Tennessee tango

This is a fun video -- I'm not much for this kind of equestrian 'half-time' performance, but the concept is intriguing and the dancing (on the part of dancer and horse) is quite lovely. A charming pair!

The Tango
Uploaded by Horsedancer. -

Crimson Satan: A sound addition to any pedigree!

Crimson Satan has been touted on listservs lately as a great horse to find in a pedigree -- a "soundness improver." He is by Spy Song out of an Argentine mare, Papila. Bred by Peter W. Salmen Sr., he was born in 1959 and became the Champion 2-Year-Old of 1961 winning 7 of 13 starts. He was retired to stud having won 18 of 58 starts and winning $795,077.

His influence as a racing stud has been to pass along "precocious speed," although he himself was not distance limited. He was the sire of the second dam of Storm Cat.

The sound of soundness
Sport horse breeders love to see him in sport horse bloodlines, especially in these days of delicate legs and bad feet. He is considered a source of soundness improvement (58 starts, retired sound!) and good bone. His mother, Papila, is considered one of the best mares imported from South America -- her get showed their longevity in the number of starts they had: 133, 92, 89, 72, 54. One breeder pointed out that the horses that didn't make it at the track went on to be successful jumpers.

And he has dapples about the saddle area, just like Riley! The dappled devil.


Thoroughbred lines for performance sports

Riley update

Riley is doing well 3/4 of the way through "Treatment, Phase 2" (antibiotics). His last noxious dose of Chloramphenicol is Monday, and local vet feels he is over the hump. And if that ain't enuf, my plain brown wrapper of a 3 year old has dapples. Here's a little video featuring the dapples, and also a bit of footage of Harv, who is a little under the weather after his fall shots this morning.

We will return to New Bolton on November 11 to check his progress. There there is still very slight drainage from the hoof, and I'd like their farrier to re-shoe him. If there is anything funny going on in the hoof or on the x-rays, he'll be right where he needs to be. Of course I will blog about our return to the Mother Ship. After this, if all goes well, no more hospital road trips for Riley.

Barn girl tip: Blanketing is a big deal

If you work at a boarding barn, you know that with the colder weather comes a whole new layer (so to speak) of boarder/manager interchange about... Blanketing. Make no mistake about it, blanketing is a big deal. Sure, we know that horses are born to live in 30-40 degree weather...

But blankets are as much about the owner as the horse. Parents are always asking their kids "are you warm enough?" Ditto with horse owners. No one likes to think of their horse as cold or wet or overheated. It's ironic that horses thrive in temperatures much colder than we might guess.


But once the horse is used to being blanketed, it's all kind of moot -- they start to depend on them, and someone has to monitor the horse's comfort. Blanketing mistakes can make a horse sick. For clipped horses and certain sensitive horses (some just aren't cold tolerant) it's even more critical that the horse is kept warm.

What's a worker to do?
The transitional seasons are the worst -- cold in the am, warm in the p.m., rain rather than snow. Barns and/or owners usually have rules for when and how to blanket. Barn workers need clear guidelines, but there needs to be some room for personal judgement too. Here are some blanketing "rules of thumb" that I've used...

• Feel under the blanket to monitor comfort (feel cold? feel sweaty?)
• Cold horses have cold ears.
• A horse whose hair is standing on end is probably cold.
• When doing turnout in the a.m., consider mid-day temps, sun, and wind.
• For an unclipped horse, err on the side of underblanketing.
• For a clipped horse, err on the side of overblanketing.
• The combination of wind, cold, and damp calls is a worst case scenario for horses.
• Water resistant is not water-proof.
• Watch their water consumption.
  
• Extra hay will help a horse keep warm.

Best Practices for Owners
A good system is to have layers that can be added or removed. Barn workers typically add or remove a blanket, but elaborate layering instructions ("Please remove middle blanket and replace with...") or contingencies (If it is warm use blanket X except if raining, then...") should be avoided. Make sure you have one waterproof blanket if you want your horse out in wet conditions. Cheap blankets are often not breathable, and can make a horse sweat in cold conditions -- go for good quality. Owners should also keep in mind that weather at the barn may be very different, esp. if the barn is a long commute away.

Oh, and keep the blankets clean, especially the leg straps, which can get -- well, icky!

I believe I can fly? I believe you can't equitate...

