Joseph is still here, just hanging out and getting his 2 square meals a day.  I started him on the high fat diet in hopes it will make him feel better. It may be wishful thinking on my part, but he looks like he's walking around more comfortably.

Last weekend a couple came and looked at him, and I painted them a very realistic and rather pessimistic picture of how he might be expected to perform as a riding horse.  They totally fell in love with him and he was very relaxed with them as well.  Strange, because normally people he doesn't know make him uncomfortable.  They really seem to know their stuff and I like the way they work together.  They're in the process of getting all the adoption paperwork in order, and then he will move on to his new life.  Looking back at how well we were doing in the summer made me realize he may well make a riding horse one day.  Especially for someone he took such a quick liking to.  So I am hopeful.  I will be very happy to see him succeed.

Last week I decided to send in a sample to test Joseph for EPSM (PSSM).  It's the genetic muscle disorder Tonka had. 

Today I got the results and they were positive.  I don't know why, but this had me crying like a baby and now I'm feeling exhausted, sick, and shaky.  I tried to emotionally detach myself from Joseph but I guess it didn't work.

According to one of my sources, 1 in 5 horses have this disorder.  That seems high to me, but I do see a lot of horses that exhibit symptoms.  Sometimes the symptoms are really hard to spot, though. 

I find I don't really want to talk a lot about it, but you can Google it and come up with all kinds of info.  And yes, it is (kind of, sometimes) manageable by diet and exercise and supplements.  But my in my experience with it, it was really difficult & heartbreaking (and sometimes dangerous) for me, and painful for him.  I think Joseph's best option is euthanasia.  He is painful just walking across the pasture in this cold weather we've been having.  Tonka was painful and even sometimes very sick, even with treatment.  It's just not fair for the horse, even to keep them as a pasture pet.  Depending on the severity, of course.  My sister's EPSM horse has been doing really well this winter.  I can't make any decisions about Joseph's future because he still belongs to the BLM.  Hopefully they'll get back to me soon with some options.

I am not saying that others with newly diagnosed horses should be hopeless.  There is a lot of hope.  I just...  I just can't do it again.

Sorry to report such bad news.  It explains why I was such a failure in his training.  That should make me feel better, but it doesn't.

Goofy creatures

Today we took it really easy.  Liam has the stomach flu and we're all feeling a little "off."

Except the critters.  They're healthy and probably somewhat bored.

Winston likes to give Blue very aggressive love nibbles

It makes him very happy!

Blue usually gets sick of it after a minute.

Poor Winston, nobody will play with him.

Huckleberry doesn't share well.

 But Winston likes to play anyway.

Boing!

Bob and Pedro have a little sibling rivalry going on.

Bob is so sweet.  He likes to lick and hover over me when I sit down.

I love Pedro's wide-eyed expression here:

Pedro thinks I am his.

He is so handsome!

 This is where Katia put my car on Wednesday.

I didn't realize the roads were that bad or I wouldn't have let her drive to school.  Happily, she was fine, and my car just has a little dent.  I think if that tree hadn't caught her she'd have rolled.  Scary stuff!  I still laugh a little to myself when I think how she told me she left the "top two doors" unlocked.  A car shouldn't have any doors you'd refer to as the top doors.