Spooky!!! Halloween Frights!

 Ooof!! Son of a .... dracula!

 

The neighborhood finally has kids, so they sent out a thing saying that they wanted to do trick or treating. So... if you wanted to participate you could turn on your porch light and put a balloon on your mailbox. It would be from 6 pm to 8 pm. Cool! So we did... I got home from work around 5:45ish.. and stayed on the phone for a hair longer. Then I got the ponies in to feed and was hoping that I could get them all fed before the halloween festivities really started! Just in case the ponies got distracted. It didn't dawn on me that they would be terrified!

 

I managed to get them all fed and gave them all their last adequan dose. And Lyric had the bemer cuffs on getting her legs bemered. So I decided to k-tape Dan because a client had showed me the medial patellar ligament support taping application. Perfect! It's a three step process, with three strips of tape. I got the first strip done. Then the second one was a bit trickier because the trick or treaters had started up. And it was finally getting dark. And they had glow sticks. But it was okay because they were still coming down the road. So... Funny had run out and was concerned... and Lyric was concerned but was still in her stall, and Dan got concerned. He started pacing but I was able to finish the second step. I knew I would have to hurry, so I managed to get the third step done as he was circling the stall, and paused to poop. Phew!! Okay... done. I opened his door and let him out because he was so worried. And then I opened Lyrics door to let her out. As she bolted out I was like "Aghhhhh...her bemer boots!!!!". Dammit!!! So they all bolted out and were prancing in the field where I toss hay. Then they ran a little bit and stopped halfway up the hill. I managed to grab the boots off Lyric thankfully! No damage. Thank you God! At that point it dawned on me... oh crap!! Dan's broken.. he should NOT be running around. Unfortunately at this point the kids had made it to the culdesac and were running up Jean's driveway.. their glow sticks bobbing in the dark, and chattering away. Totally cool, except... the horses were freaking out!! So they all went bolting off again... NOOOO!!!! Ugh... there was nothing I could do... they all ran around for about 10 minutes... alarm snorting... blowing... galloping.... sliding stops. I wanted to cry. 

 

Finally they made their way to Arts house and I was able to get a halter on Dan and hold him. At this point though they were all sort of frozen there.. And of course they were all steaming too and slightly damp from running and the temps were dropping to 40 degrees. Sigh... We sat there for about 5 more minutes... and finally the horses realized the "danger" had passed. I tried to get Dan to walk but he was resistant so... rather than pull him, I just took his halter off. I figured I would toss hay and see what happened. I know that he probably still had some adrenaline on board and... while I was terrified he was going to be crippled lame again... there wasn't anything I could do about it right that second. So I let him be. I went and got hay and the girls started following me. 

 

Luckily by the time I had the hay out, Dan was walking towards us. He didn't look any worse for the wear, but I'm sure the adrenaline hadn't worn off yet. I sat with them a bit longer and by then they had cooled off enough to put clothes on for the night. Sweet dreams buddy... let's pray hard that you didn't re-avulse it and undo any healing we've made. Perhaps the K-tape was enough to keep you from making it too much worse. I did thank God for putting the cards into place for having me know how to do that application today and getting it done in time. 

This morning he wasn't too bad. Maybe a little bit sore but not dramatically worse. Phew. Thank you God! He got the day off and this evening I didn't even do his pole walks because... I figured he needed to rest. I might do it tomorrow, but we'll see. He may get to chill until Monday. We did get some beautiful photos and practiced some of our tricks because he looked like he wanted to. And I did retape him because I realized that perhaps I shouldn't be taping him while he was cocking that leg... perhaps I should be taping him while he was "locked" in order to reduce the force it takes to go into that position. So that's what I did. 

Hang in there buddy... let's maybe NOT try to sabotage your healing please... 

Ran outta time, but... had time for naked time!

 I was hoping to do more pole walking today with Dan. And Lyric too to be honest. My thought was that I would bring the poles down to the roundpen to make it alot easier to do it on work days. But... I had lessons with Liz today and as soon as she left I went with Mike to pick up the triumph and that took forever! So by the time I got home it was 5ish, and... it was cold and icky and I just fed them instead of doing any work. Although I wish I had now, but... oh well. I did manage to bemer his stifle and then I taped him again. Slightly different this time, I didn't go up the whole leg.. just the gaskin to the hip. But it was already starting to pull off, so.. ugh. To be fair, he was filthy because he had naked time today and rolled in the sand pit. And I only brushed him down.. I didn't groom him or use alchohol. Partly though because I'm still not sure if I'm doing it right... the taping. And I don't want to hurt him. So... maybe Saturday or Sunday I'll have time to research a bit more and prep him better and get it to be more effective and lasting. 

