped at it.</div>
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Salem seems less than thrilled with it :-/</div>
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Shown here with my Stubben copper oval-mouth boucher bit</div>
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I don't think it's particularly flattering on Salem's face, but</div>
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I'm not worried about that--if it makes him softer and happier, it could be </div>
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(semi)hideous and I wouldn't care</div>
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Of course, Salem is more interested in his grain bin</div>
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I also tried it on him with a Korsteel plastic mullen eggbutt bit</div>
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I'm not sure which one he prefers, but with both bits there was lots of this:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvhdiXdcgxZp42qHVfdzkNjq0PWRe7vtQPDq5EDLHr-KV4B8-Y2zehlDCxH1Lm0p3MR51Wpl-ON2eRKRvDAl5dOkf2XfuqoRwBirj9ItjiPB-NR6x1psonVkpNrsLCOEBMrGuakGsA5ZU/s1600/Salem722.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvhdiXdcgxZp42qHVfdzkNjq0PWRe7vtQPDq5EDLHr-KV4B8-Y2zehlDCxH1Lm0p3MR51Wpl-ON2eRKRvDAl5dOkf2XfuqoRwBirj9ItjiPB-NR6x1psonVkpNrsLCOEBMrGuakGsA5ZU/s640/Salem722.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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And this:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKT1PVYjCc0QrWBhLv18TCFWpp63x999rpeHAsCU9Q4XbIUtXN3Wv5ZxXtejZqUIZJWUfeyic2V6LFNc3dqgl-7LIB0kcIof8vpgWYvKcvLe8ZhqxFr1wLpChRFUiMWFGMZ1dJX_wHqZw/s1600/Salem718.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKT1PVYjCc0QrWBhLv18TCFWpp63x999rpeHAsCU9Q4XbIUtXN3Wv5ZxXtejZqUIZJWUfeyic2V6LFNc3dqgl-7LIB0kcIof8vpgWYvKcvLe8ZhqxFr1wLpChRFUiMWFGMZ1dJX_wHqZw/s640/Salem718.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4ccIEnHqZ26I0ycHe4JecFmVxlavoG1I6P7qe6y9Wq5sumjy0V5aqU0sHmOM3_GZ-Xq7hfKFndz9No2mZDrhrD-pYAkmF9zal8vSUIlhwu1Q4Tq65l56DU8uaCe0HOvpEzmNwmu6sFJk/s1600/Salem720.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4ccIEnHqZ26I0ycHe4JecFmVxlavoG1I6P7qe6y9Wq5sumjy0V5aqU0sHmOM3_GZ-Xq7hfKFndz9No2mZDrhrD-pYAkmF9zal8vSUIlhwu1Q4Tq65l56DU8uaCe0HOvpEzmNwmu6sFJk/s640/Salem720.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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"Oh, crap."</div>
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Saddle: Check</div>
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Bridle: Check</div>
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Dressage girth: Not yet</div>
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Dressage leathers: Nope</div>
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Dressage pad: Nada</div>
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Eventing safety vest in case I fall on coral rock and break myself: Negative</div>
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So, I have most of the large purchases out of the way and I mainly need to buy little stuff. I'm only sort of kidding about the vest, although it would be a nice thing to have. Certainly, I will buy one eventually, but I'm not going to put off riding just because I don't have one.</div>
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We're getting there!</div>
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P.S. My <a href="http://www.ebay.com/itm/251164937625?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649">Premier Equine Air-Cooled Eventing Boots</a> are somehow still available!</div>
Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-4265719495272514962012-10-18T00:42:00.001-05:002012-10-20T00:32:42.797-05:00Hoof MusingsSince Salem gets his hooves trimmed tomorrow, I figured maybe I should post the pics from his last trim (well, several days after his last trim). He has a lot of things going on with his hooves right now, the best of which is the growing-out of his abscess hole.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxga2jfYmeLcVXIQJPTRyhYo_7Dp8y9nJdUuFjSHYBCMq-d9NeUd6Kb3lLRy6s3jHWXHFActOElBni6uzNWVnsRnxoza2fHeZ1yPdeamS2IYCIgdEGJa8T38SvQgeS6ih6HQUoUKXrNrY/s1600/Salem691.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxga2jfYmeLcVXIQJPTRyhYo_7Dp8y9nJdUuFjSHYBCMq-d9NeUd6Kb3lLRy6s3jHWXHFActOElBni6uzNWVnsRnxoza2fHeZ1yPdeamS2IYCIgdEGJa8T38SvQgeS6ih6HQUoUKXrNrY/s640/Salem691.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Left front</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg30eEybu9ObL-pYS9oC-W1ZJ-5K-bPaUWGntgYqN-4IDHKIIaidj9yUT9haQ3vmNoR8cfLByM7J6dgJ-11mQaNLC3mHi7rjjQH5gLfxsZxLrobyew0kx8ketWGLPFzIcuQRh1V0PB0zI/s1600/Salem690.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg30eEybu9ObL-pYS9oC-W1ZJ-5K-bPaUWGntgYqN-4IDHKIIaidj9yUT9haQ3vmNoR8cfLByM7J6dgJ-11mQaNLC3mHi7rjjQH5gLfxsZxLrobyew0kx8ketWGLPFzIcuQRh1V0PB0zI/s640/Salem690.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Left front solar</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyo9pk7EXj-HwWxAx6uYXMFW-grDr2o8-FZ0Fkae9y_cKrtwOhRIn-qD7-h1aVJlWEhVHhx2Ld3pkRFpGuOPdQrDVa3aoGnqOFpGszXPysAAifJtFmPYh-fV22T9B_xOYvCjJb6My8GOQ/s1600/Salem693.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyo9pk7EXj-HwWxAx6uYXMFW-grDr2o8-FZ0Fkae9y_cKrtwOhRIn-qD7-h1aVJlWEhVHhx2Ld3pkRFpGuOPdQrDVa3aoGnqOFpGszXPysAAifJtFmPYh-fV22T9B_xOYvCjJb6My8GOQ/s640/Salem693.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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What was left of the abscess cavity</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrM-91_2nZocq0aVof34m9q9kmvtYAufcnRHVbLdtY2yozcjzcRVE_a739hi9zi00krVROMWE66Ouxs_DdirwQSeAmEdeTr3S1kiMCAnUQAg7mJNntzn1mTl_fe4Ue9tJQXjPXvJ7Cbuo/s1600/Salem692.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrM-91_2nZocq0aVof34m9q9kmvtYAufcnRHVbLdtY2yozcjzcRVE_a739hi9zi00krVROMWE66Ouxs_DdirwQSeAmEdeTr3S1kiMCAnUQAg7mJNntzn1mTl_fe4Ue9tJQXjPXvJ7Cbuo/s640/Salem692.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8V6KjkRh5-5tJJKfUKM5b5swHoPEpQFN1lAUIBV3J0N1UqXb0XqQ1bFNt-TeYVeE7yVqxOOo3dhwTbS4LZ68RfajYWVsLe-z53WwcJq8n5I6_lOQJ2lZW-e6V1hj4PVqJPjIuPT2sqXA/s1600/Salem689.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8V6KjkRh5-5tJJKfUKM5b5swHoPEpQFN1lAUIBV3J0N1UqXb0XqQ1bFNt-TeYVeE7yVqxOOo3dhwTbS4LZ68RfajYWVsLe-z53WwcJq8n5I6_lOQJ2lZW-e6V1hj4PVqJPjIuPT2sqXA/s640/Salem689.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Left hind</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyIStVmDMwamj00kaN4kZubsAUTM2i0_c_fstAbfqabvBfPzQxQAp13dSL7nDOXV5eoBhBWJadjw8blmbSCrPfB2rpgW6iOy3MBpLM8UcEHd1bxdOFeal7rEMbXCP2HCuyDqm5EfCSKgQ/s1600/Salem695.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyIStVmDMwamj00kaN4kZubsAUTM2i0_c_fstAbfqabvBfPzQxQAp13dSL7nDOXV5eoBhBWJadjw8blmbSCrPfB2rpgW6iOy3MBpLM8UcEHd1bxdOFeal7rEMbXCP2HCuyDqm5EfCSKgQ/s640/Salem695.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Right front</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEjRK_q7teuWoOrdwrI-iG3WrUHPCTTS1REl-MTYbvXg9DruiAarkl2ZtNvlhjCdFL_yoDtyjFUdJQQzbZ4oyQQYeXxDKoP8ndxj2T5JtIjwaOxEEqjqcKFFWXGcH47E8a7GDOe1YRDhg/s1600/Salem694.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEjRK_q7teuWoOrdwrI-iG3WrUHPCTTS1REl-MTYbvXg9DruiAarkl2ZtNvlhjCdFL_yoDtyjFUdJQQzbZ4oyQQYeXxDKoP8ndxj2T5JtIjwaOxEEqjqcKFFWXGcH47E8a7GDOe1YRDhg/s640/Salem694.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Right hind--the current problem child</div>
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These photos were all taken this week:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKP3NNAeAF4GGXoJzXl5nxEK3rgb9lsYJZJxcJ7sl3_FyHRR7EtLItLSHEnnsZH9TNcjC_SMdYPjoKe_0B0DGyDybeVnweim55A_fFnrIkelxBfTcrIgso5TV6azSGXVy6XYsOtWXBnUs/s1600/Salem702.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKP3NNAeAF4GGXoJzXl5nxEK3rgb9lsYJZJxcJ7sl3_FyHRR7EtLItLSHEnnsZH9TNcjC_SMdYPjoKe_0B0DGyDybeVnweim55A_fFnrIkelxBfTcrIgso5TV6azSGXVy6XYsOtWXBnUs/s640/Salem702.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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This is the problem with his hinds--he toes <i>way </i>out, which places most of </div>
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his weight on the lateral walls of his hooves. Obviously, this wears the lateral</div>
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walls more, which means the medial walls are higher. Also means the medial heel bulbs</div>
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are smaller and less developed. Basically, lots of imbalance.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo5NNm8Xq7B-eSrjQhYWV1Du-6AwtY1-CBk7tE88LadGu3jv7IIRFwt-t7JD2dtJyK6vj_kbHVJPDPQbQtdjk6kRbFStVyrVJ40hGnMz1yi9xI7EFrEIvhiVCzTEqCMSqZhMdF05eFwjk/s1600/Salem703.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo5NNm8Xq7B-eSrjQhYWV1Du-6AwtY1-CBk7tE88LadGu3jv7IIRFwt-t7JD2dtJyK6vj_kbHVJPDPQbQtdjk6kRbFStVyrVJ40hGnMz1yi9xI7EFrEIvhiVCzTEqCMSqZhMdF05eFwjk/s640/Salem703.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Here, you can see how the frog has moved towards the medial wall</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi93S_4J7bB5qQk3WwnVZIKDR5pQMY9vqPIMLaE88Sy9ObDgDxhDJWq8O_F5SmK7uwA2P23spUlFw4D-OzgYizA-km5mzNFQe_v-qpa3S1M3m2o1CBC1hdQtPUxQcrRpW8IB-VMHoD-yI0/s1600/Salem705.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi93S_4J7bB5qQk3WwnVZIKDR5pQMY9vqPIMLaE88Sy9ObDgDxhDJWq8O_F5SmK7uwA2P23spUlFw4D-OzgYizA-km5mzNFQe_v-qpa3S1M3m2o1CBC1hdQtPUxQcrRpW8IB-VMHoD-yI0/s640/Salem705.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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His right hind medial heel has been confusing me lately--part of the heel sort of sloughed away,</div>
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so it's almost like the collateral groove goes all the way to the heel bulb.</div>
