In which I may have had a heart attack...

I came home from Costco shopping on Sunday to a terrifying sight. Gwyn was flat out on the ground in the pasture, with Saffron standing nearby (you can kind of see her white nose against the pine trees). I slammed to a stop in the driveway, with Kaylee in the back asking me if everything was okay. I rolled down the window...

"Gwwwwyyyyyynnnnnn!"

She didn't respond. I told Kaylee we were going to go make sure Gwyn was okay. Then, as I watched, Gwyn's hind feet twitched, like that twitch you get as you're falling asleep? Then I watched closer and I could see her belly rise and fall. Then I noticed that all four feet were twitching.

Fucking mare was passed out dreaming about running somewhere. She didn't actually 'sit up' until Kaylee and I were out of the car and into the pasture walking toward her.

So we took pictures. And all the while I hear just this faaaaaint groaning under her breath before she just gets up because we've interrupted her beauty sleep.

Later, I convinced Kaylee to go out and ride and she was super adorable and was practicing everything she's been learning in her riding lessons. She even rode bareback for No Stirrup November with me! And then she fell off Gwyn for the first time ever (she's okay) while trying to two point with no stirrups at the trot. 

Birds Eye View of the Arena that Isn't Long Enough. It's barely a rectangle. I need good exercises to do that don't require length. Like legit there's not enough room for Gwyn to jump more than one jump at a canter without suddenly needing to turn. I really want to find a giant arena to ride in that I could trailer to.

I untacked Gwyn in the arena and she ground tied by the gate for no good reason while I pulled weeds because my arena is also the best nursery for baby trees and thistles.

A trail ride and a DIY Cordeo

I'm taking a break from editing my cross country photos to post this story and DIY guide.

A visit to the equine hospital

Napping poneh

So today was the lameness evaluation at Blue Water Equine Hospital. It's about a half hour away and has some nice facilities (though they need to replace their border fence....)  We started with some basic trot outs, then I lunged her so the vet could see the canter. Then she went through and did some flexion tests with more trot outs after each. After the last flexion though, the vet tech went to lunge Gwyn at a trot and the Goober reared her ugly head, ducked and yanked the lunge line and took off.  Her tail was flagged, and she basically said "Fuck all y'all, I am done being vetted in, it's time for the endurance ride"

The hospital staff took off after her in their vehicles while I felt helpless and a half mile away she finally deigned to be caught and then they walked back.

Zoomed out, the vet is walking her back.

Walking through the fallow field.

 Apparently they had perimeter fencing but it got blown down in one of our windstorms.

Pretending to be sweet.

 The vet saw mild lameness and it wasn't consistent with the right hind like trainer Alison had seen. Vet also saw some soreness up front but nothing that couldn't be explained by doing trot outs on gravel. She also said that her hooves were nice and solid (despite the chipping stuff).

Her feet are terrible. The farrier wanted to leave them longer this time and I don't think it was a good idea.

We moved on to x rays. They did her left front, left hock and right hock.

Are you ready for the results?

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Are you sure?





The damn mare has textbook perfect joints. No remodeling, no signs of arthritis. Her bones look beautiful, her joints have lovely spaces in them for synovial fluid. Nothing, nada. Zilch. Vet was laughing and said these are the best joints she's seen lately.

Vet recommended I give her some Adequan more as a preventative than a full on treatment. Then we did do a chiropractic session. Her SI joint was ALL out of sorts, which would also cause some of the issues we've been having. She's got a muscular butt but it seems her back and core need more work. Vet wants us to come back in 6 weeks for another chiro session but basically gave the go ahead to have me tell the trainer we can be pushed and that it's more behavioral and lack of proper muscling. I have been reading up on Sacroiliac Disease and I'm concerned that's more what we're looking at. Bonus, I don't need to buy any new BOT stuff because I have a rump rug I can use to target her SI already.

She also recommended front shoes as Gwyn's soles were not as thick as she'd like to see (based on xray). And was mildly intrigued/concerned that Gwyn has a yellowish tinge to her skin/mucous membranes. Now that she points it out I can see it but I think it's her normal.  There's a spot on her belly she wants me to keep an eye on, one that I've been slathering in swat but it might be a sarcoid and need to be removed.

