Our Miracle Horse–Contest Story

I said a few days ago that I would share the story of what happened to our beautiful, beloved palomino… here’s that story…

I will never know where my daughter got her passion for horses but for me, horses had always been beautiful, graceful creatures… from a distance.  Samantha spoke of them when she was little, they were her favourite animal.  There were four horses where my brother lived with his wife.  Rockette and Keewee were offspring of the two they’d originally had, Naomi and Dennee.  Maybe that’s where she fell in love with the animal.

Sam wanted to learn to ride and when she was eight she started in lessons with her aunt.  That was twelve years ago.  For her fourteenth birthday Sam received the best gift ever from her aunt and uncle.  Keewee.  Sam was ecstatic!  Most little girls only dream about getting a pony as a gift, this one came true.  Over the years we both became extremely attached to that beautiful palomino mare.  She developed such a personality and my love of horses became hands-on.

On November 5, 2016, Sam called me out to the barn.  Kee seemed to be colicky… an upset stomach of sorts in horses that can be deadly.

Unfortunately, it turned to diarrhea very quickly, which is the opposite of colic, and she was put in a stall.  We had barely made it home when Sam was called back out and the vet was called.  Kee needed to be transported to Ontario Veterinary College at University of Guelph, 45 minutes away.

“It doesn’t look good,” the lead vet on the case told me when I finally arrived later.  “Her lactate level is so elevated that it’s a wonder she’s still with us.  The list of differential diagnoses (all the things it could be) is as long as my arm but I think it’s colitis and the majority of horses don’t recover from colitis.”

Being an RN I understood what he was saying.  Chances were slim at that moment, on that  Saturday night, that she was going to make it.

They managed to get her stabilized with fluids before they decided to put her in isolation in case it was a bug of some kind, though we had no idea what she would have come in contact with.

We waited ALL night, barely sleeping.  Sam crawled into my bed and all I did every time I woke up from dozing was pray Keewee would be okay until I dozed off again.

Dr. Baird said he’d call sometime between nine and ten o’clock Sunday morning and he waited until the last minute.  She had made it through the night and her lactate level had normalized!  He called her our early Christmas Miracle.  We cried tears of joy and relief and went to visit her later in the day.  She was doing okay; most importantly she was alive.  They were giving her small amounts of hay but she still had diarrhea.  We weren’t allowed to go into her stall because she was in isolation.

Monday she was holding her own and they started to increase the amount of food they were giving her.

Then Tuesday morning I got a call at work.  She had taken a severe turn for the worse and started to colic in the early hours.  It had been so bad at one point they thought they were going to have to call us to come around 3 a.m. to put her down.  Dr. Baird recommended that we start to seriously consider putting her down.

I left work, raced home, shared the news and plenty of tears with Sam and we got in the car for what felt like the longest drive ever.  Kee was flat out.  She looked horrible.  Because of the situation we were allowed to put on gowns and gloves and go in to her.  We didn’t hesitate.

She perked up a bit at seeing us; having us with her.  We hugged her and talked to her and I laid my hand gently on her face like I had so many times over the years and whispered that I was praying for her but that she had to fight too.  “This is your battle our precious pony and we’re going to be here when you win.”  I ran my fingers to her “forehead” and closed my eyes and said a short prayer.  God give her strength and please don’t take her away from us.

We stayed as long as we could and Sam didn’t want to leave but it was November.  Despite it being a heated stall the bars to the outside were open and the cold air was coming in and getting to us.

We were told before we left that only a single treatment option remained and how much it would cost.  We gave them the go-ahead to try it and we said bye to Keewee hoping it wasn’t for the last time.  We told staff we’d be back in the morning.

I spent hours praying.

We never heard anything before we left and hoped that no news was good news when we went over Wednesday morning as planned.  We were met by the senior resident who told us they purposely hadn’t called because they knew we were coming.  She chatted with us on the walk from the main building to isolation and when we finally neared Keewee’s stall she said she had a surprise.

Kee was up and looked so much better.  From the inside of the building a vet student carried a dish of grain that was soaked with water, called mash.  Kee’s eyes grew wide and she gobbled it up!  She was eating!  Apparently she’d started to recover from the colic the previous evening and they had given her a mash.

They never had to use that last resort treatment either.  They’d given her morphine for the pain and she’d fought through it!  I knew where her strength and treatment had come from.

From that point she continued to improve and the diarrhea stopped by Thursday night.

Her IV was discontinued on Friday and she started drinking again.  We were overjoyed when they told us she could go home the following day.

