My mom's photography

She took 24 pictures and a few videos. There was one decent picture and a whole lot of hilarious ones.

Hives!

Argh! Two years ago, when Willig moved up here from California, he got hives that we couldn't get rid of. If you look back at the blog, I spent all kinds of $$ on the vet and drugs and trying various things, none of which worked.
I moved him and put him on Platinum Skin & Allergy at the same time, and they instantly went away and didn't come back until about a month ago.
My vet had heard of one other horse that had something similar, and that's why he recommended the Skin & Allergy. Willig's blood work for allergies showed almost nothing.
So I was delighted to hear that another horse at the barn had hives, that she got them last year, and that they instantly went away when she switched from the barn hay (a great orchard grass) to timothy from one certain place.
In anticipation of the big switch, on Friday Willig's dinner went from 3 flakes of orchard grass to 2 flakes of orchard and 1 alfalfa.
Saturday, the hives were noticeably reduced.
Sunday, he got his new hay, so he is getting 1 alfalfa and 2 timothy.
Today, Monday, full hives again - new big ones. Not ridiculous, but nothing like Saturday's big difference.
Argh. Argh. Argh.
If ANYONE has heard anything about this, please let me know. I am going crazy. I am going to give him two more days on this timothy, and then try a different timothy. Then we will switch back to the orchard grass and alfalfa. Then I will tear my hair out.
The photos are of Thursday hives (bottom picture) and Saturday hives (top picture).

Jim Wofford's Recommended Reading List

From the 09/09 Practical Horseman:
Francois Robichon de la Gueriniere
Gustav Steinbrecht
Federico Caprilli
Wilhelm Museler
Brig. Gen. Harry D. Chamberlin
Bertalan de Nemethy
Jack LeGoff
George Morris

Another wowza lesson with Mike

Despite my growing anxiety about a big deal thing for work tomorrow, it turns out lessons with Mike have been one of the best ways to calm down. I completely focus on what he is saying, and the 45 minutes just flies by without me thinking about work once. I usually go back and tackle it with more gusto after the lesson is over - AND I don't spend that day feeling guilty for not riding. My office should pay me to ride - I bet I'd be more productive (and I know I'd be happier!).
Anyway, today we worked:
- Scary end of the arena (one head bob, then not a big deal at all)
- HEELS DOWN (Mike called my heels lazy. I agree with him. I am amazed at how much concerted effort it takes for me to "relax" my heels. The second, literally, I stop thinking about them, they spring back up.)
- A big trot, with a bounce in it. I have already forgotten the word for this. It is the moment he lifts up (like skipping, instead of shuffling) and I feel the float. It turns out he is quite capable of moving quite nicely - I just haven't been making him do it.
- And then some work at the sitting trot and canter without stirrups. We did me looking up, me adjusting my seat (on the pubic bone, on the tail bone, and then balancing in between), and holding on. We also worked on the transitions - turns out that when he does something that surprises me (this is wildly obvious in sitting trot with no stirrups) I clamp my thigh, he thinks "Cougar on my back!" and then his head sproings up and he tries to bolt. If I hang on and feel it coming and force my body to relax, he is able to use his hind legs for the down transition and come underneath himself.
- We also worked on how to change the whip from one hand to the other (kind of like the canoe paddle), which I had no idea how to do, and I'm going to venture, this is going to be one of the embarrassingly hard things for me to do.
Willig was great - yet again.
Still got hives though.

Jumping photos

T came out and took some pics of us jumping little stuff today.
My heels aren't down enough, I still jump ahead, and Willig hangs his left knee a little. But it felt pretty good compared to the past, and Willig was sweet and calm about it, even though he had half an eye on the poodle's house (it was foggy, and he seemed to expect the poodle to come out of the mist).