Saturday
We got up and out super early. Surprisingly, I was full of energy! It was also super nice outside, so I decided that I would ride outside. I was a little hesitant, since they haven't been ridden outdoors since fall, but I took Brie out to do our little program like nothing was different and after a few bucks of happiness, she settled right into it! We got ready to ride and were out there riding before anyone else was ready and she was sooo calm! It was a really nice surprise. She walked so slowly and was just happily going along with no problems. She tried to speed up a tiny bit when we would turn the corners to face going towards the gate, but with a little correction she regained her focus and settled back into a beautifully slow walk. Our corto was equally as calm. It was fantastic! Once everyone else came out she got a little hyper, but not really badly. We went outside in the fields to walk around and she was not super crazy so that was a plus! She actually wasn't bad at all. Never tried to stop or run away on me, just plugged along in her corto. =] It was truly a great day.
In other news...we're changing farriers. Our current farrier, according to the vet, cut Jane's horses hooves at all different angles. This lead to mass confusion but when confronted about it, the farrier had good explanations (supposedly) for what he did. After talking more with Nick, he explained how just being off on angles a tiny bit can make the horse not gait well or go into a pace. Harry has been pacing...so now we're concerned. We've decided on going back to a previous farrier that Gary and Nick fly in from Puerto Rico who supposedly specializes in Paso Finos.
This whole farrier v. vet business makes me anxious. Do farriers and vets ever really get along? And I'm not entirely convinced that Pasos need a special farrier just for their hooves. If the farrier is good, he should be able to comprehend adjusting the angles as necessary for the breed and conformation of he horse, right?
Sunday
Rode Brie some more today. I didn't use the mounting block because everyone was standing around it like a herd of cattle. I don't get it, really. No one outside of my family uses the mounting block for their horses, but they keep it in an area where they all stand. I might just move it to the corner or something, that way I don't have to keep asking everyone to move so I can use it and then feel judged if Brie doesn't stand still the first time. Also, there is a gazebo in the middle of the arena for this gathering purpose! Can't they go in there?!
It was crummy out today, so as much as I wanted to go back out, we got stuck inside again. Oh well. I'm really confident that Brie is going to do well if we take her to Michigan. This whole spring and show season is getting hectic, at least for me. I want to go to Michigan to show Brie, but my best friend has her graduation on the second day of the show...I'm not sure if my parents will want to drive back on Saturday night so that I can go to graduation. Otherwise, I might just stay home and then Brie will miss another year of showing, since I think Michigan is the last local one before State Fair, which I won't be able to go to because of law school starting, so no one will bring her to show anyways...plus I wanted to be the one to show her...
Anyways. This weekend is Easter! Maybe we'll go out on Friday and Saturday to make up for missing Sunday.
Showing posts with label happiness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label happiness. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Days 153 & 154
Saturday
We finally got a farrier to come out! We have a new one, but he got lost for 3 hours, so by the time he got there it was already 5pm. We don't have to leave early on the weekends any more and that makes me super happy, especially because it's summer!
We rode a little bit before he got there. I rode Harry while my mom rode Brie. Harry was pretty good but did a lot of pacing. I took him in the outdoor arena and he paced some more while I was trying to practice our largo. I went to take him out to walk around the property a little bit and when I wanted to take him over the little hill next to the outdoor arena, he got really freaked out and side stepped his way down the hill and ran back to the arena. I thought that was super odd because I'd taken him out by himself before in the back and over the big hill. Brie and Nina came out with my brother and mom and we all rode around the property and Harry seemed to calm down a little bit while Brie was acting like a giant, just stomping around every where, completely not listening to my mom. I guess she feels better!
After we made it back and waited around a while for the farrier, he got to work. Brie was a perfect angel for the trim and shoeing until he got to her back hooves when she started dancing around a little bit, so we had to twitch her. I felt bad because she was being so good and he even commented on how well-mannered she was, then we ended up jinxing it because she started shuffling and jumping around! Our goal was to put shoes on everyone, but that ended up not being the case.
When he got to Harry, you could tell that Harry was nervous, but he stayed still for the trim. He got front shoes on but when the farrier went in back to fit shoes back there, Harry started shaking like a leaf, so the farrier said he'd just leave him with half a set and finish it this upcoming week.
Nina, as you all know, is HORRIBLE with the farrier because of some bad past experiences, so she was fighting with him the entire time while he trimmed her and didn't get any shoes on. The farrier said that he'd rather just have us get some sedative to relax them than stand there and fight with them, risking them or him getting hurt and he wouldn't be able to do that good of a job. Plus, if he stood there and wrestled with them, it'd only reinforce that every time the farrier come out they'll get pushed around. It makes pretty good sense, although I'm not too keen on the sedative. But if they're calm and they're sedated but still alert and get used to trimming and shoeing and see it's not such a big deal, maybe they won't even need it in the future.
