The Return of Q!

Q is officially "back in work"; I've been riding her 2-3 times a week for the past month and she's been doing wonderfully in soundness of body and mind.

"If I close my eyes, the human will leave me alone and go away."
-Q, probably

Quick Backstory

Q was out of work for close to a year due to persistent "offness" in August 2016. September 19 will mark one year since the diagnosis of lesions to her left hind suspensory ligament. (Delay on diagnosis because last summer was a Very Bad Year for abscesses and she did indeed blow one or two after I noticed she was off; unfortunately, she was still NQR after the abscesses blew.)

Other than routine ultrasounds to check the healing progress (markedly improved each time!), I did nothing special to help Q heal. The biggest thing I did was to give her time; soft tissue takes a long time to heal, so it seemed prudent to provide that time. I simply turned her out with her herd mates on their 28 acre pasture. Stalling wasn't really an option as she fusses and frets in a stall and would have done more damage to herself. In the field, she was docile and my BO (who watches the herd from her house) noted that Q didn't even play/trot/run with the herd for several weeks.

From accounts of other endurance riders who have dealt with this injury on their own horses, the time-off-with-a-year-of-turnout approach seemed the best bet for a successful return to work/competition. In fact, one of the other local endurance riders had a horse who dealt with this injury twice (more severe than Q's). She gave him a year off each time before bringing him back into work slowly, and he just finished 3rd at the AERC National Championship 50 and earned Best Condition. I'm hopeful Q will return to former work levels with time.

Current Plan

We're focusing on easy walk-trot "trail" rides and walk-trot dressage work for now (trail is limited to the field, road, and ¼-mile connecting trail between them because we don't have our trail access anymore) . These easy, slow and steady rides are helping her brain to build back the confidence she once had under saddle. Fortunately, this approach is also just what her body needs, too, if not a little more conservative - which isn't a bad thing at all.

I'm really loving the pink on her dark coat

As we have re-entered our riding, I've made the decision to pursue a significant tack change away from my treeless Ansur. A change to a treed saddle was necessary so Q and I couldn't communicate as intimately moving forward. The close contact from my Ansur, while wonderful, was also detrimental for us. This mare and I feed off of each other's energy and I needed to put a block on that while also lending myself some added security for when she will inevitably spook.

Right now, we're bumming around in an old western Abetta saddle that's been hanging out in the tack room forever. It's working well so far, and the higher pommel and cantle help keep me more secure through her shenanigans. Bonus? I haven't yet gutted myself on the horn - a valid concern as I've definitely been tossed about and been "gut punched" before.

She ground ties like a boss, at least

It's hard to remember when faced with more recent negative memories of this mare spooking like a total shithead, but she really didn't spook badly the first couple years I had her. Sure, she's a hot horse that is more likely to spook than a horse like Stan or Griffin, but her spooking wasn't extreme until 2015-2016.

Her downward spiral with the spooking behavior is absolutely due to my own behaviors, and I don't discount that for a minute. I slowly unloaded my own baggage on her in 2014 and it wasn't fair or right, but it's in the past. The best thing now is to do my due diligence and put in the work to help her return to her former "normal" and then, with luck, surpass it.

Mini "trail" outing with friends!

For better or worse, I have concluded that a lot of this horse's spooking the past few years is to get out of work. It wasn't originally, but boy-o has it evolved to be such. Since reaching this conclusion, it's been kind of entertaining for me to see when she spooks. She definitely tends to do it more as we're beginning work - especially if we are leaving the barn yard - or when she doesn't get "her way". Both indications of a horse who isn't so much scared as she is lazy!

Q's only given me a "true spook" twice during the past month. Both times, I was only set off balance in the tiniest way. Through keeping my balance and not reciprocating any kind of response to her spooking or wiggling, Q is realizing her "game" is less fun to play. She isn't getting out of a damn thing and I'm not giving her any reason to react further. I'm such a party pooper! As a result, she isn't resorting to spooking like she used to and her general wiggling evasions are lessening; it's no fun when you're not winning!

RELAXED. Which was a wonderful thing.

Whether we are in the barnyard focusing on dressage or we're on the "trail", all of our rides are walk-trot with a lot of halting. In the beginning, any time Q tensed up about The World, I would stop her, face the offending "monster" (usually something right in front of her), praise her for standing still, and give her a peppermint from the saddle to alter her focus. As time went on and Q wasn't so fussy, the peppermints went away (3-4 rides later). Now when I halt her for a moment because she's tense, we just stand a couple seconds until she relaxes and then strike off forward once more. The tense moments are definitely fewer than they were a few weeks ago and she calms much more quickly after our halts.

