Last weekend we went to the Maine Firecracker Endurance Ride. We drove up to Waterford, ME on Friday and rode 30 miles on Saturday. I put on my big girl panties and rode SA Fiona, Amanda rode JJ and Alex rode Mojo in the 30 LD. Rob crewed for us and Quinn was at home working an internship and farm sitting for us. We have been struggling to find time to condition the horses, but we wanted to get out there and go to a ride, so we took the horses and rode one day at a sensible pace.
Last year we sold our travel trailer and extra truck as both had major mechanical issues(truck) and water damage(travel trailer), so we had to rough it with some tent camping. We survived. I miss having AC after the ride though.
The vet in was uneventful and we had backpacking meals for dinner. The horses were a little unsettled with all the fireworks going on, but things settled down in ride camp around the 10 pm mark. Surprisingly, Mojo was the most upset and was pacing his pen a bit. The mares were pretty chill. Luckily we had decided to put Mojo in the hard panels we brought.
On Saturday morning the first loop was about 13 miles. We managed to get to the hold in just over two hours. We were overjoyed to find 12 shoes still on the horses. The mares have been playing musical charades with their shoes, and maybe the smaller shorter shoes we are trying are the answer. Quick, let’s knock on some wood…Mojo, still in aluminum wedges up front and loaded up on Adequan looked good even after his week in Maryland. He’s 19 this year.
The mid ride vet check was good. Everyone passed! Great fun!
Next, we did just over 16 miles back to camp. We slowed down a tad to account for the footing and the horses getting a little tired. Got back to camp and vetted through. Still 12 shoes! 3 completions. I’ll take that for the win. All spring we have been dealing with shoes coming off almost every ride on the mares. Maybe we finally have the right answer.
We all had fun and to finish is to win, so there you go. I even stayed on the whole ride!
A lot of the pictures in this post were purchased by us and taken by the ride photographer Wanda Clowater. Thank you Wanda!
At 0300 on Wednesday, June 25th, Rob and Amanda pulled out of the driveway with Mojo on the trailer headed to Maryland for a week. The Old Dominion Equestrian Endurance Organization has been putting on Junior/Young Rider clinics for quite a few years. We wanted the kids to participate in 2023, but the scheduling just didn’t work out. This year, it fit perfectly on the calendar and Amanda was able to attend.
With temperatures in the mid-90s on Wednesday, the 0300 departure was intended to get Mojo to the camp with minimal heat stress and get past New York city before rush hour. 6 hours and 45 minutes later, with only a single stop, we arrived at the Carroll County Equestrian Center in Mt Airy, MD. The facility includes 2 outdoor arenas and a pavilion. Horses camped endurance style in electric fencing and portable corrals. Some adults stayed on-site in LQ trailers and tents. The youth and some parents (including Rob) slept in air conditioned cabins at the nearby Ramblin’ Pines campground.
Hand grazing after 7 hours on the trailerCamp set up Day 1
The clinic was 5 days of mounted work with about 3 hours in the saddle each morning. The camp director, Teri Carroll, assembled clinicians from both the local area and some who flew in to participate. There were 9 girls from 11 to 19 years old and a few adults who participated. All the youth had some amount of experience in the sport, but 2 have already done 100 mile rides. The mounted time included posture work, a ground handling session, centered riding, cavaletti work, yoga/stretching on and off horse, and some short trails.
Mounted lessonsGround workRinse after working
Afternoons included “classroom sessions” under the pavilion learning about centered riding, body work, vet cards, nutrition, personal goals, a farrier presentation, and more. It was a diverse schedule with a lot of topics packed into 5 days of time. Sometimes the kids ran out of steam.
Practicing with a stethoscopeTired Amanda
One day was spent at the Double C Farm mountain trail obstacle course.
Obstacles at Double C FarmObstacles at Double C Farm
There were tons of corporate sponsors for the event. Each day included a different (human) electrolyte company to keep everyone hydrated. The group got samples of various products and there was definitely some product testing happening. Due to the heat throughout the week, there were also quite a few water fights.
Amanda using the new brush from CEPAmanda using the new hoof pick from CEPAmanda with some hoof armorBuckeye treats for everyoneSore No More samplesTrying the electrolyte of the day
Our endurance riding friend Sonja drove from 2 hours away to come for a short visit.
There are tons more photos from the whole clinic on the Old Dominion Equestrian Endurance Organization Facebook page. While Amanda learned a lot through the week, her number 1 goal was to make new friends in the endurance community. Goal met.
I hope next year more youth will participate in this great opportunity.
