Finally a playday!

Ever since Virpi and I joined the Bay area savvy players group, we have been wanting to attend to one of the Parelli playdays they host each month. It has been difficult to plan the trip with our horses, not owning a trailer, But last month when I read about the upcoming playday it sounded like so much fun, that I decided to call the one person we know who owns a trailer, Ronda.

We were in luck. Ronda was available with a short notice and so on Sunday morning at 8 am after a "piece of cake" trailer loading we were on a way to our first ever Parelli playday.

We were excited about the day and laughed the whole one hour and fifteen minute drive down to Gilroy.

Steal and Madeira, who haven't trailered for at least 3 years were unexpectedly calm as we unloaded them at the the most beautiful place, a real horsey heaven, the Ruiz ranch. 

The arena was set up with various, potentially scary obstacles in the most imaginative way. Virpi and I were put into separate groups and at first Madeira was quite right brain and nervous. She kept calling for Steal at the other end of the arena and Steal called back. It was like some Romeo and Juliet drama. I had to get her nervous feet moving, do lots of changing direction and focus, focus, focus to bring down her adrenaline. And the result completely exceeded my expectations. Although every once in a while she kept calling for her Romeo, she was still connected with me and completed each task with dignity. I was incredibly pleased and so very proud of her.

We played ground games until noon with a finale of firecrackers, which were set off in the middle of the arena. I was prepared for Madeira to be leaping  thought the air in panic at the end of my 22 foot line as soon as the firecrackers would go off. Amazingly, I was wrong.  She spooked at the first set of firecrackers, but her feet never moved. The second set of firecrackers, she never even flinched. Unbeliveable! Astonishing! Dumbfounding!  

Aawww, my extreme right brain extrovert has come such a long way. I know I've said this before, but again, it is truly amazing what can be accomplished with horses, using only one ingredient, trust! 

Madeira and Steal had a well deserved break in one of the paddocks in the barn while we ate our potluck lunch. They lounged about happily munching their hey. 

After lunch it was time for mounted games. Virpi and I had planned to only observe the riding part of the playday, since we had expected our mounts to be pretty much unrideable. However it turned out, that Madeira and Steal were both so unexpectedly calm, that we felt comfortable getting on them and trying out the obstacles.

It went fantastically. all we did was walked around the arena for a few minutes surrounded by other horses and riders playing with the scary obstacles. And when we got to a point that we felt the horses were in a desired state of mind we decided it was time to call it a day. 

We had so much fun! It was the best day! Thank you so much Deb for welcoming us to your beautiful place, and for everyone involved organizing such a fantastic playday. 

Steal and the ferocious green ball.

Madeira on the teeter-totter.

Steal backing up under the huge tarp.

I love this one with her hind feet tipi toeing, just barely on the pedestal.

Autumn thoughts

The autumn is here once more. The early mornings are so cold and dark now, that getting out of bed at 5:30am just seems so overwhelming. Can't wait to turn the clocks back, to sleep an extra hour in the morning. The traffic over the hill to Half Moon Bay seems overwhelming too. Yesterday it took me and hour and a half to do the normal 20minute drive. Everyone is travelling to the pumpkin town for some pre Halloween fun.

While the days have still been beautifully sunny and warm, the horses sure are getting fluffier by the day. Believe it or not, this is the underside of Madeira's belly. Yep, she is pretty furry down there.

Madeira is still lame. the second set of x-rays showed an abscess, that had traveled from the toe, around the coffin bone to the medial side of the hoof. She also has "pedal osteitis," which is defined as demineralization of the solar margin of the distal phalanx as a result of inflammation.

This could have been caused by any kind of trauma to the foot in the past and may not have any relevance to her lameness, however, it's difficult to tell. In the mean time her foot stays wrapped with Epsom salt poultice, and is soaked with Epsom salts four times a week, in hopes of clearing the abscess. For the most part she has been walking well so we have taken walks on the trail. The movement would also help the abscess to move out faster. But every ones in a while she comes up three legged lame and stays in her stall drugged with bute. Poor lady Madeira. She has been such a good sport through all of this, and has definitely learned to put on her most adorable face to receive extra treats.

The vet said it could take weeks for the abscess to clear. I am of course getting impatient and discouraged already. But I have faith, that something good will come of all the hardship we must endure. I have spend hours and hours of "undemanding" time with Madeira. And it is the art of doing nothing, which horses so readily appreciate, that keeps strengthening our relationship. Now, that the flies are so bad I take off her halter while soaking her foot, and use it to shoo flies off her face and legs. She appreciates the help and dozes off until the soak is over. Isn't it great how even the most annoying little flying creatures can be useful helping us bond.
Although I'm trying to spend as much time as I can with Madeira, my horseplaying days are far from standstill because of her condition. There are plenty of horses to play with and ones to ride. Tuff provides a good comfy ride, and Igor's horse "Sad Eyes" has been an interesting new playmate. And then of course there is baby Leila, Kim and Candy who all need their special love and attention.

Candy has been extremely lame the past two weeks. We believe that she has relapsed with laminitis, but the ranch manager believes otherwise. Without a proper vet exam it's hard to tell. She has been laying down in her stall unable to get up.

Kim found a comfortable patch of grass to lay on while wandering out in the sun last weekend. She dozed off for a while and dreamed of places where she could see again. Sadly, after doing so well at gaining weight for nearly a year, she has started to loose it again. Her nose is often bloody and she is not eating well. There is reason to believe, that she may have some kind of a cancer. She is very old, and after such a hard life she has been happy pretending to be our private horse for the past year, which is much longer, than we anticipated, considering the condition we found her in last December.

Steal's mane flowing in the wind

A home of a gopher living on front of our stalls.

The funny bird, who comes to sing to us all the time and makes the funniest sound.

The Pacific ocean sparkling behind the pasture.

"Red sky at night, sailors delight."