I'm told this video has been "done to death" on the bulletin boards, but I'd not seen it till a few days ago. This Youtube video has THOUSANDS of comments (maybe I just never paid attention).

Video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=opMiCyoRzYM

I remember getting a show jumping book from the library as a teen -- the plates from the book are actually posted online -- and you'll find a discussion of a style of riding similar to this at plate 31. The theory was that by floating above your horse you didn't interfere with the jumping effort. The author of the book regarding this style with ill-concealed contempt.

Could this gentleman actually be trying to emulate this old style?

Sunday PUN-ishment: I'm screwed

Sunday morning I went to see Riley before going to my barn job -- it was time to change the gauze in the hospital plate. The gauze change takes some setup: sweeping the shavings from a portion of the stall, giving Riley hay, assembling the materials, etc. Once everything was in place, I picked up Riley's foot in one hand and unscrewed the hospital plate. Holding the screws between my fingers, I removed the old gauze and reached for the clean gauze.

Riley ruins the routine
Suddenly Riley jerked his foot, and instinctively I grabbed his foreleg with both hands. In doing this, one hospital plate screw flipped out of my hand, and out of the corner of my eye I saw it land fall outside of my swept area, back among the shavings.

DAMMIT! DAMMIT! There are only two screws holding the plate in place. I'm all too familiar with the "the want of a nail" proverb. When I first saw the plate I noted those itty bitty screws, and I'd asked New Bolton for a few extras. In the flurry of activity that day, I managed to leave the clinic without them.

I reattached the plate with one screw and wrapped it up with duct tape. For about an hour I sifted through the shavings, first with a pitchfork, and then with gloved hands. Riley "helped" by nosing me and stepping into the space I was working in. No. screw. anywhere. I searched until the barn workers came to clean his stall.

The situation

• I couldn't take the remaining screw to a store to find a match.
  
• I had to go to work at Harv's barn -- in fact I'm now 45 minutes late.
  
• Hardware stores are closed now, and would be closed by the time I'm done with barn work.
• The duct tape patch wasn't good for much more than a few hours.
  
• Bandaging over the glue-on shoe would add too much height, like wearing one platform shoe. Not really an option.
  

Bob to the rescue
I called Bob. Over and over and over. He was at the gym, but finally he called me back when I was at Harv's barn. I tried to describe the screw. He said, with confidence, "It's okay, I've seen the screw." He saw the screw once, almost a month ago. Good Lord, I thought. The male ego knows no boundaries.

An hour later Bob came to Harv's barn with a bag of 7-8 screws. We went together to Riley's barn. As he drove, I looked through the bag. None of the screws looked right. I fretted.

We went to Riley's stall, and I pulled off the duct tape (which was worn through anyway). Bob started handing me screws.

The third screw we tried fit perfectly.

Bob's cleverness knows no boundaries. We got home from dinner about 2 hours ago. It was my treat :-)

Flipping over: Nice looking horse, scary behavior

This is a scary video, and the story behind it is that the horse was bought from a KY trainer who assured the new owners (mom and daughter) that the horse could go to the upper levels of eventing. This is footage of the first show, daughter riding.


Quite sensibly the horse is no longer being ridden. With the understanding that there's little to go on in this video, anyone care to guess what is happening with this horse?








Amazing that this young girl landed on her feet -- very athletic...





My only observation is that the loin connection looks very weak (or else he's just racing thin and it's an optical illusion. His back may not be able to comfortably support a rider, but then that's probably true of a lot of horses who don't flip over in protest. He doesn't look particularly overwhelmed by the show environment, but he is a young horse. Even so, I'm not sure what you do with a horse who exhibits this kind of behavior. The owners seems thoughtful and reasonable, best of luck to them in solving this.

Harv gets rewarded for bad behavior

This is a story without a moral. I was dimly aware that Harv was "a problem" for some of the boarders. What started as murmurs and innuendo finally came to a head last week, and now everyone speaks openly about it.

Harvey is naughty. He torments the horses in the wash stall adjacent to his dutch door, lungeing and air biting at them while they are helplessly immobilized in cross ties. He also bites the butts of horses walking past his stall.

Movin' on up!
Boarders "went public" with Harv's issue because our barn, normally at capacity, has an open stall. It's a nice stall, the equivalent of a big corner office with a view. It was agreed that Harv should have the stall, not because we are next in line seniority-wise, but because he is such a pest in his current location. In this case, being naughty paid off, big time.