I love horses. Growing up I was a barn rat at a riding stables in Sweden and my favorite horse was a chestnut gelding named Van-Toomen. His sire was a racing TB and his dam a Swedish Warmblood. US people would maybe call him a warmblood, but “over there” he was a TB x. He was a favorite flats horse and safe for most riders. Jumping he could get a little excited and if you took him out on the trails he could throw a mean buck that would likely unseat you. I learned the finer points of riding and dressage on him and he was a safe haven for me during my teen years. Unfortunately, at the age of 16, he was euthanized because of debilitating ring bone, which made him chronically lame and unuseable as a riding school horse. A life of two to three lessons a day 6 days a week was catching up with him. In Sweden, almost all horses are sold for slaughter at the end of their life and the slaughter house comes to the farm to put the horses down and take them to the slaughterhouse after they are dead. Most horses are insured and the insurance company requires this ending for full payout. Horses that are spared by someone who loves them get freeze branded as “uninsurable” and sold for the meat price. I was of course devastated.
Lately, I have been struggling with purpose and goals when it comes to horses and riding. As most of you know, Amira was injured last year, and her injury prevents her from being a distance horse. While I have had a few people interested in her, everyone is concerned about her long term soundness, which is understandable. I ride her about three times a week, but find it hard to develop any goals as I do not want to “just pleasure ride”. Ring riding doesn’t float my boat at the moment. Or hers. Casually riding down the trails is kind of boring. In the last 10 years, our family has been working towards doing distance riding, with a goal of 50s and maybe more, but along the way, we acquired several horses that ended up not suitable or able to do the job we want them to do. Most of the time, it is some sort of arthritis, especially in the hocks, or in one case, OCD lesions, as well as one horse with ring bone starting in a 10 year old horse. It is one thing if this happens in a 20 year old horse you’ve had for 15 years, but in a horse you’ve had for a year or two? Heart breaking. Especially, if it’s a kid’s horse. It’s not like we over ride our horses or don’t take care of them either. Our horses are very well cared for. Supplements, adequan, injections if warranted. It takes a year or two to train and build up any horse’s condition to do distance riding, and when they end up lame and un-useable, it kind of breaks your spirit. Sigh. Six horses is our max number at the moment, and Huey is retired and one of those 6 until he dies. Mojo is not leaving. He’s been here almost 10 years and is one of a kind. He’s likely to retire in a couple of years, as he is experiencing some caudal issues. Gamble may or may not end up safe to ride (that’s a different story). Amira is rideable, with limitations, and then we have Fiona and JJ.
So, what to do? Give up horses? Give up my goals and dreams? Do 10K worth of prepurchase exams on a 5K horse? Only to have them injure themselves the next week? Euthanize any horse that cannot work anymore? I feel like this is so taboo and not talked about. Where do all the lame lesson horses from the barn end up? The horse that slices their hock open and is forever lame at 3? Going to auction, in a kill pen, sold to a well meaning neglect type situation, take your pick. Do owners have a responsibility to pay for every horse’s last ten years or so, at $400 to $600 a month or more? Just look at any post looking for companions, you could have ten horses in your field in a heart beat.
Although an unpopular opinion, I don’t believe in rescue for horses that are chronically lame or injured. Spending thousands of dollars caring for a horse that has no hope of ever being useful and is possibly suffering is fine for the original owner of the horse, should they want to for sentimental reasons, but I don’t feel such a responsibility should be cast on a fundraising rescue. Their focus should be on horses that have a shot at rehab and placement.
Well, if you think it’s been quiet on the horse front, it really hasn’t been quiet. We had some plans to make it to some late season rides, but JJ ended up with a massive leg wound at the end of August. Today, with Amanda home from school, was the first ride JJ has had since the injury.
On August 24 we were going to take JJ and Mojo to a WGHA local ride and JJ came out of the pasture with her leg looking like this:
So, instead of going riding we called our vet out to sedate JJ to be able to clean and assess the wound. It took 2 shots of dorm and three people to be able to clean, debride and bandage her up. The following gallery is a collection of photos over the next two months while this injury was healing up. We initially were able to stuff two pieces of wet gauze inside the void in her leg. By some miracle the tendons were not involved and she was never lame. After that we used honey and dry gauze as the tissue started to fill in the wound. For the first two weeks it took three of us, one holding a feed pan of stress free, one holding her other back foot and one person cleaning and wrapping her wound. She got better after that and as a bonus I am now able to wrap her legs on my own.
