@mvp If this happened with either of my other two horses, I wouldn’t hesitate to put them down. That sounds cold, but Pepper is the golden child because I can trust her with so many things. She gets along with every horse she meets, loads well, and is calm in stressful situations. If and when I get another horse, I know I can trust her to get along with them right away. Her temperament is so genuine and valuable that if I can keep her around, even as a companion, it would be such a relief. The other two are honestly not going to last much longer either. And they’re kind of… witches. I love them, but they’re difficult.
I’ll try my best to not get clouded by bias and emotion and I know that when I feel it’s time, it’s time. I don’t want fusing her pastern to be selfish on my part, but I guess it is, to an extent. She’s kind of my heart horse. She had a terrible start to the year and almost ended up being pts because of unknown dental issues, but seeing her coming back from that and just being happy and pain free for the first time in years was worth all the stress and dollars spent. It’s kind of stupid of me, I guess, but I want to try everything to get her well again.
Apologies for the long post
@Color of Light I’m trying my best not to. The good news is I definitely can see the Equioxx doing its magic. She’s still head bobbing a bit, but she managed to traverse a small dip on the way to the pasture today and did so without hesitation or breaking her stride. First time I’ve seen that in a while! I know there’s no guarantees, but it’s such a good thought that all the cob sized bridles I bought for her might not have to be shelved indefinitely!
Alrighty. Buckle in. This is such a complicated series of horse issues that I could write a War and Peace sized novel about it. I’m grateful that my horse ownership experience thus far has been me desperately balancing three lame hospice horses. It’s really tested my love for these beasts and now I know I just can’t live without 'em.
I’ve had Pepper for… two years, now? Maybe a year and a half? I think since a couple months before winter 2015. You’ll have to pardon me for any inconsistencies. I’m terrible with time measurement. She’s always been “off”. I noticed her strange gait weeks into ownership and tried to take her to the vet’s. She panicked and flipped in the trailer (no more rope halters for me, thank you). That spooked me from hauling her to an actual facility. Called three farriers out, two vets in the next many months. Vets said she needed a pair of shoes. Farriers said she just needed a good trim. Finally, the third farrier I called out noticed the pain seemed to be coming from inside the hoof. I say kudos to her. I didn’t dare put her in the trailer again until the end of last year. She loaded flawlessly. Of course. X-rays FINALLY happened last month after a bunch of tiptoeing around from from my vet. Boom. Ringbone. Just as I suspected since I first noticed her limping.
Pepper is definitely broke, but rusty. Hasn’t been ridden consistently in years but still manages to be a relatively push button horse. I’ve only had a handful of rides on her due to her lameness. On the few occasions I have ridden, she neck reins, responds to my leg, and listens to my voice commands. However, I don’t know how much her pain has altered her responses. My trainer noted in a lesson last year that she didn’t trust me and was weirdly spooky/touchy on her left side. Lo and behold, she had severe dental trauma on her left side. Explained her nasty behavior getting bridled (she’s now an angel getting tacked up). The last rides I had on her this spring were brief solitary schooling/trust building around the pasture, and she randomly bolted on all of them, quickly going from bolt to a terrible gimping trot. Stopped riding her after I realized she wasn’t getting better and I was risking her health.
She was apparently professionally trained, but I have no reason to trust what her past owners sent down the grape vine. She’s definitely awesome on the ground and very responsive in the saddle. No info on her past, which bothers me. I want to know what she did and what her disciplines were. Came from Utah, but she doesn’t seem like Western a speed event horse. She came with her half sister Bobby, who is definitely built and behaves like a speed/rodeo horse. Both were 500 dollars. The owners contacted the breeder and told him they were getting rid of the two as their kids lost interest. Breeder loves his horses very much and asked if my dad would take them for me to ride. Heaven knows not much riding has happened, haha.
I know they were both ridden by children/younger people, but Pepper’s sister Bobby has a strange brand and was obviously trained very abusively, resulting in a flighty, untrusting horse. The two are night and day in temperament. Bobby deep down has a kind disposition like her sister’s, but it seems someone must have beaten most of it out of her. She’s bitten and kicked me on more than one occasion for seemingly no reason at all, and is still unsure about me touching her face. She’s not mean. Just… odd. Bobby has a massive bony arthritic growth on the side of her FR from some sort of MASSIVE trauma. She can hardly bend it at all.
Both came completely covered in tangles and burrs. Pepper hadn’t had dental work done in years (aforementioned dental trauma was a large part of this issue). Still have one of her teeth that was removed while she was getting her first float - 45 degree angle. It’s a wonder she was able to eat at all. Start of this year she almost starved to death in sub zero weather because the second tooth impacted by the trauma was too painful. That was when I was certain I was going to euthanize her. Tooth was removed (900 dollars later) and she instantly progressed.
Since the tooth is gone, she’s gained all the weight back (and more, oy vey) and has really blossomed. Her face is going grey already and she has obvious wear and tear from the stress. Doesn’t stop all the vet techs from telling me what a pretty, sweet girl she is. She’s just a kind soul with a loving disposition. 1100 pound lapdog, in your pocket but respectful. I can’t say enough good about this horse, as you may have noticed. I should probably tone it down a bit :^S
Foxy’s origin story is a lot less dramatic. She was my first horse. I was given her by a former riding teacher because her knee made it so she could no longer barrel race. My teacher made it very clear that Foxy could last 10 years or 10 months with her mysterious condition. She lasted 2 years. She’s now mostly retired (she’s 12 now) and gives a couple joy rides, but she’s got a firey Thoroughbred disposition from her mother and is a PITA 99 percent of the time. Still love her to death, of course. Her FL leg is bent like she’s got severe arthritis, but she stills runs and trots around the pasture without skipping a beat. A right enigma, that one.
Pictures:
Pepper’s tooth
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Pepper early this year after losing a catastrophic amount of weight in what seemed like the blink of an eye. She suddenly would only eat hay dust, refused anything else, and I had no idea what was wrong. Tossed out whole bales for her and she wouldn’t touch them. Hard to tell underneath all that fur, but she was probably a 2/3. Temperature was dipping to about -20 degrees Fahrenheit daily. She was constantly tying up from starvation/malnutrition. She managed to keep her cheery disposition and bright eye until she ultimately seemed to accept death and stood blankly for hours on end. One of most heartbreaking things I’ve ever had to witness. All this from one tooth. Bounced back immediately after the culprit was removed.
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Pepper now, taken last week. Topline could still be better, but this is the best she’s ever looked. Short two teeth but it doesn’t seem to bother her.
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For fun. Foxy when she was about 6, still owned/raced by my past trainer. Notice that knee. Obvious even then.
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