What we've been up to this year

The need to update this blog has been niggling. First, I looked back over my lists of posts. Hmm; last year I was absent from here until May 22. It's a bit later than that now, but I haven't been absent for as many months as before. Now that I'm back in the saddle again, I can look forward to enjoying some more adventures this year!

"Back in the saddle" you ask? For those who don't follow me on IG/FB or my sheep/farm blog, you're likely unaware that I had bilateral knee replacements on April 9.

my no-longer-bowed legs one month after surgery

Six weeks and a day after surgery I had a post-op appointment with my surgeon, who surprised me by saying it was okay to ride again. So of course I went home, tacked up Stella, and rode! I had been preparing for that day by resuming the groundwork I did with her before backing her almost five years ago, and I did some of that groundwork before mounting. I also told my son, who was home from work, to keep his phone on in case something happened, and then asked if he'd come down to provide proof. Stella was as good as gold; it certainly helps that I've trained all my horses to stand where I put them so I can use a fence, rock, stump or hump to mount to save their backs from the torque of the saddle tree. I now use that process in reverse to dismount, as sliding off and hitting the ground on my still-recovering legs doesn't sound like a good idea.

preparatory groundwork

'groundwork' done from the arena fence

first time astride post-op

I've ridden nearly every day since, progressing from short walks, to adding a little trotting (sitting is more comfortable than posting), to cantering on the one-week anniversary of getting back in the saddle. And what an anniversary that was, because my husband rode that evening, too! He hadn't been on a horse in years, and Lance hadn't been ridden in years, but Rick really wanted to try out a saddle he had taken in trade on a client's account. Lance reinforced why he's retired, stumbling to his knees once while walking. My tall husband sure looked better on him than he did on his former little cutting/reining-bred QHs, though!

two riders generated a LOT of dust (it's been a very dry spring)

Between my last post in November 2024 and my surgery, Stella and I continued as usual, schooling at home, getting in my usual New Year's Day ride, and poking through the woods in hopes of spotting an early wild iris just days before my surgery.

 

no wild iris, but lots of other flowers, including this feral cherry

There; now I'm all caught up, and so are you!

You knew it couldn't be all sunshine and roses, right?

As I mentioned, it took a looong time for Stella to decide to get in the trailer for our outing to Perrydale Trails last Tuesday. I said "for some reason;" I have a pretty good idea what at least part of the reason was. A couple days before I had decided to long-line her for I think the third time since our lesson with Suzan. The first two times we practiced it Stella did great even though I don't have a round pen, but the third time she was more reactive. I thought we were working through it when she started panicking and took off, yanking the long lines out of my hands. Of course the lines 'chased' her, which panicked her more. She ended up jumping the 4' arena panel into the strip between the arena and barn, where I was able to catch her and 'rescue' her from the lines. (I shudder to think of how bad things could have gotten if she had jumped into the pasture and run through the fir trees which she often does....) When I tried to load her Tuesday morning there was nothing behind her at all, but she definitely acted nervous at first. And once she loaded and we set out exploring Perrydale Trails, she was so wonderfully calm and thoughtful that I was over-the-moon happy with my girl. But I suspected that long-lining again would be a challenge, to say the least – a challenge best left to a professional at it. Since Wednesday's forecast showed rain more likely from late morning on, I texted Suzan about a lesson. She was agreeable, so Wednesday morning I loaded up Stella (Rick was there and stood by, so she got right on) and off we went for a lesson.

I shared what had happened so Suzan backed up a step, putting the outside line over Stella's back instead of around her haunches. She did let her trot, however, which seemed a step forward after the first lesson when everything was done at the walk.

But in spite of that lovely, animated trot, it was apparent to all that Stella was still quite fearful of the long lines. So Suzan took off the surcingle and just worked on desensitizing her to the long lines.

You can see from Stella's lifted back leg in that last photo that she is still quite worried about that outside line. I feel bad that a confidence-destroying wreck happened on my watch, but there is no point in wallowing in regret; we must move on and rebuild trust.

Yesterday I ground-drove her for the first time since the wreck. Had to do a lot with the outside line over her back, just like Suzan did with the long lines, but slowly and carefully graduated to walking behind her. I doubt I'll try long-lining her without a round pen again or at least for the foreseeable future; we'll stick to what we can safely do with what we have.

Stella isn't getting all-day turn-out now that we're getting some rain; I don't want her to slip and injure herself running around in the pasture. Instead I let her burn off steam in the arena; it's been awhile since I've gotten to see her frolic like this!

