Read all about the progress of this promising mare as she transitions from life at the track (and former YouTube sensation) to life as a show hunter: http://thetdnblog.blogspot.com/2012/06/thewifedoesntknow-training-blog-week-1.html
And here’s the introduction, in case you have not seen it yet… http://thetdnblog.blogspot.com/2012/06/life-after-youtube-next-chapter-for.html
Wizard Session 372: Lake of Fire
Saturday, 6/23/12
After Friday’s thunderstorms, the heat wave cooled off and we had a really nice weekend here in New Jersey. I took Wizard out for a hike in the Assunpink and met up with some friends from another barn who were riding Zeke and Lily. We met up near the Horse Park and went out onto the trails. I was hand walking Wizard, and it’s easier to do so in open fields than it is on wooded trails. But when we got close to Stone Tavern Lake, I got curious and we ended up on a trail I had never been on before. The trail snaked alongside the lake, up and down little hills, and eventually led us to the lake. Wizard immediately stepped in the lake and began pawing and playing. We asked a fisherman which trails took us back out, and he pointed out a trail that ran alongside the wooded trail we took in, up on higher ground. We tried the trail, but it was super steep, and narrow, and a little slick from the rain. Wizard did a really good job of keeping his cool as we backed halfway back down it and then turned around as soon as we had the space.
We went up another trail (also steep!) and got back out to a clearing (whew!). Those steep trails are quite a workout on foot- I had to ask everyone to stop once so I could catch my breath. We winded our way back to the field with the big mulberry bush and then found the road and parted company. By the time I got back to the barn (video above of Wizard’s animated walk back home), I estimate that we hiked between 2 and 3 miles. I was really worried that I overdid it on my back. When I got home, I babied my back, stretching it carefully and giving it plenty of rest. When I woke up on Sunday, I was muscle sore, but I did not feel anything scary or painful. I must be getting stronger. My physical therapist gave me clearance to start riding a little bit this week. Hooray! She stressed that I need to keep the rides short and sweet and that I should not overdo it. As long as I’m back in the saddle, I’ll be happy!
Wizard was a bit of the turkey while we were grooming and on the way home on the trail hike. He was pretty focused on Sunny, his pasture buddy. Hopefully, the increase in work will give him something else to focus on next week.
Since May 30, I’ve been battling with my herniated discs. Barn time has been sporadic, which is unfortunate since we are in the heart of the wonderfully long days of June. On June 16, I weight-taped Wizard and he weighed in at (drum roll, please) 1019lbs. He is now gaining over 20lbs per week (estimated). YESSSS!
He completed his course of 28 days of UlcerGard tubes on June 11 and I gave him one more week of the omeprazole granules at the treatment level for good measure, followed by tapering amounts. We started two packets on June 20.
Thursday, 6/7/12
My mom and I took Wizard for a hand walk down the main road, up the cinder road to the “bowling pin” and back down the road to the farm. It was about a mile. Wizard was very happy to get out and good to work with.
Saturday, 6/16/12
I took Wizard for another hand walk in the park, this time with Christie and Brigid. We took a short walk, less than a mile, just to the hunt club, around the brush jump, and back to the farm. Wizard was happy to be out with his buddy Brigid.
Tuesday, 6/19/12
My husband came to the barn with me and we took Wizard for a really nice evening hike in the park. We walked to the parking area, up the hill to the bowling pin, down the cinder road, and onto the main road back to the farm. It was about a mile and a half. We saw a red-tailed hawk and several rabbits. Wizard had one bucking fit when we got past the log cabin and the flies really got to him. Thankfully, I was leading him and my back did not have to suffer through those bucks in a saddle. Other than the bucking, he was very good to groom and walk.
