Boggle- USA bound!

[Michen]

Bog kept a very watchful eye whilst I mucked out Dusty And it’s very much true love with pig Dusty. When he’s not chasing her.

Also Bog was on extremely good form this morning, obviously I don't think the Prostride could have done anything yet but he was loose around the barn (no turnout for a day), trotting about, very very perky and playful and doing his full "I am gods gift to the world and I RUN this barn" act. Haha.

The vet yesterday said he was a little puzzled by everything, because although we are now 99% sure the neck caused the acute neuro issue, it's unusual for it to be so quick and sudden and for them to make such a good recovery. Usually if it was something that acute it would be pretty catastrophic and they wouldn't recover so well. And generally with a neck issue that's impinging on the spinal cord, it would be a slow decline. He's a mystery!

 

[BMA2]

Here's Jonny Boggle

 

[Michen]

I am very impressed with Dusty. He is obviously upset and wound up as expected with a move and lots to deal with. But he’s totally unspooky and tries really hard. Yesterday it took two mins to have him leading better (he walks through you, so lots of stopping and backing up), and remembered the lesson completely today even though he was fired up. Stops in an instant when I do and remains respectful with a slack lead rope. He was sent with a stud chain and I was told to use it so I’m pleased with that! Thought I’d give him a little to think about so put a roller on and tested out some long reins for ten mins and he was completely unbothered and tried so, so hard. Proper baby though, no mouth and steering yet! He’s had a spruce up

Bog is begrudgingly “enjoying” his massage pad and busy getting himself ready for the event season he thinks.

 

[Michen]

Plodding along here. I don’t know what to make of Boggle, the front limb subtle ataxia signs seem all but gone in the indoor. He’s just doing ten mins a day if that of a few poles, backing up etc. But tonight he reached around to itch his foot (FGS Boggle) and I saw a pain response albeit it was fleeting. Other than that he seems really good. I guess we will see in another week or so if the treatment helped. It’s just a little emotionally draining I guess.

Dusty, what a delight. I don’t need to teach him anything twice. Yesterday he learned to stop on long reins when I say woah and today it was as good as how he finished the day before, when he started. He’s not so much as thrown a buck or a shape on them. Just been doing very short long rein walk sessions in as much of a straight line as possible and a few in hand poles. Finishing them the last couple of times learning about a mounting block. I’ve been jumping around on it and leaning over his back and he’s really unfussed. He’s also the most non spooky horse I’ve ever worked with, couldn’t care less about scary things in school or farm equipment lying around when I take him on little walks. Stuff that after 5 months still gets a sharp snort from Boggle

This is all whilst he’s very much still on high alert and settling in so it bodes well for when he’s truly comfortable. Or he could get fit and turn into a lunatic, we will see!

 

[Tarragon]

You can tell by the expressions on Bog and Dusty in the bottom two photos. Bog is on HIGH ELERT, you can almost hear the snort, and Dusty looks very content.
Has Dusty got his own page yet?

 

[Michen]

You can tell by the expressions on Bog and Dusty in the bottom two photos. Bog is on HIGH ELERT, you can almost hear the snort, and Dusty looks very content.
Has Dusty got his own page yet?

Probably why he’s got neck arthritis! I’ve been feeling so much guilt lately. Obviously he works round etc when schooling but he’s always been such a livewire, always gone around with that neck arched and buzzy. It’s just how he is but I feel like I should have made more effort to hack him long and low rather than on a long rein most of the time allowing that neck carriage. But he is what he is I guess.

Not yet, maybe when I’m doing a bit more with him

 

[SEL]

Probably why he’s got neck arthritis! I’ve been feeling so much guilt lately. Obviously he works round etc when schooling but he’s always been such a livewire, always gone around with that neck arched and buzzy. It’s just how he is but I feel like I should have made more effort to hack him long and low rather than on a long rein most of the time allowing that neck carriage. But he is what he is I guess.

Not yet, maybe when I’m doing a bit more with him

My little cob is a head up, high alert type when in the field and hacking - some of them just are and you can't force them into a better posture on their own time.

I suspect my physio says much the same about me hunched over my laptop right now!!