When we arrived Saturday morning, Dr. Baird had her out of the stall and had told her we were coming to take her home.  Kee stood dancing beside her lead vet who was supposed to have the day off!  He said she was special to him, clearly feisty and a stubborn fighter.  We barely got her travel blanket on her and she almost jumped onto the trailer.

Dr. Baird asked if he could call and check on her.

“Of course,” I told him.  “Anytime.”

I thanked God over and over as we followed the trailer home.  For a few days we didn’t think we’d be following that trailer with Keewee in it anywhere ever again.

Keewee has to keep fighting but she would be getting the best care from the Ultimate caregiver.

Long time… HI!

Well much has happened since the last time I wrote… YIKES!!!

The last time I wrote we had gone to the show and were up before the birds… on the hottest day of the summer and spending the day outdoors.

Three months later probably the worst thing to happen to any pet owner happened… our beloved palomino got sick.  Not just cough/cold sick, but we thought she was colicking except that a few hours later it turned to diarrhea…

She was seen by the vet who referred her to OVC (Ontario Veterinary College) in Guelph, Ontario.  She’d lost tons of fluids and was severely dehydrated just from half a day.  The lead vet, Dr. Baird–the most amazing vet I have ever met to this day–pulled me aside when I finally arrived and said that it was all pointing to colitis and that more than 90% of horses who present with colitis never go home.

Prayers and no sleep that night found us exhausted in the morning and waiting for the phone to ring.  Finally, it did.  Our beautiful palomino had made it through the night and her blood had normalized.  She was doing much better.

After actually colicking a few days later, she was on the mend and on the way home.

That was almost two years ago.  She has since been back jumping and doing all the things she used to do, except show.  We figure the stress of taking her to a show isn’t worth it.  After all, she’s one of less than 10% that made it.

Last November I had to have surgery which greatly reduced my visits to the barn.  I was out for six weeks and I haven’t been going back as regularly partly because I haven’t had time and partly because my daughter is capable of going out there on her own and being out there on her own.  She’s become more independent out there because mom’s not going out there and holding her hand.

This past spring, after shopping for a bit, my daughter has found another horse to train and, with lots of hope, get her into the jumper ring!  She is 3 years old and quite a handful though, despite running away the first night on the farm and putting her face through a mirror at the end of May, she has really calmed down and learned a lot.  I think she’s going to do just fine!

So that’s where we’re at!  Every time I see our pretty palomino I tell her she has to keep fighting.

Actually, you know what, I wrote the story of her for a contest that I didn’t win… in the next few days I’m going to post it here and you can read it for yourself.

My Superstars!

Sunday was a long day as most show days go…

Up at 6:30 a.m.
Leave for the barn at 7:12
Arrive at 7:24 (the shortest time ever by the way)
Fill hay nets
Fill water jugs
Empty garbage from horse trailer tack room
Hang up bridles and load saddle pad and girth all of which had been taken home for cleaning
Get saddle loaded
Go get horse from her field
Brush her really good (despite having done this the day before and she wasn’t all that dirty) and gather any remaining items from locker for trailer
8:30 braid horse’s mane and forelock
8:53 load horses onto trailer
9:00 pull out
10:00 arrive at show site
Unload horses
Register
Get organized
Tack up
Warm-up ring
10:51 other rider and her horse show in the dressage ring
11:03 my daughter and her horse enter the Jumper ring for the first time ever for two warm-up rounds
As assumed, the first warm-up didn’t go all that well.  Our pretty palomino jumped all the jumps, finally.  Warm-up round two went terrific.  All the jumps in a clear round like the two of them were pros
11:12 judged rounds start
First round got to jump three and my daughter fell off.  Not only that but our pretty palomino decided to run away.  Caught the horse, checked my daughter over, brushed her off, changed helmets and had to tell coordinators to stop putting jumps up because we paid for a second round.
Second round much better.  Initially refused same third jump but circled around, did it then our pretty palomino took off and went through the rest of the course like a bullet.  She looked like she knew exactly what she was doing!

The remainder of the time was spent waiting for our other rider and horse to compete in jumper and cross country before we were finally packed up and ready to go at 3:20.

4:20 arrive back at home, offload horses, empty tack room and reload locker.

Give our amazing palomino grain and take her to her field.

A day in the life!

And this horsey-mom was (and still is) exhausted!

I’m so proud of the two of them and I think my daughter and her horse proved they can do it!

Showtime!

Well here we are on the eve of the first show in almost 2 years!

