Re: RC: RE: Re: My Broken Jaw & Arabian Stereotypes

[DESERTRYDR1@aol.com]

Speaking of the lip chain, I had to use it today on my mare.  Last night my 
friend Barb and I went riding.  She took Windsong, her backup horse.  My 
mare, Fog, HATES Windsong and it seems to be mutual.  Everything is ok if Fog 
is ahead and Windsong is directly behind her.  But if Windsong tries to come 
up alongside, Fog will try to turn and kick.  And if Windsong manages to 
manuever herself ahead, by not riding on the same trail for a ways, then Fog 
won't pass her.  Which gets pretty interesting, as Windsong hates to lead, 
and she will stop.  Then Fog stops.  We have to just about beat them to death 
(I'm joking--taps with a riding crop is as severe as I get)  to get going 
again.  The trailer ride out to the riding trails went ok.  The ride was 
better than in the past when these two were together.  But the ride home!  
Whole nuther story.  We got about 1/2 mile down the road and the trailer (two 
horse slant) started thumping and rocking hard enough to come off the ball 
almost!  We stopped and went back there and Fog was kicking and wouldn't 
stop.  She finally calmed down and we started up, got another  1/2 mile and 
the same thing.  They were both sweating and shaking like crazy.  We 
shortened both the lead ropes and opened a dropdown and finally made it home. 
 I took her out of the trailer and she had cuts on the side of her hinds that 
were closest to Windsong.  We figure that Windsong started it by cow-kicking 
Fog, and since Fog was in the first stall, all she could do was kick straight 
back.  Her hocks were also somewhat shredded.  Nothing real deep, just some 
pretty good scratches and scrapes.  I hosed her down then put her in her 
corral.  Went out this AM and hosed again, she had some stuff stuck to the 
wounds, so I had to scrub them off with a sponge.  You would think I was 
killing her!  Fog HATES being doctored, especially her hind legs!  She 
doesn't kick, but swings her hind leg at you, swings her butt back and forth, 
and in general makes it hard to get close.  I had someone come out and hold 
up a front leg, thinking she would have to stand.  HA HA!   Finally I ran the 
chain like I was going to put it over her nose, then slipped it up under her 
upper lip, pulled it just snug, and the halter ring held it in place.  Worked 
great, and no one had hold of the chain, no one had to help me, I never had 
to pull on the chain.  She stood there and let me do what I had to do.  I 
loosened it up and it dropped out of her mouth, no problem, no stress.  It is 
possible to use a lip chain without hurting the horse, you just have to hook 
it so that the pressure of the free end through the halter ring holds it in 
place.  

I know I should train this horse to allow doctoring, but I raised her from 
birth, and she's seven now, and every time it has been a major struggle.  She 
hates shots, hates my chiropractor's adjuster tool, which sounds just like 
the clicker I sometimes use in training.  If she wasn't the nicest, smoothest 
riding horse in other respects...I dunno--dogfood?    jeri