Goodbye to Sweet Schwartz

With a very heavy heart, today I said goodbye to my wonderful Schwartz.  I had the vet put him down this afternoon because of genetic problems which made him a danger to himself and the people handling him.  I desperately wish my crystal ball and magic wand would arrive so I could solve these unsolvable problems. 

It breaks my heart to euthanize such a magnificent creature.  As I discussed with the previous owner, and with my vet, we determined that this was the kindest option for Schwartz.  I am so grateful for the opportunity to work with him.  I appreciate that his previous owner trusted me with such a challenging horse, as I have so thoroughly enjoyed him.  My onion horse taught me a great deal.  I feel the loss of a great soul today, but I feel honored to have been part of his journey.  I'm glad his months here with me were cribbing strap free, weight gaining, and mostly enjoyable with lots of turnout to romp and play with horse friends.  

I often think of the verses in scriptures that talk about Christ leaving to go prepare a mansion in heaven for us.   I also think that I don't want a mansion, I just need a ranch large enough for all the wonderful horses and animals who have spent time with me in this mortal life.  I'd like to think Schwartz will be waiting for me there, and someday we will go for our gallops in the fields, where there is nothing at all that will make him nervous or upset. 

Lying Down on the Job

Schwartz has been doing really well, and so I tried to take him to a small local schooling show over the weekend.  Unfortunately the footing wasn't quite good enough for me to feel comfortable riding young green horses, so we went back home and it ended up being just a field trip in the horse trailer.  Despite being just about ten minutes away, the trip was a little stressful for Schwartz and he did some cribbing Sunday and Monday.  Before this he hadn't cribbed for about a week.  To try and help him get his mojo back I had Dr. Landes come out and do another acupuncture treatment on him.

Warm and sunny, this afternoon Schwartz was feeling pretty zen as we waited for the vet.  I decided to hop on him bareback and hack around the property while we waited.  I suspect he had never been ridden bareback before.  He gave me that classic befuddled look as if to ask, "Uh, Kim, I don't mean to be rude, but didn't you forget something?  The saddle perhaps?"

I climbed on at the barn, and then we rode down to the arena.  We walked around the arena for a few minutes, and Schwartz dropped his head and took some deep breaths.  I thought, "Great!  He's relaxing!"  Shortly after thinking this his knees buckled, his hocks folded, and he laid down right there in the sand in my arena with me still on his back.  He went all the way down, to where I was sitting on him but my feet were on the ground on either side of his barrel.  I admit I got a little excited and I energetically yelped and told him to get up RIGHT AWAY.  Bless his heart, he immediately hopped right up, looking at me over his shoulder as if to say, "Oops, sorry about that, I thought you said we were just relaxing today."  Usually a horse will buck or fool around when they rise from lying down, but he just carefully stood up with me still on his back, apologized, and we resumed our leisurely walk.

A few minutes later when the vet arrived I rode Schwartz back to the barn and the vet actually asked if this was a new horse.  I said no, this is Schwartz, and Dr. Landes was floored by how good he looks, even just in the three weeks since he saw him last.  He's all glossy and shiny, gaining weight well, and very mellow.  We did the acupuncture treatment anyway, and in his assessment the ulcer points were much softer and Schwartz was tremendously less reactive.  I haven't seen any cribbing this afternoon.  I guess he's comfortable enough to be lying down on the job.

I had to include this picture of the mares enjoying their time in the pasture in the afternoons.

Schwartz Rides Out on the Back Forty

Today I had a friend here to ride her steady trail gelding, and we decided to take Schwartz out for his first real ride out of the arena.  I've ridden him from the arena back to the barn, but this was his first time touring the back forty.  Before I got him I was cautioned that he was very uptight and even melted down when his previous owner tried to get him out on a trail ride.  Because I love to event and I'm curious about whether Schwartz might enjoy it I wanted to get him out of the arena now that he trusts me.

Joan, her gelding Darby, Miles the border collie and Mahzi the border/lab were our escorts out to the back fields.  I rode Schwartz and did my best to set him up for confident success.  I figured when you added us all together we were a herd of six.  The dogs would lead and show Schwartz how to deal with anything scary, Darby would walk beside him and be the familiar "pony horse" from his track days, and I was happy and calm riding him.