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The frog has also moved so far medially that it's over the collateral groove</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzzmY9vblcWYlLZTx6SL116CSxIQxvUKeagvRiSitiMCniqX8RO9ZjlBJ-LDsDPSh5NAvg-xWlSwkZdmwXr3BSUzvtzf1ooCN4gQIFF1tMbCW22aUy0xNjjSBIxZ6eID9G7lnTDGJILVg/s1600/Salem707.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzzmY9vblcWYlLZTx6SL116CSxIQxvUKeagvRiSitiMCniqX8RO9ZjlBJ-LDsDPSh5NAvg-xWlSwkZdmwXr3BSUzvtzf1ooCN4gQIFF1tMbCW22aUy0xNjjSBIxZ6eID9G7lnTDGJILVg/s640/Salem707.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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You can really see here how much higher the medial wall is</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnR1bNKuW6p5v9nDJThOVrxLHX8TcStGC1hAg-wvKQZLejPdCopv4pBqSbahUmO75Ac09ye4SxvKecKiW2jkkwT_lMf-wWuz0z2l38zyodn44e9YbP_-jsT17n847LyNF33qKS-X1mjis/s1600/Salem713.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnR1bNKuW6p5v9nDJThOVrxLHX8TcStGC1hAg-wvKQZLejPdCopv4pBqSbahUmO75Ac09ye4SxvKecKiW2jkkwT_lMf-wWuz0z2l38zyodn44e9YbP_-jsT17n847LyNF33qKS-X1mjis/s640/Salem713.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLkpZhyphenhyphena9mS2L1wnCpLQLW2G5rSZJWJ66TGMX30QPI95flg162itBe0kVFeRioCERKlKZeC09g2ZikEx2oNlEGb4q2t2zDtw-Hibh9Ii19Bb0pO1UWTvSzJv5hwvw92XcQPnOEXdm0gIg/s1600/Salem715.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLkpZhyphenhyphena9mS2L1wnCpLQLW2G5rSZJWJ66TGMX30QPI95flg162itBe0kVFeRioCERKlKZeC09g2ZikEx2oNlEGb4q2t2zDtw-Hibh9Ii19Bb0pO1UWTvSzJv5hwvw92XcQPnOEXdm0gIg/s640/Salem715.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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For comparison, here are some older pictures of the same hoof:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF0IWriSSWT28AwjwlksI8XEcCxcQECrMw0OC722UruPuabQxnxt96rsMSuNBPu7paaeJpKOhnNLf2QiXQzXVJH-aSKYBASj0G9XUbATIvqKXMFF5iDlDZtBZtMHihpeygqVg6wz9BM8M/s1600/Salem+609.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF0IWriSSWT28AwjwlksI8XEcCxcQECrMw0OC722UruPuabQxnxt96rsMSuNBPu7paaeJpKOhnNLf2QiXQzXVJH-aSKYBASj0G9XUbATIvqKXMFF5iDlDZtBZtMHihpeygqVg6wz9BM8M/s640/Salem+609.jpg" width="424" /></a></div>
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Summer 2011</div>
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Winter (Jan/Feb) 2012</div>
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Obviously, I will talk to Candy tomorrow during Salem's trim and see what she thinks is going on with this hoof and whether or not we need to change something about our game plan. But I also like to get lots of different perspectives, so I would appreciate any thoughts/comments/ideas that you all might have. Do you think this imbalance needs to be addressed, and if so, how? Or should I take a Rockley approach and let it be? I've been on the fence about this one.</div>
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In other news, I finally found a mostly-okay footing area at the new place, so I've slowly started putting Salem back to work. We're just doing some walk/trot longeing and groundwork for now, in an attempt to get his muscles back in shape and hopefully help his hooves out as well. I *will* be riding this handsome boy sometime soon (fingers crossed)!</div>
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Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-31436126378449139772012-10-17T00:38:00.000-05:002012-10-17T01:39:45.158-05:00Ticking Timebomb of Insanity Part IIHorse people tend to be the most calm, rational, <i>capable</i> people when dealing with emergency situations. And, luckily enough, after the first few seconds of panic when I thought Salem had three hooves in the grave and one on a banana peel, the rational part of my brain kicked in and sent some much-needed ice-water into my veins. "Assess the situation," it said. "Take a deep breath, grab your thermometer and stethoscope, and give your horse a once-over so you can speak to the vet like a semi-sane person that actually has some useful information."<br />
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So, onto the cross-ties went Salem and into the stash of first-aid supplies went I. "On the plus side, I get to actually use my super-cool new <a href="http://www.valleyvet.com/ct_detail.html?pgguid=c07e391a-2fd4-4306-a330-947b9ae56563&gas=digital%20thermometer">digital thermometer</a>," soothed my always-calm Auto-Pilot Emergency Brain. "What luck that I bought it right before moving, since this barn doesn't have a first aid cabinet--that was some good thinking!" You've gotta love that Auto-Pilot Emergency Brain--it literally <i>never </i>lets me down and it always knows how to channel my nervous energy into something positive. :-)<br />
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After a quick exam, I was perplexed--Salem had very loud, healthy gut sounds on both sides, and his temp and respiration were normal. He felt a bit sweaty, but that's normal for Salem (who sweats like a 400 lb man that just ran a 10K through the Amazon wearing a down parka). So, I unclipped him from the crossties and took him out to the grass; and, in typical Salem fashion, he immediately dropped his head and began greedily munching grass.<br />
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Curioser and curioser. Still, given all the other un-Salem-like behavior, I felt that a call to the vet was in order. An after-hours emergency call, of course, but I have lost one horse to colic and it's not an experience I wish to repeat. As it turned out, my vet had just been seated @ a restaurant about 45 minutes away. We went over everything and, given the fact that Salem was comfortably grazing, we agreed that he would call me when he was leaving the restaurant, but if anything changed I could call him and he would come down immediately.<br />
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So, an hour and a half later, Dr. F called me back. "How's he doing?" he asked. "Well, he's been grazing comfortably this whole time," I answered. "He just dropped a big pile of manure that looks normal, and he hasn't rolled or acted uncomfortable at all." We agreed that Salem didn't need to be seen that evening, but I would stay for a while to make sure he was alright.<br />
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I decided to try an experiment and put Salem in his stall and closed both doors to see if he would eat his grain. The minute I locked him in, he completely flipped--spun around in circles, weaved like crazy, craned his head out of his stall to look towards the grove, and threw himself all over the place. It was like watching one of those cartoons where the character bounces off the walls/ceiling/floor in a blur. He had <i>zero </i>interest in his food and was working himself into a frenzy, so I opened the door. He immediately stopped his antics but stood in the doorway looking towards the grove in terror, like he had to keep a constant watch over it so nothing could sneak up on him.<br />
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As strange as it was, at least I knew what was wrong. While I couldn't see or hear or smell anything different, I at least knew that my horse wasn't (physically) sick. I stayed with Salem until 2:00 am to make sure he was alright, and spent lots of time trying to reassure him, but he wasn't having it.<br />
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The next day, I went to the barn early. Unfortunately, Salem still hadn't eaten anything. He was still pacing and not wanting to go in his stall. I took his grain out to him in the paddock and he dove into it, snapping his head up every few seconds to look towards the grove. But at least he was eating. Before I left, I stuffed a bunch of hay into a big muck bucket and dragged it out to him so he could at least have some distraction and a full belly.<br />
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Over the weekend, I had no less than 7 people walk Salem's paddock and stall at all hours of the day, trying to find exactly what was bothering Salem. I spent hours out there with him, walking him by the fenceline and feeding him treats, trying to reassure him that he wasn't about to be devoured by a pack of ravenous panthers. He relaxed a tiny bit, but he still wouldn't go in his stall to eat, wouldn't take his eye off the grove, and spent hours pacing. He would weave in the cross-ties, spook constantly, and was generally a live wire. He was permanently wearing his Worried Eyes. So, I decided that enough was enough and left a message with Dr. F asking him to meet me on Monday to give Salem a dose of Pony Prozac. I'm not a big drug advocate, but sometimes you need a little pharmacological help to get your horse through a rough episode. This was one of those times.<br />
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Monday afternoon, Dr. F met me out at the barn. He went over Salem's stall and paddock with a fine-tooth comb, checking the hot wire and fencing, looking at the electrical wiring of the stall, etc., but he didn't find anything amiss. "Well," he said. "I'm going to give him a low dose of <a href="http://www.wedgewoodpetrx.com/learning-center/professional-monographs/reserpine-for-veterinary-use.html">Reserpine</a>, a long-lasting tranquilizer. You should see the effects by this evening and it will last for three to four weeks." He told me that Salem might experience some loose manure and to give the office a call if he did, but that the dose was so low that he wasn't expecting Salem to experience any side effects.<br />
