I guess that this is officially a Thankful Thursday post, even though it is going out on Friday, as I am SO grateful for this ride today.

Who's that Perfect Mare?

She had gotten in the habit of taking short, choppy strides before she went totally lame. I could not get her to go on the bit. Any attempt at contact sent her head in the air and rushing or skittering crookedly sideways. So the riding that I did do last winter was loose reined, trail rides. I had hoped to get her okay with contact again at some point.

Then she went lame and it was all on hold. For a while, I thought it could be permanently on hold.

It is possible that the way I was riding her contributed to her lameness. I had been riding her in a jaquima meant for Paso Finos and was asking her to gait. The jaquima does lift her head. She goes very lightly in it and on a loose rein seemed fine. I don’t think that this was the primary cause of her lameness, but it might have been a factor. I do believe that she had an injury of some sort. If it really was an avulsion fracture or a ligament injury, I really don’t know. The summer of rest certainly helped her. The supplements she’s been taking have helped her. We are currently using Ligand-3 from Foxden Equine. I wet a week’s worth with olive oil and add it to her feed. She gobbles it right up.

The turning point seemed to be her recent treatment from Ferronato Shen. I had heard very good things from a friend about the work she did. Her evaluation and massage session with Lily turned up a very tight back as her primary issue. I won’t go into more detail than that on my blog. Needless to say, I believe that Ferronato was correct. Now I rub down her back after every ride and am very conscious of how I ride and handle Lily.

Since I’ve started riding her again, it is in a french link snaffle that fits and a new to me Ortho-Flex saddle. The difference lately is really good. She reaches out in her stride. We had gotten up to a couple of miles of walking.

Leg yield on the way home. Not so easy to do with one hand on the reins and one taking the photo.

After stretching her legs like that, I asked for light contact, her neck arched right up and she gave it to me. We did some circles, spiraling in and out and leg yield. Her head would pop up, but she would come back when asked. It was lovely and even better than years ago, when I rode her Training Level.

It really has been two years since Lily and I have done any work in earnest. I leased her out for the first half of 2008. I had too many horses at the time and she was the most trained and easiest to find a leaser for. When she came back, I bred her to Paisano. Then she went to Tired Dog Ranch to foal out. There were a few rides here and there. I could tell each time that something was off. There were mild resistances from Lily. Though she would do what I asked, it was not with the willing, happy attitude of the past. It was really just a feeling more than anything I could put words to. I guess it’s not a bad thing that her physical issues came to head this year. Whatever it was, it seems to have worked it’s way out and we are on the other side.

So now, I have a second chance to begin again, training Lily. I have learned so much in these two years and I look forward to having the chance to apply it. It is like a new world for me. To have Lily back and sound again is a gift beyond measure.

(And, by the way, the “Wah!” title is not a cry, but the Wah! of bliss.)

How:

I rode Lily last night. I hadn’t ridden her since May 1st, when she was very lame on a trail ride. It’s been paddock rest and numerous vet visits since then. The last ultrasound on Friday looked very good and my vet does not think that she has DSLD/ESPA. Yay! Since her healing had gone so well these last two months, he gave me the go ahead to take her out on short, flat, walking rides.

One of our fist rides in the Black Forest back in May

Riding in the FreeForm SB last November

So now, with these walking rides, I will have a chance to break in my new Black Forest saddle and decide if it will work out for us. I do think that it puts me in a much better spot than the FreeForm did, so that’s a good start. I do wish that I could find a sheepskin seat for it. I suppose that it will get more comfortable with time, but for now, there are a couple of creases that would not do well on a longer ride.

I flipped the photo from last November for a good comparison of where the saddles sit on Lily. I checked her today and she free lunged sound! I’ve been treating her legs with Sore No More and doing some massage on her back and haunches. This seems to help her comfort level. I hope that this first month of walking rides continues to go as well as the first one.

So I upgraded my theme … and lost my customization in the process. No time to fix it just now, as I am headed out soon for Lily’s follow up ultrasound. She’s feeling pretty good, trots out sound for now, but her hind suspensory branches are sore on palpation.

