taming the t-rex

No big surprise, but Charlie remains pretty mad about his wound-induced confinement... 

large charles in a sma paddock

So we're trying to walk a fine line between indulging him without setting back his recovery. Bc.... the heel bulb wound is healing really well so far. 

took about 0.0001sec to wallow in the mud before instantly trying to flirt with barbie dream horse Pride over the fence line

My longtime vet is eminently practical -- it's one of my favorite things about her. And she wasted basically zero time in managing my expectations around this particular injury. It's in a bad spot, and is kinda perfectly terrible in that the flap was jusssst thick enough to try to save, esp since it involved coronet tissue. 

Thus, the gamble with staples and the caution that we might be in for a slow recovery.

pictured: charlie flirting

Somehow, tho, the staples are holding. And while it's been pretty wet and muddy out.... we've still managed to find opportunities for Charlie to get an hour or two outside --- usually timed right before a bandage change so that he's not festering in sodden muddy wraps.

he got some pointers from the neighboring shetland stallions too lol

And luckily Charlie's been decent enough to (mostly) behave himself unsupervised in the small barn yard paddocks so I can go off and do other things. Mostly lol.

anyway. back to the point --- daily wrap changes, bleh

We're still doing daily bandage wraps mostly bc it's freakin impossible to wrap a shod hoof with anything that can withstand the steel shoe. Ymmv. 

my work station

The wrap isn't super different from how I wrapped his abscess hoof last winter, either. First, his heel bulbs get protected with pillows of square gauze. Then, I wrap the whole hoof from the sole up to the top of his pastern in vet wrap, usually using a full roll.

lol and this is supposed to be my 'normal' one lol

Next, I snip down the front of the vet wrap from pastern to coronet band to release any pressure, then do a couple passes with elastikon around the shoe and up over the pastern (careful to not pull tight) to seal everything up.

finished bootie.... so much material, but c'est la vie

From there, I slap on the pre-assembled basket-weave duck tape patch, and then a series of smaller duck tape pieces to build the wrap up high enough so that it won't get pulled off, and will help keep out any debris.

the toe doesn't stand a chance against charlie's shoe, but so far the heels have stayed protected!

The vet's original prescribed process skipped the vet wrap, and instead suggested using a full roll of elastikon as the base layer. But I found that assembly to be damn near impossible to remove off his foot without a ton of struggle. The vet wrap seems to work well enough, esp since we're doing daily changes anyway.

meaty lol

Getting the wrap off the first few days was a little iffy, since sometimes the gauze would stick to the wound and staples... But rinsing with diluted chlorhexidine or iodine worked nicely to loosen the crust and get the gauze off without Charlie being too too upset about it. 

charlie's foot was pretty wet this day so i gently scrubbed a bit with chlorhexidine

So far the wound is exceeding expectations... But y'all know how that goes. There's usually an 'ugly phase' in there somewhere. But I'm optimistic about his coronet band so far, and kinda surprised (in a good way!) to see that it looks like only the surface of the flap died off, but some of the underside is still holding on!! 

He might end up with a nasty defect growing down his hoof wall, and those can sometimes lead to nasty cracks etc.... So we'll probably be keeping an eye on it for months to come. 

For now, tho, we'll leave the staples alone and tentatively aim for a follow up appointment around Christmas. Oh joy, lol.

red rockette

Happy Monday! Happy Holidays, Happy Week Before Christmas, Happy Oh My God Am I The Only One Not Done Shopping?!?!? Ahem...

did our most recent lesson in Charlie's jump tack, MP declared it not perfect but better than the Beval

Sorry, guess I've just been busy at the barn. Well. And all the other things too.... Ya know. 

sweeping ribbons of grackles fly over the farm twice daily, at sunrise and sunset

Y'all know the drill, tho. Gotta get the updates off the phone before I completely lose track of all the things. Tho I'm going a little bit out of order bc... Well. We had another dressage lesson. 

scribed for another on-farm fix-a-test this weekend!! little lord of mischief Loki won the high score award, and also tried to steal my gas station coffee

And it was GOOD. After a couple lessons of struggle. So I want to unpack that a little bit, get into more granular detail. Reference ye olde notes and such. Tho, sadly, not a lot of pictures. 

***and i jumped my red mare and she was just so good***

But pictures have been, and will continue to be, the engine that drives this blog. And so today, we get the post consisting of fewer words and MOAR pictures yas! 

