New Year, Same Resolutions...Moving past 2015's setbacks

As I look back on 2015, I can't really decide if it was a good year or a bad year.  There were lots of highs and lows along the way and in the end it all seems to have balanced out to "meh".  Since I am going to try to make this blog a place to document my riding life, my horse, and lots of things I love my focus will be on Festin's 2015 and our hope-filled 2016.

This year's mantra

In 2015 Festin came through the winter looking pretty good, for him.  It was time for spring vet work and I was surprised to find that my vet had uprooted and left the state with no notice.  I tried another vet and was mostly underwhelmed.  They were certainly nice enough, but just didn't offer the same standard of care that I expect and am accustomed to.  Shortly after spring work Festin started losing weight.   I re-evaluated his diet and realized that nothing had really changed and he was getting more calories than his workload should require.  A week or so later he developed a bloody nose while walking in the arena.  I immediately jumped to the worst possible conclusion about his weight loss and his bloody nose.  At this point, I was lucky enough to find his current veterinary group, who came out and did a full examination and endoscopy of his upper airway, guttural pouches, and upper GI tract.  The good news was that they could not find any abnormalities and that while he had some scar tissue from his previous gastric ulcers they were no longer active.  The bad news was that they were very concerned about his body condition.  He was shiny, but had no fat pad and his muscle atrophy was worsening by the day.  The plan was to add more fat, more alfalfa, more probiotics, and increase his grain and hay intake then recheck in one month.  If there were no improvements he was going to have an abdominal ultrasound and possibly further blood and fecal testing.

He was a very good boy for his endoscopy and we love our new veterinary team

Unfortunately, the month came and went and while he may have added a little weight his BCS went down and his muscle atrophy worsened.  At his recheck his vet was very concerned about an odd presentation of EPM, so a full neurological workup was done.  Festin passed with flying colors, which seemed to both excite and upset his vets.  After a lot of discussion they decided to test him for a Vitamin E deficiency (Equine Lower Motor Neuron Disorder), start him on naturally sourced Vitamin E immediately, and say a little prayer.  They also injected his TMJ joints because he was showing some signs of discomfort and they wanted to make sure he had no difficulty chewing and nothing to discourage him from eating and becoming a fat, happy thoroughbred.

June 2015

June 2015

His Vitamin E levels came back so low that, I recently found out, Cornell University called his vet to see if they understood how bad this was, how they should be treating him, and to see if he was still alive.  Thankfully, he was already showing some improvement (more like he just wasn't continuing to waste away) on the Vitamin E.  After a lot of research, soul searching, and budget planning, I made the difficult decision to move Festin to a barn where he could get lots of grass turnout, free choice square bales, and I would not have to provide his grain because they were already feeding what his disease needed.  As an added benefit, he is much closer to home!

In August, Festin moved to what I hope will be his forever home (or at least until I move to somewhere much warmer!).  He settled in well, made new friends, and got back to a very limited work schedule.  Since his weight and muscle have improved and his Vitamin E levels have returned to normal we hope that 2016 will be the year that I can finally meet my riding goals and keep my resolutions.  Because I know that I am bad about following through on these things, I am going to try to write them down and hope that my friends and family will keep me accountable.

December 2015

December 2015

My riding goals for 2016:

1) Ride at least three times a week (the excuses are less since I now have a heated indoor with lots of ceiling fans)

2) Take two lessons per month (and more if my budget can afford).  I would like to get one lesson in with the dressage trainer and one in with the jumper trainer each month.

3) Get my fitness a little better so that I can be a better equestrian athlete.

4) Spend at least one day each week on groundwork with Festin.  It doesn't matter if is lunging or in hand, just something.

5) Finally get to the shows that I have been wanting to.  I really want to do the entire DEC summer jumper series, a few local dressage shows, and if things go really well and my budget allows maybe a dressage show at Lamplight, Fields and Fences, or Silverwood.

6) Jump 3 foot fences before the end of the year...I alway seem to stick with the under two foot stuff and it is due to a mental block on my part.  I read a quote this year and it really resonated with me, so I am making it a goal.

7) Be better about tack cleaning after every single ride...
8) Wear my "good" riding clothes and try to look more like a rider and less like a slob on a horse. (I know that this will please the dressage trainer at our barn greatly!)

This is the quote that inspired me to jump higher.