Fay

Wow, the weather over NC this week has been positively dreadful!!  We are getting the outerbands of the Tropical Storm Fay – and so far we’ve had several inches of rain fall over us.  This morning consisted of Tornado Warnings and flood watches.  Needless to say I haven’t had very many opportunities to get out to the barn!

Soccer season is upon us, so that combined with the really long drive to the barn – poor Koda is being a bit neglected this month.   The good news is – on September 1st we are officially  moving in to Cheval! I am so excited. It’s a beautiful place, and it’s literally five minutes away. It really will be an answer to a prayer. Of course, with convenience comes cost, eh? But thankfully I have a husband supportive enough of this ridiculous habit to let me sink money into this absolute money pit that is horses.

I’m hoping once I move back into civilization and get to riding on a regular basis again, that I will have much more to update on this blog, eh?  It ’s been pretty dull since it’s inception, I’m really hopeful that I will have some exciting things to write about after the move.  I’m super excited!

Koda vs. The Bee

So Thursday I decide it was a nice day to go out to the barn and lunge Koda.  At this temporary barn where he is now, there isn’t anywhere really where we can properly school… but she has recently moved the mares into the side pasture, leaving this huge empty FLAT pasture in the back.  My bright idea was to take Koda down into that beautiful pasture and have a nice, leisurely, lunge work session.

We get down there and he’s out on a big circle and he’s giving me a nice working walk, head down… just nice.  All of a sudden, he stops dead in his tracks and pins his ears flat.  It’s unlike Koda to cop an attitude, so I assumed he had a horsefly…. and those things down here in NC are NASTY!  He kicked out violently and at that point I was SURE it was a horsefly.  Assuming the kick probably made the creature vamoose, I picked up the whip and asked him to get going. Again, he stopped, pinned his ears, and kicked out.  Dejected, I pull him in to me to get rid of the fly myself since obviously he’s not doing a very good job.  Well, as he is walking in to me, he starts to REALLY go nuts.  Kicking out, squealing, and even little mini rears. It was then that I saw the bee.  I have always been told that bees sting once and then they die, but not this bee – it was a yellow jacket, I guess they can get you more than once? This thing was going CRAZY on Koda – stinging him over and over again. 

At this point he is SOOO freaked out that I can hardly get near him, and I definitely can’t go after the bee because KODA is busy going after the bee with his feet.  Not in the mood for a hoof to the head, I quickly unhooked the lunge line and let the boy run.  He took off like a bat out of hell thru that pasture, squealing, kicking, bucking, rearing…. it was like a scene from a cowboy movie where they are trying to break the mustang stallion. LOL!!!  He trucked around like that for nearly 10 minutes, never stopping.  Just galloping like CRAZY.

I finally caught him, he must have outrun the bee at some point, and the poor boy was COVERED in welts right around the girth area.  This thing had just gone to town on him!!

I cold hosed the stings for several minutes and watched him for over a half an hour and when I was confident that he was not going to die of an allergic reaction like Thomas J on My Girl, (:p) I put him back into his stall with a flake of hay for his trouble.  After a work out like that, I couldn’t justify the lunge session!

Poor Koda – some days I really do think he is a walking disaster magnet!

Why am I afraid to fall off?

We all know that riding = falling off. It’s why I tell my daughter who has just started riding lessons.  They are synonomous with one another.  I would wager that there isn’t a rider in the world that has been riding for any substantial length of time who has not fallen off!  I remember in my childhood hitting the dirt numerous times… a few of which ended me in the ER.  Back then, though… I had no fear of falling.  It was one of those things that came with the territory and I accepted it for what it was – a pain in the ass, but necessary.  I had no fear at ALL back in the day.  I would gallop my OTTB up and down the lanes with nothing on him but a halter and a lead rope… and never looked back.

These days, I find myself getting all worked up over NOTHING! It’s like somewhere between 19 and 30, my psyche has changed.  What gives?  And it hits me at the craziest of times… I can be in the ring jumping over a set of barrels on my green horse and never bat an eye – leave the ring and come across something that makes Koda uncomfortable and *I* start to get all pent up.  Which of course makes Koda all pent up.

What is even more confusing, is that Koda has never EVER given me a reason not to trust him.  If anything, he has bent over backwards to save my incompetent ass on more than one occasion.  The only times I have fallen off him have not been from a bolt, or a buck, or even a refusal – but they have come from him tripping and completely going down.  The first time that happened, I was pinned underneath him and instead of flailing and freaking out at the situation (he was actually cast in the corner of the ring by the fence!)… he waited patiently for me to get myself free – even shifting his weight to help me out.  The horse is an angel, he really is!

But it’s like now, I have this sick fear. And it’s been there ever since I have been back on the horse.  I blame it on my kids – and my adult responsibilities.  Back in the day, I had nothing like that to deal with or worry about. But I do worry that I will really hurt myself and not be able to parent my children properly.

I keep telling people it’s why I bought this sweet Quarter Horse… because he’s close to the ground, and he takes care of me!  So I suppose the best thing I can do is keep riding, take deep breaths, and confront the things that make me quake now.  Besides, Koda and I have so much fun together without the bare back gallops and the 4 foot fences, right? Who needs that crazy stuff anyway!

I’ll leave that for those invincible teens…. the ones that remind me of me 15 years ago.

14 again.

Last night, after our ride… I untacked, cooled down, threw a sweat sheet on the boy and then decided to hop on bareback and just sit.  For twenty minutes it was just Koda and I… grazing out next to the barn.  It was getting dark, the lightening bugs were already out, and it was just so peaceful.  I really did feel like I was 14 again… when there really was nothing betting in life than the time spent at the barn on top of a horse.

