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Monday, December 9, 2024

my dooz

I've never appreciated Doozy more than these past two weeks, she's been my absolute rock. So sweet, so pleasant to be around. It's been such a relief to just stay completely immersed with her.

sweet mare
She had a chiro / acupuncture appt scheduled for the morning after Charlie died, which... Honestly wasn't super ideal bc I was pretty wrecked. Hadn't really slept, had awful puffy eyes from crying so much... and that terrible splitting headache you get from all the associated stuffy sinuses and jaw clenching... Like literally sore from grief.  

the gentlest at treats
But I didn't want to cancel the appt, it'd been scheduled for weeks in advance... so ya know. We carry on. Tho I did opt to sneak into the barn a little early for a solo hack-about first. Doozy is the sort of horse who requires your full attention while riding her -- in a way that felt clarifying and cleansing after a night of being overwhelmed and bogged down by my own thoughts. 

she's still not convinced about acupuncture LOL
And she was good for her appointment too!! She doesn't exactly love these sessions in the same way that Charlie did. She's a little defensive and unsure of all the adjusting, and straight up indignant about the acupuncture. Pulling faces, thrashing her tail, stomping her feet, like, "Bitch did you just stab me??"

luckily she doesn't need extensive treatment 
Hopefully she'll learn to love it lol, bc I'm such a big fan of this practitioner and really appreciate her perspective on my horse's condition. Last time she saw Doozy, she spent a long time working through a lot of tension the mare was holding in her back. After which, Doozy had that sort of breakthrough in her flatwork about stretching etc. 

she has the ittiest bittiest snip
And this time the practitioner confirmed my suspicion that Doozy really hasn't reverted back to that tension since then. Like, obviously the mare is high energy and slightly chaotic and is the sort that will likely get comments about 'tension' on her dressage tests... But she hasn't been really 'frantic' at all and it's honestly really nice!

chose the coldest morning yet to ship out for a dressage lesson
That appt was two weeks ago now, and with all the time off around Thanksgiving it was good timing to just keep my head down and keep chugging along with Doozy. 

We had some nice flat rides, and one day right before Thanksgiving when the weather was gorgeous and our outdoor footing was in perfect shape and we snuck outside for a little jump around! Nothing crazy -- but appropriately sized fences and even a nice oxer. Just enough to keep us going along.

i got a little artsy fartsy taking pictures of the frost
And then the next weekend had a dressage lesson with Trainer C --- again, something that had already been on the books for a couple weeks.

i remembered to take doozy's bridle into the truck cab to warm the bit, but neglected to do the same for my helmet and boots -- whoops lol
Both the jump school and the dressage lesson were instructive on kinda the same themes. Now that Doozy understands her job more, and is a bit less explosive, I need to be careful about not getting too quiet. 

mare didn't seem to care tho
It's fine to slow down the pace and tempo --- but we are ready to try adding more activity, more 'bounce per ounce,' more oomph. Which is a kinda strange feeling after spending so many months barely able to trot at all lol. 

is it just me or are we making progress on her tail?? 
also... she went backwards a bit condition-wise with the drought killing all the grass a bit sooner than round bales were ready... tho a few folks said they think she's grown so that might be part of it too 
But now that the mare isn't springing immediately into canter the second I stop holding her back, and isn't making a mad dash at every fence... I need to be a better steward of our balance and impulsion. It's definitely an interesting new phase in the work. 

one of her new friends also took a giant chunk out of her shoulder omg
Tho ya know. Doozy IS still a horse. She gave me a perfect week of rides as distraction from my sadness about Charlie, before deciding it was her turn again. 

fast forward a week and i audited a clinic! was supposed to ride, but ya know. #horses
And she was very instructive in her own way. I went through our normal walking warm up, except Doozy straight up would.not soften her topline. And like. Was in a bit of a fuss about it. And I used every single trick and technique I know for getting her to soften, like, "Mare, You KNOW how to do this!" and she was like, "UGH you never listen to me!!"

i swear this mare has the worst skin of anything i've ever managed before
It was actually kinda frustrating, until after maybe 15min of walking around like this, I finally was like, "ugh ok close enough, let's just trot." At which point she hobbled into a terrible crippled trot. Lame AF.