During these two months of healing we had a few set backs, as you can see, JJ developed some excessive granulation tissue or proud flesh, and we treated it with two phovia treatments and equiaide and the proud flesh got much better. BUT, as we continued to use equiaide it crusted over and allowed an infection to brew, and we ended up debriding the wound again. I started using a microcyn hydrogel and wonder dust and scrubbing the wound for a few days and it dried up again. A few weeks ago we tried to stop bandaging a little too early apparently and JJ’s leg swelled up and got hot again. A thorough cleaning, some bute and more bandaging later, we were finally able to stop bandaging this week. Her leg is a little scuzzy from being wrapped for so long, but has stayed cold and tight all week. So Amanda got to go for a short walking ride today. This is what the leg looks like now, pretty much all covered in skin.
How did she get this wound? Our guess is, she rubbed her butt on a batten that split and pierced her vulva, sending her flying and scrambling, using her hind shoes to rip up her leg. We found the batten at the right height and a wound under her tail, and she was in heat, so that’s the story for now.
Hopefully, fingers crossed, healing goes smoothly from here. Life with horses is never dull.
Anna and I took SA Jeeka’s Jessica (JJ) and SA Fiona to Vermont to participate in the North American Shagya-Arabian Society (NASS) inspections and evaluation program. The consistent quality of the Shagya-Arabian breed has been maintained by a rigorous commitment to breed standards, including the requirement that all potential breeding horses be inspected and approved according to the international Shagya-Arabian breed standards established by the ISG in order to produce registered Purebred Shagya-Arabian offspring. Evaluations are the assessment of horses for purposes other than Breeding Approval. Evaluations offer owners the opportunity to have horses assessed by the commission for educational reasons only and the results are not applicable for breeding approval. Since JJ and Fiona are “Part Shagyas” they were evaluated, not inspected. You can read more about the inspection program on the NASS website.
Inspections only happen about every 3 years in the US and this time it was in Vermont, about 200 miles from home. A total of 10 horses were presented from CT, VT, OH, and Canada. NASS members came from CT, RI, and MI to watch the event which was actually split between two locations. The five trailered in horses were presented at a lovely private farm on a hillside and then we went a couple of miles away to watch Hallie Goetz present 5 additional horses at her farm.
The inspection/evaluation starts with measuring the horse’s cannon bone circumference, height, and girth. Then judges evaluate the horse relative to Shagya-Arabian breed standards while standing, led at the walk, led at the trot, and free lunging through all gaits.
Once all horses are presented, the entire group is brought into the arena for the reading of results by the judges. Since Anna and I were both holding horses, we didn’t take any notes, but I’m sure the results will be published by NASS later. While it was a long day since we didn’t stay over, we had a good time meeting other Shagya-Arabian owners and comparing how our part-Shagya mares look relative to others in the breed.
Two years ago in February we bought SA Fiona in KY. She’s been a bit of a challenge. She is 11 this year, but had never been broke to ride. She is sensitive and was very herd bound when she first came, making it a challenge to even work with her safely without another horse present.
We started riding her in October of 22, but the weather shut us down, and last spring we started again and she did most of her 100 miles walking trails and learned to walk and trot in the arena. We had some saddle fitting woes, and worked extensively on reducing her reactiveness to anything touching her, bugs, saddle bags, legs, plastic bags, ropes, scary things and did a lot of long lining.
Quinn has been riding her more since getting out of school in mid May, and taking Fiona on longer and longer trail rides. Last weekend Alex and Quinn did 8 miles in Pachaug. Exposure to dirt bikes, cars, screaming camping children, mountain bikes, is all a part of riding in Pachaug State Forest. Our property backs up to the forest and offers hours of trails straight out the back.
This morning Quinn and I loaded up Amira and Fiona, and headed over to Arcadia management area in Rhode Island. It was the first time putting Fiona on our trailer since she came. She loaded right up behind Amira with only the slightest bit of hesitation. Unloading at the Horsemen’s area, we discovered she really didn’t want to back out, so Quinn let her turn around in the tight space ( she was in the third stall of our four horse slant load). It spooked Fiona a bit, and she quickly exited leaving Quinn behind, but luckily I caught her on her way out. In hind sight, I should have collapsed the rear tack to make things easier and more open.
Fiona settled pretty quick with some grazing ( Amira is a good role model) and we tacked up tied to the trailer. Then we went into the large grass arena and walked on foot before mounting and riding around another few minutes. Fiona seemed to take it all in stride, so we headed out on an 8 mile ride down to midway and back. We walked and trotted and it was uneventful. Even with mountain bikes that didn’t stop and loose dogs, no one died.
