 |
| Photo taken 3hrs prior to the session beginning |
The session started out with her commenting on how he had pain in his hind right hock. Things don't come in black & white, as it's the horse communicating with a human not a human communicating with a human. It was foggy at first, he was showing her "slippery mud" and that "no one [or no horse] hurt me" but that he was "running around and slipped in the muddy part". She mentioned how she saw that the "snow had melted" very recently, which was true. We had an Ohio thaw just days prior which also explained the muddy pastures. "He says no kick loud and clear."
Before we started our session Tracey asked what I wanted to accomplish with our session. I stated that I wanted Derby to know that I had to go away but that I was coming back and I didn't abandon him. That I joined the military for him, so I could afford to keep him his entire life. This was the second thing Tracey hit on, saying "Derby says he knew you wanted to back again before you left! He kept feeling like you were fighting yourself to turn around one last time and say goodbye again." Which is true, I said goodbye three times the last day before I left for basic combat training.
I asked if he was experiencing pain anywhere else besides his hind right hock. Derby didn't tell Tracey that he was hurting anywhere else, which is a fantastic thing! When I visited over Christmas break he had some jaw pain which has resolved itself with treatment!
 |
| Army photoshoot when I came home for Christmas break |
"There was also a lady. Sweet and more gentle." "I didn't appreciate her for who she was and I bossed her around. I took advantage of her. I wasn't with her long." Though Derby's definition of taking advantage of and our definition of taking advantage of could be totally different. Instead of being naughty, maybe he just wasn't as forward since she didn't have a heavy leg like the other rider? I'm not sure, but Derby isn't the mischievous or naughty type, so that's how I'm choosing to translate that.
"There's a lot of blurring" Tracey says as we start to communicate about his track days. "He's showing me people but I'm not sure how many people were trainers to retrain him after the track and how any were owners. There's so much fear and confusion all muddled together. Which happens a lot in track horses." "They are very confused about the whole thing." "Once in a blue moon I get a horse that loves to race and remembers everything about their race days and can tell me everything about it. But that's not too often. It is extremely traumatic and stressful. So many horses hate it. Horses hate it more than greyhounds hate racing." Tracey isn't just limited to horses, she communicates with dogs and cats as well. "At least greyhounds talk about it and find a purpose in it. Horses do not."
Tracey continues on saying that Derby is requesting "some sugar cubes" and "cookies with peanut butter in them." Tracey starts communicating with him about more subtle things, about how "he loves that you love his white stripe down his nose, and how you compliment him, and tell him how handsome he is." Which is true, I baby talk how gorgeous my horse is with the best of them.
I told Tracey that I 'started riding differently this past year' and asked if Derby likes it. Tracey's response was "Oh yes! That must had been what he was showing me before. He says it's much more comfortable and fun. He needs to keep his mind busy and because this feels different he has to pay attention - he likes that." This past year in 2015 I started watching Will Faerber's videos online and even attending a clinic. Instead of pulling the head into a frame I started asking him to stretch down to engage & connect his hind end and lift his back. It's changed everything about how we ride & our jumping has improved so much because of it. It's a very gentle method and doesn't force the horse to do anything, but engages a lot of muscles that they weren't using before.
 |
| Stretching walk, really using the topline & engaged hind end |
"What are you doing different? He keeps pointing out his feet. Are you doing dressage? The way he keeps showing me how he stepping it's all I can think of." This was curious. I had not mentioned a single thing about how Derby made the transition from being shod to barefoot back in September 2015. He is doing FANTASTIC and we even got radiographs Dec '15 which confirmed he was doing internally great as well! I told Tracey this and she said "Oh!!! That's why he's showing me his feet! Hahaha!! That's funny!! Usually they just show me their shoes being removed." "I guess he's learning how to speak with humans!!"
Tracey then asked me a question out of left field, "Did someone just have a baby?" This caught me off guard but I told her that an old boarder just recently had a baby and she brought her little girl out to the barn to see the horses this past week. "He's fascinated by the baby!! Especially by the smell of the baby. I don't think he's ever seen or smelled one before! He's in awe over the baby! He says if you have one can you bring it for him to smell? He's totally fascinated. This is funny and adorable." This lines up pretty well with Derby's personality. Another boarder has a 2 year old son that Derby absolutely adores. He loves anything 'smaller' such as cats, dogs, minis, children, absolutely adores them. I actually have a video of Derby snuggling with the barn cat.
