Saturday, November 22, 2008

Another ride aborted

It's that time of year. Windy, chilly, and rain. Only right now the rain is anything from sprinkles to hard, freezing rain. I saw every variation today, and we never made it out of the barn!

So I worked both the girls in the round pen and hope tomorrow is nicer. Sadly I have learned yet another pain of living here in the northwest. It's called "scratches" or "greasy heal". Basically horses whose living areas are too wet can develop this fungal/bacterial (can be both) infection on the skin above their feet. Apparently horses with white socks or feet are more susceptible. Ketah's hair is white but her feet are black which means her skin is black. Ginger has white or white striped feet, especially her front. And two weeks in a muddy paddock waiting for her new (nicer and far less muddy paddock) caused her to develop it. Ketah can't be stalled so I don't keep them in a place that stalls the horses. They do have a good sized (acre+) paddock with a shelter to themselves now so once I deal with the "scratches" she ought to be ok.

On the plus side. I've been using Julie Goodnight's techniques for some basic manners and it's working great. Ginger is now willing to move off in either direction without crowding or stepping on me as she was previously. She learns very quickly so I need to move on to something else before she gets bored...

No comments:

Post a Comment