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Now, at my last barn, there was a mare named Inky that occasionally had to have a shot of Reserpine, and she would be stoned as a gravel road for several days afterwards. I was expecting to come out to the barn that evening and finding Salem with half-closed sleepy stoner eyes and a 5-second delay in his reaction times, but I was pleasantly surprised to find that he was just back to his normal, goofy, alert self. He had eaten his evening grain, chowed through most of his hay, and was hanging out under his favorite tree in his paddock. I had my horse back.<br />
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That was the second week of September, and I am happy to report that Salem has been 98% (his own "special") normal ever since. He will occasionally weave on the cross-ties or have a little spook when he hears something in the grove, but that's about it. He's settled back down and is eating with his usual gusto.<br />
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So, what was bothering him? I still have no idea. I did hear a shriek that sounded suspiciously like a velociraptor one night, so there's always the possibility that there's some sort of mini-Jurassic Park over there. Or it could have been the chupacabra or a pack of cougars or horde of brain-hungry zombies. The world may never know.<br />
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But, for the low, low price of $55, I got my horse's (semi)sanity back. Priceless!<br />
<br />Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-56811895502166264782012-10-15T02:31:00.001-05:002012-10-15T15:52:32.344-05:00Ticking Timebomb of Insanity<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
The first six weeks at our new farm were peaceful and Zen-like. Salem settled in right away and was the picture of tranquility, perfectly content to spend his days strolling around grazing like a fat little heifer. </div>
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And then one day, for no apparent reason, my horse morphed from Serene Salem to Ticking Timebomb of Insanity Salem.</div>
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*TicktickBOOM!*</div>
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It all started one day when I arrived at the farm and, instead of trotting up to his stall and greeting me with a throaty nicker, Salem remained in his paddock, staring towards the grove next door. I brushed it off as quirky Salem behavior and grabbed my wheelbarrow and pitchfork to clean his stall/paddock. As I passed through the stall, I saw that his hay-net was still stuffed to the brim, exactly as I had left it the night before--definitely not normal, but Salem is notoriously picky about hay (all the local feed store people know him as the Hay Princess, as in, "Make sure you grab a nice fluffy green bale for His Royal Highness the Hay Princess!"), so I didn't fret too much about it.</div>
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Out in the paddock, I noticed a wide churned-up track right next to the fence-line and thought, "Huh, that's weird--why would they bring the tractor in here to drag?" Very odd. Salem continued to ignore me, which was also odd; he usually follows me around and does silly things like try to steal the pitchfork or rub his itchy neck on me or any one of his other big goofball antics. And as I tramped around the whole paddock in search of manure and only found two piles instead of the usual dozen, I started to get that Something Is Very Much Not Right feeling in the pit of my stomach.</div>
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Back in the stall, I peered into Salem's feed bin--sure enough, his entire portion of evening grain was in there, totally untouched. This horse has never, in the almost two years that I have spent with him, left a single shred of grain. Even after over 30 hours by himself in a giant trailer followed by a night in a strange barn, he still licked up every last morsel of his breakfast. At that point, I was pulling my phone out and scrolling down my contacts to my vet's number.</div>
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That's when the BO's son sauntered over to me and said, "Oh, hey, my dad said to tell you that your horse didn't eat his breakfast this morning and has been pacing all day." </div>
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*Pause as at least seven blood vessels in my brain burst*</div>
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I have no idea what I said to BO's son, as I was simultaneously making a mental list of punishments suitable for a BO who doesn't call a horse owner to tell them their horse is possibly very sick (de-testical-ing with dull, rusty instruments was high on the list), preparing myself for the fact that my horse was definitely about to die, dragging Salem's halter on and pulling him out of his stall, and dialing my vet's number.</div>
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*To be continued...*</div>
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Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-51773030168547066852012-08-26T01:52:00.003-05:002013-03-18T03:11:04.462-05:00Abscess AftermathAfter Salem's <a href="http://www.dressagewannabes.blogspot.com/2012/04/a-word.html">abscess</a> blew , I figured we were all in the clear--and, for several months, everything was just fine. Salem was looking fit and (reasonably) sound:<br />
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In fact, Salem was looking so good that in July my vet cleared him for riding. I cautiously started longeing him with a saddle and bridle to get him back into the swing of things. Good thing I know better than to get my hopes up, though, because the *day* before I was planning to get on his back for the first time in what feels like several decades, he came up slightly off on the left front.<br />
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Yep, it was the abscess hoof. As the empty abscess cavity had grown closer to the ground, the hoof wall underneath cracked because the cavity was a weak point in the wall. It was cracked from the cavity to the ground, and it was growing steadily wider. Huge crack in hoof = sore pony.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK9yDjY7IrWG3gsImuhwPgrzM85MVxqZe2WxEQv-tiyktNx2CaEiDNeItWo8ATIsw6tyGHc6d-soJ9ROlBffLPDG6mo_CwAqHJCsaszNLSuFpAdPBPYvhWNJSQGer7rLoeBEpW-Kpppkw/s1600/Salem678.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK9yDjY7IrWG3gsImuhwPgrzM85MVxqZe2WxEQv-tiyktNx2CaEiDNeItWo8ATIsw6tyGHc6d-soJ9ROlBffLPDG6mo_CwAqHJCsaszNLSuFpAdPBPYvhWNJSQGer7rLoeBEpW-Kpppkw/s640/Salem678.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Pretty scary-lookin', yes? I emailed this pic to Candy and she was shocked at how much wider the crack had grown since she had last seen him. She told me to keep his flares rasped down so they wouldn't pull it further apart, and keep him in his Cavallo boots.</div>
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About a week after he moved into the new barn, his hoof looked like this:</div>
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The wall was starting to chip, so I once again grabbed my rasp and cleaned it up as well as I could. Afterwards, I packed the whole hoof with Magic Cushion, wrapped it with Vetrap, and slapped his boots back on. (By the way, I had considered casting this hoof; didn't happen, but I found<a href="http://search.orthotape.com/gsearch.aspx?searchfor=techform%20casting%20tape"> Techform casting tape</a>, which is the exact same thing as <a href="http://onlinestore.equicast.us/equicastcastingtape.aspx">Equicast</a> only orders of magnitude cheaper.)</div>
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Slight improvement, and with Magic Cushion stuffed into the cavity to hold everything together</div>
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That brings us to Salem's last hoof trim a little over a week ago. Slightly off topic, but as I pulled into the barn, I glanced over to Salem's paddock and saw this:</div>
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One sleepy young boy lying in the shade for an afternoon nap--adorable! I love that he has relaxed and realized that he's safe and sound in his new home. I'm also loving the fact that he isn't isolated off in No-man's Land like he was at our last barn; his paddock is right up front where everybody can see him, and he can actually see most of his horsey neighbors from his paddock/stall. I think this move was a blessing in disguise.</div>
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Back to the hooves: Candy was pleased to see that the crack was superficial and had not extended beyond the first wall. There was also no infection present. All<i> great </i>news.</div>
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Another month or two and this whole thing will (finally!) be completely grown out and <i>gone. </i>Which means Salem *should* be sound and I can finally start riding him again. I know better than to set my heart on it, but I am hopeful that it will happen. </div>
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***The outer bands of Isaac have been hitting us the last few days, and we'll be getting the brunt of it Sunday around 9 am and continuing into Monday. I didn't put Salem's luggage tags on or draw on him with livestock markers, but I did leave his fly mask and leather halter on him, and booted him up in his Ecogold cross country boots for good measure. (I didn't even buy any emergency M&Ms, which is a good sign that I am really not too worried.) All the other horses are locked into the barn, but I decided to leave Salem's door open and let him choose if he wants to be in or out--the last thing I want to do is stress him more. Hopefully, he'll just be very wet but otherwise fine. Maybe I should have brought Salem some flippers and a snorkel, though, because as I write this I am listening to rain <i>pouring </i>down!***</div>
Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-76497518798813496182012-08-21T00:57:00.000-05:002012-08-21T01:48:30.711-05:00Saddle Fitting Experts: Your Opinions, Please!OK, let's cut right to the chase here. Does this saddle fit Salem? *crosses fingers* Pleasepleasepleaseplease fit...<br />
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Of course, I am going to have someone look at this saddle in person to determine if it fits Salem well. Just looking for some general opinions here since I am woefully clueless about saddle fit. Fire away!</div>
<br />Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-69475971242457032742012-08-14T00:28:00.002-05:002012-08-14T00:46:46.779-05:00The Next Chapter<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Yes, that little dot is Salem in an actual <i>pasture </i>(something that is a rare find in this area)</div>
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Life is full of changes, and lately Salem's life has been jam-packed with them. There's been a lot of drama going on behind the scenes. here. :-)</div>
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Back in January, my BO informed me that he had put the barn up for sale, but that it would take several months and not to worry because the new owners were going to keep everything the same, etc. That lead to much stress, anxiety, and confusion, but when the new owners took over in June, we were quite relieved--we all knew them and were thrilled to have them as our new BOs. That was short-lived, as they decided they didn't want to do part-board (which is what I, the OCD horse owner, have always done) and raised the full board significantly. I did a month of full board, but it just did not work out for us; so, the barn search was on.</div>
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As many of you know, looking for a place to keep your horse is pretty much THE worst, most stressful, difficult thing on the planet. For weeks, I felt like I was having eight heart attacks and three strokes a day. My "must-have" list for Salem's new home included: </div>
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1. Either a stall with an attached paddock OR a paddock with a 3-sided shelter--Salem weaves when locked in a stall and walks the fence line when turned out. He's only content if he's in a paddock with the option of going into some kind of shelter (preferably with a fan!).</div>
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2. Part-board or at least a "modified part-board" where *I* provide all hay/grain. I am not interested in arguing to get my horse more hay, or the proper grain, or enough grain, blahblahblah. No thanks.</div>
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3. Somewhat in the vicinity</div>
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4. Affordable without having to sell organs, my soul, other *ahem* parts of my body etc.</div>
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Thankfully, the stars and planets aligned and I actually found exactly what I was looking for (thanks to my vet, who suggested it!). It's not fancy; it doesn't have an arena or a round pen or pretty, pretty landscaping, but it actually met all of my requirements. It's got good bones and charm and major potential. Best of all, I was told that Salem could have the "penthouse" suite, the very first stall on the end of the barn, with a nice paddock of his very own attached so he can come and go 24/7 as he pleases. </div>
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Photo overload in 3...2...1...</div>
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Shipping outfit! Yes, I pad him up like the Michelin Man even for short (like maybe 2 mile) trips</div>
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Holding Salem is Stacy, who was kind enough to trailer us </div>
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(thank goodness for nice people with trucks & trailers!)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1vPCuqQklczSRLEYAZ-O1hoRHxfRx5vPj_znYL5YEV0N9Foy8FE_TU9bV9W6MpF1XEnEkL7LNxOHsjC2OuHjTw1D5gTMIIjwGDJorYH4MnmOtpKaxBrtzbDju2eaLc2priEBy4AwT4HOa/s1600/Salem625.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1vPCuqQklczSRLEYAZ-O1hoRHxfRx5vPj_znYL5YEV0N9Foy8FE_TU9bV9W6MpF1XEnEkL7LNxOHsjC2OuHjTw1D5gTMIIjwGDJorYH4MnmOtpKaxBrtzbDju2eaLc2priEBy4AwT4HOa/s640/Salem625.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Salem's new pad</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJppYeJcyikQzbVE6BYlkn0zqBnvuDRbwgeFeYncNtT4HVZ86PYYZfuvKhVlThevlN4ecFkFRfIuv2LLunKJ0bkeqXj7rsHlJdZUwFnPae4tZ0uMaidvumTY86LO8j7_kshhYYFk2_OtF4/s1600/Salem626.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJppYeJcyikQzbVE6BYlkn0zqBnvuDRbwgeFeYncNtT4HVZ86PYYZfuvKhVlThevlN4ecFkFRfIuv2LLunKJ0bkeqXj7rsHlJdZUwFnPae4tZ0uMaidvumTY86LO8j7_kshhYYFk2_OtF4/s640/Salem626.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTvXswYtUVAtZE0LJ8P5MEAQP0R_AoSOZOJ4bKPzaZ-1hJpakm_nB2mukzRoLsCb33KMNNa8FhO7Aet0QnZqwTAVecn22y9YowgXjGLJWGlTdfHFze_cNKiz_qOYSS7lG4KbriY4cCKc7Z/s1600/Salem627.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTvXswYtUVAtZE0LJ8P5MEAQP0R_AoSOZOJ4bKPzaZ-1hJpakm_nB2mukzRoLsCb33KMNNa8FhO7Aet0QnZqwTAVecn22y9YowgXjGLJWGlTdfHFze_cNKiz_qOYSS7lG4KbriY4cCKc7Z/s640/Salem627.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihZP7q1kOCwt5p6xxiAI2ja5vGlJ6EAAFRbJvtfa2DhCgs2cvTiLhtZPy30t7M6PKSjF5NlTIQre2EtPfvt0wqM2BFtwfjOLtyZh-wKc-_VnLe8mrFPNatWWNdBDZM7MdsptdVXAyfCjLf/s1600/Salem628.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihZP7q1kOCwt5p6xxiAI2ja5vGlJ6EAAFRbJvtfa2DhCgs2cvTiLhtZPy30t7M6PKSjF5NlTIQre2EtPfvt0wqM2BFtwfjOLtyZh-wKc-_VnLe8mrFPNatWWNdBDZM7MdsptdVXAyfCjLf/s640/Salem628.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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"There's hay here; I approve."</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdIrJx-LbIH3CVYyAx3b_6EH9HPPc6YQQeOmixFhR3vqRO90a5kXjzmCV0Vmnl25bGga3CERbisqelk5cG2yhmpwOcpbMN3m5YeaFz2JJYHVJOfANeOfe5b6_RfpQKsx5yAXWcox75VG_-/s1600/Salem629.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdIrJx-LbIH3CVYyAx3b_6EH9HPPc6YQQeOmixFhR3vqRO90a5kXjzmCV0Vmnl25bGga3CERbisqelk5cG2yhmpwOcpbMN3m5YeaFz2JJYHVJOfANeOfe5b6_RfpQKsx5yAXWcox75VG_-/s640/Salem629.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaT_tek_ulkQrSpNkNpSga0-p1dVWzuxisutbfSwEnQijSzqC2A2dCLpyr_a81UqKadiKIqQmy8SRt9AiTwnjfK3qR1g_5aZf6LyGbYOZ9Y5PgyePCAQ_zHKurPxf524nfvkz8UoksLU0U/s1600/Salem630.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaT_tek_ulkQrSpNkNpSga0-p1dVWzuxisutbfSwEnQijSzqC2A2dCLpyr_a81UqKadiKIqQmy8SRt9AiTwnjfK3qR1g_5aZf6LyGbYOZ9Y5PgyePCAQ_zHKurPxf524nfvkz8UoksLU0U/s640/Salem630.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Salem's paddock view from his stall</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpkfJ7VBX3HgebcFlXUYPzlDDhhX_Ftx-6Zn0zXbcwZbv2zC9dbrM1P5irlSgIvEQH94juQQdSFIUxIKJv1ntjimaSU-ksR6QfJ8Q26vJ3yJz3X9Nxqki61Mwq-7dRHcVYqmjTO8Q-ZNqM/s1600/Salem633.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpkfJ7VBX3HgebcFlXUYPzlDDhhX_Ftx-6Zn0zXbcwZbv2zC9dbrM1P5irlSgIvEQH94juQQdSFIUxIKJv1ntjimaSU-ksR6QfJ8Q26vJ3yJz3X9Nxqki61Mwq-7dRHcVYqmjTO8Q-ZNqM/s640/Salem633.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPZjO0qEF5SxeExFLiY31wDwACHAOY8XwgUi0-e9tbhCanfVyt-SAdAa9a9k2K-uXVyLFq9QenqWjGLiQKq0Fp_JVY7y-TqkVwBO6zegwjm51CVHyJiJ6u4Sd0ekwCNWfjqwkFbYdTUt_A/s1600/Salem631.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPZjO0qEF5SxeExFLiY31wDwACHAOY8XwgUi0-e9tbhCanfVyt-SAdAa9a9k2K-uXVyLFq9QenqWjGLiQKq0Fp_JVY7y-TqkVwBO6zegwjm51CVHyJiJ6u4Sd0ekwCNWfjqwkFbYdTUt_A/s640/Salem631.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_UQwK_AQgkX_EFiMPJ_WmZBLbcZanu7YoyPaGiKy99DtG3DVnuP5jIEfeqaZVXTOZuUwTCKWAKA5yP-c8W2-oGUXkWyYT_5O2qGwA4xNlPI1eWsW-WTKIV91p_-dbfFF3mJnAFUjy8Sc_/s1600/Salem632.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_UQwK_AQgkX_EFiMPJ_WmZBLbcZanu7YoyPaGiKy99DtG3DVnuP5jIEfeqaZVXTOZuUwTCKWAKA5yP-c8W2-oGUXkWyYT_5O2qGwA4xNlPI1eWsW-WTKIV91p_-dbfFF3mJnAFUjy8Sc_/s640/Salem632.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeVbETu89HW-u4iu3IEYMsMdU4Wx0u90y3zRaKbgpFeRieTgEyf8i6Kam_E4v7Qi_j7U0L7byEjqgQu3DzYgyM8YvHGo5n06nU2jPGjQcOf0faNVTUJnhoK-A21Q0znY52At3CxoDpnNqv/s1600/Salem634.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeVbETu89HW-u4iu3IEYMsMdU4Wx0u90y3zRaKbgpFeRieTgEyf8i6Kam_E4v7Qi_j7U0L7byEjqgQu3DzYgyM8YvHGo5n06nU2jPGjQcOf0faNVTUJnhoK-A21Q0znY52At3CxoDpnNqv/s640/Salem634.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Now he really does have a velociraptor enclosure--with electric wire and everything.</div>
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We just have to lower the cow-in-the-crate in now :-)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib99T2OExkGQ6hxe2d6iniQV6khwH7XaA3kqEShn0Os2TKatDH0YDO9CZIJd1TB4C5jjzWuDR2_C14lENXR1a3Z1ujrFYKWbcgWbgQrYp-kpwpgmotK_mbf1e7GvnHdGeT_Z2rYGCOA2G2/s1600/Salem635.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib99T2OExkGQ6hxe2d6iniQV6khwH7XaA3kqEShn0Os2TKatDH0YDO9CZIJd1TB4C5jjzWuDR2_C14lENXR1a3Z1ujrFYKWbcgWbgQrYp-kpwpgmotK_mbf1e7GvnHdGeT_Z2rYGCOA2G2/s640/Salem635.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidJUOMmJF59wBWQhL5CNUiH2SVDSeN2M55hlTmhoTJZPNiQzNdZGUjuJu-G-hgz6wmZ8r9kr4xoANfvOhPgAgPndw5a6yj5YJ_1wG_jqRBdFRJQQLGIsg2qIOSSZFGjsNg6GNNCPpxieIS/s1600/Salem644.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidJUOMmJF59wBWQhL5CNUiH2SVDSeN2M55hlTmhoTJZPNiQzNdZGUjuJu-G-hgz6wmZ8r9kr4xoANfvOhPgAgPndw5a6yj5YJ_1wG_jqRBdFRJQQLGIsg2qIOSSZFGjsNg6GNNCPpxieIS/s640/Salem644.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Meeting the neighbors</div>