He marched right out of the arena and towards the llamas like he's been waiting for this for weeks.  Maybe he has been?  The dogs led the way, Schwartz and I were in the middle, and Joan on Darby brought up the rear.  Halfway to the back field we passed the west pasture horses, who were all very sociable and hustled over to the fence to greet us.  Schwartz was a little excited about it, but I placed us so that Darby was between Schwartz and the pastured horses, so Darby could be that buffer.  Schwartz settled right down, and even led the way a little after we passed that pasture.

We ended up walking all the way out to the back forty and walking around some of the log jumps so Schwartz could get a good look at them.  The dogs climbed all over the logs to show him they were no big deal, and actually sort of fun to jump over.  Darby and Joan were wonderful steady riding buddies, and even when Schwartz became a little "up" as we headed back to the barn Darby just looked at him to say, "Dude, you're working too hard.  Just chill out."  Schwartz liked to keep a little contact with my hands through the reins so he knew I was still there, but other than the one hop in excitement he just walked around and looked at things.  When he would start to fixate on something in the distance, like the traffic that was several miles away or a neighbor horse on the horizon, I would redirect his attention back to me by asking him to circle or turn and go back to Darby, or even bend in different directions.  In this way I was able to keep him focused.  As he saw I was enjoying myself and praising him, he began to feel confident and interested in the ride as well.  It really made a difference to go out as our herd of six, there is safety in numbers for a prey animal.  Every member of Schwartz' little herd, humans, equines, and canines, thought it was really fun and easy. The dogs even had to take a break or two to wrestle to entertain themselves.

Schwartz gets Kinesiotaping

Schwartz had another massage and we applied some kinesiotape to see if we can get him even more relaxed.  This makes three massages, two acupuncture treatments, and a week on ulcer medications.  Interestingly, I have not seen him cribbing for two days.  He still may be doing it, but not when I've been watching.  At the very least, he has definitely decreased his cribbing. 

Because of how the timing worked out, I had to teach a riding lesson when the massage therapist began working on Schwartz.  I had him tied with his evening mash and a hay bag, and I left to go to the round pen to teach my lesson.  Amy, the massage therapist, said as soon as I was out of sight he quit eating.  She said that he was distinctly more anxious when I disappeared, and he never took his eyes off the arena.  She also said he became very oral, nipping and shoving her with his head, which he has not done before.  He also didn't want her to touch his face.  When my lesson was finished I came back and stood with him, and he was very quiet, smoochy and relaxed.  Amy said it was impressive to see the difference in him.  It sure looks like Schwartz has gotten attached, now I'm his security blanket.  I've had other horses who were like this, too.  As youngsters Cecil and Highboy were very dependent on being able to see me or they would very nearly melt down.  It makes me wonder if Schwartz will decide he is ok with eventing.  If he trusts me enough to try something when I say he can do it I may have a brave and bold horse on my hands.

 Schwartz was taped with a special technique along his back and on the top/side of his neck.  Paying attention to how much stretch is applied and how the material is positioned, these tapings ideally will help his muscles to relax by increasing circulation and supporting his muscles.

We also did a taping on Fergie, who has a host of old injuries.  We are experimenting to see if we can get her more relaxed as well, and to get some myofacial release.

Schwartz Update

Schwartz has been coming along really nicely.  He has had two massages, two acupuncture treatments, and one kinesiotaping.  We took some conformation photos of him today and some photos of me riding him in my favorite orange shirt.  He sure does clean up nicely!  He is for sale if the right home comes along, otherwise he will be going with me to the Retired Racehorse Project makeover in October in Kentucky.

 I like to title these photos, "Ride an OTTB, get your dressage test done faster!"

Happy walking back to the barn after a good ride.

Schwartz Gets a Massage

Bit of Honey Training has several nicknames.  One is Kamp Kim for the horses who are coming to learn different skills.  Another is Kim's Fat Kamp for the really overweight horses who come to get fit for the upcoming riding season.  Some horses arrive with behavioral issues such as bucking or other problems, and their owners often tell the horses that they are going to Boot Kamp.  However, once the horses get here and everyone realizes that we address WHY certain behaviors occur, they realize this is less boot camp and more of a spa.  I address all the components of a horse's life, including diet and nutrition, social and psychological needs, tack fitting, and use a variety of modalities to help make the horses comfortable doing their jobs.  One of these modalities is massage, and our massage therapist came out this weekend to work on both Schwartz and Monty.

