you can say that again. I may have to start another discussion about when to throw in the towel. The past year has not exactly been a banner one in the annals of the joy of horse ownership. I am pretty fed up, and so is my wallet. But she continues to improve, loves her weekly riding lesson, loves being out riding around our property, and I’m sure she really misses being out in the mountains (as do I). This is not a horse who is going to easily accept retirement. And her deep-throated nicker whenever she can hear that I’m in the vicinity is pretty addictive.
Based on the collective wisdom here I am thinking of the following prescription:
- Put up mats on the walls of her stall
- Do a trial of Chaste tree berry
- Once she is back in more work–trail rides, not just arena lessons and gymnastic training–let her back out on the track to be fed out there with more hay, while keeping a close eye on her BCS.
- Come July the grass will be safer–we have only native wild mountain grass on our place, so inherently low in sugar when not stressed–let her have an hour or two of pasture time.
- Triple the size of her track, down through our woods, so there is more for her to explore and for mental stimulation
Any other things I haven’t thought of? Your thoughts on the above?
Summer incoming should make all of this a lot easier. We had a week of 50 below zero F this winter, and we’re all still in recovery.
