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Posted on 06/19/2006 8:46:45 AM PDT by HairOfTheDog
This is a horse chat thread where we share ideas, ask for input from other horsemen, and talk about our riding and horse-keeping. We have a lot of different kinds of riders and horses, and a lot to share. In the previous threads we have had a great time talking through lessons, training, horse lamenesses, illnesses and pregnancies... and always sharing pictures and stories.
I always have a link to this thread on my profile page, so if you have something to say and can't find the thread in latest posts… look for it there and wake the thread up!
I also have a ping list for horse threads that are of interest, and MissTargets will now be pinging everyone most mornings. Let MissTargets and/or me know if you would like to be on the ping list. As FreeRepublic is a political site, our politics and other issues will probably blend in…. There are many issues for horsemen that touch politics… land use, animal rights/abuse cases that make the news…. Legislation that might affect horse owners.
So... like the previous threads, this is intended as fun place to come and share stories, pictures, questions and chit-chat, unguided and unmoderated and that we come together here as friends. There are lots of ways of doing things and we all have our quirks, tricks and specialties that are neat to learn about.
Previous threads:
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread - thread ONE
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread - Thread TWO!
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread - Thread THREE!
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread FOUR
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread FIVE
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread SIX
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread SEVEN
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread EIGHT
The FreeRepublic Saddle Club thread! - Thread NINE
New folk and occasional posters, jump right in and introduce yourselves, tell us about your horses, and post pictures if you've got them!
PA was bone dry for about 10 days mid June. It was great for hay. Then the monsoons came and it hasn't really been dry since.
That's terrible. We don't make our own but I've learned how lucky we are, paying $2.50/bale delivered and stacked. It's good timothy grass. Our guys are easy keepers and don't need any higher octane than that.
Yes, we survived. :~)
Good to take Susie in now and have her looked at so you won't worry while you're gone. Maybe it was stress from the fireworks? (Now I think all troubles stem from fireworks :~D)
Congratulations to Alison, on a new horse even :~D
And glad you didn't get swept away by a twister!
We heard a couple thunderstorms yesterday, but they didn't touch us, and we could use the rain :~\
LOL...I don't think this is the fireworks. Some of the symptoms, the not jumping started before the fireworks were an issue. But they could be what caused her stomach problems yesterday, stress.
Mostly is just the way she stands around looking pitiful, and her not jumping. I'm wondering if she twists around a lot to chew on at the base of her tail. Could she just be sore from that, or pulled a hip out of wack...but that doesn't explain the stomach problem, the grass eating...and it's all very vague....
Becky
Huh well, I hope she's OK soon. If her tummy really hurts that might make her not want to jump up too. It's probably a good sign that she had that nasty BM, at least she's not plugged up.
That's what I thought, She has been eating normal, her coat is healthy even tho she acts so itchy. It has to be allergies, I looked for fleas and couldn't find one.
I hate not knowing,,if they could. I'd much rather know, even if it's bad news then wondering, wondering. I hate that.
Becky
If my old vet that died was still around I would probably have taken her already. But now the only dog vet that we have around, that isn't affiliated with a big expensive clinic, is a vet I'm not particularly fond of. He hasn't got a lot of people skills, and can be a bit crabby sometimes. But I'm going to give him a try today.
Becky
I understand.... when'd the appointment?
And you're right, she might know something's up with you. My Zulu used to throw up whenever I packed boxes up like I was going to move. And I always took her with me!
It's at 11:45.
Becky
We can usually get good hay for $2 a bale out of the field or $3 out of the barn. Unfortunatley we have to haul and stack it.
One of my terriers is like that, she will chew herself raw and I have no fleas. Mostly it is her feet which is contact allergies. I have tried special diets that helped a little but did not eliminate the problem. I hate to have to resort to steroid shots so we just give frequent medicated baths and spray her feet with tea tree oil spray. She gets an upset tummy often to and it is usually cause she has a hairball in her stomach.
We have one rather curmudgeonly vet at the clinic I go to, and I never really like it when he's the only one available. But then I had a rather good conversation with him about that pregnant kitten, and all the other abandoned and needy animals that had shown up at the clinic over the years, and I understood him a lot better. Hopefully you have a good appointment with him and get some relief about Susie.