So now I need to up my ground poles game and find a good place for walking hills. This might be a good excuse to go back to Ortonville Rec Area for some ambling trail rides! LOL. It's what the doctor ordered...

So anyway, that was a hit to the pocket book to find not much, but I'm glad I have baseline images so we can see if any changes do occur.

Also, let it be known that I tried to spoil my critters and let them eat down the ditch grass in our backyard which is hard to mow because it's a seasonal stream and instead they snubbed me and escaped and went for MORE gallivanting up to the neighbor's house and that was adrenaline pumping as I raced to get the ATV to retrieve them. They came back on their own. I have no idea where they escaped as my cobbled together fence was intact.

I suspect they went under. Damned animals. I wish I could completely fence off the property.

Hunters Run Derby Part 1: Dressage

Hoo boy.

Okay, figuring out where to start this will be a trick and a half.

We can start with the fact that I had just gotten over a stomach virus on Friday and was still weak. I didn't get as much done Saturday as I should have because I couldn't. I figured going to the show would pretty much wipe me out and I was right.

Of course, Saturday night I couldn't sleep. Y'all. I haven't been to a legit eventing class of show (Derby, 3 Day, etc) since I was a teenager. It's been about a decade and a half. However, I did make sure my tack was clean, I pulled out my nice bridle I've been saving for a show and switched the bit over. Expecting sun, I put the finishing touches on the customized fly bonnet I made for Gwyn. (There were no bugs...)

Those ears are rainbow sparkly.

And then I got into bed and realized I couldn't remember my dressage test and that I had no fucking idea where my medical armband got off to.

Fuck.

I couldn't fall asleep for about 2 hours. My stomach was starting to flip from nerves and it still hadn't fully settled from my bout of porcelain throne worship on Friday. Just... not ideal conditions.

Sunday morning I grabbed gas for the truck and began doing the finalized loading. Since I'm a craft supply hoarder, I also threw together a makeshift medical armband.

 My friend Casey came to take pictures for me and kept me calm and on track. She doesn't have any horse experience but she was great at being someone to talk at me and listen to me babble and freak out.

First error: I should have budgeted more arrival and prep time. We got there and there was no one in the show secretary hut for a good 20 minutes. WTF. I did try and make good use of the time by getting dressed and starting to groom Gwyn but it kind of set the tone. Thankfully I grabbed my number and rushed back to tack up.

Gwyn had picked up on the energy of the day and was dancing around. Then I found and pulled a tick off of her belly. UGH.

Second error: I didn't do a final review of my dressage test. LOL. I had been doing a lot of visualization in my head but didn't verify that my visualization was completely accurate. I should have done this. I meant to do it. I had a copy of the test in my truck.

I got up to the warm up and checked in with the ring steward and did a bit, but not nearly enough, of warm up. Gwyn was amped. She was on high alert and I swear she thought it was an endurance ride.

So we get to the ring, I greet the judge, judge blows the whistle and we enter. The first part goes okay. I can tell Gwyn is hollow and tense and then we get to the first canter circle at A.

Exiting stage right.

 I'm gritting my teeth but I turn around and go back in. Because this is fucking embarrassing. There's multiple layers here that I'm going to try and explain. As many of you are aware, riding, especially showing, is heavily appearance focused. The human appearance especially. You are pushed to be thin and perfect and coifed. So I already stand out because I'm fat. And let me tell you, I've lost 20 pounds since March. And I was feeling so much better about being in my body until I saw these pictures because getting up on the horse means I immediately look like a marshmallow and it fucking sucks next to every other rider who was there. Plus I don't have the full funds to acquire a show jacket right now. I'm trying to prioritize and the show explicitly stated that you could use your cross country attire in dressage but I was the only one I saw who did that. So standing out more. Then add in Gwyn's coloring and standing out EVEN more. And then we leave the dressage ring.

This is probably all mental, and it's only really hit me now that I've been percolating on it for hours and in the moment I was fine but I just hate it. And if I write any more about it I'm probably going to have to go into the bathroom at work and cry about it but there it is. Stupid stupid stuff.

