I took Friday off from work, I needed the day to prepare/make the cinnamon rolls for our horse club annual Cinnamon Roll Ride in Arlington. This year was finally the year I would basically do them myself (with mom's guidance) so I was excited to attempt this venture. I had planned to spend the entire day there, however I received a call earlier in the week from Shannon (who is training Oakley) voicing some concerns over his mouth and that she felt I really needed to get him to a vet to get his mouth/teeth looked at. Shannon was worried he had a cracked tooth, he was shaking his head and acting funny with his head/mouth when she was riding him with a bit, so to rule out any issues, I scheduled a vet appt for Friday at noon.
I decided I might as well take Edgar along too since I knew his teeth needed to be filed down as well. Here are a few pics of the boys, doped up (or should I say down with their heads hanging). The contraption on the face is what holds their mouths open, I was able to look inside and see where the vet was going to file down, see what the problems were with both horses and then see the results of his work. I took the boys to Pilchuck, the vet was really GREAT and it was Dental month so I got a good discount.
Edgar was pretty jagged on his teeth and really needed the work. Normally horses should go in every year, both boys hadnt been to the vet for a teeth checkup in 3+ years! :( bad mommy, bad mommy.. Edgars teeth were filed down nice and although Edgar previously indicated no issues with his mouth, he should be able to eat a lot better now.
Oakley had minor issues with jagged teeth but enough that he probably was sore when the bit was in his mouth and raking across his teeth. He had some bruising on his inner cheek on one side. He too is all fixed up and Shannon already notices a difference with his behavior when she rides him, even though she has yet to put a bit in his mouth.
Speaking of Oakley, she took him out this past weekend at Mann Rd, she had a friend ride him that had never been on a horse before and she is just so amazed at what an awesome horse he is. She told me I did a really great job with him and she is excited that she knows for a fact that she can market him to anyone, she would sell him to a child or an old old lady.. :) Sounds like she's got some people coming out to see him, it's just a matter of the potential buyers having the cash we are wanting for him. We all agree its best right now to shoot really high and see what happens. I keep telling her if she can get more to go that direction, I certainly will not complain about having a fat wallet!
Speaking of Oakley, she took him out this past weekend at Mann Rd, she had a friend ride him that had never been on a horse before and she is just so amazed at what an awesome horse he is. She told me I did a really great job with him and she is excited that she knows for a fact that she can market him to anyone, she would sell him to a child or an old old lady.. :) Sounds like she's got some people coming out to see him, it's just a matter of the potential buyers having the cash we are wanting for him. We all agree its best right now to shoot really high and see what happens. I keep telling her if she can get more to go that direction, I certainly will not complain about having a fat wallet!
I do occassionally feel guilty about selling him because in a couple years, he really would be a great fit for Derek, but Derek has lost confidence in Oakley from the mistakes Oakley made last year. It was not Oakley's fault, he had never been trailridden before last year, it was my mistake for allowing Derek to ride him so soon. But Derek does admit he learned some things about riding from Oakley and what he learned has helped him to trust Edgar even more. Technically at this point, there is no reason not to trust Oakley, but I know for Derek's confidence to continue to grow, he needs to continue with Edgar (plus Derek now realizes as well how fun it is to ride big horses!) lol Derek and I are a true power couple on our big ass beasts!
Even though I had to take the boys to the vet in the middle of the day, I was still able to do all the steps to making the rolls.. we prepared the bread and as it was rising, I went to the vet and when I came back from the vet, the dough was ready to turn into rolls.. It was pretty easy and fun and they were very NUMMY!!!
Even though I had to take the boys to the vet in the middle of the day, I was still able to do all the steps to making the rolls.. we prepared the bread and as it was rising, I went to the vet and when I came back from the vet, the dough was ready to turn into rolls.. It was pretty easy and fun and they were very NUMMY!!!
The ride on Saturday was very well attended. I think there were about 35 that RSVP'd for the ride, most were supposed to be bringing horses and about 1/2 ended up coming with horses. The weather looked questionable that morning, but it did not rain 1 drop on us. It was a really nice 2.5hr ride. Edgar and Red were well behaved, We started with 10 in our group which dwindeled to 8 after an hour and then dwindled down to 5 for the last hour of our ride. Red did threaten to kick Edgar one time, but overall he was not as pissy as he has been in the past. It was a lot of fun and he rode okay in the hackamore.. I'm still not 100% lovin his bridle situation, working on it.
When I pulled Red's saddle off after the ride, he was extremely sensitive/sore in his wither area. I have NEVER had a horse get sore there before. Typically the horse will be sore on the top of their back, above their flank. But he was not sore there at all (which is great!) but I was really concerned when he was so tender where the front of the saddle sat on him. Red is built slightly downhill and I think the weight of me and the saddle rocks forward on his shoulders more because of this. I really need to get a much thicker pad on him (I plan to buy one this weekend and if I dont find one to buy, will order it online). I may also add some front cushion/support under the saddle over his withers to level things off a little. And I will be riding in Derek's saddle to see if there is a difference in fit.
On Sunday, he was not very sore at all in his withers which was GREAT! I was VERY VERY happy to see him drastically improved over a 24hr period. We took the boys out on Sunday and spent some time just brushing them.. good bonding time for both of us, got them both wormed so they should start dropping their winter coats rapidly. I am concerned about the saddle fit just a little, I really want either my saddle or Derek's to work out so we dont have to go through this.. it's a big bitch to have to deal with saddle fit and I think I am just going to continue to love Big Red! He is super sweet, I am getting to know his personality and he's just a nice horse.