After a month of riding, I have observed that Q is the wiggliest horse ever. Straight is not a term she abides by the majority of the time. She's the Queen of Counterbend when we do our dressage work and she wiggles all about on the trail. The wiggling isn't extreme, but compared to Stan or Grif, she's quite loose. As a result, my biggest goal at the moment is achieving more moments of solid straightness from her. That's a really easy goal to pair with the walk-trot-halting we've been doing!

This week has afforded the least counterbend so far in our dressage ride and the straightest, least wiggling ride so far in the field. Q really seems to be settling and we're having more moments of focus and relaxation than moments of tense and fussy. The fact that I can feel and notice a difference is huge!

Western dressage? I do like this setup for us...

Fortunately, while we have issues to work out under saddle still, Q's trust and the mutual understanding between the two of us has grown leaps and bounds over the last year on the ground. As a result, I can read her a lot better and know when to ignore, praise, or reprimand accordingly and can do so appropriately. This knowledge is facilitating the under saddle work, too, and I really think we are on a good path forward.

While it really sucks that she suffered the setback of this injury, I can be grateful that it has allowed this mare and I to finally come to a better understanding of each other. I am really optimistic for our future and hope to be back on the endurance trail next year with a horse that is stronger of both body and mind than she was before.

More of this in the future, please!

I try to find positive things in negative times - silver linings if you will. Has your horse ever suffered an injury setback that had a silver lining to it in the end? Or maybe an injury that resulted in a stronger bond between you and the horse after the rehab period was up?

Kenai Rehab: Complete!

December 2, 2015, was a bit of a monumental day for Kenai --

He met all of the discharge criteria for physical therapy rehab.

Following the surgery saga this year (for those who don't want to click the link, the quick and dirty of it is that he had 3 stifle surgeries in less than a month's time due to a myriad of complications and shitty luck), I sought out physical therapy rehab (referred to as rehab from here on) with a specialist.

Since July, I have traveled to Morgantown (a 3 hour round trip) for rehab sessions. The specialist and I agreed to 10 sessions for the amount of money I had budgeted for the rehab. Both of our schedules were a bit crazy, but we made it work. 

The first visit I learned how I would stretch Kenai and what other homework exercises we would need to work through between our visits. It was a lot of information to take in! But I took photos and notes and all was well. 

I stretched Kenai daily and put him through the list of exercises. The degree of difficulty for the exercises changed with time as Kenai improved and progressed. 

In addition to our stretches and exercises, each rehab session also included cold laser therapy and time on the underwater treadmill. I took videos of every session he had in the aquatread (we didn't use it on our first session due to concerns that he wasn't quite ready for that step nor one of the November sessions due to my late arrival because of traffic).

Now, before I launch into the myriad of gifs from aquatread sessions below, I think it is worthwhile to share the following two for baseline comparison.

This video was taken summer of 2011 before any of the chaos with Kenai's multiple stifle surgeries began. It's a great baseline video for what his movement (and his coat!) used to look like.

This video is from June 2015 prior to any rehab session and about 6 weeks post-op from the last surgery. You can see how incredibly stiff he was and how limited his range of motion was through his hip and knee.

Now, I've made gifs of each of the aquatread sessions and put them in chronological order below for comparison. The hind leg closest to the camera (right hind) is the one that had the surgeries. In addition to the changes in his hair regrowth over time, pay attention to his striding, how he places his weight, his comfort with how long he will bear weight on each hind limb, etc. (I know most of my readers are horse-folk who are very accustomed to looking for subtleties in lameness, so much of this and more will be second nature to look for!)

August 14, 2015

September 2, 2015

October 7, 2015

October 28, 2015

November 18, 2015

December 2, 2015 -- hesitations in his step were because he was distracted watching me

For the observant viewers, yes, the water levels changed with time (decreased) to lower buoyancy and increase difficulty. Additionally, Kenai was introduced to an incline.

