Acey has a Giiiiiirlfriend

Ace has been fixed up with a woman. He has been going out with her a short time each day for the past two weeks as they get to know each other. For the first time ever in his life, he irritated a horse enough to get bitten back. Aside from an a$$-whooping delivered by the Grey Horse one day, no other horse has ever tried to stand up to his crap. This is great news because it is the first step in his long over due socialization and integration into a group. I would have loved to see the look on his face when he got bitten.

Ace has not been happy with the recent turn in the weather. Today is very cold and blustery with driving rain. Like his mother, Ace has a very short, fine, plushy coat, and he does not like to get it dirty. I don't remember ever seeing him roll in the dirt or having to clean mud off of him. He's a hot house flower. Today he was objecting to being out in the elements woman or no woman. His owner said last week she was watching from the house as Ace and his girlfriend ran and acted stoopid, and Ace did a sliding stop into a corner wiping out on his side. He stood up quickly hoping no one had seen that. I'm sure he was just as upset about the dirt as he was about the gravity. Ace would be a perfect candidate for a horsey treadmill. That way he could stretch his legs, get his exercise, and never leave the comfort of the barn.

As for his health, he is doing well on the ulcer medication. When his owner tried to reduce it, he got a bit colicky so he is back on the full dose. I talked with a couple of professional Saddlebred caretakers and both of them agreed that it sounded like the pain from the ulcers were the root of his discomfort triggered anxiety episodes. One related a story of a stallion who had undergone two extensive colic surgeries with a lot of intestine removed. Afterwards, he could not eat hay because it irritated his entire digestive tract and he had to be on a complete feed instead.

In my conversations, I did learn of a drug that has been used to successfully treat the self mutiliation syndrome. It is the anti-anxiety drug Imipradene. Originally used to enhance semen quality in stallions used for AI, it was found to also reduce the mutilation tendencies, although a residue of the learned behaviors did remain from habit. As far as I know, no actual research has been done regarding appropriate dosage to treat the anxiety, but it does sound promising for extreme cases if no other solution can be reached.

So, Ace's life is going well. I don't know if this is directly related to his comfort on the ulcer medication, or just a matter of him growing up, but he is beginning to loosen up in the shoulders and move more freely. His owner is mostly worried now about the coming winter and being able to keep him on a regular turnout schedule. That is always an issue in our area since we have at least 6 months of ice, snow and wicked mud. At Mom's barn, we are lucky to have the 50 x 50 indoor. The paddocks are now off limits to save the seeding for next summer's grazing and turnout is limited to the arena and small dry lot. We had a new load of coarse sand delivered this week, and my step father has been hard at work leveling the ridges and ripples before spreading our wonderful new winter footing which keeps us going in even the worst blizzard and misery.

The Economics of Horse Breeding

As Ace’s surgery date approachs, I'm beginning to have sticker shock. There are two clinics to choose from. One is Cornell Vet School, and the other is Cleveland Equine. We are set pretty much equidistant between the two of them, which is a three hour drive one way. Because Cornell is a teaching school, they give a flat rate of $1500 for the procedure. Cleveland Equine estimates between $2000 and $2500 for the procedure, with the variables being surgical complications and recovery time.

Add to this at least $125 in gas because first you have to drop the horse off, and drive home. Then you have to go back and get him and drive home again. Which means each trip out is going to be 6-8 hours factoring in loading time etc. So, this means taking two days off of work. Let’s review. That’s $1500 to $2500 for surgery. $125 for gas. Two days off work. Things are starting to add up. I figure on the low end I'm looking at $1900, and at the high end, somewhere closer to $3000.

Now, when all this is said and done, what could we realistically value Ace at? I’m sorry to say it, but Saddlebred yearlings are not a hot commodity right now. A quick internet search will find you a dozen for sale at a lower price than Ace’s surgery. At the bi-annual Saddlebred auction in Lexington, you will see nice, useful yearlings going for less than a thousand. I’ve even seen a winning futurity colt from an excellent breeder sell for $125. That’s less than what we would spend on the gas alone.

Of course, we wouldn’t part with Ace for a few hundred dollars. He’s a nice, well mannered colt with a great deal of potential. But still, in this economy, you have to make responsible decisions with your money. Having an expensive hobby like horses requires good judgement. Too many people have continued on their merry way until they realized they were in a horrible predicament with no easy way out. And their animals often suffer from it.