I asked if Derby likes his new hay feeder. What I didn't tell Tracey was that over Christmas break the barn owner & I build a special rubber corner feeder so he could eat his hay on the ground and not tear his hay all around his stall. Due to his jaw pain, he needs to eat on the ground. "Yes. He loves the hay feeder!" Tracey mentioned about how he broke a hay net in his past and I couldn't help but chuckle as he's destroyed more than one. "He's not a fan of hay bags but he'll use whatever he has to to eat his hay." Now I filled her in, about his custom ground feeder. "Well he loves it. The hay isn't in the dirt. He hates hay directly in the dirt. I feel like it's more comfortable on his neck. He's very enthusiastic about it"
 |
| Custom ground corner feeder, made out of a stall mat |
Now I started steering the conversation towards what disciplines did Derby like to do. We do a bit of everything, but I didn't tell Tracey that. "First I thought he was showing me trails, next thing you know I'm seeing cross rails. Maybe you ride him English and western?" I clued her in on how Derby and I are all arounders and do a bit of everything! "Oh ah. There ya go. So versatile. So he has two favorite things to do, trails and jumping. He's also starting to like dressage, that's choice number three." I told her how honest Derby is and how we go to all sorts of different shows. "He tells me he tries to pay attention and would like to watch other horses more. Especially in dressage. It helps him understand it better. He's very visual. If he can see it, he can do it. So intelligent. Blows me away, he's even communicating better now than when I first started speaking with him. Incredible!" Derby is a quick learner, I have to praise him on that! The part about him being visual fits too, as our barn is very tiny. The only dressage horse in the barn doesn't get worked with very much and is green. The other English horse in the barn is also green, so there isn't a lot of visual aids for Derby to learn off of. Maybe I'll have to sit him down with a good YouTube video eh? Only joking.
I asked if Derby has a bit preference. I explained that sometimes we ride tackless, but I'm wondering about his face sensitivity. "No you're right, he prefers no bit. If he has to have one make it as light as possible. By you not using a bit it tells him that you trust him and you know he will take care of you. That builds the trust even more between the two of you. So it's best not to use one if you can help it. The less on the face the better." I told her I use a loose ring french link when I do use a bit because it aids in softening the jaw for him to stretch down. "His face is extremely sensitive from all the harsh training so by leaving his face alone it says I'm someone who won't hurt you. I know I don't need to control you. We are partners. I don't dominate you. That gained his utmost respect when you did that for him. That was the best move you could have ever done. Kudos."
 |
| Jumping 3'3" with no bridle in 2014 |
Back in December 2014 Derby and I had an accident. He got a hoof through the rein, went down, and sliced his elbow open. We had the vet out to stitch it up and he was off for about 2 months. He had some serious PTSD and wouldn't trust the halter, the bridle, the reins, me, or any healthcare professionals [farrier, dentist, vet, etc] that I brought in. It was a grueling couple months where I had to earn my horse's trust back. I told her only a little bit of this and she read, "He related that to a track incident. As soon as you mentioned the reins and hoof incident I saw a similar track incident. Not only was he hurt but he also got in trouble for it. He was whipped and was waiting to be whipped again." Maybe the PTSD was a lot deeper than I originally realized.
I told her that he had been pinfired, to which she responded "I can feel the pinfiring in the back left, and maybe front right." I was SHOCKED! Absolutely shocked. Maybe only a handful of people on earth know that Derby has his hind left hock pinfired. I had actually forgotten about this until she brought it up. You can only see the scars if you clip his coat, then you can see the pinfiring dots. This is what really validated the entire experience for me. All of the above a sham could had figured out and fed me just by stalking my social media. But this significant piece of information led me to believe that this might just be a legitimate experience.
"The hind left is the one I feel the strongest. Pinfiring creates a tingle in the hoof like when your foot falls asleep real bad - even though I knew they did it in the hock because I felt where he twisted it. So his back left hoof always feels like it's half asleep. Front right hoof also feels the same way but not quite as bad. I do feel it to a much lesser degree in the left hoof. Feels like pins and needles you know? Rear right hoof is the only one that doesn't feel asleep."
Before I could respond to the above, Tracey said "I have to tell you 2 things before I forget." So I remained quiet and waited for the text messages to roll in. "He has an ulcer that's basically healed but for some reason it must still bother him from time to time because he's showing it to me. It's not awful. But it's there." This made me groan a little inside. I had treated Derby for 18 days with 2.28g of omeprazole back in September 'just in case' since he's always been asymptomatic for ulcers. I just treated him to eliminate that variable from his hard keeperness. It did help! I was pleased with the results, though didn't follow up with any type of maintenance preventative. I'll be looking into retreating and following up diligently this time around.
"He wants to say thank you for all you do for him. He truly knows you saved his life. A horse's life is so uncertain. There's so many things that can happen to a horse and it's scary being a horse. He considers himself very fortunate to have been chosen by you. He will always do his very best for you. He lives and breathes for you. He loves you with his heart and soul and he would die for you." "Horses bond so deeply and love with all their hearts." -enter lots of heart emojis here- I love the nooget so much. I explained how I joined the military so I could afford to keep him until his dying day. "I told him that. he understands you're working far away but that it's necessary so you can buy his food and pay for his boarding. He appreciates it deeply. He has a concept of work and money. Track horses always do. He also understands there's danger in your job and he worries for you. He sends good energy to you every day; to keep you safe." I responded 'I'm in the medical military so the risk is lower. He'll get to travel with me to my next duty station if it's stateside.' "And he hears you talk to him in your head - yes he really does. He'll like that [traveling with me]."
As our session starts to wrap up, I ask one last question. How is he doing at home? With Larry, the barn owner, and being home in general? "He said he's being well taken care of. He gets his feed on time and in the right amount and his hay. He gets turned out most days as long as it's not terrible weather. He has a clean stall. His feet are taken care of. And he even gets some treats - but not as many as he got with you. He's treated with kindness and gentleness and he's well taken care of. "
"Please don't worry about me he says. I'm just fine. I just miss you. But I know you love me and I know you will be back. So all is well."
