Lucy: back in action

It's been a while since I've updated because Lucy has had some time off to get over whatever she did to her knee. The vet went out and looked at her and prescribed some meds to get the swelling down. There was never any heat or lameness so we aren't sure WHAT she did to it, but the good news is that she is back in work! I got to visit her yesterday, and I got to warm her up for Morgan's ride.

I am soooo out of shape. It's really quite sad. I have been going to the gym but I have had a very hard time balancing my weight with my calorie intake without affecting my milk supply, since I am breastfeeding Hannah. So many people have told me not to worry about it for the first year, but I like being trim and in shape! So this is quite frustrating. I have no stamina for riding. I rode for maybe 15 minutes and got off and saw stars. I had to sit down! Horrible.

Lucy was such a good girl, and was very forgiving of my crap riding. She felt really good.

Hannah helped her daddy take photos

Morgan hopped on and made Lucy look like a million bucks:

Morgan is aiming for a little schooling three-phase next weekend, as long as Lucy doesn't sabotage herself again!

Hannah is doing great. Can you believe she will be five months old on the 18th? I can't!! She is so funny, and so cute. I am still job hunting and have one very serious possibility and while going back to work is a necessity, it's going to be very hard to leave this:

Grinding my Gears

Boy, horses sure do keep us humble, huh?

After Lucy's super XC schooling round that I last updated about, she went to an unrated schooling 3-phase at Azrael Acres in Uxbridge, MA. In true Lucy fashion, she walked right out of a hind shoe getting on the trailer, but the foot looked perfect and she didn't seem to care, so they opted to go ahead with the show plans. Dressage went better than it ever has, with some beautiful moments. Overall still kind of a tense test, but miles ahead of where she came from.

I was very worried about both jumping phases. Lucy's division was first, so the ground was still quite wet from the night before, and they were both on slick grass. I know how sensitive she is about her feet and I was worried she wouldn't feel secure with one missing hind shoe and not a lot of traction.

Sadly, I was spot on. She had a very tough time getting around SJ and after three XC jumps, told her rider that she was done. We were all so disappointed, but not really in Lucy, just in general.

One XC jump from faaaarrr away

Morgan went back to basics that week, rebuilding Lucy's confidence. They went to Apple Knoll to school in the jumper show on Wednesday and did 2'9" and 3'. Lucy jumped very well. She has never jumped under the lights but she did that day, and it didn't phase her! She had a rail in the jump off in the 2'9" class and just missed the ribbons because of it, and the height in the 3' class surprised her a bit so she pulled two rails very early on, but jumped clean the last half of the class (funny how you actually have to pay attention at 3', horse!) so overall I was very very happy about all of that.

The day after that, they went XC schooling and while it started out great, Lucy got combative with her rider, E, and E kind of decided enough was enough, and got off. I don't blame her. Morgan got on and schooled Lucy and Lu did a lot better. They made the decision that Morgan would ride her at Valinor this weekend, not E, and they dropped her from Novice to BN. I was totally on board with that idea. BN set Lucy up for success, not failure. I was very hopeful that it would be a great event. Plus, it was set to be her first rated show!

Then Morgan found her in her stall with a giant swollen knee this morning. UGH how frustrating!!! So she's scratched for the day and Morgan cold-hosed her. She's a bit ouchy at the walk but sound at the trot. Morgan thinks it may be a bee sting or other insect related injury. Fingers crossed that it goes down asap.

On a happier note, have some Hannah and Cairo pictures:

Spring tease

We had a beautiful weekend with almost Spring-like weather and I took full advantage of it! I cleaned Lucy's paddock to perfection, finally, and washed her legs and tail. She has a small mystery swelling on her RF (why is it ALWAYS the right front?!) so I've been treating that with Furazone, standing wraps, and cold therapy. It is looking better each day and she hasn't been lame on it at all, so it's not really on my list of stuff to worry about.