I often find some body soreness on horses who come from the track because they are under great stress physically and mentally when in race training.  For a variety of reasons, sometimes the horses have a hard time loosening up and relaxing into their new lifestyles.  Their bodies will hold tension and stress, and sometimes a massage or two is just what they need to really let go of those old muscle holding patterns.  So the order of the day for Schwartz and Monty was massage.

I was unsure of how Schwartz in particular would respond to the massage.  He wants to be a laid back fellow but he is a worrier, and I didn't know how he would respond to being touched all over by a new person.  My massage therapist is Amy Kuehl.  She holds a level 3 RMSAAM massage certification, and is certified to do kinesiotaping on horses, which I especially like for my rehabilitation cases and sports injuries.  She combines her knowledge of equine anatomy with her education regarding techniques to tailor individual massages and tapings that will be most beneficial to each individual horse.  As an added bonus she has experience in a variety of riding disciplines and understands the varying demands placed on horses in different sports.  Her facebook page, Connective Touch Equine Massage, can be viewed here:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Connective-Touch-Equine-Massage-LLC/739530479396970

It turned out that Schwartz really liked his massage.  A week ago he was incredibly body sore and reactive when the veterinarian did an evaluation and then a first acupuncture treatment.  He definitely responded well to the acupuncture, and was much less reactive to the similar assessment that Amy did on him this weekend.  To ensure we made his first massage a positive experience, Amy just worked lightly on him to stimulate circulation and familiarize him with the idea, but also attending to specific sore spots on him to relax his body.  Schwartz really loved Amy and ate up the massage.

While doing lots of deep breathing, Schwartz settled into the massage by grazing.  His normal go-to would be ten fervent minutes of grazing and then to stop eating and start worrying.  However, he grazed throughout the entire fifty minute massage!  When she was done he seemed itchy.  While still on the halter and lead rope he marched himself over to my big round bales and rubbed his whole body up against them, even wiggling up underneath the overhanging section to scratch his back and haunches on the hay.

I love seeing his personality come out and the shy introvert begin to abate.  I know this horse has opinions and preferences, but he is a sensitive soul and doesn't want to make waves.  I think the other horses have been working on him, too, telling him that it's ok to have opinions here.  I tell them that their opinions matter, particularly with tack, if they don't like it they just have to tell me and I'll change it.  With the cantankerous horses I tell them that their opinions matter, but it doesn't always change what we're doing (like loading into a trailer!)  I definitely want to know about a horse's preferences for grooming tools, tack, and especially potential future owners.  I've had several horses come through Bit of Honey who were for sale, and very clearly chose their new humans.  Today Schwartz said he's on his way to becoming a body work junkie. 

Schwartz' First Acupunture Treatment

I was a veterinary technician for six years before I started training and rehabilitating horses full time, and I met my vet about fifteen years ago while I was a tech.  Since then, we have worked together for many years specializing in rehabilitating horses.  Dr. Landes with Equine Medical Services has been certified to the hilt with acupuncture and has studied with the leading veterinarians in the field, and I've worked with him for years on horses very similar to Schwartz.  Lately we've been discussing Schwartz and his vague belly pain, history of difficulty gaining and keeping weight, his cribbing, and his general body soreness.  Dr. Landes has spoken with some of the best specialists at Colorado State University and we have decided to do some experimenting with Schwartz.  Lest you imagine something like Kermit the Frog in the Muppet Movie and think ill of the situation, let me clarify what we will be doing.

Our goals are to reduce pain and stress, decreasing cortisol levels in his body and increasing norepinephrine.  By doing this we hope to begin to resolve his body soreness and hopefully get him to gain weight and hold it.  Since he is already on a balanced diet that I'm gradually increasing to get more good quality calories into him, we are going to target his brain chemistry with acupuncture in an attempt to increase his endorphin levels and get some happy brain chemical juices flowing.  Today was his first acupuncture assessment and treatment.