Pictures, it should be noted, that are snapshotted from legit the 8sec gif also included below... Bc media junkies will milk any little snippet of media for all it's worth, amirite? Ahem, anyway. Dressage lesson recap later, for now --- jompies!

expression + concentration in a single frame

I get the distinct sense that Doozy quite likes the jump ring at our farm, but have still not been quite brave enough to venture there solo. 

Plus the weather conditions have been a bit unfavorable -- like having a lesson scheduled on the 'nice' day of the weekend, then being free to roam at our leisure on the rainy days. Not quite right, ya know? And that's all before we consider my concerns about riding during lessons and in varied company, etc.  

ok ok ok, i wasn't holding mane in case she got squirrelly and i needed to course correct. silly me, maybe one day i'll learn!

Fortunately, the stars aligned this weekend for an absolutely perfect, and absolutely brief, cavort around the jump ring with our regular riding buddies Katie and Rosette. 

I'm convinced that Doozy just likes this ring. Maybe she just likes riding outside? I dunno. I like it tho. Like, sure, there are random spooks when birdsong erupts much closer than expected (lol), etc, but the space is nice, and Doozy seems to appreciate the raised level of external stimulus.

bc homegirl was GOING MA'AM!!!

Seems to make each intentional object of attention somehow less interesting in all the right ways. You just present her to the little pile of poles, and she just walks over. That jump that blew over in the wind? Nbd to pick her way thru the rubble. 

And that cross rail? Suuuure, let's trot dead nuts over the center of it!

legit a video of a video on a phone screen haha, but look at her go!!

The ring was arranged into a series of gymnastic exercises that were all set at very inviting heights (including the verticals and oxers), but so close together that it was nearly impossible to thread the needle to many 'singles.' 

Tho you can see the pink X (with red standards) in the background above that was easy enough to get to off a bending line, so we started with that. There's a similarly positioned jump outside of frame to the right that was a low vertical with a half cross pole (if that makes sense) too. These two jumps allowed us to get nice repetitions in both directions, and Doozy was essentially perfect.

i might not make the most convincing jockey, but this little race horse is having FUN

So.... I opted to go for one of the gymnastics. Which... is always a bit of a gamble if, 

1) You haven't walked the distances yourself, or 

2) You didn't build up the exercise progressively through the ride, and

3) Oh, it's bigger and a vertical with panel...

But, eh, I liked my chances. It looked for all the world like one of Trainer P's classic 30' in-and-outs, a schooling 2 that's easy to trot into, and nicely comfortable for a horse like Dooz who hasn't ever seen this question before.

getting almost relaxed about life at a large farm haha

And ya know. That's exactly what it was! This mare, guys. She really is something. I've been semi-religious about ALWAYS holding the neck strap when jumping her, bc y'all know my struggles with pearl-clutching while jumping. 

But, going into that line she kinda teetered a little bit (you can see it sorta in the gif before the X) and I thought I might need all my steering tools to get from the first to second element.... 

obligatory charles wound pics -- looks, actually pretty good, right? it's dry, doesn't smell... skin tissue at the top of the flap is necrotic but the coronet parts look like they're holding on maybe????

Boy was I wrong, tho. She just.... proceeded. And like, easily. 

Honestly, this mare is full of surprises. She challenges me in a lot of ways. She's going to demand that I learn a lot of new tools, techniques and tactics to bring her along. But then, suddenly out of nowhere, She'll also be like, "Oh it's cool boo, I got this!"

somehow some of these staples are still doin their job, keeping the coronet tissue happy and stabilized!

So we're keeping at it, and keeping it fun. The indoor ring will definitely continue to be our 'safe space' for harder training rides... but it's nice to be able to get outdoors during daylight at least a little bit!! Slowly but surely expanding the bubble lol...

Anyway, more updates to come soon. Hope y'all had a nice weekend too!

just charlie gifs

I'm soaking up the last of my "use it or lose it" PTO before year end, and got to sneak out to the barn for an afternoon lesson yesterday. Meaning --- poor furious stall-bound Charles got another supervised hour of daytime turnout in our one good pristine paddock, the Orchard!

sometimes "supervised turnout" means "on a fucking line bc horses are ridiculous"

This horse, guys, he is BIG MAD about being on stall rest. Which I take to mean that while the wound is probably significantly painful in the way a nasty hangnail can be.... It's also... ya know, not particularly consequential to the horse either. 

