Why So Serious?

November was weird. For a while there, I wasn’t having any fun. Everything seemed dire. Just after getting the walk and trot really nice, I tried a canter and we started dealing with tension issues and renewed soreness in Sofie’s left shoulder. There were also incidents, like the day barn employees decided to burn brush piles near the mare field, causing thick smoke in the middle of Sofie‘s living space, that caused me to obsessively worry and not think very clearly.

For several rides in a row, I got bitchy. I picked at Sofie’s inadequacies, and I was rather unkind to her, and unfair. I couldn’t stop myself from picking and complaining, and I felt really badly about it after that fact but then I’d go and do it again. It got bad enough that I considered giving her to someone who might be kinder to her.

At around the same time, we were also dealing with a minor Sofie health crisis. It was a typical Sofa malady, non-dramatic, apparently non-life-threatening, yet somewhat perplexing and worrying. It started the day Annie came out to trim Sofie. The trim went great, and Sofie was very cooperative. As I was holding her I noticed a lump on her neck. I figured it was another kick wound, but then I started finding more. They were small, firm lumps, maybe five of them in all, running down her neck and on her chest. Then my mom noticed Sofie’s face was a bit swollen, right underneath the side pieces of her halter. She had also developed a minor cough the previous day (for Sofie, a minor cough means like one cough during the two or three hours I spend with her on any given day).

We took her temp, which was normal. She was eating and drinking fine, but her eye was dull and she was a bit lethargic. With no major signs that she needed veterinary attention, we asked people to keep an eye on her and left.

The next day, I went out early to check on her. We were both worried, since that facial swelling could’ve interfered with her breathing if it had worsened dramatically. But when I went out to fetch her from the field her face was back to normal, and the lumps on her neck were all gone except for one, and even it had softened to almost nothing. Relieved, I brought her in, planning on just to playing with her a bit. I was massaging her hind end like I typically do when I felt some swelling on her upper hind legs. When I checked, her udder was swollen too, and she also had some edema on her belly. I of course had a minor freakout, then talked to a knowledgeable barn worker (and boarder). She thought that exercise would help the swelling go down, so I hand-walked Sofie in the arena while I called up various vets. Our local vets were both out of town (of course) so I called up the office of another vet we occasionally use (Chiro Lady). Chiro Lady was off that day, but I spoke with another equine vet, Dr. Way. She was super nice and very helpful, hearing me out. She agreed that it was likely an allergic reaction, and said it seemed to be moving through her system normally from the sound of it. We talked about potential causes, and although it had been a week since the brush-burning day and you’d think she would’ve had a reaction sooner, she said not always. She agreed that it could have also been something in the hay, since I hadn’t used any new products on Sofie to bring on such a reaction. Feeling much better, I thanked Dr. Way and got off the phone. I walked and jogged Sofie some more, took her temp again (still normal), gave her an apple and put her back out.

When I next checked on the magical traveling swelling, it was still in the same places, and about the same if not slightly reduced. Her eye was brighter also. After our ride the edema went way down, and it appears her little allergic reaction has run its course with no ill effects on Sofa.

In other (quite possibly related) news, Sofie got herself kicked out of the mare field. They recently added new panels on the run-in shed to make it more enclosed, and Sofie decided to start chewing on the brand new, treated (TREATED) wood. I heard this all secondhand, from Cathy while I was still dealing with the allergic reaction. And I went AHA, THIS must be the source of the allergic reaction!

And then I thought, SOFIE, YOU IDIOT.

I was worried sick about my dumb horse, and then I find out she brought this all on herself! By chewing on treated (TREATED) wood. That stuff has all kinds of noxious chemicals in it, and she decided to EAT it? Ugh. What a moron.

Then a few days ago I went out to the barn, and found Sofie not in with the mares, but in the smaller dirt paddock right out behind the barn with Dillon, Vicky’s show QH gelding. So I went hmm, why is Sofie in with Dillon? I thought maybe someone just forgot to put her out with the mares after she had her breakfast (sometimes they put her in that paddock to get her supplements because it’s empty at night and it’s more convenient that way).

Nope. Apparently Sofie was chewing wood excessively, and wouldn’t stop, so they had to put her in with Dillon, who has an old, regular three-sided run-in with no new, yummy panels. And she’ll have to stay there until the grass comes in, at which time they will attempt to let her be with her friends again.

At first I was upset about this, too. I was happy with her living situation. She had friends, she was happy, she had a big field to be in and a long walk to the water from the shed. Sofie doesn’t like geldings, and I don’t like that paddock. It gets really muddy sometimes, and it’s not as big as I’d like and it’s just kind of…bleh.

But I think it’s going to be okay. On the way home from the barn that day, my worrying kind of reached critical mass, and I was tired of it. So I went home, and I pretty much assumed Sofie would be fine.

So far, so good. We had a nice ride in the newly-dragged indoor the other day. Our straightness wasn’t too horrible, and she was willing, not crabby. She started out a little high-headed, but I just left her alone and she soon started reaching down.

I think I really needed to just chill and not take everything so seriously. If it’s not fun anymore, there’s something wrong. I hope not to get into that place again, but I know I probably will. I just hope I’ll remember what I’ve learned.

Yes, Sofie has limitations, and that can be frustrating. But we also have a history, and I enjoy having a horse I can just do whatever with. I can ride bareback. I can ride her down the road, cross the highway and go exploring. I can drop her lead rope, and she’ll stand wherever I put her while I close a gate, find my glove that I dropped or change clothes. I can do stupid things like crouch by her legs when I groom her, or squeeze in between her and the wall, because I know her and I trust her by now. And that matters to me.

