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Re: [RC] HELP - My mare is frustrating me - Don HustonHello Susan,I too have found my horse with puffy front legs after too much speed work and that IMHO is what the puffiness was telling me. It was too much for that horse at that particular time on that surface with that shoe-job etc. Don't be discouraged, the horse is telling you that something needs changing, feed, saddle, how you are conditioning, shoes or boots, it's like solving a mystery by studying the clues. I found that soft footing (sandy desert roads) are just as hard on a horse's legs as hard packed dirt at speed. That's why race tracks spend millions to get and maintain perfect footing and why I only let my horse gallop short spurts (30 sec at 30mph is a quarter mile) because that is my longest stretch of good footing. The cramping could be from many things, previous muscle pull, food imbalance or even recent vaccinations. I no longer do the shotgun thing of vaccinations, teeth floating and worming all in one day. I spread it out and never do any of it within 2-3 weeks of an endurance ride because IMHO I think it caused severe side cramping in my horse for 2 months and pulled from 2 consecutive 50's one year when I tried to ride the first 50 (pulled at first vet check then again at lunch) one week after vaccinating. Never rode that soon after vacs before, horse had never cramped before and has never cramped again. Could have been a fluke, who knows for sure. I figure the best I can hope for is to pay attention to the clues (and you did), ask for input from others (and you did), and try to do things in such a way that I do not repeat whatever it is that is causing my horse a problem (easier said than done right?). One of the best things I do for my horses is give them time off, they always come back better than before. I still ride them but with no particular purpose, just wander and graze if there is any, the cowboys call it a "nerve ride". It takes the horse (and the rider) out of work mode and lets them relax and settle their nerves and heal whatever needs healing. Don Huston At 07:58 AM 9/30/2007 Sunday, you wrote: First of all, I am new to this, have only done one 30, and this is the first horse I have ever pushed beyond being just a pleasure trail riding horse. I have been bringing her along slow, and cardiovascularly, she is in great shape! Her working HR's at a forward trot are between 120-130, plummetting to 70-80 within just 3 minutes of stopping. Walking in between trotting, my HR alarm will go off (it is set for 60-I need to lower it). But a short 1 1/2 minute gallop which brought her HR to only 154, had her front legs puffy the next morning. I know tendons are the last to strengthen, but, come on, a short gallop where her HR didn't even get up? Then, the other day, I took a long, easy, 12 mile WALK with a couple of other horses that aren't even conditioning, and my mare cramped up one of her rear legs. The first time it happened, I thought she stumbled or stepped in a hole. She held her rear leg up for a moment, then continued on like nothing had happened, so I discounted it (but kept it in the back of my mind for future worry!). Then not even a mile later, she did it again with the same leg, so I hopped off and walked her home (we were close, thank goodness) and watched her stride carefully and that leg was striding just a hair shorter than her other one. I got her home and gave her a good massage with my battery operated hand massager she likes and she leaned heavily into it on that hind quarter. But she was not tender to the touch anywhere on that side from her hip, haunches, hamstring, stifle, hock, lower leg, pastern. So why did my "in condition" mare cramp up and the out of condition ones not? At what point in conditioning can I gallop her for short bursts, and not expect her legs to puff up the next day? When am I not going to feel like a complete idiot in all of this? Don Huston at cox dot net SanDiego, Calif =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net. Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp Ride Long and Ride Safe!! =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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