To top it off, the stall is close to his old "frenemy" Skippy. Many of you know about their past, which I blogged about some time ago.

This is a truly embarrassing video I made for Bob, to show him the new stall. I never thought I'd actually post it, it's silly. The singing (my singing) is the coup de grâce. But it's the weekend, when no one reads blogs; I don't feel like blogging; and hey, I'm not proud.

Think you're passionate about horses?

Sure, we say we're passionate about horses, but talk is cheap, and the word passion is bandied about quite a bit these days. The British comedian David Mitchell has a few things to say about the use (and misuse) of the word passion. This video is not horse-related, but it made me laugh till I cried.



Thanks to blogger/writer Nancy Friedman for the great post that inspired me to steal from her.

Hanoverian stallion auction: My faves

As if we haven't seen enough primo horseflesh, the Hanoverian Stallion Auction catalog is online. These stallion prospects are only two years old! My picks...

Sport horse auction -- a peek at the catalog

Performance Sales International just released its dressage horse catalog for an upcoming auction. The Web site really raises the bar for showcasing horses online -- a consistent presentation in pictures and video.

Shall we peruse the sport horses and imagine for a moment we can afford one of them? Actually, I peeked before you got here, and here are my faves...

Heather has two mommies, but Royal Schufro has one grammy
Who wouldn't like to own this Don Schufro son, Royal Schufro? At only four, look at that active hind leg, the freedom of shoulder, and... oh, my. Look at the pedigree.

His grandmother on the maternal side and paternal side are both the same mare, Loretta. She's a famous broodmare, but could it be too much of a good thing? Line breeding, when relatives appear a few generations back in a pedigree, is common. It tends to produce desirable traits more predictably in the resulting offspring. But inbreeding? A stallion? It dampened my enthusiasm a bit. I hope in the Russian roulette of genetics, he comes away without some genetic weirdness. Let's move on.


"You just like to say salsa"
Does anyone remember that Seinfeld quote? Well, I just love to say Dubai, it's such a cool word. And now there's a 3 year old stallion to boot (pictured top right). I'm amused to see that he is Riley's age, just three, and they share the same paternal grandfather (DeNiro). That pretty much sums up their similarities. Here's his catalog entry, and of course the video is below...

Barn girls: How do you weather the winter?

Barn work ain't easy, but summertime barn work is downright leisurely compared to winter work. Here in PA we've had a few crisp-cold mornings lately -- a reminder that winter is approaching. Frozen buckets, icy fields, and messy stalls are just a few hardships to anticipate. You can't change the harsh conditions, but there are little ways of coping.

Barn girl fashion tip for fall/winter

Here's my little tip--forget anything you ever learned about proper sleeve length. When you layer, make sure one of your layers has looong sleeves that cover your fingertips when pulled down. A turtleneck, a henley, a flannel shirt, preferably man-sized (unless you're super petite). It's not a bad idea to borrow one from a guy you know.

Above you see an illustration of my long-sleeve layer, Bob's old Rolex sweatshirt.Pull the sleeves over your hands and voilà -- a glove substitute for the tasks that are done gloveless, such as...

• Applying boots to horses' legs.
• Making up feed (you can't handle those little supplement scoops with gloves on!)
• Manipulating the hose (preserve your real gloves from getting wet). Roll up damp sleeves when done.

The cuffs will get filthy and stretched out, but hey, it's not your shirt, it's his.

So, readers, spill the beans. What are your winter barn girl winter tips?

Tildren Part III: The fine print of Tildren

"What the large print giveth, the small print taketh away."

Tom Waits

[Tildren parts one and two are worth reading before you read this...]

Good results are being achieved with Tildren, and there's quite a buzz in the horse world it's true. But before you launch a campaign to get treatment for your horse, consider these caveats...

1. It's not cheap. Regional perfusion (one limb) can cost hundreds of dollars while systemic injection/infusion can cost $1000.
   
2. It's not usually a one-time treatment (the effect lasts about six months)
   
3. It doesn't work for every horse.
4. Improvement may or may not be permanent.
5. It works more on cancellous (spongy) bone than cortical (hard) bone.
   
