Lameness

[FD]

What does lawn-dart mean ? I am from Europe living in NY.

[beowulf]

Lawn-dart is a tongue in cheek way of saying forcibly tossed from the horse’s back - think of the lawn dart game, which is where someone throws a dart at a target in the lawn.

[Virginia_Horse_Mom]

@beowulf

Giving this horse a 3-4 month break off completely – and I mean completely from ridden and lunging work - will probably do this horse wonders. If you can push for him to be out 24/7, that will be best for his KS. Breaking, backing, and being imported all before the age of 4 – this is so hard on a young body. What I find amazing about this situation is the horse has not been behaviorally worse in light of all the clinical findings. He is already a saint, but he’s going to be a gem once he’s grown up. Give him the break he deserves for taking such good care of your daughter, OP. I’ve known horses to lawn-dart their riders over significantly less.

This is a learning opportunity for the OP’s daughter. Maybe take this time to learn more about horsemanship. Embrace and enjoy daily grooming, practice stuff like braiding and wrapping when the daughter goes out to the barn, giving baths, and just basic care tasks. Just have the daughter spend time bonding with the horse and connecting, but not actually working it. There will be time later for that.

Also… the earlier mention of thrush and white line issues in the feet. Maybe take this time off to spend more focused time on really detailed and excellent hoof care when grooming. I like using a stiff Effol Hoof brush when grooming whenever I have time to really clean up around the frog, in the sulcus, etc. Giving the horse multiple months off, while still spending time on making sure he gets REALLY good daily hoof care? That can’t hurt him at all, and is good basic horsemanship.

[rothmpp]

Meant with the utmost respect for you and your daughter, but hours don’t mean much. It’s about the quality of those hours. A daughter of an acquaintance spends 6 months a year leading trail rides from a rental place out west. She spends probably 50 hours a week in the saddle, and could outlast all of us in saddle time, but she couldn’t put a dressage horse on the bit if her life depended on it.

In other words, as I said before, your daughter is a very lovely, but green, dressage rider. My suggestion of lessons on a upper level schoolmaster is so that she develops a feel for what it is supposed to feel like. It is a very tough road that will hit some speed bumps if she’s doing the bulk of the work moving FD up the levels if she’s also learning it for the first time at the same time.

So when I say green, I mean in terms of her toolbox and saddle time when it comes to the kind of upper level dressage she’s aspiring to.

I will say, as others have, it is nice to see someone ask for advice and be willing to listen without getting super defensive and dismissive.

[lazaret]

If you exclude the purchase price of the horse, and considering that an olympic campaign is more like years instead of months - that number seems high but plausible.

I know the farrier who shoes three of the horses on the short list, and a full set from him starts at $500, stateside, in FL when he’s here for the season. If you’re flying him to Europe to do your horses, and they do, then figure that set of shoes is about $3k per horse per set.

You can get to $500k without trying too hard if you add a European tour into the mix.

[IPEsq]

Did you get an actual diagnosis for the lameness? If he does have white line disease, that needs treatment and not just rest. Were you given instructions on how to bring him back to work after the rest? I am a fan of Tristan and use his groundwork stuff, but like a lot of groundwork, there are a lot of circles and lateral moves involved. That could potentially be contraindicated depending on what the actual source of lameness is. Bunny hopping on the other hand is typically a hind end problem. Has that totally gone away? It would not be totally unusual for a large growthy young horse to go through some periods like that, but did the vet ever see it and evaluate it?

[enjoytheride]

What was the original lameness? Did the vet see the sales videos? Did the vet advice treatment for the white line?

[SpicyPRE]

I am curious as to your reasoning for posting here. If the bunny hopping has resolved and the white line disease has been treated, what is the concern?

[stargzng386]

You really shouldn’t do any groundwork during rest for lameness unless specifically guided by your vet. Almost all groundwork exercises will put strain somewhere and the point of time off is just that, truly no exercise or work to allow the horse to heal. Do tons of grooming and lessons on school masters during this time.

[ATXmom]

100%! Rest is rest! Also, when you do bring him back, be sure to take it very slowly and follow the return to work plan provided by your vet.

[fivestrideline]

@stargzng386

You really shouldn’t do any groundwork during rest for lameness unless specifically guided by your vet.

Absolutely. A lot of “groundwork” requires tight turns and circles (even yielding the hindquarters and forequarters puts some not-insignificant torque on the limbs), even if you’re not doing the CA style “move their feet” or backing up at mach 3. Groundwork in that context is often counter indicated for rehab and early fitness purposes.

However, if “groundwork” in this context is things like teaching a head down to halter pressure, ground tying, picking up feet, carrot stretches, and other standing or straight line low impact work, that may be just fine. As always, following vet advice.

[Alterwho]

@FD

White line was treated.

I’m glad the white line was addressed (I am curious about how it was treated) but just a head’s up that when it comes to white line disease it isn’t a one and done when it comes to treatment. It will require continued treatment until completely resolved. This also means taking a really good look at the quality of the trim, diet, and living conditions

[luvmyhackney]

If you want to do ground work, sign your daughter up for Warwick Schiller’s plan. Get her a giant tub of popcorn and learn something.

It’s based on connection and reading horses body language. It would teach her how to read the little things.

[FD]

We’ve been studying his methods… “Groundwork is a place to start a dialogue with a horse”

[good_booie]

Couldn’t agree more. Just enjoy your time with him while he is healing and gathering his thoughts. Not that horses are that intellectual of course. Constant nattering will not help. I know I will probably be in the back seat here, but I watched Warwick do a live clinic over a weekend. I personally think he is a blowhard. Your baby is 4. You have plenty of time. Good luck.

[beowulf]

What didn’t you like about the clinic?

[Warmblood1]

@FD

These are some of the dressage trainers in our area:

Denise David Cardinale

Allison King

Camelia Montalvo

Susan Stegmeyer

Chantal Curran

Alexandra Tomson

Madeleine Debure

Barbara Filippelli

I would look for a trainer that has extensive show experience, preferably at the advanced level since your daughter is interested in competing. Most that fall into this category will have their USDF gold medal as well. Someone that has experience working with young riders is a huge plus. It’s important to find a positive coach that can build a young rider’s confidence. Not all great riders are great teachers. You may have to venture further out to find this. Keep close tabs on clinicians that are coming to your area - this is a way to work with trainers you aren’t geographically close to. Most barns list upcoming clinics they are hosting on social media. You can also reach out to local barns and tell them you are interested in attending clinics and to please keep your contact info for future clinicians. Another idea is to supplement your daughter’s education with classical dressage literature written by the old dressage masters.

[luvmyhackney]

@good_booie

Warwick do a live clinic over a weekend. I personally think he is a blowhard.

What didn’t you like about the clinic? Interested as I’ve attended a couple and got some really good takeaways from both.

[Scribbler]

I’ve never seen a Warwick clinic but there’s something about the clinic format that often encourages the clinician to pontificate…

[keh]

Really good advice here!