Kenai's progress with his stretching and exercises and aquatread, coupled with my comments about his increased appetite (as opposed to being finicky during the two years between surgeries), increased play drive (he prances about the apartment and house with his toys trying to force you to play with him now as he once did when he was a puppy), increased fitness (you'd have to really get your hands on him to note this...or just watch him frolic amok), and general newfound zest for life (you've seen the photos on my blog, instagram, and Facebook -- this dog is HAPPY) led the specialist to tell me he could be discharged from physical therapy as he has met all of the criteria she sets. She deemed him fit to return to nearly anything he wants to do. (The use of "nearly" here is my own as there are numerous things I won't allow him to do again (skijoring or pulling significant amounts of weight and faster, lengthy trail rides) just because I don't want to put any undue stress on the joint.)

However, because Kenai has met these criteria in only 8 sessions (she called this a miracle, by the way -- mostly it is due to my diligence with stretching and exercises), she would be more comfortable with everything if she could see him once in January and once in February, which would allow us to meet the 10 sessions we'd agreed on. She left the decision up to me ultimately, but I didn't need to even think about it, "Of COURSE! I'd feel more comfortable with that, too!" It'll be great for continuing to map his progress.

We will continue to pursue the exercises and stretching for life as they are now a necessary part of keeping Kenai happy and mobile. 

I have learned SO MUCH from this experience. It's been a saga and not the easiest of ones! Despite all of the stress, pain, worry, and tears, I am so pleased to have my adventure buddy back -- and just in time for the snow to fly!

Hopefully this closes this chapter in Kenai's life. I look forward to many more years with my best friend on the snow and off. For now though, we're psyched about a winter of snowy treks through Canaan Valley and beyond!

Kenai: 5 Years & injury update

Happy 5th birthday to my favorite guy. The best years of my life have been those spent with you. You're my partner in crime for all things, and while I regret being away for work this year and not getting to spend the day with you, I know you're in good hands. As I write this, you're probably enjoying a great nap on that big comfy couch you love so much.

This year has been rough for you...and for me. We'd successfully rehabbed from your double cruciate ligament surgery by the time your birthday rolled around last year. But things took a turn when you pulled your groin in March. We rehabbed through that successfully, too, though. I even managed to take you on some low-intensity hikes into the crag the two times I went rock climbing.

By fall you were back at it, the highlight of outdoors activities was certainly the 10 mile hike through Dolly Sods at peak autumn. You were the absolutely epitome of the perfect off leash dog on that hike. You stayed within close sight the whole time, paused when Q and I paused, and rested when Q and I rested. You were hardly even sore the next day! I was thrilled.

But then November rolled around and you tweaked something in a bad way again. The way you presented led me to believe it must be your groin - again. Despite being cautious with our level of activity, crating you for a few weeks even, you just weren't bouncing back from this second mystery injury. I was heartbroken every time I had to leave you behind when I headed for an adventure - I still am.

Despite the addition of daily pain relievers and supplements, you weren't improved much in January. I gave in and took you to the vet for x-rays to see what was up. I figured you had a full groin tear and wanted confirmation on it...but what we found out blew both the vet's mind and my own.

You'd managed to do something my vet had never seen before - you fractured a small bone called the fabella in your right knee. This bone is surrounded by ligaments and is where the vet had blindly anchored the suture during your cruciate surgery nearly 18 months prior. Somehow, you'd exerted enough force on that leg that the suture pulled through the bone, fracturing it into two pieces and loosening the suture from the knee surgery in the process.

We still aren't sure how to proceed with your rehab. You received a joint injection and an adequan shot at the vet that day and are responding well to the pain relievers you've been on for a month now. I'm trying to keep you quiet, only allowing you to move about during your bathroom breaks during the day - no great activity outside that.

It's so hard though! You're my adventure dog. You've had it ingrained in you from the first day you came home with me that you get to go everywhere with me and do all the things. Not being active is as hard for you as it is for me.

I plan to take it slow with you this year. To get that boned healed and get you strong without surgery. A year of rehab is what we're looking at, Kenai. A year of slow nothing that builds to slow something that hopefully builds slowly back into you being able to come up on the mountain with the patrol by next January.

You get to be on house arrest with minimal activity through March and part of April. If you're doing well, we'll add low intensity strength building inside. If that goes well, we'll begin short walks. From there we'll build up the length, time, and intensity of our walks. We'll hike lots of hills and mountains so you really have to use that hind end.

I hope we'll get there...I really, really, really do.

Happy birthday, Kenai. I'm glad you're in my life.

Back At It

I'm sure many have noticed in random posts lately, but Kenai is 100% back at it.