We found him to be quite sensitive and irritated when palpating and testing the points associated with ulcers.  He was also very body sore in his haunches and shoulders.  Even though he had good care when he came off the track and was treated for ulcers at that time, sometimes ulcers take longer to resolve than a thirty day treatment.  Additionally, if the horse is stressed it's likely that the ulcers will reoccur, even if the first ulcers resolved with initial treatment.  Since we know Schwartz was a stressed horse from the behavioral report I received before he came to Bit of Honey, ulcers are a pretty likely suspect.

Dr. Landes did an acupuncture treatment on Schwartz this afternoon after the assessment.  Schwartz had probably never had it done before, he was very alert and needed a brief treatment because he was very sensitive.  The needles are thin and are just placed into the skin.  Depending on how tightly wound the horse's nervous system is and how tight the associated connective tissues are, the horse may need the needles in place for a longer or shorter time period.  Schwartz' body reacted quickly to the needles, and the fibers under his skin twisted the needles into odd contortions.  At the end of the treatment usually the needles come out fairly straight, but he had a couple that looked like bendy straws, and in places that showed us his body really needed the treatment.  Schwartz was really well behaved.  He stood quietly, but he kept turning his head to stare at the needles and then at Dr. Landes. 

First on the Schwartz list was assessment, second was the acupuncture treatment, third is to get him started on a treatment for the ulcers.  That prescription should come in this week, then hopefully we'll get his system quieted down and him on course to become a happy healthy gelding.  I love working on these complicated horses to address the interwoven layers as they reveal themselves.  It's terribly interesting to me to follow the latest research on different issues, and really satisfying to see the horse change, relax, and then start to bloom as he gets healthy in mind and body.  I'm excited to see what we can do for Schwartz as we continue to peel the layers off of this onion horse.

New Horse Gets a Name and a Second Ride

Saturday was busy with a Kentucky Derby party in Denver at Arapahoe Track and riding horses in the morning before the party.  I had a client here who had a little extra time to take some photos and video of me with the new horse.

The whole story behind his name is an entertaining one.  When he was purchased by his racing owners he reminded them of Arnold Schwartzenegger, and so they called him Arnie for short, and were going to register him as I'll Be Back with the Jockey Club.  When they went to fill out the papers, though, someone had a momentary memory fail and wrote on the name line: I Shall Return.  Because of that he was called Mac at his first home off the track, since there is an older song titled Return of the Mac.

The new guy has turned out to be quite introverted.  He hasn't expressed too many opinions in the couple weeks he's been here, he just tries to be good and to stay out of trouble.  I've tried calling him several different names, choosing one each day and seeing how he responds.  I've called him Arnie, Mac, Rudy, as well as my little catch-all names like Handsome, Kid, Buddy, and Big Guy.  He is always friendly, but hasn't really indicated that he wants to be called any of those names.  Yesterday it occurred to me to try calling him Schwartz.  In German it means "black", and he's such a dark bay he could be mistaken for a black horse.  It also is a nod to his racing owner's idea of naming him after Arnold Schwartzenegger.

When I went out in the morning on Friday and called him Schwartz, he immediately lifted his head and stared at me.  In case it was a fluke, I called him by that name for a couple days.  If I was close enough to him he would nuzzle me every time I used that name.  Otherwise he would turn his head to face me every time I used it.  So Schwartz it is.

I rode him yesterday morning again and had another wonderful ride.  He is a bit fast and is still trying to find his rhythm, but he has amazing movement when he starts to relax and stretch.  As an added bonus I discovered that my favorite dressage saddle fits him quite well.  When a horse is so new to off track training I generally like to keep them in a jumping saddle so I can more easily ride in a two point position.  However, since the dressage saddle fit and it looks nice in photos I went with that one for Saturday morning's ride.  I got some video as a baseline so in six months I can reflect back on his first rides and how far he's come.  It's a little long, but the video can be seen here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmTyDr6EZdg

 I also got some lovely photos of Schwartz riding and standing tacked up.  He's really a beautiful and sensitive horse with nice conformation and a quiet temperament now that he is confident with me handling him.  He has nice impulsion, suspension, and a great big stride, too, which will be fun to develop.

He has turned out to be a really cool gelding, and I'm very excited to see what he decides he wants to do as a sport horse.  I'm still cognizant of his back story and the quirks he displayed in his previous homes, but so far here he has been not just very reasonable, but also showing a lot of potential. 