I lunged her yesterday in the Vienna reins and she had a very level mindset, so I got on to cool her out. We mostly walked but had about a two minute trot session, which didn't last very long because I immediately had to pee (yay 7.5 months preggo) and I also have almost no functional abdominal muscles so posting was a little bit difficult! She was a perfect lady and didn't put a foot wrong.

Today it snowed all day and I think going from 50 degrees and sunny to cold and snowy in less than 24 hours is borderline torture, but there you have it. This whole week is supposed to be dodgy weather-wise.

Kenny and I took Cairo out for a walk in the snow this morning and she had a super time.

Lucy at work!

Photographic evidence that my horse exists in some working capacity!

given the no-hands approach, you can probably tell that Maddy wasn't very
worried about Crazy Lu returning

Lucy has even been quite tolerant of us touching her ears!

Is it bad I'm thinking about roaching her mane because I have zero
motivation to pull it right now? hehehe

yay! a little trot, no nasty mare face!

going around in an organized fashion on a loose rein

fat mare getting fatter

snuggle session in the paddock

Lucy was not impressed that I was doing this to her when she could be EATING

She is doing really, really well. Maddy rode again today but just walked, and now Lucy will get a few days off with just some light lunging, maybe a little walk on the trails in hand if I'm feeling up to it.

She has remained sound and happy, and the latter makes me feel like this was all worth it in a strange way. I had hoped this time off would do her brain some good, and after seeing her plod along like a cow pony, I am confident I was right!

It helps to have a really great rider to get her started again. Maddy is awesome.

PS - if you like my shirt, check out Bad Pony Clothing. The woman who owns it is a local Rhode Island-based artist/equestrian and her products are so cute!

possibly the best blog entry in the history of blog entries

The optimistic side of me was thinking maybe Lucy could go back to walking under saddle for a month or two, and then maybe do some trotting down the road.

The pessimistic side of me was sure this horse was never going back to work and would be an expensive and beautiful lawn ornament forever.

The vet hadn't met Lucy before, so she did a whole exam, including palpating her suspensory ligaments on all four legs, palpating her neck, back, and hind end. She flexed her and had her assistant trot her out, which was good because I am in no shape to run! She flexed mildly positive in her front left and hind right, but those legs have a tiny bit of arthritis in them and those findings haven't changed since I got her, so we aren't worried about that. The vet did tell me she takes flexions into account but she never looks at them as deciding factors. Lucy looked fabulous on the lunge line, even stretching down at the trot to the right and left. The vet said if she had any pain in her back she would no be stretching so well! Lucy was feisty at the canter but since I have been so sick, I haven't done anything with her, so she's probably feeling fresh. Typical Lulu.

After she got a little workout on the lunge line, we brought Lucy back up to the barn and the vet palpated her neck, spine, and SI again. I stuffed cookies into her mouth to keep her mind off of it. She is a very touchy horse so it's hard to get a good reading when the vets are poking and prodding her. She just HATES to be poked and prodded! She will pin her ears, swish her tail, and act like a jerk and the whole time we're standing there wondering, is that pain? or is that the classic mare face? The first time the vet palpated Lucy, Lu was a total witch. The second time, after lunging, I had those cookies and she was like, OMG COOKIES and did not even pay one lick of attention to the vet. The vet was really happy with those findings - she was poking her pretty hard so if there was any pain, Lucy would have let us know, and she didn't react at all!

After that, the vet did the hoof testers on Lucy's feet and surprisingly, she was not foot sore at all. The vet said, ok, you have free rein to put this horse back to work! And I said, ok, should I just walk her? And she said, nope, there's no reason she can't trot and canter too. WOW!! Not what I was expecting at all. Of course I am going to take things a lot slower than that. I think it would be irresponsible to rush through putting her back into work when she hasn't had any weight on her back in six months, and she has had such a low activity level. I think walking on a loose rein and encouraging long and low relaxation for a little while is a good place to start. I would love if she could handle going out on trail rides, because she really loves it out there and she is better behaved than in the ring. Then once she is going well at the walk, if she wants to trot (and if she behaves herself!!) she can have a little trot. We'll see how it goes!