Well, I have to share the story about our ride on Sunday. My husband and I decided to go to the Taladega National Forest horse camp to ride. We usually do the yellow trail which is 16 miles, mostly good trails some rocky hills and the trails are pretty well marked. We have never done the blue trail, which is 18 miles and they say a little more for the experienced horse and rider. We started out at 10:10 am, it was hot and we had plenty of Gatorade and there was creekbeds along the trail for the horses. We rode most of the way with no problem. The trails were not well marked but we usually found our way even though we had to turn around a few times and head the other direction. You would think they would mark the intersecting trails well and not just the straight aways. We broke for lunch at a stream crossing and rested for about 20 minutes. At about 3:00 we came to a crossroad that was not well marked and wouldn't you know it we took the wrong path. We ended up at the end of a fire road in the middle of a controlled burn! Lots of smoke but no flame. We turned around and went back to the original path, that was about a good mile out of the way so 2 miles down and back total. By this time the horses were getting pretty tired and we were getting pretty saddle sore. We continued on and the trail took us off the gravel road back into the forest, we were riding along and thought we were on the right path when we noticed the trails were really narrow and the tree breanches were really low. We saw a marker that indicated it was a foot trail and no horses allowed, SOOO we turned around again and went back the way we came. We obviously went to far that way the terraine was not familiar and the foot trails started going along a cliff side. I told Gary that this was not right and I was turning around. My legs were getting so stiff so I got off and walked Blade for a good 1/2 mile until I found the right trail. The horse trail crossed the foot trail but there wre trees down across the horse trail so you could not see it. We had some hills to climb and descend. Blade got the point where he would just stop like he could not go any further even when Jake got out of site. Poor guys we let them go at their own pace but but could not do anything about the hills we had to get out of that forest! We finally made it back to camp at 6:45 pm! Un tacked, walked them down a little, hosed the sweat off and loaded up and headed home. I thought for sure the horses would have sore backs but they did not. We had an appt to get new shoes on Monday and the farrier said that Jake was sore in his left hock and Blade in his left stifle. Our original plan was to ride after getting them shod but it was so hot and all of us were so sore and tired we just went home and crashed.
Oh dear... Sounds like a ride that was more work than fun, but good to have behind you so you know what you and Blade can do! I know what it is though, to fear you've taken on too much, but don't have any choice but to keep going. Too bad about the trail markings. Do you guys have any trail riding clubs or adopt a trail programs in your forest that you could join or organize to improve them? That's what happens here, the club has an annual cleanup and maintenance party where they cut brush back from the trails, the state sometimes supplies new signs if they need it, they just have to be told.
All in all with all of the back tracking we probably rode 23 to 24 miles. I will post pictures tomorrow, could not get onto Snapfish to upload, guess they were busy over the Holiday.
THey had a sign posted tor trail maintenance they had done it on June 24th and had another scheduled for July 29th and sometime in September. I don't think they made it to the blue trail though! We did bit off way more than we could chew, but I was proud of the boys and so glad I had been giving them electrolites the day before and that morning. I wish I would have had some of those bars to try on the trail, I know they would have appreciated it. You should see my lower legs! I gues it is a heat rash or something but as Frog said Monday morning when she saw them it looked like I had bee scalded. All on the inside of my lower calf area where it sits next to the saddle, red, red, red!
Susie chews her feet alot too:\ I've learned since I've gotten her that terriers, she's a Jack Russell are prone to skin allergies.
I've given her the steroid shots a few times, but they never lasted with her as long as the vet said they would, and even that didn't give her total relief. I've tried the Benedryl and it didn't do anything...
I just don't want to keep guessing, especially since I'm going to be gone for a week.
I know I'm probably over reacting, but I'm really worried, my stomach is flipping around now worrying. There just seems like something is really wrong...and not knowing is worse then knowing...
Becky
Wow, sounds like a heck of a ride.
We have a really nice state park that in the past I was always worried about something like that happening, getting semi-lost and it being stuck out longer then I wanted to be.
I was finally given a really good map of the trails by a ranger, and I don't think I'd have problems now.
Becky
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