With all these things in mind, I emailed my mother the other day saying maybe we ought to think about finding Ace a new home before we both emptied our emergency reserves (and trust me, they would have been empty) on this risky abdominal surgery. It just so happened that she was, at that moment, on the phone with Copy’s new owner. The woman was bringing Mom up to date. Copy did not settle with the first AI and she was going to be AIed again the next day. Mom read her my email and in 10 minutes, emailed me back that Ace would have a new home.

For a few minutes I felt like I was just passing my problem off to the next person. After all, who buys a rambunctious cryptorchid yearling colt who is facing a medical bill of a couple thousand with the risk involved? I sort of felt like I'd made out like a bandit. But from her standpoint it makes sense. She could continue to sink an indeterminate amount of money into trying to settle the mare (that adds up fast, ask me how I know) and maybe or maybe not get a healthy foal. Or she could cut two years off her wait and have the exact same cross she was working on ready to go into training next year. Plus, she can see what she’s getting right down to sex and color.

From our side, it also makes sense. We will not have the added expense and risk. She has experience with stallions and will be able to deal with his high spirits until the hormones are out of his system. She will be able to send him out for training which would be a stretch for us. This will give him the best opportunity to have a career as a show horse, and me the best opportunity of not getting thrown in the dust. As part of the deal, Copy, who is presumably in foal to Ace’s sire, is back here on a lease agreement. If she is in foal, we will have the next foal free and clear. If she is not, the stud fee is paid, and we can pay the resulting vet expenses to get her settled this season or wait until next spring. Are you ready to start on this horse breeding adventure with us all over again?

So Saturday Ace embarked on his first solo trailer ride and overnighter. He loaded like a good boy, and we left him loose in the two horse trailer with the divider removed. As they headed out the drive, Ace (naturally) began kicking and screaming like the baby he is. Mom looked at me and said “that could have been us all the way to Cleveland”. Whew… I hate hauling horses. By the time they had reached their house, a short half hour drive if you take it slow, Ace had settled and was behaving himself.

His new owner was very impressed with how Ace behaved. She said we had instilled in him trust for his handler and obedience. I’m sure he was excited going to a brand new place full of strange horses. The world is much wider than he has ever imagined. The next day Ace got his first water hose bath. Of course he didn’t want to stand at first, but soon settled in and coped with it. Wow, what a lot of firsts for a young man.

He has a turn out area in view of her house, and she has a window she keeps an eye on him from. She says she can’t do the same high pitched “Ace-ey” that Mom can, but she called to him out the window, and he soon figured out where she was and to watch for her. On day two he felt comfortable enough to try to bite her, and she had just been mixing dog food so she had some on the side of her hand. When he reached for her, she grabbed for his tongue (not a bad way to deal with biting if you’re quick yourself) and he got a good dose of canned dog food…. “Yuck Lady. You taste AWFUL. Phooey.”

So don’t give up on this blog. We will still have Acey updates although fewer and farther between. It’s fun to follow along when someone takes one of your colts and develops a relationship with them. Especially when that person is a trusted friend and lives so close. Ace will go for surgery in a couple of weeks. It will be interesting to see how long it takes for the hormones to clear his system and for him to start acting like a gelding. We look forward to such time as his training continues and he hits the show ring. You better believe we will be there for that!

Baby Blanket

Ace has a pretty baby blue fly sheet. I've been using it when we go out to hand graze. I figured it would be a good way to get him used to wearing clothing. The first few times he was a little worried about getting it put on and taken off, but now it's old hat.

When he gets fidgety, he pulls at it. I don't think it would last too long in a turnout situation, but in case the bugs get really bad, we have it on hand. This is one from Dover which they have on sale each year for $29.90. Can't beat that, and they are nice sheets. Grey has had his for two years and it's holding up great.

Ace finally outgrew his weanling halter, and fit into his yearling halter, so I changed that out today. He hasn't gotten any taller (still 14.3), but he has gained a lot of bone in the past month. The clinic and I have been playing phone tag, but we're going to get those trouble makers removed next month. Finally!

Happy Happy Birthday Baby

Ace is 1 year old today, and proud of it.