Adulthood with all it’s many stresses likes to get in the way with the easier things in life sometimes… but last night sitting up on top of that big old horse who was just as content to have me up there as I was to be there…. reminded me that nothing really compares to  the time one spends on the back of a horse. .. Doing nothing more than just “being”.

The X-Files, Cont.

Honestly, it’s the mystery of the ages.

Went out to the barn last night… Koda still had some slight puffiness in his rear pasterns.  Indicative of stocking up. Like I said before, he’s a QH – I’ve seen it before. It happens.  He’s not getting worked like he should be at this barn, and I think his body is starting to seriously show it now. *audible sigh*.   But – get this! The front leg was completely fine, no swelling, heat, NADA.  Go to pick his hooves and realize the OTHER leg is all puffy and full of heat! What the…?

So this swelling is just jumping from leg to leg now?

I worked him lightly for about twenty minutes last night – no sign of lameness anywhere, or pain for that matter.  I left instructions for the Barn Owner to leave him out all day today instead of stalling him – we’ll see if that helps any.

Random Swelling update

I went out yesterday to assess the situation, and I was very pleased to see that the swelling was completely gone in the front left, and the back had gone from looking like stovepipes to just being slightly puffy around the pasterns. 

I repeated the same steps as previous days – cold hose, hand walking, and even added some trotting in there for good measure.  No lameness, and by the time I put him in his stall after all was said and done, they looked almost completley normal everywhere. 

So I’m less worried now.

Very strange occurence though, still not sure what to make of it.  Sometimes I really wish they could talk.  LOL! My very uneducated guess is that it was something viral in nature – and it has simply just run it’s course. 

Now, let’s pray for the heat to break (it’s over 100 here in NC today) so I can ride and see how he moves under saddle, eh?

Swelling? Stocking up? What is this?!

Went out to the barn yesterday, all geared up to ride – even in the stifling heat – since my week is crazed this week.  So much going on.  So I get out there, and wouldn’t you know the horse is off.  I have no idea what’s going on with him… it looks as if he’s just stocked up, but that also doesn’t make sense.

He has three swollen limbs.  Both rear, and then the right front.  Heat in all three, but moreso in the front. 

I handwalked him, cold hosed, bute.  NO change last night.   He was turned out all night, and I think he looked better when I went out there around 12 this afternoon.  Did the same routine again…. cold hosed, bute, hand walk.

Anyone have any ideas? My first thought was stocking up – he’s not lame, moving fine, eating, etc. But then – why only in three? Why not just the back, or all four?  Very strange. He has stocked up before (he’s a QH, and a finicky grey at that!), but it’s always been in the back. Never in the front.

Maybe viral?

Ugh – the one week I’m completely stressed and unable to get out there like I want to, and he does this. They are like really big children.  Really finicky, high maintenance, children! Hell bent on giving you grey hairs!

Random Blatherings

First off:  Please tell me you have watched Dr. Horrible.  If you haven’t, promise me that after you finish reading this blog you will go find it on Hulu, or Myspace, and watch it!! It’s phenomenal.  Who knew Neil Patrick Harris could sing?  Love me some Neil Patrick Harris!

Second:  Who else is so fricken excited they can’t stand it for the book release tomorrow of Breaking Dawn?! If you don’t know what I am talking about, here is my second recommendation for the day. After watching Dr. Horrible, get to a bookstore and purchase “Twilight” by Stephenie Meyer.  Read it. Become addicted.  Go back out to the bookstore after you devour it to purchase the rest of the books in the series.  There are currently three, but tomorrow marks the release of book four which supposedly is the last book in the series.  Look, I don’t care how old you are – you’ll love these books. I’m a thirty year old mom of three young kids and I sucked this book down like CRACK!

Yes, this was definitely an unhorsey blog today, but with my schedule this week my horse happenings have been few and far between unfortunately.   I was able to get out today and spend some time with the boy just snuggling… but it was way too hot to ride. Blech.  Hopefully this weekend?

Peace, Love, and Twilight!!!

Notice has been given.

Well, we gave our notice at the barn – but when I say “we” I use that term loosely.  I wasn’t there, but my friend who is moving with me gave the notice for me.  Can you say “wuss”? I wish I could have been there, even though I am terrible with words… just because I know it had to be hard.  Our barn owner is really a stand up gal. I feel terrible for leaving, it’s just so far away – and it’s hard to justify owning a horse when he’s so far away vs. this new place which is literally less than 3 miles from my house!

She said she understood… and she wasn’t mad or upset with us.  I think I would have rather her at least be pissy at me so I could have a reason to feel the way I do about this move.  Which is BAD!

Ah well, the thirty day countdown is on!  Bring on September!!!

So out of shape.

Koda and I both are… it’s terrible. But to my credit, it’s been unbearably hot here in the south.  And where I have him stabled now, well – it’s just not really set up for any real schooling.  It’s basically a trail riding barn, and that’s great – but it’s not what Koda and I do – and definitely not what he needs to stay in shape! ACK!  We rode for only twenty minutes today before I just was miserable in the heat.  Is it October yet?

Next month we’ll have to buckle down and get some real work done, once we have moved in to the new place.

I already have a routine in mind.

I plan on riding tomorrow as well… I am considering asking the Barn Owner if I can move some ground poles up to the flat field in front of the barn just to work his hind end a bit here and there on the straight aways.  She has an arena, but it’s just not set up for safe schooling. The footing is way to deep and Koda is a clutz at the best of times… last week he tripped and went down during a transition from walk to trot, and I can’t that kind of risk again. One of us is going to get seriously hurt!