hapless hacking and Actual Riding log

[Mitchy1nge]

is the riding log full now? Haven't seen it for ages.

Anyway we (well, me and the horse) are back in very light work at last, 2013 can finally begin!

What are your goals?

am relieved to have finally bought this beautiful 4yo, will be even more relieved once we have her home (she seems a long away up north) here she is with my friend who backed her

She is lovely, and very welsh!

I know! And so orange!

She's beautiful - I know people say chestnut mares can be opinionated, but one of my first horses was orange with four white legs and a blaze and was the most willing and wonderful friend.

What are your plans with her? She looks a winner!

we have NO ambitions - beyond a bit of unaff SJ/XC eventually, maybe some shows. She hasn't been to many shows but was placed each time although that's not a great consideration for us at all

daughter will school her, I'll hack. She's hunted a few times and was an angel (although if anyone here from the S Durham hunt recognises her and can tell me otherwise it's too late now)

she did a lovely test though, in the pic, 64% I think? had never even seen an arena before

I have had a crap week...... I was working in London on Mon and dh (husband not horse) commented that dpony didn't seem himself when he got him in from the field. I didn't get back until 11pm so left it, and when I went down at 6.30am he seemed fine, ate his breakfast and mooched about his starvation patch ok.

I went down at midday ish and he was lying down which in itself isn't unusual but he was reluctant to get up and when I let him out he didn't stick his head down and start eating but wandered around for a bit looking uninterested and then he lay down again, on his side with all four legs sticking out. So, rang the vet who came out and gave him Buscopan and bute, no temperature but quite a high heart rate. She told me to check him hourly and ring back which I did and I'd no sooner done the 5.00 check when he took a turn for the worse so the vet came out again and did a rectal exam which showed nothing obvious, and then he was given some fluids by tube and some more bute. He seems ok now but results of a worm sample show a high red worm burden (despite regular worming) which may have contributed to his belly ache. So, that was worrying and no doubt expensive.

Yesterday I took dhorse out for a ride to see how he was after a month of coughing (antibiotics, Sputolosin and Ventipulmin all been given) and he's still coughing - less, but enough to stop me doing a fun ride this Sunday (and probably another next and also being a mounted steward at the point to point on 17th). However, worse than that he just didn't feel "right" behind and was wanting to trot rather than walk down hill. When he was shod on Wednesday he didn't seem particularly comfortable, but then he never is and it didn't seem worse than usual but coupling it with what he felt like yesterday I'm sure something is wrong. When I ran my hands over his back he was also quite grumpy and ducked away. Bearing in mind his kissing spine history I'm beginning to feel that I'm reaching the end of my tether here. How much longer do I go on throwing money at something that is never going to go away, and more to the point he's obviously uncomfortable and that seems like it's never going to go away either.

I have the vet booked to come out on Tuesday to scope him, and I will ask her to look at his back - my thought is to get him referred straight away for an x ray on it rather than getting his physio out, and then if there are significant changes or deterioration then I'm going to have to make a big decision. If the xray shows nothing then I can go down the physio route. This is completely wearing me out, the 3rd consecutive summer that I've had to deal with something and we had so many plans and he's been so good over the winter. I'm gutted.

:( frosty

not sure what to say except that I hope the right decision feels clear to you whether to persevere or, you know and

Oh frosty, everything crossed for tomorrow. Hope its just a tweak or something simple

Orange girl is lovely Mitchy. Has she settled in?

she's settled in extraordinarily well so far, thanks, except ate the farm out of straw so I've had a productive day of lugging bales of shavings in and out of the communal land rover

been in our school a couple of times and on a small hack, just walk and trot, has a good look at everything but nothing seems to worry her - actually she's not amazingly responsive in general but I think that could be a good thing. It's easier to heat them up than calm them down isn't it? 'boot camp' starts officially tomorrow but I don't think the producer will find her much of a challenge she's so sweet, and the boys (horse and pony) are smitten but trail round at a safe distance because she's reserved all her affections for the sec B in our field who matches her :)

Lovely pictures Mitchy - she looks like she's settled in really well. Mixed news for me: the vet did a lot of poking and prodding of Dhorse's back, plus flexion and circling tests and pronounced that he thought it wasn't too bad at all (having read the initial diagnosis and surgery reports that I gave him). He didn't feel an xray was necessary and suggested that if I want he could prescribe 7 days of bute and see if that makes any difference. As he put it "a crude but effective way" of seeing if there is something wrong rather than just me seeing things that aren't there. He was very understanding and didn't ridicule me for panicking.

Cough wise it's a bit of a mystery - all the time dhorse was being trotted up and down he didn't cough once, nor is there any discharge. However when the scope went down his lungs are full of "gunk" - including bits of grass and black specks, ugh. His larynx isn't paralysed which is sometimes a symptom of grass in the lungs, and they couldn't see any obvious cause. Samples have been taken and we go from there. Meanwhile he's on the lovely Sputulosin to try and loosen the gunk. £££££'s again!

So no outings for the foreseeable future - no fun ride, hunter trial or stewarding at the point to point which were our plans for the next few weeks - it's pants.

