In the fall the horses resume being ponies. And in the spring, the ponies resume being horses. In the spring, this occurs after the horses have shedded, which is about when Zach Kaiser, our veterinarian comes to do the annual exams. He checks each horse’s pulse, respiration, heart rate, temperature, does dentals (often called floating teeth) and vaccinates them for flu/rhino.

From this day on, the horses must act like horses. They are again animals with a job to do, which is to exercise good judgement on the trail

Shadow and Zach

Zach pulled into the driveway in his mobile moose medical van. First things first. Shadow was very glad to see her breeder. Never mind that he docked her tail or spayed her – she thinks the world of him.

He first checked Ryder’s ear, which we’d treated with antibiotics. Then he examined Raudi who was tied to the hitching post and eating her hay. He checked her TPR and discovered that her respiration rate was really high. Other vitals, including her temperature were normal. He told me this in order to reassure me. I about freaked – my China doll was unwell. He told me not to worry, that he wasn’t worrying.

But I will worry because this is what I do. Pete held her while he administered the flu/rhino vaccine – I watched as she grew increasingly antsy. She began circling around, and I had Pete hand her to me, so that I could show him how to do a reverse circle. I did not have gloves on and she got away and ran behind the shelter.

I went and got her – offered her a treat and took her back to where Zach and Pete were standing, now deep in a non-horsey conversation. I says, look, and I showed them how I assumed the role of the pushy horse and pushed into Raudi who had to walk around me. I then gave her a treat.

Zach sedated her with Dermosidan and then did a dental. I was able to see where the hooks were, and that the incisors were uneven. Zach evened them out.

I later figured out something important. Raudi has always been an anxious horse. She has never liked being away from her herd mates. She also does not like being the first horse to be examined. In the past, if I let her go last, and first hang out and watch the others, she does just fine. The raised respiration rate was actually a red flag.

I am glad I know my horse so well.

Hrimfara was easy. Zach said she did have a high heart rate, and of course this was something else for me to worry about. He decided not to float her teeth this time but will do this in a year.

And Tyra – she was the medical problem child today. Zach didn’t get the Dormosidan in the vein; rather, it went into the muscle. So we had to wait for Tyra to become sedate. This did not happen. So Zach postponed doing her teeth. He had an equally hard time drawing blood for the Coggins test.

All this took a lot of time. But it was time well spent. The best time is the time I spend with my horses.

Next: 136. 5/17/24: No Geese, What Gives?