The Daily Dumb

[lenapesadie]

Daily Dumbs at the Feed Store

As I drove into the parking lot of the feed store, I saw a rig with a horse on board parked out front. Not terribly surprising, but somewhat uncommon. Inside as inspected the chew bones up front i over heard a client at the register speaking with the clerk.

The short story is, horse in trailer is foundering and it’s owner spent an hour in the feed store trying to decide what feed to get for her dog.

I’m sorry but it seems kinda dumb to let a foundering horse stand in a hot trailer on a hot parking lot on a hot day for an hour to pick out dog food.

[endlessclimb]

The foundering horses are HEALED guys!! It’s a MIRACLE!

hahahaha

One of them is still lame, but now it’s equal up front. She doesn’t see it. I’ve gently suggested navicular, offered to haul to Purdue… nooooooo pony is finnneeeee

Okeydokey! Enjoy, lady!

[shiloh]

Lawd have mercy. It truly is a miracle.

Those poor horses. I don’t mind when they are owned by fools - I mean we all have to start somewhere - but at least be open to learning SOMEthing.

[Nova2000]

@Spudsmyguy

I saw one on CL not long ago. Someone with a two year old looking for someone to part lease and sign a contract that the lessee would be responsible for all boarding costs, must work with owner to learn their training methods, work with horse a minimum of 3 days a week, and sign on for a minimum of 6 months. I’m sure she had a waiting list of people wanting to pay for someone else’s horse and to train it for free.

Was it a Parrelli? sorry. Couldn’t resist!

[Spudsmyguy]

Probably

[Alex_and_Bodie_s_Mom]

I remembered another from my working student days:

My local dressage club was hosting a schooling show. One of the members (whose parents were extremely well-off and extremely entitled) had arranged for the judge to take her new horse in for 60 days of training (new horse was young, excitable, and a bit too much for the girl to handle; I think he needed more settle-in time, but I digress). So first, instead of just hauling the horse to the judge’s barn, they arranged for the judge to bring her OWN trailer to the show, so they could transfer the horse there, and the judge could then haul the horse back to her own barn to start riding it. With me so far?

The day of the show, I was scribing and hanging out with the judge on the lunch break, when the girl’s parents pull in the drive, horse trailer in tow. The girl unloads the horse. From a very long distance, we could ALL see that this horse’s left knee was the size of a basketball. And the leg was wrapped from hoof to shoulder.

“What the f-” is a direct quote from the judge.

Silly horse had put his leg through a pipe gate the night before. The parents assured the judge that the vet said he was all right and just needed some stall rest. “So we thought you could take him today anyway, and do that for us too.”

Long story short, judge did not take horse home with her that day. I don’t think she ever did the 60 days on him, either. Actually, come to think on it, I never saw the girl ride the horse, either. Hmm.

[TheDBYC]

Quick update: we’re scheduled to see the PO-NNNNNEEEEEE on Tuesday.

[endlessclimb]

YESSSSSSS!! Take pictures!!

[endlessclimb]

Lady with the “foundering” horse had her dreams crushed by me. It’s fun when it’s easy and it fits in what you want to do.

But when I told her that apples and other common treats are loaded in sugar and should be avoided, her face drooped. When I told her that her apple juice she soaks her grain in (like, wtf anyways, but I digress) is a HARD no, her face drooped further. And finally, to drive the “founder sucks forever” nail in the coffin, I told her to take a look at her supplements, as the filler is often sugar to make it more palatable. Alas, there it was, loaded with molasses.

WHOMP WHOMP not so fun to pretend your horse foundered now, is it?

The good news though is that she is starting to call her vet and ask questions based on my comments, instead of running it by the Trainer Man. That’s progress towards enlightenment!!

[endlessclimb]

Same lady. I have to say that I actually like her, because she clearly cares about her horse VERY much. That’s 90% of the battle right there, won. So, she’s a thorn in my side but I’ll tolerate it.

She thinks her mare is getting skinny. I laughed. I went over there to feel her ribs, and the mare brings her head around quickly with her ears pulled. Instinctively I put my elbow out to let her bump it on her own. Mare has a teensy freak out about it, and the owner goes “she was just trying to sniff you!”

Lady look. I don’t want to be “sniffed” by a horse with pulled/pinned ears. Your vet doesn’t want to be sniffed by a horse with a nasty face on. Your farrier doesn’t want that either (I’ve had to talk to her about this one). I don’t want your mare to turn a nasty face at me when I’m trying to get by you on the cross ties, which she does 99% of the time and it’s really annoying to have to hug the wall.

I’m not scared of this mare, I just know if I pop her like she deserves, the owner will freak out.

This is seriously a case study of “what happens when a smart mare is owned by a loving but inexperienced amateur”. Mare was perfect when she arrived, and in less than a year is heading down the tubes ground manner wise and the owner has NO idea. Mare has recently been trying the “but do I really have to pick up my feet when you ask?” game and the owner doesn’t know what to do. I’ll let the “trainer” handle it.

