Lanky Loll
Well-Known Member
This is a long self pitying post for which I apologise but I've spent most of the last 16 hours or so in tears.
My lovely big TB mare has been diagnosed with a badly torn DDFT after spending the last 6 weeks intermittently lame in front. We'd tried all sorts thinking it was due to her thin soles which were the only thing that showed up on the original xrays but when different pads / shoes / treatments made no difference we nerve blocked her yesterday and scanned today to see that the tendon is double the width it should be just above where it joins the navicular bone with a huge hole.
Prognosis is extremely poor and I'm currently sat with an awful decision to make.
Loll owes me nothing and has given me so much in the last 4 years.
Dad bought her as a big gangly 4yo from DBS with the hope that she might be the next Quevega
By the same stallion as Mon Mome we thought that she might make a useful NH or P2P horse. Too big and weak to go into training straight away I spent the winter and following spring hacking and playing with her did a couple of fun rides where she was a saint and got her pre-season fit before sending her off into training. She only ran once that winter coming second in a bumper at Towcester in good company.
She came home for the summer and had time in the field before being got fit again to go into training - she's an incredible ride on the gallops, she takes a strong hold but you can always stop by dropping the reins and she's back to walk in 3 strides but when she wants to go, she just extends her incredible stride and she's gone
Back in to training she went to run in another bumper at Exeter on new years day, finishing mid-div in the thick mud and the trainer decides that she needs to go over hurdles next but insists on it being soft - heavy ground, I'm not sure why. Anyway off she goes to Huntingdon... and jumps 3 hurdles in the middle of the pack before pulling herself up. You can see the jockey cussing on the video but she's had enough and that's it home she comes for good this time.
She came home poor, but if she's not worked she goes back in herself so we have a summer of light work and hacking whilst building her back up with the aim of 2013 being "our year" - I hadn't competed since 1998 but something about this mare made me want too. Roll on December 2012 and I'm pregnant, I kept riding her up until I was six months gone but that's 2013 effectively scuppered for our grand plans. She spends the rest of the summer hacking and doing funrides with a friend but no schooling or flatwork sends us back. My son arrived by c-section at the end of August writing off riding until mid-October when I clambered back on board with no core strength and started to try and get us both back in order. Making the most of my maternity leave I had regular lessons and joined the local riding club, we both came on in leaps and bounds.
Summer of 2014 we started to compete going out to our first SJ competitions, for our 3rd show we decided to make up the numbers in the RoR challenge class at the Beaufort Show. Having never even seen one of those classes before we had no idea what to expect and the wrong kit on - everyone else in tweed and there was me dressed to go and do SJ. To my shock and glee we came in 3rd with the comments from the judge that she was a bit green and needed to be fatter but she's a lovely mare and he really liked her.
A few more shows and we were representing our RC at the Area Novice SJ where our team finished 2nd qualifying for the final at Hartpury this year.
We had a relatively quiet winter - made it to West Wilts once so that she'd at least had a spin indoors before we had to go to Hartpury as she'd never jumped inside. Occasional lessons with Pammy Hutton through the riding club working on our show for Windsor as that's the bit I panic about and off we trek to Hartpury with the rest of our team.
We're in the small arena which on a 17hh TB feels TINY, she's best equated to steering an ocean liner and this was definitely tight - in the first round she quailed at the arena and we did half the round in trot for 2 down and we were the discard score, something had to be done so I took her outside and found somewhere to have a sneaky leg stretch before the next round. Round 2 - lovely clear, and with the rest of the team following suit we were into a jump off with the other 2 teams on 0. As the last team to go we went for an all or nothing approach - worst case we were 3rd which was better than expected so flat out and try to leave them up was the aim of the day. It works - all of our team jump clear with a collective time over 20secs quicker than our nearest rivals
Our team of 3 ex racehorses and a rescue pony were National Champs
Onwards to Windsor where a class start time of 7.30 saw us leaving home at 4am - madam wasn't wonderfully chuffed at the early start it had to be said, not helped by me taking a detour when we got onto the showground and wandering up to the wrong end of our arena - but at least we got to see the sites. Sadly I went to pot once we got into the arena - not helped by the stewards changing our directions regarding what to do for our show 3 times before I went in (and I was only 5th to go!), we kicked two fences out that she did her best to leave up and I did my best to hinder her at
but she behaved impeccably and we got our well done for turning up frilly even if I didn't get a decent photo - how come they got a good one of everyone else's gallop but took ours when we were coming back to walk afterwards and she's doing a short lived giraffe impression 
For the rest of summer we've not done too much although we did make it to my first ODE in 22 years - we were the best finishers for our RC in the 80 at the areas, getting a 39 for our dressage - her first ever and with a pilot error, and going clear SJ and XC where she was an absolute star cruising round and making it feel like a walk in the park.