I'm finally back in the saddle again with my big red goober. After getting treated for his injured ligaments, I started hand-walking him. Had to use a stud chain, because even a lazy boy gets cooped up and full of himself after too much stall rest! After a couple weeks of that, Rick said we could continue our walks under saddle. It is so nice to see this view and have a conversation in "dressage" again; I didn't realize how much I've missed it while working with Stella. Someday she'll learn to speak "dressage," too; I'm looking forward to that!

I'd better reduce the 'snow' load...

...before there's an avalanche!

In plain language, so much has happened in the last two weeks that I'm in danger of forgetting things that I want to document. So this might not be the most eloquent post; maybe a "Just the facts, ma'am." Oh, plus LOTS of videos that I insert here for my own reviewing convenience, not because I expect all of you – or any of you – to be that interested.

Besides getting video proof of riding Stella, Lisa did a lot more with her at our last lesson on September 30. I took seven other video clips to help me remember what we worked on.

As you can see can see, Lisa added a LOT of new things in that lesson – leading from a distance to build confidence, ground-driving with the lines run through surcingle rings on both sides and running around Stella's hind legs, having me add bending and 'one-rein' stops to our bareback rides, adding the saddle back in the working equation, and adding trot to the circle work. Stella handled it all very well, and as I continued to practice daily and think about my calendar, I decided, after conferring with Lisa, that we were ready for a long-lining lesson with Suzan Davis Atkinson. Last Wednesday was the only possibility until sometime in November when the weather could be a problem, so instead of Lisa coming to my place to give us a lesson, she met me at Clover Valley Equestrian Center to watch Suzan work with us.

When I went to load up Stella, I realized there was a rather important hole in our recent trailer-loading practice. (Remember, she had only been trailered twice in her life before this, and the last time was more than nine months prior.) We had worked on getting in and getting out, but I hadn't actually secured her in place to haul. How was I going to do this by myself, without freaking her out? I knew that leaving her head whether she was tied or not (I prefer not), moving the divider over, and securing it by her rump would cause her concern at best, or a confidence-destroying wreck at worst. As I stood in my trailer with her, I had an idea. I turned her around as if to lead her out, then backed her into place. That allowed me to move the divider over and secure it while standing near her head where I could stroke her neck and reassure her. I tied the lead rope around her neck, closed the trailer door, and off we went!

At Clover Valley Stella unloaded calmly and then stood there, taking in the new sights, sounds, and smells; we were all impressed with her! We eventually made our way to the round pen, and learned how to properly set up all the equipment, using some carabiners to enable optimum placement of the long lines. Since I don't have a lunging cavesson we just used her web halter; I assured Suzan that that's what we've been using and she's very soft in it. Stella proceeded to prove that. I took the first short video, then Lisa offered to film so that I could focus on Suzan's instruction – and then get my hands on the lines.

Back home, Stella and I continued our near-daily training sessions. Sunday I had time to try long-lining her on my own, without the benefit of a round pen. She did very well . . . until the line on the far side got up under her tail. When she reacted it got tighter, and then she REALLY reacted; she's obviously not ready for a crupper! 🤣 Eventually I got her stopped and the offending line moved; we did some more long-lining after that and all was copacetic again.

Yesterday I worked her saddled, like Lisa did in her last lesson with us (and I've repeated at least once since). That was going well, too . . . until I asked her to trot and apparently a stirrup "attacked" her. She startled, the stirrup bounced, and she went to scrambling, kicking and bucking like she was trying to dislodge a cougar! Again, I eventually got her stopped, and tried to de-escalate things. It was kinda-sorta working, but then she started scrambling again and actually fell down on her side. We did just a bit more work at the walk, and then I took the saddle off to finish up with easy, beginning 'building blocks' to give her back some confidence.  Whew; that felt like 'no steps forward; ten steps back'! So it goes....

 

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Oh, Lance got his third shockwave treatment on Sunday. I assume Rick will ultrasound the injured area to assess healing, and Lance should be cleared to start hand-walking soon. I've missed riding my big red goober even if we do just walk, but it has been nice to focus exclusively on Stella's training guilt-free!

When one door closes....

An intense year of struggling to diagnose and treat Lance's Inflammatory Airway Disease effectively shelved any future hopes or plans I had for doing more with him than basic training and trail-riding ("Not that there's anything wrong with that!" to quote Jerry Seinfeld ;-). Earlier this year I toyed with getting a youngster as a future competitive dancing partner, but with my dad's death, preceded and followed by challenging family dynamics, I had to let that dream go as well.