Start Of Winter Rides

The winter has been mild so far, with cold temperatures but little snow. I’ve been riding mostly in the indoor, but I did get out on one clear, cold, slightly blustery day. Sofie was a little silly and spooky on the trail, but we wandered around the valley and the surrounding area. I did a little dressage work in the valley, which went nicely, and once again I had her canter for a short distance. I also stayed on her back when we rode down the hill to the valley, and she managed. By the end of the ride I felt that I’d tested her and definitely stretched her, but not to the point of overkill. I wanted to give her a definite workout that day as I didn’t anticipate getting out again for three days.

The weather turned out not to be hideous that week, so after giving her the customary day off I enlisted my dad to take me out there again. I had been on the fence about going, but I was glad I did. It was a cold day, but I felt happy being at the barn and when I walked out into the field to catch her she looked up and started walking up to me. We met halfway and she was very sweet, sniffing my hands and definitely warming the atmosphere. I don’t know if she just wanted to go in the barn for a while, but it was still very touching.

I needed to be efficient with my time that day, so I did a quick grooming and made it a bareback ride. I feel very comfortable on her bareback by now, and we did our usual walk-trot work without a problem, occupying the indoor with the 17-hand Fourth Level horse and looking very scruffy and lighthearted in comparison. I only had time for a half hour ride, but Sofie did everything I asked and remained pretty agreeable, only showing a little reluctance when cued to trot. I’ve learned how to post bareback, which is helpful, but my butt bones landing on her spine will probably never make her react with glee. It was a productive ride, at least enough to get her creaky self moving, and I enjoyed seeing her that day.

She had two days off before our next ride. The day was nice enough that I would’ve ridden outside, but burning brush piles were making the air smoky and I didn’t particularly want either of us breathing that in. So, back to the indoor it was. I saddled her this time, wanting to have more freedom with speed and the ride’s duration. I did ride without stirrups for almost the whole hour, though, and I felt quite balanced (and not fatigued).

The ride started out quite well. She stayed on the rail nicely without needing too many reminders, and she was far better tracking left, not trying to dive off the rail. Our straightness was good (for us) and when I practiced picking up the reins she stayed steadier. At the start of trot work, she was a little inverted (better tracking left, worse on the right) and she wasn’t paying attention in the down transitions (and was definitely inverting during them). I did some fairly rapid walk-trot-walk transitions, and tried to keep her connected, and she improved. We had some nice transitions, and she was rounder in the trot.

Once I got her all warmed up and going nicely, I decided to test the canter. I knew it would ruin what we had, but I was curious to see if she would pick it up in the indoor (and if it affected her soundness). So I rode her a bit more forward and asked for the canter. She did an almost-depart, so I praised her and tried again. On the third try, she picked up the canter and kept going for several strides before breaking to the trot. I was satisfied with that effort, so I began attempting to relax her again. She settled down pretty well right after she came back to the trot, but for a while afterward she intermittently inverted, rushed and became defensive. I had trouble settling her and getting her to really relax. She would come round and then start anticipating the canter and throw her head up. Her back would be stiff as a board, too. It was frustrating, and I did get a little grabby with my hands a couple times (and grumble to her also). I’m not entirely happy with how I reacted, but I wasn’t too unkind to her and I did eventually get her settled. It’s annoying when she gets so tense and anticipates like that, but it’s just something we need to work on and we will probably get past it in time. Next time I will not succumb to frustration, and I’ll try to remember to relax her by patting her neck.

As I wrapped up the ride, Sofie gradually regained her relaxation and roundness. She did have some crabby, defensive moments, particularly through this one corner, tracking left. It’s possible that her shoulder was a little ouchy at that point. I don’t know if she’s ready to canter at this point, but that’s why we test these things out. I will have to see how she is next time, and we may stick to walk-trot work for a while longer. I’m definitely encouraged by how we started and ended the ride, though. I finished up with some nice transitions and halts. She was reaching nicely into my hand, and she trotted through the “crabby places” without a fuss.

Winter Wonderland Trail Ride

I have fallen behind on updates, mainly due to recently finishing up my novel (328 pages and three years later, it is done!), a huge accomplishment for me that will hopefully lead to very good things. With nothing too exciting happening in Sofieland, I focused my writing time on wrapping up that extensive project.

Winter has commenced here, and we’re holding up well. I was out at the barn on the day of the first snow storm, a truly nasty weather event. En route to the barn we began to see snow-covered vehicles and over the next hour the sleet snow fell harder and harder. Knowing we needed to get back on the road ASAP in order to hopefully make it home, I made it quick. Happily, Sofie was snug and happy in the back of the run-in shed, sharing a section of it with her buddy Nakota, who protected her from drafts. She seemed happy to see me but hated walking through the sleet, pinning her ears and tucking her head into her chest as it hit her in the face. We hurried to the barn.

Once there, I quickly threw on her cooler, picked out her feet and bridled her. I then went for a half-hour bareback ride in the indoor, just enough to get her moving. My bareback capabilities have definitely improved, and I was able to do my typical walk/trot work and feel quite secure. The only other souls at the barn that day were a rider with a horse at Fourth Level and her trainer who are preparing for a Steffen Peters symposium, which somewhat underscored our dedication to our pony.

Sofie has been a little off lately, somewhat stiff and maybe a little sore. No head-bobbing, real resistance or serious short-striding, so we’ve just kept bobbling along. It appears to be a left shoulder issue, which is unsurprising given her recent hematoma. When I stretched her front legs recently she had less range of motion on the left. Also, when I ride her she has been bending and going round better to the right. Tracking left, she wants to fall in off the rail and has a harder time relaxing and stretching. She seems to be doing better lately.

