Dottie has had a bit of a rough time since the onset of colder weather, including a couple of scary bouts of colic. We had to call the vet out on one occasion but fortunately the colic resolved itself. We watch her closely and give her extra sloppy mashes and electrolytes. She also gets hand walked for 20–25 mins each day. We wish knew what is going on but its still a little mystery. Dottie is a very introverted horse and keeps her tension inside.We’re considering doing a trial of ulcer medication to see if that has any positive effect on her.
Today she started acting a little funny outside in turnout. Swishing her tail and stomping her back feet. We pulled her into the arena and took her blankets off. Good gut sounds but a little flinching in the flacks. Terry turned her loose in the arena and brought Kat in to see if she would help Dottie walk around, roll or anything. Kat’s a great sport and never reacts when the others squeal so she’s the perfect horse to bring in when a friend is needed. Dottie squealed at her then decided it was fun time and played in the arena. She can get very big on her hind legs! After a bit of exercise, she seemed to be feeling better.
We’ve started to teach her to lunge, and it’s been a bit of a challenge. Dottie finds the whole thing a little confusing, so Terry usually starts with ground work to reassure her that nothing bad is going to happen. Dottie will almost hold her breath and “turn off” when they start working, but with quiet and lots of praise, she’ll begin to lick and chew and take deep breaths. After a few minutes she’s able to start lunging — although this usually involves two handlers on the ground — and before long she really looks like she is having fun moving free. We took her shoes off a few months ago and she is doing great without them and has no soreness.
