There's a Snake in My Fan and Klein Went to Timeout

My luck always seems to run low when The Other Half leaves for a work trip.  True to form, The Other Half left for a work trip.  The first day he left Klein got after Mochs again for the first time in over a year.  Mochs was a bit body sore and had some cuts and scrapes so I put Klein in timeout for a week.  I separated her from Wes and Moch and she got fed last every day that week.  Her workload hasn't increased to the point of being what she considers adequate and I think that plays a big part in her getting a little stir crazy/frustrated.  The whole reason I give her a short summer break is to avoid her working in the most humid, buggy time of the year. 

Ms. B has satisfied Klein as far as proving she is not there to boss anyone and is happy to be a follower.  There were no mare glares, no stomping, no squealing.  Klein told her where to go a couple times and Ms. B happily complied.  She even started following Klein around for a while.  She seeks approval and is happy to have a leader.  That's all Klein needs to know. 

Since New Jersey has been the rainforest this year, the workload has increased a little slower than I would like.  If it isn't raining, it's extremely humid and miserable outside.  I love hot weather and sun, but this crushing humidity has just not ever left for any period of time up here this year.  The rain was really starting to get to me too.  I need the sun.  I can't take grey day after grey day after grey crappy, rainy day.  The weather this year as a whole has just been one big giant disappointment from day 1.  The good news is, our time in New Jersey is coming to an end.  Two main reasons I was ok with coming up here, the horses enjoyed some colder weather, and I knew we were only here temporarily.

However, even with the crappy weather, with the work we have got done, Klein is now schooling half-pass and pirouette at the trot.  

Next bad luck thing to happen while The Other Half was gone...I hear this adorable little kitty throwing up in the middle of the night.  

I turn my light on to see where she is, only to find that she has killed a mouse, ripped its throat out, proudly put it on the foot of the bed, then proceeded to throw up its feet.  It's 3:30am, and there is a dead mouse on the foot on my bed, and vomit with mouse feet in it.  I'm not going to lie though, I was proud of her hunting skills and after I cleaned it all up I gave her some treats and told her she did a great job.  If it wasn't 3:30am I probably would have been more pissed and grossed out.

Fast forward to the night before The Other Half comes home...I go to turn my stall fans off for the night and when I hit the switch I hear one clinking as it slows down.  I couldn't figure out how that fan would have broke.  I thought for sure something must have come loose in it or maybe a blade got bent somehow.  No, I look in the stall to see something IN the fan.  I was like what the hell is in that fan?!?!?!  I took a couple steps into the stall to realize THERE WAS A SNAKE MY FAN.  A SNAKE.  Obviously, a stupid snake because it slithered into the fan and got chopped in the head, but that is just creepy and gross.  I would rather have another dead mouse on the foot of the bed.

Normally snakes don't bother me too much, but a snake in the fan, and hearing that sound.  No thanks.  I'm out.  That is The Other Half's department.  I Marco Polo'd him (if you don't have that app you should get it!) and let him hear the noise then showed him what it was.  He thought it was hilarious and showed all his friends he was with, who also all thought it was hilarious.  It was not hilarious.  It also stayed right there in the fan until the next afternoon when he got home.  He pulled into the driveway, got out of his car and went straight into that stall and grabbed it out of the fan.  

Hopefully he is home for a while now so that the shenanigans can stop.  It would be nice if New Jersey also got its life together and stopped being stupid with the weather.  The heatwave we had this past week was exceedingly brutal.  Below is a video from the other day where after standing under their fans all day, I hosed each of them off then turned them out in the other pasture so I could drag the one they were in.  They all took turns rolling then the girls went tearing around like they had no sense.  Wes just watched them.  It's too hot for that nonsense as far as he is concerned.  Once they were done, Klein ran to the gate and nickered at me like "Ok, stalls are clean, pasture is dragged, we are done playing, let us back over there."  I opened the gate and they all went running back into their stalls to be under their fans.

