Updates!

Sheesh! It's been another bad month of blogging for me again. Sorry about that. Nothing horribly new to report, other then that Gus got the green light. Vet says he's pretty darn sound to keep doing what we're doing, as far as work goes. He said he's still slightly off in the right hind and there's a bit more fluid in the right stifle then what's in the left, but even after flexions he's still fairly sound. That report makes me so very, very happy.

On to other news though, he did have his teeth checked earlier this week and he had an ulcer in his right lower cheek. I guess he had some very sharp points in his teeth and that lead to the ulcer development. It's sad to say, but he just had his teeth done in April.

Gringo, well, he's doing fine as always. Vet said his teeth were just fine and that he's an "easy keeper" and that I'll probably only need to do his teeth every two years. Makes me happy if that's the case... but he'll still be checked twice a year, as always.

Neither boy needed to have their flu/rhino vaccine boostered, since they are now boarding at a closed stable. So, that saved me some money, which was nice. Gus also had his bloodwork rechecked - that would be the blood glucose/insulin stuff. Vet said it would be a one week turn around, so hopefully that's truly the case and the results will say that everything looks good (and the levels are back within normal ranges). We shall see though.

Here's some new photos of the boys, again crappy quality as they were taken with my Blackberry Curve phone.

[Note: Gus was under heavy sedation for these photos... he had just had his teeth floated. I think he's lost even more muscle tone since the last photos were taken, but that's just me.]

Vet said he's not at all shocked by the lack of muscle in Gus's hindquarters. He said because of the stifle injuries, he'll likely never use his hind end like he used to. So, who knows if I'll be able to get that bum built back up. I'm going to try work with cavalettii this spring, but we'll see.

Any suggestions, as always, are appreciated.

Oh, and we changed their diets again. Gringo's grain was decreased down to 1/2 lb daily and Gus's was bumped up to 2 1/2 lbs daily. We're also adding about 1 - 1 1/2 cups of alfalfa pellets daily too... I'm wanting to add more of something (maybe try TC Senior???) but I'm waiting to see what the bloodwork results show. I did up his beet pulp to 1 1/2 lbs dry weight, but again, he's only getting that when I'm able to feed it. Right now that's maybe 2 times a week... hoping to change that soon though.

It's September!

I can't believe that summer is nearly over, but I can certainly feel it. Woke up to a brisk 42 degrees out... I think it's supposed to warm up to the mid 70s again today, but still! That's just a tad chilly for the end of August/beginning of September.

The boys have been doing really well lately. Gus's latest lameness issues seem to have resolved themselves again. We shall see today though when I'm out to ride. I've not ridden him in over a week, so it should be an interesting ride to say the least. Gringo seems to be doing well again too. He has good days and bad, but with the way the weather has been lately, it seems the good out number the bad.

Both boys were hit hard with a double dose of Equimax two weeks ago. The point of double dosing this dewormer is to kill neckthread worms (NTW). Lots of info out there about this, but many people don't know about them. Needless to say, the protocol is double ivermectin/praziquantel by weight and followed two weeks later by another double dose of ivermectin/praziquantel or just plain ivermectin. Since both boys are under 1200lbs, I just give them two syringes a piece and call it good, since some is inevitably not swallowed. Anyways, with the first double dose of Equimax, I did notice some evidence of NTW. Both boys had this scurffy stuff on their chests. They've had it before but there was no signs of this prior to doing the double dose. Could just be a coincidence... Anyways, the second double dosing is today. I'm using just plain ivermectin this time around.

Tomorrow is farrier day, bright and early. I did actually talk to J shortly after Gus's latest trim, when he came up lame. She said she listened to what vets are wanting them to do and just knew that she shouldn't have. I can't remember what it all was, but something about taking down their heels/soles/toes/something. Needless to say, she was going to revert back to what she was doing previously... as it wasn't causing any unwanted issues with the boys.

Still trying to figure out what to do with Gus. I don't like the weight he's at now. He's too skinny heading into winter. Especially since he'll be wintering out for the first time since I've owned him (so first time in 9 years). These last few winters have been especially tough on everyone - very cold and very long. So, I would like to get some more weight back up on him before October/November approaches, but just not entirely sure how to do so.

I've got the vet coming out this month (in like two weeks) to do routine stuff on the boys... dentals (if needed), flu/rhino booster (if he recommends it) and then bloodwork and a lameness reeval on Gus. Gus needs to have his blood glucose/insulin rechecked, since the last blood drawl was totally useless. And I also want a second opinion on Gus's soundness... I think I'm also going to ask for some recommendations on weight and whatnot. Who knows what answers I'll get from the vet. I've got Anoka coming out again... I much prefer them to the other guy.

I do want to get some new photos again with both horses, like I had done last fall. So, we'll see if I can rope someone into helping me one weekend.