All day my almost-adult rider has been snippy… I call her grumpy!

Of course I don’t blame her! We’ve all been in that position once where we’re so nervous we can’t think straight but, for most of us, it’s something like a job interview or a first-ever speech… Another being isn’t involved. A 1200 lb being that reads off your every emotion!

So I have given my advice… It’s just another ride. It’s what you have wanted to do forever & now is your shot. Let’s make it a good one!! Let’s make it great!

And that’s all we can say to our show-stars. Be yourself. Don’t worry & don’t stress. You know what your doing & your horse trusts you. The opposite is true… Your horse knows what she’s doing, you trust her with your life, so trust her now.

Best of luck to her!

Show Season

It’s been a while since I’ve written!  I was getting tired of writing about the weather!

So today is the 4th anniversary of my daughter getting her horse so there will be some celebratory photos taken later.

She’s heading up camp this year and aside from some apprehension the first day, she’s got this!

Her coach offered for her to go to a show… this Sunday!  YIKES!!

So we went clothes shopping… Just in case actually.  She wants to do jumper which doesn’t require anything more than the polo shirt she already has.  So there may be a rare occasion when she’s out for something else.  In this case, she might do the dressage portion as well to give them something to do but she hasn’t decided yet.

She has to decide by tomorrow night basically.  Not a lot of time left.

And if you ever find yourself in need of show clothes, go to Value Village or someplace similar first.  Look at light coloured blouses, look at jackets/blazers.  That’s my advice to you. $20 for the set is far better than $150 or more for the jacket alone.  Why do show clothes need to be more expensive?  Because that’s what they do.

I wish her the best of luck on Sunday.  I cross my fingers that they do well.  She’ll be a nervous wreck but I hope it goes well.  She has waited a very long time for this opportunity so I hope our little palomino pony is in top form and ready to go!

Yay! Nice Weather!

Okay, so one part of me wants to say that this winter wasn’t actually oh so bad but the other part of me can’t help but say I’ve had enough, let’s get on with being able to wear shorts, t-shirts and run out there door with running shoes on!

The last few weeks have been the worst actually.  Part of that comes from having to dress like a snowman every time we head out to the barn.  It takes time and energy to pull on long underwear under leggings and then pull on snow pants that make it so you can hardly bend over!

My fingers and toes have definitely been frozen way too many times and I wonder why my skin is just splitting open!

It’s also been tough on the horses.  In three years we haven’t changed blankets and dealt with a pulled muscle because pony slipped on ice as many times as this year.  With a 17-year-old horse she gets pretty stiff with some of the weather as well.

So despite what some people may think, it’s time!  It’s time for the nice weather, dressing lighter and being able to get that pony moving outside and maybe off to a couple of shows!

My daughter has been teaching Saturday Club which will pick back up when the nicer weather arrives.  I think, at some point, a big planning session needs to be scheduled!  One where we can kind of regroup a bit?  Nothing major, just some much needed communication between parents, my daughter and head coach!  Make sure everyone is on the same page!

But I’d like to see my daughter and her horse in the jumper ring at a couple of shows.  Before it’s too late… we’re coming into some nice weather, might as well take advantage of some of the shows that are out there… I just hope we can get them there and that our pony is up to it!

If you hang out at the barn and your child is as into horses as mine is, you know exactly what I mean!

The Busy Season…

Trying to get ready for Christmas and still try to fit in the barn is definitely a challenge when you’re a single parent!

By the end of the day you’re tired and then you have to go out and sit there.  It’s also a fair bit of walking!

Anyway, the weather has been good for us, exceptionally good, which is excellent since I, unfortunately, need new tires but can’t afford them!

Last week my daughter was included in a text message that all night feeders have to clean all the stalls if they’re dirty, that a horse isn’t to be put into a dirty stall.  That she does what she can.  Of course it comes on a Wednesday.

I have a bad back.  I can’t tolerate the constant and unchanging position of cleaning out stalls.  My daughter, from all her falls, has bunged up her shoulder to the point that cleaning stalls is painful too.  It was originally two stalls, now it’s six, IF they haven’t been done ahead of time.

So today, with it being Christmas holidays, we’re going out for 1:00 as my daughter has a make-up lesson to teach.  While she teaches, I’m going to slowly work on the stalls taking breaks to sit down.  When the lesson is done, the two of us can work on the remaining stalls.  We can bring in hay, fill water buckets and then she can ride.   When her ride is over, we’ll feed grain, hopefully starting at 4:30.  Even though it might be a bit early for some people’s liking, I’d like to have the horses in between 5:30-6 and be on the road home.

