Soxy is fine! He didn't even have to sedate her. He did all the things I had done, but I hadn't been able to see a thing. A more experienced set of hands (and an assistant, which I don't have) are absolutely worth the exam fee. I feel much better now. And I enjoyed visiting with my vet, which I haven't done since the spring.

In other news, I was able to trim Anchor's front feet today. First with the help of the rope, then without. He sometimes would regress back to needing the rope to get his foot up, but then he'd hold it up pretty nicely for me. He looks thrilled, doesn't he?

Check out these monster bars and ultra long heels:

I just couldn't nip some of that hoof one-handed, so I tried and was able to put his hoof behind my knee in my modified farrier hold. I don't actually clamp down with both legs like a farrier does, I just gently hold their hoof in the crook of my knee and they have to cooperate by leaving it there. He was a good boy, mostly. Sometimes on his bad side he'd try to scoot backward, which is awkward when I have my knee behind his foot. Had to get out of the way pretty quick, which kind of scared him.

But anyway, he's trimmed.

You can see where I sawed off a bit too much toe at 10:00 there. That was back when I took his toes off. It's an ugly mistake but it'll grow back.

Here's another before shot, but on the other hoof. I didn't get an after on that one. It looks much like the other, but without the too-short toe quarter. This frog had a rotten layer that needed to come off. Smelly.

I didn't have time to practice trailer loading with him, but if I get up early enough I can do that in the morning.

I finally got his feet! It took a couple hours, but with a long cotton rope and a LOT of patience, I eventually was able to pick out Anchor's front feet. One had a folded over broken bar that was poking his frog and I was able to get that off. I may be able to trim him later. I'm also going to work on trailer loading later. He goes home tomorrow afternoon.

Soxy goes to the vet later today. We were going to go this morning but they had an emergency come up. She seems pretty comfortable so our problem isn't really an emergency. I'll update on that later. Cross your fingers for me that she doesn't require an expensive extraction! I really think it's probably not going to be a big deal. It seems like it's got to be something minor since she's able to eat pretty well.

Yesterday was a good horse day. Well, it started out that way.

Scout got to stand tied while I groomed him and played with his feet, then I left him alone for quite a while. I thought he'd fidget a lot but he didn't. He just stood kind of sideways with his butt dangerously close to the electric fence.

I brushed his mane and forelock. I think it's the first time I've ever done that, other than just some spot work on tangles. His mane is very long and thick, and it's lost that puffy punky pony look but it's still not as sleek as his mama's.

He has his mama's mustache though! It's not as long and impressive as hers, but then he's still just a baby.

Huckleberry, my good little sidekick. He's getting so big. He starts Kinderpuppy classes next week. I figure with a dog this smart I better do this right.

Then I got Tonka out, and it was one of those days.

He says, "I feel much better now!"

Look at this sweet face. He's so cute and innocent.
Or not.

I tried something yesterday, and I thought I was being careful and smart. Last time Soxy got beat up she was in with both geldings, and I thought maybe they were both trying to claim her. I had her in with Tonka and Scout for a few days recently and it was fine. It would make more sense for Soxy and Cisco to be together because they're both fat. So I tried it. I put them together yesterday morning and watched them all day. Not a problem in sight.

Last night when I stepped out to feed though, it was a different story. There were thundering hooves. In the moonlight I could see him latched onto her neck, she was running as well as she could with him hanging on to her, trying to kick him. One of them was squealing but I'm not sure which. All this time I'm running. She got away from him but he kept at her and was kicking her. It was awful. I had to get in there and smack him with a whip until he moved off, then I had to continue to hold him off because he kept trying to come back. I finally got her out of there and we did some walking to cool her down. When she dropped her head to graze there was a squeaky sound. So I think there is probably a broken molar. She had a slightly bloody nose but her front teeth are okay.

So now I'm trying to get a hold of the equine dentist, but she's not answering, and the other vet isn't sure he can do much besides look at her and see how bad it is. Sounds like if it's a real bad break we'll have to get it extracted at WSU.

Sometimes I wish I didn't have to muddle through life learning from my stupid mistakes. But really I thought they were okay with each other after such a peaceful day. From here on out I'm not going to put Cisco with any mares, period. He and Bella really went at it too.

My family is awesome. A huge thanks to them all for helping me out during Mustang Days, especially since we're in the middle of haying and my mom isn't feeling very well.

I'm still really upset about missing out on my favorite classes (and maybe even the high point buckle??? Probably not, but still I wonder...) because of a last minute reversal in the order of classes. I'll leave that subject though, and start with telling you about Friday.