A post shared by Stacey C (@jumpingpercheron) on Aug 29, 2018 at 3:00pm PDT

The One That Didn't Get Away

My obsession with Ms. B continued to to grow almost by the day.  Definitely by the ride.  Not only is she just drop dead gorgeous to look at (seriously, she could stop traffic), but she is just so smart and so willing, and incredibly brave.  She is my kind of mare to the core.  I guess everyone saw my obsession with her was a bit over the top from the beginning, like more than I just like this horse.  I have liked her since I first sat on her.  I told people her walk felt different to me and they thought I was kind of weird and really had no idea what I was talking about.  Like, good different, not there is a problem different.  She also has always felt like the perfect size horse for me.  I have just always felt really good sitting on her.

Early on in our relationship thoughts started creeping into my head like I may need to actually figure out a way to keep this mare for a while.  The opportunity just happened to present itself, well duh because it was meant to be, and I jumped on that immediately.  Do I need another horse?  No.  Another issue was The Other Half was out of the country for work.  He did meet her before he left though.  That was also about three rides into our time together.  So needless to say she was far, far from that point by the time I started really feeling like I couldn't let her go.  But a decision like that is not something I can make without him here.  I wanted him to see her in person again and be around her to see how we interact and how she was going by that time.  We are also due to move again at the end of this year so I felt like I probably needed to wait to hear where we were going.  Then I thought, does it even matter?  You can't really pass up something you feel so strongly about because of some detail like that.

The Other Half came home and saw how awesome she had become.  We had a couple difficult rides that weren't because of behavior, they were her asking and showing me she needing some changes made.  I made those changes (bit change was the big one) and the progress started going up in leaps and bounds.  I started having those rides where I had to stop for a minute because I was so ecstatic about how she was feeling/going.  I would pretty much tell The Other Half on a daily basis how amazing she was and how much I liked her and how much she just kept reeling me in more and more with her awesomeness.  She just continued to shatter every single stereotype I ever had of OTTBs.  Yeah, I can hear you all laughing, that's fine, The Other Half laughed at me at first too.

I had always said that if we decided to go for it she needed to go for a PPE since we all know OTTBs have a slightly higher potential for physical issues/old injuries, etc...  Though I have not had one single issue with her as far as soundness or anything else.  I still felt like I better do it because I would have the same plan with her as I do for Klein, a lot of riding, a lot of adventures, a lot of shows.  Truth be told, I've never PPE'd a horse.  Some people think that is stupid, I've always just been lucky.  Mochs issue came along years after I bought her.  She had never had an issue up until then either.

Hacking around, aka riding off into the sunset.

Anyway, after I kept having these rides where Ms. B would just continually one up herself.  She started nickering to me when I would go to get her, and she started putting her head in my arms.  I just feel like she was trying so hard to prove herself so she could be a permanent family member.  I thought ok, I better go get this PPE done because by that point it would already crush me if something significant was found.  So, I made an appointment with Dr. Smith at NJ Equine, the same vet that has taken such stellar care of Mochs and got her so sound.  Not only is she a phenomenal vet, she also very honest and realistic.

When we got to the clinic a surgery was having some complications so we had to wait a little bit, which was totally fine.  Ms. B waited on the trailer patiently.  She ate her hay and enjoyed the breeze from her fan.  A NASTY storm rolled up and I decided to still leave her on the trailer because she would rather be on the trailer than in a stall.  They offered us a stall but I knew she would be happier on the trailer.  Even with the loud storm she just ate her hay and watched out the window.

When the time came to start her exam I unloaded her and she stood like a statue.  There was a few times she made a mare glare but 95% of the time, she stood like a statue.  She was so good.  They even commented she was "being really good, for a TB."  Haha, I said "yeah, that's part of why we're here right now."  They jogged her with the sensors all over her for a full gait analysis.  Flexed her, jogged her some more.  I got on her and rode her, they watched and listened to her heart after some work.

They took some images and scoped her airway.  The most significant finding was that she is a roarer.  She is a grade 2/4 right now.  It doesn't affect her, and while I'm not familiar with the condition beyond knowing what it is.  After reading up on it and Dr. Smith explaining everything to me as well as the option for tie back surgery if the condition ever does start to affect her I decided that was something I can live with.

You can see the size difference between the two sides.