It’s been a quiet month. Hay was picked up and stacked, so my storage space is bursting. I sampled twenty bales and have sent that off for testing. Lily started to gain weight on the new hay and just eat herself silly, so I’ve had to start rationing it. She was getting free choice, but when she ate through more than half a fifty pound bale a day, I had to draw the line! She now gets about 3-4 flakes per meal in smaller pillow nets I made out of the same hockey barrier netting that I’ve used before. I am putting them in a small water trough, though I still have to retrieve them from the weeds. It does take her a bit longer to eat when they are on the ground, than hanging, so that’s good.

It appears that my trailer has sold. Yay! The next task is to clean up my truck (and find the paperwork that’s lost in my house somewhere.) and put it up for sale. I have downsized and am VERY happy with the change. I love my new (to me) 2005 Jeep Liberty CRD (diesel). I am shifting it over to biodiesel slowly, as I don’t know if it’s ever run it before. The first day I drove to work, I got 25 mpg. And eventually, I plan to look for a used Brenderup trailer to pull with it. Jeep only made these with a diesel engine for two years. I wish that more cars came with this option. I really like being able to run my car on a fuel that is mostly non-petroleum based.

This is a year of many changes and I am riding the wave along with you all. I am sure that there will be more to come as the days go by. Stay tuned for updates to the look of my blog this weekend. I’ll get it back in shape soon!

So my short list of things to be grateful for this week:
Lily is feeling good!
New wheels!
Trailer sold!
Great weather!
Yay!

Yes, there have been trials as well this week, but the good things really do outweigh the not so good.

How:

Luna has gone home to her breeder and original owner, Patty. I have had the intention of getting down to just one horse for a while now. So I knew that this was the right thing to do. She looked happy and relaxed when I left her. Lily did seem to miss her when I got back, but she has adjusted. Lily has her next vet checkup on 7/16 and is still on pasture rest until then. So, I go out and just spend time with her finding new spots to scratch and massage. She may be a bit bored, but I think that she’s enjoying it too. It has been interesting to adjust to just one horse again. It’s been a month and I am starting to get used to it.

I’m took an entire week of vacation to clean out my studio. This was a momentous task, as it has been accumulating STUFF for years. Pretty much ever since I stopped being involved in model horses around 2002. I had boxes of old papers, thing to give away, things to sell and a few things to carefully pack away and label to look at another time. I cleared out enough to allow room to start painting again. And this time, it’s not model horses.

I already have a few paintings in progress and a number of panels waiting for a bit more prep. And then there are the sculptures that are staring at me. It was a real pleasure to unearth art supplies and work in progress that I had forgotten was there. I’m making a point of carving out a few hours every week to do art. It’s been a treat.

There are still a few piles to go through and some untouched areas to organize, but I feel such a weight lifted! I can’t say that I wish I had done it earlier. It just wasn’t the time yet. Now it was. I’m not sure if I’ll continue to post here about my artwork or not. I have simratkhalsa.com where I can do that. Though I may want to keep that as more of portfolio site. Ah well, time will tell.

My new favorite thinking spot, where I can study my easel.

Ah, Blueberries!

I found this post today, that I started nearly a year ago. The text in green is all that I had written, next to the photo of my harvest. Yesterday, I was doing the very same thing. Gardens make us see that life comes full circle with the flow of the seasons.

I don’t like the heat. I tend to stay inside if I can. This afternoon, I found myself out in the sun harvesting blueberries instead. There is nothing quite like fresh berries eaten off the bush. This year’s early crop is on the tart side, but the berries are large and plump. We have two bushes fruiting now, one is the largest and oldest. It was here when we moved in, maybe twelve years ago. We were so impressed with it’s lovely, red, fall foliage that more bushes were added the following year. We have added four more blueberry bushes this spring with more to be planted. At the end of this season, we will have one whole end of backyard edged in them.

The other bush that is bearing early, is the smallest and new this year. Our yard has quite a few different varieties, so we have a long season to pick berries from small, sweet ones to larger, juicy ones. I like them all!

Lately, I’ve been more and more grateful for simple things, like picking blueberries in the yard; leaning on Lily’s back, closing my eyes and just breathing with her; sharing moments with my family and friends; and smelling my freshly opened oil paints.

