It’s kinda one of those situations where it has been awhile since I’ve written anything and I just don’t know where to start So, that being said, I may just give you a list of what I’ve been up to horse-wise over the past two months.
- First of all, I can’t believe August and September blew by so quickly!
- Dolly started out being fairly tense all the time (in the cross-ties, on the trail, etc.), but never really did anything “bad”. She was holding her head a bit funny and got really upset when you put any contact on the bit. The solution? She was desperately in need of having her teeth done. She even had a wolf tooth that we had to have pulled! The vet was a little shocked that her previous owners had neglected this simple health care option. A few days after her dental work, her overall tension level dropped dramatically. She can still get a little tense, but I think it is just learned behaviour instead of true pain.
- I had a major case of nerves for the first few rides on Dolly – probably due to her tension… Once I realized that she wouldn’t act out even when tense, I quickly relaxed. Both of us have been making good progress in the “nerves” department.
- I have had a person at the barn riding Dolly 3x/week for September to help with consistency and get Dolly more regular work. It is going ok, but Dolly seems to take 2 steps forward and 1 step back. She is fairly resistant to bend and flex on the left lead, which leads us to…
- Chiro! I decided to call the only horse chiro (that I know of) in our region. I’ve heard good things about her, so I’m hoping she can either help Dolly or rule out any physical reasons for her tension/reluctance to the left. I’m looking forward to that appointment in a couple of weeks. I like to know that I have tried most of the options to rule out medical/pain issues before we up the training aspect, as her reluctance could just be evasion…
I actually have more to say – this writing business isn't so bad once I get started! Lol
I think I will end here and keep going with Dolly’s update later this week...
6 comments:
It's good that her teeth have been done. That will relieve a lot of the tension they caused. Sounds like you two are getting to know one another and it all takes time.
"I actually have more to say – this writing business isn't so bad once I get started! Lol"
Does that mean you are reconsidering shutting down your blog? lol
Sounds like you're forming a good relationship. Glad that you got her teeth done, its amazing how many people in this day & age of horsekeeping STILL don't get equine dental work done.
Yeaa...No need to shut down just because you go through some quiet times. We're still here to read when you feel like posting.
To be honest, teeth are just one of those things that gets neglected if a horse isn't being worked regularly. We all know it should be done, but it's expensive and if a horse is not having any problems in their day to day lives...they get by.
It is usually one of the first things I get done on a horse when I do get them up and start riding them regularly though. Teeth, feet, diet...riding. Everything else after that just takes time to work out.
It's never a bad idea to have a chiro check problems out, but becoming one-sided is also common for horses that have been on turn-out for some time. I bet the chiro will help, then it's just going to take time to re-limber those muscles up and get equal flexion.
Sounds like things are going pretty good though.
(Will wait patiently until you get the urge to write again. ;-)
I agree with everyone else. I'll be waiting patiently for the writing Muse to strike again.
I need to get Casey's teeth done too. And probably Molly's. And we need to get back to work. He's had a really, really brutally hot summer off. Now, it's time to snap him out of his boredom!
As you and Dolly get to know each other better, your trust in each other will grow.
She's very pretty. Glad you got the teeth fixed - that can cause major problems, and may also be responsible for the remaining chiro issues she may have. Hope you get it all sorted out - she sounds like a really nice horse.
It's great to hear from you, and read about updates on Dolly. She sure is beautiful!
And yeah, dental work can cause a whole host of behavioral problems. I learned that from my own mare when I first brought her home, as you probably remember.
I can relate to what you wrote about shutting down your blog, too. I've been tossing that idea around now for several weeks. My problems with posting are caused by how busy we are now and how I just can't keep up with posting and sharing photos and updates.
I just lack the motivation and interest.
I'm glad you're still posting though :)
~Lisa
Post a Comment