A little timeline for those new to the blog:

• March 2013: Kenai isn't sound after doing things beyond using the bathroom
• April 2013: Diagnostics show evidence that both cruciate ligaments in his hind legs have partial tears
• August 2013: Dual surgery on both legs to stabilize the ligaments
• Fall and Winter 2013-14: Rehab from dual cruciate ligament surgery
• March 2014: Kenai having soundness issues again; palpation of groin demonstrates a very vocal response from Kenai on multiple occasions and I begin 3 months of rehab for his groin
• Late summer 2014: Kenai is back at it!! *knock on wood*
• August 13, 2014: one year out from surgery and Kenai came along on a 6+ mile training ride with Q and I.
• Sept. 28, 2014: Kenai comes along on a 10 mile Dolly Sods training ride/trek

It's so good to have my trail buddy back. I love it. He loves it. Q loves it.

Q gains SO much confidence on trail when Kenai can lead. She's not as stoic with him as she is when a horse is in the lead, but boy does she relax a significant amount if she's second to the dog! I only wish Kenai were able to keep up a faster pace! The Dolly Sods terrain kept Q and I to a walk 90% of the time, and that was PERFECT for Kenai. Any other training rides though are just a little too much for him if we exceed more than a 5 mph average for greater than 4 miles. Additionally, my cold-loving dog just can't handle (and I refuse to let him attempt) keeping up with us during the summer months. In years to come, I may end up with a third (Wait, what happened to second?! Well, there is a second in the works for spring/summer 2015, but more on that much later...) dog more along the lines of Rhodesian Ridgeback because that breed was born to run and go-go-go in hotter weather.

Future plans aside, I am so please to have Kenai back on the go with me all the time. I missed it. He missed it. Q missed it!

Q and Kenai seem to have quite the relationship of understanding between one another. She trusts him to scope out all the "monsters" on the trail and he trusts her to not step on him in dire times. At home, she allows him to share her mash with her in that he's allowed to clean up all the drippings as she slops about (which leads to drippings in his coat that dry and crust up later, blech).

His gait is still a little irregular, but I think that's the new norm for him. He also chooses to always sit sidesaddle instead of straight down like most dogs since the surgery. Once again, this is just a new norm for him. He'll occasionally sit normally, but it's not common.

It's been a long, long rehab road, but I'm glad we seem to be on the other side of it.

I missed my adventure/trail buddy.

Happy dog in his element.

Leading the way and flushing out the "monsters"

Buds

Kenai likes someone to keep an eye out while he naps

This is trust. Less than a foot apart!

This husky loves water

Kenai: Injured again!

I don't think I've mentioned it on the blog, but Kenai's injured...again.

Fortunately [I'm fairly certain] it's not his knee(s) this time! If you recall, he had double cruciate ligament surgery on both knees (hind legs) in August. He rehabbed well, setting his own pace that was right on par with the recommendations. He had associated stiffness as we extended the length of activity, but that was finally beginning to fade. Other than *still* not having his hair regrown* from where it had been shaved (waist back) for the surgery, he was nearly back to normal!

However, about a month and a half ago, he ceased use of his left hind leg (the first night Mike and I rode the horses in the creek; I suspect he tweaked himself launching up and down the steep creek banks). Shit.

I gave him a couple days to see if he'd work through it; I've freaked out about enough things with my animals to now chill out about a lot of things for a day or two before flying into freak out mode - I like to try to prevent unnecessary rises in my stress level.

Sadly, there was minimal improvement after 3 days. I quit taking him to the barn and limited his turnout at the house to try to see if that would help him bounce back. Still no improvement over a 2-ish week period. My vet had even seen him (she was at the barn for another reason) in this time period. She recommended some NSAIDs and rest, noting that she really doubted it was his knees as she's yet to have a dog she's performed that operation on blow out a knee (and a lot of those dogs are bigger, heavier, and more active than Kenai has been of late!) I proceeded with his limited turnout situation, going so far as to bar him in a small room of the apartment away from the cats so he wouldn't be tempted to play with them.

Around the 2-week mark was when Mike and I headed to MD to visit Saiph and Charles. Saiph (a vet tech) pointed out the very obvious muscle wasting in that hind leg. She noted that it was very obvious that he hadn't been using it for a time. Ugh. I could totally see it. She noted though that she really didn't think it was his knee.

