Horse Women Unite!!!

Duffy11.  I had BMX (sentinal node on bc side with 4 more nodes removed) no recon. I was worried about my stregnth post op. I definatley felt the lack of stregnth in my pecs which had been very strong. It never occured to me how my balance might be affected. (duh) The first time I rode my balance was off but I quickly accomidated. I ride dressage. It is nice to not use a sports bra. I use an Under Armour compression tank when riding or any exercise. I spent alot of time at the gym for stregnthening. I did develop lymphedema. I would recommend an eval by CLT prior to surgery if possible. I wish I had known to do that at the time. 

As far as barn chores, I think it would be at least 6-8 weeks for healing. If you have not already had a conversation with your surgeon about activity, you should explain in detail what you do. I find most non horse folks don't understand what we do. After surgery, you will have some drains. The legnth of time will depend on how much they drain. I had very little pain except for the drains which pulled with activity. I also had a revision of the incisions about 9 months after BMX and rode 2 weeks after. I did not have drains then. No one at the barn would let me lift my saddle. 

I have been enjoying the unseasonable weather here in New England. I live in Maine but grew up in MA on the North Shore.  Horses are very therapeutic-good for healing and the soul. Healing thoughts for you.

Hello fellow horse lovers and bc fighters. I sadly had to remove my horse from his barn due to severe food aggresions issues. He bit my sister in the face when she walked by him and his haybag. Happy to report however that he is doing well in his new home. I am hoping next spring to get another horse and start trail riding and do some showing

@ Bluecowgirl....trainer bashing thread??  I only gave my experience in reply to what Janice was discussing.

We should be 'allowed' to discuss any/all aspects of horse care, training, boarding, riding styles on a horse forum.

If there were rules, I must have missed them?

Hi all, I've been absent for a few days but glad to be back! 

Jancie, glad you got your mare moved.  I'm sorry your trainer was so upset with you and not very nice about it.  Sounds like she was defensive, and maybe felt like you were undermining her authority and knowledge.  (Although you weren't.)  I totally agree though that you MUST feel comfortable in the training methods and the health care of your horse; after all you're the one paying the bills!  I think what happens at a lot of training and show barns is that there are many owners who are not knowledgeable, and therefore rely completely on the trainer/barn manager to make all the decisions regarding care, feeding, and health care of the horse.  And sometimes that is perfectly valid and necessary (when you have inexperienced or absentee owners especially) but not always. As a vet I see this a lot, and sometimes it's a bit sketchy when I have new clients or owners or a new manager/trainer.  That's the kind of thing that has to be well established in everyone's mind.  (For example I need to have explicit consent from an owner about who is authorized to make decisions.)  And sometimes there are owners who are more knowledgeable and want to be more involved than the other clients at that barn, so I have to be sure to always keep them apprised of things and get their approval of stuff.

Anyway, what I'm getting at is that I've been on ALL sides of these situations... I've been the owner, the trainer, the barn manager, the rider, the barn help, and the vet... and therefore seen a lot of misunderstandings and conflicts, and lots of times it boils down to personalities that clash.  But really, my bottom line is... being nice to people goes a long way! Sounds like you are right on about the assistant trainer there and her attitude being the majority of the issue.  That's a shame since you had a good relationship with the main trainer.

Duffy11 -- welcome!  Good luck with your surgery and recovery.  I had a unilat. mx with an implant, then reduction on the other; and one week later (or less) we had a HUGE snowstorm, and I live alone basically in the middle of nowhere.  The guy who farms the land here plowed my road and driveway, but I had to shovel the steps and a path to my truck.  It was a bad idea but I felt I had no choice and figured out a "safe" and basically painless but of course, slow, method to shovel.  

I guess I went to the barn after a week.  I brushed my horse with my non-mx side, so yeah, I agree that you need to be careful grooming, and even leading them, since if they spook and yank the rope even a little it could cause a big problem.  I remember at my recheck with my surgeon (I still had the drains in) he asked how I was doing, and I said fine, I'm happy since I was able to go to the barn and visit my horse, and he got this horrified look on his face and said You went to the barn; but you still have your drains in!  And I said to him, Yeah, but I was wearing clothes!  (I thought that was a perfectly valid argument.)

As far as balance and stuff, my body type changed significantly, and I don't feel I had any significant trouble adapting, I just looked at it like having to develop my fitness again.   I was lucky though in that I only had a SLN removed from the BC side, and not multiple nodes.  (I know that would've made it a little harder.)  I actually was competing at USEA recognized events at Training level a month after my last chemo and I managed to stay on, haha!!  I was bald and exhausted (it was also the middle of a HOT summer) but it was so good for the soul to be out there competing again.   I give my horse a lot of credit though for being such a good partner and helping me out when he had to.  

It's supposed to be in the upper 50's today in Tennessee, this beautiful last day of 2011.  I am going to catch my Peruvian horse, my old reliable, and take a 3 hour trail ride this afternoon.  Happy New Year to all of you.

Jules59, I should have borrowed your horse today for my "relaxing trail ride!"