A few days after the snowstorm, it was beautiful, sunny and in the mid-fifties. There was a few inches of snow on the ground at the barn, making everything very pretty. We were fortunate enough to be able to ride with Cathy and Nakota and I looked forward to a pleasant ride. We started out in the indoor, and I slowly warmed up Sofie while Nakota moved around quite energetically. Sofie was still a bit off but she was willing and reasonably forward. After just a bit of trot work we ended with a nice, connected transition, and then we headed for the trails.

I took a moment to test our straightness in the fresh snow (confirming that yes, we do not have straightness), after which Cathy caught up to us and we rode over to her property. We were sure to encounter broken branches and keeled-over trees, which did not concern me at all since Sofie loves to bulldoze her way through trees. We soon came to a down branch on the trail. Psssh. We walked right through the thing.

I only had to dismount on the hill down into the valley. Sofie seemed to handle it fine when my additional weight was out of the saddle, and I remounted and we carried on. The valley was gorgeous as usual, but we had plans to check out a new trail, recently finished by Cathy’s husband, who is responsible for our awesome trails.

At the start of the new trail we passed a huge, lovely maple and continued on into the woods. The trail rose up and we rode along the slightly rolling terrain, looking all around at the surrounding forested peaks and valleys. It was really stunning, the perfect spot for such a trail. I absolutely loved it from the start. I was especially happy that there were no steep hills, and Sofie seemed happy too, given the many little trees that had bowed under the weight of the snow and were just waiting for her to walk through. We dislodged a lot of the trees, which popped right up, fortunately not striking Cathy or her horse (Sofie walks fast, so Nakota usually trails behind a bit).

At the end of the trail, with no leaves on the trees, Lake Superior is visible on the horizon. We took that sight in then backtracked to check out another new trail loop. Foiled by trees that were a little bigger than I wanted Sofie crashing through (though she undoubtedly would’ve done it anyway), we turned around and began to head home. In the valley, I could not resist doing a little dashing through the snow, and Cathy was not in a rush to end the ride so I trotted around for a bit. Sofie’s balance was decent, but I didn’t worry about doing any training. I just wanted to ride and enjoy myself. Trotting through a nice stretch of openness, I encouraged Sofie to pick up a canter, and she did. We enjoyed a lovely canter through the snow, and then, satisfied with the fun we’d had, we finished walking home. Once there, Sofie got an apple (definitely her favorite part of the day) and went back outside to enjoy the rest of the sunny weather. I’m so glad we got another trail ride in! It’s wonderful to get out there and ride, especially with friends.

Proof of Progress

I feel as though we have really progressed in the last couple of months. We’ve found our way to something that resembles actual, correct, beneficial dressage, and we have been reliably achieving our new standard of work in different places and situations. Sofie’s soundness is holding up to walk/trot work and moderate trail rides, and she seems comfortable going round. She appears to be finding a new balance and is reverting less and less to her old, inverted posture.

We had one indoor ride last week. Sofie started out dead-sided and unresponsive, and I actually had to kick her a few times, which I do not like doing. I’ve ridden way too many insensitive horses in my life, and I never want her to end up that way. She was also being a bit obnoxious and falling in off the rail despite reminders. So I grabbed a whip for the first time in a while. Predictably, a few taps started her racing around the arena, and I had to drop it after just a few minutes. With Sofie paying attention, I worked on getting us both settled and getting myself in a better mood. After the icky warm-up phase, the rest of the ride was actually very good. Once we got over our issues, Sofie flowed around a big circle, soft and light in her balance, and stayed round, moving down the rail in a nice rhythmic trot. Transition work went fine, and I experimented with shortening her stride and putting her together a bit more. Pretty much everything we worked on was a success, and we finished up much happier.

We’ve gotten back out on the trail since then, going solo one day and with Cathy and Nakota last weekend. Going down hills is still not Sofie’s favorite, but in order to expand our trail possibilities I’ve had her go down a few of them. If she seems to be having trouble I get off and lead, which seems to help. I revisited The Shelf, coaxing Sofie down the long, gradual hill only to find out that The Shelf is even more terrifying without leaves on the trees! Like, wow, I can see alllll the way down now… I just clutched her sides with my legs and went into a slight fetal position while she walked on, unimpressed by the steep dropoff, going “Jeez, YOU wanted to come here!”
On our way home, we went through the valley and I tested out our dressage work there. It was marvelous. She was SO good.

I rode twice on the weekend. On Saturday Cathy and I went for a short trail ride around the property before a barn Halloween party (a full report will be forthcoming in another post!). The weather was lovely, and we had a nice, easy ride. Back in the yard, I did a short dressage session. Sofie was a bit distracted, and not quite listening to my downward transitional aids, but not bad. After going through our little repertoire I took her inside to get her ready for the costume contest/horse parade.

Sunday Cathy and I rode again. It was a cold, bitterly windy day, but I had a video shoot planned so I wanted to get out on the trail (her dressage is always better after a trail ride). So, out into the wind we went. Sofie was nice and calm until she saw Something (most likely a chipmunk, OMG) in the bushes and threw down a fairly dramatic Sofa spook. From then on, she was nervous, especially when we began to hear Cathy’s husband on his lawnmower. Unbothered, I made us forge ahead, and Sofie went on, head high and eyes big. She walked super fast the whole entire way through the woods. Occasionally I’d stop her so Cathy could catch up on her non-freaking-out horse, and Sofie would toss her head and back up before surging on. We had a few moments where calmness started to come back, but mostly we were a bit nutty. I think it was the residual effect of the party, myself…
Heading out of the woods, we were walk-charging along when all of a sudden Sofie’s head flew up and she took off trotting down the trail! Hmm, I thought as I grabbed a rein and began pulling her down. I do not know what she saw, heard or imagined, but it was surely terrifying enough to provoke a Sofa bolt. According to Cathy, she also jumped, too, but I was unaware of any sensation of real altitude, so it must have been a Sofa jump at any rate.
Once we got out of the woods and on the trail home, she finally relaxed and walked at a normal speed with her head down. Back at the barn, Cathy went inside like a smart person, and I, freezing and seriously doubting my ability to get Sofie round and decent-looking on that particular day, headed out to the field I’d chosen for the video shoot. “I’m gonna go….try to make dressage happen!” I chirped to Cathy before we parted ways.