But he did enjoy a nice roll. :) And he was back to cocking that leg a bit more, but... still looks better than he did for a bit. I think that I'm going to hand walk him on the "Haunted Trails" at Serenity Creek with Liz and the dogs. I just hope that he'll behave himself in hand... He tends to be naughtier in hand than under saddle. I am tempted to wait until they're about to close and maybe ride him... just because it might be less risky of him taking off ;) But they're only open until Nov 17th or something and I'm leaving Nov 14th, so... that's not too far away. I guess it might depend on how he's feeling. I'll think on it. Pray on it. I don't want to undo any healing but also, am not entirely sure that me riding him at a walk is going to be any worse than me leading him at a walk. I don't know. Maybe this is me just getting desperate and rationalizing. 

Soggy and bubbles

 Today, I am grateful, because God had mercy on me and rekindled my spirits. I'm still sad... still functionally depressed I think, but... maybe there's some hope again. Not that Dan will jump or dressage again, but... that maybe, just maybe, he'll be sound enough to try new things... western dressage... more obstacles... or even just hit the trails again. 

 

I did get an email back about the biomechanic taping and... she gave me some hope too. She suggested taping and then doing some poles to help strengthen. And I did tape him yesterday. He wasn't sure about it at first... but then he was licking and chewing... and while he wasn't necessarily resting his left hind, he was actually standing square more. So... win! Of course this morning (because it rained and was misting all night long) the tape was partially hanging off, so I went ahead and pulled it. I didn't want to cause more issues! And then it rained again all day, but tonight, I managed to get home slightly early so I headed out to the arena with a handful of treats and hay pellets and the halter. I caught Dan and we headed to the arena. I let him loose and tried to do some liberty work with him. I dropped the poles down to the ground (not alternating raised) and had him walk through them for treats. We did that multiple times and then we also wandered around the arena some. I had him straddle the single pole too. And then had him stop half over the pole and halt.. then walk forward again. I didn't do any sidepassing because I felt like that was going to be too much torque, especially since he wasn't taped again. I figured I would wait to retape when he was dryer. That tape ain't cheap! Plus I use so much!

We had fun and he didn't look like he was struggling at all over the pole. In fact, he looked kind of good. He trotted a tiny bit but he was behind me so I couldn't see. And from what I can tell, he's been standing much more square. Although admittedly I haven't been  home much today. So... maybe, just maybe... he'll bounce back and it won't take another gabillion years. Which was nice.. and I'm grateful to God for the assistance in the small return of hope because... yesterday when I was picking up Funny's allergy meds... Dr. Barrow was there and said she hadn't forgotten about us, she just was still contemplating on what to do with him. She said she sort of felt like.... it wasn't worth injecting him again... just to give him time. And not be in a rush to recheck him. Which... fair, sort of where I had landed. I did ask if she thought that the fracture had happened when she kicked him and somehow just got aggravated or if she thought it happened more recently when he got worse again. She said she thought that Funny kicking him didn't cause the fracture but caused the pathology which set him up for an avulsion fracture later. Sigh... so... I had to remind myself that instead of 4 months into healing... I was likely only 1 month into healing... and then I cried the whole way home. 

 

But... he made me smile today. 

 

 

Circus Tricks

 Poor Dan! He's been living the Benign Neglect life lately. I've fed him... given him cookies... and hugged him (much to his chagrin)... but that's it. We've not done any ground work... no riding... no trailer rides... I haven't even haltered him since his last vet visit. So, today was a big day! 

 

We had the farrier come in the morning. Luckily Funny went first and nosed at the hoof knives as if reminding Patrick that Dan might try to cut him later. Ha ha. So Patrick put them away and thanked her. I told him what had been going on with Dan and that he was basically going to be pasture rested until Thanksgiving... so asked if we should pull his hind shoes... or leave them on for support. He googled "patella fracture and shoes" and basically it said it wasn't going to help nor harm, so... we decided to just pull his hind shoes for this cycle. He's not going anywhere or doing anything... it'll give his foot a chance to decompress and maybe even help his NPA... and it'll save me some money. And honestly... he grows so much foot... he shouldn't even really be sore. And if he does end up retiring to the trail horse life... he may end up barefoot behind anyways. We'll see I guess... I definitely don't want him hoof sore for trails. But we figured that leaving him naked behind for one shoe cycle wasn't going to make or break him. So.. he's naked behind. We kept everything the same up front. 