 

[palo1]

Probably why he’s got neck arthritis! I’ve been feeling so much guilt lately. Obviously he works round etc when schooling but he’s always been such a livewire, always gone around with that neck arched and buzzy. It’s just how he is but I feel like I should have made more effort to hack him long and low rather than on a long rein most of the time allowing that neck carriage. But he is what he is I guess.

Not yet, maybe when I’m doing a bit more with him

Well, yeah but most of his life Bog will have been grazing, head lowered or in a more relaxed frame; you can't blame yourself for his character! Long and low can also be unhelpful for horses too...

 

[Michen]

True, true. Thanks both it’s just one of the many things I replay in my mind at the moment to punish myself!

I feel a real combination of guilt and anger currently. It seems so unfair that all I want is to give Bog a happy retirement for a long, long time and yet so many horses get put down

 

[Michen]

Damn, this horse is very sweet! Doesn’t seem bothered that he’s not had someone up there for years and years!

 

[Trouper]

Clearly sent to you for a reason!!

 

[Parrotperson]

wow. he's a saint!!! You'll be keeping him I'm guessing .

Refresh my memory. I'm old and decrepit and fell over walking the dog the other day and cracked a rib so am felling sorry for myself! How long since someone sat on him? and how old is he?

He's a real sweetie though. Maybe Bog will *ahem* learn to be calm from him. (OK probably not but one can dream!)

 

[Michen]

wow. he's a saint!!! You'll be keeping him I'm guessing .

Refresh my memory. I'm old and decrepit and fell over walking the dog the other day and cracked a rib so am felling sorry for myself! How long since someone sat on him? and how old is he?

He's a real sweetie though. Maybe Bog will *ahem* learn to be calm from him. (OK probably not but one can dream!)

I really can’t afford to keep him long term sadly!

His last racing record was 2021 I think, or 2019.. one of the two lol. And the rescue didn’t think he’d been ridden since from what info they got from the guy who dumped him there, skinny and starved

He's 9.

 

[humblepie]

Not been on this thread for a little while and suddenly an ex racehorse has appeared and there is a pig and a horse with the same name. Was very confused but gone back a few pages and now up to speed! Love the photo of Bog in the school and Dusty looks a cool dude.

 

[Michen]

Not been on this thread for a little while and suddenly an ex racehorse has appeared and there is a pig and a horse with the same name. Was very confused but gone back a few pages and now up to speed! Love the photo of Bog in the school and Dusty looks a cool dude.

Things happen quick around here, I think Dusty was heard about, seen and then at my barn within about 48 hours haha.

 

[humblepie]

Things happen quick around here, I think Dusty was heard about, seen and then at my barn within about 48 hours haha.

Often the best way. He's a lucky Dusty.

 

[Michen]

It's been a bit quiet on the horse front, I've been on a roadtrip around Colorado this week with friend and godson. Got back yesterday and straight to the barn! It's been less icy so I long reined Dusty all around the barn to get some hills into him. He has decided to have a little opinion about leaving the other horses and testing out whether napping is an option. Unlucky for him, he is about 1/10th as quick and committed about it as Boggle was, or Bear. So it was all over pretty quickly without drama. I think another couple of weeks of the long reining and poles and then I'll add in some short stints riding, I'm just trying to be careful about it all as he's obviously been out of work a long time plus starved in that time. If I was in the UK he'd be doing everything out of the arena and be walking for miles but unfortunately that's not possible here at the moment so I just have to work with what I can and try to be mindful.

Boggle seems great! Throwing his usual shapes, I've still been doing very short sessions in hand just to keep him moving and keep his awareness up, and have been working on having him half pass, side pass, whatever it's called along a pole. So pole in between front and back legs. At first he was totally blocked to the right, couldn't get any movement. Now he's doing it with ease but in typical Bog fashion, now he can/knows what to do he does it immediately and much quicker than I want (it might have something to do with the polo he get's afterwards, yes shame on me!). So now it's a case of slowing him down to have him do it correctly rather than rushing and looking very pleased with himself after! Still, for a mildly ataxic horse I'm impressed he can do this at all. And I do think the front limb ataxia is better, I see far less of those "leg wobbles". I don't want to get my hopes up as they always come crashing down (and no, not in a ridden sense, that is far out of my mind), but I'm really hoping he's comfortable and happy and I can keep him that way for as long as possible. His body looks fantastic, he doesn't look like a horse that's been out of work for a day let alone 5 months, or really 8 if you count pre pneumonia as he hadn't fully rebuilt the muscle from that before he got sick again.