Thursday, 6/21/12
The weather was H-O-T! Temperatures were humid and topped out in the high 90s. In the morning, I took Wizard out for a hike with my mom and with Christie, who rode Brigid. We walked to the log cabin, hiked up the hill to the bowling pin, walked down the hill on a trail that circles around the field’s perimeter to a trail that took us to the wheat field, which led us to the road home. We saw several rabbits, including a REALLY cute baby.
Wizard was a little agitated when I groomed him. It was earlier than our usual walks, just after breakfast. I think I was interrupting his morning time with his girlfriend, Sunny. It must be the time when they usually have coffee and do their crossword puzzles together. After the walk, I hosed him off and got a little more hair off him. He is mostly shed out, but held onto a little hair when he moved to the new barn in April. I’m counting down the days until my physical therapist says that I’m allowed to ride again!
If you own a horse who has gastric ulcers and if you frequent the Chronicle of the Horse forums, you are probably familiar with the Abler enteric coated omeprazole granules, affectionately renamed “blue pop rocks” by a forum contributor.
Many horses eat the harmless, flavorless granules with no problem if they are sprinkled on a serving of grain. But sometimes, there are horses like Wizard, who object to the texture and decide that the pop rocks are poisonous.
For a while, I added a blob of molasses to his feed and dumped the pop rocks on the molasses blob, but then my friend Christie came up with a brilliant, less messy idea:
1) Buy a bucket of Stud Muffins, or similarly delicious, large, and SOFT horse treat.
2) You will need one muffin per sachet of granules. Put the first muffin in a small Dixie cup- the little bathroom ones work great.
3) For added softness, microwave the treat for a few seconds or add a few drops of water.
4) Make a hollow pocket in the muffin with your fingers, pressing the edges of the treat onto the walls of the cup. The deeper a pocket you can make, the better.
5) Pour one sachet of omeprazole granules into the hollowed-out treat.
6) Using the walls of the cup, mold the treat back into its original shape. This will conceal the omeprazole granules and make the treat look normal.
7) Remove the treat from the cup and feed to your horse. Yum!
Wizard Ride 367: Gimmie Gimmie Gimmie
Saturday, 6/9/12
A stunning turn of events in the racing world led me to riding in the Assunpink on Belmont Stakes Day. My back had been feeling pretty punky since our vet appt on May 30, and I was dutifully babying it. I had myself prepared for the eventuality that I would have to lug ladders and camera gear all over Belmont Park on Saturday for the Belmont Stakes, especially with I’ll Have Another bidding for Triple Crown stardom. But on Friday morning, it was announced that he had a tendon injury, would not run in the Belmont, and would be retired from racing.
It was a big bummer for me as a shooter, since I’ve yet to see a Triple Crown in person (all I’ve got are Slew and Affirmed since I was born). I’m really glad to hear that the horse is in good shape and that his connections did the right thing by him.
And I took the announcement as an omen that I should enjoy the day on horseback in the Assunpink instead of slaving away with cranky photographers at Belmont Park. And so I did- gimme some saddle time. Wizard stood quietly as we tacked up with his filly friend, Brigid. He stood like a statue as I mounted up for our ride. My back felt fine during the ride. Whew…
We rode a little over an hour in the park, all at a walk. We took the paved road out of the barn and down to the back Horse Park of NJ entrance. We walked around the entire back cross country field. This was Wizard’s second ride in this field. The first time, he got pretty excited out there, but we were with a larger group and we were trotting and cantering. Something about an open field without a path gets his engines revved. He is fine in the big fields with paths across them or around the edges, but a giant grass field is just too much for his little brain. The bugs were worst in the cross country field, too, so that added to his anxiety. He did not do anything bad, but U could sorta feel him wanting to blow up a little.
We walked back out of the Horse Park on the gravel path, and into the rest of the park, riding through the “roundabout” field, up a red clay road, and over the ridge of the “bowling pin” field. When we got to the trailer parking area, Christie dismounted to make a tack adjustment and remounted at the picnic table. Always a good skill to perfect!
