Yesterday when I got out there, who did I see with the farrier but my sweet girl. She was being held by his assistant, and was being her typical model citizen. I asked if she was behaving, and the farrier (it was our first face to face meeting) told me that his job would a lot easier if every horse behaved like she does. I love hearing that. Not just from motherly pride, but I also like to know my horse is safe for other people to deal with. I have gotten very comfortable with her, and the one thing I have tried to maintain is her good manners, so I like to know that she does act nicely.
And her feet now look fabulous! Her pigeon-toedness had caused her to unevenly distribute her weight so one of the sides of her feet was actually rolled on one side. That roll is now gone, leaving a nice healthy and thick hoof wall. Her feet look really good now, even and in good shape. Before I had resisted shoeing her a little (though I was open to advice) because I like the idea of them being barefoot if possible. But the bottom line is she had outgrown hooves that exacerbated her minor conformation issue, and she needed shoes. So she is in good shape, and was moving well as she walked around the round pen.
On the other end of the behavior spectrum is my main man Reebok. We suspect he was left alone for long periods, then hauled in and shoed (perhaps being handled roughly) then put back out again. In any case, he lets me pick up his feet to clean them, but apparently shoeing him is a whole other animal. So Erin sedated that boy. In about 5 minutes, he went from a whinnying nervous wreck to looking like a stoner chillin' in the shade. He got this groovy look on his face.
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| Dut-de-da-da feelin' groovy! |
I held him while he was shoed, and he was such a hoot. He leaned his big ole head on me and let out big sighs every so often. If he lifted his head at all, he would sniff me deeply then relax. Of course he did; no doubt I have the scent of Skye all over me. What could be better than that for him than for me to smell like his excellent head of herd? He is sweet anyway, though sometimes pushy in a confused and nervous way (as opposed to Skye's occasional bossy and know-it-all way), but when he was drugged, he was too funny. I love that boy. I hope he does as well under saddle as he is doing on the ground. Considering his sketchy history, he really did well the other day and I felt like he was really trying. You can't ask for more than that.
Today I was only there for a short while to get Skye in the round pen, and she was so distracted that Erin wisely suggested that we put that cutey pie Blade (a little Quarter/Arab) in there with her. She gave him a good once over with her nose, then pushed him around the pen a little. She seemed much happier to have some company.
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| Don't be fooled. He's more sheepish than downtrodden. He is above Reebok in the pecking order. |
And the good news is every time something happens with her, I learn something new. The new thing I have now learned is how to do a standing wrap. I'm pretty good at it now, if I do say so myself.
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| Please hold your applause. After all, I can't hear you. |
Of course, as usual, the true story is the credit goes to Skye. She stood like a statue for me while I wrapped it today, which is probably the explanation for how well I did. I will take a little credit for the right tension in the wrap, which is a bit of an artful thing.
Because she was such a good girl, and because Erin told me the DMSO gives them a bad taste in their mouths, I gave her an apple cookie. She always sticks her tongue out when she gets something she really likes.
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| She may need some chapstick if she doesn't stop. Like that wouldn't be messy. |
Against doctor's orders, she cavorted around a little before we got Blade in there (one reason we decided to put him in there). She was adorable, and more importantly, showed zero evidence of lameness.
X-rays and the latest verdict tomorrow.
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