When we returned from MD Kenai went into crate rest. I was worried about the leg, but really couldn't afford a diagnostic search for a solution prior to my vacation. Instead, I began palpating the leg one evening while Kenai was lying down. I stretched it and moved it within his range of motion for the knee, doing a manner of things to softly manipulate his knee as I would a patient at the ski resort. No reactions at all. I palpated, moved, and manipulated his hip and palpated his femur, as well, all the while watching his face and body for any sign of distress/pain/irritation. Nothing.

And then I palpated his groin muscles, curious after the lecture at the AERC convention on these very injuries in horses. And guess what?

I got a reaction. A strong one at that! Kenai whipped around with a yelp and made a half-assed attempt to snap at me to get me to stop (which, of course, I'd already done). I let him stand up as he'd requested, move about, then asked him to lie down again so I could see if I could replicate the reaction. A 1x reaction could have been attributed to something else, and I needed to be more certain.

I palpated more gently this time, got another yelp of surprise and a grouchy husky stare. I softened my palpation even more, and received a very grouchy look from Kenai, who struggled to stand and escape my clutches by this point.

So, yeah, I was fairly confident about a groin injury by this point! Kenai's been on crate rest ever since.

I've been gone much of that period with my vacation and now travel for work, but he's starting to use the leg consistently at the walk. I haven't seen him exert himself at a speed greater than this, and for obvious reason!

So I'm hopeful that with more time, and yet more rehab *sigh*, he'll be back to normal again. We'll see.

From internet queries about groin injuries in canines, it sounds like they are more likely to reoccur in the future (?) once they've happened initially. Fortunately, much of the rehab is like what we did for his knees, so I'm comfortable with that.

I'm sad for Kenai that he's spent so much of this last year lamed up, but cautiously optimistic that after this rehab he'll be able to resume much of his normal activities (hiking, going to the barn, etc.). The only silver lining is that summer is almost upon us, and his summer activities are more minimal than his winter ones. Summer involves lots of swimming, too, so that will be beneficial.

So, my question to readers, any further advice for rehabbing a groin strain in a dog? We'll soon be past the crate rest and into limited activities to begin building back to normal. Suggestions? Recommendations?

*Prime example of why people should *never* shave a double-coated dog!!!! It is *not* guaranteed to grow back the same! Kenai has grown back some of the fluffy undercoat, but his guard hairs are beyond sparse. This SUCKS in the winter when he's out in the snow because he gets wet and snowballs/iceballs form all over his hind end. NO BUENO.

I swear the posts on my vacation to California are coming! =)

Rehab....trail?

Friday was a long day, a good day.

I was out the door by 9:30a and headed to pick Jordan up. I dropped her off at her barn, went to mine and hooked up the trailer, went back to hers and picked she and Orion up, headed back to my barn where she played in the round pen with him a bit, then loaded him back up and headed to that flat FS road in the adjacent county (Dee was hauling her horse, T's horse, and Q). We had a bit of a parking snafu with the bigger rig when we got there, but with three problem-solving brains at work we eventually got it figured.

And so we headed off! We had a late start to the day (3p) but we had the best weather of the day for our ride. We rode for a good 3 hours, two out and one back. I was so happy to be seated behind those lovely dark brown ears on the trail again. Griffin's ears are lovely, too, but I really missed my girl.

Q and Saja trucked right out from the get-go. Both horses seemed to think they were trekking out on an endurance ride. After a few suspicious logs and rocks Q seceded from her "I must lead" role and let Saja take over. The road was intermittently gravel, gravel + sand, cobble + sand. Q was barefoot the whole day with minimal issue. Not too shabby for a horse who's been on stall rest and pasture since April 27 with minimal work!

Jordan and Orion

It was Jordan's first time riding her horse away from home - and I think her longest ride ride to date probably? She rode very well and even saved herself from tumbling off his back at one point, it was quite the save and something to be proud about. Once we get her in a true saddle and not the "treeless" thing she's in (I refuse to even call this thing treeless, its basically a glorified bareback pad), things will be lots better. I don't like how much she's having to compensate with her riding to make up for how much the saddle sucks (constantly slips, stirrup bar waayyy too far back so her legs are thrust backward while her upper body is thrust forward). Its not fair to her, though in her credit she does a phenomenal job!

When we got to the overlook this time, I hopped off and led Q through the dense tunnel of rhodo and laurel out onto the exposed cliff top.Why? Because she'll follow me anywhere and I love that I can enjoy a view like that with my horse. The fact that she was on an exposed rock face high above the Blackwater Canyon was a complete nonissue for my girl. The slow realization that there was no grass on top of that rock face? That was a growing concern for her. All the same, we got a few good photos, and one silly video when I thought I'd been in photo mode which I have shared for your amusement. (Yes, I always talk to her.)

