In that spirit, I'm listing the cr*ppy things that have happened, then balancing them with all the good things that have happened this year (and I'm keeping this horse-related as my cr*p-luck also involved very significant work issues that I won't bore you with here).
- The Bad
- May: my newborn foal, Pippa (Hano x Hano/TB), pranged herself off a page-wire fence at a full gallop, resulting in many deep abrasions, one RIGHT next to her eye, but thankfully nothing permanent. I aged 10 yrs because I was filming her antics when she did it.
- Three days after the above: my yearling Hano/Shire filly, Eowyn, gashed open her right flank, approximately 14" long, which closed beautifully but then she reopened it so it took six weeks and a round of antibiotics to heal it. She has a permanent scar there which is pretty noticeable, but she is otherwise fine & fully functional.
- Late June: my gorgeous WBx gelding, Panache, age 7, colicked with a nephrosplenic entrapment and died late that night. I was going to debut him at Second Level and was having *really* great rides on him leading up to this tragedy.
- Two weeks later: Finn, my homebred Hano/Shire gelding (full sister to Eowyn), suffered a tremendously awful & horrific soft tissue wound to his left shoulder after running into a (blunt, not-sticking-out) hinge bolt. He tore open his shoulder from the point upwards along the shoulder blade to the tune of approximately 24-28" in length, and through two muscle bellies. It took three months of intensive wound care & stall rest for him to heal ... but, miraculously, he did! He has a fair bit of asymmetry if you look at his shoulder blades from above/behind his bum (as his chiro showed me), but is otherwise totally sound. I've been riding him for about a month now. It remains to be seen if he can continue to carriage work, but I'm just grateful that he's healed & sound.
- Throughout the summer, I tried to get my Shire mare back in foal (to the same stallion, Sir Wanabi). She's never had trouble catching in the past. She missed on the first try, caught on the second try but then resorbed, missed on the third try, then we discovered a probable uterine infection (could also have just been a contaminant) which we have treated. She is open and it's too late to try again this year.
- On the last day of September, Jet, my beloved Fourth Level Friesian/Perch gelding, age 14, was a tiny bit lame. He's never been lame in his life, so this was unusual. I had the vet out the next day and the ultrasound showed a LF suspensory ligament injury. He was put on stall rest, then short 5-min hand walks after the first 10 days when the swelling/heat had improved, and after shock wave had been started. He then startled just taking him out of his stall (he's normally cool, calm & collected), and landed badly and was instantly ++ lame. Re-ultrasound showed worsening of the original injury. So he's back on stall rest and will likely be out for a year. So much for schooling PSG this winter ... *sigh*.
- 10 days ago: Pippa had a swollen left knee and I discovered a 1 cm puncture wound on the inside just above the knee (thankfully not communicating with the knee). It's taking its time to resolve, but she's sound on it and is a superstar re: taking her meds and tolerating me cleaning the wound (especially given that she is just 5 months old).
- The Good
- Except for poor Panache, all of the injured horses above are expected to, or already have (miraculously in Finn's case) make/made a full recovery.
- My daughter, K (age 12), has improved in leaps & bounds this year with her riding, especially since she started taking lessons from my FEI instructor (I had been waiting for her to start lessons with my amazing instructor because it is very $$ per lesson and I wanted my daughter to be a confident intermediate rider to benefit the most from the lessons). It is exciting how talented K seems to be for dressage in particular. She finished her show year as Reserve Champ provincially at Training Level (Jr)!! And that's after only a small handful of shows, too. I'm so proud of her.
- Finn, who I showed twice before his injury just at Intro, won his division at the level of our local dressage club!! Very decent after only two shows, LOL.
- At Finn's first jumping show, he won his entire hunter division and placed 1st in every class except one. (My daughter also cleaned up at that show in the same division but for the Jr riders.)
- Finn also was Grand Champion at the Novice horse division of his first ever CDE (Carriage Driving Event), and the judge felt he definitely has FEI potential in the carriage driving world. (This was literally 3 days before his accident.)
- Jet's news & awards are the most special to me of my horses. I rode him at Third Level for the first three shows of the year, then moved up to Fourth Level, hence the dual level awards listed here. Note: I didn't show that much, I think I went to 7 shows altogether this season. He never scored below 60% in any of his classes, and most of his scores were in the 64-68% range, resulting in:
-Champion at both Third & Fourth Levels for our local dressage group
-Champion at both Third & Fourth Levels as well as Third Level Freestyle for the Ottawa Area Dressage Group (a much bigger group with a lot more competition than our small local group)
-Champion at Third Level and overall Champion for Freestyles (all levels) at the Ontario Silver Dressage Championships back in September - he earned a 72% for his Third Level FS at that show
-Champion at both Third & Fourth Levels provincially (all of Ontario)
-Fourth Level Silver Medal from Dressage Canada for both him, and also for me!!!! - This past weekend, my daughter and I got to attend the 2-day Ingrid Klimke masterclass, which was awesome. This is the third masterclass in as many years put on by Caledon Equestrian Park, and we've been to all three (the first was Carl Hester, then Charlotte Dujardin).
So, I'm counting my blessings. And I have a horse to ride again now that Finn is back under saddle. Onward & upward.
Does anyone else want to add to this thread with their own "The Bad/The Good" gratitude list? I know many of us have had our share of struggles to contend with this year!
I'm a little bored at work but it's a good gig overall. I still love what I do - both the job and the horse gig. The key for me is that I still have future goals and dreams that I think are realistic to shoot for and attain. They may have changed a little over the years, more the plan to get there than the actual prize at the end; but, that's okay. My mother still says, "Everything happens for a reason." I hate having to admit that mother was right......but......damn it she usually is.