So that was absolutely WONDERFUL news and I came home thinking, "that was the best vet appointment EVER!". She didn't even want to ultrasound her, so Lucy didn't have to get clipped! I got out of the appointment spending less than $200, which never happens! I was on cloud 9.

THEN, the day got even better. You see, I have been holding onto a pretty big secret:

I am expecting a baby, of the human variety :D

I am just shy of three months pregnant, and I had a doctor's appointment today. We heard the baby's heartbeat and were given the green light to tell everyone! We had already told our immediate families and some close friends, but I am so glad I don't have to keep the secret anymore because it was stressing me out!!

I have been feeling extremely sick with the pregnancy and then I got pneumonia on top of all that, so the last two weeks were challenging to say the least. I have lost ten pounds, "look like crap" according to my barn owner (lol) and overall I feel like garbage! I can't wait until I am through the first trimester and onto the craving lots of delicious stuff stage!

What does this mean for Lucy? Not a whole hell of a lot, except I won't be the one riding her :( She is just too hot and unpredictable to risk it. I am sad that I won't be able to enjoy any blizzard rides this year because they are truly one of the best parts of living in New England in the winter (actually, one of the ONLY good parts), but I hope someone else can. Maddy and my husband are going to help put her back in work, and if she is well-behaved, I will look for an excellent leaser down the road. I invested in a fresh tube of Ace, though we will try her without it to start.

I debated not doing anything with her until the Spring but the vet said "absolutely not" because she would be starting almost from scratch fitness-wise. Right now she looks really good, even still has a topline and a nice butt. After another six months off, though, she may lose more fitness and then we'd be risking more injury as she started going under saddle again. The vet also told me that with back injuries, keeping them going actually helps the muscles to lengthen out and build up, instead of atrophy. The vet was very happy and impressed that Lucy's muscle tone seems so great even after all this time off. That's a Thoroughbred, for you!

I will say that knowing I'm pregnant at the same time my broken horse is finally coming to the point where she can be ridden again has been really tough emotionally. I am of course thrilled that I am going to be a mommy, but at the same time I love my horse and have made so many sacrifices for her and it just sucks that it's going to be another 7 months-ish before I can ride! I have never gone so long in my life without riding. I hope my patience pays off and that she handles the winter well, with no further injuries. I would LOVE to be able to take her to just one little event late next summer.

So that is the story!

back in the land of the living

After a SECOND trip to the ER last week, I think I am finally, maybe, possibly on the mend. I hope so, anyway, because this sickness business is GARBAGE! I don't have time for this nonsense. I laid in bed Monday through Wednesday afternoon and that is just not like me! Kenny has been a superstar, getting up at 5am to do Lucy's stall so that I don't have to go during the day. Maddy and our other boarder have been helping out with PM feedings on days I just cannot do it. I am really grateful that everyone has been so helpful and flexible.

Yesterday I felt ok enough to eat something and today I woke up feeling pretty damn good, so I will do my best not to abuse my body now that it's kind of coming back to life.

Lucy had an acupuncture appointment yesterday that I dragged myself to the barn for and then sat panting on a muck bucket while the vet did his thing. That's the thing about pneumonia...you think you feel pretty good, then you stand up, or even just sit up! and you can't breathe for the next ten minutes.

Anyway, I made it there, and Lu was a good girl for the appointment even though it's been a month since her last one. Between our crazy schedules and me trying to die, we've had to cancel the last three appointments. The vet got six needles in before she started to have an issue, a new record. I have accepted that she will never be a willing pin cushion but given that she had a complete meltdown at the sight of ONE needle when we started, it's great that she will stand there now for six. We've discovered that she loves these treats that Maddy has. They're like horsey crack. They are small round cookies, about the size of a dime. I stand there while the vet is placing the needle and just shove these things into her face...and it works! Cairo is the LEAST food motivated animal you will ever find, and that can make training tricky at times, so I think it's only fair that my horse is the MOST food motivated horse I've ever met.