14.3hh and 640 pounds.

And this is how we use the whapper stick now. As long as it's in his mouth, he isn't chewing on anything (or anyone) that he's not supposed to be chewing on.

Pictures

I know it's been two months since we've seen a photo of Ace. One reason is that it has been miserably cold. Another reason is that while I've taken pictures of Ace, they either show him in a blurred cloud of dust, over exposed in snow or you get a close up of the inside of his nostrils. He loves the Flashbox. It's sooooo interesting.

So we snapped a couple pics today in the cross ties just to document his development and because he was standing still. Now, for all the times I've made him out to be the Devil Child, he does have his well behaved moments. For instance, I've been spending a lot of time on his tail getting him to stop rubbing. I am no longer concerned that he is wormy. His tailbone itches. So, I flip it up over his back and scrub with a hot wet towel until it's literally squeaky clean. He likes this. Then I spray the hair side with my concoction.

He has never once offered to kick during tail time. However, touch his flanks or hamstring...ka-pow. If the camera had clicked one thousandth of a second later you would have seen the range of motion he has with his hind leg. It's more of a reflex than anything, and you just have to be aware of it. I don't feel any more wary of walking behind him than my other horses. However, I don't reach under him.

A Very Good Day

This has been a very stressful week. It all started last Saturday morning when I opened an email from our vet and read the insulin results for my Grey Horse and Mom's gelding. Grey had a high reading (last year's was normal) and Face-Off was off the charts at a whopping 157 (the top reading on the normal scale is 40). This proved what we knew to be true. Face-Off was in the middle of a medical emergency, teetering on the edge of full blown founder. He needed a crash diet to bring his insulin level down.



To drive the point home, his half brother Hairy, who had foundered several weeks earlier, was failing fast. Hairy, never more than pasture sound for most of his adult life, had battled his sore feet cheerfully for several weeks. As he worsened, Mom made the tough decision to euthanize him in the coming week. We were both sort of wondering if we were making the right decision. Hairy made it for us on Sunday when he opted not to get up for breakfast. The arrangements were moved up to that afternoon, and Hairy lay in his stall all day on heavy pain killers, eating every forbidden treat Mom could find him. He never got up until Mom asked him to make the effort and walk to his grave where he was peacefully laid to rest in the sunshine while eating his fill of sweet feed. Here is my favorite of Hairy's baby pictures. He was the last baby we raised and lived to be 10 years old. He never left the farm, and was pampered his whole life. As you can see, even as a baby he was a little chub.



The fear that Face-Off was soon to suffer the same fate sent us both into a whirlwind of soaking hay, and researching diet options. Face-Off's energy level was very low and the foot soreness, typical of an Insulin Resistant horse, was worsening. Our sole focus all week was Face-Off and Grey and finding them a healthier diet. One afternoon I returned to my office and realised I hadn't even said "Hello" to Copy. Ace, whose hormones have been on red alert, was an added handful. Mom declared him officially "not a project for a beginner".



But today was a good day. Mom has worked out a system for soaking the hay. We have learned a lot and made some other diet changes. We have the supplies to test our hay for Carbohydrate and Sugar levels, and everyone is feeling better. Face-Off even trotted to the gate today. He hasn't felt good enough to trot in well over a month.



I had a nice ride in our little indoor. Grey proved again that he has matured into a well trained and perfectly behaved mount. I even took my stirrups up and did five minutes of trotting without them. I haven't done that in ages, and it proves that these past weeks at the gym are paying off.



Ace was acting starved for positive human interaction. A result of five rounds with the whapper stick the other day? Probably not. I was out in the arena sifting through the footing for the upteenth time searching for my expensive Blocker Tie Ring that Ace had removed from the eyebolt on the wall, and he was shadowing me, giving me no peace. He obviously wanted to play Wild Stallion, and I appeared to be the most likely partner. I did find my Ring, which is great because the darn things are expensive, and that put me in an even better mood. I decided to teach Ace something constructive.



I went and got the longe whip and introduced the idea of free longing. Ace wanted to stop at the gate each time and switch directions at will. I kept him to a more structured program. With the help of some bits of carrots I also tried the concept of "Whoa", which was not as well received. But he did stop a few times and let me come up and stand beside him. I had left the back door open and he finally decided he had had enough of my "rules" and exited.



