Well, shit

 Things are at a bit of a pause at the moment. Cinder came home after the show and got a few days off. She also got her teeth done, a cap popped, and her spring shots. I rode her last weekend and she was good, if a bit sore. 

I knew my saddle was a bit wide for her, but with the Mattes half pad I could shim it and make it work. For the show, I didn't even think about it, and used my regular shaped pad. It didn't give her as much wither clearance and she was a sore the day after the show. That soreness was still apparent last weekend, and this week. 

 

 It's very clear that it's time to start shopping for her own saddle. I have one arriving today to try, and Trainer A (who is sponsored by Voltaire) is seeing when she can get the rep down to measure Cin for me. For now Cin is getting introduced to the BoT sheet and has the chiropractor coming next week. Pray to the saddle fitting gods we can find a saddle that works for both of us relatively quickly and cheaply. She's still got a lot of filling out to do and I'm 100% certain what works for her now will not work in another couple of years so I'm really hoping we can find a used saddle that will work for now.

Peebs is still very lame. Even on the Previcox he felt off. We have an appointment this afternoon with my vet, but I'm thinking it's time to let him be a pasture puff for a while. He's been on stall rest/walking/little bit of trotting for 10 months now and I feel horrible about keeping him locked up. We could do more in depth diagnostics, but if after 10 months he's not any better, what's the point? He deserves to just be a horse. Hopefully six months to a year in pasture will help, but if not, he's more than earned his retirement. 

Best of Intentions

After having a couple good rides last Thursday and Friday just asking McKenna to go forward and relax I gave the mare the weekend off.  My mom was flying in and we were having a girls weekend in the city.  Our equine massage therapist was going to be out Sunday so I had scheduled a massage for McKenna. I got a message Sunday night that the mare was a wild child and when I got to the barn Monday McKenna was covered in dried sweat.  She was also extremely back sore; so bad I could barley brush her.

Enjoy these cute pic from the Oregon Zoo as I have no new pony pics

Our massage therapist has been having massage classes for the past 4-5 months at our barn and I've been learning how to do my own massage.  The past few classes have turned more towards Mediterranean Horsemanship which I'm not sure I completely understand or want to learn.  Basically as I see it, it's another form of natural horsemanship that focuses on free movement, in hand work, and connecting with the horse. A lot of it is very much opposite of what I've been taught. I see how a lot of it could be helpful, but again, I'm not super convinced and it's very hard for me to wrap my head around it. But to each their own.

Here kitty kitty

In the past, when we've worked on our horses in the massage class (it's all ground work and learning the different massage techniques) I've been the only one working with McKenna.  Our MT feels (and I agree) that because she's a young, hot, OTTB mare she's a little too advanced for the others in the class.  I was under the assumption that by scheduling McKenna for a massage this weekend that our MT would be working on her alone, that she wouldn't be used in the class unless the MT was demonstrating something.  My mistake.  Apparently McKenna was used for some "communication with wands" with one of the other students.

In the email the MT sent me today, she said the McKenna and the other student S ended up having some great moments and that she was really proud of them.  She said they worked for an hour and a half, and that when McKenna was done, she was DONE. There was one brief line about how in the massage part of it that the mare's hips felt better, but her back and barrel weren't "she she would have wanted them".  Yeah, no shit.  If I can't even brush my horse's back, there's a problem. 

We might have also gone to the Garth Brooks concert.  Trying really hard to take this motto to heart

I haven't replied to the MT yet, because I don't know if I can without losing it.  I'm pissed that my horse was used in training without me there and without my permission and that it caused her to be even more sore than she was before. I'm also not happy that I paid for a professional massage when in fact I got a "training session" by someone I don't know super well and a horse with a super sore back. I would have been ok if the MT had demonstrated with her, but having someone I don't know, and have never seen work a horse, practice on her is not ok.  I'll take the blame by not explicitly stating that to the MT, but I would have thought she knew that.  There's very few people I trust to work with McKenna and that list jut got shorter.  If it had been Phoenix or Buddy?  Not a problem; they're both super well trained and can't really be screwed up too much.  But not with my green bean of a mare.

A Little R&R

When TS adjusted McKenna last week not only was she out in her poll, she was way out in her hips. TS hit one spot on her and poor McKenna dropped her back so fast I was afraid she'd fall down. TS said she also has muscle and ligament soreness in her lower back and hips.  She wasn't worried about it and after the adjustment McKenna wasn't reacting when TS was palpating the area. She actually said the muscle soreness was good thing; McKenna's developing a top line and her hunter bump is almost gone. TS recommended some time off and a few days of bute then slowly bringing her back into work.

She also figured out the Lickit

Being the over protective horse mom that I am, McKenna got to go in her BoT sheet for a few days, all the treats she could eat, and some long turnout time in the outdoor paddocks. The outdoor time only last two days before she figured out how to open the gate and let herself out.  Luckily she didn't go to far (found a stack of alfalfa to munch on) and one of the other boarders saw her go trotting out the gate so she was easily caught.

McKenna's view from her stall of the scary loud tractor and trailer.

I lunged her lightly Thursday and Friday in some loose set side reins to see how she'd be, and after getting some impressive bucks out she was quiet and relaxed.  Yesterday I got on after some more lunging, and while she was still not thrilled about going forward to the right, she felt pretty good.  If I tried to pick up the trot tracking right she would sully up and get pissy, but we worked through it. I did a lot of circles, figure 8s, and changes of direction trying not to pick or put too much pressure on her. Our BO was loading a trailer full of manure for a landscape contractor while I was riding and it made McKenna tense (read: lots of noise and scary sounds), but she didn't spook and kept it together.  We only did about 20 minutes of walk-trot with the focus on going forward and relaxation. I'm hoping that she works out of this right side stickyness but luckily TS is coming back in two weeks to recheck/do a makeup lesson.