I had no expectations. I had a feeling we were going to get some real mediocrity on camera, but I rode her out to the field (immediately sending her into the trot because I was freaking freezing and needed to warm up). I did a little trot work out there, trying to see what we had. She was a little hard mouthed and stiff and a little too fast, but she was much better than I thought she would be. The shoot began, and I went back and forth, trotting straight and bending lines, walking, backing, free walking, giving the reins forward, stretchy trotting and halting.
I rode for what I thought was a few minutes, and Sofie started to get dull and I could tell she was getting ouchy, so I ended things and walked over to my dad. “How long did it end up being?” I asked cheerfully.
Turns out, nearly seven minutes!! Uh, not gonna work. I started to get upset, as I had really screwed up. I needed no more than five minutes of footage, and there was no way to edit it down because in this particular instance, I needed a disc with one continuous clip on it that was the correct length. I reviewed the footage, and quickly found that Sofie didn’t fill the frame enough. There were also some stumbles and missteps (I’d felt them while riding). As much as I hated to do it, since the footage I saw looked quite decent, I told my dad to delete it and we’d start over. I was not optimistic that we’d be able to get anything good on camera, especially now that I’d used up seven minutes and I knew Sofie was getting tired. But we had to try again.

The second attempt was quickly scrapped when Sofie had a crabby moment. She was getting a little tired of going around in a dressage-y way, and I was sure her hocks were a little sore from all the rushing and being tense and jumping on them. So I started the third take, and just tried to ride lightly and keep her going.
Being filmed is a little bit different than regular schooling, especially with no room for editing. I was conscious of the camera, and I tried to keep everything steady and nice, with no tripping or bobbling. And Sofie was a little tired and a little clunky-feeling at times, but she stayed round almost the whole time and did everything I asked without resistance or mistakes. She didn’t refuse to back up, she didn’t hollow too much in her transitions. She didn’t trip over anything. I wasn’t sure how it would look, since she felt a little jerky to me, not her smoothest, not at her best. But I knew it was a decent try, and I was proud of us for being able to do that.

Not the brightest or the best at keeping track of time, I nearly rode overtime again. Fortunately, my dad ceased filming at four and a half minutes (after his nifty little hand signals at the two and three minute mark just went right over my head). I dismounted, and took a moment to look at the footage, even though it was pretty much the best we were gonna get. And it was quite nice. Sofie was moving well, tracking up nicely and she was quite round. Her free walk looked great, and her trot work looked relaxed and fluid. She didn’t show any trace of soreness, which was great to see. It looked way better than it felt, and I was very happy because it was a good representation of how we’ve been doing recently. She’s such a different horse now. I am very proud of both of us.

Three Solid Rides, and a Lumpy Sofa

This week the weather has been overtly cold, windy and rainy, which makes life at the barn somewhat more frigid. I seem to be refusing to adjust to the seasonal change, and am still insisting on wearing my summer (i.e. THIN) riding pants and my little clogs, though I have conceded to wearing turtlenecks and occasionally a winter coat. Apparently my top half can adjust, but my lower half is stuck in summer?

The barn in tolerable, once you adjust to the walk-in freezer effect. Going out to fetch my pony can be rather miserable, depending on the wind velocity/direction. One day when walking Sofie in, the wind was in our faces, blowing me around so I couldn't walk a straight line and throwing snow/sleet/rain at us! Sofa tucked her face into her chest (rollkur!) and glared out at the weather as I hurried her along.

We were pretty much stuck in the indoor this week, as it was either too cold/windy/rainy to make venturing out a profitable experience. Of course, now that we have a gynormous indoor with good footing and mirrors, that is not such a bad thing. However, I still prefer outside. I will ALWAYS prefer outside.

On Sunday, Cathy (who doesn't spell her name with a K, I finally figured out) showed up just as we were getting ready to start, and she joined us in the ring with her mare a little later on. We warmed up along the outside track, doing our usual corrections and being stiff and creaky at first. She wasn't too bad, though, considering the cold. Starting to trot, I think she was a little reluctant in the first transition, but she was soon trotting around nicely, only bobbling occasionally. She was staying reasonably straight and was pretty round, with occasional lapses. All in all, pretty much a steady, decent ride!

Tuesday was annoying varied, weather-wise, with cold rain and sun mixed. I attempted to ride outside at the beginning, but was thwarted by rain. So we went back in, and had another good, productive ride. Other than the usual straightness reminders, and slight stiffness/bobbling, she did really well. She was round at the trot, bending both ways and just going along nicely. She did not want to back up at first, but got lighter after a few repetitions. During the ride, I noticed that she was not staying round in all her transitions, so I decided to try and fix that. She stayed nicely round at the trot, and was steady in her walk-trot transitions, but in her trot-walk transitions she momentarily raised her head. So, I put her on a slightly long rein, and tried to use light aids and do gradual, soft transitions. And after a few tries she got it, and we did many nice transitions in a steady, strechy frame! Good girl! I got off after that was accomplished, and we went outside to try and make the most of a brief sunny spell. I went on a short (very short) hack before turning around when it looked like it was going to rain. But it didn't rain, so we did a little work on the flat, grassy area. Sofie was forward (yay outside!) and nicely round, stretching to the bit. We went successfully through the Bad Corner, and did some nice turns. She was so supple and bendy! We ended with a successful straightness test (trotting her away from the barn, I took all my aids off and she didn't waver! Yay!).