And honestly, if I saw a rider unintentionally exit during their dressage I would have felt bad for them and assumed it was a green moment but nothing more? And most people probably think that about me but this judgement is a constant in the back of my head. Plus, I am losing weight. Slowly and steadily. I will get to a point where I won't stand out as much. It just hurts when I see myself until then and how I think I'm seen by others.

Anyway. I continue the test. The judge has me redo the cantering transition to trot to walk.

NO MOM. I'M DONE.

 And then on the free walk on the diagonal Gwyn totally blows my aid and just... steps over the fucking railing again. Now I'm ready to die inside and I just go around the outside, come back in and keep going.

The moment before. You can see her eyeing the poles going "Those look like Cavaletti and I am GOOD at stepping over them!"

Casey said she heard me go "SERIOUSLY?!?!' at Gwyn.

Cantering by the judge. We stayed in down here at least.

 And then I blew the final diagonal. Completely forgot about it. The judge seemed sympathetic, she was kind and it was a schooling show and the last time I did a dressage test with Gwyn was when we were in Washington. There's a lot of excuses. But the judge didn't have me redo it because we'd already been eliminated because of leaving the arena.

Leaving after final halt salute

Dear Gwyn: Please to be relaxed like this IN THE DAMN TEST

I'm not going to post each remark for each movement right now (mainly because it's at home and I'm at work). It can be summed up with: Tense. Hollow. Error.  We scored a 55%

The nicest thing the judge commented was that Gwyn was cute.

I'm hanging on to sanity by remembering:

1. This was a schooling show so in the grand scheme of things it's not a big deal.
2. It highlighted things to focus on
3. I need to find an actual dressage trainer so we can school the issue of NOT LEAVING THE DAMN DRESSAGE COURT.  I am now 2 for 2 of this happening in a dressage test with cantering. I don't want it to become a habit.
4. Practice relaxation and working on the bit so it becomes more habit in a high energy show environment.

So there you are. Part 1.


Many thanks to Casey for the media. I wouldn't have had it without her.

4.63 miles on the Polly Ann Trail

Next week is the Metropark Express aka Huron River Ride that was run by Rusty Toth who had a MAJOR falling out with the Michigan endurance community (like, holy shit drama) He moved back out west and ended up competing in Tevis again, but that left managing the ride to somebody else. I rode it last year, right after I found out I was pregnant but before the blood clots ruined everything and I wanted to ride it again this year.

My over ambitious plan was to do the LD at Metropark Express but given how plump Gwyn is and how little I've been riding and how anxious I am at leaving Eric alone over night with the girls, I figured doing the intro ride again is perfect. It'll be a day trip, rather than an overnight so I won't be gone long.

Anyway, the point of mentioning all that was that I needed to refresh Gwyn on her trailer loading manners and get out on the trail to evaluate our fitness AND to give Eric a dry run on solo Dad'ing it.

Gwyn... was an ass. She tore away to go gallivanting all over the property (and now Eric is in agreement with me about gating the driveway)  So we did a bunch of groundwork, which admittedly I should have done to start. I wanted her to know that I move her feet and the only time she can rest is if we're standing in the trailer. Reading Dom's views on trailer training has definitely influenced that, on top of the groundwork clinics we would do in Washington. It didn't take long after that where she walked in and stood in the trailer while I closed everything up. And of course, once she's in she's fine. It's just a power struggle.

I was a little worried about her behavior because we were going to a public park with waterpark and I wanted to be sure that I could get her back into the trailer without trampling kids. When we got there, she was just calm as could be, unloaded nicely and stood a the trailer, sweaty, but not anxious. I quickly tacked up and hopped on. Then we were off!  We got there shortly after 11am, which is when the water park opened. The water was running but there weren't a lot of people making noise or splashing. She didn't care. There was something in the woods I couldn't see that was more concerning to her.

Walking down the road to the trail access was a non event, even when a car drove past us. You guys, this is a HUGE thing for us. After a car incident in Florida I've worked super hard to desensitize her and get some good experiences with passing cars and trucks and being passed. I think vehicles at speed are still an issue, but she's fine with cars that are slow!  This means that I still can't ride down our street to be able to access this trail, but it's improvement.

I decided to turn south this time and see how far I could get in 15 minutes. Ha....

