An update on Gus

So it's been another couple weeks since I last updated you on Gus. So, here goes.

Last week, the 28th - 29th of February, we had a major snowstorm. I think it dumped somewhere in the neighborhood of 8-10" of heavy, wet snow. So, needless to say, B cancelled my lesson, which was scheduled for Wednesday evening.

The next day, Thursday March 1st, I was finally able to make it out the barn. That was the first time I had ridden Gus since the previous Wednesday (the lesson I mentioned in my last post). So we worked on the same things as we did in my last lesson - which was 3 loop serpentine, to butt.to.the.wall leg yields. Then instead of the leg yields, we did a long side in the canter. Rinse and repeated, ad nauseum.

My next ride was just this past Wednesday ... aka lesson time, yet again. I feel like I've been a horrible horse owner, but I've really had no desire to ride lately. Not sure why but I haven't. On Wednesday, we worked on a simple exercise, but it wasn't simple in execution.

Basically, there were six cones set up in the area, on the quarter line. They were set at RSEVPB. The exercise was to ride, at the walk, turn on the forehand around the letters, switching to turn on the haunches. Basically you did a serpentine around the cones. Not super hard, but hard to ride correctly. I'm forgetting now, but I think Gus did not like the turn on the forehands ... B though he would, cause well, he can just fall on his front end, but I think those were the ones we were having issues with. We did, at the end, have some very nice moments on our turns.

After the walk work, we immediately went to the canter. Using the cones as a guideline, we cantered the quarterlines, after passing the last cone on the long side, we went straight for another couple strides, then made a more square turn, then another squareish turn again, this time ending back up on the quarterline. Rinse and repeat. The only time we had issues, was going to the left, where Gus would try to duck and drop his inside shoulder. Then we'd end up crooked with a not.so.squarish turn.

The trot work consisted of leg yields on and off the rail, using the cones as a guideline once again. The cones set on the quarterline at E or B were a marker for when to change the bend and leg yield back to the rail. These, for the most part, went fairly well. One direction went a lot easier then the other, but it's escaped my mind, once again, as to which direction faired better.

My goals for Gus these next few weeks are pretty basic. Ride more. B and I both agree that Gus is moving evenly ... stiffly, but evenly. So, hopefully that will just improve with more regular work.

Lesson Time.

Whohoo! Today is Wednesday and that meant lesson time. I haven't had a lesson in AGES! It was definitely long overdue. So what exactly did we work on for nearly an hour? Serpentines. Leg yields. Butt.to.the.wall.leg.yields. Rinse and repeat.

After warming Gus up on the lunge line (which for once, he was nearly an angel) we started up with undersaddle work. First it was just me getting him to give to the bit. Once I had a little be of flexion going on, we proceeded to trot serpentines (3-loop). Once we got to the short side again, we rotated from doing a leg yield down the long side to doing a butt.to.the.wall.leg.yield (hence forth, b.t.t.w.l.y). It took a bit of convincing from B to get Gus to yield his butt to the wall, but he ended up being a pretty good sport. The first couple b.t.t.w.l.y's ended up more like a shoulder-ins, which would have been great had I asked for that ... but eventually Gus got the point of the exercise and we had some nice steps.

Once we had a walk break, we ended the lesson with basically the same exercise, except with the canter added. We began with a three-loop serpentine, once we were finishing the last loop, I asked for the canter. We cantered down the long side then turned down the center line and trotted through the trot poles that were set up. Then changed directions at the end of the center line, began the three-loop serpentine again, thus repeating the same exercise.

He was definitely more comfortable going to the left, with his right stifle being the issue today. We actually had some lovely canter strides from time to time. B even commented that for a brief second, I had the old Gus back. Then that Gus was gone, only to be replaced with the current one. B did note that while he's not lame or even off, he is very ouchie on his front end. I do hope that corrective shoeing will help, however we have to wait until the mud comes and goes before we can attempt that.

So, while we still have a lot of issues and problems, it doesn't seem like having a month off did too much harm.

Winter Blues

I hope I'm not the only one who has been battling the winter blues this year ... And of all years, this winter has been unseasonably WARM here in Minnesota. Nearly down right hot, by normal standards. [Relatively speaking, 30s-40s is hot ... when it's typically at or just above zero in January/February]. So, I'm not entirely sure why I've been so anti-riding/anti-barn lately, but I have been. So part of the reason why I haven't updated this blog lately is because nothing has happened. The other part is sheer laziness.