Back at the trailer, we realized we had never sponged Fiona before…just rinsed her with the hose at home. Lots of things to work on. On the way home we flipped the position of the horses and loaded Fiona first, so she would have more room getting out. Amira prefers to back out anyway. We will work on some trailer loading and teach Fiona to back out should she ever have to ride in a straight load.
Quinn was very happy with Fiona today and it was certainly a big step towards Fiona becoming the horse we want her to be. We will continue to expose her to new things and plan to do a camping outing with the horses soon.
Back in January, I posted about the Border Patrol Challenge and my running goals for 2024. In February, I got thrown from Gamble and had some down time due to the resulting bruising. I am happy report that I was able to recover and complete all 20 Border Patrol Challenge Trails for a total of 184 miles. Rusty completed 19 of the trails (I didn’t let him do the 26 miler).
Rusty making sure I don’t miss the trail markingRunning the 26 mile loop with Ian
During my CT scans in February, the doctors had noted bilateral inguinal hernias but told me not to do anything unless it became a problem . The weekend after I finished the last trail, I was running a local-ish 16 mile trail race when some pain developed – it became a problem. Since that race, I haven’t been running at all. I had to withdraw from the Traprock 50k and I’m now scheduled for surgery in June. I have been advised not to run until 4-6 weeks after my surgery, so sometime in July. That means the Twisted Branch 100k won’t happen either and I’m not going to get my 1000 miles in 2024. It’s disappointing but at least the issue isn’t more severe.
Gamble went to see Geoff Goodson for at least 3 months of training. It was definitely the right decision and Geoff is making some great progress and they are over in Salem so it’s close enough for me to stop by after work occasionally.
We have been doing a lot of projects around the farm, but we are trying to make time for relaxing occasionally. I put 4 shoes on Fiona for the first time and she was surprisingly chill about it. So this afternoon we took the mares out: Anna on Amira, Amanda on JJ, and I rode Fiona.
We will be putting some miles on the mares because they need wet saddle pads to build confidence and stamina. It’s likely to be a light year for our endurance riding but heavier goat shows. The goat status is a whole other post…
22 days ago I had my right hip replaced. It was outpatient. Arrived at the hospital at 5.45 am, out at 4.15 pm. I’ve suffered with reduced range of motion and pain in my hips since I was in my early 30s. Bad conformation, especially if you want to ride horses, with deep sockets and constantly hitting the side of my femur, caused severe osteoarthritis. Riding, biking, running, hiking and even sleeping was becoming increasingly more painful. This was my first one, hoping to get the other hip done next year.
I am doing ok. First few days were rough, I am not going to lie. Muscle spasms, swelling, sciatica, pain at night, not being able to lift my leg very well, being dependent on others. Not my forte. And the pain meds made me sick, and gave me a migraine.
Ten things that made my life easier for the first few days and weeks:
Rob, getting up three times a night the first few days and getting me those ice packs, pain killers and making sure I didn’t kill myself getting in and out of bed (I decided I wanted to sleep in our bed, on the top floor, 13 steep steps, step stool to get in our tall king size bed). And allowing me to shower…it’s the little things.
A raised toilet seat, seriously, just get one. If you’re plus size, maybe not one with side bars, my thighs barely fit and I am normally a women’s medium.
Grabber pick up stick. It’s hard to reach down and it allowed me to get dressed on my own.
Long shoe horn, for taking off socks and putting on/off shoes. One downstairs by the door too. Because you won’t be able to reach your feet.
XL Women’s Hanes Boxer briefs. I’m a Hi cut girl normally, but ouch, they sit in the wrong spot, right over my incision! All the forums said to get men’s boxers, but these work great and don’t have a hole in the front. I had anterior approach, and these do not bother my incision. Two sizes up.
Ice packs, big one for the hip and another one for my knee. Doubles are helpful.
Large lounge pants, I’m normally a M, I got XL. You won’t want anything tight on your leg.
A walker, for the first 4-5 days, for me, and crutches for stairs, at first. I was done with these after a week.
A cane, for a walking aid after I was done with the walker. My surgeon is not a fan of using crutches instead, because crutches are to keep weight off your entire foot/leg and make you dependent on your upper body for support and the new joint needs weight bearing to heal.
A sock aid, best thing ever, when you can’t reach your feet.
