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| TC mad about bodywork lol |
I gave her a brief history and she got started. TC was pretty upset that she wasn't there just to watch him perform and laugh at his antics. He's had a history of being kind of annoying to equine professionals because his life force is powered by admiration. So when she ignored him and started working on him for HIS benefit and not laughing at him for HER benefit, he was frustrated.
She made her way around him and he started really biting at her, which I did my best to prevent and she handled well. He really doesn't mean it (he's never really *bitten* anyone, just nipped at), but especially in the last few years he's been progressively less comfortable with being worked on. Probably because he's been so uncomfortable in his body. Like, he's never wanted to be in his body at all, and then when he hurts and you really start to uncover some of that, he doesn't handle it very well. I mean same.
We did get some really good releases toward the end, and we discussed how he was probably quite tight and in some pain, so hopefully this helps with that.
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| TC mad about the back on track hock wraps I got him |
Her report was that he was VERY tense in his front end - his neck, shoulders, pectorals, and the thoracic trapezius. She also did feel that he was tight in his lumbar, but she thought that was a result of the front end being so tight. She recommended the same things we're already doing: trot poles and not doing much riding until he put on muscle. And she said that bodywork once a month for a while would really benefit him, so I'm going to aim to get her out in mid to late November.
This weekend I put him back to work. On Saturday I just led him to the arena and we did his trot sets (he is at 12 minutes of trot in 30 second intervals), then I led him on the tracks to get back to the barn. Then on Sunday we did our normal routine, where I get on him bareback in the halter and take him on the tracks to warm up, then get off and longe him in the arena, then get back on bareback in the halter and go back on the tracks to cool down. That seems to help him mentally, like maybe he feels like he's in real work getting ridden.
I could really convince myself that he was looking better. He seemed more comfortable being forward and going through the poles. He also seemed to be using his body better, like his neck was nicely stretched out and no matter where he had it, it didn't look braced. He also seemed nicely lifted in his back, which I had been noticing, but he looked less hollow in that thoracic trapezius over the weekend which was very positive.
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| She does a better job of playing along when she's mad at me (lies, she bites me too which is why I dressed her up as a vampire for halloween) |
In theory, the (original lameness who I went to in early Sept) vet thinks I should be riding him by now. But after having it not go super well when I tried last time, I think I want to get him further along first. Currently, I feel like I want to see him start to really pack on muscle, which feels like evidence that his body is feeling good enough to use well, before I consider riding him. Or we'll see how things go. I'm trying to just listen to him and see how things go vs putting him on any sort of schedule.
He does have injections scheduled for Wednesday! I realized that he also has his teeth and inoculations on Thursday, so I might push the injections out a week so that he doesn't have to be sedated two days in a row, but they will be happening in the next couple of weeks. I'm going to have him see yet another vet for them because I wanted him to do them at a vet clinic and my local vet works out of her truck. I also think it'd be useful to get another vet's opinion on his x-rays. I might have this vet take rads of his front feet. Or I might have my local vet do them on Thursday during his teeth/shots so that I can get her take on him, and then I can bring them to injection day.
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| Another animal who is mad at me - I let children ride him (she did great, it was her first time riding off the leadline on the tracks, I was right there but my brother tried to get me hidden in that photo) |
And after this, that's kind of it right? He had a full lameness exam, we changed his shoeing, he got a full nutritional overhaul, he got bodywork (and will get it ongoing), he's getting his teeth done, and he's getting injections. I dunno where else I can stuff money into this horse (outside of saddle fitting which I will do when he's ready). So now we just see whether all of this is enough to get him back, or whether I'll be horse shopping in early 2027. Or maybe it'll be both!
