Sensitive

The call came at 5:15. Ashke wasn't eating again.

We went by the barn at 2 to take him out to play and discovered he was in the field with Callie and Stoli. They were all eating ravenously, so we decided to leave him there and went to Costco instead. He didn't have his blanket on while he was out and we didn't know if Grace would blanket him again when she put him away. She did. We think now he overheated internally and didn't want to eat.

I asked Grace to take the blanket off of him and told her we would be out asap. We finished dinner, got dressed in barn clothes and were out at the barn about 6 pm. Ashke was outside in his run, but still not interested in dinner. His sides were sensitive, but he wasn't pacing, rolling, pinning his ears at himself, kicking at his stomach or squeeling. The last time this happened we washed him off with cold water (not an option when the outside temp is 39) and dosed him with banamine.

This time we opted for ball therapy. He totally beat up on that ball for a good twenty minutes. He has figured out how to rear up and thump the ball with the lower part of his front legs to move it forward. While he was tearing around attacking the ball, he wasn't worried at all about his stomach. (See, distraction works for horses just like it does with kids.) After about twenty minutes he stopped and began cleaning up the wisps of hay lying in the indoor arena. He had also been passing gas several times while he was playing.

I threw him back into his stall and gave him some bran mash with carrots. He started in on that mixed with some hay. Then Grace brought Jazz into the arena to try the ball. She wanted nothing to do with it. Ashke was very interested in playing with Jazz and Grace suggested we turn them out together. They both ran away from the ball for half an hour or so, tearing up and down the arena, bucking and snorting. Jazz is 3/4 Arab and a 1/4 paint horse. She sure looked Arab last night. They ended up calming down and Jazz actually touched her nose to the ball a couple of times. Ashke kept bumping it with his nose and then bumping her, almost like he was trying to tell her it was okay. At the point Jazz was no longer running in terror from the ball, I figured my work was done and snagged Ashke to put him away. Ashke followed me into the stall and started eating his hay.

Grace stayed to ride Jazz and said she would check Ashke when she did her final rounds. We didn't hear anything from her last night, nor has she called this morning, so Ashke must be eating.

I can't wait for this week to end. At the new barn the blankets go on when the temp is <40 and come back off when the temps go over 40. We won't have to stress that he is too hot or shivering in the cold.

Today, Saturday, I am supposed to ride with Nicole. It's supposed to be beautiful. Tomorrow we are taking the bikes, the boys and Lisa with Ashke and Jackson to Bear Creek for a ride. I invited Nicole but she doesn't think it's a good idea. I think it should be fun.