The Promise of "How Things Should Be"

 

Photo by Wendy Webb Photography

Very few of my best horse memories are of competitive events, but this one weekend with my fourth horse, Rory, was special. It was my favourite endurance ride, not that I'd done very many by then. It was the closest ride, and one for which I did a lot of pre-ride volunteering.

The previous ride had been my first attempt at doing two 25 mile rides in two days,  and I had pulled out halfway through the second day because Rory was tired. That had been a mostly flat ground ride, and as this one was in the big hills I thought two 25s would be too much that soon, but I wanted to do one. Plus there was a 13 mile night, training ride that I really wanted to do, and I wanted to ride both days.

I ended up entering the Saturday 12 mile Set Speed (which is graded based on time and final heart rate - no placings), Saturday night's 13 mile training ride, and Sunday's 12 mile Set Speed.

For Saturday's Set Speed I set a goal of achieving a Grade One finish. I rode alone, and my horse was super. Rory did everything right, and managed to pass the scary cows without dancing. As we approached the end of the second last field on the last loop, I heard thundering hooves behind us. I looked back and saw a loose horse cantering along. I decided to run down to the corner where the track went out of the field, dismount and turn to face the loose horse. Rory let me catch the loose horse and lead both back along the trail to where I found the rider (who had already dismounted before her horse bolted). Despite the delay, we got our Grade One finish.

The night training ride was a great experience. Rory was really good, and we traded off leading, following, and being tail with the other two riders. The loop used for the night ride shared trail with the loop I had ridden twice for the Set Speed earlier in the day. It was amazing how the horses went over the rough parts without a stumble or hesitation. I hadn't previously done much night riding with Rory, yet he took to it as if it were an everyday occurrence. As a training ride there was no grade or placing, but we did pass the vet with top marks.

Sunday I was the sponsor (responsible adult in Endurance) of a first time Junior rider. She was good company and eager to learn all she could. We had a good ride despite a rainy first loop. The sun came out for the second time round. Rory didn't put a foot wrong all day. 

This weekend is a special memory not because of the successes in each event,  but because Rory had had so many challenges in getting to the point of being capable of doing this sort of thing at all. It felt like we had finally got things figured out, our partnership was solid, and were ready to move forward. 

It was also the last competition we ever did. The wheels fell off for good a few months later, then the neurological diagnosis came the following year, specifically Wobblers six months after that, and euthanasia last fall. The promise of that weekend was never realized, and it remains a treasured memory of how things should have been. 

The Limits of Veterinary Care

 There comes a time in a horse's life when the limits on veterinary care, both dollars and treatments, will change.  Depending on when you got the horse, this may occur more than once.

My super horse, Brat, has been with me since he was only a few days old. At one point when he was in his prime, I was going away for a few days, and I wrote care limit letters to my barn owners and vet for him and Tommy (the horse who inspired this blog).  The letters were to provide authorization for treatment in the event they couldn't reach me.  At that time Tommy was retired and at the point of pain management. His letter had a lower dollar amount and a "no hospital" directive. Brat's letter had a much higher dollar amount and permission to take him to the hospital if the odds favoured a good outcome.

Brat has a few well managed health issues, and is still in very good shape for his age. It's only in the last year that I've been seeing the indications that he is a senior horse. As much as I would like him to live for ever, we're at the point of having perhaps a handful of years left.

He colicked in December 2023.  A month ago, as I write this. I caught it early and had called the vet about an hour after he stopped eating. It seemed a fairly straight forward gas colic, and he hadn't had time to develop secondary issues like dehydration. But he was still uncomfortable ten hours later, and still showing the tension line of pain on his belly the next morning.  We had the vet out a second time, and I had to tell them that Brat was not a surgical candidate.  If he had to go to the vet hospital for treatment, we would be euthanizing him.

It was a heart stopping, gut wrenching realization that my Super Brat is no longer young.

As our horses age we learn manage the issues that develop.  It is easy to add one more little thing, and then another, until we have a carefully balanced house of cards.  As long as nothing upsets it, we can keep things going. Brat has three chronic health issues, and has been healing a stifle injury and reinjury for over a year. Stall rest would upset the management of two of his chronic issues, and not do the stifle any good either.

It is important to regularly assess our horse's management and health, and think not just about what our dollar limit is on emergency care, but also on how current health issues and management would be affected by various treatments. While not a pleasant task, it is easier than trying to make emotionally charged decisions in the middle of a crisis. Knowing those limitations can help with treatment during an emergency.  I had considered giving Brat some anti gas and waiting for an hour or so to see how he did, but because of his age and not being a surgical candidate, I decided to call the vet sooner than later.

We did get the colic resolved and cause addressed, and Brat is back to normal.  And I realize that it's past time to update his veterinary care authorization letter.