Toby came down with a cut on his right front knee and it's swollen up (no heat and he's not favoring it at all). He has arthritis in that knee so maybe he banged himself and it irritated his arthritis? I have no clue. All I know is that he enjoyed getting a cool bath today and I cleaned out the small cut and doctored it up. Toby loved the attention and I don't want to push the issue and make it worse.
Ollie seems to be a bit fussy about things. He's eating like there's no tomorrow but his poops are as loose as they've ever been. I'm afraid that the antibiotics I had him on last week paid a price to his stomach. He has the most sensitive tummy... I say this because when I put the new beautiful luxurious saddle on his back and tightened the girth he was not happy. Then when I got on him, he was very anxious and sensitive. Overly sensitive. So sensitive that he broke into a trot and then into a canter. He has a LOVELY canter it's just that I didn't ask for it... Once I got him to calm down a bit and got him to halt, I walked him a bit (pushing my luck) and halted him again and got off. Then I thought if he had so much energy that I'd try longeing him. Well he was a freak then too! So all I could figure is that he's in pain. Having a girth around your belly when it's sore is making him act silly. So I canceled the lesson with Betsy. I gave him a good dose of Cosequin's probiotics (which he loves), and I'm hoping his tummy heals up soon. He's still on Kalm N EZ which is a good feed for horses with ulcers and other tummy problems. He just needs some time for his stomach to heal. I gave him a cool bath too and he was very happy again. He's was following me around like a puppy dog so I know I'm doing something right!
Then there is Jag. Yep! Jag made an appearance today. Well not really but sorta. And I'm not 100% sure what he's up to but from what I can tell he has a little SOMETHING to do with the Disney movie which is about to be shot called "War Horse." So this is all I know, the artist that did the pastel of Jag, posted the following on Facebook:
Quite a day! Met in the morning by the Art Director from the Harry Potter films. One-on-one meeting with the guy who won an Oscar for his work on Avatar. Straight into a production meeting with some of the biggest names in the industry, with the work I've done so far being shown to Mr Steven Spielberg on Saturday! I'd say more but I had to sign a confidentiality agreement -ooh err missus! :0)
So of course I comment on her "status" with the profound words of "Way cool!" This is what Ali wrote in reply;
Wendy, cooler still is that the picture that the Avatar-Oscar-winning guy picked out to talk about first was the picture of Jag hanging on your wall :0)
Now that's WAY COOL!! Jag could be meeting Steven Spielberg on Saturday! Ok, I don't really know if he will or not because Ali can't tell me any more details but I'd like to think that he is. Jag is a rock star!
This is the pastel which Ali created of him for me and it hangs in my living room:
I'm glad he's still a part of my life...
What GOOD posts these last two days!! It's hot and miserable here, so I'm enjoying the "vicarious horse experience" since it's too warm to do anything "horsey." Regarding the girth and the tummy, I had issues with my OTTB who was also thought to have ulcers (my vet kept asking about his poops, saying if they were loose, there can be a stomach issue, and knowing he was from the track ...). Huey was also very girthy. I opted for short billets and a long girth, and the problem was solved. Vet said some horses have a pressure point right where the dressage girth "hits," and that makes them girthy.
ReplyDeleteRecently I tried another saddle (because mine doesn't fit ME) and it was an Albion with long billets. We used the 28" dressage girth (a Kieffer with the rubber band on the roller buckle) and Huey didn't appear to be bothered by it at all. Of course this is 12 years later ;o) The ulcers are all better ;oD
I LOVE that picture of Jag. Glad you have it hung now and how cool the artist is "visiting with the biggies" ;o)
I've been lurking and reading your blog for some time.
ReplyDeleteBut I just had to finally comment and make a sensitive tummy suggestion:
A vet recommended that we feed tums as treats to our colic prone horses with sensitive tummies. We'd get the large containers from the drugstore of peppermint tums (though some preferred the fruity ones) and anytime I might have given them a horse treat, I'd give them 5 or so tums. It's also a good treat to give when they have the bridle on, because they're small and tidy. The horses liked them so much that we started using them even for the non-sensitive ones.
As an added bonus, if you give a couple of the white peppermint ones to a horse before a show you can start his chewing a bit and get that oh-so desirable 'lipstick' started early!
They may not do wonders, but they coat the stomach a bit and it's always nice to feel like the treats you give are doing some good.
TBDancer - interesting thought about the long girth. Maybe that would be more comfortable for him. And keeping him as comfortable as I can until his digestive tract gets better is very important. We were so close to normal poops at one point!
ReplyDeleteBlob - Thanks for posting! I bet Tums would help his comfort. I'm going to run it by my vet so she's "in the know" with what I'm doing with him. I'm also going to Sam's Club to buy them. Gotta get 'em in bulk! LOL
Another quick and easy helper is Pepto Bismal (except the "lipstick" effect is pink ;o) You can drench the horse with it (I use a turkey baster if I cannot find the large syringe I got from the vet). It also comes in the industrial sized "jug" at the big box stores.
ReplyDeleteI think he'd look good in pink! LOL I also saw where you gave a good review of Proviables on the SmartPak website. I had been using that successfully but am almost out of the free sample that cosequin had given me at the Preakness. Ollie loves that stuff. I had the paste form but I bought the powder so I can bag it in his feed.
ReplyDelete