Should she ever need that surgery it is so common and fairly inexpensive that is something I would absolutely not hesitate to do for her.  And yes, I know there is the potential for aspiration and excess mucus after the procedure.  Some horses experience it, some don't.  She also may never need the surgery.  Here you can hear the noise at the canter:

A post shared by Stacey C (@jumpingpercheron) on Jun 8, 2018 at 7:11am PDT

They also detected a tiny heart murmur which seems to be incredibly common as well.  It is on the lower end of the lowest grade possible.  They listened to her heart after I rode her for a bit too so they could see if there was any alarming increase, which there was not.  And those are the only two things of particular interest.  They said she was actually in better shape than most, which is also impressive for a war horse.

Also, since I am admittedly not super familiar with OTTBs, in addition to discussing things with Dr. Smith I also asked my OTTB officianado friends about those two findings.  For the rest of the exam Ms. B continued to be on her best behavior.  Even when they turned the scope on she just pricked her ears and looked at it.  She is such a genuinely curious, interested mare.  She doesn't spook at odd things, she just likes to look at them.  If she was a human she would be asking "what is that?  What does it do?  How does it work?"  She also kept looking to me as if to say "Am I doing good?  Am I passing?"  When she had the scope down her throat they took the twitch off and she still just stood there.

Her checking in with me face.  The look of "I'm doing good, right?  I'm passing, right?"

I drove home in silence, thinking about everything.  The Other Half really didn't ask me how things were going while I was there either.  I figured he was thinking I was wasting my time.  It was when I got home he asked me how things went.  I grabbed one of my little bottles of champagne, sat down, and said "she's as amazing as I knew she was and I am a moron if I pass her up.  I ride a lot of horses and you haven't heard me go off the deep end about a single one except her.  You know I wouldn't actually be this obsessed if she wasn't VERY special."  He said "I know, I know."  Turns out he definitely was not thinking I was doing something stupid or wasting my time.  He said he wasn't opposed to me going for it at all.  So, I texted my friend, "So, can we shake on this in the morning or what?!"  She said we could hug on it.  Cue my head almost floating off my shoulders.

She definitely knows who her dad is.  She will nicker to him.

Hanging out at home for the day.

The next morning I drove down the driveway to the barn and as soon as I saw B out grazing my eyes teared up.  She was really mine.  She is a one of a kind, one in a million mare that just doesn't come along every day, every month, or every year.  Everyone at the barn has said how happy they are for us and how this was the only way it was meant to end.  They said she wouldn't be going like she does for just anyone, it's because we're meant for each other.  There is a reason she came along.  I feel like if I didn't make her a permanent part of this family she would have been the one that got away and I would forever regret it.

Our first ride as officially my horse.

 

A post shared by Stacey C (@jumpingpercheron) on Aug 5, 2018 at 10:30am PDT

Summer Vacation is Over

Klein is back to work to get ready for the fall championships.  She is feeling great and after our last adjustment with energy, she is keeping the energy.  She's keeping the energy and getting more and more elastic.  I'm so ready to get her out to a show at second level.  This fall, that's the plan.  The two championship shows she will have to do First Level since that is what she qualified for, but after that, we can move up.

Klein comes back to work the same way she always does.  I start her out with hacks and trot sets.  Then we add in some concentrated flat work that increases with difficulty the longer she is back in work.  We also are still jumping and doing gymnastic work that increases gradually as well.

In addition to two championship shows, we'll also be going to the Breed Show at Devon next month.

Mochs has also went back to work.  I gave her a bit of a break because her anxiety was getting up there again.  Physically, she looks and GREAT.  Mentally, she can get herself pretty wound up for no reason.  That's the way she's always been.  You just kind of have to strategize a bit more with her.  Though after the first ride back, the next day she cut her right ear pretty bad.  I thought at first it was going to need stitches, but after a closer inspection it didn't.  We cleaned it up as best as we could without irritating her too much.  It was extremely sore (as you could imagine) and had some pretty noticeable swelling by that evening.
We have no idea how she could have done that.  We never see her sticking her head through fences or any other thing, though that is what it looks like she did.  It looks like she got her head stuck somewhere.  We walked around the entire pasture she was in and you think we could find where or how she did it?  Of course not.  Horses are really good at that.  They get hurt and it's a complete mystery.