Lance and I were moseying along in our new normal when he somehow sustained another suspensory injury, but Bentley came along just in time to keep me in the saddle and reignite a flicker of hope for more. By the time that little flame was thoroughly doused, Lance was able to be walked again and so we've pottered along. Lance is now back up to what we were able to do before the suspensory injury, and we have our first horse-camping trip of the year under our girth (pictures here).

Meanwhile, Lance has become a CHUNK! I marvel, because at the beginning of last year he was wasting away and I was doing everything I could reverse the weight loss. He shed out beautifully this year, too, after nearly going bald last spring. Between the minimal work and the maximum poundage his endurance is low, but his breathing has stabilized even though we've eliminated the antihistamines and even lowered the prednisolone dose just slightly (he still gets spirulena and flaxseed meal). Our challenges to better fitness are time and place. The sand arena has dried out to the combination of hard and shifty that I don't trust, and our ride-out-from-home range is getting ever more restricted with continued development. I've been putting Lance's Renegade boots on so we can use the gravel roads more, and am contemplating front shoes. I was looking forward to hauling to the beach and elsewhere with my best riding buddy, but she broke her ankle so is out of commission for at least another month. :-(

But wait; what's behind Door #2? Door #2??? I didn't even know there was a Door #2 until a month ago, when someone seeking a dressage instructor was referred to me by another professional. After her first lesson, the owner of the barn where student #1 sometimes boards also expressed interest in dressage lessons, and turned into student #2. Then student #2 referred student #3 to me, a 13-year-old who boards at her barn and really wants to learn dressage. Student #3 came out for her first lesson on Sunday – and Lance became a schoolmaster! I'm still trying to process this surprising turn of events even while feeling thankful and affirmed. Life is a wild ride!

Back in my saddle again...

...which I must say is not as comfy as Bentley's! Ah well, the horse it is on is mine, and that is the most comfy place to be.

Rick gave Lance his third and final shockwave treatment Sunday and gave us the green light to walk up to 30 minutes a day under saddle. Neither Lance nor Oliver have been cleaning up their hay, so Rick also checked their mouths and found petechiae (painful tiny red spots on their mucous membranes). I'm using our bitless bridle to keep Lance as comfy as possible.

Here's hoping I can keep Lance comfy enough to get him back into shape for trail-riding at least.

Hope peeks its head out

Sorry for breaking down; it's been an emotional year watching my horse struggle to move air and realizing he's probably had this issue to some extent for years. (The photo on my phone cover was taken in February 2016 at the last show we competed at; he had NO energy at that event – and that was more common that not.) Thanks to Kris and Terry for reaching out and offering suggestions that may help my mustang man; I've already taken actions to implement some of them, in addition to what I am already doing (spirulina pellets and freshly ground flaxmeal daily, along with the twice-daily oral prednisolone and antihistamine). The good news is that Lance is breathing much easier this week!

Last Sunday my local chapter of our state dressage organization held their annual picnic at Willamette Mission State Park. Some camped there; my friend Kate and her husband hauled in for a day ride, as did I (we ended up on the ferry at the same time with our rigs; I wish I'd gotten a photo of that!). It was chilly and drizzly so our group of seven faded to just the three of us. We had a lovely, long walk through the level park, and Lance did just fine.

Sunday evening Rick acted on a conversation we'd had last week. It occurred to me that our bedding pellets might be made of alder, one of Lance's "hot triggers." Rick checked both brands we have on hand, and neither state the content, but alder is a commonly milled softwood around here so it's definitely possible. I had picked up a couple bags of pine pellets to try, but hadn't stripped Lance's stall yet. Bless his heart, my husband cleaned out both stalls, pressure-washed stalls, walls, and ceiling to knock down all the dust, then put the pine pellets in Ollie's stall and used some fir micro-shavings he had purchased for the blueberries in Lance's stall. It hasn't been this clean since we built the paddocks and extended the roof!

I didn't take note of Lance's breathing until yesterday when I went down to ride, after publishing my post. It was calm! We schooled in our sand arena (nicely watered by a couple days of wonderful rain) and although we didn't work long or hard and took lots of walking breaks on a long rein, his breathing remained slow and easy. This morning it was the same, even though his breathing has been at its worst in the mornings before this.