Thursday we did not venture out, but we made the most of our indoor ride. It was definitely a solid ride throughout. She would occasionally fall in off the rail, but not too badly. She is maintaining her straightness for longer periods of time, so my corrections appear to be working. I try to “correct and release” rather than “hold”, which is not a great trap to fall into. I want to preserve her lightness and forward initiative!

Her trot work was nice, and she was able to pretty much just go around the rail at a nice, soft tempo, nicely, consistently round. When she occasionally pops above the bit I can now half halt and get her to soften while tracking straight. Before I would have to turn or circle to get her round. She is way more trusting of my hands. With a little bit of vibration on the reins, she goes back to being round. Very cool.

We were working around an upper-level horse and rider who were in a lesson, so I made sure to stay out of their way as we went along in a vaguely dressage-y way. This meant an occasional unbalanced turn (emphasis on “get the hell out of the way!” rather than “make sure our shoulders are aligned”), but no big deal. We did some transitions, but mostly steady trot work. Turns were successful both ways, and our straightness was decent, with only occasional drifting or wobbling. Eventually I tried circles both ways. I made them smaller than usual to test our bend and balance, and they worked out quite well! She listened to my little steering adjustments, and according to my mom who was watching at that point, Sofa looked round and expressive! Really, my little arthritic paint mare, expressive?! How nice!

In addition I did a few rein-backs (heavy and resistant at first, but subsequent improvement) and I worked a little on turn on the forehand. She did very well with that, very stationary in front, still a little quick and spinny with the turns but I don’t really mind that. Nearly done, I tried some halts on the rail. She was nice and balanced in the walk, and her halts were all "Sofa square" (square in front with only one hind leg back). Then we actually got a legit square halt! I was amazed. I got off to reward that, dismounting on the off side since we were too close to the wall for me to swing off on the "correct" side. I managed to dismount without a problem, despite having no muscle memory for dismounting on the "wrong" side. And with that, we were done! It was the best, most "trained-feeling" ride we've had in a while. I just felt like she was actually trained! How novel, I know right?

Then on Saturday, I brought her in and noticed this:




"What happened here?!"

Yes, I discovered a soft, puffy place on the point of her shoulder, which is draining down into her chest. Another hematoma, Sofie? I have no idea how she gets herself into such trouble. She is not an aggressive or alpha mare. I mean, she's Sofie! How she gets herself beat up is beyond me...how can you not love that face?! She must've mouthed off to the wrong mare...

Her last hematoma was late winter/early spring, and it wound up being a rather large, very firm mass between her front legs. It took at least six weeks to go away, disappearing, coincidentally, right when the vet came out to lance and drain it ("No one's going to stick a big needle in me!"). So this time when I found her lovely lumps, I just casually remarked "My horse is lumpy" and kinda shrugged. She has gotten so many cuts, abrasions, lumps and various little, non-dramatic injuries that I have become incredibly blase when they show up. She runs through things, she gets sore and cranky sometimes...and she's still okay.



We did go for a ride (with my friend and her matching, Sofa-colored gelding!) and finally, we had outside riding weather! Sofa was stiff, so we went on the trail to loosen her up. I was enjoying just trail riding, so we went on, first on flat ground and then, for a change of pace, we went down into Cathy's land. I deftly found us a nice steep hill to go down (my friend was less than thrilled, especially when I told her, after the fact, that I in fact had never been down that particular hill before) but I got off and led Sofa down it and one other hill. She seemed to handle the terrain fine, and we kept it relatively easy, walking much of the time. I think we all enjoyed getting out. I did trot her a little bit in the valley and the front yard area, just to test things, and she was good. She was a bit stiff, and not as into bending, and at the end of the ride she was kind of dull and resistant, but nothing bad. I didn't worry about it, and chose to just work her lightly at the trot for a few minutes. I figure getting nailed in the shoulder might account for her slighty reluctance! We'll see how she is tomorrow.

Plans for Now and Later

I’m happy to report that Sofie is feeling better, and her soreness seems to be manageable at this point. She warms up a little cranky, but with light aids and encouragement she is able to work out of it. I’m optimistic that we will be able to keep riding through fall without interruptions, and I came up with a plan to preserve her soundness and keep her going through this ouchy phase.

Going forward, the new plan is:

-No hills (slightly uneven ground is fine, as are teeny tiny slopes. Perfect flat ground is not important, just no major hills until she’s no longer sore)

-No cantering (until she offers it without getting angry/defensive/upset!)

-Limit circles, more straight line work (some turns are fine - and necessary - but no excessive bending!)

-Lots of rewards! I will be super nice, kind and encouraging. I will be respectful of the effort she makes even when she’s not at her best. It really makes a difference.



Last Sunday I rode with Kathy, my main riding friend at this barn. We started out in the indoor for a few minutes as Kathy finished up her canter work, and Sofie was moving fairly okay but was defensive when asked for the trot. I just did a few transitions, and trots on long straight lines. Sofie wasn’t really round but she wasn’t too inverted, and I felt she was “Sofa round” and doing a pretty good job considering the insubstantial warm-up. I did trot one big circle, just to find the balance and connection, and then Kathy was ready to go so we headed out. The ride was nice, and she seemed to enjoy herself pretty well. I did have to get off and lead on one downhill that was steeper than I thought. She was definitely not comfortable on the hills, but the ride was pretty low-impact. On the way back we rode in Kathy’s dressage arena for a minute, as I wanted to see if Sofie was doing any better in the trot. She was still cranky in the trot at first - pretty much letting me know she was sore, and I’d better not ask her for too much or she might have to do something about it! She doesn’t really want to be crabby, she’s just trying to cope with her situation. I’m glad she communicates, as I don’t want to overdo it when she’s hurting. We did a little walk-trot work, and she listened well and did good transitions and was reaching into the contact pretty nicely. She was Sofa round, at least! The corners seemed easier, too.