6. Bone does become more dense but the quality may be lessened (more brittle)
   
7. Damaged bone may also be slower to heal in the case of a fracture, and Tildren should never be given to a horse with an injured bone (e.g., a fracture).
8. The long term effects of the drug are unknown.
9. The product should not be adminstered to hypocalcemic horses, horses with heart problems, or horses under the age of 3.
   

Some are more concerned than others...
A few years ago when I had dental surgery, my surgeon told me that because I was on Actonel (a cousin of Tildren) , there was a risk that the surgery would cause necrosis (death) of my jawbone. A slight risk, but enough that he made me sign a paper. It seems that this class of drugs --bisphosphonates--can interfere with the healing of fractures/bone damage, and after ten years of use on wide swaths of the humanpopulation, there are some scaryemerging issues. While I haven't read any definitive articles on risks for horses, the subject comes up in informal and personal communications of veterinarians and experts.

COTH poster RAyers is an equestrian with a *background in bone pathology -- the right pedigree to have an opinion -- and he's not in a hurry to recommend Tildren. He cautions eventers about use of Tildren in event horses. The bone regrowth Tildren brings may not be of comparable strength and longevity, which is bad news for horses who gallop, jump, and otherwise strain their bodies to the utmost. No one really claims to know for sure what the quality of Tildren-enhanced bone is like. Read the Tildren thread below for details.

*Dr. Reed Ayers, an eventer, is a professor in Biomaterials at the Colorado School of Mines and a Clinical Professor in the Department of Orthpaedics at the CU medical school

RESOURCES

Tildren news from Steinbeck Equine

Tildren® 500 mg lyophilisate for solution for infusion

Chronicle thread (answers from RAyers)
http://www.chronicleforums.com/Forum/showthread.php?t=220202&highlight=rayers+tildren

My crush on John Denver is alive and well

For those lamenting that this post isn't horse-related, skip to the 4th video (your loss :-)

---

Last week Bob and I saw John Denver on a rerun of the Midnight Special TV show. In the seventies, John Denver totally ruled. He embodied the ideal man to me and my friends -- romantic, outdoorsy, upbeat, and a little goofy. I'm not sure if we wanted to marry him, but we wanted to be the kind of girl he would marry. He coined the phrase, far out! Oh, for you readers under 30, far out was the seventies version of awesome! My horse-obsessed buddies and I used a variation, farm out!, which could mean far out or it could mean going to the barn.

John Denver died on October 12, 12 years and a week ago today. There's great live footage of his music on Youtube -- it gives me renewed appreciation for his musicanship, amazing tenor vocals, and the honesty he brings to his performance. Who else could sing these lyrics and make you believe them?
Oh, and also he's really hot...

Rhymes and Reasons for Unicef (bonus at the end)


Mother Nature's Son


Thank God I'm a Country Boy


Horse and the Eagle


John Denver and Cass Elliot, Leaving on a Jet Plane


Edelweiss

Quaterback: The French Connection

Rolling Stone Farm just posted video of the 2009 babies!! I attended this inspection and was totally wow'ed. Take a look at the videos if you have time, go to http://www.rollingstonefarm.com/ and click on the list of babies on the right. My faves are the Rousseau and the Quaterback (shocker) but they are all nice...

---

The French Connection
I recieved an email from a breeder in France -- there's a French connection to Quaterback. The farm is crossing Lusitanos with Quaterback, and I wish there were videos of the babies, the pix make me want to see more. Here are the images I could find on their Web site, which is in French.

clipped from leharasducoussoul.blogspot.com

clipped from leharasducoussoul.blogspot.com

Can you stand a little more - some Qback foals from other farms?








Dogwood Sport Horses


Quaterback/Weltmeyer


Walnut Farm

Darwin award winning drivers

This video is not for the faint (feint?) of heart -- I don't know the outcome of this incident, it can't have been very good. Consider yourself warned. I'm sharing it because I think it's instructive -- these drivers are doing the equivalent of feeding grizzlies at Yellowstone. Horses are UNPREDICTABLE. It toasts me when I see video of people taking chances with horses -- sitting on them backwards, holding infants, etc.

Katie Price's new horse: Introducing Wallace

Special bonus item: This is kind of a lightweight post, so I'm throwing in a bonus courtesy of Cat, an Aussie blogger who authors Once upon a dressage dream. She posted this hysterical video of a "cheeky pony." It's a must-watch--start at about 4'15" if you want to get to the punchline...

