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We Are Flying Solo

February 2, 2010

D-Day!!!

Well, you know, "I-Day" just doesn't have the same ring to it.

Yep, yesterday, our favourite Dr. Bob came out and shot a bunch of cortisone into Solo's high and low hock joints. We decided to skip the HA (hyaluronic acid for the uninitiated, be happy if you have never had to think about it) because (1) it adds $200 to the price (why yes, that was my moan of agony you heard just now!) and (2) unless you are doing super upper level stuff, Dr. Bob has not observed it adding too much, especially if the horse is already on Adequan/Legend (which Solo is). After discussion with the vet and consultation of the science, I'll be dropping our feed-through supplement and just maintaining the Adequan.

The cortisone takes away the ow. The HA/Adequan helps rebuild fluid/cartilage and protect them from further degradation. The antibiotic shot in there with it all helps protect against infection from the injection itself. Dr. Bob has never had an infection and it's easy to see why -- he spends ages with the bucket of Nolvasan scrub and other little scrubby pads to the point where I would happily lick Solo's hairy legs.

Solo gets his lovely injection of happy juice and I am assigned to hold the head end up (yup, owner gets the bitch job.). The procedure then goes something like this:

Me: Holy crap, Solo, your head weighs 247 pounds! (Anyone who has ever held the head of a tranquilized horse knows EXACTLY what I mean!)

Solo: Heyyyyyy....don't...poke....my....leg...I'll...kiiiiiick....at....you....feebly...

Dr. Bob:
Hey, Solo, don't kick Dr. Bob now or else we'll have to get some more drugs out.

*SLAM! BAM! WHACK! POW!* (The pasture abuts the barn directly behind us. This is Ms. Hunter Princess Moxie Mare using her head to hurl open the sliding barn windows and the washstall door in which we are standing as hard as she can to illustrate her desire to be let in and pampered above all others. At which point I thank all the gods that my horse is calm. And drugged. Don't let her innocent face in the picture fool you.)

Me:
Ok, Solo, really, could you use just ONE of your many neck muscles at this point?

Dr. Bob: PLEASE DON'T TRY TO KICK DR. BOB!

Solo: Let me blow all the snot out my nose too....

Moxie: *WHACK! CRASH! SLAM!*

Me: My arrrrrmmmssss........

Dr. Bob: Only one more, be nice to Dr. Bob now, Solo!

Moxie: *SLAM! GALLOP GALLOP GALLOP!!* (This is the sound of thundering hooves as Moxie leads everyone in a riotous protest gallop since someone besides her is OBVIOUSLY getting pampered.)

Solo: Snottt.........

Me: OMG, not only have my shoulders dislocated, my head is now encased in a bubble of horse mucous as Solo seems to feel his only method of protest is blowing out his nostrils.

Moxie: *WHAM! KICK KICK KICK SQUEAL!* Freaking mares.

Dr. Bob:
Done!

Solo: Duuuuuuuude.....

Me:
Could someone pick my arms up off the floor?

So pretty much routine, you know, uneventful. Just another quiet day on the farm. At the end of it all, you might have heard another anguished scream, but don't worry, it was just my checkbook.

I am instructed to give Solo three days off. Which is not really a problem since currently the ground is covered in about 3" of leftover snow topped with a serious ice crust. Oh and freezing rain is falling on top of that. Then on Friday I can do some light walk/trot work (yeah right, it's supposed to rain some more Friday) then Saturday I can do whatever I want (since it's supposed to snow on Saturday).

For now, I will just lie still on the floor with ice packs on my arms and be grateful that we chain the washrack door shut precisely BECAUSE of Moxie's lovely little ways.

10 comments:

  1. I thought your barn was a no-mare zone.

    BTW, Pete did not snot all over me because he know I have this thing about mucus and bodily fluids.

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  2. HAHAHHAAHA -- we DO have the no-more-mares rule, but Moxie belongs to BO so she gets to stay. Although, whenever she is in heat, BO suddenly has much talk of selling her...

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  3. Oh, we have a Dr. Bob, too, and we LOVE him! We actually made a big glittery "We ♥ Dr. Bob" sign that also says stuff like "Best Vet In The History Of Ever!" that we hang up when he comes out. Also, our barn whiteboard says "We totally ♥ Dr. Bob!" Yep. Twelve year old girls, the bunch of us. (Dr. Bob is hot, but he's also gay, so we're not creepy stalkers.)
    I'm sure Mr. Solo will be soaring over Prelim obstables by Sunday!

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  4. See, they were totally wrong when we were in high school - drugs are GOOOOD! We love Dr. Lana, which doesn't have the same ring but I'm sure carries just as much fervent emotion. You guys will be flying high before you know it.

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  5. Actually, Moxie was trying to come in and get herself some awesome-horse shots. She knows that Solo is now going to be winning both Rolex and Burghley this year and wishes she got the chance to do the same..... poor Moxie.

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  6. Oh, sweet, molly, will you be sponsoring our airfare then? We were just waiting for a volunteer... ;-)

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  7. Great dialogue. I could easily picture all the fun you were having. How are your arms today? Can you lift a pencil? Does Solo get these injections regularly? Do you find they help?

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  8. OnceUpon -- haha, maybe a plastic pencil!

    No, this is the first time for joint injections, as I do not like puncturing a joint capsule unless other avenues have been exhausted. Research has indicated they can make a dramatic difference--I will find out over the next few weeks! How long they last depends on the horse and it can be from 6 weeks to 6 months to even a year for some. The interval is generally lengthened by the use of Adequan/Legend.

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  9. The check is in the mail! My HUGE pre-school teacher's salary makes it easy to be a sponsor for everyone!!

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  10. Awesome! I can also induct you to my "I-Don't-Get-Paid-Worth-A-Damn" Club!

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