[peedin]

My gelding was extremely reactive to firecrackers/fireworks, to the point where he would be Aced 3 days before the 4th of July. Somebody on another BB said I should stand outside his stall and throw firecrackers against the stall wall to get him used to the sound.

[jvanrens]

Like that’ll end well.

[skydy]

I vaguely remember that someone came to the forums years ago asking for training advice after they had tied some object (a plastic garbage bag, a metal garbage can lid? I can’t remember…) to their young horse’s tail and turned it loose. It proceeded to panic (surprise!) and injure itself.

The local advice they received about how to train young horses “not to spook” was lacking in tact shall we say.

The response here in general was," you did what"?

[four2farm]

My favorite recently is a friend who has an old Appaloosa gelding, a real peach of guy in his mid twenties. This fellow has thrush, like pick up his feet and they reek. The thrush is so bad it is eating his frogs. She has tried every OTC thrush remedy, called the vet and still this guy has had thrush for well over a year. She has thirteen acres and a center “dry lot” that they have cleaned with a tractor bucket to the point it is 6" lower than her other paddocks. So when it rains it becomes a lake.

I nicely recommended that maybe instead of thrushy boy standing in the lake she might turn him out into one of the higher/drier grass lots? Nope, that would put too much stress on the grass and kill it. Maybe keep him in on the muddy days? Nope, he hates to be inside and screams for his friends. I was boldly told the reason that he has thrush is because the farrier (my farrier) does not disinfect his tools and that he is being trimmed too short when he is trimmed every 9 weeks, yes, 9 weeks. I was also informed that my horses would suffer the same fate. Weird, even with all the rain this winter, not a trace of thrush on my guys from those dirty farrier tools.

Now, this woman is friend and in all other matters, is intelligent and a knowledgeable horse keeper. Some people just get crap in their heads and it sticks. Now, when she calls me moaning that this old guy is sore again, I just change the subject.

[trubandloki]

@four2farm

She has thirteen acres and a center “dry lot” that they have cleaned with a tractor bucket to the point it is 6" lower than her other paddocks. So when it rains it becomes a lake.

Maybe you can convince her to add some fill into the lake (aka dry lot)? (I know, probably not, but… )

[four2farm]

@trubandloki

Maybe you can convince her to add some fill into the lake (aka dry lot)? (I know, probably not, but… )

Lol, tried that one too! Stone dust or sand would make the paddock impossible to clean by tractor, they are going to put it more drainage.

[TheDBYC]

On the property where we lived when I had Mr. No Fences Required the OTTB, the land sloped gently down to a large, rather deep man- made lake in the center. Imagine my surprise going out to feed the morning after a very bad storm & finding the lake had risen several feet, spilling into the pasture & the aged Percheron was standing at the new shoreline watching small-mouth bass swimming merrily past his feet. My trainer at the time – an eventer who liked to go fast & jump high & didn’t get the idea of draft horses – conceded that the Percheron’s broad expanse of butt looked like an inviting spot off which to lay out & fish. And that maybe people would pay for this privilege. Alas, the lake returned to normal before we could beta test this business endeavor. Maybe your friend could!

POOOOO-NEEEEEE update: Trainer, child & I schlepped out to see her. And OMG, she’s amazing & we love her! She’s very well-schooled & has a crazy good eye for distance. And extraordinarily generous & forgiving of pilot error & just jumps you out of a jam, no hard feelings or questions asked. That last part is what makes her not most people’s cup of tea; I could envision smaller kids getting launched right out of the tack. She needs her SI injected soon & had a bit of a cough going on that legit seems to be related to allergies (that whole area is a sea of ragweed at the moment). But even if I picked up the entire tab for the SI injections, the lease is a heck of a deal. So, fingers crossed! Hoping to work out with the owner to bring her down starting in June.

[four2farm]

@TheDBYC

On the property where we lived when I had Mr. No Fences Required the OTTB, the land sloped gently down to a large, rather deep man- made lake in the center. Imagine my surprise going out to feed the morning after a very bad storm & finding the lake had risen several feet & the aged Percheron was standing at the new shoreline watching small-mouth bass swimming merrily past his feet. My trainer at the time – an eventer who liked to go fast & jump high & didn’t get the idea of draft horses – conceded that the Percheron’s broad expanse of butt looked like an inviting spot off which to lay out & fish. And that maybe people would pay for this privilege. Alas, the lake returned to normal before we could beta test this business endeavor. Maybe your friend could!

The old guy is about wide enough for an endeavor like that!, LOL
Congrats on the Pony, sounds like it should just fit the bill!

[Jenerationx]

Ooooh looking forward to poneeeeee updates.

[endlessclimb]

poneeeeeeeeee