With his excess energy run off, I thought it would be a good time to groom him. I brought him in and put him on crossties, which I haven't done since just after Thanksgiving. He stood like a rock, chewing happily on the snap the whole time. He let me wash under his tail and pick out all four feet. He did fling his hind feet around a bit, but not too bad, and all he got was a verbal correction.

While most people are lamenting the disappearance of their cute, fuzzy weanlings and the arrival of shaggy, pot bellied, pencil necked yearlings, I am admiring my perfect miniature replica of a beautiful horse. Ace is nicely proportioned and fit. His coat is thick but short like plush velvet. Just a little brushing brought out a healthy gleam that made him look as if he had been blanketed all winter. After his grooming, we went for a little walk around the arena. All the naughty antics of last week were noticeably absent. Ace is acting like a normal, reasonable youngster instead of the Devil incarnate. It was a very pleasant change.

I actually spent a quiet moment with Ace...

.... and he didn't try to "wrastle" me. He's due for a dose of dewormer, and the last time I gave him some, it was a bit of a struggle. He'd always been good about it up 'til then. So I decided he needs some good stuff in a tube before I dose him with the icky stuff this month. I held him while Mom squished a syringe full of applesauce in his mouth. As he stood there mouthing the applesauce in fascination I was able to stroke his neck and head and talk with him and he STOOD STILL. What a rare moment!

Quick Update

We measured Ace this past Saturday and he is 14.1 hh. That's a little over an inch in the past month.

Also, he got an unsolicited compliment from the farrier on his behavior. Kim said that Ace did very well standing to be worked on. Actually I was pretty proud of him. The farrier is becoming part of his routine. He did hop backwards a couple of times, but that is just his inexperience at not being used to standing around balanced on three legs. It wasn't a naughty moment. We did play "how much leather can I shove in my mouth?" Current record is about 12 inches.

Toy Check: Buddy Bopper is in the hospital. It isn't holding air. I took it home and disassmbled it and it is laying in the basement. No noticeable damage to the inner inflatable part. My husband thinks it is the stem not self sealing but we haven't taken the time to reinflate it yet. Please send good thoughts for Buddy's rapid recovery.

The Uncle Jimmy Ball is dead. Ace yanked it off it's string, so I rethreaded the string and put washers at the bottom. The knots did not hold up to Ace grabbing it and wrestling it down. Mom caught him in the act. I will have to use better knots, or Ace will have to be happy with plain old milk jugs.

Measuring Up

I've only seen Ace once since Farrier day. Between awful weather, running errands, and attending my out of town company Christmas party, it just hasn't worked out. When I came to the barn today at lunch Ace was very happy to see me and whinnied loudly. He was happy because #1 it was lunchtime, #2 it was his turn to go outside, and #3 maybe he likes me just a little. I went right in, put my arm over his back and rubbed both sides of his neck, which is the only way you can snuggle him without being promptly bitten. What I notice immediately is that Ace has grown! He no longer fits in my armpit. His withers were hitting my arm about 4 inches further along. I've had it in the back of my mind to measure him, so today was the day. Ace is 13 hands, 3.25 inches. I also noted when he was playing that he looks much less ass-high which is a good thing. I don't really care how tall he gets (I already have a tall one) but I do want him to be built up hill, and I want as much neck as possible. So this is our first bench mark.

Other than that, Ace had a lot of the devil in him today. He trotted happily to the grooming area and stood without being tied because I have yet to figure out a way to keep Mr. Mouth from constantly fiddling with the snaps, and because he will stand there anyway. But, one time he did push the limits a bit, and in a moment had grabbed his brush caddy and emptied it all over the floor. Then he danced around in a circle, not because he had scared himself but because he knew he was in big trouble. After a brief grooming and event free leg handling, he was turned out to play. I tried to get all the hay scraps picked out of the gateway to the round pen, and he took a break from his playing to try to dump the tub. He had a plan. He wasn't simply investigating the tub, he was targeting the yellow rope handle and trying to dump it. Little pest. He was NOT successful, but it wasn't for lack of trying.