---

I've posted occasionally on a British celeb who seems to be the Paris Hilton of the UK (she loves media attention). She has taken up dressage and has Olympic aspirations as a dressage rider. She bought a horse in the spring and I hear she recently she went to Holland and came back with Wallace, a 6 year-old black gelding (by Rubiquil x Sultan). He was purchased from top Dutch dressage rider, Laurens van Lieren.
Unfortunately, she has renamed him "Cross Dresser" and is applying her fashion sense to her horse. No helmet either. My oh my.

What's your horse's downtime?

Why'm I asking? Oh, no reason...

Quaterback commentary

If you read my blog, you know I'm a fan of Quaterback (the stallion). It's hard not to be impressed by his three year old performance video and he gets better with age. Yes, his gaits are huge and expressive, but we're seeing a lot of good movers lately in Totilas, Ampere, and others. Still, I feel Quaterback has a special presence, and I like his attitude and his eye. Doesn't he have a good face?

Everybody's a critic
The breeder bulletin boards occasionally host spirited discussion of the merits and weaknesses of Quaterback. There's one going on now on COTH. Breeders have to be supercritical of stallions and mares, and I love a good honest analysis. No horse is perfect, and discussion is instructive. But I confess some of the comments (and the underlying tone) in discussing Quaterback makes me shake my head. Dude, that's harsh!

Handsome is...
Quaterback isn't the only stallion who gets put under the microscope. Lingh gets slammed for conformation flaws. But hey, he's won international Grand Prix competitions. Stallions should really be judged by what they produce anyway. Quaterback's walk a relative weakness for him (rated 7.5, while his trot was 9.5, canter 10). Take a look at the walk of a Quaterback yearling, Qredit. Remember he's a yearling.

Not too-too bad, is it? ;-)

I can get theatrical here
A week or so ago I watched a TV documentary on the musical Phantom of the Opera, which was a record-breaking success and drew millions world-wide into the theatres. Did you know it was panned by respected theater critics? Oh, Sarah Brightman, her voice is too reedy, she's not pretty enough, the production is overblown. I feel sorry for the critics, letting their elevated standards suck the joy out The Phantom. At some point, the performance reaches a level where it's okay to suspend criticism. It's much more fun to just enjoy and applaud.

Riley the comeback kid (a must see video!)

Since Riley's 102 low-grade fever last Wednesday, his caretakers agreed -- he just wasn't right. Although a little bute stabilized his temp at 100, he was dull/glazed, his right pastern was swollen, and he clearly wasn't feeling well. I pulled him into the wash stall, where he normally gets wiggly and rammy. He stood listlessly with his head down while I changed his bandage--no signs of infection, at least. Over the phone, the vet guessed he had cellulitis from the antibiotic perfusion at NB. Since he is already on an antibiotic there was little to do but wait. Arrrgh!

On Saturday evening, the swelling was reduced, and I thought I saw a glimmer of the old Riley. Was I imagining it?

Sunday, the day of miracles!
At 8am I drove to the Riley's barn before going to see Harv. I could see the difference as soon as I opened the stall door. Riley was back! Rammy, invading my personal space, and generally being a nudge, he won't stand still to let me inspect his feet or take his temp. His hoof and pastern are more or less back to normal (no swelling). His temp is 99. Was I happy? You bet! I skipped and danced down the barn aisle (thankfully no one was around to witness), waving the thermometer and singing "Looks like we made it."

Yes, that would be Barry Manilow.

Let's get that image out of your head, shall we? Here's some footage of Riley...

What is it about seeing the barn in my rear view mirror?

It's 9pm, time to head home from the barn. I throw my gear in the back and start the engine. Heading down the drive, I glance in the rear view mirror. This little habit seems to be my cue to wonder, "Did I latch Riley's (or Harvey's) door?" Dammit -- I don't know if I did.

I drive a bit further, reasoning that I probably did. At the end of the driveway (it's a long driveway), I decide that probably isn't good enough. I back up the drive to go check, knowing it's a fool's errand. While I sometimes leave my house with the curling iron plugged in, my success rate in shutting and latching stall doors is 100%. I have never found a door unlatched.

Sigh. This is what comes from being OCD and ADD....

