





Despite ever-changing weather and a few challenges in getting to the farm this last week or so when the worst snow in a few years descended on us here; 2021 has got off to a very positive start for my fluffy boy Charmer, who has really enjoyed the past few weeks.
We started the new year in a cold snap of frosty weather, although on New Yearās Day itself there was a thaw and a bright warm sun that got our morning at the farm – and family ramble down by the horsesā fields, watching them graze – off to a beautiful and uplifting start.
Charmer continues to be doing really really well at the moment with his arthritis and in January enjoyed some in hand walks down the hill he used to struggle on, loving exploring. On the 22nd, it was New Shoes Day once again for him, and this time around – after being shod the last twice since his equilibrium shoes were put on with a bit of sedation to help him cope with it – he managed without any sedation whatsoever and without a hint of discomfort the next day which just made me so, so happy. Itās wonderful to see him thriving again – and unbelievable to see my brave boy have hot shoes put on unsedated for the first time in his life since a disastrous attempt when he was 4… who says you canāt teach an old dog new tricks!!!
He had his annual injections the same week, and both the vet who came out for them and the farrier were so happy with how well he was doing on his walks and in his day to day life, that we agreed if he seemed to be up for it there would be no problem with trying him with a little walk back on board to see how he managed. Thatās a thing I never thought Iād do again, back in August when he was as lame as he was I was absolutely happy to retire him and didnāt expect to ever reverse that; but at the moment he is so enthusiastic about life and about his walks in hand and taking the lead from him he really did seem that getting out an explore together would be something heād love.. so on one quiet morning when the conditions were briefly not too wintery, I just popped his bridle on and got on, just bareback and just for a quick wander around the yard, to see how he managed.
It was such a wonderful experience, I couldnāt believe how happy he was. As we wandered more of the hail stones weāve got used to these days started, but this deterred him not one bit, and he was so keen to go. We ended up walking down the track a little, where he was pulling to just go on and on, so keen to explore, and when I turned him back, just wanting to keep it to a little wander, I had to hold him back to a walk, he was so enthusiastic and his wee head bouncing as he strained to break into a trot; it was beyond lovely to see.
So far thatās the only wee hack weāve had, and Iāll keep them to occasional, as they always tend to be for us anyway, with some in hand walks and some little rides but everything still very steady for him. But itās just lovely to see how much he enjoyed it and just lovely whatever he can manage to see how well heās doing just now.
Yesterday was dentist day, with his teeth done by our same wonderful vet who has helped him so much over the last year first with his dental operation last February and then with his arthritis in the summer, and although heās got a few things going on with his teeth that are to be expected for a boy turning 25 in a few weeks, and weāll be keeping an eye on them with another appointment in 6 weeks time, he seems to be doing ok and at the moment is managing just fine to get his hay, grass and feed fully enjoyed. It was brilliant to have a chance to see his usual vet and get her take on how he was moving and thoughts for him, and to my relief his weight etc all seems ok and sheās happy with how heās doing for the moment.
The last few days have been very snowy, which has been a beautiful winter wonderland (the difficulties of winter driving and practicalities of getting up to the farm aside, thankfully managed!) and Charmer has enjoyed a play in the snow as much as the kids have back at home, – rolling, running around with his field mate and some big happy bucks in the air I couldnāt quite believe his old legs could manage! Itās been lovely to see him out enjoying it.
Weāre still under a blanket of snow just now, although thankfully getting around a bit easier these past couple of days, no need to park and hike up the hill anymore and just the perfect amount now for kids and ponies playing in. Weāre starting to see the nights lengthening which is really lovely, and Iām really looking forward to getting my boy into spring; but am really so glad heās managing (hopefully the last of!) the winter so well.
A happy Friday all from our snowy corner of the world. Hope you are all well xxxx
Just a little good morning from our corner of the world… hope you are all well despite the times weāre living in, and are finding ways to navigate through these next few weeks.
Here, weāve been back to a life at home, trying to keep the little ones busy and happy, stay as connected to family and friends as we possibly can, and find a routine within what looks to be our new normal again for some time to come. One of the constants in life in lockdown and always is looking after my boy, and Iām very grateful that, just as last time, we have still been allowed access to the farm to look after the horses, just with separated slots to keep us distanced – and so Charmerās schedule brings a steadying routine to this new time. At 10am and 5pm I find myself there with him, an anchor in this strange January as he has been at so many other times in the decades weāve had together.