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One of the other perks of this property is the huge pasture--it's probably around 2 acres. I know some of you are in parts of the country where 50-acre pastures are the norm (or small!), but around here we usually have tiny little dusty paddocks totally devoid of grass. So, this pasture is like a giant emerald wonderland to us.</div>
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After a few days, I decided to let Salem loose in the pasture for the first time. I figured there would be much galloping, bucking, zooming, rearing madness.</div>
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Nope. Just wandering, mosey-ing, sniffing, a munch of grass here and there...and that's pretty much it.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8XsBCvZhKV7MveA9mcU3d7tacW-UBWJhK1pHCIJorK3jrwmPj2hhbfmDnwg8zvdE_zCToFTJuxlfLm8AwbVmKGVAgruDaNPrmplPGR1sWW08mCUt8OCYUYPp92pk35px79fP_sA_SjRKu/s1600/Salem650.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8XsBCvZhKV7MveA9mcU3d7tacW-UBWJhK1pHCIJorK3jrwmPj2hhbfmDnwg8zvdE_zCToFTJuxlfLm8AwbVmKGVAgruDaNPrmplPGR1sWW08mCUt8OCYUYPp92pk35px79fP_sA_SjRKu/s640/Salem650.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRyr3150YZTGQOJCw-MucEMLBUbwuAeDeuf7DwLir39wUDHIdIkvU3OzRUhZqCNjegL6Zc5as2Ly1N-T80_owpmM_-KXzqMeFfBIr_cAE5dza-Yrh1oiHmWeXxswgI75B32g-UXo9GSL_d/s1600/Salem652.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRyr3150YZTGQOJCw-MucEMLBUbwuAeDeuf7DwLir39wUDHIdIkvU3OzRUhZqCNjegL6Zc5as2Ly1N-T80_owpmM_-KXzqMeFfBIr_cAE5dza-Yrh1oiHmWeXxswgI75B32g-UXo9GSL_d/s640/Salem652.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD13-Vow4RxoIHu-vEzIeHWh0zf8OxSDmkqtIoQTNDcB-E8FtJj8mNs9sfqS56ynZT_XbbGy2sqor7zEphFbkpYTtSVOM802_GiJ9FaMkbpru659vGuJXRChO4ZuGsVKcMF2rU2p59Lw8F/s1600/Salem655.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjD13-Vow4RxoIHu-vEzIeHWh0zf8OxSDmkqtIoQTNDcB-E8FtJj8mNs9sfqS56ynZT_XbbGy2sqor7zEphFbkpYTtSVOM802_GiJ9FaMkbpru659vGuJXRChO4ZuGsVKcMF2rU2p59Lw8F/s640/Salem655.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggUHLPzu4aiptl2xa4IBeH8UYyCpMGxzwp2UmD4T5yRHepb3NyfdSzhz07lfKuSaVPZrUczp_dYNfYFNaEovfiH5E9XvkB7T7Uk6q5j4-qGXjqsJVpAmaziYn6EduWA4KGrepdC0dDDxz4/s1600/Salem656.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggUHLPzu4aiptl2xa4IBeH8UYyCpMGxzwp2UmD4T5yRHepb3NyfdSzhz07lfKuSaVPZrUczp_dYNfYFNaEovfiH5E9XvkB7T7Uk6q5j4-qGXjqsJVpAmaziYn6EduWA4KGrepdC0dDDxz4/s640/Salem656.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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"OK, I'm done now."</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvNvmLrVjCTPwbZ1SzUEDjSzqCVe1Fe4CeOrq7s3E5r7Z_P_mV5rJOqq9BfUY6QuRjpzQK8SnUNEvfZ27FtlA8ruAlgnZu2wsAqWEG2EBal05Bltu-kSm9cwdzhoLDWmHWq72eVXzTtYKj/s1600/Salem645.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvNvmLrVjCTPwbZ1SzUEDjSzqCVe1Fe4CeOrq7s3E5r7Z_P_mV5rJOqq9BfUY6QuRjpzQK8SnUNEvfZ27FtlA8ruAlgnZu2wsAqWEG2EBal05Bltu-kSm9cwdzhoLDWmHWq72eVXzTtYKj/s640/Salem645.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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This is the one thing about the property that could be bad--lots and <i>lots </i>of coral rock.</div>
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Everywhere. Could be great for his hooves, could be a disaster for his hooves.</div>
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Could also be a disaster when I start riding him (soon--more on that later!). I don't wish to</div>
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fall onto coral rock. Not that I *ever* fall, of course</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxmOQlbRAv9qwL8EnrXLImn3QJ2TpGHozR428xuuoKppQySY7EvNi9SlM_1tZQmDViycL3zkPaIlXsPCKmSIMzaeZvX_tGM5yMwxCsYsNu82-COHb731XqKY_C8ind8IMU0SjHIm9AH9d4/s1600/Salem646.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxmOQlbRAv9qwL8EnrXLImn3QJ2TpGHozR428xuuoKppQySY7EvNi9SlM_1tZQmDViycL3zkPaIlXsPCKmSIMzaeZvX_tGM5yMwxCsYsNu82-COHb731XqKY_C8ind8IMU0SjHIm9AH9d4/s640/Salem646.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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Indoor wash stall--so nice!</div>
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Hoses on either side, just like a little car wash</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy54zUAm_FS59Td9yQsrZtGrATuKhug4F-ZWmmunuL9Tv3rWcKfexA3K-G7ngjiVdxHyKowtnmB_lU-AWoEF6qOZ-l7Rm6u-CqcBhy_f7_Y7IsDtnuyI2NA8w0NpfFHL8rQL33SAXtQjyr/s1600/Salem648.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy54zUAm_FS59Td9yQsrZtGrATuKhug4F-ZWmmunuL9Tv3rWcKfexA3K-G7ngjiVdxHyKowtnmB_lU-AWoEF6qOZ-l7Rm6u-CqcBhy_f7_Y7IsDtnuyI2NA8w0NpfFHL8rQL33SAXtQjyr/s640/Salem648.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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"Aaaaaaahhhhh."</div>
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There's also <i>awesome</i> grass here. Much more lush/thick/green than the last farm</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOhd1uWFAhnY4I9qcLyuWutUgEFdHmcfTkByT1jVpmrpIzxqaTJIfxTsW9GzbsyksULanaeb7QINb5BDjYGkrfChESTYetCpAhoOsDZ3zJZeBAaKkW2yZ2EHpCTVA-BW6SbVWZfxsZBVJ5/s1600/Salem661.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOhd1uWFAhnY4I9qcLyuWutUgEFdHmcfTkByT1jVpmrpIzxqaTJIfxTsW9GzbsyksULanaeb7QINb5BDjYGkrfChESTYetCpAhoOsDZ3zJZeBAaKkW2yZ2EHpCTVA-BW6SbVWZfxsZBVJ5/s640/Salem661.JPG" width="480" /></a></div>
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I think Salem has finally settled into his new home. It took him a couple days,</div>
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but he is now back to 24/7 hay (he didn't have that the one month on full board @ old farm)</div>
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and he knows that he still has his personal masseuse/groomer/pamper-er *yours truly*</div>
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with him every day, so he's quite content</div>
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This is how I leave him each night--all tucked into his shavings-filled stall,</div>
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with a nice soft mash and a net full of sweet orchard hay.</div>
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Yes, moving is stressful, but I don't think he has too much to complain about @ the moment</div>
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More news coming soon! I have just gotten extremely behind on all things blogger, so it will take a while for me to catch up.</div>
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Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-73770305138744601532012-04-16T23:56:00.000-05:002012-04-17T01:15:56.303-05:00Happy Year-iversary, Salem!It's hard to believe, but today was the official one year anniversary of my boy <a href="http://www.dressagewannabes.blogspot.com/2011/04/welcome-home-salem.html"><span id="goog_1507639304"></span>coming home<span id="goog_1507639305"></span></a>.<br />
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Here's to several more decades together, buddy!</div>Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-5186846612238623252012-04-06T00:03:00.000-05:002012-10-16T01:48:15.045-05:00The A-WordAbscess.<br />
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Of course, once I started writing a post about how great Salem's hooves are, the universe decided that it needed to kick me down a couple of notches and throw some salt up in my game. I got one of "those" calls that we all dread--"Hey, Meghann, just wanted to let you know that Salem is off on the right front."<br />
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*Cue my stomach flip-flopping seventeen times and settling somewhere around my knees*<br />
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Luckily, I was already on my way to the barn, and my fellow boarder said that she had checked Salem's hooves for any possible stones, etc., combed his paddock for sharp objects (she had a little pile of spiky plastic things and shards of PVC fencing set aside outside the fence), and sprayed Salem down with fly spray to get him to stop stomping at flies. She said there was no heat or swelling in any of his legs, but that he was lame even at the walk. Immediately, I thought "Abscess."<br />
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After a thorough once-over, I found that Salem was actually off in the left front<i>, </i>but all signs were still pointing to abscess and/or solar bruise. Luckily, I hoard first aid supplies and had a whole stash of anti-abscess weaponry at the ready. The first night, I completely over-reacted--I cold-hosed his legs for 20 minutes, packed both front hooves with Magic Cushion, rubbed him down with liniment, wrapped his front legs in standing wraps, and strapped his Cavallo Simple Boots (very generously donated by Candy a few months before) onto his hooves.<br />
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The next day, Salem looked no better, so I decided it was definitely an abscess (my theory was that he would have felt better from the Magic Cushion if it had just been a bruise) and changed my daily game plan to the following:<br />
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<ul>
<li>Hot water & Epsom salt soak for 20 minutes </li>
<li>Animalintex poultice pad (soaked in hot water) on the sole</li>
<li>Thermacare pad on top of Animalintex pad (with a few layers of Vetrap in between) to keep the poultice warm for 8 hours</li>
<li>Epsom salt poultice on the coronet</li>
<li>Vetrap bootie</li>
<li>Magic Cushion on the right front in order to help the hoof with increased weight-bearing</li>
<li>Cavallo Boots on both fronts</li>
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Someone was <i>not </i>a fan of hoof soaks, but he eventually </div>