I’ve been absent from my blog lately, as changes are afoot in my life. It is a year for shifts and mine seems to be moving right ahead. There may be a change coming in my web space, as I move to being less involved with my horses and more with my artwork. Stay tuned – I’ll let you all know what’s up, when I have it more figured out.

Take a few minutes today to create your own Thankful Thursday.

How:

The more I watch Ted Talks, the more I like it. This particular talk is rather fascinating, including the idea that our social choices are tied to our genes. I can understand that eye color, height, hair texture and other physical attributes are genetic, but how we are in social networks? Really? It expands my idea of genetics … and the importance of social ties.

Luna decided that she didn’t quite want to get caught straight off tonight and started tearing around the paddock at a full gallop. Instead of trying to catch her, I got my camera. Lily seems to be feeling quite a bit better too, as she joined in. And Monte, the Paso Fino next door, was enjoying showing off for Luna. He looks like a fairy tale horse. I’m going to have to spend some time taking photos of him alone one of these days.

It’s very interesting watching Lily and Luna together. Lily is very much in charge of things. Luna tries to bluff her sometimes, but very quickly backs down. They seem to be a good match. I couldn’t really choose a small selection of photos, so the slide show is rather long. And if you make it to the end, I now know why the small water trough has dirty water in it…

I didn’t really have an agenda today. I groomed Luna, trimmed her feet and we had our first lunge session. She wasn’t too keen on doing full circles and would turn into face me. There were times when I was happy with a quarter of a circle and asked her to whoa. By the end, we had gotten a few circles each way, with me deciding when to stop. That was good and I called it quits.

Luna is sweet and a bit jumpy yet. With time, I’m sure that she will settle in just fine. I’m really starting to like her. She is pretty sensible, when not scared by something and picks things up very fast. This will be fun…

Luna taunting Monte

Heading out...

I’ve traded Vinnie for Dove Tree’s Marcha de la Luna. Luna is an eight year old Spanish Mustang mare. She is well bred by Azul’s el Milagro el Asad and out of Unpa Kimimila Sanka Tanka, a Chato’s Shadow daughter. She had a foal by Paisano last summer and is now ready to move on to a new career as a riding horse. I’ve told Lily that she needs to help me train her. Lily’s quite good at working on my training projects in my absence.

Vinnie is in a superb home at Tired Dog Ranch as Amy Jo’s riding horse. I know that they will do great things together!

This is just what I need to keep me from being tempted to do anything with Lily right now. She needs the rest and I need a project. Luna and Lily know each other from a couple of summers ago when Luna was down to be bred to Paisano. The mares shared a paddock during that time. They became quite good friends. The also were together for a few months last summer at Tired Dog Ranch with their foals. Today, there was the normal squealing and posturing, mostly bluff though.

I’ll be posting about her progress as the summer goes on. She has had some basic training as a youngster, but not much has been done with her in the past few years, so I’ll be starting from scratch. There is a possibility that she may be for sale in the future, but I’m also open the idea that she might be my next riding horse.

The mares being mares

Lily at 3 years old

I went back and forth about putting shoes on Lily. I used boots for a couple of rides after the last vet visit. She didn’t move much in her paddock and when I ran Vinnie around to take his movement video, I could really see the contrast when she moved. She was in pain. It was subtle, but I could really see it in comparison to him. So I went ahead and ordered Ground Control plastic shoes and had my trimmer put them on her front feet. The do not have the concussion that metal shoes do and they leave room for her heels to flex. She was slightly better with them, but still not 100%. I wanted to see if they made her move any better. It was only very slightly better.

Since then, she turned up very lame in her left hind while out on a trail ride. I had to hand walk her back the last 3 miles or so, stopping to rest frequently and massaging her rump to help the spasms relax. Two massage therapists looked at her and we all thought that the most pain was in the muscles around her hip joint. When I went to load her to go home, she winced every time she tried to lift that left hind. I gave her some Banamine and that made it easier for her to load.

Lily last weekend. See how she is standing differently?