WILD

Because this ridiculous SOB was legitimately snaking his head at me omfg on the walk up the driveway!! So obviously, I got the camera Ready To Go bc obviously he was gonna explode the second he was released. Obviously. Ahem. 

lololol there it is

Well, ok haha. It took a minute. After observing him wildly.... eating grass for a few moments, I went to step away to go grab my chair -- when suddenly in a flurry of grunts and farts, Charles was off to the races! 

legit have NEVER seen this horse flag his tail before in my LIFE

Lol this horse.... He is so freakin silly haha, lookie at him goooo!!!

"brb, 'bout to go cause some mayhem!" -- charles, 1,000%

Silly me. I had planned for a quiet relaxing post-lesson hour --- sitting in my folding chair, reading news articles and playing sudoku on my phone for an hour while Charlie leisurely and serenely grazed nearby.... It was such a peaceful vision!

pictured: mayhem

Charles was having absolutely None Of That, tho, haha, and instead was completely preoccupied with starting WWIII over the fence with the Rough Board Boys lol. So, ahem, somebody had to go back on the line to graze in hand until the other horses got bored enough and wandered off to a different area....

foot looked fine after all that, tho!

Poor Charles, such a tough life he leads! Honestly it felt like an hour wasn't nearly enough for him. Tho again, it gives me a lot of hope that he really truly feels pretty great right now --- aside from the whole "stapled-on heel bulb" situation. 

"No Regerts"

The wound itself looks fine enough. The flap is dying, as was not entirely unexpected. But at least with the staples it's serving as, more or less, a 'band aid' for the rest of the wound in the meantime. 

Time will tell what happens with the staples too. I tend to think it'll take more than a minor miracle for them to last thru Christmas. But, eh, maybe if they come out sooner, and if ground conditions continue to improve, maybe he'll be able to go back out sooner? 

I dunno, haha, except that the sooner this ferocious TB is returned to his preferred wilderness, the better! Happy weekend, y'all!

friday foto finish

Happy Friday, y'all!! Hope you aren't feeling too too frantic with the impending holidays and whatnot!

nap o'clock in the mare's field!

Things are kinda back to being quiet around these parts, esp after a couple weeks of amping up, getting excited about riding both horses regularly again. Lol, sigh.

sleeping beauty

Doozy took the whole "quiet" thing to the next level this week too! I had planned to sneak in a weekday daytime ride with her after Charlie's vet appointment.... But then she was laid out napping in the sun when I went to retrieve her!!

elegant even at rest

And I'm such a sucker, guys, lol... But I couldn't bear to drag her out of her slumber... So, eh. What's another day off, amirite?

less elegant --- almost impossible to get a hoof wrap to last on a shod horse...

She has otherwise had a good week, tho -- I've stuck to my guns about reverting my style a bit to how she's been accustomed, vs the higher pressure / higher contact dressage style we're working on in lessons. 

le flap, 24hrs post stapling

And the mare has rewarded me by returning to being able to wtc in a generally civilized fashion. All good things, and we'll keep nibbling around the edges toward progress!

i felt like a monster peeling the gauze off this wound, bleh

Charlie, for his part, is absolutely furious about being stallbound again. I really really feel for him. 

ooooooh grass!

Luckily, he's still the goodest boy, and lord knows he's had plenty of practice at rehab over the years.... So he's a gentleman about hand walks and grazing. No shenanigans, just grass pls! 

why yes, i'm sitting on my ass watching my horse graze himself lol

Sadly the night after his first day on stall rest, I was snarled in traffic and didn't get out until after sunset to graze him. Which, ya know, was fine. He doesn't care lol, just wants grass. I was frozen solid after an hour, tho, so the next night I was better about arriving earlier. 

#serene

And actually was able to get him up to one of the nicest and best preserved paddocks on the farm --- zero mud, still lots of grass. Perfect! We got to hang out around there for about an hour, tho naughty horse ended up back on the lead when playing with the neighbors proved irresistible lol...

except for those ding dongs trying to make friends over the water cooler

Anyway, his wound looks ok for now. The vet had said each bandage could go for 1-3 days depending on how soiled it looked.... But he actually wore straight through the thing in a single day. Wrapping shod hooves is hard, guys.

back on his lead bc he made poor choices

So we're probably looking at daily wraps for the foreseeable future. Not ideal, but c'est la vie!

subtle changes at the 48hr mark -- more separation at the top left edge, and dryer, darker coloration overall

The first wrap was pretty stuck to his wounds, presumably bc they'd continued bleeding and draining for a while after getting debrided. I felt soo guilty trying to unpeel the gauze from the staples, ugh. 

don't worry, tho, i'm about 1,000% positive the 'ugly stage' is still ahead of us!