After that she was foot sore and we thought that she'd bruised her sole and so the rounds of pads, shoes and treatments began. An xray showed that her bone structure in the hoof was perfect but that her soles in front are extremely thin so when pads seemed to make an improvement and she came sound again we carried on with relatively light work and going to camp which she loved - my worries about her thinking she was back in training completely allayed when she settled straight in.
Back home a week later she pulled in out of the field lame. Cue more rounds of trying different things until we get to this week and the decision to do the nerve block as it had to be more than the soles and so we get to today.
And I'm sat here in tears when I really should be working. It's my decision to make and I'm not asking for advice just understanding. This is the horse that made me want to compete again. That puts up with me being an eedjit and asking her to randomly jump puddles, the river, gates, fences and hedges out hacking, that without doing much had achieved more than I dreamed of when we began. I really don't know if I want another horse because they won't be her. She may be able to continue as a field ornament and I know dad would love a foal from her but that's so long term and if she's in pain then not an option - although just this week she's been a baggage to bring in, sometimes galloping off looking sound as a pound, others gimping away at a pace just fast enough that you have to run to catch her.
So sorry for the self-pitying post, and I know it's not really a competition report but at the very least it's the end of her competitive career and whatever the outcome I'm just devastated.
My lovely big TB mare has been diagnosed with a badly torn DDFT after spending the last 6 weeks intermittently lame in front. We'd tried all sorts thinking it was due to her thin soles which were the only thing that showed up on the original xrays but when different pads / shoes / treatments made no difference we nerve blocked her yesterday and scanned today to see that the tendon is double the width it should be just above where it joins the navicular bone with a huge hole.
Prognosis is extremely poor and I'm currently sat with an awful decision to make.
Loll owes me nothing and has given me so much in the last 4 years.
Dad bought her as a big gangly 4yo from DBS with the hope that she might be the next Quevega
By the same stallion as Mon Mome we thought that she might make a useful NH or P2P horse. Too big and weak to go into training straight away I spent the winter and following spring hacking and playing with her did a couple of fun rides where she was a saint and got her pre-season fit before sending her off into training. She only ran once that winter coming second in a bumper at Towcester in good company.She came home for the summer and had time in the field before being got fit again to go into training - she's an incredible ride on the gallops, she takes a strong hold but you can always stop by dropping the reins and she's back to walk in 3 strides but when she wants to go, she just extends her incredible stride and she's gone
Back in to training she went to run in another bumper at Exeter on new years day, finishing mid-div in the thick mud and the trainer decides that she needs to go over hurdles next but insists on it being soft - heavy ground, I'm not sure why. Anyway off she goes to Huntingdon... and jumps 3 hurdles in the middle of the pack before pulling herself up. You can see the jockey cussing on the video but she's had enough and that's it home she comes for good this time.She came home poor, but if she's not worked she goes back in herself so we have a summer of light work and hacking whilst building her back up with the aim of 2013 being "our year" - I hadn't competed since 1998 but something about this mare made me want too. Roll on December 2012 and I'm pregnant, I kept riding her up until I was six months gone but that's 2013 effectively scuppered for our grand plans. She spends the rest of the summer hacking and doing funrides with a friend but no schooling or flatwork sends us back. My son arrived by c-section at the end of August writing off riding until mid-October when I clambered back on board with no core strength and started to try and get us both back in order. Making the most of my maternity leave I had regular lessons and joined the local riding club, we both came on in leaps and bounds.
