YAAAAAAAY WE DID IT!
WE TROTTED!
Okay well, it wasn't quite what I had expected/planned. Gogo is set to start her 5 minutes of trot daily on Thursday, and she was being SO good and quite last night under tack that I thought I would trot a few steps in each direction to see how she felt, seeing as she'd have today off anyway and just in case we needed to change plans. She felt very weak - like she had no idea what had happened to her butt over the past 3 months - but otherwise very even and very, very well behaved. She lost her right stifle going right, and her left stifle going left, which to me is indicative of lost-butt-syndrome, and I would expect that with strengthness this will resolve itself. She was remarkably well-behaved, stretching down to my contact and everything, and she did feel quite good. And as for me, I just wanted to keep trotting all day!! I curbed it at about 15 seconds in either direction... no need to rush.
Boy did THAT ever feel good. Remember when you were a kid and you trotted for the first time and you just NEVER wanted to stop trotting EVER? Yea, that was me yesterday.
TROT WIN!
And Evil Gogo gets one more big FAIL: yesterday, she was out in her medical paddock per usual, and I of course being an idiot had unknowingly put the obnoxious grey gelding Query next to her. Gogo and Query do not have a good history together, because they are both hateful. It is an unfortunate juggling act with 31 horses and 7 turnout spaces in the wintertime, and I have to do some serious brainwork every night trying to figure out who is going to go where, and when so as not to conflict with their lessons, and who to NOT put next to who, and who does NOT do well in the AM/PM, and who is hateful towards chestnuts, and who is going to hump a mare over the fence. So anyway, Gogo and Query ended up next to each other, and in our four smallest turnouts, they all share a wooden fence. NOT good planning on my part. There is electric wire running around the tops of all the fences, and in the medical turnout, our maintenance guy recently put up a very low line of electric tape around the lowest boards. It was very ugly and my boss didn't want it there because it was not only an eyesore, but it was so low it would have been easy to catch a leg in. ENTER GOGO. Query had a haypile in his pen, as did Gogo, but did Query go over and eat his hay? Nope, Query had to stand next to Gogo the entire time and go, Whatcha doin? Whatcha doin? Whatcha doin? Until she finally went, I AM GOING TO KICK YOU IN THE FACE IF YOU DON'T LEAVE RIGHT NOW. Well of course, Query being Query, this made him very angry, so he started rearing and making horrible Jurrasic Park noises, which in turn set Gogo off, and she started firing double-barrel kicks at his face. Remember the line of electric tape? When she came down, she got both hind legs stuck in it. Bless her heart, even though it was shocking her to death, all she did was very casually jig away.... and pulled the entire thing down with her. Query is still making dinosaur noises, my boss is peeking her head out of the arena door while on a horse, and I am running mad as a hornet towards the fields, angry at Gogo for bouncing on her legs, angry at Query for being an insufferable asshole, and mad at myself for not separating the two of them earlier. Gogo is no worse for the wear but she did get cold-tubbed and some banamine because I take no chances. I got back at Query by deworming him yesterday. That'll teach him.
Evil, evil mares.
Sorry, Gogo, but I had to laugh. You get yourself into these things!
ReplyDeleteI guess it shows she is feeling better if she has the energy to be bitch mare. Hopefully the increased work will take some of the sting out of her.
It's fascinating to me to hear how you cope with keeping them indoors. Here, we just chuck them out in the paddock and that helps to keep them (relatively) sane.
Mares will still be mares though!
www.possumandme.blogspot.com
Heehee. She always keeps you on your toes.
ReplyDeleteAlso, WOOHOO for trotting! You guys are making slow but steady progress!
That turnout situation sounds like a total nightmare. I can't imagine having having to cram a bunch of high-energy sport horses into little turnout paddocks with shared fencelines and hoping they don't kill each other. At least Gogo saved herself by having brains (even though she sometimes uses them sparingly in other situations).
ReplyDeleteHooray for trotting! The trot was always my favorite gait (probably 'cause I always rode horses with horrendous canters). My mare has a lovely canter (especially for a horse who looks like she should be chasing cows instead of doing 20 meter circles) but unfortunately she has been acting up at the canter lately, and I can't really canter her in the indoor anyway 'cause it's too small. Ah well, perhaps in spring she will finally be over her lingering aches and pains/baditude...
"...so he started rearing and making horrible Jurrasic Park noises..."
ReplyDeleteHAHAHAHAHAH
You do have a way with words.
he he he. That was a humorous post fo sure.
ReplyDeletePoor Gogo getting her legs caught though, but at least she is no worse for the wear.
The last lines really cracked me up...deworming him
I dont know how you keep track of all those horses!
www.tbeventer.blogspot.com
This may seem like a really dumb question that I should probably know the answer to but... how does a horse "lose a stifle"?
ReplyDeleteOh mares! As awful of a situation as that was, I have to admit I was laughing the whole time I was reading. It was written so well!
These are the times that make quiet rehab rides everything. I took over a year bringing back my perch/tb from a front end injury (both legs, assuming deep tissue at this point after a lot of $ to rule out other things) and after the injury I just wanted to be able to ride again. It makes you appreciate the small things, a LOT.
ReplyDeleteGet ready for the first canter. My mare actually asked me 3 times if it was ok. I had spent 8 months telling her no (it's her favorite gait) and suddenly when I aided for it she thought I had lost my mind.
Ah mares.
Muahahaha, that made me laugh!!! God, I love mares! Gogo wants to make this all as hard as possible.
ReplyDeleteThis may sound like a stupid question, but I guess the only stupid question is one not asked, so: how does a horse "lose a stifle"?
Give me a break. I'm a noob :)
And give Gogo a hug for me when she's not being a bitch!
As you so often say, "Oh Gogo!" Glad she wasn't hurt tangling in the wire! She can't help it that she is EXCEPTIONALLY smart and has to keep those boys in their places! It sounds like quite the juggling act to get all those horses in the right places at the right time! You live and learn! Congrats on the trot! Steps forward are always such beautiful moments aren't they?
ReplyDelete:)