 
So then after Patrick left and I got cat food and Halloween decorations, I walked out to grab him to work with him. But then I decided to lunge Lyric first so I could tape him first. But then Lyric didn't get sweaty enough and he was right there at the gate demanding to come in, so I just turned her loose and grabbed him. We did some pillar work, which he mostly obliged me with because I had sanfoin pellets to bribe him with. Then we played with the single pole. He straddled it quite nicely. But when we tried to side pass over it, he was happy to go one way (I think away from that right hind) but didn't seem to want to try the other way. I didn't push it because... I'm trying to just entertain his brain, not stress his healing body. So then we were kind of bored and he was trying to chew the lead rope so I just took the line off. And then we played "tag". I showed him the treats and ran off a bit. Then I whistled and he eventually walked up to me. I fed him treats and then I showed him treats and then ran off and whistled. After a few times he got the hang of it (again) and started following me. I even "hid" behind the big plank jump. ha ha. He only trotted after me once or twice, which.. is okay. Just no cantering yet. So then we went back to the tricks. I tried to teach him to say yes by nodding when I asked him if he loved me. He can't quite get the hang of that one. He keeps doing the "say cheese" face. Which, is adorable so... he gets treats. Then I tried to teach him "High five" by picking up his foot. Then I decided maybe instead of picking it up, I should tickle him with the whip. He got annoyed maybe and stomped his other foot, so I rewarded him for that. Ha ha... I'm the worst trick trainer!! My cues are all so similar so I need to find a better way. Although I suppose he can understand words too. Endo the Blind does! So after that we played "tag" back to the gate and then I eventually got him to leave the arena. 

 

I had pulled his halter off by then but he followed me back to the barn. I did treat him a few times because it was nice and because I wanted him to follow me so I could tape him. I put him in the cross ties and put hoof stuff on his tootsies and then groomed him. He wasn't thrilled but maybe not as angry as he usually is. So then I taped his stifle. The biomechanic way. I'm not sure I did it right and I definitely made my criss cross support taping a bit odd. My angles were off. And then I added the leverage taping to (in theory) keep his stifle more stable medially. So... we'll see. I'm a little paranoid that I'm doing it wrong and will make things worse but I also figure at this point... it is what it is. He seemed to enjoy it at first, but then it was hard to tell. Suprisingly the tape stayed on, so... I guess we'll see what happens in the morning. 

I do miss him. He's just... fun. So... I don't know. I might be kind of looking forward to trying some ranch classes with him... some goose herding... some obstacle challenges... heck, maybe even some hunter paces or fox hunting... or western dressage. Or... just bareback hacks farting around. 

Silly boy

 Poor Danimal.. He's getting benign neglect. I have bemered him and given him cookies but that's about it. No grooming (which... he hates anyways).... nothing but let him be a pasture puff, get fed, and get cookies. 

 

I think he's starting to get bored... he's been a hair friendlier.... but still his snarly self at meal times and around food. 

Sigh... I'm bummed that we're missing out on all the fun halloween stuff.. it's his time to shine! And... nope. Not only are we missing the Ashland costume show... but Serenity Creek is doing their haunted obstacle trail course and... while it'll be open for a few weeks, I'm not sure we'll make that either. Oh well. 

 

Confirmation

 So.. yep.. it's a broken patella. Sigh... 

We went to see  Dr. C today (since Dr. B is out of town) to get a skyline view of his patella. He let me catch him and walked all the way to the trailer without trying to escape! Good boy. Granted he knew I had more cookies. ;) He still hasn't found the cookies I left on the fence posts for him. hee hee. 

We got to the clinic and Dr. C wanted to show me the plan... apparently it's a bit tricky to take a skyline view. I left Dan in Chelsea's capable hands and we all convened for the xray. To practice, I picked up Dan's leg to hold it in the correct position to see if that made him uncomfortable or not. He was perfect and stood fine, so... we decided to try it without drugs. Chelsea kept holding his head, I did his leg, Dr. C climbed up on a stoll to shoot the xray from above, and Noelle held the plate. Group effort! And Dr. C said it was his first time shooting this image. And... we nailed it!! First shot was perfect! Good boy Dan!

Sadly.. the image shows an avulsion fracture. The medial patellar ligament has pulled a small chip off the patella. It's trying to adhere, but.. it's not a stable fracture. There's a lot of motion there. So.... poo. We went ahead and did an ultrasound because Dr. C wanted to check a few things. We did have to sedate him for that ;) But basically... at this point, the joint looked a lot less "sparkly", which... not sure if that was from difference in machines/settings or the joint had settled down. I suspect it has settled down. Dr. C said the joint itself actually looked pretty quiet and happy, but the area around the patella was effusive and angry. 

So... we'll talk to Dr. B and I'll send the rads (tomorrow) to Travis in Ocala and see what everyone thinks is the best plan. Dr. C mentioned stall rest and I was like "absolutely not". It's just.. not worth it for either of us. I'm honestly not sure either of us would survive at this point. I mean... if it was the difference between him being able to go back to third level dressage or training level eventing, maybe... but I really just don't think that's in the cards. Not given all of his other comorbidities... and even then, I'm not sure it's worth it. Stall rest is awful on all of us!! Plus... currently, he's hanging out mostly in the shade, grazing on the very crunchy grass, or eating hay. Although, admittedly, he did canter across the field this morning. But... for the most part, he's chilling. 