Ah. Yes. I see. That explains that. I understand now lol, sorry mare! 

she's constantly sprouting new patches of rain rot
Seems to be a run of the mill bruise or abscess, but naturally was timed just perfectly to miss out on a clinic we'd entered at another lovely local farm. Womp. 

mare. just be endearing pls!
(also, she inherited Charlie's blankets <3 )
It's always something, right? I'd sent in that clinic entry weeks ago, and actually ditto for another one later this month. Hopefully she'll be better in time for that... we'll see I guess. I still went and audited my friend's lesson in this past weekend's clinic tho just to check out the instruction. It looked like a really positive session so hopefully there will be future opportunities. 

just like that <3
So. Ya know. It's a rollercoaster with horses. Still nowhere else I'd rather be tho <3 Cross your fingers that Doozy is feeling better soon!! And in the meantime... at least we're caught back up again around here. 


10 comments:

  1. That's one frosty morning you showed there—yikes! I'm glad you are able to spend quality time with Doozy even as you grieve Charlie. I know that my horse, Shiloh, provided me with a lot of solace after Bear died. Hoping you are able to make the clinic too.

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    1. thank you! i honestly don't know what i would have done with myself these last couple weeks if i didn't have doozy!

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  2. I'm so glad Doozy is there to help with the normalcy and give you comfort. Very neat that she held her prior body work so well. That definitely says good things about you and her program!

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    1. thanks yea i'm definitely choosing to see that as a promising sign, esp as i continue to learn how much of her behavior is a direct reaction to her physical condition. it turns out, she likes feeling good, and doesn't like feeling sore or uncomfortable. goooooo figure LOL

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  3. I was so sorry to hear of Charlie's passing. I loved your photos of you and the big brown guy and how his eye was so soft.
    I'm glad you have Dooz, she seems like the perfect little lady for you!
    ***
    Once upon a time I owned a chestnut gelding with terrible skin/coat (I could dig out pictures of him but it was so awful, I'd rather not.)
    We treated him for ulcers and threw a bunch of supplements/lotions and potions at him, but it wasn't until the local, specialized equine vet (who treated all the TBs at the local racetrack and had seen it before) gave him an immune booster that it cleared up for good.
    It was essentially a needle full of a big dose of vitamins and was certainly one of the cheaper items on our vet bill (~$40?) and no harm was being done b/c if they weren't being 'used' they passed through his system.

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    1. Oh nice!! I’m definitely a big believer in nutrition being our best weapon in general coat health… have been thinking about putting her on platinum performance, which was just a general wellness supplement that did wonders for Charlie in the early years. Hm.

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    2. Bam was my first owned, not leased horse, so I researched obsessively how to take the best care of him (hence me finding your blog!).
      Vet Clinic A were really good and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them to any other owner, b/c they gave us such good care, but they are a mixed clinic.
      Vet Clinic B specializes in equines and as soon as Chris Bell saw it, he recommended the immune booster.
      I really appreciate the fact it cost me less than $100/year for two boosters - when he was at the barn anyway.

      It wasn't about his feed'/supplements, it was aboiut bam's inability to digest them.

      Sorta like gluten/lactose intolerance

      Anyway, I just know, those shots made a helluva difference to his coat....

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  4. I straight up giggled at ‘bitch did you just stab me?’ I’m glad you have Doozy.

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    1. Lolz she’s a real sweetie but she also has real feelings and opinions HAHAHA <3

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  5. There's something about a sweet chestnut face that helps comfort the heart. I have a weird and unhealthy attachment to Eros because he helped through the loss of both Jamp and then Rio. Just having another one around that pushes you to keep moving really seems to help with the grief.
    I'm sorry Doozy is off though! Maybe one last little gift from Charlie. I feel like that would be his sense of humor to tell Doozy to limp for a few days. Just for laughs. (It's not funny Charlie. Okay, maybe a little. But only if it's over asap.)

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