Wizard was pretty antsy when we stopped to chat with a rider and his horse, but other than that, he strode home with a confident and comfortable walk. We played “pole bending” around the trees by the gate so the horses learned that work is not always over when we get back to the barn.
I brought Wizard over to the tack up mats and GINGERLY dangled from his neck and dismounted. Success. Dismounting on mats is a GREAT idea.
Wizard got a hosedown and was being prepared for turnout when he began to dance around like a bit of a nut. I could tell he was about to throw a tantrum, so I unclipped his tie and fastened the chain over his nose on his leadrope. He proceeded to wag his head back and forth and pull back pretty hard on me, rearing a few times when he hit the end of the line. I got him away from the horses who were lined up next to him, and gave him a sharp pop each time he considered rearing up. I turned my shoulder away from him and got him moving forward as quickly as I could. We did a few circles before I returned him to the tackup area. I could see a drop of blood on the side of his nose. I assume a bug bit him. My friends said they saw something flying around him as well. I understand that these bug bites hurt, but there’s no excuse for rearing unless he’s by himself, loose in the field. For the rest of the session, he stood like a stone, behaving like a perfect gentleman. And I doubled up on fly spray ;^)
Wizard’s Veterinary Report: 5/30/12
The vet evaluated Wizard’s lameness on Wednesday morning, May 30. We began with her palpating his front limbs and examining his overall appearance. We had been in touch about his weight loss, but upon inspection, she confirmed that he lost well over 100 pounds since our last exam in April. He is now on 2 acres of pasture 24/7 and the same amount of grain as he got at the old barn, so he is simply stressing it off. He is finally in his permanent paddock, so I’m hoping that he will gain everything back soon. She said that horses can gain 20 pounds in a week when they are relaxed and not stressed.
The vet did 4 blocks: Palmar Digital Block, Basisesamoid Block, Low 4 Point Block, and Proximal Suspensory Block.
The Palmar Digital Block covered the following:
Structures Anaesthetized
All of structures with PD
P 2, 3
Pastern Joint
Coffin Joint
Entire corium
Dorsal branch of the suspensory ligament
Extensor tendon insertion
Entire foot
Common Conditions Diagnosed
Laminitis
Ring Bone
P3 Fractures
Solar Pain
Subsolar Abscess
Pedal Osteitis
The Basisesamoid block covered the following:
Structures Anaesthetized
All of structures anaesthetized by PD n.block
Three phalanges
Coffin and Pastern joints
Entire corium
Entire sole
Dorsal branches of suspensory ligament
Digital extensor tendon
Distal sesamoidean ligaments
+/- Proximal sesamoid bones
+/- Palmar fetlock joint
Common Conditions Diagnosed
Laminitis
Ring bone
Soft tissue injuries of pastern
Occasionally block fetlock or sesamoid problems
The Low 4 covered the following:
Structures Anaesthetized
All structure of previous block (all of structures distal to the location of nerve block)
Navicular structures
Soft tissue structures of pastern and foot
Sole, Laminae
Three phalanges
Coffin and Pastern and Fetlock joint
Distal Digital tendon Sheath
As we did the Proximal Suspensory block, I could feel my back twist up with the stress of a possible outcome. But there was no change with the suspensory block- WHEW!
While none of the blocks made a significant difference in Wizard’s lameness, the Palmar Digital Block and the Low 4 Point Blocks made a little difference each. But it was not exactly dramatic. It was really subtle. Added to that, Wizard was hollering for mares and not really trotting the way the vet needed. She wanted him relaxed so she could see his true movement. We gained a good amount of information, but not enough to pinpoint which joint was causing issues. It could be his foot, his ankle, or his knee. Also, Wizard was not as lame as he was in the video (above). The vet said that the lame the horse is, the easier it is to diagnose.
