A porkchop and steak

 We took a rode trip last week to a little farm about an hour away. The gal who runs it is a super horsewoman and let a group of us come and work cows for a couple of hours.

It was the perfect activity for a 90+ degree day because we did nothing but walking, so it wasn't physically hard on anyone but for sure mentally engaging.

I thought that maybe Hampton would be scared of the cows, but he was not. At all.

At first he was curious.

Horses with previous experience started first.

Then we started just slowly walking the cows around the arena. Confident horses led first, while others could follow and gain confidence.

It took maybe 30 seconds before Hampton realized "Oh, we chase these things???"

And then he turned into GODZILLA.

I mean ears pinned, neck-snaking, steak-eating MARINE on a mission to kill.

He absolutely loved the game, and when I asked him to stop and stand (and let others take a turn FFS Hampton) he stood politely and watched. Never got wound up. It was like he was a cow horse in a previous life. We did a little modified team penning too!

Highly recommend doing a little cow clinic like this. The two biggest rules was always be facing the cows, and the slower you go the better. It was such a blast and a great break from dressage. Hamp and I did a buffalo clinic about 10 years ago and I guess he must have remembered. haha.

Will for sure be doing this again!

Myth busters Monday: The P stance

Oh boy I was a little scared of the hits I might get if I titled this The Pee Stance. 

Do you have to stand up in your stirrups when you horse pees? 

Hampton. Currently NOT peeing.

I know I was taught to do this because otherwise you hurt their kidneys. (I grew up with VERY old school saddleseat instructors)

False. BUNK.

1) the bladder does the peeing, not the kidneys. And I can't think of any saddles that sit anywhere near the bladder. 

2) The kidneys are really quite protected from even western saddles. They sit underneath thick muscle, fat, the spine and a couple of ribs. In fact your vet can feel the kidneys during a rectal exam. The kidneys sit pretty low. If it were true that a rider puts pressure on the horse's kidneys, then we would need to stand up ALL the time.

Source: https://equusmagazine.com/diagnosis/excessive-urination-in-horses/

You can of course stand in your stirrups if you feel like it might help you horse get out of that parked out stance a little easier. Especially if you have an older horse or something like that.

But do I stand in my stirrups for Hampton? No, I quit doing that years ago. He hasn't had a problem. Plus I am barely a flea to him. Maybe if I was riding a smaller, petite pony I would be courteous. 

Verdict: Do what you feel is best, but you aren't putting pressure on their kidneys. 

Myth busters Monday: Will I boil my horse?

In an effort to blog more often, I am going to try out this Myth busters Monday theme. Looking for myths, old horseman's tales, etc. to tackle so if you have one - comment!

First, a repost of mine from Aug. 2018.

To scrape or not to scrape?

Also known as, will I boil my horse if I leave him out in the sun soaking wet?

Since it's hot as balls a bit toasty again in KY and everyone is sweating, here's some science I thought I'd share.

Disclosure: I am outright stealing this from a post on FB. It is credited to Dr. David Marlin.*

After you hose your horse off, do you scrape the water off or no?

Hot and sweaty at Regionals 2017.

MYTHS

Myth 1 - “You should never put cold water on a hot horse"
Explanation - Ice-cold water(0-5°C) on hot horses does not cause shock, laminitis, kidney damage, muscle damage, tying-up or heart attacks!

Myth 2 - “Water left on a horse will heat up and insulate and make the horse hotter."
Explanation - Flawed physics! Water is a better conductor of heat than air. A wet horse will actually cool faster than a dry one, even if humidity is 100%.

Myth 3 - “Scraping is essential." Explanation - Scraping just wastes time that could be better used putting more water on to cool by conduction. Scraping also wastes water when water is in short supply. Water which could evaporate on the horse. Water evaporating on the ground doesn't cool horses down.

Myth 4 “Concentrate on large veins, arteries inside the back legs, large muscle groups"
Explanation - NO. Cooling by evaporation or conduction works by cooling the blood flowing through the small blood vessels in the skin. The more skin you cool, the quicker you cool the horse. Apply water all over.

I'll admit, I followed the old rule of always hose, scrape, hose, scrape for a long time until I read the actual science behind it. How would I have known any better? But now I just keep hosing Hampton, and then turn him right back out. In the sun! *gasp* No scraping anymore. Here's more:

Evaporation and conduction.

Ideally, I would hose Hampton and then let him sit under a fan for a while. I mean think about it - when it is 95 degrees, and you splash water on your face or over your head, do you get hotter or do you get a cooling effect? 

So there's no harm in the hose, scrape method. But it seems a little pointless.

(Edited to add: Sometimes I will go ahead and scrape off his belly in an effort not to totally soak the barn aisle after he is hosed)

What method do you follow?

----

* Dr. Marlin's credentials: 25 years working on equine thermoregulation. 20 plus scientific papers on equine thermoregulation. Working with endurance horses in the Gulf. Advising the racing industry on prevention and management of heat-stroke. Working with Governments on heat legislation. Working with charities on thermal stress. Working on the 1996 Atlanta, 2004 Athens, 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Currently working on the 2018 Tryon World Equestrian Games and Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Author of the FEI Guidelines for National Federations on the management of horses in thermally challenging conditions.

Damn, it's 7 a.m.

This was 6:45 am haha

Meadowlake near Lexington has been hosting these one-day rated shows on a Wednesday and it is fabulous. I wish there were more shows like this.

Anyway, my barn friend K and I hauled down early (3 am wake up call), showed our horses and were back home by 11. Really not a bad way to spend a morning. And then have the afternoon to day drink. 

Put the boys on the trailer at 4:30 am. Wonder what they were talking about.

I did the I-1 this time, again in the snaffle. And once again, Hampton was really quite nice. No diving, no shutting down, no getting stuck. Ears up, no grinding teeth. Out test was smooth and organized. I did screw up the start of the two-tempis, but that doesn't bother me. It was just a minor bobble.

Decent line of 3s in this video. I think he looks higher in the poll than in the double. And he did a weird stutter step in the last change. Also, had I been more anal I would have started the changes a little later so that the third change was right over X. 

Sidenote: I was suffering from a VERY poorly located abscess that hindered by ability to really sit and anchor in the saddle so I am super proud of Hampton who went into school master mode when I couldn't be 100%.  (no, I'm not posting a photo. But it's on my bikini line. My crotch, if you will. From a stupid ingrown hair.)

Post-ride grazing time!

Here's a video of the canter zig zag. The GP Zigzag is what started the entire meltdown back in May. So I was like whaaaaaat is ganna happen here. Nothing. Nothing happened. He did it very nicely.

The judge rewarded us with a solid 64.2%. Nothing lower than a 6! Of course Hampton needs to be more uphill, and have more engagement. Which will forever be my struggle. But I had a willing, happy horse and I think it boosted his confidence and definitely mine. Showing in the snaffle seems to be working.

Winner!

I'm not sure what to do now. Do we try an I-2? I am scared to death of another GP test like we had in May. Should I work my way back up? Or just stay at I-1 where Hampton is quite happy? Lots to think about. 

Horse show mornings are the best.
Especially when you are done before 8 am lol

He has also been sweating really great lately! My combination of OneAC, SweatWell, and Beer seems to be working for the moment. Plus electrolytes. *knocks on wood*

And in other news, Buckley got a summer hair cut and it really highlightsh his fupa.