Friday, I loaded all the horses in the trailer.
We headed out, destined for a nightmare journey with a banging and swaying trailer. By the time I knew blood was shed it was too late to turn back. Soxy's leg was cut up thanks to Zaz kicking the crap out of her. Her nose was skinned and it was obvious from her head-shaking that she'd hit her head pretty hard at least once. She also had dirty hoof prints on top of her rump, so he must have been rearing over the divider.

We got to the arena and nobody else was there, plus the stalls were all locked with a cable. I took it apart and broke in so I could put Zaz up while I treated Soxy. She got a dose of bute and a long hosing on her swollen, bloody leg. It didn't appear to need stitches. All the horses went for a nice long walk, and Zaz was a total angel. That horse. He's got a split personality or something.

I sat and drank my coffee the next morning while the three of them ate their breakfast.
Later, after people started showing up, I was busy doing something, maybe hosing Soxy's leg, when I noticed a couple strangers had untied Tonka from his spot at the rail and were leading him around. I wondered if he'd done something bad an needed to be moved. But no, I recognised them! It was Tracey and her Darling daughter, come to kidnap "their" horse, More Better. See, they had been bidding against me when I adopted Tonka, and that was their name for him. I'm glad I went over my spending limit and beat them on the bidding. He is More Better, but he's my boy.

I don't know if they still love him as much now that they've met him while he was at his most rude. He's been in a mood lately. He's normally mouthy, but he was rudely mouthy and even ear-pinny this weekend.

I love this picture of Tracey's Darling and Bob and Lea's burro, Yuma. She got on and rode him around the little 12X12 pen. He did really well, and it's easy to see that Darling is already a horseman. Burro-man? Burro-woman? Ass-whisperer? Whatever the term, she's good with equines.
I want to go to bed and I have a billion more pictures to share, so I'll save them for another post tomorrow. Before I go though, I'll set your worries to rest about Soxy. Her leg looks much, much better today. The swelling is almost gone and she really doesn't seem very uncomfortable at all.

Today I took Soxy for a ride out at Melissa's. Tonka got the day off thanks to an abscess that is brewing under his jaw. I really think it's just caused by cheat grass or something since he doesn't seem the least bit sick, but just in case, I left him home.

It was fun to ride Soxy, she's just a steady old horse. She was kind of eager to move out, which is funny because she's so out of shape and gets winded so easily. But I'm glad she had fun.

Here are some of the sheep. They all cleared out when they saw us coming, so this was the best picture I could get.

Melissa's sweet Angus. Isn't he just the cutest dog?He sings with her donkey, Peaches. And he's an excellent livestock guardian.

My sweet Angus. Isn't he just the cutest dog?

He was giving me puppy dog eyes because he wanted food and he knows he's not allowed to whine at me or I won't feed him. He is an excellent eater of food.

They don't know that I think they're both the cutest. But they are.

Oh, and in other news... Tonka got his jaw clipped. He is very afraid of the clippers. His legs were shaking and he was kind of jumpy, but he stood still for me like a good boy and let me get the job done. That'll make it a lot easier to see what's going on when the abscess ruptures or I lance it. Will keep it cleaner too. Then I moved him in the dark, took him up to the front door to recruit help and put him out in the mustang pen all alone. I hate making him live by himself. Hauled him some water and gave him lots of hay and called it a night with him. Tomorrow I'm going to try to get a sample of the goo so the vet can culture it. I'd hate to have strangles on the place and not know it, go about my business and end up infecting other horses. So I'm going to cover my bases.

Today Cisco redeemed himself after his bad day last week. He had decided that instead of getting into the trailer he was going to spin and bolt. I couldn't stop him and he got away 3 times. Tried more often than that, but I'd found a way to anchor him with a long rope and stop him. He still kept trying though. So today when I got home I decided to try loading him with Soxy already in the trailer. He loaded very well. A little skeptical at first, he had to back out a couple times, but then he stood in there with me very nicely while I fawned over him and told him he was a good boy. Then I put him away.

That's my horsey day!

Tonka had me pretty worried for a while there. I stalled him so I could monitor his poop and how much he drinks, and he had the type of poop you hope not to see. Small and dry. Still not drinking out of the buckets I put out there but it's only been a few hours. He's perky and alert and wondering why I'm not feeding him. I gave him some loose salt in a feed pan and I think he was pretty disappointed that it wasn't something good. I just got home and found a nice wet pile of poop out there, so I feel better but I'll keep watching him.

Had a good ride at the arena today. Mack is a good boy. I hope we can find him a great home.

Soxy was good too, but she's pretty predictable that way.