:( oh frosty how disappointing, all this lovely weather too, it will be hard not to ride? how is his cough? hope the bute helps pinpoint what else is going on, and glad at least the vet was helpful and supportive! I wish someone would invent a cheap but lovely and effective veterinary service

our orange girl did her first circuit of the school in canter today, she is very sweet and willing but there is a long road ahead although we knew that and it confirms that daughter's input for now can be working on walk and trot transitions and bendiness and straightness between actual Schooling

taking her for a proper hack tomorrow and looking forward to cantering without worry about lead leg and with her being a bit more naturally forward going (hopefully) fingers crossed

Dhorse's results are back from Newmarket - a deep seated bacterial infection, possibly secondary to COPD. He's been prescribed 10 days of antibiotics and Sputulosin and then a re examination. I'm not sure that COPD is the cause as it's the first time he's ever coughed for more than a day, but will hold fire there and see what the antibiotics do. He's happy to have them as I lace his food with liquid molasses which he loves so at least I know he'll get the full dose!

I've decided to start doing his back exercises again, and then see how he feels when I get on and decide whether the physio is necessary. I'm not sure how long he'll be off for but in my mind I've written off the next four weeks.

hi frosty, that news could have been worse couldn't it?

I think humans can have COPD in earlier forms without the hallmark yucky cough so maybe it's true in horses too?

Yes, I'm cautiously optimistic, although wary of getting too excited. Just submitted my fourth insurance claim in 3 years - getting my money's worth from SEIB - who have been absolutely fine with it all, thank goodness. It's a bit like waiting for a bomb to go off though as I know that the back op isn't a permanent cure and there's no way of knowing how long it will keep him pain free - I keep asking myself "is this it?" and seeing monsters where quite possible there are none. However I do feel less doom ridden than last week so that's a good thing - even if I can't ride!

How is the orange one doing (we must have a better name!)? Did you have a nice hack? I think young ones can learn so much just pootling about, without it blowing their brains or forcing them, and it's a great way to get to know them too.

Brought the new 4yo 13h show hunter home on Monday after a hack out at producers. DD is going to hack him about for a month or so to get more used to him. Hopefully plan to take him to his first show in mid June. He's green but have to start somewhere.

SP still not qualified for RI! 2nd and 3rd in the two RI qualifiers at Winter Champs. Off to Royal Windsor - more for the pleasure of competing there rather than with any aspirations. After that have just 4 more opportunities to qualify and they come in a 7 day period!

You know the rules Butkin - new horse = pictures....! It sounds very exciting.

oh yes let's see!

OK - just for you two I've taken a photo of DD riding him for the first time at home this evening. Just out on a hack so not properly posed. You can find it by clicking my username..

ooh he looks ready for action, what does he move like? good luck at windsor

Lovely looking pony, and really like the colour! How did she get on, he looks quite perky.....

He's 4 and we bought him unbroken back in January. He has been to a show for a ride around and was a good boy but still too green to compete. He has very extravagant paces - particularly in canter. We've not asked him to gallop yet and we're still in snaffles/wilkies - not tried him in a double yet. We've brought him home for a couple of months just so DD can ride him most days. Hope to take him to a show some time in June or July. Our aim is to take him to do a novice class at the BSPS Summer Champs. He is going to be a 13H Show Hunter Pony but he is a pure bred Section B so can do those classes as well if necessary going forward.

This is driving me nuts..... After his diagnosis of a deep seated bacterial infection Dhorse has just finished a 10 day course of Trimed (something or other), and his 3rd pot of Sputulosin and under vets instructions I was advised to start him back into work (after 6 weeks of coughing). I hadn't heard him coughing for a good 5 days prior to that.

So, walked him in hand Sunday with no problems, hacked for 45 mins, just a gentle walk around the farm on Wednesday with no problems. Took him out this morning for the same gentle walk and cough, cough, cough - no discharge and nothing coughed up. I've had another lengthy conversation with the vet who has given us another pot of Sputulosin and has ordered some special sooper dooper expensive antibiotics which will come on Tuesday, and that's another 10 day course.

I asked what happens if those don't work - she says there is another antibiotic to try but after that it requires a referral to the hospital and they will do another scope and a vigorous work up to see how he reacts. From there apparently there are surgical options or permanent medication options..... There's talk of COPD and a paralysed larynx among other things. I know that individually these are probably manageable, but combined with the back problem they make me feel rather pessimistic.

I have made the decision with a heavy heart that we will try the antibiotics, and probably go for the work up and then see. I'm not going down the surgical route - it's just not worth it putting him through that when his back is a ticking time bomb and no one knows how long it will stay good. The vet (and the senior partner) are both in agreement that it does not make sense to subject him to surgery (just a standing op last summer knocked him sideways for a long time).

However, that's in theory, when/if decision time comes I'm not sure what will happen. I love him to bits, but can not go on subjecting him to more and more medical processes, and in the meantime he's bored rigid in the field - chasing the chickens, the pony and the sheep, eating the fence and generally being pissed off (like his owner!).

Long shot I know but you haven't got any rape on your farm have you? We had a pony years ago who always coughed (no discharge) when ridden near rape when it was in flower and I've heard it can be bad for asthmatics too. The pony originally had a lung infection (was scoped by vet, vaguely remember ventapulmin and antibiotics) and was ok after but some things always set him off, (rape and frosty air being two).

No, we're are as far from rape as we have ever been which is in a way frustrating - at least I could blame it on something!