The Cross Ties

Yesterday little Acey stood on the crossties for his grooming just like a big boy. This included picking out all for feet with no problem. Then I left him so I could go to the tack room and get him a cookie. He is still small enough that a Dumor treat has to be broken in thirds for him. He was so cute standing there trying to act all grown up. I'm sure it helps that most of his life he has watched other horses stand there. He did mess with the ties a whole lot but did not move around unless asked. I think next time I am going to try snapping the ties to the upper rings of his halter. Although I've never seen it done I've heard a portion of the the horse owning population does that with no problems It actually makes sense since it removes the ties from temptation's reach.

Our walks are going well. He is very "brave" and eager to go anywhere I ask.

A regular kinda guy

Today Ace was a perfect gentleman on his walk. He did get to parading around a little when my grey gelding started to run and carry on. Mom came out just a little late to get the best of the showing off.

Mostly we just moseyed around. It was really nice to be able to let him graze without having to keep my eye on him every second and defend my personal space

He is running in and out of his outdoor area all day now, so his life is pretty much back to normal.

Individualization

Today we tried getting Ace outside a little. First Mom left the big door of the arena open so he could go out into the pipe run area but he would only go out there if she stood out near the fence. Otherwise he was too insecure. He has been very happy being loose in the indoor arena most of the day, but going outside alone was too much for him. He prefers to stay inside and hang around the gates where he can hear other horses and know that he isn't missing anything going on in the barn... like lunch.

Later, we turned him out with Hairy in the outdoor arena. That lasted for about 5 minutes. At first he just walked around and nibbled but then he decided to stretch his legs a bit which he really needed.

After he had run for a few minutes he got anxious for the security of the barn and decided he might try to climb the fence. Not jump… climb.

It was clear he was just going to work himself up, so we caught him. Rather than take him right back to the barn we stopped in the yard to try to calm down and graze.

He did graze a bit but didn’t settle down easily and was still on the move. I guess I’ll have to spend some time leading him outside to get him used to being out again and turn his attention back to more productive activities like grazing. He has not attached himself to Hairy at all and could really care less if Hairy was involved. Hopefully if we don’t let him get himself worked up first he will settle in to graze easier. If it isn’t raining too hard tomorrow I’ll give that a try. At least he was mannerly. After catching him, getting the chain over his nose to bring him back down to earth was a little tricky but otherwise he was not bad to handle.

Farrier....B+

Ace was prety good for the farrier. I put him out and let him run for about 15 minutes before we worked on him, then tied him in the grooming area and held the other line like a cross tie. He was a bit impatient with the first hoof, which was the right front. He yanked that one away a few times and pulled back and fussed etc. He was better than I expected with both hind feet. Our farrier is very good with the horses. He rarely asks for me to get after a horse, and it usually has to be fairly extreme before he does. He was able to hang on those hind feet better than I can and as a result had less of a struggle from Ace. When Ace would lean on him or try to bully him with his shoulder, Kim would just shove back a little and "talk horse" to Ace. They got along well, as they have from the beginning, and Kim seemed happy with his behavior for a cocky little weanling. Although, when he came in the barn and I was swooshing Ace around he said "maybe you ought to do that a little bit longer". I will say it again... teaching a horse to tie to the wall for a length of time is the single best thing you can do. After he was tied he knew he was supposed to stand. Not that he was happy about it or anything....

Cross Ties

Do they call them cross ties because they make everyone cross?

Today Ace went out in the arena by himself. I'm sick and tired of how he is treating Hairy, and Hairy is only reinforcing Ace's dominance. All play dates have been put on hold until we can get him in with Face-Off who will not be pushed around. Ace was good, but finding himself alone he did immediately rinse his mouth. Then he started anxiously ripping hay out of the hay bag. I went and got my gelding and put him on the crossties so Ace wouldn't feel so alone. When we went out for a ride, Ace was fine.

Afterwards, we worked on becoming familiar with the grooming area. I've walked him in there each day, but have been unable to get him to stand. The farrier is coming tomorrow, so standing went to the top of my list of priorities. I shortened one cross tie (they are on blocker rings) and tied Ace to the wall, then moved the lead rope to the other side of his halter, and held that side effectively like a human cross tie, while Mom groomed him. I kept him in line by shoving him around a bit with the "wapper stick" and all went well. He did grow impatient, but I was fairly pleased with his behavior.