The next ride was when I started to really implement my plan. I used our trail ride as a warm-up, and chose the trail near the barn, which is pretty flat and not too long. I walked her most of the way, testing out the trot a couple times. She went into it with no crabbiness. I practiced our leg yielding along the way, and then we came out of the woods and headed back toward the barn. I had planned to ride in the front area, but we passed an empty pasture that looked inviting, so I turned her through the gate and headed for the flat areas. She was rather wobbly, not wanting to go straight when we turned away from the barn, but she improved as we went along. After a little long-rein walk work I had her pick up the trot. Sofie was nicely forward and pretty willing. She only rushed a little bit (we once did canter work in this field). Her ears went back a few times, when I asked for a bend or just when she anticipated something, but she felt much better than the previous ride. She was moving fine, listening well and we could pretty much go around reasonably straight and at least Sofa round, if not better!

I did plenty of straight lines and some bending, just to keep her round and balanced. She was a little unbalanced tracking right, of course, not quite aligned in her shoulders at first. But with a little bit of work she really improved, until I trotted her away from the barn, making a half circle, and she really softened, moving light and balanced, with the proper bend and without falling in at all! It was really nice.

With that accomplished, I wanted to do a little work in the far corners, which was a little challenging for her as it meant turning while heading slightly downhill. The first couple times she rushed it a bit and popped her shoulder the wrong way. I got her listening and fixed it tracking left, and we got a good corner! So then I just needed a decent right corner. I trotted her toward the corner, telling her “If you do a good job, you’ll get to be done!”

I didn’t expect anything, of course, but it was almost like she listened because she slowed down, balancing on the downhill and bending slightly right through the corner! She then continued straight down the fence line, still in a nice rhythm and balance. Yay! She got major praise for that, and we walked. I was true to my word (well, almost) and we were done except for turning around and practicing walking straight, away from home, on a long rein. She was a little wobbly at first but much better than before, and when I got several straight steps in a row we were done!

I dismounted, petted her and while I was standing with her I looked around. It was really beautiful, with the pastures bordered by autumn leaves and the sky a deep, reserved blue with almost purple-tinged grey clouds. It was one of those perfect rides, and I felt like I had been good and fair to my horse, and she just did a great job. There’s nothing like that feeling.


It's been so beautiful at the barn lately.

Our latest ride was also good. She came into the barn and was noticeably off when she first stepped onto the concrete aisle (not the first time she's had a few hobbling steps on the concrete). She definitely needed to get out and move, so we set out for Kathy's dressage ring. Sofie was slow and creaky at first but happy to go down the trail. I walked her at first in the dressage ring, eventually moving up to trot work. Sofie was a bit cranky about going into the trot and bending in the corners, but I just rode lightly and gave her lots of encouragement. She seemed to realize it was okay and we got some nice little trot work done. She found a rhythm that worked for her and we did some transitions, halts and a few turns/diagonal thingies (isn't that just a great descriptive term for EVERYTHING?). I'm not sure what happened, if all the leg yielding and working to keep a consistent bend on a slope was actually beneficial, or if I just have a better understanding and feel for the aids, but corners are SO much easier for us now! Before she was rushing, counterbending and not aligned in her shoulders, so our corners were really bad, but now I just half halt a bit, and use inside leg pressure, plus inside rein close to her neck, and outside rein slightly away from her neck. Once we have the bend, if she drifts out too much I just turn her with my outside aids. OMG it is SO much nicer, and easier now!

Eventually I worked up to a full trot circle (tracking right) which came out well, so we rode home under a slightly threatening (but lovely) sky. I considered going in the indoor to finish up, but it didn't start raining and it was too nice outside. So, we rode in the front yard area. I took the opportunity to test out our newly impressive cornering skillz in this one corner that Sofie does not like for whatever reason. I'm not sure if it's because the ground is slightly uneven/rocky, or just...because. But in the past it's been pretty impossible for me to get her to soften and bend through the corner.

Sofie was happy and much more forward (yay!) and we practiced going away from the barn and being straight, with success. Then we tackled the Bad Corner. The first time through, tracking right, we didn't quite get our bend right, but it was in no way horrible. I turned around, and we went back through tracking left, which went well. She stayed straight as we continued on, too! So, we turned right and went back through. And we did it! Not a perfect corner, but she wasn't rushing, wasn't counterbent and was actually straight with maybe a hint of proper right bend! Yay improvement! After that we kept going straight, and I trotted her around for a few more minutes. Sofie was moving well, and reaching very definitely into the contact (she was almost slightly heavy!). We did some straight lines, some turns, and we might've gone back through the Bad Corner just for fun. Our steering was excellent, she was round and everything was good! We ended trotting away from the barn, and I took my hands and legs away from her and she stayed straight! We ended right there because she had done everything so well and I was so pleased with her. What a good Sofa!