Lil' sprouts -- a healthy food endorsement

There is a grocery store in my region and in the Northeast -- Wegmans. I have such warm feelings for this store, and how could you not? Prepared foods far better than I could concoct, immaculately clean, amazing selection of international footds, helpful staff, no lines. All that, and this little item-- what they call "crunchy sprout mix." Adzuki, lentil, and mung sprouts that provide high protein, negligible calories, and visual interest. They come in little bags like these...

And they are pretty good with a little dressing, all by themselves...

Oh, and they're pretty filling, but not so much that you won't be tempted by the bread pudding for dessert. One day I'll write about the bread pudding my grandmother used to make -- a food group all its own...

Bucking pony and the Pas De Deux

Riley's temp has been 99-100 since Wed, the leg swelling is greatly reduced, and he has not had any anti-inflammatorries since his one gram of bute on Wed pm. Last night he did try to bolt from me while I handwalked him (or maybe he spooked). He jumped forward, I held on, and his feet went out from under him. He landed on his hip and side. Dazed, and a little breathless at first, but basically fine.

---

This was sent to me by a reader/blogger. Pretty cute...

A Dell laptop saved my horse!

I'm being facetious, it didn't actually save Riley, but here's the story.

Wed 3pm in my office
At work yesterday, just back from my last meeting of the day, I start thinking about Riley. For some reason I'm feeling an urge to go see him, but I have an appointment to get my hair cut after work. Frustration. So I'm typing away at my laptop, maybe using a bit more force than is called for.

Wed 3:10pm: My laptop speaks!
I swear this really happened. I'm typing an email, using only the qwerty part of the keyboard, and suddenly a key comes flying off. It lands on the desk between my hands. I don't remember touching this key--pictured right--why would it jump practically into my lap?

There's only one answer. It must be a sign from God. "Pause! Take a break!" commands The Almighty (through a Dell Latitude). I make a faith-based decision and sign out at 3pm. Now I have time to see Riley before my hair appointment.

3:30ish: Uh. Oh.
When I get there, God's plan is revealed. Riley not looking so good, and needs help. His head is down at his knees, and his eyes are dull. He's got a 102.1 fever, a depressed attitude, and his foot is swollen to the fetlock. He's walking gingerly. On the positive side, he is still eating, drinking, pooping, and the surgical site looks okay. Although part of me wants to, I don't sit in front of his stall and sob hysterically. For once, my response is measured and thoughtful.

Wednesday, 5:00pm
By the time I'm done checking his vitals and such, it's after 5pm. I make a few calls, leaving a non-urgent message on my vet's office number, asking for a call in the morning. My New Bolton vet is at a conference, and I tell them not to page her. Riley gets 1 gram of bute, and the barn manager says she'll check him later that night.

She does call me later, and his temp down to 100, but he is too quiet and his eyes have a glazed look.

Thursday, 5:45am
I drive out in the a.m., having slept badly. But the news is good! Riley's temp is 99.4 and the swelling is down. He's hungry, chipper, and while I try to check his foot he chews one of the buttons off my jacket. His hoof wound shows no discharge.

Thurs 8am
My vet calls. She thinks that Riley has some cellulitus from the antibiotic perfusion last week, which uses a catheter and tourniquet to force the meds into his foot. He has been slightly swollen since his return from New Bolton, and I buted him lightly over the weekend. The vet is visiting the farm to see another horse Friday morning, and she'll take a look at Riley while she's there. Her tone is upbeat, and she says something wonderful: "Stacey, I really think he's over the hump."

Thurs 1pm
The barn manager should be calling me with the results of his temp check. If I hear, I'll let ya know. In any case I'll be out there tonight.

A series for barn girls: What'd ya think?

Let's talk about the real work that goes on at barns. I do horse care (mucking, feeding, turnout, etc.) on Sundays, and that's plenty for me. I tip my hat to the folks who do it all, from mucking to managing to mowing, every day. I'm thinking of starting a little series on barn girls -- including "mature" barn girls such as myself -- and barn work. Here goes...

Observation #1: Grass is not your friend

The season of grass is on the wane. Horses love it, but I won't miss it all that much. The beauty of early morning dew-covered grass loses some of it's allure when you start working at a barn. Why, you ask?

Go turn all the horses out in those dew-filled pastures, and you'll see.


Welcome to the world of wetness -- wet slacks, wet socks, wet shoes, and guess what? Your next task is standing in shavings, mucking stalls. Your shoes, and the bottoms of your jeans will look like they've been breaded.