He is an outrageous thug though, I've completely spoilt him thinking I was going to lose him so many times and my goodness his expression is just constantly cheeky, the front leg waving appears often and he thinks nothing of shoving the wheelbarrow out of the way of the door when I'm mucking out to let himself out for a wander.

It's so warm here today that he will be spending the day without a rug or at the very most a stable sheet, despite being fully clipped. Snow next week again, though.

Hope everyone is having a good pony weekend!

 

[splashgirl45]

He looks fantastic , and sounds like he is progressing nicely

 

[Michen]

He looks fantastic , and sounds like he is progressing nicely

He is! But every day is a bonus. So, who really cares if he’s a spoiled little s***

 

[Jeni the dragon]

I absolutely love that last photo of him there! He looks great!

 

[Michen]

And what did Boggle do next…

I posted another thread as I was hoping I was over reacting. Bog came in a couple of weeks ago with a filled leg, it went down significantly pretty quickly and then felt more like a windgall than anything, so I pretty much buried my head in the sand and ignored it. I feel pretty shameful about that. Went away for a few days and came back and the swelling felt more localized so I clipped his extremely hairy leg to find this and look for a wound or anything that could explain it. Nope. It does reduce by about half with cold hosing and he’s not uncomfortable on it that I can see (but on pain relief anyway for everything else).

I was going to continue to ignore it but I’m worried it could be something slight that could become major if I do, so I’m stall/run resting and cold hosing twice a day with ten minute in hand walks whilst I wait for it to be scanned on Thursday. It probably seems a bit mad to scan a retired horse with a soft tissue injury but… I kinda want/need to know.

Things come in threes. This is the third. Please, please keep your fingers crossed it’s nothing but from the look of it I know it’s not

I obviously won’t do any kind of extended box rest but he’s in a good set up if a few weeks would help, at least.

Feels never ending

 

[YourValentine]

Boggle!!!

I hope it is far more minor than you're thinking and a couple of weeks with less galloping around bucking is all it needs.

 

[BallyRoanBaubles]

Fingers crossed scan on Thursday shows nothing sinister

 

[southerncomfort]

M - you're so hard on yourself! Sometimes playing the 'wait and see' game is a perfectly reasonable course of action.

That horse lives like a king and wants for absolutely nothing. But however much we care about them, sometimes other parts of our life have to take priority. And that is ok.

You are the most diligent owner i know. Please ease up on yourself.

 

[Michen]

M - you're so hard on yourself! Sometimes playing the 'wait and see' game is a perfectly reasonable course of action.

That horse lives like a king and wants for absolutely nothing. But however much we care about them, sometimes other parts of our life have to take priority. And that is ok.

You are the most diligent owner i know. Please ease up on yourself.

I just feel I should have been resting and cold hosing the minute it happened but it’s like I couldn’t admit to myself there was a problem. Anyway, I’m on the case now, twice daily trips to the barn are already wearing thin!!!

 

[Michen]

What Bog thinks of the cold hosing regime

 

[Cavalier]

What Bog thinks of the cold hosing regime
View attachment 135307

If looks could kill..,

 

[Jeni the dragon]

 

[Northern Hare]

Sorry to hear Bog is on the injured list. I just wondered if you can you get a Bonner Bandage over in the US? They're cold compression bandages that you freeze and then apply instead of cold hosing. Imo they are a fantastic bit of kit - I used one when my horse strained his annular ligament across the back of his fetlock, and the vet was super-impressed with his recovery. They help to save water as well.

 

[meleeka]

Sorry to hear Bog is on the injured list. I just wondered if you can you get a Bonner Bandage over in the US? They're cold compression bandages that you freeze and then apply instead of cold hosing. Imo they are a fantastic bit of kit - I used one when my horse strained his annular ligament across the back of his fetlock, and the vet was super-impressed with his recovery. They help to save water as well.

They sound great. I usually just chuck a bandage in a cold bucket of water and leave it on for an hour with my pony that won’t let me hose. That’s effective,
so one that actually stays cold would be great.