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learned to deal with them (baby carrots certainly helped!)</div>
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Several people were surprised that I didn't call the vet out right away, but I was 99% sure I was dealing with an abscess. Also, I am not a fan of allowing vets to carve abscesses out, so I figured it would be a waste of money to pay the vet to tell me to keep doing what I was already doing. </div>
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After a few days, Salem developed a very slight poofy-ness in the lower leg, which sent me into a bit of a tailspin. Luckily, about 15 minutes of internet research later, my pulse returned to normal--it's apparently quite normal for a horse with an abscess to develop some swelling in the affected leg. Some horses' legs even swell so badly that it's first thought they have a broken bone, when in fact it's just an abscess. </div>
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So, after a healthy application of DMSO, it was back into the standing wraps for Salem. </div>
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Nine days into his treatment, Salem's abscess finally blew out of his coronet. I wasn't surprised, as his sole is so cement-tough that there was no way the abscess could get through it. The coronet was the path of least resistance, and I was very glad to see the abscess come out there rather than through the sole, since it's much easier to keep clean.</div>
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Soon after it blew</div>
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A week later, well on its way to healing</div>
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You would think this would be the end of the tale, but unfortunately there's more. There's <i>always </i>more with horses! While Salem was totally sound and comfortable at the walk after the abscess blew, he was still a bit off at the trot. I figured either he had an as-yet-undiscovered bruise that needed to resolve and/or there was still more abscess in the hoof capsule. A few swipes with the rasp revealed some blood at the toe, which Candy confirmed is indeed more<i> </i>abscess working its way out.</div>
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Solution? Here.</div>
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Oral Arnica Montana to resolve bruising, and Jiaogulan to increase circulation to the hooves and help clear out any remaining abscess material. Total cost, including shipping: $31. </div>
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Luckily, even though Salem is not completely sound (at least not when I try to longe him), he hasn't let it cramp his style in the least. He's been careening around his paddock in his spooky prance-trot and galloping back and forth snorting like a T-Rex, so I'm guessing he doesn't feel all that bad. Actually, as long as I'm not asking him to, you know, <i>work</i>, he looks sound as a dollar. I guess he's just enjoying the life of leisure.</div>
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Yep. It's a hard life. ;-)</div>
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Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-67819452449546720032012-03-19T15:46:00.000-05:002012-03-19T15:46:12.307-05:00Not Pathological, But Unique NonethelessLately, I've been posting lots of pics of <i>very</i> pathological hooves. So, today I'm going to flip the script a bit and focus on some more "normal" hooves--Salem's! It's been quite a while since I've taken pics of his hooves, let alone posted them, and I think it's important to periodically document them so I can see what's going on and compare them to older pics.<br />
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Luckily, Salem's front hooves are now just about textbook-perfect--they have extremely tight wall connections, big healthy frogs, good concavity, thick sole calluses, incredible balance, and zero fungus.<br />
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Right Front</div>
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Left Front</div>
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His rear hooves also have a whole lot going for them; but, while they're healthy and strong, they're a bit more...*ahem* unique. Particularly his right hind.</div>
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Yes, that hoof is a bit cattywompus--the frog is off-center, the medial side looks a bit <i>squished</i>, for lack of a better word, and the medial heel bulb is much smaller and less developed than the lateral heel bulb.<br />
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But, in all honesty, I'm not worried. Because Salem's whole back-end is a bit funky, and *this* is the hoof that works for him. There isn't a "cookie-cutter" trim that each hoof must fit into; in fact, the only measurements and mark-ups that Candy does are for a 30-degree hairline and a heel that is 1 1/8" from the coronet. That's it. The bars are kept trimmed and the walls rounded, and basically the rest is up to Salem. Keep in mind, too, that his right hind is where his mystery lameness/stiffness is, and hooves are a reflection of what's going on in the horse's body. That's the great thing about having a barefoot horse--everything will show up in the hooves, so it's a great barometer for the health of the rest of the horse's body. So, while this hoof looks less than perfect, it's functional and it works well for Salem.</div>
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Left Hind</div>
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The left hind is certainly more "normal"-looking than the right hind, but it too is less well-balanced than the fronts. You can see that the frog is, again, slightly off-center. And the medial heel bulb is smaller and less robust than the lateral. (But check out that amazing concavity!!) I do think he either weights the lateral walls of his hinds more, or just wears them more because of the way he moves, because the medial walls are always a bit longer.<br />
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Yep, as with all things, Salem definitely has to be unique.</div>Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-77914552953864553222012-02-20T03:18:00.000-05:002012-02-20T03:21:42.701-05:00Will Yawn for FoodAn intelligent horse can be a blessing and a curse -- they pick things up quickly, but sometimes you don't even realize that you have (accidentally) taught them something by rewarding a certain behavior. Fortunately, most of the things Salem has taught himself/me have been either harmless or helpful; for example, he taught himself to halt on the longe line when I square up to him. He taught himself to turn his head away from me in order to get a treat.<br />
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And he taught himself that yawning = meal.<br />
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Ever since he came down here last April, I've been doing a bit of liberty work with Salem. Nothing fancy, just some basic w/t/c, halt, reverse, etc. at liberty in the arena. Unfortunately, I usually get to the barn when it's dark out these days, so our liberty sessions have suffered quite a bit; but the liberty work we do every day involves Salem standing patiently while I bring his grain out, and standing still until I give him the signal that he can walk to his feed tub and eat. And somewhere along the line, Salem must have yawned while he was standing there, and I inadvertently rewarded that behavior and gave him the "release" signal. So now he stands there letting out these dramatic, eye-rolling, tongue-wagging yawns while he waits for his food. You might have also noticed him turning his head away from me (his "this-is-what-I-do-to-get-a-treat" trick) and then going back to yawning -- you can almost see his little brain working, saying, "OK, which trick does she want me to do? I will run through them until I get it right."<br />
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Such a goofball. ;-) I love it.Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-61142785262534787742012-02-04T17:07:00.000-05:002012-02-04T17:08:30.832-05:00And Now For Something Completely Different<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Yes, it has been a shockingly long time since my poor steed has been featured on his own blog. He reminds me frequently that his public requests, nay (neigh?) <i>demands </i>an update on His Royal Highness. Unfortunately, not much is going on in the world of Salem right now--his days are full of eating, wandering around his paddock, eating some more, harassing the horses in the neighboring paddocks, grooming, hand walks around the neighborhood, and occasionally *gasp* a bit of longeing or liberty work. It's a hard knock life.</div>
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Occasionally, his afternoon nap is interrupted by a visit from Candy. By now, she has transformed Salem's hooves back into the gorgeous, balanced, tough-as-cement super hooves that he had back in April of 2010. It took a lot of time and effort, but it has made a huge difference in his soundness. </div>
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I swear Salem is not part-Clydesdale. Candy is just a tiny little</div>
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So, here is the one interesting thing that has happened to us lately: Back in January, one of my fellow borders had her trainer Heath come down from Kentucky to judge a horse show, and she had him stay an extra day to ride a few horses and teach some lessons at our barn. I had hoped that I would have Salem sound as a whistle and back in work so we could have a lesson with him, but unfortunately I have yet to find a money tree. But I figured, hey, why not at least get a good groundwork session in.</div>