Happy Pony Ears

Happy human smiles

I rode in a Kerrits ensemble :D   I had my Icefil tights and a tech shirt. It was perfect. Weather was around 75F with 80-90% humidity. It was cool enough that I felt comfortable doing a ride without health risk thanks to the combined temp+humidity factor. Alas, the deer flies were persistant and I got nabbed.

We quickly reached General Squier Rd and crossed that, no traffic. People were likely still in church, given the area. I made sure Gwyn maintained a nice steady trot and she was comfortable barefoot on the occasional gravel.

We were riding early enough that we had shade, not overhead sun in the woods. It was so pleasant!

It really reminded me of the trail rides I did as a kid in Connecticut. There was a rails to trails trail that I could connect in with and rode on frequently. It was a really pleasant way to remember that.

At 15 minutes in I had reached the furthest point I've traveled to on the trail on foot. I wanted to see new trail. So I kept going and decided another 10 minutes or until I reach one more road crossing. Gwyn was willing and eager, moving out easily and really only bothered by branches that extended low onto the trail. The few bridges we encountered she crossed without hesitation.

I did finally reach one more road crossing just as a bicyclist was coming from the other direction. Gwyn was a tad unsure about him going past but he said hello and commented on the great day to be out and about, which I agreed with wholeheartedly! I texted Eric that I was turning around and followed the bicyclist. Here's where I laughed.

Gwyn BOOKED it after the bicyclist. It was a race, it was on. Her trot got big big big and we were flying, though not catching the biker. He finally pulled away around a corner and we didn't see him again. And she resumed her steadier pace. I loved it. It makes me encouraged for riding this trail with Eric. She had no problem following this bike.

Bye biker!

New construction

Pretty field

Stella, Gwyn's mom, was so dependable and she would always investigate new things and touch them with her nose. Gwyn does the same thing.

Back to the park

Waterslides? Splash fountains for kids? No biggie, mom.

Our average was around 5 mph with walking. Her trot was between 6 and 10 mph. If I can average 6 then I'll be done with the 12 mile intro ride in 2 hours and get back home sooner to my baby :D I think I could do this for 12.

Training Fail

I had a complete and utter brain fart when it comes to training Gwyn. Thankfully things were not bad, though they could have been catastrophic.

When you introduce new things to horses you want to make sure you break it down into component pieces. As an example, you don't hook a horse up to a cart without making sure they're familiar with all of the little pieces (harness, something moving behind them, ground driving, pulling weight, etc)

In my excitement about having both snow and my skijoring harness, I figured I'd introduce Gwyn to weight.

I neglected to introduce her to something sliding across the snow when she moved.

Ah.

Taking a nap in the snow. This has all since melted.

Looking good! We made it through winter fat and no ribs! Thank you LOTS of hay!

Anyway, I put the harness on her, I wasn't even planning to ground drive her, just lead her around the pasture with a slight amount of weight in Kaylee's sled and the sled hooked up to the lines of the harness.

We took maybe too steps and my mistake kicked me in the ass. She absolutely flipped out. And it's definitely my fault. She went flying up the hill, the sled flapping behind her, then down the hill and into the front pasture.

Saffron and I kind of looked at each other like... "Uh... maybe we should go after her..."

The small amount of weight I had used (my grooming box) was remarkably undumped, a testament to how quickly she bolted. I trudged through the snow, Saffron at my side, to find the sled in two pieces, and thankfully no longer hooked up to Gwyn. If I had attached it differently, it might not have broken the way it did. 

I left the sled and approached Gwyn and apologized. She was snorty but calm. The harness was still on her. I led her over to the broken sled and let her sniff. I took the harness off and did what I should have done first. I put the harness in the sled and pulled it beside myself while leading Gwyn back to the barn.

She calmed down immediately, gave it a side eye, but didn't do much more to be scared.

To further reduce the damage, I piled hay on top of the sled and led her with the sled into the arena. She was eating off of it as we walked. I think the damage was reduced...

We walked around the arena for a while and then, to salvage some of the time I had, I did some ground work to get her focused on me in the 'scary' side of the arena. 

So, thankfully the nightmares that flashed through my head as I watched her race up the hill did not come to pass. It's salvageable.

And there are no more sleds for sale and the snow is gone. We'll work on dragging a 2x4 board instead. And we'll do it properly this time.