|
Back in 2020, I sent a sample of Izzy's mane to UC Davis's Veterinary Genetics Laboratory to see if he carried the cream dilution gene. The report came back negative, which really wasn't a surprise, but I wanted to know for sure. I've written about this tons of times before, but Izzy has a wildly varied coat throughout the year. In early winter he is nearly black, but by summer he's what many might call a buckskin.  August 2019 We are in full summer here in the Central Valley, and Izzy's coat has already started its summer change. Interestingly, this year his coat is fading very quickly in the areas underneath his tack. This is a new system of fading. Normally, he fades all over his body at the same time. In the photo below, you can see that he is fading under his saddle pad and girth.  I have been hosing him off after every ride whether he sweats or not. Salt will definitely cause fading of the coat, but it is even more pronounced this year than I have ever seen it. He's even going " tan" under his headstall. In the photo below, the lighter coat is really obvious behind his ears where his headstall rests.  A few people have expressed concern that Izzy is experiencing a vitamin and mineral deficiency, but my vet doesn't think so. Izzy is fed high quality grass hay, beet pulp, rice bran, milled flax seed, a quality vitamin and mineral supplement, and he has access to a salt block (which he ignores). He also grazes most days for 30 to 45 minutes on fresh grass. I am not worried about any deficiencies.
Each summer, his coat changes to a color that was different from the year before. Sometimes he goes very light, other times, he has developed what I think are Bend Or spots (named after the stallion, Bend Or). I can't wait to see what his coat does this summer. All I care about is that he not scratch holes in himself as he itches away the gnats and flies. So besides what was going on with my truck's glow plugs and my checkbook, the past two weeks threw me a few other curve balls. The first falls under the category of TMI, and actually, so does the other.  A month or so ago I started having those little moments where when you laugh too hard you think, OMG, I almost peed myself. Then I started having the same issue when I picked up something heavy or even tried to pry the lid off a jar. And once, I think I did pee myself if only just a little bit. Finally, I realized that almost peeing yourself is not necessarily a sign of old age, so I went to the doctor. If you have two X chromosomes, you know that no girl has time for a UTI, but she has even less time to see a doctor for a UTI. Anyhoo, no amount of crossing my legs and squeezing them tight was making things right, so cranberry juice and antibiotics joined my daily list of things to do or take.  Huh, who knew? So yeah, I had that going on, but then because things run in 56s - 3 would just be way, way too simple, I had this weird bump on my lower back that the doctor insisted required surgery. Oh, for the love of all that's holy. After numerous phone calls and visits to a surgeon, the date was set - a week ago last Monday. If life is going to suck, you might as just have all of the sucky moments piled into one week so that you get it all over faster. Of course, during the consultation with the surgeon the week before surgery, I asked if I would be able to return to work the day of the surgery. He gave me an is she stupid? look and replied that I would be going under general anesthesia and wouldn't be allowed to drive a car much less go back to work. Oh. When I asked if I could at least resume my "normal" activity the day after, he said of course. HAHAHA. Seriously, doctors should be required to ask each patient if she rides horses because my normal and his normal were probably not the same thing. Surgery was supposed to be in the morning, but then it got moved to the afternoon which really stunk because I had to fast for eight hours. That's easy to do when your fasting hours are during the middle of night. With a 1:00 p.m. surgery, I had to fast through breakfast and lunch which also meant no liquids including water. Since I couldn't be near food or water, what else was there to do but ride right before my surgery? I see you all nodding your heads. Made sense to me too.  What? This IS my normal acitivity. The joke was on me though. My surgery ran late which meant I sat naked in an open backed gown in a plastic chair for more than four hours waiting my turn. By the time I came out of surgery and got home, it was well past dinner time. I realized there was no way I was going to be recovered enough to drive to work the next day, much less ride. It's not like I am a cry baby or anything, but even though I only have three stitches, they're huge and even bending over to put my shoes on feels like my skin is about to pop open. By Friday afternoon, I was determined to ride. My inside parts seemed to be keeping it together, and since I had a lesson on the next morning, I figured I had better make sure I could make it through a short ride before tackling a lesson. When I got to the ranch, I saw a cloud of dust hovering over my boys' paddocks. I looked over to see what the commotion was and laughed at their antics. Both boys were galloping around, rearing, bucking, and generally having one heck of a good time.   What?! I decided to piddle around a few minutes to let them get their wiggles out, and before I knew it, an hour had passed. They just did not let up. Both of them were a gross sweaty mess. I have no idea what had gotten into them, but I wisely decided to skip the ride. If Izzy had that much energy, I thought it safer for the longevity of my stitches to not get tossed around like a rag doll. Fortunately, I felt even better the next morning, and never gave the stitches another thought. I don't go in to get them removed until a week from Friday.
