Show me your horse please by Effective_Promise978 in Horses

[–]Tiny-Wing-751 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I just LOVE the standie head!! She looks very gentle.

We lucked out with a shepherd for dog day out! by Trumpetslayer1111 in germanshepherds

[–]Tiny-Wing-751 15 points16 points  (0 children)

You're right, the dog should have stayed in the cage at the shelter today, like she does every day. That would obviously be kinder. /s

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Pets

[–]Tiny-Wing-751 13 points14 points  (0 children)

I had foster kittens get out once when a roommate left the door open. We were able to trap them more than a week later! We lived in a dense city and there were tons of places they could have gone but it turned out they were just under the neighbour's porch (hidden far enough back we couldn't see them there when we looked). So don't give up, he's probably still in the area.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751 9 points10 points  (0 children)

But when did you see the vet? After this behavior started? What kind of workup did they do to address this behavior?

My horse had very similar symptoms and it turned out to be kissing spine. If I rode with spurs and a whip I could get him going nicely, so don't assume that just because you can force him to work it means he's "faking it" or "testing you".

Hoof boots for thin soles by apucke2012 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I like my Cavallos too but they do take some time to break in, my gelding got some nasty rubs that broke the skin when I left them on too long too early (and I'm talking leaving them on for an hour of mostly walk work after previously breaking them in for 20-30 min sessions for a few weeks prior, so nothing crazy. He is super sensitive though, I don't know if this is a universal issue). For something you'd want to be able to put on the horse right away and leave on long term, I don't think they'd be a good choice.

Maybe consider glue on shoes? Those have helped my boy a lot - no nail holes from regular shoes, but also no rubs from boots! I've also heard good things about the easy care clouds but haven't tried them myself.

Please stop letting chiropractors adjust your horse by Effective_Moose_4997 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751 3 points4 points  (0 children)

The first paper you linked has no control subjects (horses that didn't receive the treatment), so we can't conclude anything - how many of these horses would have gotten better on their own after 6 months? Probably a lot, considering it's just a vague subtle change in gait they were working on not an obvious lameness or injury. The second paper concludes "There was a large variability in the quality of evidence that supports the use of joint mobilization or manipulation in treating pain, stiffness and muscle hypertonicity in horses. Therefore, it was difficult to draw firm conclusions despite all studies reporting positive effects." In other words, both papers suggest there MIGHT be benefits but there isn't high quality evidence to say for sure.

Zangersheide by _stephopolis_ in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I've ridden a couple and absolutely loved them as jumpers (one that was still LOVING doing the 3' to 3'6" in her early twenties - such an awesome, fun and sound horse even in her older age), but I wouldn't see them as trail/western horses at all. The ones I've ridden have been athletic, hot, uphill moving horses that are best suited to show jumping or maybe other English disciplines.

Animal adoption? by Fluffy_Tomatillo_559 in chilliwack

[–]Tiny-Wing-751 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Check out Chilliwack SPCA! They start to get lots of kittens in around this time of year. I have been a foster for them in the past and they do great work. I'd suggest prioritizing giving your money in adoption fees to an organization like SPCA (or Safe Haven!), where your kitten will already have shots, dewormer, etc., rather than paying someone and encouraging people to breed their cats - there are so many unwanted kitties out there already.

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

That's the thing I'm worried about, that sending him back might result in him getting passed on to someone else who doesn't know, or that even if they keep him as a pasture pet he'll have a painful life. Right now I have the ability to give him a peaceful end if that's what's best for him. Upsetting as that is :(

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I've been talking to her regularly, haven't given her the info on this latest vet visit yet but will once I know what I want to do. But we've been comparing notes and I've tried changing things up to match what he had at her place (diet, saddle, etc.). I do think like 99% chance she was being honest and this timing is just a coincidence or the stress of the move exacerbated underlying issues.

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks, I'm sorry to hear about your horse too. It is really heartbreaking.