I'm so happy that she's been able to keep going, and that she can still have her exercise. I feel like the work we've currently been doing is very beneficial, and not too stressful. I've also gotten myself together, and I am proud of how I've treated her in our last few rides. I have been truly supportive, encouraging and fair, and I can tell it has made a huge difference in her willingness. I've not always succeeded in the past. I have let my emotions overflow, I have gotten pissy with her and I've even yelled at her and jerked her in the mouth. She doesn't deserve that, and I can't believe I ever did that to her, but she forgives me all that stuff and just keeps teaching me things. And recently I've realized how important that is to me. Other stuff, not so much. So from now on, I will be kind, and I will be fair to her. I will be that person for her, because if I know I was good to her, everything else in my life just seems more manageable. She is there for me, even when others aren't. She deserves nothing less.

I also hope to manage her condition better, and preserve her soundness. I will no longer overwork her when she's at her best. I hope to be more reasonable with cantering, circles and long rides, and avoid the crash that happens when she hits her limit. My thinking being, if I am careful with her when she's sound and able and ready to do anything I ask, maybe I can extend those times when she's feeling good and everything is great. I went a little overboard with the two hour rides, cantering and bending work this fall, mainly because I was excited to be at this barn, and we both enjoyed getting out to see everything. I love exploring with her, and I love cantering with her. But I think moderation is called for in this case. I'm sure she will have soreness, no matter what I do, and she will not always be sound, but we can sure try.

When I was feeling discouraged, I looked back at my calendar for this year, where I mark all our rides (and any downtimes). And I was surprised to see that, this whole year, she only had one week off from riding in May, and two weeks off at the end of June. Other than those minor interruptions, I've ridden her every other day, all year long. True, there were some times when she was sore, short-striding and all we could do was light bareback rides, but I was still able to ride. She used to routinely need a month off from riding every three months, so it seems she is improving. And if I manage her correctly, she may do even better in the future.

Rides, Hoof Photos, Soreness and Luck

This will be a long post, as I have a lot to cover.

Sofie is starting to get sore. I can tell in little ways, like when she actually puts her ears back when semi-resisting going down a hill (the only way to the valley and the lovely continuation of our trails). She's not lame or anything, but little things about her demeanor and performance just say "OUCH".

I had the first inclination that she might be a little overworked when she bucked in the canter and then veered sharply toward home. But that was at the end of a two-plus-hour ride, so I didn't know if it was just fatigue or if all the work we'd been doing was starting to catch up with her.

I brought my dad out to the barn to take some video of us, since things had been going so well. My plan was to have him take some canter video in the valley, so I could then pull some stills and have some lovely canter shots! Very nice plan, however, we waited just slightly too long to get him out there. I could kinda tell Sofie was not right, after hacking over and doing some more walk work in the valley, but I put her into the trot to see what would happen. Her ears went back, and she started rushing, legs just flying around as she veered back and forth, feeling extremely tight and upset. She broke into the canter of her own accord at least once, and just had trouble getting settled in the trot. It felt, to me, like she knew what I wanted and she really wanted to do what I wanted, but it hurt and she was anxious and a little angry at the same time she was trying so hard to do the right thing.

Since my dad was there, and she wasn't head-bobbing or anything, I rode her in the valley for a little bit (no more than ten or fifteen minutes, I would guess) and coaxed some passable trot work out of her, plus a few canters (a couple that were pretty short-lived, and a couple longer, straight-line canters). She was incredibly good and I think it's a testament to our journey and our time together that she was willing to do that for me.

Once I'd gotten my little bit of canter video, I stopped, petted, hopped off and quickly reviewed it (her canter looks beautiful, even though she's not at her best! What a good girl). Sofie stood rather impatiently, tossing her head a little bit, either due to lingering discomfort, or maybe she just wanted to get moving again. Possibly a combination of the two. I remounted and headed off for the trails. I figured I would just do an easy, walking trail ride, then head back.

The trail ride was lovely, and I stared at the brilliant fall colors with Sofie walking easily along. We headed home through the valley, and she was rushing a bit in the walk, thinking about either going home or cantering. I realized I had neglected to do very much walk work in the valley, and it was bugging me, so I turned her around and did some work on easy walk circles, just trying to get her listening to my aids, not drifting too badly, and I wanted her shoulder aligned properly. It took some work, but she improved in the walk. So I asked her to trot, just to see how she was doing (and to school the trot without cantering, which we had, uh, also neglected to do in the valley!).

From the beginning she was very much improved in the trot. She was trotting steadily without the earlier anticipation and ouchy, pissed off edge. She was doing so well that I got sucked into working on our dressage (of course) and did some turns and circles, with emphasis on getting her shoulder aligned. She had some difficulty in the usual spots (mostly slight downhill slopes) but she did great! She worked happily, too, until I did a few turns in a row down a slope, working on the balance. After a few of those she put her ears back and slowed in the trot, like "Enough." So I did one more turn, got what I wanted, halted, patted her and quit. I was encouraged by her (mostly) cheerful trot work after the longer warm-up, but I had already figured out that I probably needed to scale back our rides even more.

With plans to scale back on our riding, I decided on a trail-only ride. I wanted to practice riding on the road, so we could hopefully find other trails and meet new people (all that good stuff). First, though, I went on a short ride around the perimeter of the property with a girl who recently moved her horse to the equestrian center. She has a rather different riding background and she tells some very interesting stories! I enjoy her company. After we parted ways, I went on with my plan to ride down the road.