Stay tuned for tomorrow's farrier report!

Instilling some manners and respect

Yesterday I stopped by the barn with my husband to visit Ace. He hadn't seen him in awhile. I caught Ace and tied him to the wall briefly as, once again, I didn't have barn shoes on. When I turned him loose, he reared straight up as if to say "screw you... you stinky human.... you are NOT the boss of me." In fact, the past week, Ace's entire view of the world has been "screw you". Copy is in heat, and I don't know why some people are naive enough to assume that their yearling or two year old colt will not breed his mother, just because they are related. If I gave Ace a step stool, he'd get the job done today. Yes MA'AM ! On the drive home, my husband said... "you know, that rearing thing is going to have to stop." Well said.

Today was a rainy day, and thus devoted to Ace and his manners. Once I got him caught... not easy since he was busy playing "wild stallion"... I tied Copy and put a chain over Ace's nose for the first time ever. I also had a short riding whip in my hand butt up. Goal for today was "no biting... no striking... and NO rearing." Usually, Mom lets him hold the lead rope which makes him happy and keeps him from biting HER. But, first on today's list of rules was "no biting", and that included the shank.

Ace tried to grab the shank from me. I popped him with the chain. "OUCH, you meany, I'm not staying to play with you." Ace threw it into reverse.... Another **pop** with the chain. Ace's eyes got real wide, and if he had eyebrows, they would have shot up. "The humans have invented new equipment!" He is very very very smart. He immediately stopped to assess my demeanor, the new equipment, and to test out the ground rules. So as not to entice him into his rearing and striking behavior, I stayed back by his shoulder against him with my arm over his back stroking his other side. He reached around to try to bite me instead. **Crack** on the bridge of the nose with the butt of the crop. He didn't see that coming. In fact with the whip in the same hand as the shank, he couldn't really see me move at all, because I didn't want this to become a game which makes him head shy.

I led him off, and practiced "whoa". Again he tested me, but any missteps were met with a light tug on the chain, and any nips towards the shank or me were met with a tap on the snout. In about three minutes he had figured things out. I try not to reprimand with a "No" since that sounds too much like "Whoa". My reprimand is "Eh" or "Quit". We walked and whoaed. While we were whoaed, I touched him all over, and picked up all four feet. Ace stood quietly and respectfully for all of it. No nipping. No fidgeting. You could tell he was thinking hard, and his frequent pooping gave away his inner nervousness as he learned to cope with being attached to this "human with expectations".

I took him with me through the gate to the tack room to get a rope, and tied him to the arena wall for a bit while I talked to me step dad over the gate. He started to paw (his new trick). I stood about 4 feet behind him, and every time he lifted a front leg, I snapped his butt with the whip and told him "Quit!" He would lift a leg, and cock an ear to see if he was going to get away with it or not. Smart smart naughty colt. If my reaction wasn't quick enough **bang** on the wall. Then, because the rearing was so pronounced last time I turned him loose from the wall, I had left the shank on him draped over his shoulder, and when we were done tying, instead of turning him loose, we went for another walkabout on the shank. He was a reformed colt, walking politely, and standing soberly and still while I touched him all over.

So the problems start when you mess with his head (getting the lead snapped and unsnapped) and anytime you are standing in front of him. I did cross in front of him several times so I could repeat my handling on his off side. Anytime I got up by his head, reached between his front legs or touched his chest, he would start trying to nip again. Getting the chain off wasn't too hard. I reached under his chin and unsnapped it from the ring and worked it out of the halter while standing back by his shoulder, the butt of the whip in my left hand ready to rap his nose.

So, yesterday I was worried that I was the part owner of an incorrigible truant stallion, and today I am proud of my smart, trainable colt. As long as you lay down the ground rules, stay consistent, and ask and reprimand for the same things the same way every time, this horse training stuff isn't a problem. It sounds like a big task, I know. It is a huge responsibility to bring up a foal and turn him into a grown up, well trained, honest horse. But don't be fooled into thinking that it is any different when you are handling a trained adult horse. They are learning every day, and every time you handle them, you are teaching them something, be it good or bad. Just remember that.

Nuts!