Today I am a teenie bit nervous, because it is hopefully the *final* follow up exam for Lucy and if it all goes well, she will be cleared to start working under saddle again. It will be just short of six months from the diagnosis at Tuft's to going back to work...a far cry from Tuft's initial guess of two months! But hey, we'll take it, and I'm just glad Lulu was an excellent invalid and did not get stupid when she was out of work.

Unfortunately I did have to request that Lucy and Brantley no longer be turned out together. I felt bad. The romance had started out well, the two of them nuzzling each other and sharing hay, but as time went on, Brantley became pretty protective of the hay and would not allow Lucy to stand by the gate. She was coming in with new battle wounds almost every day (and don't get me wrong, Brantley got his share too!) but she was surprisingly timid around him and I caught him really chasing her around a couple days in a row. The final straw for me was finding two new bite marks on her hind end and finding cuts on her hind legs from running in that tiny muddy paddock. So, I pulled the mommy card and broke them up. They actually seem a lot happier now, each with their own space and their own hay. I think maybe in the future we could try them together again but for now, it just wasn't worth the risk of her getting hurt when we are SO CLOSE to being able to ride! Luckily Maddy was very understanding and we have an extra paddock due to the fourth boarder leaving at the beginning of the month, so it all worked out very well!

and I thought getting the diagnosis would be the most challenging part!

It was a very discouraging week, as after getting that initial email from my vet mentioning ridden exercises, he did not respond to any follow up emails. I kind of felt like someone had asked me if I wanted cake, shown me the cake, and then said "oh actually you can't have this cake."

And I was all:

On top of that, I somehow got pneumonia and spent the latter part of last week, all weekend, and then through Tuesday feeling like utter CRAP. On Monday night I went to the ER because I could not breathe and got some pretty hefty antibiotics. In true antibiotic fashion, they made me feel both better and a whole lot worse.

I was back in the land of the living finally yesterday, just in time for my vet's office to call and request permission to give my barn owner copies of Lucy's vaccination records (sure, no problem). While I had them on the phone, I said, what the HECK is going on with my horse? Can she be ridden? Is she still supposed to be doing just five minutes in the fauxssoa? I expressed that I was pretty darn frustrated at this point, but I knew things were crazy over there with my vet leaving the practice, so I was trying my hardest to be patient. The worst part was when the lady I was talking to checked Lucy's records and said the vet who had emailed me initially about starting under saddle work had written in her notes that she was back under saddle at a walk, but had never told me this!! The lady felt really bad that I had been more or less forgotten about so they forwarded my info onto another vet in the practice and told me she would call me within a day to discuss a plan for Lucy.

Just a couple hours later the vet called just to tell me she was still out on the road and hadn't reviewed Lucy's file yet, but she had gotten my request and would be contacting me in the morning the next day. I was so impressed that she called just to tell me she'd call me! Finally, communication!

This morning she called me first thing and said she had looked at all of the reports from my old vet and Tuft's. She asked how Lucy was doing and I told her about the lunging and her great attitude. She said she'd like to come out and see Lucy next Thursday so that a) she can meet her and b) she can watch her go on the lunge line, palpate her back, and do a basic lameness exam to ensure she is really ready to go back under saddle.

So, fingers crossed that this is the final hurdle before Lucy can have a job again! I hope we can be back to doing totally awesome things like this:

and this:

and this:

and this:

and this:

and most definitely this:

And I'm sure at that point we'll both need some Sore No More, which I will hopefully win in Hillary's giveaway over at Equestrian at Hart :D :D :D (she's having a contest; go check it out)