I can ride her in a neck rope but even the top of her neck by that ear was sore so I just decided to leave her be until it healed up enough to put a bridle on.  Now that it is healed she's back to work.  It will be the same as usual, bring her back easily before increasing the workload.  I'm not sure what my future plans are with her right now.  We're back to the unknown, not because of soundness reasons.  As far as being sound, she's good to go.  I am starting to wonder if maybe I still haven't found what makes her completely happy as far as her job.  We'll see how it goes this time, and I may try something different with her soon with her work.

Leo Reunion

Recently Leo and I have began a little reunion.  He needs some refresher rides on proper balance so I will be getting on him once or twice a week for a while now.  It took a while for his memory to get jogged, but it did, and now we just have to put some consistency back in his routine.  He also needs to be reminded he CAN bend and he doesn't HAVE to ride like a 2x4 piece of wood.  He's figured out some pretty rude evasions too.  His favorite being to snap his head up to break any connection you have, and to just out right evade right out of either shoulder and fly sideways.  He really is making WAY more work for himself than he has to.  It's not tack, it's not teeth, and it's not his body.  He has been ridden in my tack and someone else's, he had his teeth done earlier in the year, and he's had chiro adjustments/massage.

Exhibit A.  There we were, a couple steps into the canter when he pulls one of his new tricks out of his hat.

30 seconds later...

This took a bit to get to as well.

Let's not forget, here we are earlier this year.  This dude has skills.  He is extremely capable.

A post shared by Stacey C (@jumpingpercheron) on Feb 25, 2018 at 5:38am PST

In addition to that he needs a bit of a break from the ring so I'm going to help him out with that.  Some horses like their bubble, some don't.  I don't think he does.  I think he likes to go out and explore.  He is on his very best behavior when he is out and about.  He's been a bit of a handful in/next to/around the ring lately.  He is 100% a different horse when you get him out.  It's out of sight, out of mind for him.  I think his little mental breaks will do him good, he seems to enjoy himself and like adventuring.

The Unbelievable Miss Benburb

My all time favorite photo of her so far, obviously taken by a professional (thank you Sherry).  I think this should be painted.  This photo says so much, but most of all it shows how happy, relaxed, and confident she is in her new life.

Something has really clicked with Ms. B in the past two weeks.  We have hit a streak where every single ride she one ups herself.  She has found a whole new level of balance and it's pretty amazing.  She continues to impress me with every ride.  I just love her.  Not only does she have the looks, but she has the ability, and an incredible mind. 

Hey Horseware, drop me a comment if you'd like to contract her as one of your models!  Seriously though, she is super model status.

She has really started to settle in her canter.  She has discovered smooth canter departs this week from the correct canter cue.  She was really adorable because the ride after that she wanted to break into a canter seamlessly before I asked.  I think she was proud of herself and wanted to show me she totally gets it.  Her trot is always improving and I am really starting to feel some quality balance consistently.  She is also stretching forward and slightly down into the contact at the trot.

Every ride on her lately has moments where I am in disbelief of how nicely she is going.  She is incredibly smart and I think as her strength builds it is even easier for her to pick stuff up.  She totally understands things easily and learns quickly, but I think some of our issues may been a lack of strength.

I continue to take her out places and she continues to impress me with her willingness to go anywhere I ask.  She isn't spooky, she is generally interested in things.  There isn't much that concerns her.  She is also walking in to me as soon as I call for her.  I meet her half way.  Some days she greets me with a nicker.  She is starting to be more cuddly too.  She'll put her head in my hands or chest.  Sometimes she'll put her head under one of my arms.  She was a sad, skittish, robot when I first met her.  As her personality comes out more and more it is just one more thing I love about her.

There it is, the look.  She always has her ears pricked when walking in to me.  This day I didn't see her right away, called her name and she poked her head around the run in and came walking in. 

Pretty mama.

A deer running across the track in front of us while we're at a gallop.  Think Ms. B cared?  Not a care in the world.  She kept on rolling like it wasn't even there.

Her new buddy Ed, a fellow unicorn.  There was a time when she wouldn't want anything to do with another horse coming this close, now she happily says hi.

Hanging out with friends.

Helping others learn too.

Most of you know how this story ends because you have seen it on IG or the blog's Facebook page, but there is a post coming about it too.