Our morning slot being 10am this time means Iāve had to take the girls with me which has actually ended up being wonderful – a safe, fresh-air way to get them out and bring the routine to their days that playgroup and baby classes normally do, and theyāve loved helping as much as Charmer has enjoyed having his little fans on hand.
And for me too, my dark evenings settling him in to the stable for the night, giving him a brush and sometimes reading a little in the quietness beside him, or weekend mornings like today, catching up on the barn chores and enjoying a wander just me and him; are valued even more than ever amidst all the uncertainty.
Charmer continues to be doing really well just now and amazing everyone with his enthusiasm for life and how well he is moving. I would actually be amazed at how well he was doing if this was summertime but for this to be the coldest winter weāve had in a couple of years, coming in from nights out at -7 and weathering damp days and changing temperatures; I really canāt believe how much he is thriving. Something in amongst his medication, supplements and shoes is working more than I ever dreamed possible and I am over the moon to see him restored to such health.
I took him a walk on his rope this morning down the hill he used to really struggle with, his feet hitting the ground steadily and certainly, and let him have some grass at the bottom while I drank my coffee, read a few pages of the horsey book Iām reading, and watched some of the younger horses in the field opposite Charmerās showing off some spectacular boisterous play.
Landing up back at the gate, time was up once again – as it is quickly now – for the farm window in the day, but I was very grateful both for it and for the strides forward C has taken in enjoying life and living it to the full.
Really hope you are all staying safe, taking care and feeling ok, as we all count down to spring and better days. X
Good morning and happy weekend from our very rainy corner of the world. Have spent a lovely Saturday morning in the barn with my boy and my book.
Charmer had a big day yesterday seeing both the vet and the farrier together and getting his new equilibrium shoes on which we are all hopeful will let him be a bit comfier over the winter.
The early signs are looking good as even on a miserable day and with all the extra manipulation yesterday he was walking pretty well this morning which was great! But we spent most of our time enjoying the cosiness of the barn, and I loved some quiet time with him just reading and enjoying his company. ā¤ļø
Have a lovely weekend all. X
This weekend brought with it Septemberās beautiful mix of the last days of summer and the first of autumn, newly yellowing leaves on the trees and the odd one floating down already.
Bringing Charmer in on Saturday morning, after catching up on some mucking out and barn tidying, I decided to take him for a little bit of time in the sand school.
At the moment heās not meant to do any forced exercise of any kind, and I feel a little hesitant even leading him as heās often reticent and worried about where heās placing his feet, but I thought in there with his headcollar off he could decide himself exactly what he felt comfortable with. Weāve used the space for games and join-up and ambles before, and when I took his ropes off and started just having a wander around myself, I found I had a very happy follower. ā¤ļø
It was really, really lovely. Iāve missed even just walking in hand with him and know he has too, and it was so lovely just to move around together and to know he was only doing what he felt up to. He found plenty to explore and investigate, and when I got him in to his stable afterwards he was exhilarated and happy-looking just for having seen something ever so slightly different!
It was a lovely morning, and so enjoyed finding new ways to have adventures with my boy. ā¤ļø
Hope you are all having a lovely week. X
Earlier this week, Charmer and I had another visit from our vet to see how we were getting on with his wee old legs. Weāre seeing him feeling a little better and comfier on his feet around the yard which is great, and have some more plans in place to try to help him further – so all is looking more positive and Iām starting to feel very optimistic now about seeing him comfortably enjoying his life.
However, we did agree that now is the time to bring his working life to an end. To be most representative, āworkingā should really be in inverted commas, as over the years weāve really done nothing more than playing. When we were very young, the odd local show, a little dabble in jumping, but itās generally just been a life of exploring the countryside around us at a very leisurely pace!
And itās been a wonderful one. I have absolutely loved all these years of rambles and ambles and have pondered some of the biggest moments of my life from my seat up on my boyās back. Iāll never forget steadying rides on the mornings of my graduation and my wedding day, all those autumn hacks through stubble fields and crunching leaves, wintry ones all wrapped up with our clouds of breath in the air, and summertime canters along bright green verges here and there in all our homes over the years.