I was on cloud nine the whole ride because I was riding my girl on the "trail" again and she was doing so well. Eager ears were out, she was eating and drinking like a champ, and really seemed to enjoy herself on the whole. So much for the rehab program of 30 minute flat rides, we ended up doing a 3 hour flat-ish ride.  Dee kept close watch on Q throughout the day, telling me how awesome she looked the whole time. Not even a flicker of unsoundness in her gaits.Yes, gaits. We walked, trotted, and even cantered some. And when she realized I was okay with letter her canter little spurts she was elated.

I was really proud of her the few occasions when I wanted her to hold back and not canter and gallop with Dee and T since Jordan was hesitant to go that fast. I held her down to a trot and then a walk, told her it was just like a race, the front-runners get to go do their front-runner business and we stay where we are. It was one of the moments when I would swear she understood exactly what I said as she settled RIGHT down into a walk. SUCH a good girl.

All in all, we probably did about 12 miles. Two hours out until we decided to turn around, and at an average walking pace of 3 mph, that would put us at a total of 12 miles on the day. Q looked strong and sound the whole time. Happy ears. Sparkle in her eye. I worried a little that it would be too much for her, but its a flat road with no tricky footwork and minimal inclines. For the horse who is accustomed to rougher trails, this was simple. I think it was the best form of rehab for her as it got her off the farm and back into her element and her favorite job. You can bet we'll be going back out there later this summer for training rides! There is even a single-track trail that is really rough like portions of the OD trails that we can practice on. I can't wait to give her the opportunity to practice fancy footwork on tricky terrain like that.

Love my girl. Love this state. Love these trails.

Rehab riding

Two sessions down, another few weeks to go. My BO and vet and everyone else that has seen her in action thus far thinks she's great and that she's gonna be fine far before I think she will be. And this may very well be true! However, I'm cautious. I would hate to do something too fast and then "break" her for life. She's got way too much potential and way too much life ahead for me to risk that. Its killing me (yes, even after two sessions) to not push a little harder. But I'm going to stick with it. The fear of her hurting is enough to keep me on track with my plans.

Saiph sent me a rehab riding plan for weak stifles that I'm following. It consists of 30 minute rides 5-6x/week. Beginning with 4 min. trot/1 min. walk for 6 reps. You slowly increase the trot minutes and decrease the walk minutes as the weeks pass, or stall at one particular set if needed. Saiph suggested flat without cavaletti or ground poles for the first month; add cavaletti and ground poles and slight slopes with trotting and cantering for second month; resume normal activities on third month.

Post-ride; she wasn't even sweaty!

Keeping slopes out of the workout is nigh impossible at home. I live in WV! Smack in the middle of are the Mountain State only the eastern half really has the sizable mountains)! The barnyard is flat. Any other riding from the barn involves hills, though there is only 1 short incline between me and the rail trail which is flat... At any rate, bottom line is that I'll have to trailer away to gain more flat area to work on.
the Appalachians at that (no, the whole state is not within this mountain chain, though we

I will likely move faster through the program than what is described above, but will do so cautiously. We are walking and trotting ground poles currently. I have to hold her back from trying to canter, too. Yes, only after two rides! And only riding in the "boring" barn yard. She just gets a little eager and zoomy on our 1 minute trot sessions right now and will go into her ~10mph trot without any encouragement on my part. As BO has observed, watching Q's behavior while she moves suggests a horse that has no concern about pain at all. Her eyes are bright, her ears are forward and eager, her movement is forward and steady with no noticeable hitches in her stride and movement.

My goal for the rehab riding is to keep it to flats as much as I can these next two months. Barn yard. Rail trail. Flat USFS road in the adjacent county. Trailering to the local arena. Trailering to lessons.

Wait, lessons?! Yes, lessons. There is a centered riding instructor about an hour and a half north of me. I'm looking forward to trailering Q up there some next month and August for a few lessons. The concepts I gain from her coupled with the 101 Dressage Exercises book will be great training for little miss Q. And then, come August, its back to jumping, back to trails, back to "full" training (3 days a week: 1x speed intervals, 1x hills, 1x strength incorporating dressage, jumping, and distance into those categories) with the goal of doing Fort Valley I and II at the very end of October.