Solution: Nancy Sinatra has some boots that are made for walkin' -- but comfy boots you can do a LOT of walking in are hard to find and not that cheap--when you get some, do you want to wear them for barn work? I bring extra sneaks and socks, and wear breeches as they collect less moisture and dry fast. Why not shorts? Ticks and hay handling, that's why.

---

An update: Invest in boots for barn work! Sunday I got whacked in the leg by a young horse who spooked at some cyclists. Her hoof caught my sneaker clad left foot at the ankle bone. I managed to hobble through chores, but spent the night on the couch. Monday morning I didn't see how I'd make it to work much less do my job. In desperation I dunked my foot in a bucket of ice water and took some Aleve. That combination worked a miracle. I made it to work! But ankle-height boots would probably have protected me better.

Riley's antibiotic (chloramphenicol): Handle with care!

Chloramphenicol recrystallized and
photographed under the microscope
by The Molecular Expressions Collection

Kate, a BTB reader, asked about the antibiotic that Riley is getting. It's an interesting question with an equally interesting answer! The drug they prescribed at New Bolton is chloramphenicol. From what I'm hearing it's a pretty good choice for tough to fight infections. According to Veterinary Pharmacology and Therapeutics, it's "a broad-spectrum antibiotic, effective against gram negative and gram positive organisms, aerobic and anaerobic bacteria, and many intercellular organisms." It attains a high level of penetration into tissues, so it's prescribed a lot for treating areas of the body that are traditionally hard to treat -- the eye, central nervous system, the respiratory system, and hopefully bones.

So why isn't everyone using it?
There's a reason you don't see it used more widely -- there are some substantial risks for the humans administering it. If you don't handle it properly, the stuff can mess you up!

• It can cause bone marrow suppresion (damage), which is thankfully reversible. This condition tends to occur at a certain level of exposure or dosage.
  
• In rare cases it can cause irreversible aplastic anemia, with a fatality rate of 70%. A small percentage of people (estimated from 1 in 10,000 to 1 in 45, 000) are thought to be genetically susceptible. This condition is unrelated to dose or duration of exposure.

Because it is so toxic to humans, this drug should not be administered to animals who will be used as food or will produce food (e.g., milk).

Administration
The best practice for handling chloramphenicol is to never let it come into contact with your eyes, skin, mouth, or any body part. I had to sign a form that I had read and understood the risks before they gave me the prescription. Riley's formuation is basically a 25 gram paste tube that is administered two times a day. To administer this thick, fat tube of paste, you...

• wear nitrile gloves (better protection than latex or rubber gloves)
• wear a face mask
• wear a long sleeved garment or apron that you can "peel off" if it gets paste on it
• wipe any excess meds from walls, your horse's lips, and bedding. For permanent surfaces clean with soap and water.
• Double bag any contaminated material, used tubes, etc. before throwing it away.
  

If any paste gets on your skin, you need to wash it off with soap and water and apply a layer of antibiotic ointment.

Riley got his first dose this morning -- in its natural form it's bitter, but apparently they sauce it up for palatability, and the barn manager told me he took it well. Riley's good about worming/tube paste, but this is a lot of paste, twice a day. I'll be suiting up!

RESOURCES

Chloramphenicol Material Safety Data Sheet

Chloramphenicol in Veterinary Pharmacology and Therapeutics

Chloramphenicol in Equine Clinical Pharmacology

Chloramphenicol in Antimicrobial Therapy in Veterinary Medicine

Suit filed over the death of three thoroughbred horses from The Horse Magazine, October 18 2005

Chloramphenicol: The good, the bad, and the beware from Worms and Germs blog

Chloramphenicols from The Veterinary Formulary

Now the good news...

Riley was glad to be home (pictured right, just off the trailer). Although I gave you the bad news first (by accident), Riley's day 'o drama (Oct. 1) was rather undramatic. No surgery, no dire diagnosis. Some questions answered, but still a good deal of mystery. That said, the news is mostly good, thanks for the jingles and all jingle-type activity.

Here's the good news...

