So! We already talked about Doozy's 30 Day Performance Review, which naturally zeroed in mostly what we haven't really accomplished yet. Performance gaps, if you will.
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| meeting Mondeuse -- she's cute but scruffy! |
For today, let's switch gears and do a quick review of everything we have checked off the "New Horse Plan" list since Mondeuse arrived.
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| fairly generic senior feed + ration balancer, soaked also, ignore the little pills, this pic was from when she was on doxy |
Nutrition
First things first: new or not, the horse is gonna expect to get fed on Day 1 lol. Which means I needed a meal plan set up and ready to go as soon as Mondeuse stepped off the trailer.
In this case, we are keeping it really simple. She's eating about ~5lbs of a local Mill branded senior feed (protein 14, fat 10, fiber 15), and 1lb of a Purina Enrich ration balancer per meal. No supplements, daily medicines or top dressings at present.
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| better living thru chemistry! |
We also started a daily ulcer treatment regimen on Day 1, using Ulcergard, and finished a couple weeks ago. So far, the horse looks quite comfortable and healthy from a gastric perspective. And I *think* she's even gained a little weight!!
Last lacking detail in Doozy's nutritional profile is... grass. Unfortunately, there was some storm damage to the grass pastures that's taking a bit long to resolve. So she's stayed in a paddock for way longer than I originally anticipated. Cross your fingers that she can at least get a little grass before the season passes by entirely!
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| paddock turnout with a friend... it's nice, but not as nice as pasture with a herd |
Next big set of checkmarks on The Plan include regularly scheduled care and wellness activities. Like, meeting the farrier! Doozy is presently in just front shoes, barefoot behind. This is likely to change eventually, but we're going to roll with it for as long as makes sense.
Question mark around that will be Doozy's recent abscess situation. Our farm has lots of rocky gravel-y driveway, and shoes could keep her generally more comfortable if she proves to bruise easily. We'll see. For now, first shoeing appt kept her with just the fronts.
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| chiro + acupuncture!!! |
She also had her first dentist appt! Sadly, I didn't know the appt was happening -- apparently a lesson horse needed urgent attention, so all the horses on the running "wait list" got done too, sooner than anyone expected... So I didn't get to talk to the dentist at all. But did get a follow up report that she had some significant sharp edges, but nothing else of note. So I'll probably have her seen again in ~6mos when Charlie is next due.
Last bit of routine care includes her first meeting with my chiro / acupuncture guru! That was actually Doozy's first "big" appt with me, meeting an important member of my practitioner "team" who I trust to help set an informed benchmark. And even better, that session didn't really uncover any big issues or red flags, so hopefully we can keep it that way.
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| charlie is such a pansy about the cold water, i was legit shocked by how much doozy likes her baths! |
Grooming & Tack
Y'all already got the low down on Doozy's tack situation, so I won't spend a lot of time on that. Other than to say, we're probably going to roll with this "interim" solution for the foreseeable future. Eventually she'll get her own saddle, but that's likely to be a longer term plan until we better understand the soundness landscape.
As for grooming, this is a really important element of my care plan for my horses. Mostly bc... I honestly just love grooming horses, can spend a LONG time on it, and find it to be an extremely rewarding and effective way to build that bond and relationship, to enjoy each other's company.
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| most recent pic of the bunch, from yesterday. fat leg aside, she looks pretty good! |
Plus, obviously, if you all recall - Mondeuse arrived recovering from a full-body case of rain rot. The mare was crusted from ear to quite literally the tip of her tail bone in nasty cruddy scabs. She needed a LOT of help, and I'm thrilled to announce that she also seriously enjoys the attention.
Tail attention is her #1 favorite, followed closely by belly curries. And face rubs. And wither scritchies. And haunch scrubs, and neck kneading, and leg brushes. Basically, ALL of it. There isn't a single aspect of grooming, including actual bathing (despite our cold-only water situation), that seems to bug her.
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| gif from her first week lol... she still doesn't love being alone in the barn, but she can #cope |
Handling & Management
Last main detail in our first month together, separate from actual under saddle training, is how the horse is in the barn and to handle.
She has so far conquered all the important details, including cross ties, the wash stall, leading in pairs for turn in / turn out... Probably all stuff she experienced on the track too, let's be real. Her pressure response seems excellent already, even when she wants to be fussy (like when the barn is empty and her paddock mate is screaming for her).
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| developing that #SharedVocabulary |
We still did a ground work session anyway with my local go-to guru, just again to start establishing baselines. And to remind me that I have responsibilities on my side of the rope too --- that whole "two way communication" dealio.
All in all, tho, all reports indicate that Mondeuse is easy and uncomplicated for the various members of barn staff to handle and deal with in day to day barn management. Tho, not gonna lie, she's still a bit suspicious of the pig LOL.
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| one way or another, lady, important parts of your future involve the inside of this box! |
Overall, aside from the aforementioned "flunked performance review," Doozy is moving through The Checklist pretty quickly. Which, ya know, she should lol. She's young, generally healthy, and has an exceedingly pleasant disposition.
Obvi there are still a lot of unknowns around the cellulitis situation, but, eh, for now let's just assume that it eventually resolves in a normal way.
My hope is to have the next big "check in" on her general progress -- to include soundness and training under saddle -- around November. By that point, ideally, we'll have addressed a few more big items from The Plan, including:
- Fall shots + dewormer
- Nutrition - any adjustments needed?
- Body clip, tbd based on training intensity
- Trailer training
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What about you, any big to-do items in your plan ahead of winter?
She has definitely put on weight since that first week. Looking fabulous!
ReplyDeleteHa I’m glad you see it too — to my eye she still looks so small compared to Charlie, but every now and again she stands at an angle that’s like, ooh yes, that’s nice !
DeletePasture is so good for body condition and weight gain. And just general horse happiness. The only thing I *might* do is check her blood for vitamin e. Here it’s lacking in our hay so I supplement over winter. But you have such a good handle on horse care I doubt you missed anything.
ReplyDeleteCarmen has learned to enjoy grooming but not to the extent that Quaid does. He loves every bit of it.
Vitamin e is definitely one of those easy to miss ingredients! Tho it should be covered with her ration balancer, as well as other good things like selenium etc. Really wish I could get her on more grass tho, hand grazing isn’t cutting it !!!
DeleteYou reminded me I've been sticking my head in the sand about goggles trailer training since he's been living at JT's Although I did do one day when it was 100+ degrees just getting comfy standing on the ramp of her trailer. And I'm pawning it off on his training team this weekend. I signed him up to go and spectate a show while I'm at work. Trailer training and show exposure all in one!
ReplyDeleteI love that she loves the grooming. It's so nice to be able to spend time with them in that way.