So the next plan is to wait til he settles more and is a better candidate for lameness exams. Or wait til he is lamer. And so we wait…
Thank you to Susan Salk of www.offtrackthoroughbreds.com for hosting such a great Q&A with me. You can read it here: http://offtrackthoroughbreds.com/2012/06/07/qa-her-photos-at-camelot-help-save-horses/. It was such a pleasure to chat about photography, volunteerism, and the Camelot Effort.
Wizard Ride 366: You Jane
Sunday, 5/27/12
The weather has been hot and sticky for a few days now, but it gets mercifully cool in the evenings. After work, I met up with Kris and Christie for a walk in the Assunpink. During tackup, Wizard practically snoozed on his tie ring. All was right with the world since we were riding with Sunny, his paddock buddy, and Brigid, one of his favorite horsey neighbors. He stood like a perfect gentleman while I got in the saddle, and we rode in the middle of the group for most of the ride: a mare sandwich. Wizard usually prefers to be at the front of the pack, but being between two of his favorite mares changed his mind.
We rode a reverse path from the ride we did the day before, starting on the road, riding past the hunt club, through a hay field, down some trails, around the “roundabout” field, across the cinder road, over the ridge with the “bowling pin” (it’s some sort of radio tower thingy), and down to the ranger’s station. We saw some rabbits and a person riding an ATV. All the horses were relaxed and enjoyed our little adventure. We were out for a little over an hour.
I measured Wizard with the weight tape and he is about 990 pounds. He has gained give or take 15 pounds in about two weeks. He’s officially out 24/7 on the big paddock as of May 29, so I think that will make a big difference.
On Wednesday, May 30, the vet will look at Wizard’s leg. He feels totally fine on our trail rides, but we’re just walking and we’re not turning sharply at all. When I ask him to trot at liberty in the indoor arena, he is just as lame as he was a few weeks ago. Cross your fingers for a good diagnosis.
Wizard Sessions 363, 364, Ride 365: Down in the Park
I scheduled an appointment with the vet for Weds, May 30. I shot videos so she can get an idea of what we’re looking for. Based on what Wizard is doing, it appears that it’s the inside of his right front leg/foot. To the left, he has more of a head nod. The vet said to keep him working, since she does not want him sound when she tries to examine him! After he’s diagnosed, we will treat/rest/whatever is needed.
Trotting left:
Trotting right:
Weight as of 5/15/12: approx 975 pounds- definitely underweight for his size. Since he has gotten on more pasture and has settled in more, his weight is FINALLY increasing again. I’m hoping that the UlcerGard is helping as well. I can’t believe how quickly he stressed the weight off when we moved.
Wednesday, 5/23/12
After work, I went to the barn and took a walk in the Assunpink with Cathy and Miss Tuesday. This was before the vet told us to work him, so I was resting his leg and we hand walked in the park. We were out for about half an hour, and Wizard was pretty good. He walked on pavement and on the grass.
Friday, 5/25/12
I got a nice note from one of the boarders. She noticed that Wizard had been separated from Sunny for Sunny’s riding lesson, and after his usual hollering and crying, he spent some quiet time with his Thoroughbred neighbor, Bailey. Wizard is finally making friends, and his whole world no longer revolves around one mare.
After work, Wizard got a quick bath and a hand walk in the Assunpink, this time with Christie and Brigid. We mostly walked on pavement, as part of our long-term conditioning plan. Once he’s off the property, he is MUCH more relaxed since he’s away from Sunny. We practiced with some halts when we got close to the barn. He needs to be SOLID on knowing how to stand quietly when needed.
Saturday, 5/26/12
Since the vet wants him working up to the exam day on Weds, I saddled up and rode. During tackup, he was fidgety for about 5 minutes and then settled pretty well. We went back out in the park with Christie and Brigid. We walked over 2 miles, and it was a really nice little ride. Wizard was happy to let Brigid lead sometimes, and they got along very well. We rode past the Monmouth Hunt Club and up and down a few gentle hills. There were lots of rabbits, a few bluebirds, and beautifully-scented spring flowers. It felt GREAT to finally get out for a ride in the park- the trail/hill work was a big reason why we moved in the first place. Back at the barn, he stood pretty well while he was untacked. I think I am finally getting the real Wizard back.