Could it be the flaxmeal and spirulina? Possibly. Is it the change of weather and cleaner air? I doubt it; we realized he was heaving badly last January, in the middle of our rainy season. I'm ready to bet the farm that we've been aggravating his IAD with alder bedding and want sell all that we have on hand to buy pine pellets, but Rick is more cautious. So we'll probably test my theory when Lance's stall needs to be stripped again, using what we have on hand and watching carefully for a reaction. If Lance's breathing deteriorates, hallelujah; we will have identified an easily remedied environmental issue and can maybe ease him off the steroid and antihistamine for much of the year. Stayed tuned!

That thing with feathers flutters in my soul

Oh, how GOOD hope feels! And when it comes to Lance's physical condition, I think I am hearing a faint, sweet tune.

It started Friday, when I noticed while grooming that there IS some new hair coming in, albeit short and sparse. It grew a little Saturday evening, when we went for a road ride and I sensed more perkiness in him than I've felt for awhile (bonus: sky show!).

It got louder on Sunday evening when he and Oliver were turned out, and he actually ran and bucked and PLAYED. (Then he slipped and crashed to his side; ouch.) He's also had a slightly swollen right hind fetlock/pastern; that went down completely for the first time during Sunday's turn-out.

Nothing has changed recently except reducing his daily predinisolone dose by half. If the improvements are the result of that, I'd love to wean him off completely. It might be that the antihistamine (he's getting 20 cetirizine – think Zyrtec – tablets twice a day) is taking care of his allergy symptoms and the steroid is no longer necessary; it's certainly not benign.

We did get some test results back; Lance does not have Cushings. His insulin level is a bit high, but that could be a result of the steroid. We're still waiting to hear from UC/Davis, but Rick got results back from the local lab on the cells from the lung wash. Lance's lung cells are 30% neutrophils, which points towards Equine Inflammatory Airway Disease. (Differentiation of heaves and IAD involves the types and numbers of white blood cells observed.) There can be a genetic component, which fits because Lance's dam has seasonal heaves/IAD.

All the play photos turned out blurry – and not ALL the grass is this tall!

In other news, I learned last Thursday evening that Julie is moving to South Carolina next fall. This makes me sad, as she is the only trainer I've taken lessons with for years now, and I've really appreciated her perspective and help. And in spite of Lance's current troubles, that thing with feathers perched in my soul looked forward to more lessons with her in the future. If Lance continues to improve, maybe we can squeeze some in later this summer before she leaves.

Tickled pink

In spite of a sad start to the day, I was tickled pink to:
• Have no really painful spasms
• Be able to comfortably sit all three gaits
• Get asked by my husband if I would be interested in taking on a training project.

I don't know much about that last point yet; just that a client died last year and her husband would like to see her dressage horse tuned up and slimmed down. We'll probably be moving the horse here as soon as he recovers from a hoof abscess. I'll keep you posted!

Pink protection

As I shared on my farm blog and Instagram, I got back in the saddle last Sunday. We just walked around the arena for 20 minutes; I was still too sore to attempt more than that. Still, it felt good to be on my horse again. I intended to keep getting back on my horse on a regular basis, but dealing with the teen did not allow room for that in my life again until Friday. :-/

By then my new helmet had arrived, pinker in real life than I expected. Other than that, I love it – the dial fit adjuster, the mesh-covered vents, the incorporated visor, the fit and comfort. Brian made up for the difficult week by riding with me,

AND taking a photo of me and my steed.

Again we mostly walked, but I tried a little posting trot and was tickled that doing so wasn't painful. The area that is still giving me trouble is my right lower back where I took the hardest hit going through the peach orchard. Hopefully that will resolve sooner rather than later!

Beaver Nation

I think someone's hungry, bored – or both!

Unchained Melody

(Ray Stevens seemed more appropriate than a tear-jerker.)  (-: 

"Oh, my Lance, my goober

You make me laugh so much.

Another recovery;

As time goes by so slowly.

Time can only do so much;

Are you now sound?"

Last night Rick took a look at Lance's most recently injured ligaments. They are not as good as new, but they are as good as they are going to get, so we are cleared for take-off . . . or at least taxiing down the runway. We can start doing a little trot and canter work; Rick recommended working on the straightaway as much as possible, and cantering to the right and trotting to the left when turns are necessary. I think Lance will be happy; he's been offering trot for awhile now.

After ultrasounding Lance, Rick took a look at Breezy in the adjoining stall. (The topical chemo had no discernible effect; Rick is investigating the next option.) With the chain off his door latch, Houdini Lance got busy – and I documented the master at work:

Open Sesame!

It really is amazing what he can do with that mouth!

Thankfully, the quick-link and chain still has him stymied.