Dr. Camp found that her hind tendons were both sore. DSLD/ESPA usually shows up bilaterally, so that could be a reason that she trots off evenly. Both legs hurt equally. She was still slightly off in the right front as well. We are going back to the clinic on the 17th for ultrasound of her right front foot and hind suspensories. He will also x-ray her hocks. He felt that she should have shown more improvement with shoes than she did. He thought that she may have a soft tissue injury low in her right front, possibly the insertion of the deep digital flexor tendon, or possibly hock problems, and he also admitted that she could be showing early signs of DSLD/ESPA.

So she is on stall/paddock rest, no riding…

She’s currently getting Thyro-L, MSM, Mag Ox, flax, whole psyllium and Equerry Plus supplements in a bit of Triple Crown Low Starch and I’ll be adding the herbs that are being used experimentally with D/E horses as soon as they come in the mail. I’ve been learning about D/E for the last year or so, as I had the suspicion in the back of my mind about it. This yahoogroup is a wealth of information. http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/DSLD-equine/

I certainly hope that it is something other than D/E. Something that is treatable would be really nice. If it is D/E, then I will be on a search to find out the source in her pedigree. I hope that research will soon produce a genetic test to see if a horse is a carrier or not. If our breed does have D/E in it, it should be discussed.

Gratitude creates it’s own attitude. It can give you a new perspective, a new focus. I am going to use this day as my opportunity to see those things.

I loved the message of this talk by Steven Tomlinson. When he asked for advice at the age of 28, about how to choose between the three things he loved, he got the answer, “Don’t discard. Find a way to keep all three of these things in the mix.” I’ll leave you with this as I found very inspiring. It made me look at issues in my life with a new perspective.

How:

Continued from Part One…

Pulley buttons removed

New cable

Loop for the pulley button

Inserting the back side of the pulley button

Cable run back through the shell

Cables run through the new cable clamp

The reassebled boots

WordPress is croaking on the image laden post, so I’ve cut it into part one and part two.

I traded a pair of size 0 Renegades for a pair of size 1. The 1s were too large for Lily. The cable clamps turned out to be stripped or jammed. Whichever it was didn’t matter. I couldn’t adjust them. The only way to fix it was to replace the clamps and cables. I searched the Renegade site and the web for instructions, but found nothing. So I just went for it, taking photos along the way. I thought that it would be worthwhile to post this How To.

The tools I used

The spart parts

Boot- cleaned with the heel captivator liner removed.

The first cable cut off

The shell with all the cables and straps removed.

Cable clamp pried out showing the adjustment screws (and mud).

Cable clamp with stuck cables removed.

I’ve had three rides in this new saddle so far, two on Lily and one on Vinnie. I think that, with some tweaking, it can work. It needs some breaking in and more trials before I can give a full review.

I like the Grandeur pad that I bought with it. I am looking forward to trying a Skito with laminated shims though, as I would like a bit more twist. And it seems to restrict Lily’s shoulders a little more than the Barefoot I tried. I did ride that other saddle with the Skito, so it’s not a fair comparison, until I try it with that pad. The choice of pad is extremely important with most treeless saddles. I’m seeing that more and more.

Amy Jo came down to ride and brought two Barefoot Cheyenne saddles that she got recently. The brown saddle is a size 1 with VPS. The black saddle is a size 2, older and without VPS. I had heard about the Vertebrae Protection System, but didn’t quite understand what the difference really was. Looking at these two saddles and handling them made it very obvious. The black saddle was quite floppy. I could fold the cantle up the pommel easily, while the brown saddle had much more body to it.

Along with the saddles, Amy Jo also had 3 different Skito pads, hard and soft cantle inserts and 3 sizes of hard pommel inserts and a soft pommel insert. After trying a couple of pommels on Lily bare, I chose the medium width (pictured), as it gave her the best wither clearance. I wanted to try this before going to the soft pommel. The Barefoot London that I had tried previously had the soft pommel and it felt really wide to me. I used a Skito with wool felt bottom, 1/2″ firm foam with another layer laminated on. I also swapped out the fiberglass cantle for a soft foam one.

Amy Jo rode Vinnie in the brown size 1. It looked great on him and he went just fine. He has let me know right away when he didn’t like the feel of a new saddle in the past.