Worst fears realised.... only one testicle is dropped. I was pretty sure that was the case, but I was hoping the vet could find the second one. Sometimes they're itty-bitty, and I'm certainly no expert at what they're supposed to feel like. He put him out and couldn't find the second one.
While he was down and out, he at least got a tetnus booster. Mom said the vet was suprised at how quickly the sedative wore off and Ace got to his feet. I'm not. This little guy is a real live wire.

SoooOOooo, we can take him to the clinic and have them dig it out there. Or endure his shenanigans for awhile longer and hope the second one drops in a timely manner. If he goes to the clinic, we will do it before he is weaned so he can ride with Copy. But, I'm not really eager to put him through that if it's going to drop on it's own in a few months anyway. I guess we could wean him and put him out with the older geldings and see if he shapes up or not. I'm afraid to buddy him up with Grey Horse, that would be like throwing gasoline on a fire trying to put it out! Copy certainly needs a break from being slammed around all the time, and I sort of want my mare back. I've been wishing I could ride her now for awhile. I guess wouldn't hurt him any to shut him up for an hour and ride her anyway.

Raging Hormones... Oh Vet Where Are YOU?!?

Ace's impending castration has been put off until Thursday, and we can't wait! When I arrived at the barn today, Mom had tried to give Copy and Ace their lunch in a tub in the run in area, and Copy IS.DONE.SHARING. She had her Alpha-Bitch hat on, and Ace was pretty frustrated. He's not used to her telling him no. I went and got a separate pail for Ace and called him inside. That went OK, but he was already ticked off and hormonal, and I could read his little face every time it came out of the bucket..."hmmm, should I bite you're shoulder or just clip you in the knee cap?" I kept wagging my finger at him and reminding him to "be nice". Since he had been running around like a fool, the biting flies were after him making everything worse, so I gave up on the grain and went for a bottle of fly repellent.

In the meantime, Copy came back inside, and the struggle was on again. As I tried to spray Copy, Ace came at her from every direction. When he draped himself over her back and grabbed her withers I realised the only way to diffuse this situation was a "time-out". I went back for a rope, caught the wicked little shit, sprayed him, and tied him to the wall. Peace and Tranquility settled over the barn. Ace has given up trying to pull loose when he's mad, and has been applying himself to learning how to untie knots. He stood casually on three legs and fiddled with the knot while I groomed Copy. Ahhhh peace. What a lovely thing. Copy twisted each leg around showing me where the worst itches were, and I got her nicely polished up.

Then I went back to Ace. He is already a lot better about having his underpinnings worked on, and he got a good rubbing and polishing as well. When I turned him loose, the little rascal grabbed the rag and knocked the brushes down, which spooked him so he darted off with the rag in his mouth. Then he thought the rag was chasing him, so he started to really run forgetting to drop the rag, which was still after him. It chased him all the way outside before he accidentally dropped it and got away from it. ***sigh*** ...children. When I left, they were casually standing around like the whole lunchtime debacle was a distant memory. Thank Heaven!

Edited to add photo and video from Saturday. Ace had just had a successful loading lesson and all was still under control.

Trial Separation

We are applying ourselves to preparing for this weaning thing which will hopefully take place after he heals from being gelded, which will hopefully take place on Monday if those testicles stay where they are. They come and go at this age, but Mom and I (and Copy) just can't wait to get those suckers out of there.

I signed up three of our horses for a genetic study conducted by Cornell University, which involves, among other things, taking about 30 detailed measurements of each subject. Since it was raining today, I did the Grey Horse, and was contemplating who to do next. Mom pointed at Copy... "is she next?" Now I had in the back of my mind how I was going to contain Ace while I messed with Copy, but hadn't really made a decision yet. There were several options, but when Mom asked "What are you going to do with Stinky?" my reply slipped out confidently "I'm gonna leave him in there." Everyone had been out earlier, but were indoors because heavy thunderstorms have been rolling through all day. So, I just put their halters on and told Mom to take Copy out of the stall and put her on the cross ties which are the next slot down the aisle from their stall. I had complete confidence that Copy would be fine, but I was interested to see how Ace handled it.

