Relationship

I've been thinking a lot about relationships this past week. Specifically, about my relationship with Ashke. And about my relationships with my dogs. They are kind of all tangled up together.

The only reason I wanted a horse again was to have a relationship with him. Perhaps I was chasing a dream of my childhood, of recapturing the love and connection I had with Queenie when I was 13. Perhaps I was chasing a deeper dream of riding the wind blown prairie with a Spanish barb decendent, in leather and beads. Perhaps it was an even deeper dream of the first horses to join up with humans, to become both companion and comrade in travels across the steppe or desert. All I know is that I have been captivated by the grace and beauty that is horse.

Moreover, the grace and beauty that is the Arabian horse. I lucked out in rescuing a steed that is thoughtful, smart, actively engaged, connected and loving. He likes hanging out with me. He follows me with his eyes. He nickers when he sees me. He whinnies when I leave him alone too long. He seeks out my company, the same way I seek out his. He loves to follow me. I love to just hang out with him. I love to groom him, stroking my hands over his coat, making him feel as clean and comfortable as possible. He loves being fed treats. We like each other.

Nicole made a comment while we were riding about how lucky we both are that we are the only ones who have really worked with our horses, are the only ones who have ridden them. We have an unique connection and relationship with our horses. I told her that that relationship was the reason I wanted a horse I could train.

There are a number of horses at the barn that are used for schooling horses - meaning a group of different riders ride them. There are also a bunch of horses that are ridden and handled specifically by their trainers or riders specifically chosen to show them. I feel for them, because I think horses operate best when they have one special person for them.

Mark Rashid talks about that connection in his book, "Whole Heart, Whole Horse" and his contention is that it starts from the inside of the person. It starts with the person wanting the horse to feel and be comfortable. I think grooming is a huge part of creating the connection because it communicates to the horse that the rider cares. Sometimes, riders over look that part, or a handler does the grooming for the trainer or the rider. Touching and talking to the horse is such an integral part of creating the connection and I think a lot of times riders, especially schooling riders, skip over this because it takes away from what their focus is: riding. I know I was that way when I was young. Grooming was a spit and a swipe.

That changed with Ashke. He was so dirty and had so many sores, plus he wasn't used to being touched, and his body hurt when I brought him home. I knew that if I started by visiting every day and grooming him, slowly and softly, that I could communicate to him that his comfort and well-being were important to me. And now, he loves being brushed or stroked or just flat out touched.

More of this on the dogs in my next post . . .

Sunday

Nicole and I were supposed to ride out, but she couldn't go cuz her hubby needed her until later and the wind was blowing in 55 mph gusts, so I didn't even saddle up.

Yesterday, J and I went to the Co-op in Brighton and got some Mineral Ice, which is the equine equivalent of Icey Hot. We also got the boy a hanging treat made with molasses, oats  and peppermint, which J strung across his stall so he can chase it to lick it.

Today was about making him feel better.

A friend brought out her three kids, one of which, her only daughter, loves animals and thought it pretty cool to meet Ashke. The boys were planning on geocaching with J and T, but the wind drove them back inside. Ashke got fed enough treats to make him sick (not really) and was brushed and petted til he shown. J agreed with me that the depth of rock in his stall is perfect and we should wait to see what happens before we add more. (So did Rachel, one of the trainers, actually). I shook down his outside run and got the chunks of clay out of his stall. We strung the treat.

The last thing I did before putting Ashke away was use the mineral ice on his back, ribs and hamstring. He reacted so much better to the gel than the liquid liniment. By the time I started on the right side, he was standing calmly, with his head lowered, letting me rub the sore muscles. The gel I got is able to be used prior to working, so I will use it on Tuesday night both before and after my ride. The knot over his flank seemed to be smaller today. I'm hoping the extra rest will help him feel better by Tuesday.

Finally

We went out on the trail toward the reservoir.

It was cold and blustery and threatening rain.