The accident has definitely been a blip in our competitive career, but a good thing as far as progressing our teamwork and abilities in other disciplines that will ultimately help our endurance career. I'm looking forward to moving forward with dressage concepts this summer.

Stepping stones

Well, I got the official, “Oh, by the way, we don’t have guaranteed funding for you to keep you on for a year like you thought.  So chances are good that you’ll be done at the end of September.”  Brilliant.

Honestly, maybe it’s a good thing?  I’d have more chances to get out and get more experience.  But hot damn is the money good at this job!  The work isn’t what I’d expected; but I’m learning SO much.  Its definitely been a valuable experience.  And I really don’t know what I’ll do if it ends when I wasn’t expecting it to…  Save, save, save until I find out for certain, I guess.

Maybe I’ll go back to Morgantown and find a temporary job until Nat’l Ski Patrol training is over.  I’m locked in to remaining in this area until I finish that.  And I’m completely okay with that.  Its something I really want to do – something I’ve always wanted to do.  And I’m really excited about it.  But it would be a lot easier for me to find a temporary job in Morgantown than it would be in Elkins.  Probably not doing anything spectacular, but a job is a job.  And if its something I could do and not be miserable doing that paid well – that would make me happy.  And while its nice not having to pay for housing currently, I know I could probably find a cheap room somewhere at a friend’s in the mean time (4 or 5 months).

Bbbllaaaaahhh!  I have so much confusion about my life and what I should do, what I could do, what I want to do.  I hate not knowing.  But opportunities present themselves if you keep your eyes open for them.  I’m sure something will come along for me.

 I don't know what I want.  Its like I need to cross a pond on stepping stones to not risk falling in.  Not all of the stones are visible; one is near, one is far, a couple in the middle I can see for certain.  Others are just under the surface, visible but not certain - I could slip on them.  Others yet are completely out of site.  But I can see some of them.  I have some idea of where I'm going and how I'm getting there.  I definitely have goals to work toward.  These things are important.

If I had unlimited resources what would I do?

-          Endurance train and race horses; travel; learn.  Do endurance around the world.  Put it all together into one giant amazing race piece by piece, one place at a time.

Orion update: He is doing a lot better after only a day of treatment.  The support in the thick bandaging is really helping him out and he's moving a lot better.  The medication and DMSO are really helping combat the inflammation finally.  Its dissipating a lot.  He's moving happier already.   Definitely on the mend and doing so well!  Its so encouraging.  Got him in some Ric Redden shoe/boots, too, to elevate his heels.  The angle is taking pressure off the injury even more and he's a lot happier.  The vet and I both feel that his recovery is going well and he's lined up to be a-okay as long as we take things slow!

Real quick...*update*

Does anyone have recommendations about stretching or massage techniques for horses?  Been looking at books and wondered which would be the best.  Gotta get Orion feeling better.

Out to wrap and poultice his legs this afternoon!

Updates later...

**

The swelling in both his legs has gone down considerably.  Still there, but not so bad.  You can't really notice it from a distance like you could before.  His left is more swollen than his right.  I'm optimistic that the inflammation will be gone within a week!  I just hope he can get moving a little better this week.  Suzanne is going to cast his feet on Monday to finally banish the thrush and aid him with sole growth.  I think if he can finally get some nice feet under him he'll be a lot more comfortable and a lot of things will change for him at once.

Forelegs poulticed and wrapped; hinds wrapped just for bug protection; fly mask on face; hot pink SWAT on open wounds to ward off flies - on his rear where the other horses bit the ever-loving shit out of him.  Bleeding in four places!!  Poor broken horse.  =(

And oh my goodness, is this the buggiest summer or what?!  I'm finding myself with more mosquito bites than I ever have in WV before.  They're usually not bad at all!  Going out with the horses things are 10x worse though.  Poor horses...granted I'd rather be a horse than a cow or deer dealing with flies!  A mane and long swooshing tail are far better weapons than those that other animals have.  I do a funky little dance constantly while outside anywhere near the woods or horses as I swing my arms ape-like through the air to ward off insects.  Slapping my arms, legs, etc. in time, too.  Its just glorious.

But it has been a beautiful few days.  WV is super duper green right now.  I'm thinking I'll have to do a post on just all the green around me here in a few days or so.  Green and lush and fluffy with bright blue skies.  WV, you're so pretty right now, I just wish you would ixnay on the humidity for a long while!

Hope your weekend is relaxing, too.