Mom closed the sliding door as she left, and I didn't stay to discuss things with Ace. I unsnapped the lead and slipped out the door myself leaving him to figure things out for himself. He was very good. He circled and called, but did not launch himself against the walls, panic, or otherwise try to squeeze through holes not made for horses. Copy, as predicted, could not have cared less. She nickered back for a minute or two confident in the fact that he was still only 6 feet away, but as I went to work with the tape measure, she rested a hind foot, and tuned him out completely. I'm sure she was hoping I would get out the brushes and resume our old spa routine but unfortunately I didn't have time. Maybe we'll do that tomorrow now that we know we can take Copy out by herself.

After I was done measuring (10-15 minutes) I didn't want to just throw Copy back in the stall with the frustrated little monster, who was calming down anyway, so I had Mom take her out in the arena while I went in and got Ace. I cracked the door open, put a hand in and told him to get back, which he did. Then I went in and snapped a rope on and slid the door open. He reared up and wanted to rush out, so I spoke up to him and made him stand. We then walked through at a controlled, yet eager, pace. Again, I didn't want to just turn him loose to run to Copy, so I took him to the wall and tied him in his usual spot for a few minutes and let him further sort out his feelings before I turned him loose.

At no time was he allowed to get panicky or rush around frantically and he returned to Copy in a fairly mannerly fashion. Then we stood at the gate and discussed what a good normal acting equine he had been, and he came over to visit. All in all, it was a very undramatic first separation.

Acting like a grownup

I was very please with Ace today. He has been so rough on his Mom, that we are starting to develop a weaning agenda. Today when I walked into the barn at lunchtime, Mom says "the plan is, I'm bringing Copy into her stall, and you're going to hold him back and make him behave for a bit." Apparently, he has been a monster.

So, I put a rope on Mr. Bitey Bitey, and Mom took Copy to her stall. He was fine with that, and stood relatively quietly in the arena. After a bit, I led his down the aisle. Mom was with Copy (who could NOT have cared less) in her stall and she said "keep walking him past". Ace led quietly past, and stood in the aisle visiting politely with everyone though the stall fronts.
I said "if we had someone out right now (flies are bad today), I'd just put him in a different stall". Time to build a portable for one of the older horses. Acey needs a big boy room! I want him to spend the winter assigned to the hay drop which is outfitted as a tie stall (and also has a gate across so he doesn't actually have to be tied all the time), but for starters he needs a sturdy box stall.

Then, before I left my husband stopped by and wanted me to take Ace out to show a friend. I went in and haltered him ("my goodness he's mannerly today" says Hubby), then led him out alone to stand in the aisle while Copy munched hay. Everyone acted so normal. It gives me hope for an uneventful weaning.

Ticklish Little Devil

The other day when I was handling Ace, I realised he is pretty ticklish on his sides. So, today when he was having his tying lesson, I got a hand towel to groom him with. Talk about ticklish! He did his best impression of the Tasmanian Devil. I toweled down his side and under his belly. First he tried to reach around and bite, but I smacked his hiney. So, he took out his anger on the rope. Then I went across his flank, and between his hind legs, and the fun really started. First he crouched until his belly was only about a foot off the ground, then he commenced kicking. It's really difficult to grope a horse, and smack them around at the same time! I pushed him against the wall, put my arm over his back, and just polished away. He was kicking double time with first one hind leg then the other. Armed with the determination that this would be a lot less fun as he got bigger, and Bill Cosby's sage parenting advice ("I brought you into this world, and I can take you out") I polished until he gave in.

All the while, he was attacking the rope, and untying himself, or at least letting out more line. A couple of times he did rear up and fight the rope, just because he couldn't stand to be around me anymore, but I could tell he didn't think it would do him much good. After he submitted to the flanks, I started on the chest, which was just as bad, only closer to the biting end. And ended with the neck and face. Then I picked up each leg, and worked with his tail (which oddly enough, he doesn't mind at all).

After about 15 minutes, he had pretty much given up, but he was still pretty pissed off. I can tell you, if I had waited until he was a yearling or two year old to do some of this, he would have broken some stuff. When he was done, I unsnapped the rope, and pulled him away from the wall, telling him he was free to go. He immediately launched himself back to his mom where he shook off all the nasty human, then he came racing back to me, reared up to his fullest height to tell me just how happy he was to be free of me, than started a bucking and running fit as he worked off his frustrations.

Is there any better toy than an old juice bottle?