Can’t have the best of both worlds and I’m not going to sit around to wait for the “right” time for horses to come in.

On the other hand, I really hope that someone has gone down and cleaned out at least four of the stalls already!!

It’s definitely time for my daughter to get a job and start paying the $60/month that we “make” doing chores.  $15/week isn’t much considering this sudden increase in work!

Anyway, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!  We’ll see you on the other side!

I Wonder…

I sit back and watch my daughter ride during her own rides and then I watch during a lesson.  My concern is that she’s never going to get to where she wants to go.  How do you broach that subject when already walking on eggshells sometimes?

It just concerns me that both my daughter and her horse are 17.  Horse’s mom didn’t go into the jumper ring until she was 18 so we’ve got less than a year but we don’t seem to get anywhere!

It seems that we’re always too busy worrying about her reaction; worrying about whether she has a bit in her mouth which is not required for jumper!  I want to see a course set up at the appropriate height, at least and to see our beautiful palomino jump it all!  I have, mind you, outside, on a course of 5 jumps which my daughter has managed to turn into a course of 8.

It CAN be done!

I know there are oxers as well and that could be her downfall but it’s time!  If they don’t do it now, they might never do it.  That’s what I’m afraid of!

My daughter has such a passion for horses and I want to see her GO! I want her to reach for the stars and then reach the stars!

I just don’t know if the here and now is going to get here there… it might be time to move on which is another challenge…

Seasons change…

and much comes with it!  Wind, rain, grass turning from green to brown and, worst of all, it gets darker earlier.  But still we prevail and we go out to the barn anyway.

A week and a half ago our dear horse tripped and almost went down, my daughter did.  She landed on her already-bad-shoulder and probably sprained it.  That’s my sort-of educated guess (with some input from a doctor!).

She’s still riding… jumping, the works.  Stubborn teenager.

But part of that has come with riding… like any other sport riders must continue to work at it.  Just like baseball players have practices even at the 150 game mark, riders need to continue to do that.

It’s also important, I must add, that if a rider is co-boarding or owns her own beauty she must practice during non-lesson rides what she learns in a lesson.  It’s so easy to go into a lesson and come out of it and then go into another ride 3 days later and do what she wants to do and forget about what she’s learned in the lesson.

My daughter is probably the only one who takes what she’s done in a lesson and applies in the rides in between.  My sister-in-law told me that nobody else in lessons does that.  They come out for their co-board rides and do what they want to do… a huge error.

We all need to practice.  And we will never reach perfect but we can come extremely close.  As a writer, it’s the same thing.  If I don’t write regularly I get rusty.  The parts of nursing I haven’t done in over a decade are the same.  I’d be rusty trying to set an IV drip or insert a catheter.  I’d get it back but I’m beyond rusty at it!

So your rider needs to practice.  That’s the bottom line!

Wow! Back to School? Already?

Where does the time go?

This summer seems to have been rocky and flew by, as always!

Camp ended a few weeks ago and I think my daughter is happy about that.  She enjoys it, don’t get me wrong, but it takes a lot out of a person!  The last week of camp was hot (as in 35C days) and the volunteers run around most of the summer in shorts and tank tops.  This very last week a complaint was lodged because some parent didn’t feel the helpers should be dressed this way.

How did they think they should be dressed?  In full show garb?  Has this parent ever hung around a barn any longer than 5 minutes for drop-off and pick-up?  It’s HOT out there, it’s DIRTY out there.  These things are to be expected and those that volunteer to help dress to be comfortable!  I guess my biggest thing is that these girls were not there in bathing suits, they were dressed appropriately for where they were and what they were doing which is helping campers learn!  They are taking time out of their summer vacation to be there helping a child learn to ride a horse.  Without these girls there to help, these kids would get nowhere fast.  If there was only one instructor the other kids would run around unsupervised and would probably get into a lot of trouble.

And trust me, there is plenty to get into:
Electric fences (and they hurt!)Fields full of horses–and if you don’t know the horses then it could be extremely dangerous if kids go wandering into a field unattended.
Even getting into things in the barn that could be dangerous.

For that she’s also glad it’s over and can go back to a somewhat usual routine.  She’s not looking forward to back to school but then that’s nothing new for her!  She is, however, looking forward to the start of Saturday Club, where she will be helping to teach 6 beginner kids.  This is instead of lessons usually.

And I don’t have to listen to her sit at home and be bored on Saturday mornings!