A Visit

Friend came to visit on Sunday. I had gotten used to Chief being easy with us and was surprised at first that he resisted her approaches. He was responding to her like he did to us when he first came. So his trust of us does not extend to new people. Did I really think it would?

He expressed his Opinions and Left, but eventually she coaxed him in with softness and promises of a friendly way. It was neat to watch his attention change from wariness to curiosity to understanding and trust.

Trimmin' dem feet

I trimmed Chief's back hooves yesterday. I explained to him what I needed to do, sympathized and asked his permission and tried to get started sans halter. He walked away. I explained some more and promised to be careful. He walked away again. I told him some more about what I had planned and I showed him my tools. Eventually, I was able to trim both hooves with my hoof knife without any restraint but he couldn't stay with me so I could use the nippers & rasp and my nifty new hoof stand. I went to the barn and got a halter, explaining more all the time. He allowed me to halter him and I put the lead rope on the ground and finished the job. He never tried to leave once. In fact, he picked his hooves up for me and was as compliant as could be. It would have been nice to be able to finish without the halter, but what the heck. I certainly wasn't restraining him. Maybe wearing the halter helped him feel restrained, but he wasn't resentful at all.

His feet look much better. Interesting horse.

Vet visit

Vet came yesterday and the horse had his shots, a Coggins test drawn, his teeth floated and his sheath cleaned.

Exam $25

EWT/RF $41

WNV $30

Ragives $19

Sedation $38

Power float $110

Sheath $40

Coggins $38

Total $341.

Donations are still cheerfully accepted. ;)

Weight update

Chief taped in at approximately 960 pounds, give or take, today. The vet hasn't been able to make it yet due to snowstorms - we're trying again for this coming Wednesday.

The old boy is eating well. He doesn't put away as much hay as the other horses, but he sure does enjoy his meals! I should get video of him digging into his dinner sometime. And play the "Jaws" theme in the background...

He is such a kind and gentle horse. We need to find him a human to dote on him. He would be good for a child or a timid person who wants to have a horse for a friend.

Weight

I taped the old guy at 923 pounds the other day, different from what L got when he first arrived, but he's definitely gained ground. I hope I see an upward change in the next few weeks.

Colic

Chief had a mild colic last Sunday. It was frightening, especially since I could not reach a vet for over an hour. Our regular vet told me Monday that her pager had not been working all weekend. When I called our alternate vet, I was pretty happy to reach a HUMAN answering service.

Luckily for us, Chief responded well to the Banamine and Gas-X I gave him and did not need an emergency visit from the vet. It appears he had been working on an impaction and that Sunday's breakfast was just too big. I've backed the meals down and am feeding him 3x daily. So far, so good.