In the mornings when I am preparing their grain mash, he sticks his neck waaaayy out into the isleway and flaps his lips then if he's really impatient, he'll rake his teeth on the stall wall! lol Now Edgar, when he is impatient, he talks to ya and nickers at ya and then he'll grab ahold of the extension cord on the outside of his stall and flip it just enough to let you know he wants to be fed right now! :)
Sunday was basically a lazy day.. well not really I guess, afterall we did brush the boys out and that takes a little elbow work these days with all the dirt they seem to find! I did take my cousin Marc over to meet HotRod, they are considering leasing him for a while to see how it goes. There was supposed to be a late afternoon meeting at our house for the horse club Ladies Ride later this summer, so I spent the afternoon cleaning the house and then mowed the lawn. And as I sat down to relax, the meeting was postponed to another day.. Oh well, my house needed the cleaning anyways! Derek spent the afternoon working on Adam's tractor implement, getting it torn apart so it can be sandblasted.
In the morning on Sunday, I found a dog on Craigslist in Snohomish (my parents have been keeping their eyes open for one) and I thought he looked like what they might want (a small-med size dog), I forwarded the link and a couple hours later dad sends me a pic from his cell phone of the dog! I told him "You better stop over with your new dog!" And they did.. lol The dog doesnt have a name yet, it is about 2 years old is their best guess, the previous owners rescued the dog from a shelter and only had it 3 months, their daughter who begged for a dog decided she didnt like taking care of the dog as much as she wanted to the dog. Anyways, he is a mutt, looks kinda like a scotty type dog crossed with a beagle maybe.. not really sure! My parents didnt like the name his previous owners gave him and he didnt know it anyways, so hopefully in a day or so they'll come up with a good one to fit. He immediately got along with Russell, poor guy was being violated by our dog and he didnt growl once, he just jumped around in a goofy manner and ran around the yard with a big ole smile on his face and tongue hangin out. I hope he and my parents bond well together, he is cute and his temperment seems ideal.
This post is never going to end.. And soon enough I am going to start posting about Derek's new project. He bought this chevy luv truck a couple years ago I think it was and has been slowly searching for parts for it and he's just about got all he needs. He found a bed for it, a motor and a rearend.. so now it's just a matter of getting all the different parts put together. I want to post pics of his progress, I am trying really hard to remember to not only have the camera on me, but to use it!!
When I pulled Red's saddle off after the ride, he was extremely sensitive/sore in his wither area. I have NEVER had a horse get sore there before. Typically the horse will be sore on the top of their back, above their flank. But he was not sore there at all (which is great!) but I was really concerned when he was so tender where the front of the saddle sat on him. Red is built slightly downhill and I think the weight of me and the saddle rocks forward on his shoulders more because of this. I really need to get a much thicker pad on him (I plan to buy one this weekend and if I dont find one to buy, will order it online). I may also add some front cushion/support under the saddle over his withers to level things off a little. And I will be riding in Derek's saddle to see if there is a difference in fit.
On Sunday, he was not very sore at all in his withers which was GREAT! I was VERY VERY happy to see him drastically improved over a 24hr period. We took the boys out on Sunday and spent some time just brushing them.. good bonding time for both of us, got them both wormed so they should start dropping their winter coats rapidly. I am concerned about the saddle fit just a little, I really want either my saddle or Derek's to work out so we dont have to go through this.. it's a big bitch to have to deal with saddle fit and I think I am just going to continue to love Big Red! He is super sweet, I am getting to know his personality and he's just a nice horse.
In the mornings when I am preparing their grain mash, he sticks his neck waaaayy out into the isleway and flaps his lips then if he's really impatient, he'll rake his teeth on the stall wall! lol Now Edgar, when he is impatient, he talks to ya and nickers at ya and then he'll grab ahold of the extension cord on the outside of his stall and flip it just enough to let you know he wants to be fed right now! :)
Sunday was basically a lazy day.. well not really I guess, afterall we did brush the boys out and that takes a little elbow work these days with all the dirt they seem to find! I did take my cousin Marc over to meet HotRod, they are considering leasing him for a while to see how it goes. There was supposed to be a late afternoon meeting at our house for the horse club Ladies Ride later this summer, so I spent the afternoon cleaning the house and then mowed the lawn. And as I sat down to relax, the meeting was postponed to another day.. Oh well, my house needed the cleaning anyways! Derek spent the afternoon working on Adam's tractor implement, getting it torn apart so it can be sandblasted.
In the morning on Sunday, I found a dog on Craigslist in Snohomish (my parents have been keeping their eyes open for one) and I thought he looked like what they might want (a small-med size dog), I forwarded the link and a couple hours later dad sends me a pic from his cell phone of the dog! I told him "You better stop over with your new dog!" And they did.. lol The dog doesnt have a name yet, it is about 2 years old is their best guess, the previous owners rescued the dog from a shelter and only had it 3 months, their daughter who begged for a dog decided she didnt like taking care of the dog as much as she wanted to the dog. Anyways, he is a mutt, looks kinda like a scotty type dog crossed with a beagle maybe.. not really sure! My parents didnt like the name his previous owners gave him and he didnt know it anyways, so hopefully in a day or so they'll come up with a good one to fit. He immediately got along with Russell, poor guy was being violated by our dog and he didnt growl once, he just jumped around in a goofy manner and ran around the yard with a big ole smile on his face and tongue hangin out. I hope he and my parents bond well together, he is cute and his temperment seems ideal.
This post is never going to end.. And soon enough I am going to start posting about Derek's new project. He bought this chevy luv truck a couple years ago I think it was and has been slowly searching for parts for it and he's just about got all he needs. He found a bed for it, a motor and a rearend.. so now it's just a matter of getting all the different parts put together. I want to post pics of his progress, I am trying really hard to remember to not only have the camera on me, but to use it!!
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