Wizard Rides 361 & 362: Paddling Out
On Monday, May 7, the farrier shod Wizard. We are trying leather rim pads on his front feet.
On Tuesday, May 15, I began Wizard’s 28-day treatment with UlcerGard. On May 16, I shot a few video clips of Wizard trotting on the longe. Bad news: he’s still losing weight. Good news: whatever unsoundness he was dealing with has shown improvement. I spoke with the barn owner, and we’re going to make a few changes and see what helps him. We bumped up his grain (short-term solution to him worrying off so many calories when Sunny is separated from him) and are slowly increasing his grass intake.
On Friday night, Wizard and Sunny were moved from their quarantine paddock to a small grass paddock. During the day, they are turned out on a two-acre grass paddock, and at night, they have grass in more limited amounts. We are still acclimating them to 24/7 pasture. Wizard’s cribbing has not stopped. On the 2-acre paddock, he cribs very infrequently, but in the smaller paddock, he still cribs with some regularity.
I tried another jogging video on Friday morning, this time down the pea gravel driveway. He looked pretty good. I think it’s a combination of the time off and him doing less of a freakout when Sunny is separated from him.
Saturday, 5/19/12
I should have seen this coming, but I didn’t. The move from the quarantine paddock to the new grass paddock basically put Wizard back to Square One with his stress level. He was just as bad as he was when he arrived at the farm a month ago. I tacked him up in the outdoor tackup area, and he paced and whinnied each time Sunny called to him. Sunny must have also been stressed, because she did not stop calling for him for my whole ride.
Our ride was one of the worst rides in my 3 1/2 year history with Wizard. It took 15 minutes just to get him quiet enough to get in the saddle. I did not want to longe him because I was afraid to twist or strain whatever is wrong with his leg. I’m treading a delicate balance between wanting to keep him focused/working and resting whatever soundness/stiffness/arthritis issue he is having.
The moment I settled into the saddle, Wizard was cantering in place, snorting, sweating, champing on the bit. My plan of quietly walking the short sides and trotting the long sides was thrown out the window. The only way I could keep him under control was to work him. We kept the ride to walking and trotting, but it went longer than I wanted, and we did more turns than I wanted. He never truly settled. Every time Sunny called to him, his entire body tensed. He threw a few tantrums when we rode away from her, and I could feel the gravitational pull when we rode toward her. He was so amped up that I could not tell if he was sound or not. I can say, though, that he did not feel lame, for the few stutter steps that I could count out a tempo and feel straightness.
When I untacked him, he fought his tie. He was “checked out”, mentally. When a bug landed on him, he threw several bucks in place. When the lead draped over his head, he reared up a little. I am still using the Blocker Tie Ring, so hopefully if he really gets himself in trouble, it will release as needed.
I hosed him off, gave him his ulcer meds, and put him back in his paddock. My arms were sore, my arms were bruised, and my hands were blistered.
Sunday, 5/20/12
The TDN fates were on my side on Sunday, and I slipped out of work well before dark and headed to the barn. I had two human/equine pairs for my ride this time: Cathy/Miss Tuesday and Kris/Sunny. We all tacked up in the indoor arena since there was a chance of showers. Wizard was very anxious from the very beginning, pacing nervously when he was tied, swinging his hind end from one side to another and swiveling his entire body. He could see Sunny, but he was still stressed. He was worse than he was when we first moved to the new barn.
I let him swing around for a few minutes, for my own safety. Cathy suggested longeing him, but I was trying to avoid stressing whatever issues he has with soundness. As he got more and more worked up, I relented and asked him to trot a few rotations on the longe in each direction. His lameness is subtle, but I definitely saw it more on Sunday than on Saturday. His head dips just a bit each time his left front foot hits the ground. Despite my misgivings about the physical strain, the longeing helped him mentally. He was able to stand reasonably quietly while I tacked him up.