When he was first diagnosed with arthritis in 2011, I was completely happy to bring the riding to an end if it helped him. Somehow though we got another nine years of adventuring, only putting a stop to the jumping; – although even then not quite as the photo in the woods below was taken much more recently – just a fallen log we often came across in our local woods that he absolutely loved to pop over and, taking the lead from him as always, I was happy to let him occasionally just to see his burst of happiness at flying over it again. ā¤ļø
I really never expected to ride again after Iād had my second daughter so the fact that we got even just the three little rambles we did this summer with him so strong and so loving it was incredible – they were just a bonus, one I loved having and know he did too.
So now weāve hung up the tack for good, and itās a very happy retirement to my boy – I have no doubt heāll have no trouble at all in enjoying the views, watching the world go by and keeping an eye on all the goings-on! ā¤ļø xx
The last few weeks have been very focused on trying to get Charmer more comfortable and get a handle on his arthritis again, and have been a bit of a rollercoaster of steps forwards and back – but weāve just been taking it one day at a time, making breakfast and dinner a cocktail of supplements, using his new magnetic bands and trying everything we can – and Iām now very, very hopeful that weāre getting some real progress!
After starting on a new supplement Nutraquin+ at the vetās advice a few weeks back, in addition to his usual Danilon at a slightly increased dose, and going back on turmeric back then too which he had been on in the winter last year; in the last week or so weāve also started No Bute at a recommendation from a friend and also switched the turmeric to Turmeraid, with added black pepper, at anotherās recommendation – all of which seem to be contributing to a comfier boy.
Iāve always been glad to have the support of others with more experience than me throughout my life with Charmer, but have never been so grateful as now for friends at the livery yard. In the last few months, especially with juggling the littlest baby at home and lockdown schedules, Iāve had a lot of practical help from Charmerās fieldmatesā owners, managing the bringing in and turning out, who have been wonderful; and there are also a few of us on our lovely yard with horses at just exactly the same age all of whom are navigating arthritis, and some of the things that have worked best have been recommendations from them or other friends either at the yard or who Iāve known from the past. Itās wonderful being able to share ideas and try out new things and when Charmer was struggling most and I was so upset, the kindness of the people we share the farm with was overwhelmingly lovely and such a big help as we moved slowly forwards.
As well as the feed additions weāve built his magnetic bands, which I started him wearing a couple of weeks ago, up to full use, so he now has these on while heās out, about 16 hours a day, and just has them off while in his stable for his 7-8 hours in. Got him on a new routine at the moment of coming in for breakfast at 11ish with his fieldmate, having some hours in, and then when I arrive at either 5ish or 8ish in the evening (depending on whether pre- or post- bedtime here at home!) he has his second feed, and we walk back out. Itās always hard to know how to play it in terms of time in and out as I know he does better out for keeping moving and not stiffening up but with needing two feeds at the moment for the staggered Danilon didnāt want to have him walking in and out twice, and he seems to enjoy some downtime in the stable at the moment and not seem too stiff when itās kept to under 8 hours or so – so going with it for the moment, although I hope maybe when I see the vet next week we might be able to combine everything in one feed and then he could be in for a shorter time.
Walking back out to his field has been the most difficult thing to manage over the past weeks – we can either make it a very short walk straight from his barn to his field gate, but on a slight slope which he seems to find really difficult, or a longer walk around the yard but more on the flat. He definitely seems to prefer the long way, but although some nights heās managed fine, others heās been really struggling whenever on the concrete, although managing fine on grass – and managing absolutely fine on the grass in his field too. One of the other owners at the farm had suggested Scoot Boots hoof boots for him, and my lovely friend let me borrow hers to see how they worked out. After two nights of using them to walk back out Iām very very hopeful we might have found a bit of a breakthrough for him, as they seemed to make the most incredible difference to how he felt – basically just letting him walk with shoes on without the trauma to his legs of being shod.
Still want to stay just cautiously optimistic as I know weāre battling a difficult thing here and itās taken a long time to see the improvements we have but Iām absolutely over the moon to see some (sometimes quite bouncy!) strides forwards in the last couple of days. As we walked round to the field last night he almost broke into a trot to follow my friend walking a little ahead with an apple, and was ears forward and happy all the way – such a welcome sight!
