New York, New York!

I just returned from an 11 day trip to NYC. I helped to put on the  World Maker FaireNew York but was also able to spend some time visiting friends and my sister. It was a blast and now I’m finding myself missing the fast pace and stimulation of the city.

subways, wild outfits, fashion, big glasses, museums, cafes, risotto, taxis, lights

Sister, Me, Sister-In-Law, Sister's Roomie

Christel and I in Central Park

World Maker Faire New York

Metro Man at World Maker Faire New York

Brigitte, Me, and Sheena at World Maker Faire New York

DG Bar Trip

This weekend I accompanied a friend on a trip to to DG Bar to look at young horses. Neither of us know a whole lot about purchasing young horses so the experience was very interesting and educational. We learned that of course pedigree is very important. Both the sire and dam should have proved themselves. But you can also tell a lot from the movement. They should like a complete horse when they move, you shouldn’t see three separate units (front end, middle, hind end). Even though their growing and gangly looking , they should have good conformation – good bone structure, good angles, ect.
We had a great time looking at all the horses and we even got to see the stallions up close!  What a fun weekend!

Came close to taking this baby home with me!

Mama and baby

Devon Heir

Idocus

Visit With Bee

This is Bee, my first horse who I’ve had since I was thirteen years old. Bee is a 20 year-old quarter horse/appaloosa. He lives at Giant Steps, a therapeutic equestrian center. He’s been living and volunteering there for a little over a year. I miss having him in my backyard but I try to visit him as often I can. Luckily his barn is conveniently located right off my commute route from Davis to Sonoma County. I stopped by yesterday to say hi. I think he was a little peeved at me because I forgot to bring him treats!! Giant Steps is pretty strict about giving the horses treats (for good reason) so I usually try to sneak in something special for him!

Bumble Bee

Saying Goodbye!

Post-Op, 2 Months & 2 Weeks cont’d.

I was having a rough morning so I ducked out at lunch to visit Will. As I started to walk up to the barn, Julie aboard Otto, told me that Will was outside and when he saw my truck pull up he whinnied and went inside. And there he was when I walked up, sticking his charming face out the window. Needless to say, all my troubles disappeared. Thank you, Will!

As I was out playing with him, I noticed cloudy mucus in his right nostril. I noticed it last night and took a mental note of it but today it drew enough attention to cause concern. I called Dr. Lisa and we decided to put him on 5 days of antibiotics, just to be safe. There has been a dramatic change in the weather this week (rain!) so it’s probably just a small sinus infection. Dr. Lisa ran a blood panel on him less than a week ago and his white cell count was good then. We ran a panel on him last week because I’ve noticed a big increase in the amount of peeing since his surgery. We can not keep enough shavings in his stall! Thank goodness nothing alarming came back on the results and at least now we have a baseline. The only abnormal result the came back was a high level of potassium. We’re going to test it again in a few months but it’s nothing to be concerned about.

Overall, nothing to be overly worried about but I feel like I have to continue to keep a good eye on Will. I just want to wrap the boy in a big sterile fluffy bubble suit!

Post Op, 2 Months and 2 Weeks

We’re in the middle of our second week of walking under saddle for 10 minutes at a time. And it’s going well. Will has behaved himself and I haven’t had to pull out the doping drugs! Last night was the first time he felt strong under saddle. He really marched forward in his walk and took confident steps. It was exciting.

I thought the recovery process would be boring. But I’ve been surprised by how rewarding it’s been. I look forward riding him and it’s been amazing to feel him get stronger with each ride. It’s also interesting to notice where he’s weak, or if he is more tired, or if he wants to stick his body in one direction. 10 minutes under saddle goes by fast. I wonder if I’ll feel the same when we’re up to 25 minutes under saddle at the walk!