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I think Heath might have gotten the impression we were a bit more <strike>"special"</strike> remedial than we are, but I do think our lesson was very productive; I got some good insight and pointers. Heath worked on Salem's tendency to travel inverted, with his head to the outside and his body bent in completely the wrong direction. (I'm not sure why he does this, as it only showed up after he came down here from Chicago--??) He noted that Salem is just very weak and needs to work properly in order to develop his muscles and balance. </div>
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Of particular interest to me was his comment that Salem is extremely weak in his right hind--he didn't say "off," just "weak." That got me thinking: Is Salem over his original injury, whatever that injury might be? Were all those months of hoof rehab and hand-walking and Tincture of Time and anti-inflammatory supplements really all he needed? Do I now just need to build his strength back up? It would be *amazing* but with my luck I am not going to get my hopes up. It seems too good to be true.</div>
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Luckily, one of my fellow boarders caught a few minutes of our lesson on video:</div>
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Anyone notice that Salem is a horse of a different color? His left side is an orange-y, bleached-out, dull brown and his right side is a slick, dark chocolate-y brown.Why? Well, apparently there is something of great interest in the nursery next door. Because 98% of the time, Salem stands facing west, staring at the invisible Something Interesting that resides in the nursery. His left side catches the southern rays, while his right side remains in the shade. Result--multicolor pony.</div>
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So, there you have it, Salem fans. My boy is still fat as a tick and living like a prince. It might not make for exciting blog posts, but I do think he's content with his current life of leisure.</div>
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<br />Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-1434328292597160712012-01-16T02:32:00.001-05:002012-01-16T02:32:36.120-05:00One MonthLucy's de-clogging and first trim with Candy was on 12/15/11; and on 1/15/12, I brought Lucy out to the paddock, took her halter off...and she<em> bucked</em> and trotted away from me. I grabbed my phone as fast as I could and managed to catch her trotting back.<br />
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In one month, she went from possibly being put down at eight years old to cavorting in the paddock like a normal horse. Major props to you, Candy. :-)Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-65500351554274871842012-01-01T01:00:00.000-05:002012-01-01T16:09:17.626-05:00Frankenstein Feet<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Lucy might not have bolts in her head, but she most certainly had many, many bolts in her hooves. On Thursday December 15th, Lucy's hooves were finally placed into the care of Candy's capable hands. On the phone, I had told her, "You might want to bring a power drill with you because I'm pretty sure those clogs are screwed into her hooves." And, unfortunately, I wasn't kidding.</div>
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Our first challenge was removing the fiberglass casts that covered the clogs. We started off wetting them with the hose, and then Candy hacked away at them with a hoof knife. We were getting nowhere. So, while I frantically Googled "How to Remove Hoof Casts" on my phone and waded through pages of completely useless information, Candy and Judy discussed our options. Call the farrier and ask him to come out and remove them? Only if we wanted to wait around for, oh, a good six weeks. Call the vet? Since he was present when the clogs were put on, we figured he was a pretty safe bet. His assistant told us to use a handsaw (?!), so I went poking around for tools and came up with a small set of pruning shears. Luckily, the vet called back within five minutes and said to use hoof nippers. At that point, Candy was having some luck with the pruning shears, but she grabbed her mini hoof nippers and went to work.<br />
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It was like unwrapping a really horrible, upsetting, disturbing gift. Not quite last-scene-of-the-movie-<em>Seven</em> bad, but bad nonetheless. Because by then, we knew what was underneath. The vet had told us to use a Phillip's head screwdriver to remove the screws from Lucy's hooves in order to get the clogs off.<br />
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After searching high and low for a Phillips' head screwdriver, Candy remembered that she had one in a previously unopened toolkit in her car (thank goodness!), and she quickly got to work unscrewing Lucy's hooves.<br />
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Finally, it was time to remove the clogs once and for all.<br />
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And, surprisingly, her hooves didn't look nearly as bad as we thought they would (especially considering the state of Tiffany's hooves--Lucy had the same farrier). Yes, there was a ton of bruising and the trademark ridiculous square toe. But, luckily, Candy was put on the case before too much damage was done. Lucy foundered back in September, whereas Tiffany foundered somewhere around 9-12 months ago; so, the farrier didn't have nearly as much opportunity to morph Lucy's hooves into odd and previously never-before-seen shapes.<br />
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However. I assume most of you have heard of a "hot nail," right? That's the term for a nail that has been driven into the live, sensitive tissues of the hoof. Well, Lucy was hot-screwed, and not in the good way. She had multiple screws that had been drilled directly into her live tissues. And then people wondered why she was crippled to the point of not eating for several days. It's a mystery.</div>
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Here, you can see the dental impression material that was between the clogs and Lucy's hooves. </div>
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I had always thought that it would be soft and cushy, and was surprised to find that it's actually </div>
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quite rigid--not comfy-feeling at all</div>
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As soon as Lucy was trimmed and booted up, we videotaped her walking off. But to show you the difference in her movement, I'm also going to post the video I took approximately one week before (a few days after her final farrier appointment).</div>
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And that's in hoof boots that are ridiculously large. If you think she looks good there, wait until you see the latest videos of her. This mare endured what most people have commented to be "torture devices" for several months, but she has bounced back from it like a rubber ball. I only hope that people can watch her progress and realize that wood screws and giant clogs are not the answer to laminitis. There is a better way. It doesn't involve power tools or nuts and bolts. In fact, it doesn't involve anything you can purchase at Home Depot. It involves knowledge, skill, patience, and time. A little arnica helps, as well. Let's hope Frankenstein feet will quickly become a thing of the past.</div>
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<br /></div>Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-49225446638988090242011-12-23T03:25:00.000-05:002011-12-24T00:47:15.811-05:00Never A Dull MomentNo matter how long you've been around horses, you've never seen it all. And just when you <em>think</em> you've seen it all, some horse will catch wind of your ego and set out to prove your wrong. <br />
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Well, I can now check Giant Scary Lump-on-Side That Grows At An Alarming Rate off of my "Things Seen List." Poor little Tiffany just can <em>not </em>catch a break--as if Cushings, founder, and arthritis weren't enough, she had to go and develop a basketball-sized lump on her side (and give me a few grey hairs in the process, I'm sure!).<br />
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A little over a month ago, I was grooming Tiff and felt a medium-ish hard lump on her right flank. I remember telling Judy that I wasn't sure if it was some kind of sting/bite or a fat lump or what, but we would need to keep an eye on it. For several weeks, I saw no change in it. Then about two weeks ago it looked like it had a little scratch on it, almost like it had been lanced. And over the next few days, it shrank until it was almost non-existent.<br />
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But Monday night I pulled her sheet off and went, "Hhhhmmm, that thing is back and bigger than ever." I called Judy and left her a message to give her a heads-up--I said it certainly wasn't an emergency situation, but Dr. F should probably look at it in the next few days.<br />
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Well, Tuesday evening I peeked into Tiff's stall and my eyes just about popped out of my head. I could see a massive lump under her fly sheet. I pulled it back to find this:<br />