I made Nicole go out any way. Cali was very good in the arena and perky but listening when we got out on the trail. Once we got going, everything settled down and the ride was wonderful.

We walked them down to the trailhead, because there is just too much going on between the barn and the trail. There is a stable with tall, corrugated walls that block all sight of the horses on the other side. Seems to completely freak the shit out of the horses. Then on the other side of the stable is a small Urban farm with goats. That's fun. Then there is a path along the creek with at least six sewer hole covers, which is Ashke's own personal bane.

Past the sewer covers was a small park with playground equipment. Then a fire department station complete with fire truck. Both of our babies did great. Cali got a little uptight when Nicole first mounted, but with consistency and calmness she mellowed out and our ride went on.

Cali is working on walking faster and Ashke is working on trotting faster.

There were several bikers who blazed past us. We are seriously considering having t-shirts made that say "My horse kicks bikes. Approach at your own risk."

It got cold enough that Nicole put her hood up. 

We had four really good spooks. Three of them were by Ashke.

The first was a sewer cover painted blue we had walked past on our way out without a second glance, that was evil incarnate on our way home. Cali walked right up to it, but Ashke took some convincing.

The second spook was at a woman who was jogging up the trail in a bright purple shirt. Ashke stopped with his legs spraddled and tried to back up into Cali. I held him steady. He was quivering when she got close to us and let out a really loud WTF Arabian snort. I busted up laughing.

The third spook was Cali at the playground on the way back. A family was there hanging out when we rode past. The guy stood up and grabbed hold of a hanging bar and kind of swung on it. When the bar moved it made a horrible noise and Cali tried to stand on her head and spin to face the playground. I thought Nicole was going to have to get off, but the guy stopped making the noise and we rode on.

The final spook was after we were leading them again. An idiot on a crotch rocket ripped down the street as loudly as he could. Both horses reacted, but Ashke was the one who pinned his ears, swung his rear out and tried to kick him as he rode past. Swear my horse hates motorcycles and ATV's with a passion. Comes from being chased around the field by Steve when he was starving to death.

When we got back to the barn, Miguel had put the squeegee the barn had ordered into our runs. Ashke got 6 buckets and Cali got 10 (front scoop buckets on the tractor). I didn't want it so deep it aggravated Ashke's hamstring. Cali began to eat hers and completely freaked Nicole out. She must have chewed a couple of mouthfuls. Nicole hollered at me and I walked down to see what was happening. Sure enough she was eating it. We could hear her chewing the rocks.

You all know what that means, right? Yup, we were worried about colic. 

Nicole was envisioning having to move 10 ton of rock back out of the run by hand, because Miguel would be so angry about having to undo every thing he had already done. After a couple of bites Cali stopped trying to eat it, just moving it around with her nose for a bit and then finally she stopped doing that. I made sure that Jesus and Sherl knew what had happened and to check Cali to make sure she was eating later. Just to be on the safe side. Whitney told Nicole that she would also check on Cali before she left the barn today. I haven't heard anything from Nicole, so I am assuming that everything is okay.

Unfortunately, I started the tracking program when we were in the arena, so it's kind of garbled. According to the tracking form we rode a couple of miles in the arena.

The only bummer on the day was the fact that Ashke was a little tender in his right hind. I keep worrying that he's not going to come right. Nicole said today that if his hind was healed, everything else is good. J keeps telling me that he is sound and will be again. That he wants to complete races.

I just have to keep on hoping.

Spa Day

Today I took the day off and spent it at the barn.

Ashke had mixed feelings about that.

We started by spending an hour working our way into the wash stall. He bucked and kicked and reacted violently to my request to enter the stall. He's been in there before. We backed the length of the barn several times, and I ruined a cotton lead rope because he pulled back so hard. It was a hot mess and I feel pretty bad about it. I ended up putting the butt rope (come along) on him, which he reacted to with violent kicking, so we went outside and he lunged in a circle until he was tired and then we tried the wash stall again. He threatened to kick, so we headed back outside and he lunged at the trot until he was puffing. When we went back in, he thought about it and then walked into the wash stall.

