I had one of the best weekends I've had in a long, long while. So lemme run it down for you and share the exhausted bliss. This might take a while.

A video posted by bekaburke (@bekaburke) on Mar 31, 2015 at 10:12am PDT

We've talked about our ponies' preferred activities and treats and all the weird things they need.  Let's look a little more at that thing we can't really (okay, we could, but let's not think about it) remove from their lives:  ourselves.

More good group trail rides. (old photo)

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Fortunately, it's a fucking mural, so at least it's pretty to look at.

We've talked about what your horse doesn't like to do, and I don't want to confuse this with that.  I'm not talking about personality quirks or training foibles.  Tell me:  if you could change something (or things) about your horse, what would you?

I would give Archie better joints.  His joints (and front feet) are shit.  We've been lucky that the level of (non)work that we do hasn't necessitated injections to keep him sound.  He's been diagnosed with ringbone, he's had his hocks and hind ankles injected, and at his pre-purchase, the vet said that he had shitty knees.  God, how does he even move?

So, beyond the joints, I'd changed the length of his back.  I know that the length of the spine affects the functionality and movement of the horse, but I really think it'd be easier for him to have a stronger back if there were less of it.  He's like two ribs too long.  And downhill, let's fix that.  Magic, everywhere.

Downhill is exaggerated, but you get the gist.

And, finally, if I can be a petty motherfucker, I'd give him like a hand in height.  I know that my just-over-16-hands-or-something horse is considered tall.  But Duke was 17.3 and I felt like that was the bestest, safest height.  Ponies scare me.  Drafts enthrall me.

As Koby reached across him, she said, "Oh, he's tall."  And I swooned.

Um......  I guess I'd just change his conformation.



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Written to the sound of Irish folk music and the cheers and jeers of the parade-watchers. 

Old photo: our first together.

While I know that there will be other horses, Archie is my heart horse.  I've had inquiries about purchasing him (what the fuck were those people thinking?!), but I will own him for the rest of his life.  My hope is that he'll be comfortable in work for another five years.  That'll put him at 23.  Perfectly doable, right?  Even arthritic, with ringbone?  The biggest concern that I have is that his mind will push us on long after his body wants to retire.  Archie has spunk.

Spunk.

Until then, I aspire to do a beginner novice event.  If he tells me that jumping is too much, we'll work on trail and dressage.  If that never happens, I'm perfectly content being a backyard rider and making the most of our two-foot fences.

So here's the other half of that.  My husband is amazing, but he is not a horse person.  If something were to happen to me tomorrow, he would be saddled with two dogs, three cats, two cars, a mortgage and a horse.  In my concerns about the additional burden boarding and the level of owner involvement that I would want for my horse, I have taken out a ginormous life insurance plan.  If I die, Archie automatically gets shipped to a retirement farm in Tennessee where he will live out the rest of his days.

*Every answer is acceptable because you always have the best interest of the horse in mind.  Right?

Ps.  Many thanks to L for her 10:00 PM reminder.  :)
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I knew that this would happen eventually. I missed a Saturday posting. In my defense, I thought yesterday was Sunday because we crammed all the Sunday in it, so we could go out of town today.  I only just remembered.  :(

I was really fortunate that the weather was so shitty last week, because the cold rain only seemed to help with Archie's cellulitis. Woo. By Wednesday of last week, the only heat was in the fugly sore on the front of his leg. After that, his leg started revealing more of its normal definition and by the weekend, I would say that all swelling had subsided.

"I am becoming a horrible shit."