Hopefully, they stay in. Between peeing every five minutes and trying to keep my skin sutured closed, I feel like a water balloon that has sprung a leak. Besides all of the hassle with Newt, I had a few other hitches in my daily giddy-up that forced me to sit out a few games. Like most everyone else, I don't make enough money. And with the way the economy has been behaving, the money that I do make is just not stretching as far as it used to. With show season quickly approaching, I've tried to get a few side hustles going to cover some big bills that are looming. The first of which is Speedy's newest box of Prascend. You would think that something that comes in such a girlie shade of pink would contain something a lot more fun than $350 worth of pink pills.  I also need to come up with a grand to cover my boys' annual spring vet visit. To help with those costs, I took on another writing project with the attorney that I have worked for over the past couple of years. It's interesting work, and I know her clients need my writing skills, but it's really time consuming and emotionally draining. I already have a time consuming and emotionally draining day job. Working a second one is ... well ... time consuming and draining. Of course, writing for an attorney doesn't get me the full $1500 or so that I need for vet bills and drugs, so I also took two Saturday classes that my school district was offering. Rather than pay for the classes, we get paid for going. I attended two Saturdays back to back which made for one very long work week. The side job and the two classes still didn't get me what I needed, but then a miracle happened. When I saw that my paycheck had been deposited, I cheered and fretted at the same time. I am a salaried employee which means I don't make over-time, and my check never changes. I get an annual salary that is divided into nine monthly payments to cover the 183 days that I work. My monthly check might vary by a dollar or two due to small tax changes, especially in January, but this one was $529.59 too high. Crap?  First thing Monday morning, I called our payroll department and asked what was up. I was told that I was being refunded for some over-withholdings from the previous year. Bank error in my favor? No way! I was dubious and asked repeatedly if the reimbursement was correct. When I was guaranteed that it was right, I gave a deep sigh and a huge hallelujah. Five hundred bucks was going to do a lot to cover my vet bill. I even started to see a bit of a surplus. The very next day, I got an email saying the reimbursement was actually an over-payment and would need to be repaid. #we're so sorry to inconvenience you. I think I said this yesterday, but mother forklift. Back to the side hustles I go. What can you do, right? Good morning! Sort of ... Life is serving me a steaming pile of poop lately. I've been dodging one crisis after another all week long. I don't even have the energy to list them, so I won't.  I love writing, and I especially enjoy writing for you all. Many of you have become good friends over the past decade, or good critics. Either way, I enjoy the daily conversation. I don't do this very often, but I need a week off to get life sorted out. I'll be back soon.
Hasta la pasta! Not even kidding. Speedy's penis sock is still on. The first one lasted four days; this one has been on for two and a half months! I shudder to think what his manhood is going to look like once it does fall off. I had already planned on writing this post today, so it was a weird coincidence that my vet left a voicemail yesterday afternoon asking how the "penile" issue was going. I'll call him back today to give him an update. In the meantime ...  Gross as it smells ... oh my gosh, it stinks! it has done the job of preventing the habronema fly from laying eggs in Speedy's urethra. No matter how many times I write about it, it continues to be just as gross. I can't decide whether I want the thing to fall off or not.
The sock. Not his "thing." |
About the Writer and RiderI am a lifelong rider.
I began endurance riding in 1996 where I ultimately completed five, one-day 100 mile races, the 200-mile Death Valley Encounter, and numerous other 50, 65, and 75 mile races. I began showing dressage in 2010. Welcome to my dressage journey. 
Photo by Lori Ovanessian
About Speedy GSpeedy went from endurance horse to dressage horse. After helping me earn a USDF Bronze medal in the summer of 2020, he is now semi-retired. Speedy is a 2004, 15'1 hand, purebred Arabian gelding. His Arabian Horse Registry name is G Ima Starr FA.
July 2020 (PC AJSK Photography)
About IzzyIzzy was started as a four-year old and then spent the next 18 months in pasture growing up. I bought him as a six-year old, and together, we are showing at the lower levels. He is a 2008, 16'3 hand warmblood gelding. His Rheinland Pfalz-saar International (RPSI) name is Imperioso.
March 2021 (PC Tess Michelle Photography)
FOR THE SMALLER EQUINE ATHLETE
I love her stuff!
Watercolor Artist and Friend
Bakersfield Dressage approved!
National Rider Awards
USDF Bronze Medal - 2020
USDF Second Level Rider Performance Award - 2018
USDF First Level Rider Performance Award - 2015
USDF Training Level Rider Performance Award - 2013
State Rider Awards
CDS Ruby Rider Award - 2018
State Horse Awards
Speedy G - 3rd Level Horse Performance Award - 2020
Speedy G - 2nd Level Horse Performance Award - 2018
Working Towards:
CDS Sapphire Rider Award Third Level: 63.514% Third Level: 62.105% Fourth Level: Fourth Level: 2022 Show Season
Show Rating (***) CDS/USDF/USEF (*) CDS (s) Schooling (c) Clinic (r) Ride-a-Test Clinic (Q) Qualifier 2022 Show Schedule
(*) Tehachapi 7/24/22 (*) Tehachapi 8/28/22 2022 Completed … (*) Tehachapi 5/22/22 2022 Qualifying Scores
Regional Adult Amateur Competition (RAAC) Qualifying 2 Scores/1 Judges/60%: Score 1: Score 2: Archives
|