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I immediately called Judy (who was down in the Keys with her family for her dad's birthday) and started texting her the pics. Of course, she said she would call Dr. F and get back to me as soon as she heard from him. In the meantime, I slathered a whole bunch of epsom sat poultice on the lump and took Tiff out to graze. She seemed completely fine apart from the massive growth--she had eaten all her dinner and happily munched away on grass as soon as I put her out. </div>
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Within a few minutes, Dr. F called Judy and told her it didn't sound like an emergency and he would be out to see Tiff first thing in the morning. Wednesday, Judy got a call bright and early--Dr. F told her that his best guess was Tiff had been either bitten by a spider or stung by a scorpion, and it eventually got infected. He drained about 15 ccs of fluid out of the area and gave her a shot of antibiotics. He also left a tube of Surpass for us to rub on the lump daily and some antibiotic packets to sprinkle on her dinner for 6 days.</div>
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Well, Friday night it looked like this:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1s27W8bb6Oq3j9gcNZtQgY-tR31lLu4f8ZpJDiSnqJF1rWtJjSfzePb6Cu6HHwq3eDQkVmbUlYZe62WdYD1VWigf0OA-7-HgLi81vVTBgyRdvesURslLQYwy5Wq8EBDpPjyo-b58hMRU/s1600/lump8.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" rea="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1s27W8bb6Oq3j9gcNZtQgY-tR31lLu4f8ZpJDiSnqJF1rWtJjSfzePb6Cu6HHwq3eDQkVmbUlYZe62WdYD1VWigf0OA-7-HgLi81vVTBgyRdvesURslLQYwy5Wq8EBDpPjyo-b58hMRU/s400/lump8.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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Apparently, the fluid is draining down to her belly (???). I told Judy I didn't think it was an emergency, but she called Dr. F just in case. He will be out to see her tomorrow morning (Christmas Eve), so please keep your fingers crossed for her. According to the barn owner, Tiff has been spending more time lying down the past few days, which is not a good sign. She's been eating voraciously and chipper as usual, and happily goes out in the evening to eat grass, which is promising. But. Judy and I found three more little hard lumps on her left side tonight. What are the odds of four spider bites/scorpion stings? </div>
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Send some positive vibes our way, please! This mare has been through so much and she really deserves a break.</div>
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<br /></div>Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6595584700754159703.post-91196974942012459072011-12-18T02:32:00.001-05:002011-12-22T15:39:24.855-05:00A Girl With A Rasp......will always have much to do at my barn. :-) Take, for instance, Lucy:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXNWtXWJEmNCpprjmqJ23WrSaVpAXz3jAKEZ2sc6zRI3bDeCtFn0EOpcx36ptOy9Dtj5C2kdLeFNXnZZtoGEfSxstnsGdYcvyRgpG4zsXqvxLMUn67lIfaC6jSbArpxZviDyc9wajKjcXx/s1600/Lucy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXNWtXWJEmNCpprjmqJ23WrSaVpAXz3jAKEZ2sc6zRI3bDeCtFn0EOpcx36ptOy9Dtj5C2kdLeFNXnZZtoGEfSxstnsGdYcvyRgpG4zsXqvxLMUn67lIfaC6jSbArpxZviDyc9wajKjcXx/s400/Lucy.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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This sweet girl is an 8-year-old Quarter Horse who foundered back in September(ish?). Luckily, it was caught very early and Lucy received standard protocol care--she stood in a giant tub of ice water for several days in order to lessen the damage done to her hooves, and was put on IV DMSO (some of the worst-smelling stuff ever invented). It was found that her laminitic attack was brought on by Insulin Resistance, so her diet was given a drastic overhaul.<br />
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On October 7th, the farrier came out to drill Lucie's front hooves into clogs. About two days later, one of the other boarders said to me, "Have you seen Lucy's back hooves? They're ridiculously long--can you rasp them?" Of course, I told her I'd get on it right away, so I grabbed my trusty rasp and gloves and pulled Lucy out of her stall. Imagine my shock when I laid my eyes on these hooves:<br />
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<strong>Right Hind Before</strong></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij1sH-flkleJSy0f2nuZZOAaWU6TtXgt9HqGb0ViIQo2r-gKDhCSl9qfapvNmFxo72zadXqDu76LUMBqtZXbavm0jZxGPSE9ICzRocz0ZuK0B_G-9QLEUQJnQhmUAyv_sGkvAp1j4tWxJY/s1600/Lucy4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij1sH-flkleJSy0f2nuZZOAaWU6TtXgt9HqGb0ViIQo2r-gKDhCSl9qfapvNmFxo72zadXqDu76LUMBqtZXbavm0jZxGPSE9ICzRocz0ZuK0B_G-9QLEUQJnQhmUAyv_sGkvAp1j4tWxJY/s400/Lucy4.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVsKradOzOKh_h4LvD8yvPfAvaKlkgvhS3vupHcFFso30EsSHnSn8DpqH3LqigcIuxtpRIcKhmu-9Dk1PknrAcVvrzFiBe9OmeMdwSDXJPejlMoU26VQ3JzNGxrWN6Vt1f-pMOo1um4d7r/s1600/Lucy3.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVsKradOzOKh_h4LvD8yvPfAvaKlkgvhS3vupHcFFso30EsSHnSn8DpqH3LqigcIuxtpRIcKhmu-9Dk1PknrAcVvrzFiBe9OmeMdwSDXJPejlMoU26VQ3JzNGxrWN6Vt1f-pMOo1um4d7r/s400/Lucy3.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsRZQZQLkoGdYCo9mzwumQG4jxI8ISAne4JaFD1PpgY3cBekrqsGKxsuY3EZFTyiO0zjHi6Zzfs9q5RKdj2NPnfirvMAZU1m1XXoMVSDeU-A04f_oOJBo33CAOvszzEngm5cp_H70IXyHS/s1600/Lucy7.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsRZQZQLkoGdYCo9mzwumQG4jxI8ISAne4JaFD1PpgY3cBekrqsGKxsuY3EZFTyiO0zjHi6Zzfs9q5RKdj2NPnfirvMAZU1m1XXoMVSDeU-A04f_oOJBo33CAOvszzEngm5cp_H70IXyHS/s400/Lucy7.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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<strong>Left Hind Before</strong></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdFAbHVMjtZou9Rm4riKPX3cyPVvyPz8rC1WP3kKZ9JtZj1fZQGw8BCcieriEo-vZgR6qw5upbTkM5tgBYwChWqpAySe4dM-BVHZnHzwWJcPd1ibaw8xj3VFH3GsuFQNC-0E_xM8gnWYCc/s1600/Lucy1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdFAbHVMjtZou9Rm4riKPX3cyPVvyPz8rC1WP3kKZ9JtZj1fZQGw8BCcieriEo-vZgR6qw5upbTkM5tgBYwChWqpAySe4dM-BVHZnHzwWJcPd1ibaw8xj3VFH3GsuFQNC-0E_xM8gnWYCc/s400/Lucy1.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJRh0YYcPJWbl2c4JV1fzhbJqCzu9YkIKNSvhRuKXNB9s0hwoi29I_8fPX1obaf1QpFnoG-ulDPheI8KyZJLPbN4FXucnywNE2vzqJku1_Ay4tobTYQ59NkOy8e-jhBN_ECq4HZ7WEMqwP/s1600/Lucy5.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJRh0YYcPJWbl2c4JV1fzhbJqCzu9YkIKNSvhRuKXNB9s0hwoi29I_8fPX1obaf1QpFnoG-ulDPheI8KyZJLPbN4FXucnywNE2vzqJku1_Ay4tobTYQ59NkOy8e-jhBN_ECq4HZ7WEMqwP/s400/Lucy5.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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This hoof has such a bad case of thrush that the frog had rotted halfway off</div>
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Obviously, those hooves were in need of some <em>major</em> work. I did what I could with my trusty rasp, taking the toes way back and lowering the walls. Her bars were so overgrown that I was also rasping them while I took the walls down. <br />
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<strong>Right Hind After</strong></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1bCGJ0AYLoRpvi6kLoya8lFZ43FJ1zGHE35-MhOJcUeabtI7pbVeoKihxVJGuL73FcEsJ5Vpu1K7tlK8t-0oeTBvJZgpvD1LanUNwRNVZ6Wx2hV9YkPPmehaCFSAdINMTeXf1uFgGpERs/s1600/Lucy9.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1bCGJ0AYLoRpvi6kLoya8lFZ43FJ1zGHE35-MhOJcUeabtI7pbVeoKihxVJGuL73FcEsJ5Vpu1K7tlK8t-0oeTBvJZgpvD1LanUNwRNVZ6Wx2hV9YkPPmehaCFSAdINMTeXf1uFgGpERs/s400/Lucy9.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<strong>Left Hind After</strong></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMdEp6oPrq-Hub3ZLGyA4P98zG-yt8ZbAWaG0-iX3pIduK73sRuhZcyplQODW49hLq5Xvi8mGfKyC2TJWGPvPbbJVBumMJkOt7K49Phps1m9Q937ogOQ3qlXLq9ckSuTe6yhHbp4j_V_w0/s1600/Lucy10.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMdEp6oPrq-Hub3ZLGyA4P98zG-yt8ZbAWaG0-iX3pIduK73sRuhZcyplQODW49hLq5Xvi8mGfKyC2TJWGPvPbbJVBumMJkOt7K49Phps1m9Q937ogOQ3qlXLq9ckSuTe6yhHbp4j_V_w0/s400/Lucy10.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGJ1KNc5G294T1ls_-X_wFuXT31EBLCzCBilsZjsxLnY9o0zYTbcOKs3q-_Z7nZZ9feUxLPaxNUl44C47i_zwOnTXT7BbOqWn7FPB_sLIbgF4JlsYY7i7eXJqLrXSiHn_PCUEnTYDdb0H4/s1600/Lucy12.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGJ1KNc5G294T1ls_-X_wFuXT31EBLCzCBilsZjsxLnY9o0zYTbcOKs3q-_Z7nZZ9feUxLPaxNUl44C47i_zwOnTXT7BbOqWn7FPB_sLIbgF4JlsYY7i7eXJqLrXSiHn_PCUEnTYDdb0H4/s400/Lucy12.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>
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Yes, those hooves are still miles too long, but it's a huge improvement. Hey, it takes a LONG time to get rid of that much hoof wall when all you're working with is a rasp! Luckily, I was able to cajole Candy into knocking Lucy's walls back a few weeks later. But it was Lucy's front hooves that I really wanted Candy to start working her magic on--I couldn't actually see them because of the hoof casts, but I was unfortunately quite familiar with Farrier X's work and was worried that he would transform Lucy's hooves into nightmarish zombie hooves like he did to Tiff. Again, I had to just bite my tongue and wait for the right opportunity to present itself; but I <em>knew </em>that I would eventually get Candy on the case and those clogs <em>off </em>of Lucy's hooves. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi81uhKq4tYk7HYawpaqcReg0PfJtQzcxAAZn-tlt1bgKmZZp2nqDaieFNVTTyiHBYLA55ukBnpILOZdmJXxnVvbHDPADh-0t4ZCdwBCSLN51f9gde21iZNKUTKxj92oJC66mFPOSgbArr/s1600/Lucy13.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" oda="true" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi81uhKq4tYk7HYawpaqcReg0PfJtQzcxAAZn-tlt1bgKmZZp2nqDaieFNVTTyiHBYLA55ukBnpILOZdmJXxnVvbHDPADh-0t4ZCdwBCSLN51f9gde21iZNKUTKxj92oJC66mFPOSgbArr/s400/Lucy13.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>Frizzlehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03084225669041286128noreply@blogger.com7