Treadmill screen
So, what is recovery from a total hip replacement like? I was up and walking at the hospital a few hours after my surgery, using a walker. Physical therapy was started a week after surgery and I’ve been to my first post op appt. My surface stitches were taken out and I was cleared to drive short distances. The new hip was x-rayed and looks good so far. As far as muscles go, my hip flexors and adductors are super tight, still, from so many years of restricted use and may need additional intervention and it is so hard to be patient. My abductors are all weak. I am not supposed to cross my legs yet and have some stretching/twisting/lifting limitations, so I don’t dislocate the joint. Inside the house I am walking without an aid, unless I have pain and I walk with a cane outside for stability, although I am not always using it now. As far as exercise goes, I’m biking on my new recumbent bike twice a day for 15 minutes and I’ve been walking on the treadmill for about 20 minutes as well as walking some outside and going on short shopping trips. I have PT exercises I am working on after my biking and walking 2-3 times a day. Tylenol and Motrin are the only pain medications I am taking as needed, Vicaden was given to me for the first few days, but made me so sick I stopped taking it. I had a similar experience with Percuset after my c-sections, so not really surprised.
My recumbent bike
After 6 weeks I will be allowed to do more things and, stretching and exercise wise, push myself harder. Right now there is still swelling and angry, short muscles. My TFL(tensor fascae latae) was cut, and will need to heal, I have a 5-6 inch incision over my hip and an additional small area where the robotic cameras were placed. My right knee is angry where the IT band attaches and in general when I overdo my walking. My legs feel slightly uneven, the right leg is slightly longer. I was told my body will adjust. 12 weeks is the big mile stone, which is when I may or may not be allowed back on a horse. And do yoga, and twist, and possibly lift hay bales again. We’ll see. Current goal is getting on and off the floor without feeling like I’m popping my incision open, so there’s that.
Amira and I in 2022 (photo by Wanda Clowater)
I’m looking forward to being able to get back to riding and working on the farm. Goat kids will start arriving in late February. Onwards, and upwards. One step at a time. Quite literally…
Merry Christmas! Happy holidays! God Jul! Feliz Navidad! We are enjoying a quiet Christmas at home this year.
Due to Anna’s surgery and Rob’s injury, Christmas cards fell to the wayside this year. To those of you who sent cards, thank you! We will likely send out cards again next year.
Rob has had a busy and productive year at Sonalysts. When he was not working there, he was working on the farm, or hunting, running, riding, fishing, and whatever else he could find to not sit still. As many of you know, he had a cart accident with Huey in September that he is still recovering from, but he is back to running, riding and hunting, so that is a good sign.
Anna became a US citizen this year! She voted for the first time as well. Anna spent a lot of time training Fiona and let the kids compete Amira in all but one distance ride. This December Anna had a total right hip replacement, and will be recovering from that into the spring.
Alex finished the nuclear technology program at Three Rivers and spent the summer interning at Millstone Nuclear Plant again. This fall he started at URI to finish a degree in Mechanical Engineering with a Nuclear minor. He still enjoys riding Mojo, going trail running, and is the protector of his siblings.
Quinn graduated high school and is attending Eastern CT State University for a double major of computer science and data science. Quinn has claimed Fiona as theirs, and enjoys sewing dresses and other creations, along with showing our dairy goats.
Amanda is in 8th grade, working on making her high school choices. She is currently riding our new horse JJ and it seems to be a great match for her. She is also going hunting with dad, biking and running as time allows. Amanda went to the Big E with our dairy goats this year and enjoyed showing them at fairs and shows throughout the summer.
From our family to yours, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! We hope to see all our friends out there enjoying life in the New Year.
SA Jack of Hearts, aka Gamble came to us 7 weeks ago with a reputation for being strong and not a horse that just anyone could ride. We discovered that while he is a sweetheart on the ground, he has some serious trust issues. I’m not sure exactly what happened in the past, but he consistently avoids allowing someone to mount. He isn’t vindicative and doesn’t want to hurt you, but rather it feels like he is scared. Maybe scared of what will happen or of being disciplined. Regardless, it was quickly clear that Gamble needs a lot of ground work and trust. This afternoon I finally sat on his back.
Amanda rode JJ around the arena while I worked with Gamble. Once I got on, it didn’t feel like I was sitting on a stick of dynamite; it felt like I was sitting on a whole bundle of dynamite. We just worked on walking and listening without overloading him. About 10 minutes was enough to call it successful for the day. I’ll definitely be wearing my Point Two air vest as we continue to work together.
I know my seat looks awful and I’ll be making some tack adjustments but that wasn’t the priority for today. Despite his tension, I really don’t get the feeling he wants to hurt anyone, just that he is scared and not sure what to expect. This is definitely a horse where I need to be in the right frame of mind every time I sit in the saddle.
