By April 2012 Taffy had her old buddy back full time. Honey and Taffy moved to our new property and both enjoy 24x7 turnout on their own green half acre. Almost. We do have flood irrigation here so they are high and dry in shaded stalls while the home place becomes a lake. They return to freedom as soon as the ground firms up. Thirty-six hours is usually all it takes, and we go out for round pen romps to ease the stress of confinement.
She had a visit from the dentist this spring- and did NOT appreciate it until it was over. Can't say I blame her. She also had a reaction to dewormer paste- Equimax. I didn't get it back into her mouth well enough and it irritated her cheek to the point she could not chew. Now if Taffy isn't eating something is definitely wrong. One packet of dexamethasone helped enough so she was back to herself by the next morning. I suspect her teeth had irritated the inside of her cheeks, facilitating the dewormer's entry into her tissues. My horses keep teaching me things!
Our riding has been on the canal trail and into South Mountain. Taffy and I are still working towards better communication, especially at the lope and with flying lead changes.
Wow what a difference Bug Chek has made for her- I am not seeing much itching at all this summer. She is not scratching her front legs with furious abandon as she has done every summer she has been with me. Auto-ship from SmartPak ensures we are never without it.
Balancing her fore hooves continues to take careful attention- I believe she has slightly sheared heels, which may well be a result of her narrow chested conformation. I continue to seek the answer, though I am able to use collateral groove depth to balance her heels. Two days after each trim I re-balance the heels. Trims every 4 weeks or less prevents flares or bar overgrowth. I feel the hooves for heat often since fertilizing the pasture and the temperature is over 100 every day. I also increased the salt in her feed. The only soreness she has had in a very long time is from thrush in the central sulcus of the frog. NoThrush powder has become my only non-soaking remedy. I'm interested in the other applications this formula's makers are advertising.
Seems there's always just one more thing to learn about than hours in a day.
Must be that insatiable curiosity God blessed me with.