He seems to be doing well and be comfy at the moment both in the stable and in the field and heās otherwise in such good health for his age, so itās just the movement between weāve got to master, and I really hope weāre getting there.
Hope youāre all having a lovely week. X
As a postscript to yesterdayās ramble on my boyās health, still taking every day one at a time, but was delighted to see much, much better movement this morning and a definite brightness back in my favourite fluffballās eyes, so a good Saturday here for us!
Happy weekend all x
The last couple of weeks have been very mixed in life with Charmer. Back at the end of July I celebrated 20 whole years of life with him, making a fuss of him and giving him a few extra treats – enjoying some time with the whole family joining in – his junior groom busy sweeping up around him and the littlest member of the family stretching out her tiny hand to get to know him for the very first time ā¤ļøā¤ļø – and some of my favourite times, just me and him, too.
As always, I was thinking how very lucky we were still to have him so well and so healthy, loving summertime life and feeling good, but unfortunately just a few days later he was suddenly struggling a bit walking in and out between his field and the barn, and within a day or two was practically refusing to move from his stable at all, which is so unlike him. Called the vet out and they were wonderful as always and were able to say and show that it was definitely his arthritis (it was so acute all of a sudden that I hadnāt even been sure if it mightāve been an injury or if he was ill and just not feeling well enough to move) and that it was below his knees that was causing the problem rather than his knees as last time, and believed coffin joints – which definitely made sense as his last X-rays a year or so ago showed arthritic changes moving that way. The vet said it was hard to tell really whether it could just be a flare or further degeneration that will be the new normal; but either way needed to get on top of it quickly. Heās had his anti inflammatory upped slightly in the short term, but with the caveat I totally understand that we really are at pretty much the maximum he can have long-term at the moment without risking too much damage to his kidneys. Heās also started on a new supplement I really hope might help and was recommended to have front shoes put back on, which heād had off since last year, with a rolled toe to try to help his movement and reduce any impact on the joints in his front legs.
The first couple of days after the vet visited last Monday were pretty bad, and he actually seemed worse every night and I really thought we were approaching a time of having to make a decision for him – although with his level of discomfort just shooting up so suddenly and him having been so sound and so well just a couple of weeks before I really wanted to give everything a chance to help. Thankfully towards the end of last week he started to improve and had a few good days walking almost like his normal self again.
Spent a lot of time watching him in the field to see he could get around ok, still lie down and get back up and was very relieved to see he could.
The farrier came out on Wednesday to see about putting the shoes on. He was also wonderful – as ever Iām so grateful to have such dedicated people working to help Charmer and do whatās best – but he was reluctant to put shoes on knowing the trauma it would involve to his legs. He did say Charmerās feet were very even despite his leg tending to turn in a little due to the changes and in very good shape which would already be giving him some good support, so instead as a first try trimmed his feet with a rolled toe trim rather than shoeing with that.
Having seen him since Wednesday Iām very glad we didnāt go for the shoes just now, although it might be they would really have helped in the long run. Even just with holding his feet up for the most careful trim and the least time possible and even with some extra pain relief he was much worse again yesterday which was a shame after a few daysā progress but have to hope it helps longer term.
This morning, visiting him in the field, he seemed comfortable enough and was enjoying grazing with his fieldmate and watching the younger horses over the fence careering around with interest, which is all I really want for him. Obviously weāre off riding at the moment and that may be for good this time, but I know that wouldnāt phase him as long as he can definitely be comfy enough enjoying his field, stable and routine heāll be happy.
Hopefully heāll get back on the mend again very quickly, but I have never been more aware that we donāt have all the time in the world and I really want to enjoy every minute. Times in the barn with him quietly companionable, grooming him or reading a pony book while he takes his time with his dinner, or standing side by side out in the field are my most special moments. Last night as we left the lights of the barn and took our slow steady walk to the field there was such an autumn-like wind and it was dark for the first time all summer heading out. I love watching seasons change with him and just enjoying the stillness.
Keeping everything crossed for him over the next few days and weeks, and taking each day as it comes. Wishing you all a lovely weekend x