Monty

Monty is a nice young horse that came to the barn not long ago.  He is an un-raced four year old with a the mind of a 10 year old.  If you didn't know he was four, you would never guess he was four.  He is about the easiest four year old you could hope for.  He is genuinely curious and not spooky at all.  I rode him for a bit to get him going in preparation to be listed for sale.  He had a good set of basics.  He was going wtc nicely and I had jumped him a couple times no problem.

Once he gains some more strength and balance and improves his bend he'll be on his way.  I think he'd make a great hunter.  He has the movement for it and the temperament.  Monty ended up not going far.  His new mom was already riding at the barn and she fell in love with him.  They are great together and will have a ton of fun.  I am so glad he found someone that will treat him like the wonderful horse he is.

Ms. B's Second Dressage Show

As Ms. B comes along with her flat work she will go to dressage schooling shows.  I took her to her second dressage show (her first one was in June) about two weeks ago.  She was 100% better and I couldn't have been more happy with her that day.

It was pouring when we got there, which doesn't bother her, it's just annoying.  Luckily they have an indoor to warm up in and by the time we were warmed up for our first test, the rain had stopped.  She warmed up great.  She had never been to this farm but nothing really seemed to catch her eye.  She was much more steady with her connection by this show too.  It still needs work, but you have to remember we are working against her entire life as a racehorse.  She still has her moments but those moments are becoming more and more spread out.

The ring was a sloppy mess because not only was it pouring when we got there, it had been raining all night.  Luckily, Ms. B loves water and went marching right through the giant puddles.  Some horse were spooking and having a hard time dealing with staying on the rail to get through them. The funniest part of the day is that the judge had a bell that day.  Every single time B heard the bell it got her FULL attention.  She didn't do anything, she would just perk her ears and look toward where it came from.  It was pretty adorable.  I'm sure it had to be reminding her of the bell on the gate.

Her first test was much better than the last show.  She went right in the ring like she knew what we were doing this time.  The only real issues was just a few moments of broken connection and being fussy.  There was no issue of going forward after our halts like last time.  I attribute that to a bit change and just continuing consistent work.

We had a little break between our tests so we went and walked around the property for a few minutes then went back in to the warm up to work on a couple transitions.  She was checking herself out in the mirrors too, I mean can you blame her?  Overall she was just on her very best behavior.

Our second test went well too.  Same issues, broken connection which led to one too big 20m circle.  Her free walk needs a bit of work but it was definitely better that day than the last show too.  I left the ring super happy with her again.  We went back to the warm up again to work on our canter while we were there.  After a few nice canter departs we headed back to the trailer.

I was so happy with her I really didn't care what our scores were.  They could have given us a 5% and it wouldn't have taken any of my happiness away.  I knew our scores had to be better than last time though, and they were.  For where she is in her training and experience, she really could not have been any better.  No video from this show either.  We went alone.

She scored a 60% and a 62%, respectable for a green horse.  She earned her first blue ribbon and was second on her other test.  I saw the scores at the office and didn't even read my tests.  I was too happy with her.  I threw them in my truck and forgot about them until last week.  I had to get something out of my truck and I saw them and thought, wait I never did read these!  So, I read them.

The comments at the end made my day.  Keep in mind, she was in the Starter Horse division so the judge knew she was a green horse, but saw her potential.  Here are those comments:

As if I couldn't have been more proud that day, those comments managed to make me slightly more proud after I read them.  Those scores also qualified her for two local championships, so she will go with Klein to them this fall.

She has another show in a couple weeks and I can't wait to see how she does with the next one because she continues to improve every single week.  She's going to be a serious threat after she gets some more strength, balance, and experience.

One Week, Four Dressage Shows

When Klein and I decide we are going to do something, we put 100% effort into it.  We hit our USDF goals hard these past two months.  We did a series of recognized dressage shows in a few weeks.  She is completely proficient at First Level and I was confident we could go out and earn the scores we needed, no problem.  That is what we did.

The full collection from two shows over three days.

