16Oct 2013 by myexracer

Unsafe at any speed

Barn tales, Life with Jezebel, OTTB
[caption id="attachment_489" align="alignleft" width="281"] Away we go![/caption] It was the day, Jezebel's first turnout with the full herd. It's been 7 months and i needed to get her out and being a horse. Her little hospital paddock time was coming to an end. I had tried this once before a week or so back just getting her out into a field and basically she lost her mind and was charging fences and being an idiot. The plan was to Ace her which we did with 3.5 mils IM. Then to put her out with the ladies who are field boarded in that field, one of which is Lilly who she shared a paddock with at my last farm. Then once she got her Aced ya ya's out the other mares…
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15Oct 2013 by myexracer

Appreciated

Barn tales
Customer service matters and it's something that is lacking in the horse world. Not just a little lacking, I mean wholly non existent in some cases. So when I come across someone who gets it right i'm always giddy and happy. Also I have a pretty deep and heavy advertising background having been on the client side of that coin for more years then I want to remember. When someone gets their marketing right that too brings a wide grin to my face. Put those two elements together and you get SmartPak. Not only are they the go to place for supplements for your horses but they assign you reps and those reps either remember all their clients and clients horses details month to month or they take really amazing…
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07Oct 2013 by myexracer

Barefoot?

Life with Circe, OTTB
[caption id="attachment_463" align="alignleft" width="225"] Brand New Barefoot[/caption] Cire's feet are not in the best shape. She came to me front shod, with long toes and over under on the right front. Id love to get her barefoot but its not clear yet if that can happen or not. Unfortunately its kinda an experiment. Her feet will eventually tell me what they need and luckily I have the best farrier in Maryland so eventually I will get her balanced and in our out of whatever is best for her. I'm a fan of having a horse barefoot, Jezebel is barefoot and has been since i got her.  I'm also a realist and not every horse can handle not having shoes, some just need them. So step one, we pulled Circe's shoes,…
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04Oct 2013 by myexracer

Cleared

Life with Jezebel, OTTB, Vet
[caption id="attachment_451" align="alignleft" width="300"] Trotted at the vet check[/caption] Its been 6 long months. Six very long months since i was tossed off Jez and taken to the ER, Six very long months since Jez was diagnosed with a suspensory injury. Stall rest, limited turnout restricted movement, ultra sounds and shock waves but finally my beautiful wonderful girl has been cleared by the vet. What that means is shes healed, and can go back into work and back with the herd for regular turn out. Back into work thats easy, all it costs is money. I hired a trainer to work with her and restart her. Remind her shes a riding horse and be the first on on the wild beasts back. The turn out, thats more of a challenge.…
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30Sep 2013 by myexracer

Enter Circe

Barn tales, Life with Circe, OTTB
It happened so fast it kinda made my head spin. I saw the posting the Racehorse rehab farm I got miss Jezebel from was getting a couple horses back though no fault of their own and didn't have room for them on the farm. They were looking for sponsors, or fosters or some way to accommodate for them. One of the things that i love about After The Races is how dedicated they are to they horses that go thought their farm on the way to new homes. I got in touch with the program director and we discussed the options, one of the horses coming back to them one a horse I had followed closely when I was laid up with a broken hand. A striking chestnut super fancy…
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06Sep 2013 by myexracer

McTavish

Barn tales, Injury
It has been 5 months since Ive been on a horse. Thats a long time. I haven't had a horse to ride since i broke my hand and got taken away in an ambulance. Ive been frustrated and missing riding. Jez has another month of rest then I have to get someone to restart her (my vet is helping me with some names) shes lost most of her manners and well i feel so guilty keeping her on rest the I let her get away with all kinds of things. Come October though times will be a changing for her. In any event i've been sad not having a horse to ride. Enter McTavish! McTavish is a Halflinger, McTavish is a ex Mennonite cart horse, McTavish is a love bug.…
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26Aug 2013 by myexracer

Aloha

Barn tales, Injury
[caption id="attachment_429" align="alignleft" width="200"] My Friend Aloha[/caption] I got the phone call in the afternoon. I was happy to hear from a friend from my previous barn. A really awesome girl who also had an OTTB. A charming goof ball named Aloha. A recent college grad who has dreams of being on stage and screen. Em and i became quick friends. I've hung out with her outside of horse things, seen her act in plays and visited her at her waitressing job. Shes a good kid. It wasn't good news, she just that afternoon put Aloha down. It was sudden and it was bad. Aloha came in from the field lame a few days back, he had cuts at one of his rear hocks, there was swelling. The vet was…
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07Aug 2013 by myexracer

One Day At A Time

Barn tales, Injury, Life with Jezebel, OTTB, Vet
[caption id="attachment_423" align="alignleft" width="300"] Photoshoot![/caption] Our third shock wave was done and the vet came out for Jezebels final ultrasound and check before the claim for this injury ran out. I was very nervous, our last check didn't go so great and at that time decision was made to give Jez some turn out since she was really falling apart on 24/7 stall rest.  Two hours a day was all she was supposed to get, though it later was brought to my attention my last barn was not adhering to that schedule. I'm really happy I'm out of that place for so many reasons, not following my vet's instructions is just one of them.  When Jez was moved to her temporary home at my friends house she was in a…
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24Jul 2013 by myexracer

Downtime

Barn tales, Injury, OTTB
[caption id="attachment_419" align="alignleft" width="300"] Bad Ass Fly Mask[/caption] I've convinced my better half to take riding lessons. It's all part of my not so secret plan to get a second horse. Theres a local barn that has a pretty descent lesson program and a stable of school horses and he's been going once a week for the last couple of months. Its been really fun watching him figure out the basics of steering and halting. He's the only adult in the class, his class mates are little girls which brings back all kinds of memories for me about when I started ridding. These little girls remind me of me. His instructor is really good at tailoring the lessons so that it works for children and adults and it cracks me…
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19Jul 2013 by myexracer

Turmoil

Barn tales, Life with Jezebel, OTTB
[caption id="attachment_404" align="alignleft" width="300"] I swear shes smiling[/caption] I have moved horse farms. It was sudden and very unpleasant. I was treated extremely badly by people I had always been kind, helpful and went out of my way for. It left a really bitter taste in my mouth but I was lucky enough to have a couple very supportive friends who helped me move my horse and give her a temporary home. They treated her like one of their own while I searched for a good place for her to be. In less than 48 hors after the incident my horse was in a safe place, being well cared for. Which pretty much is all that matters to me. I drove all over Maryland looking at farms to keep my…
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