• If there is a bone infection, it's low-grade, and they feel it's more likely to be infection of hoof tissue.
  • They superficially debrided some of the granulation tissue (it may have been causing pressure within the hoof). did an antibiotic perfusion (amakacin).
  • They injected the hoof hole with some kind of antibacterial packing (amikacin sulfate and infused collegen) that disintegrates (no need to remove it).
  • He gets a new antibiotic, one that is effective on bone infections. It is toxic to some humans (um, fatal to a small segment of the population, 1 in 45K). You're supposed to wear nitrile gloves and a face mask when administering it.
  
  

• He got a new glue-on shoe and a hospital plate, no more bandaging! Picture on the right -- you can see some swelling in the pastern, most likely from all the procedures. He seems to be walking more comfortably in this glue-on, even though his LF is shoeless...
  
• The new hoof growth is clean and it's coming in fast. He could be on turnout in a month to six weeks.
  
• The pedal bone "area of concern" has not changed and it's believed to be non-significant.

Now the bad news...

Home and soooo tired!

The not-so-good news...

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Whoops. Um, not sure if anyone noticed I forgot to publish the good news!!! Sorry! I hurt my ankle this afternoon and am totally preoccupied with my throbbing appendage. The good news post is ready to go and I'll post it tomorrow. And it is nice, happy news.

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Well, you know it can't be all good, or he'd be out in a field playing with his buddies and working under saddle. New Bolton staff briefly stated their opinion on the surgical procedure Riley went through in August. They felt that problems inherent in a surgical removal of the hoof sole outweigh the benefits, and their feeling is that when you open up the bottom of the hoof that way, there simply will be infection, not to mention slow healing and intensive maintenance. They sure got that right.

New Bolton's view on Riley
They don't feel we'll know for sure what is happening with Riley for at least another month. The main indicator for another procedure would be evidence of a keratoma, or continuing lameness. I'm okay with waiting. Here are a few other issues that I wish were not true for Riley...

• There is more bone loss at the tip of the pedal bone -- that is, radiographically visible bone loss since the June 9 radiographs. The vet's best guess is that the loss is caused by pressure from the scar tissue. Maybe the bone was taken in the surgery. The surgeon told me he did not take any bone but it took me a week to get ahold of him for a post-surgery briefing (don't get me started), and I wonder if he really remembered. At any rate it's basically unexplained. A friend did point out that this is the thinnest, most porous area of the coffin bone so the loss does not amount to a ton of actual bone...
  

• With all of the scar tissue in the hoof, and there is no way to tell if he has/had a keratoma. If present, the keratoma will continue growing. We'll just have to wait.
• Lameness was assessed as 2 on a scale of 5, on a straight line. On Sept. 9 I do not think Riley was lame on a straight line, only on a circle.
  

Here is another view of Riley's foot -- the angle looks a little different and the bone loss looks worse. I do think it is a difference in the angle of the view. Anyone else have an opinion?

Riley weighs in...

More Dressage at Devon (not my footage)

The winning ride at DAD 2009 Freestyle. This is not my video footage (this one I just watched!). THANKS TO On the Bit for sharing this with everyone on Youtube. All I did was embed her nice footage...

Must watch Youtube: The toughest of sports

This is a WOW video in my opinion -- eleven minutes of "old time" three day eventing, action, interviews, and all the riders I grew up reading about. I'm guessing it's the 70's, Jimmy Wofford is a young man, Torrence Watkins, Mike Plumb, Karen Stives, others. Dicey footage, no one hurt...

I have time...

Whether you're thinking about training a horse or rehabbing one, this is a wonderful quote (which I stole from a COTHer sig line)...

When training the horse the rider must repeat over and over again—I have time. It takes time—a great deal of it—for a horse to develop and to understand what is required of him.

Alois Podhajsky

Riley update
The news on Riley is good, for the most part. They don't feel any bone is infected, though they aren't certain. So no surgery, no dramatic procedures, and the concerns (discharge, soreness) are being addressed with antibiotics and other non-invasive procedures. New Bolton isn't a fan of surgery through the sole of the foot -- they don't normally do it, for reasons I'm oh so familiar with -- it is slow healing, high maintenance, and there is and higher incidence of complications such as infection. As to his future soundness/wellness? Riley needs more time to heal before they can really assess him -- too much scar tissue right now. More details in my next blog entry, plus I posted a quick update on Facebook.

Thanks so much to all of you for the kind thoughts. I am hoping the next few months of blog postings are routine/undramatic -- culminating with a few shots of me sitting on Riley with a big grin.