Sunday
Brie was sure feeling good today! I can tell that the shoes make her so much happier. Everyone's been barefoot for the longest and finally the chips got so bad that we decided to put shoes on. I'm happy we did!
With the combo of the steroid injection and her new shoes, Brie was flying at her largo! I figured I would just let her celebrate while still making sure she didn't break into a canter. She seemed super happy to finally be out and moving around again. When she went across the board she sounded like thunder, it was so loud with her shoes on!
My mom rode Harry and you could tell that he was different even though he only had front shoes on. You could see in his eyes that he was thinking about how he needed to pick up his feet a little more now that the shoes were on. I can only imagine how phenomenal he might sound when he has a whole set!
We all walked around outside again and Brie was ready to fly again, but we all walked calmly together because Harry was very nervous. I don't know what the sudden fright is with being outside! Yesterday he spooked at a butterfly landing on the fence! If it weren't for Nationals, I would be only concerned with getting him used to all the different outside demons, such as trees or sunshine, and especially those butterflies!
We're going to call our vet this week and see if they'll sell us the sedative or if they need to come out so we can finish up the shoeing job. Hopefully it'll be all taken care of by Thursday!
We finally got a farrier to come out! We have a new one, but he got lost for 3 hours, so by the time he got there it was already 5pm. We don't have to leave early on the weekends any more and that makes me super happy, especially because it's summer!
We rode a little bit before he got there. I rode Harry while my mom rode Brie. Harry was pretty good but did a lot of pacing. I took him in the outdoor arena and he paced some more while I was trying to practice our largo. I went to take him out to walk around the property a little bit and when I wanted to take him over the little hill next to the outdoor arena, he got really freaked out and side stepped his way down the hill and ran back to the arena. I thought that was super odd because I'd taken him out by himself before in the back and over the big hill. Brie and Nina came out with my brother and mom and we all rode around the property and Harry seemed to calm down a little bit while Brie was acting like a giant, just stomping around every where, completely not listening to my mom. I guess she feels better!
After we made it back and waited around a while for the farrier, he got to work. Brie was a perfect angel for the trim and shoeing until he got to her back hooves when she started dancing around a little bit, so we had to twitch her. I felt bad because she was being so good and he even commented on how well-mannered she was, then we ended up jinxing it because she started shuffling and jumping around! Our goal was to put shoes on everyone, but that ended up not being the case.
When he got to Harry, you could tell that Harry was nervous, but he stayed still for the trim. He got front shoes on but when the farrier went in back to fit shoes back there, Harry started shaking like a leaf, so the farrier said he'd just leave him with half a set and finish it this upcoming week.
Nina, as you all know, is HORRIBLE with the farrier because of some bad past experiences, so she was fighting with him the entire time while he trimmed her and didn't get any shoes on. The farrier said that he'd rather just have us get some sedative to relax them than stand there and fight with them, risking them or him getting hurt and he wouldn't be able to do that good of a job. Plus, if he stood there and wrestled with them, it'd only reinforce that every time the farrier come out they'll get pushed around. It makes pretty good sense, although I'm not too keen on the sedative. But if they're calm and they're sedated but still alert and get used to trimming and shoeing and see it's not such a big deal, maybe they won't even need it in the future.
Sunday
Brie was sure feeling good today! I can tell that the shoes make her so much happier. Everyone's been barefoot for the longest and finally the chips got so bad that we decided to put shoes on. I'm happy we did!
With the combo of the steroid injection and her new shoes, Brie was flying at her largo! I figured I would just let her celebrate while still making sure she didn't break into a canter. She seemed super happy to finally be out and moving around again. When she went across the board she sounded like thunder, it was so loud with her shoes on!
My mom rode Harry and you could tell that he was different even though he only had front shoes on. You could see in his eyes that he was thinking about how he needed to pick up his feet a little more now that the shoes were on. I can only imagine how phenomenal he might sound when he has a whole set!
We all walked around outside again and Brie was ready to fly again, but we all walked calmly together because Harry was very nervous. I don't know what the sudden fright is with being outside! Yesterday he spooked at a butterfly landing on the fence! If it weren't for Nationals, I would be only concerned with getting him used to all the different outside demons, such as trees or sunshine, and especially those butterflies!
We're going to call our vet this week and see if they'll sell us the sedative or if they need to come out so we can finish up the shoeing job. Hopefully it'll be all taken care of by Thursday!
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