Tuesday, October 31, 2017

Really, Zippy?

Some days, I wonder what horses think. Do they spend all night thinking up new ways to hurt themselves? Okay, maybe it's only Zippy does this.
Plotting how to get out of work

 This summer and fall has been very trying; and as spoiled as I'm sure it makes me sound, I was very thankful to have more then one horse to ride.

Zippy had 3 or 4 abscesses in 6 weeks, which completely derailed our competition plans. Which is fine, he's only 5 and there's always next year.

After the 4th (ish) abscess, I had the farrier pull his shoes. We had put them back on after the first abscess was dug out as he has very thin soles and flat feet, and my farrier felt leaving his shoes on would be better for him. Once we pulled them, he actually seemed happier, so I think the shoe was preventing the abscess from fully draining.
So, after a couple weeks, I started him back into light work. Shortly after that, he was running around like an idiot in the field and misjudged the corner of a field as he was running around it, and smoked his hip off the post. Hard. Hard enough he broke the brace posts. All I could think was f*ck. That's gonna make him lame.
Running faster then he ever did on the track...

He seemed fine, no worse for wear, just a small cut on the hip. He was still only in light work, so I figured we'd work things out, and if he seemed sore I'd get the chiro in to see him.
Last week, he was having a harder time bending left, which is unlike him. He had hit his right hip, but I still figured it had something to do with it.  The farrier trimmed him this past Wed, and found a abscess in his left hind. Explains the lack of wanting to bend, but also shows me the personality of this horse. He tries so damn hard.

Yesterday, he came in with a small but decently deep cut on his lower jaw. I cleaned it up and treated it. I could kill this horse, I swear, he's an accident waiting to happen.
But then he gives me his cute look, and I just fall in love with him all over again.
How can you be mad at this face?


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