I went to the barn this afternoon, to have a nice ride in this unseasonably WARM weather.  Two other boarders were riding so we decided to go on a trail ride.  It's muzzle-loader season, and we could hear them shooting around the farm, so we were going to ride along the road in the direction we knew there was no hunting.  Well early in the ride we were passing by the ONE house that's out there, and their little white dog was barking and running through the yard towards us, hidden by the big trees until it was almost to us.  THEN CAME THE BIG WHITE GOAT! It was close on the heels of the dog.  You can imagine how THAT went over with the horses!  All three bolted.  The terrifying type of bolting where they are so freaked out they forget you are on them.  My horse (approx. 1350 lb. warmblood with a straight rubber bit in his mouth) was right on the heels of the TB mare; I seriously thought he was going to run her over!  The mare moved over a bit and we passed her; somehow the owner got her stopped and she jumped off.  Meanwhile my friend on the little Paint horse was trying to keep him off the road, and in planning her route to go on the driveway, her horse turned sharper, leaped over the ditch, almost landed in it, then kept going down the driveway.  I then got my guy stopped, then my friend got the paint stopped.  So I declared "Molly wins!"  Then my stupid horse stood straight up like Hi Ho Silver.  (Which is why I have him... he was doing that to people regularly.  This is the first time in 5 months he's done it with me!)  So my friends and I were then standing around wondering what to do now, but knowing darn well we weren't going past the goat again.  So we went in the other direction and just had a safe walk around the outside perimeter of the farm.

The end.  

Horsedoc - laughing my arse off - I can just picture the entire event as you were writing it.

Bad dog - bad goat!!!  Oh and bad horses for bolting!

I would be right there enjoying drinks with Heidi if that had happened to me.  Guess it was not the day for trail riding.

I am happy but exhausted.  The horse move went excellent.  My horse is the spawn of the devil - I call her Satan's child at times because she is so devious and quite the handful.

She was put out with 4 other mares when I got to the new barn - she already knew 3 of them from back in 2010.  In any case Jazzy is an instigator and always has been.  She had all of them running, galloping around like crazy for hours today and then she just stands there acting all innocent.

I stayed there the entire time she was turned out and then for a bit when they brought her in for the night to get her settled in her new stall.  Her ears were pricked forward all day long, her eyes were soft and I could tell this is what she needed.  She missed being turned out with friends.

I will never put her in a "training facility" again where they keep all of the horses separated so they don't "hurt each other" because after all if they get laid up then they can't be trained and therefore, the trainer makes no money if your horse is recuperating from an injury.

I have always felt that a horse needs to be a horse and if they get hurt in turn-out well so be it. 

After breaking 7 bones in one year I think I was just vulnerable and had lost my confidence to ride without my trainer and I won't make that mistake again.  She built a new facility and no longer would travel to train and that is why I left to begin with.  I was her first client to commit to moving to her new facility. 

Like many people, I am older and I don't like change and it was comforting for me to go with my trainer to her new facility and I was promised turn out with other horses.  It was only after I got there and 2 months later my horse and another horse got into it and they were both laid up for a couple of weeks that the trainer decided that no longer would any horses be turned out together.  I should have left at that time but I didn't want to make a change again so quickly.  Geez....that was stupid of me and I won't make that mistake again.

In any case, all is well that ends well.  My horse is happy and so am I.

Yikes, I just read the goat story Horsedoc.  Scary indeed.  I got the bolt action about 15 years ago after resuming lessons since a child (English).  I was riding Chanel,a beautful grey mare whom was a dressage horse.  We were trotting in an indoor area passing an open door around dusk. "Something" spooked Chanel and she took off like a bat out of hell.  And just as fast as she bolted she put on the brakes.  Me being a novice rider did the old flip right over the head and landed flat on my back.  Got the wind knocked out of me and couldn't breath for a minute or so (seemed like forever).  Ended up having an ambulance come and pick me up IN the arena, taken to the hospital with a T3 fracture.  Wish I had seen what spooked her, but probably wouldn't have made much difference.  Just glad, it could have been a lot worse.

Take care all,
Sharon

pupfoster1- Did I mention my Uncle trained Man o' War? The author of that book contacted me when she was writing it.

Yes, it's sad. My son went to Salisbury University and we ate at Ruth Christies Steak House just about where Man o' War's stall would have been.

And yes, I think I'm going to Timonium... first time since gelding my stallion.

Me, years ago, hunting sidesaddle:

Stunning, stunning picture!!

Horse friends, I spent New Year's Eve camping in my horse trailer (which has a cozy mattress, a small oriental rug, and electricity, so I'm very comfortable) and was up at dawn for a New Year's Day hunt. My treatments ended Dec. 30th, 2010, so to spend the 31st and 1st hunting, one year after the end of treatment, was meaningful to me. I was the Field Master, leader of the field, and shared with my friends that it was an "anniversary" for me. Several sweet friends started crying a little, and I had to fight tears also. It was a beautiful day, spent with horses, dogs and friends.