Six Months Without Hills

TC came up off on Sunday during our ride. I noticed he was feeling a little iffy on Saturday, not off but not as willing to push through his body. And sure enough, Sunday he was lame. 

I didn't freak out though, nor did I call the vet immediately, I didn't even cry (2020 has made me way more likely to cry, I hope I'm not the only one lol). This is the third time this has happened and it always happens the same way. In the past I've been confused about it and called it different things, but given how things always go, I'm 99% certain that he has a weak left stifle that needs to climb hills to not be a problem. 

July 2016: last swim at the rehab center

November 2016: weak left stifle acts up (called the vet, talked about blistering it, he just said to ride him through it and climb some damn hills) 

February 2018: last trail ride before moving to the flat lands
September 2018: weak left stifle acts up (I thought it was muscle soreness but I'm sure it was his stifle looking back on it, he got better as we climbed a bunch of hills in 2019) 

August 2020: last trail ride before the smoke
January 2021: weak left stifle acts up (this post) 

Basically, TC needs to climb hills for his body to work properly, and when I don't have him climb hills, he doesn't feel great. And that's what happened this time. 

His stifle can't be feeling that bad if he'll do this...

Don't worry, TC was fine the next day. Actually he was fine on Sunday after being a complete asshole while I was trying to get some video of him being lame. He bounced around on the longe line, got chased backwards when he tried to bite me (he never puts his teeth near me but thinks it's hilarious to lip at me and I don't think it's hilarious, which he also thinks is hilarious), bounced around more as I tried to trot him away from my phone, and got told off for trying to bolt away from nothing. After all that chaos, he trotted off totally sound. 

Monday I came out to ride him and did some reining back (also good for the stifle) and then trotted him undersaddle in the ring. He kept stopping and acting weird and I started worrying until I realized his girth wasn't tight enough. This horse HATES his girth not being very specifically tight and he very politely stops every time I trot him to allow me to tighten his girth. 

When I tightened his girth finally, he trotted off quite happily and completely sound. I didn't ask him for any collected work and even though he felt fine, I still canceled my lesson on Wednesday this week. No reason to turn a weakness into an injury, my trainer said she thought he didn't do well in light work and I agreed. He's back to full work in two weeks and he'll be climbing hills from now on as well. His lungs have been fine since November, I think we're fine to climb. 

This is my llama

Given that he was sound on Monday, I figure I'll ride him again today and make sure he's sound (he did get some expired bute on Sunday that should have worn off by Monday but I don't want to make that assumption), then we'll try to get him on the trails tomorrow and this weekend (things are made more complicated by the rain and the fact that we are moving this weekend). Once he's climbed a few hills, he'll be 100% fine to go back to work. If we can't get on the real trails due to the rain, his breeder's barn has roads we can climb so I'll text her and head over there for a trail ride on the roads. Somehow, we'll climb some damn hills. 

If he takes one more questionable step, I do think I want to talk to my vet about his stifle. The vet I saw in November 2016 was not MY vet and I kind of want my vet's eyes on it at some point. Just to take a look in there via ultrasound and see if there's anything else I should be doing. He's totally sound and happy on it as long as he's in full work and climbing hills, he gets a pretty decent joint supplement and I always spray it with sore-no-more after we do anything interesting, so I think we're okay. But they do have these things that allow you to ice stifles so that could be a thing we do. Or we could inject it but I've heard that really doesn't help a horse with this kind of weakness that much. 

Sorry about the lack of trail rides, TC! We'll get out there soon! I'm just glad he was sound yesterday, and that this is a problem I have an easy and enjoyable solution for. If we ever leave our current barn, I'm going to need something with some good hills!