A More Everyday Update

 Let's put the equine changes and big decisions on hold for a minute, OK? My routine loving self needs a time out for a week or two before we dive back into those waters. For now, let's have a standard Bridget and Sophie At Home In The Summertime Update.

First off, the girls are extremely lucky because we have new neighbours that bought horse property and...actually aren't horsey. They need the fields mowed Sophie and Bridget were awarded the contract :) I'm not sure if this is something that could evolve into a longer term arrangement, but for now the girls are in heaven, I am saving hay and grazing at home, and it's pretty convenient to just walk them a minute down the road there and back, morning and night.

New field feelings. The equine circus comes free with mowing.

Sophie has been doing well. She's somehow expanded outward. She's actually slightly overweight, which I don't think anyone believed could be possible. Her topline and chest and hind end suddenly are normal horse sized though too, which is crazy after years of her just looking like a perpetual gangly baby. 7 is the magic age, I guess!

S had a bath and a farrier visit with minimal dramatics. We were all proud :)

In ulcer news, it's the end of month two of treatment. I am opting not to have her rescoped. It felt way too stressful and invasive for her, and it feels like we *just* did it, despite that being 4 weeks ago She's looking and feeling good, so I will take that as my sign. We're going to put her on a quarter dose of gastroguard for another 2-3 weeks. The sucralfate bottle ran out last night. Now that I know for sure ulcers are a thing for her, I think if in doubt, I'll just treat. I'm sure you can imagine how much fun it is trying to put a tube of anything in Sophie's mouth these days, she's a smart cookie and not super food motivated so she's not fooled by carrots or apple sauce. She sees a tube, she wants to know what's in it before it gets near her mouth. I'm saved by the fact that she's 100% genuine, so even though she HATES it, there's no worries of it escalating beyond her jaw being locked up tight. I need to video how she eats her treats now, the suspicion level is high with me :)

like this...I'm not sure her mouth actually opens yet the treat disappears into a million tiny bites

Riding Sophie has not been happening since I got back, because with her new physique her saddle really isn't right anymore. I've been gradually noticing it all summer, and when we got back I think I saw it with fresh eyes and yeah, it needs help. With her very recently being quite cold backed and girthy (thanks ulcers) I'm not even going to think about messing around with anything not perfect. Positive associations from here on out, please!

lLoking forward, unfortunately most of the ulcer supplements that come researched and recommended aren't available to be shipped here, so I had the vet recommend one.  I've since had some friends give it favorable reviews. So we'll proceed with that. (Mad Barn Visceral, for any of my Canadian friends)

The fitter is here this weekend so fingers crossed out of my mountain of used saddles we can find 'the one' and get back to some summer riding.

B is also rounder than she needs to be. G sent me this, with the caption 'total eclipse of the horse':

Would be OK if they were the same size or B was really close to the camera, but B is like a hand shorter and somehow twice as wide ;)

She's not going off property until late October, so I've got a couple of months at least to get her back to a moderate fitness level.

With the horses at the neighbours many days, it seemed an opportune time to get to work on their overnight paddocks. New footing came yesterday (no mud this winter please!) Fencing and shelter improvements to the second paddock can begin this weekend and I'm pretty excited to see the end result.

B's summer campsite is becoming a permanent paddock with wet coast appropriate footing and a proper shelter (likely Sophie's winter home and the boys will share the barn and attached paddock)

I'm still puttering outside til sunset and loving every minute of it