The second day was much better, a much more dry wound thankfully. Tho the wrap itself was a total bear to get off --- wayyyyy too much elastikon to try to cut through, and it kept dulling my scissors with the stickiness. 

we'll appreciate the peacefulness for now, tho ;) 

The vet had advised using elastikon bc it'd stay in place better... But eh, if we're changing the bandage daily anyway I'm going to see if vet wrap won't work just as well. 

At some point, this wound is probably going to get seriously gnarly. So ya know. Brace yourselves for those eventual pictures lol. 

In the meantime, all is well around here, and we're looking forward to a pleasant weekend! 

Oh FFS, Charles.....

Sooooooooo. Charlie. My dear sweet gelding, Charlie. You know the one.

this one. this swamp monster and his ne'er do well friend moose....

I don't call him the "King of the Dings" for nothing. Bc just when we thought things were looking up, he went ahead did it again. 

I'm guessing he and his herd of hooligans got a little frisky in a recent rainstorm --- note the mud speckles on his face, and forelock tucked behind his ears? Telltale signs of a Charles who has been running....

probably shoulda warned ya, but these pics are gross

And I dunno. Maybe one of his friends stepped on him? Or he stepped on his own self?? Or maybe just put the foot somewhere it didn't belong. Who knows, ya know? Regardless, he came in with a big ol' heel bulb wound.

"i didn't make that mess behind me, it was the other brown horse" - charles, probably

The combination of what must be an astonishingly painful wound (I imagine it's a bit like a fingernail bed injury), plus having been out in the rain all day, made him a bit of a handful. 

laceration incorporates the coronet band....

I got him into the outdoor wash stall first to rinse off the bulk of the mud from his legs and hoof... Then attempted to flush the wound with peroxide and iodine, all while trying not to get kicked in the face.  

looks painful

Shot a text off to the vet too... Tho, hahasob, as fate would have it -- we already had an appointment scheduled. Bc ya know. Charlie was supposed to get his hocks done. Bc he was supposed to be returning to soundness, legging up again. Remember? The whole "be my riding horse again" thing? 

taking me for a little walk while waiting for the vet

As it is, tho, we put off the hock injections. Joint injections have associated risks even in perfect conditions, right? Adding in a wound on the same leg, that may or may not be brewing infection, elevates the risk profile a bit. We've already waited this long, might as well wait a little longer -- and address the more pressing wound first. 

charles, maybe if you didn't try to graze like a mountain goat we wouldn't keep having these problems

Which, ya know, is fine. Charlie doesn't need hock injections to go about living his normal life. He needs them to be a riding horse who comfortably does stuff like walk-canter transitions and jumps. So it's not a big deal. 

see, isn't this much easier??

The vet spent a good long while scrubbing the wound, after sedating him and applying a numbing topical spray. Honestly I think she was trying to decide what to do. 

mmmmmm sedation

It's not necessarily a deep wound, or particularly catastrophic. But the flap is thick enough that it could potentially survive -- vs needing to just get cut off. The flap also incorporates coronet tissue and some hoof, details that make it maybe ideal to try to save it. 

debriding the edges of the flap and contaminated deep tissue

So she ultimately decided to administer a nerve block, debride the wound and staple it closed. The staples might be wishful thinking.... Like, it sure would be great if they worked. But it's not a big deal if they fail --- or at least, not a bigger deal than if she didn't try in the first place. 

please please please do your thing, staples!

Either way, vet expects it'll be a pain in the ass to get this heel to heal. Everything about it is kinda perfectly not ideal -- the location, the inclusion of coronet tissue, pressure on the wound from normal movement.... All the things, basically.

elastikon'd to high heaven

Plus conditions outside are basically exactly wrong too. We're officially into the wetness of early winter around here, especially in Charlie's field -- which is gigantic and grassy, except for where it bottoms out at the stream where the gate is. That area gets MUDDY and deep. 

plus a duck tape wrapper for good measure

So Charlie will be consigned to his stall for at least the foreseeable future. Bandage changes every 1-3 days depending on how soiled it looks, with photo updates to the vet re: the staples. It may be that they start falling out in a couple days, but ideally they'd last about ~2wks before being intentionally removed -- cross your fingers for a Christmas miracle haha.

He also started a course of regular SMZs, plus got some banamine during the visit, and will get a few days of bute too. 

Sigh. This horse, I swear. I really really love him. And he really really loves being fussed over. Sometimes it's just a lot tho!!