We took off to Pisgah and rode for 3.5 hours, mostly walking, but we also trotted and cantered and did some hills. Being young, Vinnie got tired doing hill work, so we didn’t ride on the mountain that much. He also needs a tiny pair of boots for his feet on gravel. He managed, but it was obvious that he would have done better with some foot protection. Coming out of the wet winter in a pretty gravel free paddock, there is just no way that he feet are tough enough.

I found the Cheyenne suited me better than the London. It didn’t feel too wide at all. Lily moved out well in it. I didn’t feel as far up on her withers as I do in my FreeForm. Though we didn’t get any photos of me sitting in it, I felt balanced and comfortable. I tested wither and shoulder clearance when moving. It was excellent. And the sweat patten showed a clear, dry strip down her spine. It was pretty even everywhere else with no hair roughed up.

I could mount from the ground, using a modified mounting technique. I reach across Lily’s back and hold the offside stirrup leather. Then I get my weight across her back as soon as possible, before I swing my leg over. This would be more difficult on a taller horse. Another reason that she is the Perfect size.

While this might not be my first choice in a saddle, I am on the lookout for a used one to ride in for the time being. I would like to try out a Barefoot Atlanta. I like the look a bit better then the Cheyenne. One step closer to a new saddle for Lily!

Spring!

Lily is feeling much better. I don’t know if it is the MSM, the change to her own paddock and only my hay or her just being happy that I now know what’s going on with her, but she is in great spirits! She’s perky, walks off evenly and is a bit more settled.

I’ve been easing into riding since last Friday’s vet visit. We started off with a short walking ride. The next time out, I let her move into some extended trot. Today, we were out for an hour and a half and she wanted to do more. We did quite a bit of her big trot, on and off and some canter in there too. I am working on sustaining her trot, as it’s faster than her regular canter and pretty smooth to ride. I actually want to get it on video, as I wonder quite what it is. She gets into a speed that’s actually hard to post to, so I wonder if it really is a trot. Lily was feeling very strong and willing to go!

The size 0 Renegades that I traded my size 1s for needed the cables replaced. Now that’s done, they seem to be working well. Today’s ride was a pretty good test, as we went through mud, water, up and down a few small hills at all gaits. Lily was comfortable and moved nicely. I do want to get her booted on all fours eventually. I’m also considering trying some thin pads to stimulate her sole and frog while riding.

For now, I am not going to shoe her. As long as she’s comfortable in the paddock and doing well booted for rides, I don’t feel shoes are needed. I picked up a bottle of Durasole and am treating her feet with that most days. It’s pretty much the same formula that my vet said he uses to toughen feet. I’ll likely use up this small bottle and then reassess.

I should hear about her selenium test by the end of the week. And I am planning to stop by the vet’s office this week to get some Thyro-L and start her on that too. My plan is to treat her as highly prone to laminitis, for as long as I need to. It may be for the rest of her life.

Back in Wyoming, where Lily was born, she would likely be just fine eating dry land prairie grass. Here in lush, western Oregon, most pastures will be too rich for her. So, it’s time for me to start talking with my hay supplier to find out when they will start cutting. I will then get a batch to test for sugar/starch content. The mixed grass I still have from last year was nice and under 11%. More about the intricacies of hay can be found at safergrass.org, an excellent resource. I want to keep her off of any lush pasture and stick with free choice hay though the summer.

So that’s it for today. I have more to say about saddles, but I’ll leave that for another day.

I saw the sun yesterday afternoon from my office window. I finished up, hoping that it would stay long enough for me to get in a ride. Lily looked pretty good when I got to the barn, so I took her out to groom and try the Sensation on.

I’m not used to using Skito pads. The foam was really stiff from being in the tackroom, so I put the saddle on first, then went to do boots, comb her mane and brush her head. By the time I was done, it had warmed up somewhat, so that I could adjust the girth.

For consist testing of saddles, I’m developing a list of things to check. It’s mostly so that I don’t forget something and then wonder about it after I’ve shipped the saddle on.

General

Rider

Horse

Is there anything else that you would add? Please let me know in the comments.