I didn't wash him. I just had him stand in there and eat peppermints. I petted him. I turned him around and let him look at everything. I told him what a good boy he was. I made standing in the stall as positive as I could.

I still feel bad about how difficult it was and how scared he was at the attempt.

After torturing him with the washing stall, I turned him back into his run (which is about six inches of mud and that special kind of water you only find at barns and dairy lots) and went to get lunch. When I got back he refused to come out of his stall. I waited him out, not wanting to make a big deal out of him walking back to the grooming stalls. We went to the grooming stall and I pulled out a pair of Conair clippers we purchased years ago to cut T's hair, until he decided he hated my haircuts and refused to let me near him. I thought they might work to clip a bridle path.

Ashke stood there like a pro and let me clip him. He's had to have been clipped in the past. The only place he really got antsy about was his right ear, otherwise he let me clip at will. I did his bridle path and over his withers where the saddle and the breast collar have tattered his mane. I clipped the long hair off his face (under his chin and along his cheeks) and touched up the really long hair on his ears. He did great.

Then I braided his hair. It freaking took forever. He vibrated between pawing his displeasure at being asked to stand still so long and falling asleep.

His mane isn't very long yet, but it is thick and healthy. It is all new growth, so that's about what he is going to grow in a year. His forelock is still straggly and thin, but I braided it too, so it will have a chance to grow out.

He looked pretty spiffy when I went to saddle him.

Although he was still a little tired from our earlier blow out, he did awesome in the arena. His trot was great and he lowered his head and raised his back. His walk was swinging and quick. We cantered in one direction and Nicole said he looked amazing. He was relaxed, with his tail up and the canter looked really easy. Nicole was doing a lesson with MT, a trainer at the barn that works with Friesans, and so I mostly kept to myself.

We moved to the center of the arena and worked in the direction of the mirrors. I asked for a leg yield and could see in the mirror when he was crossing in the front. Ashke still has a tendency to counter bend his head and neck, but at least he was willing to move away from leg pressure. We then moved to the very middle of the arena and practiced some stops and rollbacks (just a couple), and then worked on turning on the forehand and turning on the backhand. He did great on both. So we called it a day and went to untack, leaving Nicole riding with MT.

Just about the time I got Ashke unsaddled, Michelle showed up to trim him. His feet were getting pretty long.

Left front foot, pre-trim

Same foot, post-trim

His right front was somewhat funky. He is wearing the toe down on the side, rather than in the front. We think it's because of how he travels due to the hamstring. Tricksey little hamstring mucks up everything. 

There was a little bit of bruising on the right front, but again Michelle thought it could be due to the increased impact on that foot as he is trying to find a way forward with his hamstring.

Right hind, pre-trim. His heels are really long, so Michelle knocked them down a bit more this trim. 

Same foot, post trim. She rasped away the last of the bruise he got nine months ago when he clipped the coronet band in back with his first shoe on his front feet.

Michelle left a little more sole than normal, because she knows we are going to be riding out a lot and she didn't want him footsore. We arranged to have her fit Ashke for boots the next time she trims him. I guess she carries three different types of boot that I can choose from.

That was enough for me. I went home a tired puppy. Ashke is beautiful after his make over and spa day.

What I Love

. . . him bumping the back of my shoulder when I am leading him.

. . . him whinnying when he hears my voice, even when he is outside with the door closed.

. . . the way his lip twitches when I groom a really itchy spot.

. . . the loud, booming snort when he is playing around, or even when he is like "WTF?"

. . . the look on his face when he is done playing and turns to me in the arena.

. . . how hard he tries.

. . . mush face.

. . . him.

Twinkies

Ashke did great today. We had the arena to ourselves, so I turned him loose and let him be a fool for the first fifteen minutes. I watched him. And went to the bathroom. Then came back and he was still tearing around at the gallop. He was puffing pretty good by the time he was finally ready for me to ride him.

