Friday's Story

My original plan was to ride at daylight Friday AM, but with it having been pouring down rain all night, and winds gusting to 40+ mph, I decided to postpone since the forecast showed the winds laying down a bit later in the afternoon. When I finally decided I couldn't wait any more, at 4:30pm, it was still plenty windy, but not as bad.

I decided I needed to use the rump rug since I'd planned on putting a good hour of trotting in on her, which would've gotten Arabee nice and sweaty, and I didn't want her to chill with that wind. She acted as though she'd never seen it before! I always flap it around her while she walks a circle around me to make sure she hasn't forgotten what it looks like when the wind catches it, and she finally was okay with that, but on the walk to where I'd planned on mounting up (about 100 ft) she spooked 6 or 7 times from the wind catching the rug! This mare if she's spooky on the ground, you can count on her not paying a LICK of attention under saddle.

So, rather than risking my neck, I decided to free longe her for about 20 minutes in the paddock with all her tack on, getting the fresh off since she was so jumpy in the wind and hadn't been ridden in about a week. She was nice and calm - obeying perfectly my walk, trot, canter, whoa commands - calmly and without rushing. We'd been going this way for about 15 minutes, and I was about to call it quits and hop on, when out of the blue she just took off - tucked tail, ears flat back and she RAN away. I have no clue what it was that caused her to do that.

When she got to the end of the paddock at the full out run, she slid into the fence panel, then I kept her going a round or two at a canter. All that running had caused the stirrup to fall off the saddle, so I stopped her to put it back on, and when I did that the bright red mud down by her foot caught my eye. So she'd been cut, but I couldn't tell at all how badly, since she had mud up to her fetlock, so I brought her out to hose down the leg, and it was pretty nasty. (I decided not to post the pictures up, but if anyone really wants to see, put your email in my comments and I"ll send the pic to you. it's ouchy looking).

At the same time I discovered the "red mud" my husband called me and said there was a heifer that needed help calving - he and his dad were able to get her in, but it was obvious she needed help with the calf. Since Arabee's wasn't life threatening, after I hosed her leg and took her tack off I put her in her stall until we were able to pull the calf (he was BIG!) and then we took a better look at her. The last post said we planned to take her to the vet Saturday AM, which we did.

I felt silly, since all he actually did was pretty much what I would have done: nitrofurazone on gauze, wrapped with cotton, then held on with vetrap (only I would've used my washable quilts and a leg wrap). I just have never dealt with a hoof injury before, so I was unsure of myself. He did also give her tetanus and penicillin, and we brought Jack along and they both got their annual vaccines, so it was good we went. He did also mix something (dexamethasone??) with the nitrofurazin ointment.

She's been in her stall since then, and has NOT been a happy camper about it, either. I just can't let her in the lot with that fetlock deep mud at this point. I'm supposed to change her bandage every 2 days, so right after I post this I'm going to go unwrap, hose down, hand walk her for at least 10 minutes for exercise, then re-wrap her leg.

Fortunately, she has not been favoring that leg, but I just can't see trying to get on the trail since I know there will be spots with really deep mud that would just grind into her cut. So conditioning is on hold for now. The ride on April 18th is absolutely out for me bringing Arabee, but I am going to see if ride management needs any volunteers so I can still go and learn that way.