So we'll see. Dr. C did seem more optmistic than me, but he also maybe doesn't have quite the whole story. And Liz did find a paper with three horses with the same injury and two recovered without surgery. Although I'm not sure if they stall rested or what, but they went back to work. So... I don't know. I do know that I"m ready to be off this roller coaster... or at least take a break. And as much as I want to remain optimistic and have hope, I also... don't want to get my heart broken yet again. So... I'm trying to be realistic. Realistically he'll need another 2-4 months off, if not longer... and realistically he'll be sound enough to fart around on... hack, even pop over a log here and there at ashland... probably sound enough for some obstacle classes, maybe even some beginner western dressage, but... I really don't think he'll event or dressage again above beginner novice/training level. And even then.. maybe not that. And I'm okay with that... I think... finally. I just... want to be able to find him a job that he enjoys and I enjoy and be able to keep myself motivated to ride him twice a week at least. And I'm trying to be realistic in the sense that.. it's gonna take a long time... don't rush it. I talked to Liz today and she was right... I do tend to rush things and I need to give him all the time he needs. And maybe not even think about "rehabbing him"... just let him be. Play with him enough to keep him entertained but don't think about "making him better". Except... when she kept at it... I had a migraine brewing and she kept at it long enough that it made me almost want to prove her wrong. I know... now drop it. You keeping at it is just making me want to prove you wrong! Grrrr. Admittedly, I'm cranky, hormonal, and looking for things to be mad at/blame. 

I don't even know anymore

 I'm about ready to be off this rollercoaster.... but menopause says NOPE! Sigh... 

So yesterday morning I got a reply back from the surgeon about Dan's x-rays... he's not so worried about a bone cyst...thinks that's just remodeling... but he's worried about a patella fracture. Sigh... I really sort of thought that was the case when it happened! And.. sure enough, looking closer at the rads, it sure does look like a fracture. He wanted a skyline view of the patella, so... called my vet to schedule that. Of course she's out of town next week so... it'll either have to wait two weeks or.. the associate can do it. So... now the associate is going to do it next Thursday. So... down I spiral. 

Then I went to a vet dinner Continuing education event, and.. it was great. And three of Dan's vets were all there. And it was a small animal lecture and they talked about librela and how it occasionally seems to just... explode joints! And he showed some photos. Which were scary. So... Anyways, one of Dan's vets asked how he was and I showed her the photos... and then later I was like "I promise.. I didn't give Dan Librela!". Doh... sigh... All three of them looked and they all agreed... "ooof... that's a lot of pathology". Sigh...

Anyways... so today was bad. I am hormonal (do NOT recommend menopause, for what it's worth). I'm sad. I'm depressed. I'm feeling awful about myself (felt like a fraud at the vet conference because I was hanging with brilliant people).... frustrated about the stupid saddle situation again because I'm trying to sell both Peter Horrobin saddles, and now super worried that my Ryder is not fitting Funny and maybe why she's so fussy, and I'm poor... and can't seem to get ahead because of saddles and vet bills and hay.... And I came home and actually had time to sneak in a ride, but.... when I went to catch Funny, her hock is still super puffy and I just didn't think I should ride her. Arghhhh..

But anways, Dan was moseying around when I went out to catch Funny and came up for cookies. And then trotted after me when I moved over to get Funny. Okay... glad you're feeling a little better bud. I'm guessing the butacort is helping! Then he mugged me for more cookies and ended up getting 4 of the 6 cookies I had brought out. Then... when I took Funny to the gate and put her outside of it to graze while I cold hosed her.. he came wandering over... 

I couldn't video quick enough because I was texting the vet about whether I needed to panic about Funny's hock... but he climbed in the water trough with both front feet and was splashing and flailing about... Then when he finally got out of there, he was pawing at the gate. Hard core pawing! Then after I yelled at him for that he was chewing on the gate chain. And then he got bored and wandered to the round pen... and as he was passing into it... he smelled/saw the handful of peanuts I had put on the top post for the crows. Of course he snacked and then couldn't decide if he liked them or not. Then he went in the roundpen and rolled. And then when he got up, he shook and then grabbed the feed pan...  "I'm a tractor.... scoop, scoop".... Oh Daniel.. I"m so glad you're feeling better you big giant weirdo!

 

He finally wandered back to his stall to await his dinner. Goober! But I love that goober! And... he made me feel a bit better about life again, because... I really just want him to be happy and comfortable. So... he seems happier today. And now I know that I'll have to start putting random treasures around the pasture for him to find. Like Danimal Trick or Treat. ;) 

And... he's giving me hope for trail riding again. And, at this point... I think there's nothing to do about his patella other than... more time. We're already almost four months in, so...  kinda too late for intervention I suppose. But.. we'll see what the vets say next Thursday when we get the skyline views.