I haven't had a lesson since the beginning of January. The first Wednesday in February, I signed my life away on a new, 2011 Volkswagen Jetta - the SE with the convenience & sunroof package. It's a sweet, kick a$$ car. Granted, I miss my Mazda Tribute - that was a nice SUV, but it was getting old and I was going to need a new vehicle sooner or later. Then, the next Wednesday, I came down with a nasty cold bug. I'm still fighting it off but now I'm down to just the nose stuff. Then, this past Wednesday, I was stuck at work all day. So no lesson.

So, that means that Gus has been living the high life these last few weeks. When he's been worked (work? what work?), it's been more then interesting. On Friday morning, we had our first real session in a while. And I can sum it up in just a few words. If the rodeo was in town, Gus would've definitely made their rodeo string for bucking broncos. He had some nice, back-cracking, movements. Thankfully everything happened while on the lungeline ... though undersaddle he was still a piece of work. I'm still not sure though if he's sound or not. I thought I felt something off in the front ... but sometimes I think it's just my imagination working in overdrive. Just to be on the safe side, he did get some bute after the ride. I'm hoping this afternoon he's back to his usual self. We shall see.

The next time I work with Gus, which is hopefully this afternoon, I plan on working him over poles. It's sad how fast he deteriorates when he's not in work full-time, or at least more regularly then once or twice week.

Hopefully the next time I report back, it'll be better news :-).

Of hooves and horses

Long overdue for an update on Gus's hooves, so here goes.

The following photos were taken on January 27th, five weeks post trim. I am NOT happy with how the hooves are looking. In my uneducated opinion, they are long in the toe and the heels are growing forward, not necessarily downward. 

Yikes. That's about all that I can say about Gus's hooves.

So, the next set of shots were taken from February 2nd - just a few hours after Gus was trimmed last.

A close up of the weird crack/separation on Gus's white line. Per J, currently there are no issues with Gus's white line.

So, I was able to FINALLY talk to J, the farrier. He agreed with me that Gus's hooves are changing ... and not in a good way. Moreso we are dealing with issues in the fronts ... they are looking more and more like a laminitic horse's. 

J recommends applying durasole ... which I had been doing faithfully back over the summer, and looking at applying shoes come spring. I'm glad I was finally able to talk to him, cause I agree that things need to change. I'm really worried about Gus's hooves ... 

So, now on to the horses part. Today we had some lovely hoar frost, that lasted until nearly 3pm. It made for one gorgeous day ... and a great day for outdoor photography. 

Without further ado, here's some good shots of Gus from today. 

Happy Belated Birthday, Gus!

On Monday, January 16th Gus celebrated his 22nd birthday. I really wish I would've been able to make it out to see him but I was otherwise occupied.

It's hard to believe that Gus is that old.. Granted some days he seems ancient, but then there are other days where he's as frisky as a young greenie. To borrow a thought from Stacey, from Behind The Bit, I think Gus thinks he's four. Because 2+2= 4, not 22. (Actually her old guy, Harvey, had the idea).

My goals/resolutions for Gus for 2012 are to keep him fit, healthy and happy. I plan to accomplish this by doing the following:
     1. (fit) riding as correctly as possible, at least three times a week
     2. (healthy) staying on top of his hooves and arthritis. If this means getting after J, the farrier, then so be it. If this also means more frequent stifle injections or Legend (IA) injections, then so be it as well
     3. (happy) make sure he gets plenty of grooming time and, weather permitting, grazing time. Granted Gus is IR, but I don't see why he can't have a few 10-15 minute grazing sessions come spring, when the grass starts sprouting. He's basically in a dry lot 24/7 so a little change of scenery should do him good. I'll just need to keep a close eye on things.

The following are some photos taken on January 5th. I think it was nearly 50 degrees outside. I wasn't wearing a jacket (whohoo! - though I did have on a base layer, then a mock turtleneck, breeches and a down vest). Compare that day, earlier this month, to today. It's a balmy -1 currently and windchills were rumored to be bottoming out at around -45. Lovely.

Enjoy!

 Granted, this isn't the best conf shot, but Gus has built up a nice topline.

Even his back muscles are starting to reappear again. Success!

Looking west towards the sunset.  

Not my greatest picture... 

 

The following photos are Gus modeling his new Centuar Camelwatch sheet. Courtesy of Smartpak. (I got a killed deal on it, so Gringo got one as well ... stay tuned to photos of Gringo modeling his new sheet. I just hope it fits him).

 The new turnout sheet is 1200denier and came with an attached midlength neck.