Stone Tavern was two days with Dressage at the Park the day after.  That Friday I rode 1-2, 1-3, and DSE.  It was miserable that day.  It had been raining a ton, a storm even rolled in about 15 mins after we got there and just let loose on us.  They actually delayed the show an hour because it was raining so hard you could barely see the rings at one point.  After that storm, when we thought it couldn't possibly be more humid, it was, and coats were not waived.  My coat is warmer than your average coat, but there is no other option for me if I want to wear my service jacket.

I felt like Klein was slightly behind my leg for the first test so when we went back to the warm-up I got her moving a bit more with transitions through and within gaits.  1-3 was first and 1-2 was second, then DSE.  At the point in the warm up between tests I really just wanted a solid effort.  It didn't have to be perfect because it was just miserable that day in the thick humidity and I felt like I asked Klein for enough by putting up with working in it in the first place.

I was super proud of Klein because despite the crushing humidity, and the slight lack of energy from it, we still got the qualifying scores we needed.

The next day was the first DSHB Show aka breed show.  The weather was 100% better that day and it was beautiful.  This is also a recognized USDF show and most of the horses are presented in hand.  There are a few under saddle classes for young horses (nothing over 4 years old).  Prior to that show I had never entered a USDF breed show.  I knew what they were about and how the horses were presented but had not participated in one yet.  The horses are presented in hand and then asked to walk and trot on a triangle.  They are being judged for their potential for dressage sport horse breeding.

The first day the judge loved Klein.  He said that I really should consider breeding her because a lighter version of her would be amazing (nothing is changing my opinion to not breed her fyi).  He also said "You know I can't give you like, a 78% right?"  I said oh yes, I absolutely knew that we were the oddity in a world with VERY expensive warmbloods.  He laughed and said for what Klein is she is exceptional and that he really liked her.  She actually won that class, but the competition was not stiff.  She was also the Mature Mare Champion that day.

We also did the Amateur Handler class where more emphasis is placed on the handler and how they present the horse.  You set the horse up in front of the judge where instead of looking for breeding potential, they are looking more at the turn out and presentation of the horse.  The handler is also being judged on their appearance (neatness, cleanliness, etc...).  We were third in that class mostly because I needed to learn to set Klein up better.  This was foreign to me but that class was a great learning experience and I really had fun.

The next day was Dressage at the Park and the weather was pretty much perfect.  We did the same classes for the breed show.  Since this show was a different show the score counted toward year end awards.  The judge that day was not a fan of Klein.  She didn't have much of anything to say to us.  Though she did tell me in the Amateur Handler class that I should try to do something with her tail.  Her docked tail.  There's not much you can do about that, and it will be left alone.  We were fourth in the Mature Mare class that day and 1st in Amateur Handler.  Our saving grace was that the judge did say I presented her the best she can possibly be presented.  Thankfully she is very good in hand and when I told her to pick it up down the long side of the triangle she lengthened her stride and looked great.

Suddenly Farm was the following Wednesday.  We rode in the late afternoon and it was a nice day thankfully.  We did 1-2, 1-3, and DSE again.  Klein warmed up great.  I had some specific things I was going to incorporate and they worked.  She brought a new level of energy to her tests that day.  Sometimes we fall back into old habits unknowingly until a trained eye from the ground reminds us we have reverted.

She always goes in quietly and obediently but we were able to bring the overall energy up that day.  1-2 went well and I knew it.  She just felt great.  We had a little break then went back to the warm-up to do some transitions and back into the ring we went.  She went in the ring like she OWNED it for 1-3.  Her transitions were super prompt and we just flowed through the test.  I knew it was a good test (1-3), I even texted The Other Half and told him it was probably one of our best tests we had done.  She won all of her classes/tests that day.  There was a really nice looking little warmblood mare in front of us for 1-3 and I thought she did a pretty damn good test, I was surprised to see that we scored slightly higher than her.  Klein can hold her own against the light horses.  She has always been able to.

Unfortunately, I have no video of any of these shows.  We went alone to all of them. I feel like I also deserve my own award for braiding my own horse four times in six days.  I have never liked braiding and usually pay other people to do it.  I decided to just get over myself and learn to like it.  Four times in six days will do that.  Klein got a little break after that.  She deserved a min-vacay.  She went back to work this week and feels absolutely amazing.  So now we will get ready for the two championship shows this fall that we qualified for at 1st level and start getting ready for our 2nd level debut.