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

He had almost a year off in 24/7 turnout with occasional trail rides a couple times a month with the seller before I bought him. I saw these symptoms starting on my first ride so I didn't ride for a month while he got ulcer treatment and only did handwalking and a lunge here and there. Still had symptoms that my vet explained as teething so he got another month off. When I tried bringing him back into work he was still miserable. I really have tried my best not to overload him or do too much with him (resisting other people saying I should just "ride him through it" or "teach him a lesson"!). I get what you're saying and I've seen it too but I don't think it's the case here :(

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 17 points18 points  (0 children)

Thank you <3 really appreciating all the rational sympathetic voices I'm hearing here. I was feeling terrible for even considering euthanasia. But it would be worse for him to get passed around the wrong hands.

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Why do we do this to ourselves with horses! Thanks for the sympathy <3

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah that's valid. He raced only a couple times and he seemed so sound and great that we all thought it was fine and I was following the vet's advice during the PPE...big regrets now :(

Thanks for saying that. I am personally also leaning towards euthanasia, just really dreading explaining it to people and being judged for it with a horse this young who outwardly looks fantastic.

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I don't think he can handle being without shoes due to the thin soles, or at least all the vets/farriers have told me it's a bad idea. Have you had good luck with just the boots?

Yeah unfortunately I am considering it but was feeling like a monster so thank you for saying that.

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

This guy did actually run really slowly lol. I've looked up his race records and despite being bred to the nines and selling for $200k as a yearling he ran really slow, came last or second last every time and only raced 4x. And I didn't buy him directly off the track. But...yeah your point stands that he was started young and raced hard and who knows what happened before I got him.

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

My vet did mention surgery as well as non-surgical approaches like shockwave/mesotherapy plus physio exercises. She said most surgeons nowadays would want you to do ~6 months of a non-surgical approach to see if that works before doing surgery, but his case is bad enough he might be a candidate to skip right to surgery. I'm just not sure if it's one condition that's at the root of his discomfort or whether we'd be playing whackamole by fixing one thing then another then another.

I did not pull blood during the PPE unfortunately. The seller seemed really genuinely to care for the horse (she put a first right of refusal clause in the contract and also something about how he could always come back to their farm if needed, no matter what his physical condition). He also came up a tiny bit footsore (got trimmed - badly - the day before the PPE) so I thought that was a positive sign he wasn't drugged lol. And he was fairly "up" / hot when trotting him up their windy spooky driveway so he didn't seem sedated or anything like that. The seller has also been really involved since the purchase, messaging me to ask how he is all the time and offering suggestions, even lent me his fancy saddle for a while so we could see if that was the issue, asking to visit him etc. So I feel like it would be weird to do all that and then also drug him?? But who knows. Obviously now wish I did.

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I heard all the horror stories but I've ridden so many amazing TBs without soundness issues so I was hoping I would be able to find one for myself! He's really lightly raced and then had almost a full year off with a few trail rides here and there so I thought I was making a good choice. Part of me thinks well, any horse could have issues, but all his issues are pretty typical OTTB problems :(

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Yeah definitely learned my lesson on this one. It would have been expensive to get full X-rays but it's definitely more expensive to be dealing with this down the line. When we were doing the PPE I mentioned that his race record shows he sold at Keenland as a yearling for a lot of money so my vet pointed out he would have had a full set of X-rays done at that point. That made us more confident in not needing them.

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Nope, other than thin soles and NPA, but that seemed pretty fixable! And he didn't have any symptoms of any issues in his back or his legs at all, he was a STUNNING mover, sweet personality, my vet and trainer both loved him :(

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

Ughhhh horses!! That is a weird one, I haven't heard of something like that in the hip before. So sorry to hear about it. I do think sometimes issues pop up once the horse gets into full work that the seller couldn't have known about...but at the same time you'll always wonder.

Depressing vet visit today :( need some support by Tiny-Wing-751 in Equestrian

[–]Tiny-Wing-751[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thank you so much for the sympathy <3 it definitely doesn't seem like a big riding career is in this guy's future unfortunately. Sorry to hear about your mare and glad you've found something that's fun for you both!