Sofie was wiggly at first and a little obnoxious about leaving home. We were both a little tense on the road at first, and I had to hold her in place and keep her from drifting onto (or off) the shoulder. However, she went past two barking dogs in the very first yard without spooking and we kept going without incident. We only had one tiny spook, and a couple times she stopped and stared ahead at something. Once it was because she saw two very large black Labradors. Once I figured out their yard was fenced, I asked her to walk on and she did (I was glad they were inside a fence, otherwise I might’ve turned right around!). The dogs barked, but Sofie was unimpressed (“Uh, they’re inside a fence, who cares?”). The owner of the Labs also commented on how beautiful Sofie was. Team Sofa! I should sell T shirts…

We got to the end of the road, where we wandered past the big “Equestrian Center this way!” sign. I was apprehensive, but I decided to practice crossing the highway. I halted her across from a driveway, and waited for a break in traffic. I was really nervous, but Sofie was so good. She went across the highway with no problems and kept going, down the driveway and into a junky-looking storage yard full of trucks, trailers and scrap metal. She took a look at a couple things but bravely walked on as I looked for a place to ride. There was no one around, and I knew of a trail somewhere in that area, so I was in the mood for exploring. Besides, we were over there now, so why not?

At the edge of the storage yard, I saw a space between the trees, and rode through it. I quickly found an actual trail, the long grass flattened by ATV traffic! The trail was nice and straight, flat, with good footing. Some of it was more wooded and closed in, and then occasionally there was an open area from which I could see the highway. The trail did lack the pristine beauty of the trails near the barn, but it was a refreshing change of scenery and it’s always fun to see something new. I’m pretty sure it was an actual trail, and that I wasn’t just trespassing the whole time, although at one point the trail went right past someone’s house! (Thank goodness they weren’t home! Otherwise, awkward…)

Speaking of awkward, at one point the trail passed this pile of junk - old mattresses, bulletin boards and sheets of metal, all shot up full of holes. On the ground, about five million shells. As we walked through there, I looked around, thinking “Hmm, I’m riding through an area where rednecks come to shoot at things…THIS is smart!” It was kind of funny, really. No rednecks appeared (WIN!) so we kept going, enjoying a brief canter through an open stretch. We followed the trail until it opened up to another road, two miles from the equestrian center. I didn’t feel like going further, so we turned back.

I did a little trotting in the open area. Sofie was rushing and not listening to half halts, so we had to work on that a little. I wound up turning her around, just to test the forward heading away from home. She was VERY wiggly, swinging back and forth, which was a bit obnoxious. I kept her going in that direction until I was satisfied with her straightness, then turned back toward home and worked a little more on trotting (and listening). She was heavy and the straightness wasn’t there, so I decided to do a tiny bit of circling work, just to get her balanced. We found an area with a very slight slope and did several circles in each direction. At first, she was heavy, not listening to my seat and needing a lot of hand. She fell out of balance on the downhill slope and popped her shoulder the wrong way. But after a few repetitions she became light, and maintained her rhythm all around the circle. With inside leg at the right time, and a little support with both the inside and outside rein, she kept a fairly consistent bend around an entire right circle. Happy and pleased, I rewarded her and headed back home, walking the rest of the way. I think it’s good to do little bits of dressage work in different places. I’ve always liked short sessions, and it’s especially important to keep it brief when she’s sore.

We found our way back to the highway, and crossed with no issues. As we started walking up the road to the equestrian center, a car pulled onto the road with two little girls inside. They obviously wanted to see the horse, so their dad stopped the car, I stopped the horse, and they just watched her for a minute. Sofie stood well (though obviously wondering why we were just standing there). They thanked me and drove off, and Sofie and I continued on our way back to the barn. She ignored a barking Cocker Spaniel that ran across the yard toward us (it wouldn’t come within twenty feet of us, though).

When I got back to the barn driveway, I dismounted. My ass was tired, Sofie was tired and I figured I’d walk her the rest of the way. While my “light trail ride” was still a long ride by our standards, it was mostly straight line walk work, so I felt I succeeded in my plan. I also quit when we got back, rather than doing “just a couple trot transitions” and getting sucked into another dressage session.

Sofie had an appointment with Anne, our trimmer, so I rode again the next day. I didn’t have a whole lot of time, so I hacked over to the valley. Sofie was pretty willing, but she did resist going down the semi-steep hill that leads to the valley. Once there, we did a little dressage work, and she was heavy and running on her forehand at first, but willing to move forward. After a few firm half halts, she figured it out and I got some nicely balanced turns out of her. She stayed fairly straight throughout and was nice and willing. I did only one brief canter (she kicked up a little behind but her canter was quite nice) and quit shortly thereafter, happy with her cooperation. We then went on a very short hack before riding back to the barn to meet Anne.

Anne was awesome, as usual, and Sofie’s feet look great! Anne was particularly happy with her frogs, which are more robust than ever since the move. But, she thought Sofie was too fat (she almost always says that) and actually thought she had gained weight since she’d last seen her! I disagree, but I’m not too worried about it. Sofie is in no way obese, and her diet is very reasonable. And reducing the intensity of our rides is definitely a must, as Sofie was clearly uncomfortable and having trouble holding up her back legs. I am very grateful that we have a trimmer who understands Sofie’s issues and is never abusive to her, even when she’s not totally cooperative. It means a lot to me that she is kind to Sofie.


Sofie's left front, side view.


Sofie's toesies!


Sofie and Anne.

And finally, I just want to say that I am grateful for the luck we have, and our time together. We may have our struggles, limitations and worries, but in light of Gogo's pending euthanasia (it may have already happened as I write this) I know I am so fortunate to still be able to ride and spend time with the mare I love. I feel for Andrea in this time, and I sincerely hope she will be able to move forward and continue to inspire and educate us, because we love reading her blog. Gogo was lucky to have such a dedicated horsewoman. It breaks my heart that after all her careful management, and everything she did to help her horse, it didn't work out in the end. I don't know why things happen the way they do, but the best we can do is move forward and try to live (and love) as fully as we can. The lesson I took away from this is to make sure and love my horse, and be kind to her always, because I am lucky to have her. I want to make sure and earn that privilege, from now on.

I am so sorry, Andrea. But I thank you for that lesson.