Retired Racehorse Project First Ride

Exciting news!  I rode the new guy for the first time today.  I lunged him with the dogs first, and he just jogged sedately around a few times each direction.  When I saw that he wasn't going to be silly I led him up to the mounting block and went through my first ride rituals.  These include standing on the mounting block and stomping my feet, patting both sides of the saddle, and asking him to turn his head both directions.  Then I turn the horse around and do everything from his opposite side.  He seemed very unimpressed with my shenanigans, but Mahzi the dog was super hopeful that she would get a turn to climb the mounting block and pat the saddle too.  Miles the border collie and I have been training her since she arrived six months ago and this is one of her favorite tricks.

The new guy was easy to mount, he stood quietly and then walked off a little early, but that is to be expected since track horses are almost never mounted while standing.  They usually toss the jockey aboard while the horse is walking, so the fact that he was willing to stand at all is a major bonus.  He was a little hesitant at first, definitely trying to determine what kind of rider I am.  He walked carefully and trotted carefully, but once he realized I wanted him to stretch and swing he began to really lift his back and find his rhythm.  He did incredibly well with steering just based on my weight shifts, and he stopped very nicely when I took a deep breath and exhaled.  He actually started to match my breathing with his own, blowing his nose when I exhaled loudly.  He wasn't phased by the dogs romping around barking encouragement.

I don't always canter a horse in the first ride from the track, but he was so mellow and steady with such great steering and brakes I decided to give it a try.  I was absolutely amazed at the canter on this horse.  Big, swinging, balanced, uphill and rhythmic. We did a few figure eights at the canter while I tested out his leads, and after a little "getting to know you" he figured out very quickly which lead I wanted just by my weight shifts.

When we were done riding he was quite affectionate.  He nuzzled me and seemed very proud of himself as I praised him and told him how impressed I was.  His eye was very soft and relaxed, and he seemed even to strut a little bit as we walked back to the barn.  He almost told me that he really is kind of a rockstar, and he was glad I could appreciate his fabulousness.  

This horse is a phenomenal example of why I love the older track horses.  He raced until he was nine years old, retired sound, and obviously had terrific training on the track.  He is ten now, and has that confidence and balance I love to see in the older retired racehorses.  I realize that he wasn't a great fit in his previous home, but he is settling in here at Bit of Honey Training like he was made for this place.  After we rode I was so eager to tell someone about him that I called his previous owner.  She was pleased to hear how nicely he's settled into the routine here and she was as happy as I was that his first ride went so well.  She also told me that her first couple rides on him were equally nice, and that's why she took him out to ride the trails by himself, which then didn't go well as his anxiety kicked in.  I'm eager to see how he handles riding out here, since he seems so easy going, even despite the horse-rearranging with all the new ones coming in for training.

He was very upset by even small changes in the herd with his previous owners both at the track and in South Dakota, but here he handles all the regular shuffling of paddocks quite well.  It helps that I have a core herd of geldings who live here all the time, and they each take turns reassuring him over the fence.  Then there is Highboy, who always thinks that everything is fun and is eager for new adventures.  It's hard to be nervous with the sedate older geldings encouraging you and Highboy declaring that everything is awesome.
 
When we were all done I groomed him again and put him away.  He had a little snack of hay and then laid down in his warm muddy paddock for a mid morning nap while I worked the other horses.  When I went into the house for lunch I gushed about him to my husband who works from home.  I was so effusive in my praise for this horse that my husband felt the need to remind me I don't actually need another horse for myself, and he is for sale.  That's how impressed I was by this gelding.  Bless the affectionate iron horses.

Counter-Balancing the Planet

I took the new horse to the arena today to look around and lunge a little.  Yesterday we had some llama drama at the neighbor's, and all the horses were watching very carefully when a dark colored llama went for a walk along the property line while wearing a pack saddle.  It's easy to see the llamas from the arena, so today the new horse watched them while on the lunge line, and they all stared at him, too.  Miles and Mahzi were with us as moral support and acting as distractions.