Here’s how the Sensation rated after a short ride. We mostly walked on local roads, no real hills and only a bit of trot and canter that Lily offered. I was just glad that she was feeling good!

General

Rider

Horse

I am going to try the saddle on a longer ride with Vinnie this weekend, so the jury is out at this point.

Here are a few more photos. The rest are on Flickr here.

I love the pear trees in the background. Not planned, at least by me! Rachel took the photo.

I would like to be able to bring my feet back under me more, if I wanted to.

I am on the hunt for a new saddle. I’ve been riding in a FreeForm Classic SB (I bought it when they first came out and this was the only version) and a Wintec AP 2000. The Wintec fits both my horses moderately well, but it’s a tad small for me. I also don’t think that it’s quite comfortable enough for the long rides needed for endurance conditioning.

The FreeForm Classic is way too large for Vinnie. I would have to get a girth that was so short as to be ineffective. I already have two custom Montana Cincha dressage girths, 18″ and 20″. I really don’t think that I want to go any smaller than that. Lily became uncomfortable in it over the last month or so and I think that it’s been putting pressure on her withers. I swapped out to a Barefoot London on our last ride and she did much better. She’s currently laid up with some soundness issues, but more on that in another post… Needless to say, I can’t try any saddles out on her now, which limits my demo horse to Vinnie.

So the search is on…

I am pretty sure I will end up with a treeless saddle, as they are more able to accommodate changing condition and different horses. I realize that no one saddle will fit all horses. And I’m not closed to the idea of a treed saddle, if it fits and isn’t too heavy. Treeless saddles have come far in the last few years with many new models and options out there. I am looking forward to exploring some of them.

E-Z Fit

I tried one last month. I went with a medium and should have ordered a small. It was HUGE on my horses. It didn’t give me the close contact feel that I want, as there was too much leather between my thigh and the horse. A few of us tried it out one weekend. This particular one was not a fit for any of us. It turned out that Eli Beiler had tried out a new material to stiffen the seat. It created a ridge down the middle, not so comfortable for the rider. He was just great about it and refunded my demo fee and shipping. I am sure that the next one will be an improvement on this. This is an interesting saddle design and one to watch. It’s just not a fit for me.

Sensation Western

I received my demo yesterday! It was pouring down rain, so I only got to put it on my horses in their stalls. Lily let me know that it was NOT okay for me to even try to sit in it. This had nothing to do with the saddle, unfortunately. I did get on Vinnie and rode him up and down the barn aisle a couple of times.

I need to get out on the trail to really see how it will work out. My first impression is that I might want more twist. I think that there is a bolster to put under the seat for that. I’m also not entirely sure about how one side of the stirrup leathers hang from the bottom of the saddle flap. I understand that it is to help distribute weight, but I like to be able to move my legs as needed. Trail testing on hills is needed. Other than these two points, it was very comfortable, well made and put me in just the right spot. Vinnie moved out as well as could be expected in these limited circumstances. I really like all the choices in colors and leathers. No photos yet, but check back in a few days.

Barefoot Atlanta

This is next on my list to demo. I am being cautious about buying saddles just to try them out. I’ve done enough of that so far, so I appreciate vendors with generous demo programs. I really like the minimal look of the Atlanta, light weight and it looks like it would work for horses with forward girth grooves like mine.

Startrekk

I would also like to try a Startrekk saddle. The problem I have here is simply choosing a model. They all look nice! What I would really like is a Western in brown with border tooling and an Espaniola, maybe the simple brown model for a classic look.

Trekker

I have tried my friend, Romina’s Endurance Pro Original and really liked it. It has more structure than some treeless saddles, a built in spine channel and is quite adjustable. The only thing that I didn’t care for was the height of the pommel. A few times, I ran into it ducking to go under tree limbs. We ride in some pretty thick woods, so that’s a common occurrence even with my small horses. I rode Paisano ten miles in this saddle. We were both comfortable. I also like that it doesn’t need a special pad like some less structured treeless saddles. So this one is on the list.

I’ll have more to say after the weekend when I try the Sensation out on the trails. It’s supposed to clear up on Sunday. Keep sunny thoughts in mind for us!