Unfortunately, since my last post I've been dealing with some mild lameness with Andy. My barn owner and I agree that the most likely culprit is a stone bruise, or something to that nature, from when the pasture was frozen rock solid. It's not too bad; just off in the trot. My first inclination was to call the vet right away, but BO and my farrier both advised me to watch and wait. So I've been waiting and watching. Finally, this last week I could tell that we had some improvement. I rode him very briefly in the arena, and while he was still off, he was markedly less uneven. On the left rein he seemed almost sound. So he's not better yet, but definitely on the road to recovery.

That little shit makes me worry so much! I was so upset when when I first noticed that he was off. So I had the farrier and BO look at him, and we found absolutely nothing. No hoof sensitivity, no obvious bruise, no swelling, heat, or sensitivity ANYWHERE. So here I am, worried to death as I brought him out to the pasture. Right after I took his halter off, he squealed, and broke right into a bucking canter, off to find his buddies. Obviously if he felt good enough to run and buck, he wasn't hurting too bad.

So for the past month, I've had a very big pet to take care of. Lame horses still need food, grooming, worming, and stall-cleaning. And the funny thing is, I really don't mind! Caring for animals has always been a pleasant task for me, even some of the icky stuff (like picking turds out of an automatic waterer. Really, Andy?) So my barn routine of late has been pretty relaxing- clean the stall, bring in Andy, feed and groom until he is puuuurty, rinse and repeat!