The new horse was very quiet, he came to me when I called to him from the stall door and he stood quietly for grooming.  The four of us (two dogs, one human, one horse) all went to the arena together and we went over the two series' of poles and sniffed around the barrels.  Then I put the new guy on the lunge line to see if he knew how to go in a circle around me, and he was very sedate about it.  He jogged nicely to the left and to the right, only cocking an ear occasionally as Miles careened around at top speed in the opposite direction.  Our theory is that Miles feels he must run counterclockwise in a circle when the horse is going clockwise so that the Earth doesn't tip off its axis with all the spinning.  Or he is a herding dog.  Either way, he is great desensitization for the horses getting them prepared for the commotion of a horse show or trail ride.

A short video of the new horse walking on the lunge line with Miles can be seen here:
https://www.facebook.com/kim.leonard.100/videos/vb.1156931851/10206515637227149/?type=2&theater

Even with the fast dogs and the interested neighbor llamas the new horse was very calm.  He pays attention to everything, particularly traffic on the road on the horizon line.  This makes sense for him, as a horse that was bred to run fast his flight instinct is strong and he is hyper-vigilant regarding potential predators lurking and moving smoothly on the horizon.  When he begins to focus on something scary, I redirect his attention back to me before he gets really fixated and all reasoning powers evaporate.  My doing that tells him that I'm in charge of the scary situation and I will always keep him safe, and since I'm not concerned about it he doesn't need to be either.  This doesn't work with all horses, some types of horses absolutely need to stare at the scary thing until they figure it out.  If I don't let them think it through they just get more and more upset.  Generally those types are horses bred to think - draft horses, cow horses.  But with horses bred to run like this horse, keeping him from getting fixated is critical to his mental health.

He is still cribbing, but only a couple swallows at a time, not nearly as bad as some I've known.  It's better to manage the horse's environment so that it doesn't begin cribbing, but he's a ten year old who has been doing it for years so the odds of eliminating it are slim.  Once a horse starts cribbing the behavior can't be completely stopped because the horse becomes addicted to its own endorphins which are the brain's pain-relief chemicals. I have continued to watch for what his particular triggers are, and I'm wondering about his digestion.  He is thin and doesn't have as much appetite as I'd like to see.  Whether that may be a result of the cribbing or a cause of the cribbing remains to be seen.

There is also evidence that cribbing and colic are associated.  However, which came first, the chicken or the egg?  The muscles activated in cribbing change abdominal pressure, and cribbing is associated with endorphin release and is done as a self-soothing behavior.  So which comes first, a belly ache or the cribbing?  Does the cribbing help relieve pain from a belly ache or does the cribbing cause a belly ache?  I have investigated the acupressure points for ulcers on him and have not had any reaction, and he was treated for ulcers when he came off the track in Nov. 2014.  His current diet is appropriate for a horse who may have indigestion.

In my continued research about cribbing I've also discovered some new-to-me information that indicates cribbing may be a genetic neurological issue.  His dam's bloodline, French Legionaire, is known for producing quirky anxious horses, so I suspect there's a genetic component affecting neurotransmitters in the new guy.  It's been compared to OCD in humans, similar in that there is a chemical imbalance in the horse's brain causing a repetitive behavior which produces more of the necessary missing chemicals.  I'm less inclined to put a cribbing strap on him because he definitely seems to do it as a self-soothing behavior and I want to keep him as comfortable as possible.  In all the research the studies show other horses don't "learn" it from watching, it seems to be a genetic thing triggered by environment so I'm not worried about the other horses here.  

I still have not settled on a name for him, and he hasn't shown a preference for titles yet.  I'm thinking tomorrow I may try calling him Rudy, because he makes me think of the movie about young man, Daniel Ruettiger "Rudy", who overcomes dyslexia to achieve the academics he needs to play football at Notre Dame.  Everyone roots for him because he's such a good guy, and the character has determination and great strength of personality.  Those are qualities I'd like to foster and develop in this horse. 

I continue to peel layers off of this onion horse, and I feel pleased that he is looking to me as his safety blanket in new situations like the arena and with llama drama.  I often say in horse training as in life, fast is slow and slow is fast, so I'm not in any rush to push this horse into anything.  I often have great success with difficult horses as they come to trust me and give me the information I need about how to teach them in the way they will learn best.  I think I will learn a lot from this horse, too, as he teaches me what he needs.