5 months ago

May 6 will be the 5 month anniversary of Scotty's rescue. This morning as I was leaving the barn I stopped to watch him in the pasture. Nearly completely free of his curly winter hair, his chestnut coat seemed to glow even though it was cloudy.. His coloring reminded me of a shiny new penny. I thought to myself how blessed I am to have this horse in my life. Why he is so much more special than any of the other horses I've rescued is beyond me. There have been so many horses - all rescues, and none of them have touched my heart in such a way that Scotty has. I gush about him any chance I get, almost like a new relationship still in it's "honeymoon" phase and I brag about him nearly as much as I do about my own daughter. I truly adore this horse.

As I was watching him play in the pasture - running and bucking, I thought back to 5 months ago when he was too weak to load himself in the trailer. I remembered how emaciated he was and how dull his coat appeared, how I could see every bone in his body and how he was trembling due to the harsh Minnesota cold. He had lost his will to live, given up on people - yet there he stood in the pasture when I came to pick him up, ears pricked forward.... hopeful.

It is still difficult for me to talk about - why and how he got so skinny. It saddens me that he was allowed to get within a week from death and nobody seemed to care. Nobody did ANYTHING! In my heart I have forgiven the people involved and I try not to hate them. Hate is a strong word and does nothing but bring people down. If anything I am grateful to them. If events hadn't played out as they did - I wouldn't have the most wonderful horse in the world.

Such a good boy!

Today was hoof trimming day. Only 5 weeks ago I nearly begged my farrier to return after Scotty made such a scene. He wouldn't stand still, and each time the farrier started filing his hoof, he'd rear up. We were lucky to accomplish anything at all that day.

I was dreading today. I adore my farrier and he does such a wonderful job. Takes his time and is very, very anal - almost to the point where you want to hurry him along. Bless his heart he is patient. Today I brought Scotty in and immediately was reminded of his last temper tantrum.. damn, I thought he might have forgotten. Luckily, Scotty was an absolute saint. He stood for all 4 feet like a pro, unlike his previous few episodes. My farrier even was able to take the time to show me how well his hoof wall was repairing and how much heel he had gained. Scotty was very relaxed the entire time. I'm such a proud mom.

First ride

Once again, too much time has passed since I blogged last. Scotty is doing well, the field road of doom has dried up and the weather is nearing 60. Yesterday was Easter and I was able to spend the entire day at the barn. It started with grooming, clipping and then riding. Everyone got their turn, including Scotty. I went a bit nuts with the clippers and shaved his entire face. I also decided to ride.

So this was our first official ride since the last time I hopped on his back was only for a picture. After a few uncoordinated bucks on the lunge line I hopped on. Luckily I have the laziest horse on the planet - all he wanted to do was walk. He stood dead still while I got on and we walked and did a bit of trotting. He was such a good boy and really seemed to enjoy it.

Scary stuff

Has everyone been as busy as I have? Wow time flies. This past weekend I was able to get my trailer down the "Field road of doom" and take Scotty on a field trip. The Mounted Patrol unit that I ride for was having a sensory practice so I thought it might be fun to take Scotty and see how he would fair against all the scary obstacles. I would lead him from the ground of course as I am nursing a severe case of tennis elbow (funny, I've never played the game in my life). Better judgement being that I should not hop on the back of a track-broke 4 yr old TB who had been kept in a stall all night, with a sore arm, and ride through a scary course. So I led him through it. Scotty was fantastic and did everything I asked. We had a teeter totter, large ball, a "car wash", tires, mattress etc. He actually seemed to enjoy himself. Attached are a few pics of our adventure.Enjoy!

Spring is here??

I don't like the cold. I frequently complain, whine, and pout when temperatures fall below 40. I am also a fair weather rider and my horses pretty much get the winter off. Last week we had sub zero temps - today is nearing 60.

The warm weather brings unwanted side effects:

1.) The "Field Road of Doom". The field road has now turned to cankle (calf-ankle)deep mud in places and I now have to walk out to the barn. Luckily I was able to get Scotty's alfalfa, grain, and shavings back there on Saturday, nearly getting my truck stuck on the way out. Luckily there is a small subdivision on the east side of the barn where I can park and trek in. Muck boots are now my primary footwear as even the pastures are soggy now.