I got on and we started around the arena. Four steps in someone drove by the end of the arena and threw snow up against the garage door at the west end. Ashke went sideways and backwards. Then, another ten feet past that he went sideways all snorty and spikey at the blue poo bucket sitting next to, but outside the rail. I was pretty exasperated. It's the same bucket that is always there. I made him approach it and get his snorts out. There was one more incident when we reached the far south end and he saw the water bottles sitting on top of the podium. He shied and then walked over and started trying to knock them off. He was being quite the pill.

Then he settled and got to work. We did a lot of trotting where his head was at the vertical, flexed at the poll and he had lifted his back. In both directions. Then we did some cantering up and down the arena, stopping at the end, then backing and trying for a roll back. He struggled with this today. He wanted to turn on his forehand and start back the other direction, instead of turning on his haunches. I think with all of the cantering he had done prior to the ride starting, plus all of the trot work we did, he might have been feeling a bit tired. Ibn (another Arabian gelding at the barn) came in and rode with us for a bit. When I got off to be done, Sally, Ibn's rider, asked if I wanted to let them play.

We unsaddled and turned them loose.

Ashke is the one in the front.

Seeing them side by side highlights where Ashke needs to gain weight and muscle. His shoulder, back and butt.

Ashke, wild eyed with a hair up his butt.

Sally told me that Ashke keeps his tail flagged when I am working him. Ibn only does that when he is loose in the arena and playing. At one point they both stopped and did their blowy snort at us. My camera didn't snap quick enough to take a picture, however.

I'm glad, in looking at these photos, that I added some alfalfa to his diet, because I think he lost some weight since I took him off the mix. The muscle has receeded from his shoulder and butt. 

The two of them ran long enough that Ashke was panting at the end of their little jaunt.

We went to catch them and they took off again.

I wish this picture was clearer, because I really like it.

I also need to get the muscles across Ashke's barrel to firm up, so he doesn't look so pot bellied. I think it will just take riding time to accomplish. I'm hoping that as his topline gets stronger, from lifting his back, that his belly will firm up as well.

My plan, going forward, is to get four rides a week. Tues and Thurs nights, and Sat and Sun during the day. That will leave Friday night for our Family date night. Hopefully, he will regain the muscle he's lost and will definitely gain strength on the topline.

As a bonus for reading:

 Skittle Bug

Lilly Bear

Friday Night Lights

I rode Ashke on Friday night. We had the arena to ourselves. He was still a little sore and favoring his right hind. We did some cavaletti and worked on our trot.

I used the martingale and he immediately dropped his head, yielded to my leg pressure, lifted his back and moved with impulsion. I'm going to use the tool for a while longer and see if I can get his back super strong.

We didn't ride for long, though, since he was still a little sore on his hip. And the footing in the arena was really wet and soft, kind of like slogging through mud. I also had the cavaletti spaced too far apart to be trotted easily. I had them at two steps and Nico said it was one big step. I'll try that next time.

I also changed his feed, since he has started losing weight again. I added in some alfalfa. I don't want him to lose any of the ground he has gained. He may just be a hard keeper. He does run pretty hot. I'm going to see what Diane suggests for joint support. He is still on the amplify and lysine.

Saturday, we spent at the Rocky Mountain Horse Expo with Nico, J and T. It was pretty interesting. We watched a clinic on Western Dressage. Nicole wanted to go down and start slapping riders because they weren't listening. Overall, it was entertaining, educational, and a great opportunity to look at horse stuff.

Just for the record, I don't understand Western Pleasure. That exaggerated 4 beat canter is awful. Why would you do that to your horse?

The other positive from the day was looking at the three horse Bison horse trailer with LQ. I think we have found our answer to the question that has been plaguing us for a while now. We are struggling to find a truck camper that will work with a horse trailer and still give us the things we want in a camper. The Bison is perfect. Lot's of space. Something new to research and investigate.

Tomorrow we ride.