Summer of 2014 we started to compete going out to our first SJ competitions, for our 3rd show we decided to make up the numbers in the RoR challenge class at the Beaufort Show. Having never even seen one of those classes before we had no idea what to expect and the wrong kit on - everyone else in tweed and there was me dressed to go and do SJ. To my shock and glee we came in 3rd with the comments from the judge that she was a bit green and needed to be fatter but she's a lovely mare and he really liked her.
A few more shows and we were representing our RC at the Area Novice SJ where our team finished 2nd qualifying for the final at Hartpury this year.
We had a relatively quiet winter - made it to West Wilts once so that she'd at least had a spin indoors before we had to go to Hartpury as she'd never jumped inside. Occasional lessons with Pammy Hutton through the riding club working on our show for Windsor as that's the bit I panic about and off we trek to Hartpury with the rest of our team.
We're in the small arena which on a 17hh TB feels TINY, she's best equated to steering an ocean liner and this was definitely tight - in the first round she quailed at the arena and we did half the round in trot for 2 down and we were the discard score, something had to be done so I took her outside and found somewhere to have a sneaky leg stretch before the next round. Round 2 - lovely clear, and with the rest of the team following suit we were into a jump off with the other 2 teams on 0. As the last team to go we went for an all or nothing approach - worst case we were 3rd which was better than expected so flat out and try to leave them up was the aim of the day. It works - all of our team jump clear with a collective time over 20secs quicker than our nearest rivals
Our team of 3 ex racehorses and a rescue pony were National Champs
Onwards to Windsor where a class start time of 7.30 saw us leaving home at 4am - madam wasn't wonderfully chuffed at the early start it had to be said, not helped by me taking a detour when we got onto the showground and wandering up to the wrong end of our arena - but at least we got to see the sites. Sadly I went to pot once we got into the arena - not helped by the stewards changing our directions regarding what to do for our show 3 times before I went in (and I was only 5th to go!), we kicked two fences out that she did her best to leave up and I did my best to hinder her at
but she behaved impeccably and we got our well done for turning up frilly even if I didn't get a decent photo - how come they got a good one of everyone else's gallop but took ours when we were coming back to walk afterwards and she's doing a short lived giraffe impression For the rest of summer we've not done too much although we did make it to my first ODE in 22 years - we were the best finishers for our RC in the 80 at the areas, getting a 39 for our dressage - her first ever and with a pilot error, and going clear SJ and XC where she was an absolute star cruising round and making it feel like a walk in the park.
After that she was foot sore and we thought that she'd bruised her sole and so the rounds of pads, shoes and treatments began. An xray showed that her bone structure in the hoof was perfect but that her soles in front are extremely thin so when pads seemed to make an improvement and she came sound again we carried on with relatively light work and going to camp which she loved - my worries about her thinking she was back in training completely allayed when she settled straight in.
Back home a week later she pulled in out of the field lame. Cue more rounds of trying different things until we get to this week and the decision to do the nerve block as it had to be more than the soles and so we get to today.
And I'm sat here in tears when I really should be working. It's my decision to make and I'm not asking for advice just understanding. This is the horse that made me want to compete again. That puts up with me being an eedjit and asking her to randomly jump puddles, the river, gates, fences and hedges out hacking, that without doing much had achieved more than I dreamed of when we began. I really don't know if I want another horse because they won't be her. She may be able to continue as a field ornament and I know dad would love a foal from her but that's so long term and if she's in pain then not an option - although just this week she's been a baggage to bring in, sometimes galloping off looking sound as a pound, others gimping away at a pace just fast enough that you have to run to catch her.
So sorry for the self-pitying post, and I know it's not really a competition report but at the very least it's the end of her competitive career and whatever the outcome I'm just devastated.
Even through summer she has to come in and have a feed, and historically when she's had time off without work she come in looking worse than she went out 