2.) Horse hair in the mouth. Two things I cannot stand in my mouth are hair of any variety (especially when found in my food) and tiny fish bones. I nearly throw up in my mouth just thinking about it and actually start gagging and dry heaving when they wind up in there. Shedding ponies result in hair in the mouth no matter how hard you try to avoid it. I'm thinking of investing in some of those surgical masks. As far as fish bones are concerned - I thought I learned my lesson - the fish I like are the Filet O Fishies at McDonalds. Last Friday I had a walleye sandwich at a restaurant. Supposedly boneless, you can imagine my surprise when I bit into a tiny little bone. Luckily I was able to keep my composure and unnoticeably spit my mouthful into a napkin. I did not finish my sandwich. I hate that.

3.) Flooded Barn. The runoff of melting ice usually turns three of the four stalls in our barn into swimming pools. Saturday Scotty's stall began to flood. I frantically chipped at the ice around the back door creating a drainage channel into the pasture instead of into the barn. So far so good. Three of Four stalls have been saved.

4.) Spring Fever! Fresh horses usually mean unscheduled dismounts. I've been lucky with the past few years *knock on wood*... but I just realized I have a 4 year old Thoroughbred who is off the track, feeling healthy, and has recently shown me how much pent up energy he has by racing around in the pasture and throwing bucks that would make rodeo horses jealous.

5.) Stuck trailer. Refer to #1 reason. My trailer is parked at the barn and removing it from the barn requires the quarter mile journey down the "Field Road of Doom". Currently it is not driveable, barely walkable and resembles that of quicksand. It is frustrating that I have opportunities to trailer my horses different places to ride now that the weather is warmer - but can't get them out at this point. Poor planning on my part - I should know better, however my trailer doubles as Scotty's alfalfa hay storage in the winter. I'd have no place to put his hay. I'll just have to wait for it to dry out in a couple of weeks.

So there you have it... my top 5 undesirable side effects of spring and warmer weather.

Scotty is well - yesterday we played "tag" in the pasture. He'd follow me for a treat and I'd duck behind the round bale feeder and pop out the other side. He'd paw and snake his head and trot after me. We both found this quite amusing for about 5 minutes, then he got bored and walked away. Scotty also enjoyed playing in the water tank. I caught him submerging his face and splashing around. I just love his little quirks. Today the farrier (bless his heart) is hiking down the Field Road of Doom to trim. I love spring!

Equine Massage

Sorry for not writing lately. Sometimes I just get so busy with other things to even manage a few minutes to write. Sometimes I just forget.

Scotty is doing well and he had his first massage the other day. I had never seen this process and found it very interesting. I think Scotty seemed to like it. He's a fidgity horse and doesn't like to stand still much so I'm sure it was a challenge. He enjoyed his legs being rubbed and had the most unusual reaction to the "tail pulling". He looked surprised and confused, then when she released he hunched his back and lifted his legs like he was stretching or readjusting. Since the massage he seems to be moving more freely. His hindquarter nerve damage is going to take some work though. I'll be lining up a few more massages as cash permits.

If you are in the Southwest metro area of Minneapolis and are looking for equine massage, please check out Holly Chumas. Her website is www.neoblumassage.com . I highly recommend her - she is the sweetest lady, is extremely good with horses and she does a lot of racetrack work. I can't say enough about her.

On a side note: Race trainer Justin Evans, responsible for ruining Scotty,(along with drugging & injuring numerous others) is now licensed in New Mexico after being suspended from training at Turf Paradise in Arizona. I'm wondering when the Racing Commission will wake up and stop licensing these cheaters? I can't wait to see if he returns to Canterbury this summer. Heaven forbid he run into me on the backside.

A girl and her horse

I saw the eagle again yesterday while I was in the pasture hanging out with Scotty. He flew about 10 feet above our heads. I could see every little detail of his wings. Absolutely amazing!! Seeing him as frequently as I do now makes me wonder if it's not such a coincidence as I had once thought it was. Perhaps eagles are just more frequent these days and this one has a nest nearby. It's just strange that in all my years living in this town, never to have seen one until Scotty came around. And my goodness, how close they come!

My daughter was also out in the pasture giving Scotty his daily treats. I was able to catch it on camera and thought I'd share.