He stood WAY better when I got in the saddle than he did on Saturday, and walked off much more quietly than his performance the day before. But with Sunny in the arena, he began to throw little tantrums when she was out of his sight or passed him in the opposite direction. He does not outright buck or rear, but he leaps around, cantering in place and jumping imaginary jumps. Now that I know him, I can sit his antics reasonably comfortably. If they got worse, who knows ;^)
It took about 15 minutes for him to settle and focus on me. By the end of the ride, he was actually pretty good, seeking contact with the bit and responding well to my leg. His canter was NICE. His trot was pretty good, too. I tried to avoid tight twists and turns and do some of our original plan of walking the short sides and trotting the long sides.
After our arena work, we all decided to take a quick walk into the Assunpink. I hand walked him, since he has a freakishly fast walk. If I had ridden him, I would have had to circle him around or stand a lot while the horses caught up with him, and that would have rattled his fragile brain. Wizard surprised me with his calm demeanor in the park. He strided out confidently, and nothing spooked him at all. The waist-plus-high grass had me wishing I had ridden him after all! He had one mental blip, and that was when he lost track of where Sunny was for a moment.
When we returned to the barn, it was just about dark. Wizard was able to stand quietly while he was tied, resting one hind leg, with one eye always on Sunny. We untacked in the indoor arena and I put Wizard out in the paddock before Sunny went out. He circled at a frantic trot and canter, calling and snorting until Sunny was back in the paddock with him.
All I could imagine was him twisting an already strained leg. I don’t have any diagnosis on what his problem is yet. All I know is that it’s subtle and consistent. It seems to get a little better with rest. It does not bother him at all- he’s very forward and responsive under saddle. I need to try to get a better video of it so the vet can see it. Normally, I’d have the vet out right away to look at something like this, but I just shelled out big bucks for our ulcer scoping, Lyme Disease treatment, etc etc etc, so I’m monitoring it for the moment and will talk with the vet and see what she thinks. I’m happy to rest it if that is what he needs.
This separation anxiety with Sunny has me getting pretty anxious myself. At the old barn, Wizard was the OPPOSITE of a typical herd-bound horse. He could be the only one in the barn, the only one outside, ridden alone in the arenas, ridden alone on trails, without a peep. He was turned out with geldings and they played quite a bit. The last month that he was at the old barn, he was turned out by himself, and was surrounded by mares. I heard from the people who had to work with him that he was a bit of a handful. I’m wondering if he might need to be out with geldings only. I don’t have a lot of evidence, but it seems like mares cause him to lose his mind. I have a particular distaste and lack of tolerance for herd bound horses, so this needs to be nipped in the bud. I can put up with a lot of quirks, but we need to fix this one.
For now, we’re keeping him with Sunny and slowly introducing him to other pasture buddies. So far, it’s a non-event. Cisco was in the same paddock, and they barely even looked at each other after they were introduced. The barn owner is hoping that once he’s in a small herd (4 horses), he will not look to Sunny so much for everything. Since the move to the new barn, she turned into his security blanket. We used to ride all over with Sunny at the old barn and there was zero attachment. This all started with the move a month ago.
My training plans are vague. Balancing a physical issue with a training issue is very difficult. Wizard does well with more work and handling, but the work that he needs involves circles and transitions. Quiet walking is not in his vocabulary right now. I really would like to get a diagnosis on what is bothering his leg so I could figure out how much work we can do. If I leave him alone to hang around with Sunny, he will just get worse, I fear. He had last weekend off while I went away for a quick trip, and he was pretty anxious when I worked with him after I returned. It’s a delicate balance, and we’re working hard to find it.
Rock and Racehorses: The Blog 